Need tech advice, quick · 5:39pm Sep 22nd, 2018
Well'p, my laptop is on its last legs. The picture keeps fuzzing out frequently. I could open it back up and try readjusting things, but the first attempt at doing so definitely resulted in some broken internals. It's time for a new one, and I have a road toward getting one. What I need is suggestions for what to get. Specifications below.
What I Have:
An ASUS laptop of some kind running Windows 8.1 Whatever I get will have Win 10 on it, that's fine, I can't avoid it.
Intel Core i5 1.6 GHz PCU
6 GB Dual-Channel DDR3 RAM
Around 500 GB HDD
Video and audio are nothing special
13" screen
What I Need:
The primary work-intense thing I do with this computer is use OBS to record Tabletop Simulator on Steam. This has a tendency to result in videos with dropped frames. I've tried reducing the framerate, it didn't help at all. Running this for an hour at a time, on average, necessitates restarting the computer before and after, just to keep things moving. I don't know if this is a RAM issue, a processor issue, or both, but anything else I do -- reading, listening to audiobooks, word processing, graphics on occasion -- won't come anywhere near that video recording method in terms of raw strain on the system.
Minimum 3 USB and 1 HDMI port. That's what this computer has. I sometimes wish it had more, but I can work with that.
13" is pretty good for a screen. I've had smaller, 11" is probably fine, almost assuredly don't want bigger, since I carry this around a lot. :B
Not ASUS. c.c ASUS is shit. I got this because my previous laptop was an Acer, and when the guy at the store asked me what I had, I couldn't remember and the two sound a lot alike. D:
Uhh... Solid State Hard Drive, I guess? I move this around a lot, that's important.
Oh yes, and price point is... Probably as little as possible, considering. Under a thousand, for sure. :B My parents will be footing the bill, from Best Buy, because they've got a thing there, so I don't want to stretch their generosity any more than I have to, considering they've already bought me one computer in the last year. -.-;
Point is, I need suggestions, if anyone has them, for things I can look into, whether it be entire rigs or just "here's the specs you need to upgrade to". I have two things to do today, "find a new laptop" is one of them, so hopefully this fucker will hold out long enough for me to do so. D: I'll be back in a few hours to see what's been come up with. I'm counting on you guys. :B
What's the budget? Pm me and I'll try my best to find you something
Time to buy a Chromebook, I guess.
Get an Acer Predator 17 :v
4941978
Chromebook can't handle what he wants to do with it
If it's not in warranty, get a new laptop.
Looking at the requirements for OBS (https://obsproject.com/wiki/System-Requirements), here's what I think you should look for:
- Intel i5 or i7, gen. 4 or later (you'll probably mostly see gen 7 and gen 8 these days in new laptops, listed as, eg., i7-7xxx or i5-8xxx, etc.).
- might as well get 16 GB of memory, save yourself the potential future frustration of going too low. You'll thank me later.
- SSD definitely important. They changed my life. I'm not going back.
- discrete GPU (eg., nVidia) is not so important for what you're running now, so don't worry about that, but some laptops will have them.
A few immediately show up on Newegg.com fitting this bill, for example:
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAE4N7EJ6379
Dell. Doesn't have a discrete GPU. Does have HDMI and 3 USB ports. One of them is only USB 2.0, so just use that one for whatever doesn't need USB 3 speeds and you're fine.
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834154993
MSI. Has an nVidia GPU, so that's kinda helpful for games, but it's not a very powerful one. I wouldn't get a very powerful one in a laptop anyway, though, since heat issues tend to plague them (laptops are just not a great powergaming platform to begin with and there's not a lot that can be done about it - you can't change the laws of physics to magically make heat dissipation work better). Has HDMI and 4x USB 3.1 ports - note that two of these ports are USB-C, but that's no real issue, get yourself something like one of these converter two-packs: https://www.amazon.com/Syntech-Adapter-Thunderbolt-Compatible-MacBook/dp/B077FY7831 and now you have 4x USB 3.1 type A connectors.
Hope that helps.
Echoing everything Winston said, with emphasis on SSDs. They're brilliant and I gag whenever I have to use a machine still running a standard HDD.
The only thing I can tell you is yes, you absolutely definitely want a solid-state drive. Really hope computer shopping goes well!
4941969
Should've mentioned that, huh? <.<;; It's, uh... less than a thousand? Preferably a lot less? I'll update the post.
