Ultrabooks for less than $1500??

Forums › Laptops and mobile computers › Ultrabooks for less than $1500??

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loceff13

1065 posts

Uber Geek

#1245733 24-Feb-2015 17:26

benokobi:
nathan: Microsoft Surface Pro 3 i5, 128GB Tablet
$ 1079.00 https://www.noelleeming.co.nz/shop/computers/windows-8-tablets/microsoft-mq2-00007-surface-pro-3-i5-128gb-tablet/prod130391.html

Just got mine for ~$1600 including the type cover literally 2 days before they went on sale. Still worth the $1600 price tag but really annoyed as I could have got the docking station as well for what I paid.

Love the kickstand and pretty much everything. Only problem I have is google chrome being blurry which is not really any fault of the surface.

Might pay to see if that retailer has a price promise offer etc

panda123

172 posts

Master Geek

#1350823 23-Jul-2015 21:38

Back to this topic now. So I'm almost ready to get a new laptop but stuck between 2 choices, the Dell XPS 13 with FHD not QHD (FHD, 256 GB SSD, 8gb ram) or the Macbook Pro with Retina display (256GB, 8GB ram). The laptop would be used for mainly uni work and movies with possibly some video editing in the near future from my gopro, also would like to do some light games such as steam games, league of legend, the witcher 3 (low to medium setting). Can anyone help me with this?

Ive also heard about some problems with the trackpad for the dell xps 13

Krishant007

1403 posts

Uber Geek

#1350836 23-Jul-2015 22:02

Go with the macbook pro retina. You will get a lot more mileage out of it.

tardtasticx

3075 posts

Uber Geek

#1350841 23-Jul-2015 22:15

Deffo recommend a MacBook. The Air is a great machine, the Retina Pro is just fantastic. Both have lasted all day (the Air much longer however) but the Pro will handle a bit more and last longer I think in terms of product lifecycle.

Check the EDU pricing on Apples site and take it in to a JBHIFI, they've price matched Apples EDU pricing on the last 2 MacBooks, an iPad, and an iMac I got (All purchased about a year apart). Saved quite some money as usually Apple products don't get discounted.

panda123

172 posts

Master Geek

#1350858 23-Jul-2015 22:34

tardtasticx: Deffo recommend a MacBook. The Air is a great machine, the Retina Pro is just fantastic. Both have lasted all day (the Air much longer however) but the Pro will handle a bit more and last longer I think in terms of product lifecycle. Check the EDU pricing on Apples site and take it in to a JBHIFI, they've price matched Apples EDU pricing on the last 2 MacBooks, an iPad, and an iMac I got (All purchased about a year apart). Saved quite some money as usually Apple products don't get discounted.

Wouldnt it be the same price if i get it via the apple site with student discount or match the price at JB HIFI or go to yoobee and try get a student discount?

tardtasticx

3075 posts

Uber Geek

#1350861 23-Jul-2015 22:47

panda123:
tardtasticx: Deffo recommend a MacBook. The Air is a great machine, the Retina Pro is just fantastic. Both have lasted all day (the Air much longer however) but the Pro will handle a bit more and last longer I think in terms of product lifecycle. Check the EDU pricing on Apples site and take it in to a JBHIFI, they've price matched Apples EDU pricing on the last 2 MacBooks, an iPad, and an iMac I got (All purchased about a year apart). Saved quite some money as usually Apple products don't get discounted.

Wouldnt it be the same price if i get it via the apple site with student discount or match the price at JB HIFI or go to yoobee and try get a student discount?

I always go to JBHIFI with the EDU site on my phone or something and show them the listing. It's easier than dealing with Apple, shipping companies, ID cards etc. They do a few taps on their little PDA thing, print a receipt and take me to the counter where I pay for it at the price on Apples site. They haven't even asked for my ID in the past either. Other stores probably do it but the main reason I go with them now is because they consistently match Apples pricing, JBHIFI is literally everywhere, and they always have stock of what I want.

