Computer woes

[Flamekebab]

Video editing, gaming, transcoding stuff, that kind of thing. Most develop overheating issues around the two year mark - the same has been true for hardware Jenny has owned.


This MBP is the last chance for current laptop tech for me. It's holding up admirably so far, thank the gods.

[Jubal]

This old box did three years, had a heat problem, got that fixed, did another year then died. But yes, it's a pity they don't last long. I'd be tempted to get a desktop except for the fact that I need to be able to move my workspace not too infrequently.

[Flamekebab]

We opted to get Jenny a Mac Mini for that reason - easy to pick it up and take it with us when we need to go somewhere. I'm sure similar small machines exist too although they're likely to be fairly worthless for gaming.

[comrade_general]

[Flamekebab]

[SaidaiSloth]

Video editing, gaming, transcoding stuff, that kind of thing. Most develop overheating issues around the two year mark - the same has been true for hardware Jenny has owned.


This MBP is the last chance for current laptop tech for me. It's holding up admirably so far, thank the gods.

I have mostly only played games with a tiny bit of video editing, but my 4, turning 5 year old HP laptop (i7, 7670m, 1tb 5400rpm Hd) still runs well, and boots in ~30 sec , only problem is that it is rather loud - but again, you've obviously used yours more intensively than me, also I mainly use my desktop these days.

[Flamekebab]

I tend to be of the opinion that if I pay for hardware I should be able to use it without curtailing its lifespan.


It's lucky that I don't have a hardware decoder for H265 or this machine would be running full pelt 'round the clock!

[Jubal]

Sloth: Yes, I'm sure my laptops would run for longer if I could afford a desktop as well, but I can't Also your laptop would probably have been solidly a price bracket above mine when you got it, I suspect.

FK: I'm not sure I understand you there - surely by definition hardware of this sort is likely to have a its lifespan defined by the level of use?

This is what I'm leaning towards - a new pavilion with pretty reasonable specs:
http://www.johnlewis.com/hp-pavilion-15-ak011na-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i7-8gb-ram-1tb-128gb-ssd-15-hybrid-green/p2269733
Thoughts?

[Flamekebab]

A desktop that is well built and hoovered occasionally will keep running pretty much indefinitely in my experience. Many laptops seem to not be built to be used for much more than a spot of office work and web browsing despite having hardware under the hood that is usually for heavy duty stuff.


Essentially I wouldn't expect miracles out of a Celeron CPU (do they even still exist..?) but a high-end multi-core CPU like an i7 should not be overheating after a couple of years of video editing!

[comrade_general]

This is what I'm leaning towards - a new pavilion with pretty reasonable specs:
http://www.johnlewis.com/hp-pavilion-15-ak011na-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i7-8gb-ram-1tb-128gb-ssd-15-hybrid-green/p2269733
Thoughts?

Found the same one on Amazon for (however the hell you type the pounds sterling thing)30 less.

[Jubal]

Aye - John Lewis can be worth their slightly higher prices though as they include longer warranties/guarantees and has better customer service if things go wrong. Also parents prefer JL and they may be paying much of the cost, especially as it's my birthday shortly!

Going to hear back about the old machine tomorrow, then when I have a prognosis for that will probably buy new box. Not sure what to do if they can fix the old one easily - try and keep it running for a bit or get a new one anyway to avoid unexpected catastrophes at more critical junctures...

[comrade_general]

Aye I just live the frugal life.

[Jubal]

I tend to be frugal on most things - tech I tend to invest more to be sure I can keep it running, and books I just spend way too much on!

But anyhow - any thoughts on the machine itself?

[comrade_general]

Looks a little overpowered for Rome. xD

[SaidaiSloth]

(however the hell you type the pounds sterling thing)

Alt + 0163 on numpad , or in the extra - extra symbol section on mobile.

But anyhow - any thoughts on the machine itself?

Assuming you're mainly playing TW, it should run pretty much all of them at very high or max settings except maybe Attila and warhammer.
I'm not sure how much you plan to travel, but if I had around 900 pounds I would personally build a 500 pound desktop and then get a 350 pound laptop, and then put an ssd in the laptop for a total 900. But this may not fit your usage scenario, so if it doesnt, that laptop looks pretty damn good for the price.