Best laptop for Graphics (considering Dell Precision again)

smemflynn

Hi all.

I have a 9 year old Dell Precision M4700 that is starting to act-up a bit (hard-drive freezing) so I'm looking to get a replacement. I bought it through a reseller on Ebay for about a third of the price it would have cost and it has served me very well so would defo go down that route again. There are also some options on the official Dell outlet. (boards not letting me post the link)

Given it's 9 years since I've bought a laptop I am very out of the loop so would love to get input on whether going for another Precision is still a prudent choice, or if there's a better option out there. My previous laptop was also a Precision (17") and I passed that on to my sis after 6 years mostly because of the size of it and I needed something a bit more mobile, but I don't just want want to go for a Precision because I'm a repeat customer.

Usage-wise I use all the regular graphic design stuff plus Solidworks/Sketchup/V-Ray so it needs to be the biz performance wise.

Also I defo won't switch to a Mac.

Many thanks in advance!

Emily

PS: if anyone has recommendations for getting out of warranty laptop hard drives replaced in Dub please that would be also much appreciated.

why not just buy a sata 2.5 inch 7mm height ssd yourself and just put it in? completely simple job

https://www.amazon.co.uk/YUCUN-Internal-Solid-State-Drive/dp/B07F2J4S18/ref=sxts_sxwds-bia-wc-p13n1_0?crid=SJ26642IBHDO&cv_ct_cx=2.5+inch+ssd&dchild=1&keywords=2.5+inch+ssd&pd_rd_i=B07F2J4S18&pd_rd_r=d90a5c1c-36e8-4891-a818-e6907db3af0f&pd_rd_w=qvdIN&pd_rd_wg=lfgZs&pf_rd_p=9b1a9511-9af9-4d06-8643-d54ebec511ef&pf_rd_r=2FDEFVXP79H3XSKQ2R0M&psc=1&qid=1598270688&sprefix=2.5+inch+ssd%2Caps%2C454&sr=1-1-fdbae751-0fa5-4c0f-900b-865654896618

else this laptop is a nice upgrade

portable, long battery life, metal case, modern cpus. only lower gpu options available now but still would probably do the job for your needs

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Zephyrus-G401IA-Gaming-GeForce-Windows/dp/B08696C4GK/ref=sr_1_2?crid=1K5DNFU3NNQZ1&dchild=1&keywords=asus+g14&qid=1598270514&sprefix=asus+g%2Caps%2C212&sr=8-2

Classed as a gaming laptop but it's portable @ 1.6 kg and has a colour accurate screen

really nice machine.

the case LED lighting is only on the top model

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTO7959ySss

smemflynn

Hey Glasso, thanks a mill for the reply.

That looks like a super laptop however the screen size would be an issue for me. I use my laptop as part of a dual screen setup and I wouldn't want to go any smaller. If anything I'd be considering going back up to 17" which is great for presentations. Overall, for me performance & durability would take priority over portability.

I found a good PC repair shop near me and have dropped in my current machine for diagnostics as nothing shows up on any test I run so I want to be sure it's the issue. If the hard drive is the issue I'll definitely swap it out but I think given the age of the machine I'll still probably get another machine in case something suddenly goes very wrong. Fortunately I have a Precision of similar spec as backup rn but it's not mine.

Thanks again for the input!

limited choice in 17 inch laptops really

maybe the dell xps 17 but that's expensive

Razer Blade 15 not a bad option

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Razer-Blade-Gaming-Laptop-Model/dp/B086X1DPB2/ref=sr_1_3?crid=HP29H3TA8KJG&dchild=1&keywords=razer+blade+15&qid=1598286473&sprefix=razer+blad+%2Caps%2C253&sr=8-3

Aodhan5000

That RAZR looks much better value for money than the previously linked laptop and it'll offer much better performance

Aodhan5000

Aodhan5000 wrote: »

That RAZR looks much better value for money than the previously linked laptop and it'll offer much better performance

The g14 has similar gpu performance options and the 4800hs amd handily beats the Intel. Also it's a lot more portable and has much longer battery life

Depends what you want

Aodhan5000

The Amd CPU may win out in its battle but in the desktop world, the 1660ti KOs the 1650

Aodhan5000

Aodhan5000 wrote: »

The Amd CPU may win out in its battle but in the desktop world, the 1660ti KOs the 1650

as I said the G14 has other gpu options -> up to the RTX 2060 (max-q)

beauf

If you are using a 9 year old laptop you don't need the latest performance. Consider that.

smemflynn

beauf wrote: »

If you are using a 9 year old laptop you don't need the latest performance. Consider that.

It's actually 7 years old my bad, but when I got it is was fairly nifty (see below) and is the reason I have had it for 7 years.
Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3720QM CPU @ 2.60GHz
NVIDIA Quadro K1000M
16GB RAM
256SSD

I want similar longevity in a laptop hence I'm looking for v high spec.

I've just after swapping in a 512GB SSD but the freezing problem I had was still there. I'd had an inkling it might be software related and since the latest Windows 10 update the problem actually seems to have gone.

(If anyone's interested this was the accompanying error: RE: Reset to device, \Device\RaidPort0, was issued. Event id: 129 storahci)

But for now things are looking ok - thanks a mill for the recommendations - I'll probably go down the XPS route within the next year.

Grab All Association

I remember last March whilst shopping for a new laptop I seen a
Dell G7 in both 15.6/17.3 size screen
Intel i7 9750H
RTX 2060 or 2070
8GB DDR4 2666mhz
512GB m.2 NVME SSD
Backlit keyboard/RGB
Circa €1,300 for the 2060, circa €2000 for the 2070

Pretty sure Curry’s still have this in stock back in July.

I went with the Alienware area 51m that was my dream laptop, but Dell made this very difficult for me. Cancelling the order when I couldn’t produce a passport, then sending the order out and having to chase them to debit the money. Took 2 months for them to accept payment. Unbelievably bad experience, but I can’t fault this laptop at all. https://touch.boards.ie/thread/2058059534/1/#post112741209

wingnut

smemflynn wrote: »

It's actually 7 years old my bad, but when I got it is was fairly nifty (see below) and is the reason I have had it for 7 years.
Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3720QM CPU @ 2.60GHz
NVIDIA Quadro K1000M
16GB RAM
256SSD

I want similar longevity in a laptop hence I'm looking for v high spec.

I've just after swapping in a 512GB SSD but the freezing problem I had was still there. I'd had an inkling it might be software related and since the latest Windows 10 update the problem actually seems to have gone.

(If anyone's interested this was the accompanying error: RE: Reset to device, \Device\RaidPort0, was issued. Event id: 129 storahci)

But for now things are looking ok - thanks a mill for the recommendations - I'll probably go down the XPS route within the next year.

Did you do a reinstall? Windows goes to ****e over time. I do a full software rebuild at least twice a year in my devices to keep them smooth.

beauf

New Dell XPS 17 2020 ticks a lot of boxes for me. Dual RAM slots, dual M2 drive slots, 4xUSB-C, (No legacy usb A) fantastic screen. No AMD options, so you lose little in the CPU power but gain everywhere else. Only blot on the landscape is 11th-Gen Intel Core CPUs and Intel Xe graphics might be a game changer. No idea when they will be out.