Boxing day laptop deals

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2807 posts

Uber Geek

#3182512 16-Jan-2024 08:52

The other thing about the Lenovo is the m/b comes with one 8GB DIMM soldered in and one DIMM socket. I got the cheapest configured one (8GB and 128GB) and added a 32GB DIMM and replaced the SSD with a 1TB for a few hundred less than the same spec model out of the box. I understand the penalty for no dual channel RAM is again, minor for most users.

Krispkiwi

55 posts

Master Geek

#3182757 16-Jan-2024 18:37

Looks like computer lounge has gifted me with some sales overnight so we have these as well:

https://www.computerlounge.co.nz/shop/laptops/gaming-laptops/msi-gaming-laptops/msi-gf-series/msi-thin-gf63-12ucx-476nz-rtx-2050-i5-12450h-8gb-512gb-gaming-laptop

https://www.computerlounge.co.nz/shop/laptops/gaming-laptops/gigabyte-laptops/gigabyte-gaming/gigabyte-g5-md-i5-11400h-rtx-3050ti-16gb-512gb-gaming-lapto

https://www.computerlounge.co.nz/shop/laptops/gaming-laptops/gigabyte-laptops/gigabyte-gaming/gigabyte-g7-gd-51au123so-173-fhd-144hz-i5-11400h-rtx-3050-16gb-512gb-w11h

Qazzy03

478 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3182770 16-Jan-2024 19:49

OP in your first post you have said you have a main PC and that the Laptop is just an extension.

I am strugging to understand why you are going for these low end 'gaming' laptops, just trying to figure out your use case because your money maybe better spent on what you need it to do vs something shiny that will not last.

Krispkiwi

55 posts

Master Geek

#3182771 16-Jan-2024 19:54

Qazzy03:

OP in your first post you have said you have a main PC and that the Laptop is just an extension.

I am strugging to understand why you are going for these low end 'gaming' laptops, just trying to figure out your use case because your money maybe better spent on what you need it to do vs something shiny that will not last.

No worries, whilst gaming is not the primary or even secondary reason for the laptop, I'd still like to get the best specs/performance for the money. I'm also not looking to spend too much as this won't be my primary computer and these do look to be coming in cheaper than the probook and the leveno suggested given PBs sale is now over. I'm coming from a Gigabyte P17F which lasted a good 5 years but the battery went after that which was fine for another year but now the powers gone too. I honestly don't expect more from a laptop life cycle wise.

Qazzy03

478 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3182772 16-Jan-2024 20:02

Krispkiwi:

No worries, whilst gaming is not the primary or even secondary reason for the laptop, I'd still like to get the best specs/performance for the money. I'm also not looking to spend too much as this won't be my primary computer and these do look to be coming in cheaper than the probook and the leveno suggested given PBs sale is now over. I'm coming from a Gigabyte P17F which lasted a good 5 years but the battery went after that which was fine for another year but now the powers gone too. I honestly don't expect more from a laptop life cycle wise.

Sorry just noticed i came across sounding very harsh.

Cool, I might have a look and toss my 2cents in.
Sounds like you want good lifespan and best specs for your approx budget which is a fair thing to look for.

Krispkiwi

55 posts

Master Geek

#3182784 16-Jan-2024 20:34

Qazzy03:

Krispkiwi:

No worries, whilst gaming is not the primary or even secondary reason for the laptop, I'd still like to get the best specs/performance for the money. I'm also not looking to spend too much as this won't be my primary computer and these do look to be coming in cheaper than the probook and the leveno suggested given PBs sale is now over. I'm coming from a Gigabyte P17F which lasted a good 5 years but the battery went after that which was fine for another year but now the powers gone too. I honestly don't expect more from a laptop life cycle wise.

Sorry just noticed i came across sounding very harsh.

Cool, I might have a look and toss my 2cents in.
Sounds like you want good lifespan and best specs for your approx budget which is a fair thing to look for.

Yeah CL said they're at or below cost so I don't think I'll find better specs for the price.

toejam316

1466 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3182785 16-Jan-2024 20:39

Bare in mind a gaming laptop is heavier, and uses more battery.
Unless you're gaming or doing GPU intensive tasks I'd recommend an Ultrabook.

Anything I say is the ramblings of an ill informed, opinionated so-and-so, and not representative of any of my past, present or future employers, and is also probably best disregarded.

Sharesies

Trade NZ and US shares and funds with Sharesies (affiliate link).

Krispkiwi

55 posts

Master Geek

#3182787 16-Jan-2024 20:42

toejam316: Bare in mind a gaming laptop is heavier, and uses more battery.
Unless you're gaming or doing GPU intensive tasks I'd recommend an Ultrabook.

I understand, cheapest ultrabook comes in higher than these, it's also under a kg difference so not too bad.

Qazzy03

478 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3182797 16-Jan-2024 21:32

Here is where I would start if I was shopping for your type of needs.

https://www.lenovo.com/nz/en/p/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpade/thinkpad-e16-(16-inch-amd)/21jtcto1wwnz2

https://www.lenovo.com/nz/en/p/laptops/ideapad/ideapad-5/ideapad-slim-5i-gen-8-(14-inch-intel)/82xdcto1wwnz3

Lenovo also allow you to change some of the specs within limits and the sale price they have on their NZ site looks to be good.

