Posts by darkowl72

Look, this whole topic is a complete non-issue. It’s really not that complicated. 👍

Look, it’s a fool's errand to compare desktops and laptops. They aren't even playing the same game. The whole point of a laptop is portability and battery life, so every single component is engineered specifically to hit those targets. Everything is throttled—speeds are lowered and voltages are dialed back just to squeeze out a few extra minutes of juice. You don't deal with that nonsense on a desktop. Take the hardware, for example. An i7-8320 can pull 125W easily, and if you decide to overclock it, you're looking at pushing 150W without breaking a sweat. Meanwhile, an i7-5500U? Even with undervolting, you're hitting a hard ceiling around 15W. That should be enough for anyone to get the point. It’s the exact same story when you look at the GPU, the RAM, or the SSD. The math just doesn't work the same way.

It all really boils down to the software. You have to look at whether it leans more toward AMD or Intel, if it’s heavy on the CPU, or if you can offload work to the GPU via CUDA cores. Then there's the question of whether it actually utilizes video memory. The reality is that while the 940M is technically a newer card, it's stuck with a 64-bit bus and relies on DDR3 memory. I'm honestly not sure which versions of DirectX or shaders it supports, or if the 940M has any newer tech baked in since the chip itself is more recent. It's hard to say how that's going to impact whatever specific programs you're running.

The laptop has 12GB of RAM, which will definitely come in handy, but the desktop still has a fast drive plus an extra SSD on top of that!

There are just too many unknowns here. There’s way too much ground to cover and testing to do before I could even think about giving a definitive verdict. 🤷

Look, if you decided to go with a high-end configuration, then you did what you had to do—within the limits of your budget, anyway. You can always upgrade the laptop with an SSD, either by buying a new one or just repurposing that one from your desktop if you’re done with it. You just pop it into the DVD drive slot using an adapter. I don't know what to tell you. If you're looking for a caddy, just go find one. I'm not here to do your errands for you.Look, you can actually speed that thing up significantly if you just do it right.

The tech itself was first introduced back in 2011, and it only just crawled out of the labs into the real world late last year. Honestly, it's way too early to talk about practical applications. It might happen eventually—it all comes down to cost—but there’s another massive hurdle: what are we even going to do with those kinds of speeds?

Are you talking about mobile-to-mobile communication? Sure, the speed looks incredible on paper, but now we have to figure out how to build memory and hardware capable of reading and sending data at those rates while simultaneously receiving and storing it. That sounds like a tricky, expensive mess. If this stuff were cheap, reliable, and easy to implement, we would've had it built into our devices ages ago... 😬 probably...

Of course, it also depends on which massive corporations or industry groups see a profit margin and decide to push Wi-Fi as the standard. If there isn't a major player powerful enough to shove it past USB or Thunderbolt, or if the big-name smartphone manufacturers don't care, this could easily end up as nothing more than a footnote. It wouldn't be the first time a "revolutionary" tech just died on the vine...

For that kind of work, you really need a fast processor (something H or HQ series), a decent GPU like a GTX 950 or 960, Full HD resolution, a fast hard drive or an SSD, and as much RAM as you can afford.

You won't even find the bare minimum of those components for $500, let alone a copy of Windows. It's just not happening.

http://www.nabava.net/prijenosna-rac...+ove+kriterije

The best thing you'll find for around $500 is an Asus f:

http://www.nabava.net/prijenosna-rac...-ghz__18070311

It’s got a mediocre 5200u processor, a pretty weak GT 940 for CUDA tasks, but it does come with 8GB of RAM and a fast drive. No Windows included, obviously.

The cheapest setup that actually includes Windows would look like this:

Keep in mind the CPU and graphics card here aren't exactly great either. If you wanted something that actually works well, you'd look at this:

But that's way over budget, and again, it doesn't come with Windows. Unfortunately, that's just the reality of it.

Look, if that’s what you’re going after—fine. The price for a laptop with a Hard Drive and macOS is what it is. You’re getting a solid discount here, so just grab it...

It’s pretty much exactly what you asked for. Aside from the resolution, but hey, you can't have everything...

That’s not a standard warranty; it’s an insurance plan, so everything depends entirely on the specific contract you sign at checkout. You won't actually know the terms until you're looking at the fine print. That said, I'm pretty sure the battery isn't covered.

Hint: Read the fine print. 😬

Just so you know, we have a master thread with a clear title here that helps people looking for buying advice communicate better with those of us giving it...

RAM and SSD capacity are actual requirements, but the real question is how much you actually need. Resolution isn't really an issue since, based on what you're doing, I don't see why you'd even need 1080p, and this speed thing—I have no idea where you got that from—is just... I don't even know what to say. Seriously, where did "at least 2.3 GHz" come from?

Look, if you want to drop $6,000 on a high-end machine that stays competitive longer because of beefier components, go for it. But like Kimberly Gomez34 mentioned—assuming you listed all your needs—you can definitely get by with a much cheaper machine.

