Big Gaming Question for Macbook Pros.

[Xcallibur]

Hard decision. Now since I FULLY understand Mac's are not good for gaming, SOMEONE PLEASE SUGGEST ME A GOOD GAMING LAPTOP, 13.3"-15.6" screen and under $1000 or in the range? I need a laptop for studying too!

Have a look at some laptops in your price range from a few stores your willing to buy from, take note of the names of the different GPU's in the laptops and look on NotebookCheck for the capabilities of these GPU's. There is usually a listing of the frame rates of many games including Battlefield 3 on different settings, for a playable experience look for a minimum frame rate of 20 and above.

 

[mikeo007]

Have a look at some laptops in your price range from a few stores your willing to buy from, take note of the names of the different GPU's in the laptops and look on NotebookCheck for the capabilities of these GPU's. There is usually a listing of the frame rates of many games including Battlefield 3 on different settings, for a playable experience look for average frame rates of 20 and above.

Good advice, except an "average" of 20fps won't be playable. 30-40 should be a minimum playable average framerate.

Think of it this way: if the benchmark pulled off 30 fps half the time, and 10 fps half the time, you'd get an average of 20 fps, but the game would be unplayable 50% of the time.

 

[immaj8]

http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-Radeon-HD-6750M.43958.0.html

I saw Skyrim videos of Intel HD Graphics 3000 (Macbook Pro 13") and it ran fairly well with decent graphics. Also AMD 6750M 512MB ran great (Macbook Pro 15"). IDK WHATS GOING ON?!

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Good advice, except an "average" of 20fps won't be playable. 30-40 should be a minimum playable average framerate.

Think of it this way: if the benchmark pulled off 30 fps half the time, and 10 fps half the time, you'd get an average of 20 fps, but the game would be unplayable 50% of the time.

I must also learn about graphics cards. Graphics Cards are the most important section of gaming? And Processors like i5/i7 are not as important?

 

[Xcallibur]

Good advice, except an "average" of 20fps won't be playable. 30-40 should be a minimum playable average framerate.

Think of it this way: if the benchmark pulled off 30 fps half the time, and 10 fps half the time, you'd get an average of 20 fps, but the game would be unplayable 50% of the time.

Yeah fair point! I should have put minimum frame rate, I'll change it now.

I saw Skyrim videos of Intel HD Graphics 3000 (Macbook Pro 13") and it ran fairly well with decent graphics. Also AMD 6750M 512MB ran great (Macbook Pro 15"). IDK WHATS GOING ON?!

You need to bare in mind that the resolution on the 13" Macbook Pro is much lower than the 15", so the Intel HD3000 won't struggle as much running a game at 1280x800. To be fair, Skyrim isn't that demanding, Battlefield 3 is more of a benchmarking game, so do a quick search of Battlefield running on a Macbook Pro.

I must also learn about graphics cards. Graphics Cards are the most important section of gaming? And Processors like i5/i7 are not as important?

Yes they are, any modern CPU is usually fine when coupled with a decent GPU.

 

[tevion5]

I Have the 13 inch

Nearly all Steam Mac games will work on the 13 inch but anything series like sky rim and up is going to need dedicated graphics i.e. 15 inch and up

 

[immaj8]

Conclusion

The Macbook Pro 15" (2.2GHz i7 Quad Core Processor, AMD Radeon HD 6750M with 512MB GDDR5) is my best bet, for Skyrim.

ONE LAST QUESTION:

ASUS N55SL-ES71 15.6-Inch Laptop

Intel Core i7 2670QM Processor 2.2GHz
8 GB DIMM
750 GB 5400 rpm Hard Drive
Nvidia GT 635M Graphics

Good for Skyrim?

Skyrim:
Low Settings: 62 fps
Medium Settings: 44 fps
High Settings: 31 fps
Ultra Settings: 17 fps


is it worse than the Macbook Pro 15"

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Yeah fair point! I should have put minimum frame rate, I'll change it now.



You need to bare in mind that the resolution on the 13" Macbook Pro is much lower than the 15", so the Intel HD3000 won't struggle as much running a game at 1280x800. To be fair, Skyrim isn't that demanding, Battlefield 3 is more of a benchmarking game, so do a quick search of Battlefield running on a Macbook Pro.



