$2k Gaming Laptop (G73?)

E

Etherea1

Limp Gawd
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Messages
274
Hey guys, I'm leaving on another deployment to A-stan at the end of June, and need some opinions on this thing:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...0695&cm_re=asus_laptop-_-34-220-695-_-Product

My budget is no more than $2k, and that seems like a solid choice from what I've read here over the past few months. My concerns: is there a better deal online somewhere, or is there a better version due to come out within the next few weeks I should wait for? Please share your advice and opinions. I need this thing to be solid, really looking forward to playing some Civ 5 when it comes out. Thanks!
 
From everything that I've read lately (including comments from a friend that has a G51 model he's dumping to get that G73 next week) it's basically the laptop to get nowadays. 8GB of RAM... in a laptop, man that's just something else. What, a year, year and a half ago people just couldn't imagine it except those with huge bank accounts and look, now they're ~$1500 or so when 2 years ago 8GB of RAM would have almost cost that much by itself. ;)

I'd say you can't go wrong with that purchase. Pull the trigger and don't look back.
 
The G73 is an outstading package for what it offers, i do think that newegg has it overpriced though. The A1 $1649 and A2 $1549 imo are better deals, and come with 2 year warranty (not sure if the X1 comes with 1, but usually the X versions only come with 1). I would probably check with reputable laptop sellers like GentechPC, XoticPC and Powernotbooks, to see if they have either in stock, before purchasing the X1 (the X1 at launch was $1449 but newegg bump the price out of huge demand for it).
 
Keep an eye out at Tigerdirect and Bing cash back. They had 15% back last weekend and the G73a1 was $1440 shipped. It's down to 12% now and they're out of stock. I believe they have some X3 models in stock though.
 
i picked up the g73-a2 and it is rock solid beast

Its on the larger size as far as laptops go, but its jam packed with all good stuff
one of the better video cards in lappys too

I would stay away from newegg for it though since they seem to offer only the x1.

The differences is the a1 is fully loaded with a bluray drive
a2 is no bluray
x1 is no bluray and only 1 harddrive (and no matching targus backpack and ROG mouse)

I ordered mine from XoticPC and they offer a discount if you pay with cash form (echeck through paypal, or moneyorder)

Definitely the laptop to go for
 
Thanks for the words ya'll. I'm gonna give XoticPC a call tomorrow and work something out with them. Gonna go with the A2, just hope it can get built/delivered in time. Absolut Talent, how long did it take you to receive your laptop after you placed the order?
 
I got my G73JH-A1 pretty quickly (given the fact that everyone was out of stock when I ordered it) from Portable One, and they have great customer service as well. They have the -A2 (no blu-ray) in stock, but the -A1 is currently OOS. Keep in mind you could always order a upgrade blu-ray drive for the -A2 as well.

And you can count me in as another G73JH owner who is extremely satisfied with his purchase. I even love the matte black rubberized finish.
 
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Absolut Talent said:
i picked up the g73-a2 and it is rock solid beast

Its on the larger size as far as laptops go, but its jam packed with all good stuff
one of the better video cards in lappys too

I would stay away from newegg for it though since they seem to offer only the x1.

The differences is the a1 is fully loaded with a bluray drive
a2 is no bluray
x1 is no bluray and only 1 harddrive (and no matching targus backpack and ROG mouse)

I ordered mine from XoticPC and they offer a discount if you pay with cash form (echeck through paypal, or moneyorder)



Definitely the laptop to go for
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Hey good to know since Best Buy is sold out (even though the one Best Buy is selling is the gimped version) Could you elaborate on the discount? how far in through the checkout process is the discount offered .

For current G73 owners what is the finish surrounding the trackpad area?
 
Just got off the phone with a rep from http://www.gentechpc.com/, they had the A2 in stock, and I ended up paying $1524. I know there are better deals out there, but my time window is short and a lot of other places I tried had it $20-30 cheaper but were out of stock.