I've tried to get the student discount at YooBee but they needed ID cards and proof of study etc which I don't always carry on me, and lots of items aren't included in their discount/are only for tertiary staff etc. I don't buy on the Apple site simply because the items are so expensive, and having dealt with courier companies at work day in and day out, I can hardly trust them to ship a letter to the other side of town without losing it let alone an $1800 iMac from overseas.

jonb

1771 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1351158 24-Jul-2015 13:39

This is a great deal on an ASUS TP500LN. In the Just Laptops email I got it said the price is $1199 in July. (But only 1366*768 and no SSD)

http://www.justlaptops.net.nz/asus-tp500ln-flip-touch-core-i7-8gb-1tb-gt840m-2gb-3114?filter_name=tp500#!prettyPhoto

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panda123

172 posts

Master Geek

#1351992 26-Jul-2015 14:03

got a few questions if I were to get a Macbook Pro.
1) If I were to play Witcher 3/League of legends/steam games on it would i have to first boot camp windows onto the mac and would i be able to connect a xbox controller to the macbook pro like i can with a normal windows laptop?
2) I have heard that the gpu on the dell xps 13 is better than the one in the macbook pro for gaming, is that true?
3) With a pro retina, can i use normal portable harddrives such as WD My Passport Ultra or do I need a Mac specific one such as WD My Passport for Macs?

Dreal

417 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1352012 26-Jul-2015 14:59

The Dell is rated as great by everyone.

Or you could buy a macbook and load windows on it. Personally I think that would probably be not as good, and more expensive. Plus there is that USB-c thing, which requires an adapter, and only has one port. One port on a laptop, is kind of annoying.

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Xeon

302 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1352024 26-Jul-2015 15:36

panda123: got a few questions if I were to get a Macbook Pro.
1) If I were to play Witcher 3/League of legends/steam games on it would i have to first boot camp windows onto the mac and would i be able to connect a xbox controller to the macbook pro like i can with a normal windows laptop?
2) I have heard that the gpu on the dell xps 13 is better than the one in the macbook pro for gaming, is that true?
3) With a pro retina, can i use normal portable harddrives such as WD My Passport Ultra or do I need a Mac specific one such as WD My Passport for Macs?

1)
LoL has a Mac client.
Witcher 3 has no Mac client and therefore would require bootcamp.
Depending on the steam game it may or may not have a Mac version; you'd have to check.
You'd have to install a driver for the Xbox Controller, but other then that should work as expected.

2)
2012 and Early 2013 Macbook Pro Retina used a Nvidia GT650M for 15" and Intel HD 4000 for 13"
Late 2013 and Early 2014 used Nvidia GT750M for 15" and Intel Iris 5100 for 13"
2015 used Iris Pro 5200 for 15" and Intel Iris 6100 for 13" but some 15" also have AMD Radeon R9 M370X
XPS 13 has Intel HD Graphics 5500

And it goes something like: HD 4000<HD 5500<Iris 5100<Iris 6100<Iris Pro 5200<650M<750M<M370X
Honestly none of these are great for gaming, they'll struggle with Witcher 3 but be fine with LoL and other older games; but Ultrabook and gaming are two things that don't mix well.
I wouldn't expect much of 6100 and below, the rest should just manage recent [high-end type] games on low quality/resolution.

3)
Windows uses NTFS, Mac uses HSF+; You can format any drive as either NTFS or HSF+ and it will work fine on either Windows or Mac computers.
If you want to read a NTFS drive on Mac you'll generally need an extra program/driver. Similarly for HSF+ drive on Windows.

Dreal: The Dell is rated as great by everyone.

Or you could buy a macbook and load windows on it. Personally I think that would probably be not as good, and more expensive. Plus there is that USB-c thing, which requires an adapter, and only has one port. One port on a laptop, is kind of annoying.

It's only the 'Macbook' which has just the USB-C port.

lokhor

2858 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1352029 26-Jul-2015 15:52

Another vote for MacBook Pro 13" and MacBook Air, we have both and they are pretty great. Pro's screen is miles better though.

All comments are my own opinion, and not that of my employer unless explicitly stated.

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