Yes they are, any modern CPU is usually fine when coupled with a decent GPU.

Runs great on Macbook 15" High-End which has AMD 6770m 1GB instead of AMD 6750m 512MB which is the one I'm going for due to a $500 difference.

 

[Stetrain]

Are you factoring in the possible updated MBP in your comparisons? Or are you for sure getting a 2011 model if you get one?

 

[Xcallibur]

The Macbook Pro 15" (2.2GHz i7 Quad Core Processor, AMD Radeon HD 6750M with 512MB GDDR5) is my best bet, for Skyrim.

ONE LAST QUESTION:

ASUS N55SL-ES71 15.6-Inch Laptop

Intel Core i7 2670QM Processor 2.2GHz
8 GB DIMM
750 GB 5400 rpm Hard Drive
Nvidia GT 635M Graphics

Good for Skyrim?

Skyrim:
Low Settings: 62 fps
Medium Settings: 44 fps
High Settings: 31 fps
Ultra Settings: 17 fps


is it worse than the Macbook Pro 15"

I'd say the GT 635M is ever so slightly better than the HD 6750M for gaming.

Runs great on Macbook 15" High-End which has AMD 6770m 1GB instead of AMD 6750m 512MB which is the one I'm going for due to a $500 difference.

The HD 6750M should be fine for you, its not that majorly different to the HD 6770M.

 

[immaj8]

I guess Macbook Pro 15" it is. I get a 15-20% discount anyways.

Thanks, all of you.

 

[immaj8]

I'd say the GT 635M is ever so slightly better than the HD 6750M for gaming.




The HD 6750M should be fine for you, its not that majorly different to the HD 6770M.

How about the 512MB and 1GB difference in Graphic Cards. LAST LAST QUESTION

 

[Xcallibur]

How about the 512MB and 1GB difference in Graphic Cards. LAST LAST QUESTION

Not really worth the extra cash in my opinion, the biggest differences you will see in games will likely be a few more frames/per second when running in ultra high/high quality modes in high resolutions. You will see just as good performance if you ever so slightly overclock the 512MB HD 6750M, it will literally be just as good as the 1GB HD 6770M. If your okay playing games in medium-high quality, you should see no differences in frame rates if you slightly overclock the 512MB HD 6750M card.

 

[mikeo007]

How about the 512MB and 1GB difference in Graphic Cards. LAST LAST QUESTION

The card isn't really good enough for the extra RAM to make a huge difference. More RAM means higher detail textures and things such as AA. Since you won't be playing on high settings with this card, these features are pretty much meaningless. So no, the extra 512MB of VRAM won't be worth the extra $300 in your case.

 

[immaj8]

The card isn't really good enough for the extra RAM to make a huge difference. More RAM means higher detail textures and things such as AA. Since you won't be playing on high settings with this card, these features are pretty much meaningless. So no, the extra 512MB of VRAM won't be worth the extra $300 in your case.

Okay. Ugh another question sorry if this bothers you but will these specs work much better than the other laptops I mentioned including the Macbook Pros?

Intel Core i7 2670QM Processor 2.2GHz
8 GB DIMM <---(Is this RAM)?
750 GB 5400 rpm Hard Drive
15.6-Inch LED Screen, Nvidia GT 635M Graphics 2GB

 

[Xcallibur]

Okay. Ugh another question sorry if this bothers you but will these specs work much better than the other laptops I mentioned including the Macbook Pros?

Intel Core i7 2670QM Processor 2.2GHz
8 GB DIMM <---(Is this RAM)?
750 GB 5400 rpm Hard Drive
15.6-Inch LED Screen, Nvidia GT 635M Graphics 2GB

Think about it, if the GT 635M is ever so slightly better than the HD 6770M, then yes the listed laptop will work better for gaming.

 

[immaj8]

Think about it, if the GT 635M is ever so slightly better than the HD 6770M, then yes the listed laptop will work better for gaming.

Look at this video of this laptop playing Battlfield 3: ASUS N55SL-ES71

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nM739f3oa24

Battlefield 3 run's pretty well. Explain?

 

[mikeo007]

Look at this video of this laptop playing Battlfield 3: ASUS N55SL-ES71

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nM739f3oa24

Battlefield 3 run's pretty well. Explain?

