Is this laptop capable of playing the games I want it to?

[Blazingdragoon04]

I'll be frank, I am not the most tech-savvy person out there. That being said, I have been in the market for a new laptop since mine is 6 years old and can barely load YouTube anymore without the thing freezing up and being generally slow. So, I recently found this computer:

http://www.dell.com/us/p/xps-15/pd?oc=dndogx2&model_id=xps-15

Now, like I said I am not very good with judging computer performance, so I want to know if this computer is capable of playing the following games:

League of Legends
Starcraft 2
Team Fortress 2 (over steam of course)

Bonus points to you if you can tell me if the price is a good deal, and if not where I can get a better one!

 

[BENZOOKA]

I'll be frank, I am not the most tech-savvy person out there. That being said, I have been in the market for a new laptop since mine is 6 years old and can barely load YouTube anymore without the thing freezing up and being generally slow. So, I recently found this computer:

http://www.dell.com/us/p/xps-15/pd?oc=dndogx2&model_id=xps-15

Now, like I said I am not very good with judging computer performance, so I want to know if this computer is capable of playing the following games:

League of Legends
Starcraft 2
Team Fortress 2 (over steam of course)

Bonus points to you if you can tell me if the price is a good deal, and if not where I can get a better one!

I'd say it can run those very well enough.

If you're ever in doubt. Check the technical specifications and compare them to the minimum requirements of a game you are looking for.

 

[Leon Last Lord Shyle]

Lol definatly able to run those quite a nice laptop infact

 

[Stryc9]

I can't see any reason why it shouldn't be able to run that stuff, and much more beyond that as well.

 

[soniceric]

You should have no problem running those game. Also seeing how you have such good taste in games ,with your Demon's Souls avatar, you should check out Mount and Blade: Warband on steam, that computer would easily be able to run it.

 

[Frankster]

In b4 the "gaming laptops? lololol get a real computer" crowd.

On topic, have a laptop slightly less powerful then one you want, and it runs those games you listed just fine.

HOWEVER be aware even good laptops overheat a lot, and some games overheat your computer to the max, forcing it to lock up. Of the games you listed you might have a problem with starcraft 2 if you stay too long on the menu screen (i dunno why, but menu screen of sc2 is absolute murder on my laptop).
I suggest buying a cooling stand to help your laptop out. You might not have overheating problems at first, but you'll notice them soon enough if regularly play on it.

 

[Fooz]

yeah that seems pretty good man, go for it.

although i have to say if you want to play more graphically intense games your probably better off getting a desktop, but for topics sake, it seems like a good laptop

 

[loc978]

Yes. It will run the games fine... but it would be better for compiling video or desktop applications. None of the games you listed will make use of the 5-core processor {edit}(this is what I get for not researching thoroughly... it's actually a dual core... and it's roughly on-par with the GPU){/edit}, and the GPU is underpowered with more VRAM than it can really utilize... really, you could do the same thing with a much less expensive notebook.
Careful not to burn your lap, by the way.

 

[Blazingdragoon04]

Yes. It will run the games fine... but it would be better for compiling video or desktop applications. None of the games you listed will make use of the 5-core processor, and the GPU is underpowered with more VRAM than it can really utilize... really, you could do the same thing with a much less expensive notebook.
Careful not to burn your lap, by the way.

Well I figured that it would be best to keep my options open, especially with how fast gaming requirements seem to develop, but for the time being those are really the only games I'd want to play on my computer. I thought starcraft 2 was pretty graphically intensive though since it just came out?

Is there a cheaper laptop that you might want to recommend?

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

Looks good. Factory-condition computers are beasts.

 

[loc978]

Yes. It will run the games fine... but it would be better for compiling video or desktop applications. None of the games you listed will make use of the 5-core processor, and the GPU is underpowered with more VRAM than it can really utilize... really, you could do the same thing with a much less expensive notebook.
Careful not to burn your lap, by the way.

