Good 1080p 15 inch laptop

[Enigmoid]

What would you recommend as a 15 inch laptop with a 1080p screen. I would prefer decent battery life and a price of around $1000, (preferably $900). I live in canada. If it is possible to get a dgpu and a i7 quad then great.

Thanks.

 

[mango123]

I believe you are going to be hard pressed to find a 15" 1080 lappy.... as I believe it's impossible.

1080p = 1920 x 1080 resolution in full HD

1920x1080 = not going to happen in a 15" 15" = something like 1328x768

I am pretty sure you are going to need a 20 or 21 more so probably 21 inch screen.

 

[stateofmind]

For Canada, the Eurocom Fox 4.0 is an excellent option - do you need a new Windows copy or you can install one yourself?

 

[Enigmoid]

I believe you are going to be hard pressed to find a 15" 1080 lappy.... as I believe it's impossible.

1080p = 1920 x 1080 resolution in full HD

1920x1080 = not going to happen in a 15" 15" = something like 1328x768

I am pretty sure you are going to need a 20 or 21 more so probably 21 inch screen.

There are plenty, I just need one at a cheaper price.
Possible models (pretty much all 15 inch gaming laptops--out of my price range--Asus, MSI)
Dell xps 15
Dell inspiron 15 r special edition (crappy battery so no)
Some hp models (dv6)--in canada they are expensive and hp is crap
lenovo y580 (so far the best that I am considering).
Other "premium" notebooks are also 1080p.

Im just looking for a cheaper one (not $1200+) which most of them are.

Hell I have a 2007 dell laptop 15.4 inches 1050 x 1680. The 15 inch rmbp is 2880 x 1800, higher than any desktop.

 

[stateofmind]

what for?
no gaming at all? some special features?

 

[kleinkinstein]

Lenovo T520 new or T530 on ebay @ $1000

 

[Enigmoid]

what for?
no gaming at all? some special features?

Minor gaming, mostly general usage (I have a lot of things open), cant stand 1366 x 768. Im using a dell xps 15 which is a decent computer except for a couple problems. Charger cord is frayed (unsafe to use-- you can see the copper wire). Its wrapped in duct tape now but its still getting worse (because I bring my computer to school every day). The battery is also shot (which is why I need the power cord) and I get about 2 hours (which is not enough). The laptop suffers from poor RAM quality (never seen it go above 80% (have 4 GB) but instead have massive slowdowns due to HDD caching). It suffers from periodic crashes (stupid dell drivers that are never updated). The computer also overheats with the cpu and Mobo at 100 degrees celcius under load and idles at 60 (which is why I don't game so much). Given these problems I decided to just buy a new computer and give this one to my dad (who will keep it on his desk so battery and charger are not an issue; he only runs light stuff on it).

Lenovo T520 new or T530 on ebay @ $1000

Im thinking about going with the lenovo y580. I can get it with the 1080p screen for $989 which is so far the best deal I can find (employee pricing). Lenovo also has a really cheap warrenty 3 years in home service for $83.
I looked at the T530 (I can get it new with the employee discount) it would be $839 with the 1080p screen but would be less spec wise than the y580 in almost every way. I know there is a big difference in quality but it would be slower than my current computer. I need 8 GB ram. 320 GB hD would have to be replaced too. The y580 gets a better cpu (i7 vs i5) more RAM (8 GB vs 4 GB), bigger HD, a dGPU (gtx 660 is quite good). I have to add $30 for a webcam on the t 530 (wtf- I thought all laptops made after 2010 had one by default). I kinda hate the upgrade options for the t530 and I feel like they are nickle and diming me (16 GB RAM is $1060--RIDICULOUS).

To state of mind. I would need a new copy of windows so it would add up to being more expensive.

So is there anything better than the y580?

Thanks

 

[MarkLuvsCS]

I know it's pretty tough considering the quality of the Tankpad series. I think once you go Thinkpad, you never go back. RAM upgrades are crazy like most OEMs, but you can easily get 2x4gb 1.35v DDR3 1600 ram for about $40. If gaming is more of a primary concern the y580 will have the edge, but my T530 with the nvs5400m w/ i7 quad can play all the games I play at medium/high settings @ 1080p. Guildwars 2 probably the most demanding that I've put on it and medium settings nets me 40-50fps. I would probably honestly recommend the dual-core though to save a little bit more on battery life, because it doesn't sound like it's going to be too demanding.

 

[kevinsbane]

So is there anything better than the y580?

Thanks

Yes. The T530. Lenovo's stuff is typical consumer level stuff, with the exception of the Thinkpad lines which is excellent.

