Should I buy this Laptop?

Matthew Lamb

Beta member
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4
Location
Australia
Hi all,

I've finished school and need a laptop for university next year. I will be studying engineering so I don't think it has to be amazing, but it does need to be able to run at least some engineering programs and crunch some data (in a reasonable amount of time of course). I would of also like to be able to play a game called ARMA 2 Operation Arrowhead (for DayZ).

I came across this laptop for $649.00 AUD

Specs are as follows,

Processor: Intel Core i7-2637M 1.70 GHz 4MB Cache
Chipset Model: HM77 Express
Standard Memory: 10 GB DDR3 SDRAM
Hard Drive Capacity: 500 GB
SSD: 20GB
Screen Size: 39.6 cm (15.6") Active Matrix TFT Colour LCD CineCrystal 16:09 HD LED
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M 1GB
Networking: Yes IEEE 802.11b/g/n Gigabit Ethernet

Here is the link as well (I understand why you may not want to click it though...) BONUS: 6GB RAM (TOTAL 10GB) - Acer Aspire M3-581TG NX.RYKSA.006-C77 i7 2637M 1.70Ghz, 4GB RAM, 500GB, 20GB SSD, 15.6\" LED, Nvidia GT640M 1GB, WIN 7 Home Prem - Centre Com

I have three questions.

Is this good value for money?

Can I do what I want with this system?

If not. What would you recommend?

Thank you for taking the time to help me out :)
 
Hey,

I could be wrong as processors aren't my strong point but that i7 CPU looks like a 1st gen not the 3rd we are on now which means it's quite dated.

There is a decent amount of RAM in there and the graphics card isn't terrible for a laptop.
My concern would be the CPU, yes it is an i7 but it looks old to me.

Someone else on here would probably be better to advise you but I would personally prefer a 3rd gen i5 than a 1st or 2nd gen i7.

In terms of value for money I really don't know how the old i7's performed? so I couldn't say.
 
2637M is sandy bridge. Two cores, four threads. (why that qualifies as i7 is beyond me. Intel's naming is so erratic lately.) 1.7GHz is ridiculously low though. Passmark puts it around a first gen phenom x4 or core 2 quad in terms of performance. Not terrible, but I'd probably try to find a quad core i5.


Also, I may be remembering wrong, but isn't arma II the game that people were unable to max on quad sli setups when it came out? I'm not sure how well it'll do on a non-gaming laptop.
 
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Which one?

Same price @ $650 AUD each

Laptop 1. BONUS: 6GB RAM (TOTAL 10GB) - Acer Aspire M3-581TG NX.RYKSA.006-C77 i7 2637M 1.70Ghz, 4GB RAM, 500GB, 20GB SSD, 15.6\" LED, Nvidia GT640M 1GB, WIN 7 Home Prem - Centre Com

Processor: Intel Core i7-2637M 1.70 GHz 4MB Cache
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M 1GB

Laptop 2 BONUS: 8GB RAM (TOTAL 12GB) - Acer Aspire V3-571G-52454G75MAKK V3-571G-52454G75MAKK i5 2450M 2.5Ghz, 15.6\" LED, 4GB, 750GB HDD, <span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">nVidia GT630M 2GB</span>, Win 7 Home Prem - Centre Com

CPU: 2nd Generation Intel Core i5-2450M 2.5GHz with up to 2.9Ghz with Turbo Boost

Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M with 2GB Dedicated Graphics

Which one should I get? And why?

Thanks for the help
 
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2637M is sandy bridge. Two cores, four threads. (why that qualifies as i7 is beyond me. Intel's naming is so erratic lately.) 1.7GHz is ridiculously low though. Passmark puts it around a first gen phenom x4 or core 2 quad in terms of performance. Not terrible, but I'd probably try to find a quad core i5.


Also, I may be remembering wrong, but isn't arma II the game that people were unable to max on quad sli setups when it came out? I'm not sure how well it'll do on a non-gaming laptop.
Thanks

I've found this computer for the same price, it has these two major differences.

CPU: 2nd Generation Intel Core i5-2450M 2.5GHz with up to 2.9Ghz with Turbo Boost
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M with 2GB Dedicated Graphics

BONUS: 8GB RAM (TOTAL 12GB) - Acer Aspire V3-571G-52454G75MAKK V3-571G-52454G75MAKK i5 2450M 2.5Ghz, 15.6\" LED, 4GB, 750GB HDD, <span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">nVidia GT630M 2GB</span>, Win 7 Home Prem - Centre Com

Would you recommend this over the last one?
 
If you do go with an i7, be sure the part number says "QM" in the string somewhere - they are true quad core parts, as foothead alludes to them being wonky about their naming structure lately (THANKS Intel... not)

The i5s are great little chips, and to be honest, with engineering programs you'll probably want the raw IPC and throughput that a higher clocked i5 can offer over that 1.7 i7. The rest of the system looks fine, and the price being the same... it's a nobrainer if it were me.
 
Thanks

I've found this computer for the same price, it has these two major differences.

CPU: 2nd Generation Intel Core i5-2450M 2.5GHz with up to 2.9Ghz with Turbo Boost
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M with 2GB Dedicated Graphics

BONUS: 8GB RAM (TOTAL 12GB) - Acer Aspire V3-571G-52454G75MAKK V3-571G-52454G75MAKK i5 2450M 2.5Ghz, 15.6\" LED, 4GB, 750GB HDD, <span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">nVidia GT630M 2GB</span>, Win 7 Home Prem - Centre Com

Would you recommend this over the last one?

Well the CPU is slightly better, but not by a ton. It's still one of the 2core/4thread ones. You're getting a less powerful gpu though, so it may actually be worse for gaming.

I just looked through that website, and it seems the very first one you posted would actually be the best gamer for under 700 or so. Are there any other sites you can buy from that might have a better selection? I'm not familiar with any tech retailers in australia.
 
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