Well I figured that it would be best to keep my options open, especially with how fast gaming requirements seem to develop, but for the time being those are really the only games I'd want to play on my computer. I thought starcraft 2 was pretty graphically intensive though since it just came out?

Is there a cheaper laptop that you might want to recommend?

Honestly, no. I'm a do-it-yourself type, and I only glanced over the specs of that thing and noted the sub-par GPU. Personally, I would go to a local shop and get a barebones AMD quad-core system, then build off that. If you don't have a local shop that sells laptop parts, I don't know what to recommend. Weak GPUs with strong processors and more RAM than necessary is pretty much the norm with factory computers of all kinds.
...at least the one you're looking at has a fairly quick HDD, most companies overlook that, too.

 

[Skorpyo]

That laptop...

is...

godly...

(Yeah, it SHOULD run what you want it to)

 

[Blazingdragoon04]

So should I just downgrade the RAM to 4gb and still have a computer that would run these games well enough, and still have some potential for games that come out in the future?

 

[x EvilErmine x]

In b4 the "gaming laptops? lololol get a real computer" crowd.

On topic, have a laptop slightly less powerful then one you want, and it runs those games you listed just fine.

HOWEVER be aware even good laptops overheat a lot, and some games overheat your computer to the max, forcing it to lock up. Of the games you listed you might have a problem with starcraft 2 if you stay too long on the menu screen (i dunno why, but menu screen of sc2 is absolute murder on my laptop).
I suggest buying a cooling stand to help your laptop out. You might not have overheating problems at first, but you'll notice them soon enough if regularly play on it.

I think that's because due to a shortfall in the programing there is no cap on the frames per second in the menus. So your graphics card goes mental with the fps as there's nothing telling it not to, thus generating lots of extra heat which then can do a very good job of cooking your crotch.

Pro tip.
Every year or so if you can, take the back of your laptop and clean the heat sinks and radiator fins. you will be amazed at the amount of dust that builds up there. This will let the cooling system do it's job better and prolong the life of your lappy.

 

[Blazingdragoon04]

It's easy to check, your graphics card is ranked 91:

http://www.notebookcheck.net/Mobile-Graphics-Cards-Benchmark-List.844.0.html

So... is that... is that good?

 

[The Lawn]

NVIDIA® GT420M GeForce is a mid range laptop graphics card.
It should run SC2 on low at over 100 FPS, LoL at arround 80 on low settings and TF2 at over 100 on low settings as well.
It will struggle with any of those listed games on high settings, averaging about 20-30 fps.
SC2 would be unplayable on ultra.

You could do a heck of a lot worse, but I would save your pennies a little longer and get a better laptop. Or just buy a desktop and for the same price blow all those games out of the water.

 

[Outright Villainy]

Overheating is always an issue with laptops, but still...

If you're getting that, I'm very envious. My laptop is junk...

 

[Blazingdragoon04]

NVIDIA® GT420M GeForce is a mid range laptop graphics card.
It should run SC2 on low at over 100 FPS, LoL at arround 80 on low settings and TF2 at over 100 on low settings as well.
It will struggle with any of those listed games on high settings, averaging about 20-30 fps.
SC2 would be unplayable on ultra.

You could do a heck of a lot worse, but I would save your pennies a little longer and get a better laptop. Or just buy a desktop and for the same price blow all those games out of the water.

Well, how long would I exactly have to save in order to get a better laptop, and where would I go about getting one; I am not exactly the best when it comes to checking out the competition. I had a gateway that I got through my college, and it has been a piece of junk. Maybe I just don't know where to look, but HP seemed to have very limited options, so I guess how long should I wait and where should I get another laptop?

Also, I would get a desktop but it seems that the portability is a good option for me. That and, with all the graphics cards and what not anyways, most retailer sites end up costing Desktops and Laptops the exact same anyways, so I'd have to build one myself to get any significant savings out of the deal and I don't know how to do that currently.