Thanks again for all the suggestions out there, it was very helpful to get a breakdown of the different versions and different sellers. Hope this thing survives in the 120 degree heat!
 
Just got one by accident. I was pretty sure there were no G73's in stock at Best Buy

2010-05-17%2018.33.03.jpg



So I have this and a Envy for the wife incoming
 
I keep seeing people rave about that thing, but how powerful, really, is that processor? I don't mean that in a negative way, I am actually curious. Seems it would be underpowered...
 
Etherea1 said:
Just got off the phone with a rep from http://www.gentechpc.com/, they had the A2 in stock, and I ended up paying $1524. I know there are better deals out there, but my time window is short and a lot of other places I tried had it $20-30 cheaper but were out of stock.

Thanks again for all the suggestions out there, it was very helpful to get a breakdown of the different versions and different sellers. Hope this thing survives in the 120 degree heat!
Click to expand...

Good job on the buy, and good luck over there. Watch your back... ;)
 
Trust me, go with the Alienware M17x. The build quality is so much better than that of the G73.
 
Funny because almost every review I've been reading (for that friend getting a G73) almost always has people comparing those two laptops and the G73 almost always comes out ahead in those comparisons. People are funny creatures I suppose...

Maybe a Panasonic Toughbook would be called for in such harsh conditions. Too bad the price is like 4 to 8x as expensive. :eek: Not for gaming, of course but, would damned sure handle rugged terrain and lots of temp extremes far better.
 
MattyC said:
I keep seeing people rave about that thing, but how powerful, really, is that processor? I don't mean that in a negative way, I am actually curious. Seems it would be underpowered...
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it's a quad core. Pretty competent one.
 
Bahamut said:
Funny because almost every review I've been reading (for that friend getting a G73) almost always has people comparing those two laptops and the G73 almost always comes out ahead in those comparisons. People are funny creatures I suppose...

Maybe a Panasonic Toughbook would be called for in such harsh conditions. Too bad the price is like 4 to 8x as expensive. :eek: Not for gaming, of course but, would damned sure handle rugged terrain and lots of temp extremes far better.
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m17x is anodized aluminum compared with the G73's rubber and plastic. MUCH better cooling design. Much better screen display. Space for two harddrives and two GPUs.

If you're concerned with the $500 savings, then I guess go with the G73 (like you've already done), but if you want quality and durability, the m17x is the way to go.

The G73 is still a great laptop. You would be happy either way. Enjoy your G73!
 
Siriusmuzik said:
it's a quad core. Pretty competent one.
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I see that and I know clock speed isn't everything. I went from a Core 2 Duo I had at 3.4 (overclocked) to an i7 that is just at 2.8 (haven't started playing with OC yet ;) ) and it was a huge increase in power. I didn't mean to imply clock speed is everything. With that said, 1.6 just seems really weak to me. Particularly for something with that level of graphic hardware. That doesn't hold it back any?
 
That is just the base speed, it goes up to 2.8Ghz when needed. Also it has HT, so it can effectively fake being a 8 core chip.

http://ark.intel.com/Product.aspx?id=43122

Since he is using it for gaming the GPU would matter much more than the CPU. An i5 would probably be perfectly fine for his needs, particularly if he was willing to OC it a bit. Personally I would've recommended that new MSI laptop since its more portable and costs less, but that would be nitpicking. The G73 is a great laptop.
 
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Abula said:
The G73 is an outstading package for what it offers, i do think that newegg has it overpriced though. The A1 $1649 and A2 $1549 imo are better deals, and come with 2 year warranty (not sure if the X1 comes with 1, but usually the X versions only come with 1).
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According to Newegg, anyway, it's 1 year accidental, 2 years regular warranty. for the X1
 
Siriusmuzik said:
m17x is anodized aluminum compared with the G73's rubber and plastic. MUCH better cooling design. Much better screen display. Space for two harddrives and two GPUs.