4941994
...yeah, that's what I'm asking for advice on, what to get. c.c This thing's five years old.
4941995
This is helpful, thank you. :)
Any opinions on refurbished laptops? Because that's all I'm finding in my price range. ._.
Win 10 is better than 8.1 anyway. It will also run out of support eventually.
4941995 Great suggestions.
4942049 If you're looking for something similar to what you currently have, or if the above suggestions are outside your price range, try this out: https://www.amazon.com/VivoBook-i5-8250U-NanoEdge-Fingerprint-F510UA-AH51/dp/B0762S8PYM
This has:
- 1.6 GHz Intel Core i5
- 8 GB DDR4 RAM
- 1000 GB HDD
- 1 HDMI port
- 2 USB 2.0 ports, 1 USB 3.0 port
- 15.6" screen
It's a minor improvement on what you currently own, with a bigger screen, more (and better) RAM, and more disk space. The only downside is the number of USB ports, but if you can make that work, I'd say it's pretty much what you're looking for.
4941995
4942055
Given price points and where I have to get it from, this appears to be the best I can do. :B It's upgradable to 16 GB RAM, at least?
4942058
I somehow missed that it was Best Buy, my apologies.
I thought I had found a good one, but upon closer inspection, it only has 2 USB ports and an HDD. If you're looking for SSD within your price range, with 8 GB of RAM, that's probably the best you can do.
4941991
Yo those things are siiiick. Honestly though, Acer's multimedia laptops are pretty darn good. My brother uses one for gaming, and we have a netbook from 2009 that my siblings still play Minecraft, Starcraft, and Skyrim on.
I myself use a Dell Inspirion i7559 multimedia laptop. It's way good for my needs, but it measures at 15.6 inches and weighs almost 6 pounds :P
4942058
Specs from https://www.cnet.com/products/dell-latitude-e7250-12-5-core-i5-5300u-8-gb-ram-256-gb-ssd/specs/ say that this laptop is upgradable to 16GB of RAM. It only has one slot, though, which means you'll need to buy a 16GB stick of DDR3L 1600 Mhz memory, which on newegg.com seems to run anywhere from $130 to $200. Having to do that upgrade after the fact adds a significant enough chunk of expense that, honestly, you'd either break even or come out better by just looking for something that's stocked with 16GB out of the gate.
My thoughts on refurb laptops is that they're actually a great deal. The laptop I bought to get me through my bachelor's program was a refurb that I picked up really cheap because it was an older base model, which I then heavily upgraded with a ton of memory and an SSD to bring up to higher performance. That strategy worked really well for me. The average person would probably just want to get something they don't have to get too hands-on about working on themselves, but refurbs are still a great option for that, given the potential for savings vs. buying brand new.
Also note that the Dell Latitude at Best Buy only has a 1366 x 768 resolution screen, which isn't a lot (although I don't know your exact needs, so it may or may not be good enough for what you're doing). I think this is another thing that's very worth a little extra to not compromise on. 1920x1080 is a way better picture, honestly.
If you can afford to go just a bit more than the Dell at Best Buy lists for, you could consider something like this:
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834849166
Dell E6540 refurb
4942049
Get an Acer Aspire V15 or V17 Nitro then. They're like 800.
Does it have to be a laptop, the generaly have poor video compared to a box computer.
Also SSD or go home
4942118
That's the resolution I'm using on both my laptop and my desktop. It's fine. Any smaller and I'm not gonna be able to read text. :/
4942199
I need the portability, plus more power than a tablet can provide. I've already got a desktop, and that's for media editing.
4942326
Well, only needing a 1366 x 768 screen opens up some lower-priced models like this, then:
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA5WM7W22797
Similar Dell to the ones before, but with the lower resolution screen this one only comes out to around $425, figuring in shipping, to meet all your specs.
While it probably only narrows things down a bit, a nvidia gpu would help you with the streaming aspect, as it allows you to use the gpu for what is otherwise a cpu-intensice activity, freeing up some of your other hardware.
4942133
I second this, those are good ones.
You might want to look through this list too, it's good: https://www.reddit.com/r/SuggestALaptop/comments/85xevt/best_laptop_recommendations_2018_guide_for/
4942326
1920x1080 was a huge jump for me too, but once you get used to it you look at 1366 like the fuck is this shit.
4943419
Admittedly, I know what you mean, I had the same experience going to... actually, whatever's before 1366 XD 1280?