Just my 2cents

Krispkiwi

55 posts

Master Geek

#3182812 16-Jan-2024 21:41

Qazzy03:

Here is where I would start if I was shopping for your type of needs.

https://www.lenovo.com/nz/en/p/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpade/thinkpad-e16-(16-inch-amd)/21jtcto1wwnz2

https://www.lenovo.com/nz/en/p/laptops/ideapad/ideapad-5/ideapad-slim-5i-gen-8-(14-inch-intel)/82xdcto1wwnz3

Lenovo also allow you to change some of the specs within limits and the sale price they have on their NZ site looks to be good.

Just my 2cents

what's the reasoning over the gigabyte? It doesn't mention if additional storage can be inserted from what i can see

Qazzy03

478 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3182819 16-Jan-2024 22:01

Krispkiwi:

Qazzy03:

Here is where I would start if I was shopping for your type of needs.

https://www.lenovo.com/nz/en/p/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpade/thinkpad-e16-(16-inch-amd)/21jtcto1wwnz2

https://www.lenovo.com/nz/en/p/laptops/ideapad/ideapad-5/ideapad-slim-5i-gen-8-(14-inch-intel)/82xdcto1wwnz3

Lenovo also allow you to change some of the specs within limits and the sale price they have on their NZ site looks to be good.

Just my 2cents

what's the reasoning over the gigabyte? It doesn't mention if additional storage can be inserted from what i can see

Honestly, price point was my biggest factor.
Since you have a main PC, I think cheaper price point while meeting needs is better.
Technology ages super fast, rather spend less now and maybe upgrade in 3 or 4 years instead of going for 5 or more years for something that is higher price and slightly better speced.

But that is what I value, the ThinkPad E14 Gen 5 AMD can add a second SSD in the build menu but the price is way too high for it imo.

Krispkiwi

55 posts

Master Geek

#3182820 16-Jan-2024 22:08

Qazzy03:

Honestly, price point was my biggest factor.
Since you have a main PC, I think cheaper price point while meeting needs is better.
Technology ages super fast, rather spend less now and maybe upgrade in 3 or 4 years instead of going for 5 or more years for something that is higher price and slightly better speced.

But that is what I value, the ThinkPad E14 Gen 5 AMD can add a second SSD in the build menu but the price is way too high for it imo.

Yeah its the no expandability that really starts to be a turn off on this, in terms of price, once i bump them up to similar specs, IE 16gb of ram, 512GB they start to get quite close to the gigabyte with about $100 to $150 difference.

The G7 also states " G7 gaming laptop comes with two M.2 slots and one 2.5 inch swappable bay, 3 slots offering a total of up to 6TB of storage space" so that's a big plus for it over the lenovos for me. I have storage in the current laptop id like to swap over.

Qazzy03

478 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3182822 16-Jan-2024 22:26

Krispkiwi:

The G7 also states " G7 gaming laptop comes with two M.2 slots and one 2.5 inch swappable bay, 3 slots offering a total of up to 6TB of storage space" so that's a big plus for it over the lenovos for me. I have storage in the current laptop id like to swap over.

G5 seems to have that too.

Well since the storage requirements are now a factor i guess it makes it an easy choice for you.

Not many laptops would offer the type of storage options like those two.

Krispkiwi

55 posts

Master Geek

#3182823 16-Jan-2024 22:28

Qazzy03:

G5 seems to have that too.

Well since the storage requirements are now a factor i guess it makes it an easy choice for you.

Not many laptops would offer the type of storage options like those two.

There appears to be one slight issue, the display looks to be quite dim in the reviews. Probably fine for general use though. The G5s bezels look to be quite a lot bigger so I'm leaning towards the G7

Starlith

208 posts

Master Geek

Trusted

#3182927 17-Jan-2024 10:17

The key with the iGPU's is that they rely heavily on the memory bandwidth for performance and the amount of cores they have with frequencies.

That Lenovo is a great price but there are some draw backs especially with that particular Ryzen processor.

DDR4 (Not as fast as current DDR5)
Soldered Memory (Not expandable - especially for a Unified Memory iGPU)
iGPU Memory and Memory Bandwidth (DDR4 and Soldered memory limitation)
AMD Ryzen 7530u/7730U comes with Vega 8 Graphics (2018 model so fairly old)

I think the HP Elitebook 845 G9 is worth a look at as it compares well for the price and has some key advantages:

DDR5
Expandable Memory (Not soldered)
Higher GPU Memory Bandwidth (DDR5)
AMD Ryzen 6600u comes with AMD Radeon 660m iGPU (2022 model so quite recent)
You can replace almost every component
It comes with Windows Pro license

Neither are the best iGPU gaming machines but provide enough flexibility to have some fun, I tend to use the Steam Deck as a baseline standard for iGPU gaming and figure out where my device scales from there.

The best of the bunch would be an AMD Ryzen 6800u with AMD Radeon 680m iGPU if you find one of them at a good price its worth its weight in gold.

I forgot to mention that if the device has USB4/TB3 you can also utilise an eGPU to boost gaming performance when docked to it.

There will be some performance penalties with eGPU due to USB4/TB3 bandwidth limitations compared to the full PCIe x16 so you won't be able to unlock the full GPU performance but it will still be better than the iGPU and it will reduce your Laptop thermals.

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