Another, would it benefit me to get a MBP thread...

[psyichic]

Well yes this is another one of those threads (Sorry). My problem is more a question of replacement then one of getting either a laptop for the first time or really needing a new laptop.

My big predicament is that right now I have an ASUS F3SV which has an 8600M GS in it (Which is one of those wonderful NVIDIA video cards that we are all being told is defective). Luckily my laptop has not shown any signs of death (yet) and it still runs fine. I am covered by a 2 year warranty but that will run out somewhere near the end of this summer. I don't want this thing to decide to fail out on me after summer and part of the way through my year but I guess if that does happen I will simply bite the bullet and just spring for a new laptop.

My question though is if it would be worth it to just go for a MBP here and now and not sit on a time bomb. As a user I would say I am a relatively average college student, I want the computer to play games (Although I do have a Gaming desktop rig so I don't feel the need to have a laptop that can play things at full specs but I do want to be able to play modern games), be productive in class (Have a decent battery life, With my screen on minimum brightness and processor clocked way down on my current laptop I get 1.5 hours max), I do some amateur photography and after struggling with the Lightroom 2 Demo and an excessive amount of desk head-banging I am wondering if using Aperture would make my life a tad bit easier. I also want a laptop that can take a little bit of jostling around. Nothing crazy but my current laptop's hinge is cracking due to pressure it received in my backpack

The biggest thing that gets me about the MBP that has held me back has been people saying that it really isn't built for gaming (I would of course install Windows on it under boot camp for gaming). But then again I don't know if these are people saying this when they expect a laptop to be able to run games on full settings or not. I don't really need that and regardless the 9600M GT will be an upgrade over a 8600M GS.

The thing is I am unsure if I should hold out on getting a MBP until the next update and hope my video card doesn't bite the dust in the hope that the video cards on the next MBPs are upgraded.

I know this seems overall just a little odd and lengthy of a question but it really boils down to: I have a working laptop, it's almost out of warranty, it could die soon or maybe in the distant future, My next laptop will DEFINATELY be a MBP but should I just get that now or should I wait on the next update in the hopes of a better video card?

Thanks for any insight anyone can offer me.

 

[Ricanlegend]

Well yes this is another one of those threads (Sorry). My problem is more a question of replacement then one of getting either a laptop for the first time or really needing a new laptop.

My big predicament is that right now I have an ASUS F3SV which has an 8600M GS in it (Which is one of those wonderful NVIDIA video cards that we are all being told is defective). Luckily my laptop has not shown any signs of death (yet) and it still runs fine. I am covered by a 2 year warranty but that will run out somewhere near the end of this summer. I don't want this thing to decide to fail out on me after summer and part of the way through my year but I guess if that does happen I will simply bite the bullet and just spring for a new laptop.

My question though is if it would be worth it to just go for a MBP here and now and not sit on a time bomb. As a user I would say I am a relatively average college student, I want the computer to play games (Although I do have a Gaming desktop rig so I don't feel the need to have a laptop that can play things at full specs but I do want to be able to play modern games), be productive in class (Have a decent battery life, With my screen on minimum brightness and processor clocked way down on my current laptop I get 1.5 hours max), I do some amateur photography and after struggling with the Lightroom 2 Demo and an excessive amount of desk head-banging I am wondering if using Aperture would make my life a tad bit easier. I also want a laptop that can take a little bit of jostling around. Nothing crazy but my current laptop's hinge is cracking due to pressure it received in my backpack

The biggest thing that gets me about the MBP that has held me back has been people saying that it really isn't built for gaming (I would of course install Windows on it under boot camp for gaming). But then again I don't know if these are people saying this when they expect a laptop to be able to run games on full settings or not. I don't really need that and regardless the 9600M GT will be an upgrade over a 8600M GS.

The thing is I am unsure if I should hold out on getting a MBP until the next update and hope my video card doesn't bite the dust in the hope that the video cards on the next MBPs are upgraded.

I know this seems overall just a little odd and lengthy of a question but it really boils down to: I have a working laptop, it's almost out of warranty, it could die soon or maybe in the distant future, My next laptop will DEFINATELY be a MBP but should I just get that now or should I wait on the next update in the hopes of a better video card?

Thanks for any insight anyone can offer me.

There is not going to be another update until next year, any macbook pro you get will be fine for light gaming , if you planing to buy the latest game and you should get a macbook pro with a dedicated graphics card. I recommend you get before september 8 , thats when the free ipod promo ends

 

[Hellhammer]

Next update won't be before Q4 '09, so I wouldn't wait for that.

If you're serious about gaming with MBP, then get 2.66GHz model with 9600GT but if you're okay with low settings, then entry level MBP wll be fine

 

[psyichic]

Oh im sorry, To clarify I have already decided that if I am going to get a MBP it will be the upper range 15 inch MBP. The question around gaming for me is will that card in all of your experiences atleast satisfy the need to be able to play basically any game out there (Including the higher end games) even if it is at low to medium settings at a slightly lower then native res?

 

[Hellhammer]

Oh im sorry, To clarify I have already decided that if I am going to get a MBP it will be the upper range 15 inch MBP. The question around gaming for me is will that card in all of your experiences atleast satisfy the need to be able to play basically any game out there (Including the higher end games) even if it is at low to medium settings at a slightly lower then native res?

9600GT will handle games, even newer games well. But one thing you have to know, Macs are not gaming rigs especially laptops. It'll play games okay but you can't compare it to a desktop gaming rig.

 

[psyichic]

See that is what I am not nor ever will do. I have a desktop gaming rig FOR the purpose of intense gaming with the graphics cranked up. I personally don't really believe in the whole "Desktop replacement" thing when it comes to laptops and gaming.

I am more curious as to what people here would say about the card in the upper end MBP. Reviews alot of times do unrealistic comparisons in my eyes and give some hardware the "Its mediocre" labeling because it cannot play games like Crysis on high at a steady 25+ frame rate or it suffers when it is exposed to L4D at 1440*900 with 8xAA running and max graphics turned on and then the reviews never touch on whether it can be played fluently at medium settings at a slightly lower res.

I am more posing the question (In terms of gaming potential) if the card can handle modern games at a decent pace.

I am also trying to weigh whether all the other advantages (better construction, better battery life, good software for photo-editing) justifies spending the money to get a 2000 dollar computer when I have one that, while it works, could in theory die on me.

I already swore that my next laptop would be a Mac but I am not sure if now is a good time to get one. If my laptop dies tonight I would just get the MBP tomorrow. but would people here suggest I wait till this one dies on me or if the overall upgrade would be worth it at this point or if it would just be better to wait for Christmas or even next year (Since it is possible this laptop's video card will last possibly even another year)

 

[mgridgaway]

Your laptop could go tomorrow, the next month, or next year. Why do you want to gamble against next year when it's costing you nothing?

Keep your current laptop until it goes bad. Could be soon, could be a while. If it dies, get a new one like you said. It's not like you're going to be out of house and home or something if it should die.

 

[psyichic]

Good point. Might as well try and get as much mileage out of this laptop as possible. Who knows, may last me to atleast another update