A question about laptop graphics cards

by **R0B** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 4:36pm

Ok, I've made up my mind. I am not going to invest any more in my pc, and instead, I am going to get a laptop when I go to college. My pc will still come to college with me, and it will probably be used as a server for my files or something like that. Right now, I am looking at getting a customized Alienware Area 51m I would have given you a link to alienware's site, but it appears that they are doing something with their server right now.

My question is, does anyone know when the next bread of laptop graphics cards are expected to become avalible, and what features these cards will offer? Mainly I want to know if the next gen of cards will support programable pixel shaders and all of that good stuff that the pc is bosting right now. To my knowledge, the best laptop graphics card currently out is the Geforce4 go, and the RADEON (7500 is it?). Anyway, thanks for your help.

Note:For the last 4 years I have been saying how pointless laptops are, but now that it comes down to it, I can see their convieniences, and, who wouldn't want a nice green laptop

by **goodbye** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 4:47pm

by T¹ » Sep 15, 2002 @ 5:32pm

by **Warren** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 6:12pm

Go with the Alienware laptop, it's the best. I love the cyborg green too! I just configured one for less than $2700, which is a lot, but look at what you're getting! A laptop that can run UT2K3 flawlessly?? You'll make people cry with it on airplanes. You'll type on it in class and distract the teacher. This laptop would get more attention than our PDAs! Hmm, maybe I'll get one when I go to college...and still have my homemade computer. Or...when I move out, make my parents buy my the laptop, and I'll give them my computer, which will be in 2 years.

by **nicodemus** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 6:32pm

i've heard that these laptops get really really really hot after being used for like an hour or two. One of my friends reviewed one, and said that he had to turn it off after an hour and a half to cool it down.

by **BurningSheep** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 6:59pm

yeah, they are expensive, heavy and get REALLY hot, but other than that... *drool*

It's a shame they aren't sold here, well some company does sell a comparable laptop. But it isn't green damnit!

by **sponge** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 7:01pm

Yes, the Radeon blows away all the GE4 mobiles. I find AlienWare to be waaaay too expensive, but I suppose you don't have much of a choice in laptops.

by **R0B** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 7:07pm

Expensive...yes Really hot...yes Really cool...yes

Luckily, this is my parents gift to me for college, so screw the price. My main concern with the Radeon is the drivers. Most of the time (if not all of the time) the NVidia drivers blow the Radeon drivers out of the water. But, I probably won't get this new bundle of joy untill around January, so I guess that I will just have to read up on it a bit when the time comes. I really wish the alienware website was up right now, I am dieing to play around with the configuration once more.

by **Michael Y** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 7:35pm

How dare you change your avatar and desert the muffin?

by **R0B** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 7:37pm

I'll probably change it back soon, but right now, I am in love with the Area-51m

by **R0B** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 7:38pm

I think the site is about ready to reappear. I know longer get the server warning, but instead the usually message you get when a page is no longer avalible.

by **Warren** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 8:06pm

I've been able to get to it since this morning, it was down yesterday for server updating. I was agonizing over it too yesterday, I wanted to see the prices of the painted keyboards and mice; I looked at them today, and $60 a pop! That's insane, $20 extra dollars for paint for each device. As for Radeon, I'd get it, no questions asked. GeForce and Radeon are like Intel and AMD; everyone gets an Intel like everyone gets a GeForce, only the smart ones get AMD, so I'd think the smart ones get Radeon. Radeon is not as popular, but it's better and faster and the card looks cool (Radeon 9700 is all red). The GeForce4 card is green with a cool fan on it, but that's it. Rob, get the Alienware, it's the only laptop that's upgradable! You can unscrew it and add memory, processor, hard drive, graphics card, sound card, anything like a normal computer. Oh, and you have to get a matching mouse

.

by **R0B** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 8:17pm

I'll check the site right now. As for the mouse, I have grown accustomed to my Logitech mouseman dual optical sensor mouse, but who knows.

Note: I just tried the site, and still no luck.

New note, it seems to work if I type alienware.com, but not www.alienware.com.

by **Warren** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 8:51pm

by **R0B** » Sep 15, 2002 @ 9:22pm