What exactly do you need explained? I see a mediocre quality video of BF3 running on an Asus N55 laptop. He's running it at 1920x1080 resolution with all detail settings on the lowest level except for textures.

Seems to exactly fit what everyone has been saying.

 

[immaj8]

What exactly do you need explained? I see a mediocre quality video of BF3 running on an Asus N55 laptop. He's running it at 1920x1080 resolution with all detail settings on the lowest level except for textures.

Seems to exactly fit what everyone has been saying.

I'm just not sure if I should get it.

Anyone suggest me a laptop that is lightweight, good for high end gaming and studying. A laptop I can use until college from high school? High Resolution would be good also a 14 inch laptop would be great. 15.6 would be max.

 

[mikeo007]

I'm just not sure if I should get it.

Anyone suggest me a laptop that is lightweight, good for high end gaming and studying. A laptop I can use until college from high school? High Resolution would be good also a 14 inch laptop would be great. 15.6 would be max.

I answered this question already for you. There is no such laptop. High end gaming laptops are not light, and are quite expensive. Light laptops are not capable of playing high end games.

It's like you're asking for a car that seats 8 people, is super compact, huge v8 engine, gets 60 mpg and is dirt cheap.

Either a Macbook pro 15" or that Asus laptop you linked are both good everyday laptops. Not the best at gaming, but not too bad. Not too heavy, but not ultralight. Not too cheap, not too expensive.

 

[Stetrain]

I'm just not sure if I should get it.

Anyone suggest me a laptop that is lightweight, good for high end gaming and studying. A laptop I can use until college from high school? High Resolution would be good also a 14 inch laptop would be great. 15.6 would be max.

What's your budget?

As far as lasting for a long time goes, you can get a well built laptop that will serve you well for that long. My 2008 aluminum Macbook is still going strong today.

You won't however be able to buy a laptop now, no matter how much money you spend, that is guaranteed to play the latest and greatest games at high settings in four years.

It sounds like the upcoming 15" MBP might be a good machine for you. It's said to be thinner than the current model, have a solid state boot drive, and have an NVidia GT 650M, which seems to do fairly well at games like Battlefield 3 and Skyrim.

 

[immaj8]

What's your budget?

As far as lasting for a long time goes, you can get a well built laptop that will serve you well for that long. My 2008 aluminum Macbook is still going strong today.

You won't however be able to buy a laptop now, no matter how much money you spend, that is guaranteed to play the latest and greatest games at high settings in four years.

It sounds like the upcoming 15" MBP might be a good machine for you. It's said to be thinner than the current model, have a solid state boot drive, and have an NVidia GT 650M, which seems to do fairly well at games like Battlefield 3 and Skyrim.

No it has AMD HD 6750M 512 MB. Might as well get ASUS. Thanks NO MORE QUESTIONS

 

[Stetrain]

No it has AMD HD 6750M 512 MB. Might as well get ASUS. Thanks NO MORE QUESTIONS

Yes, the current model has the AMD HD 6750M. I'm talking about the new model that's coming out in June. If you want a laptop that will last you for four years then waiting a couple weeks for a newer model might be a good idea.

http://www.theverge.com/2012/5/14/3020483/new-macbook-pros-confirmed-to-have-nvidia-graphics

 

[immaj8]

Yes, the current model has the AMD HD 6750M. I'm talking about the new model that's coming out in June. If you want a laptop that will last you for four years then waiting a couple weeks for a newer model might be a good idea.

http://www.theverge.com/2012/5/14/3020483/new-macbook-pros-confirmed-to-have-nvidia-graphics

I gotta stop saying last question. When specifically does it come out?

 

[Stetrain]

I gotta stop saying last question. When specifically does it come out?

The Bloomberg article from Monday says June 11 at WWDC:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-...thinner-mac-laptops-sporting-intel-chips.html

In general it might be a good idea to wait a few weeks anyway if you don't need it right away. Intel is just now rolling out their new generation of CPUs (Ivy Bridge), and AMD and NVidia are rolling out their new generations of GPUs. Lots of companies have announced and are still announcing new laptops that are coming out over the next month that use these new parts.

 

[Xcallibur]

I gotta stop saying last question. When specifically does it come out?

Probably June 11th, so not too long!

 

[Swain]

If anything, wait for the refresh tbh.