That being said, if you're going to be gaming (and you don't have a desktop), then go with the Y580. The Canadian EPP deal that is going on is a good deal. It'll definitely be better for gaming and blu-ray playback, but that's about all it'll be better at. I would personally prefer a T530, to get a better keyboard + Trackpoint, good build quality, excellent durability, and a better screen (the T530 uses the same 1080p screen as the W530, which is widely considered the best Lenovo laptop panel) That's me though; for laptops, I look at the intangibles more than specs, since specs on a laptop all too often mean very little. Keyboard, mouse, screen, battery life, weight, durability first - then specs.

 

[Sunburn74]

HP envy 15 inch. Comes with a full 1080p screen, great specs and looks quite nice. Price is 600 for refurb and 899 for new buy on ebay and pay a little extra for the shipping.

 

[ultimatebob]

Don't get an XPS 15... They are flimsy plastic garbage.

 

[Phynaz]

HP envy 15 inch. Comes with a full 1080p screen, great specs and looks quite nice. Price is 600 for refurb and 899 for new buy on ebay and pay a little extra for the shipping.

Have you personally used an HP machine? Their displays are complete crap.

 

[pelov]

Don't get an XPS 15... They are flimsy plastic garbage.

Not to mention overheat like mad. Every review I've read on it says it stutters like mad.

I'd get a Y580, OP. Good cooling, decent 1080p screen and easily upgradeable.

 

[lehtv]

Asus N56VZ $1150

15" 1920x1080
i7-3610QM 45W 2.3-3.3GHz 4C/8T
8GB DDR3
750GB HDD
Geforce 650M (good for light gaming)
BlueTooth 4.0
Blu-ray player
2-year warranty

Battery life not that great given the display and only 6 cells.

I've had some experience with Asus laptops, I find them very good overall (though I do dislike the chiclet keyboard). The build quality is not Lenovo, but the components are good compared to the cost, and it doesn't feel as cheap as HP and Acer (note the warranty).

 

[datwater]

MSI GE60 can be had for around $1000. Light (around 5.5lbs) for a 15" laptop, beautiful matte 1920x1080, i7Quad, 8gb, GTX 660m or 650m depending on config.

 

[Chiropteran]

I just ordered a Y580 myself. My priorities were a good GPU, decent CPU, blu-ray reader drive, and being under $1000. The Inspiron 17R Special Edition was another contender, but I figure a 17 inch laptop is just getting way too big IMO. The 15R Special Edition was close to the Y580 in many ways, but it's lesser GPU sounded like a risk factor as I was also reading the dell forums where people were complaining about dell's provided drivers and it sounded like you couldn't use AMD's drivers directly.

I went with the extended warranty + accidental damage coverage because I'll probably pass the machine down to my wife after a few years of use, and she seems to be cursed- laptops have a short lifespan in her hands.

 

[frozentundra123456]

I believe you are going to be hard pressed to find a 15" 1080 lappy.... as I believe it's impossible.

1080p = 1920 x 1080 resolution in full HD

1920x1080 = not going to happen in a 15" 15" = something like 1328x768

I am pretty sure you are going to need a 20 or 21 more so probably 21 inch screen.

It wasn't cheap, but I have a dell latitude laptop for my work that has a 15.6 inch screen with a very nice matte 1080p display.

 

[frozentundra123456]

MSI GE60 can be had for around $1000. Light (around 5.5lbs) for a 15" laptop, beautiful matte 1920x1080, i7Quad, 8gb, GTX 660m or 650m depending on config.

Yea that looks nice. I like the thin style but wonder how is the cooling.

 

[Enigmoid]

Asus N56VZ $1150

15" 1920x1080
i7-3610QM 45W 2.3-3.3GHz 4C/8T
8GB DDR3
750GB HDD
Geforce 650M (good for light gaming)
BlueTooth 4.0
Blu-ray player
2-year warranty

Battery life not that great given the display and only 6 cells.

I've had some experience with Asus laptops, I find them very good overall (though I do dislike the chiclet keyboard). The build quality is not Lenovo, but the components are good compared to the cost, and it doesn't feel as cheap as HP and Acer (note the warranty).

Thanks, that looks pretty good except the battery seems to suck pretty bad and I need the battery. Cooling seems to be pretty bad too under load. My curent laptop gets pretty scary temps of 95-98 degrees under load (CPU + mobo) and I want to stay away from hot computers.

I think I'll go with the y580, probably order in the next week or so. (when they reduce the price from 1029 to 999).

 

[datwater]

Yea that looks nice. I like the thin style but wonder how is the cooling.

I used it for diablo III at high settings 1920 and it didn't get hot nor nearly as loud as my Lenovo y460p.

 

[Ichigo]

Thanks, that looks pretty good except the battery seems to suck pretty bad and I need the battery. Cooling seems to be pretty bad too under load. My curent laptop gets pretty scary temps of 95-98 degrees under load (CPU + mobo) and I want to stay away from hot computers.

I think I'll go with the y580, probably order in the next week or so. (when they reduce the price from 1029 to 999).

Some online retailers are selling the Y580 for ~$800. Look around.