If you're concerned with the $500 savings, then I guess go with the G73 (like you've already done), but if you want quality and durability, the m17x is the way to go.

The G73 is still a great laptop. You would be happy either way. Enjoy your G73!
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What's wrong with the G73's cooling design? It runs decently cool for what it is, and is quiet to boot.

The RGB LED screen is better, sure, but the build quality of the G73 is not lacking. Since the G73JH can handle everything on the market without breaking a sweat, it's a much better value than the M17x. It also looks a lot better IMHO, but that's a personal subjective opinion.

The M17x wasn't even on my radar when I went looking for a new gaming laptop while I'm deployed.
 
mesyn191 said:
That is just the base speed, it goes up to 2.8Ghz when needed. Also it has HT, so it can effectively fake being a 8 core chip.

http://ark.intel.com/Product.aspx?id=43122

Since he is using it for gaming the GPU would matter much more than the CPU. An i5 would probably be perfectly fine for his needs, particularly if he was willing to OC it a bit. Personally I would've recommended that new MSI laptop since its more portable and costs less, but that would be nitpicking. The G73 is a great laptop.
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I considered the MSI GX640 too, but the Fn key is in the wrong place. Just having the Fn key to the left of the Ctrl key was a deal breaker for me.
 
Daggah said:
What's wrong with the G73's cooling design? It runs decently cool for what it is, and is quiet to boot.

The RGB LED screen is better, sure, but the build quality of the G73 is not lacking. Since the G73JH can handle everything on the market without breaking a sweat, it's a much better value than the M17x. It also looks a lot better IMHO, but that's a personal subjective opinion.

The M17x wasn't even on my radar when I went looking for a new gaming laptop while I'm deployed.
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I didn't say the G73 was lacking. It's a great laptop. However, for something more "durable" in the conditions the OP intend to use it, the M17x is a great choice.

The M17x has quality glass over the LCD, so it ensures no dust or sand particles get behind the screen (which has happened to me numerous times).

Like I said, the G73 is a great choice, but the M17x is a better one if a little price difference is negligible. The better cooling design, the better quality build, the better warranty will equate to a longer lasting notebook.

Read up on the cooling design of the m17x, it's fantastic.
 
Siriusmuzik said:
Trust me, go with the Alienware M17x. The build quality is so much better than that of the G73.
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Thats the funny thing about alienware.....they are nothing more than a name now.
Dont get me wrong, their build quality is pretty good.... but they are overpriced for what you get. The G73 isnt made out of aluminum, but it is still solid.

Build a comparable m17x that is equal in parts to the stock g73. You are paying almost $900 more.
And here is a review on the system
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=5234

Given the choice, between a stock G73-a2, or a equally equipped M17x, I would rather go with the Asus. Quieter, costs less, still in the top 5 of best laptops available for gaming.




sidenote, debadging the G73 was easy. No goo-gone required. Just peel the stickers off with your barefingers, no residue was left on mine.
 
I have an Alienware story for you guys. Back in 05', I had bought a new gaming laptop from Sager for an Iraq deployment, while a teammate of mine went with the same specs, but an Alienware. (I think Clevo was the base model for both) He paid $600 more for his identical build, but claimed the build quality was superior so it was worth it to him. Whatever, it's his money.

Anyways, throughout the deployment, we did some heavy gaming in between missions, playing Oblivion, FEAR, and Company of Heroes. We had access to compressed air, so we did regular maintenance on our machines, even taking them apart to get all the dust out thoroughly. One particularly hot day, we were sitting on our racks side by side, playing COH, when he noticed his game start to stutter and freeze up. He looks at mine, running smooth on the same mission, then notices smoke come from his video card vent and his machine shutdown.

Alienware was down for the count for the rest of the deployment, and we ended up sharing my Sager =P His customer service experience throughout the RMA process was a nightmare, and due to seeing that firsthand, I refuse to purchase Alienware products. Maybe they changed their game up after being bought by Dell, I don't know, but the price difference is hard to justify.
 
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