HP isn't exactly a top-tier choice here. Just the name "HP Essentials" tells you everything you need to know, and that pathetic 12-month warranty doesn't promise any quality or longevity. Also, suggesting you look at refurbished laptops is a bit questionable. Refurbished units aren't just "orders that were canceled" or "stock that didn't sell at a Best Buy"; they are machines that were returned due to defects, repaired by the manufacturer, and put back into a "new" state. At that point, they shouldn't be called new; they're refurbished. You get a lower price, sure, but you also get a shorter warranty.

For anyone visiting, we suggest looking beyond just specs and price and checking the warranty. Dell leads the pack with a 3-year warranty, followed by Asus and Toshiba, which offer extra coverage through promos (like Asus promotions or Toshiba - no Matter What). Then you have the rest—Lenovo, Acer, Fujitsu—who mostly stick to two years. HP is at the bottom because, for most of their models, a 2-year warranty is the exception rather than the rule. Only their high-end models really compete with the premium brands.

Most standard configurations don't come with enough SSD space or RAM (which usually ships at a measly 4GB), so people often end up upgrading them manually. While Windows requirements are fine, you can buy licenses separately, which gives you more freedom since very few machines come with it pre-installed.

You need to decide what you actually want and what your real budget is. Right now, your criteria fit about 90% of the laptops in stores, so we could just throw a bunch of options at you and leave you more confused than you already are.

At first glance, some new Dell models would suit you perfectly:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/example1
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/example2

However, these aren't 1080p, and you'd have to install an SSD yourself by swapping out the DVD drive:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/example3
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/example4

If you want one that comes with an SSD, try this:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/example5

And for $6,000, you could get absolute beasts that we recommend to gamers, but you definitely don't need them:

Or maybe step up a notch to an Asus N series:

If you want to actually check off everything on your list, look at this new Asus P. It hits all your specs, plus the battery life is insane (they claim over 15 hours), and it comes with a 3-year warranty—which even covers the battery, which is pretty unheard of. That said, it’ll cost you:

The Toshiba L series has some decent options too, but honestly, Asus wins here.

Then again, you could probably find an Acer or this Fujitsu if you want to save a good chunk of change:

Once you settle on a model, check Best Buy for the best deals, or if you actually care about reading a real review before buying, Notebookcheck has some solid, unbiased breakdowns for most laptops out there...

USB sticks shouldn't be giving you any trouble. They use the same connector and they're fully compatible with the 2.0 standard. Sure, if you plug it into a port like that, it'll run slower—basically acting just like a 2.0 drive.

Another thing is that this price isn't even special. Usually, when tech gear hits big-box stores, it's actually cheaper, but that's clearly not happening here. You can find them at Best Buy for this price, or probably everywhere else for all I care, I just don't feel like hunting for them.

I don't have anything against shopping at places like this—I do it myself sometimes—but these prices for both the stick and the SD card are nothing to write home about. Oh, and for what it's worth, Transcend is a decent enough company.

Look, for $4k you can get standard resolution and an integrated HD5500 graphics card...:

http://www.dell.com/en-us/lp/inspiron-5558...67/product/

Just grab a USB LED strip made specifically for that setup and call it a day:

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/led-strip-lighting-usb-070900157

You’ve got plenty of options here. Since the criteria are pretty loose, you can look at basically any brand as long as the specs hit what you need. Personally, I’d lean toward a new Dell Inspiron 15. It’s solid, thin, and comes with a three-year warranty—plus you get to pick the color 😬

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?q=laptop...ducts_id=12696

Look, other brands have candidates with similar specs too. Here’s my take:

General Use: Any modern laptop with either integrated or discrete graphics will work fine.

Gaming: Going with discrete graphics is the smarter move (mostly because of the dedicated VRAM), but even an integrated chip like the AMD Radeon HD 4400 or better should meet the minimum requirements.

http://www.game-debate.com/games/ind...0Of%20Warcraft

Battery Life: Standard stuff. None of them drop below 2.5 to 3 hours, though getting an exact measurement is tricky. The only one that really stands out would be the new Toshiba laptop, which pulls over 6 hours thanks to its slim, partially metal chassis—provided the price and components actually make sense for you.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?q=laptop...ducts_id=13115

But then you run into the graphics question: how well would an AMD Radeon HD 5500 handle Hearthstone at Full HD resolution? The resolution is what really drives the GPU load here...

Important Note: 😬 you’ll have to figure that out yourself... It really comes down to Tails and whatever hardware is supported.

Portability: The Toshiba laptop is about 2 kg, while most others hover around 2.30-2.40kg. Depends on the specific model.

Premium Feel: I think this Acer is the cheapest option with a backlit keyboard, so check the specs and everything else first:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?q=laptop...ducts_id=12634

Check sites like Best Buy or Amazon for the best prices. Warranties are standard, just like they were mentioned in that top thread, though keep in mind those Asus promos and the Toshiba laptop deals might still be valid.

You completely missed the point. Nobody is bashing Apple. We just don't suggest them as your go-to option. It’s the same logic we apply to certain US retailers. If someone finds a receipt and doesn't care about the red flags we pointed out—go for it! We aren't preachers here, and it's not our money. Buy whatever you want. Just don't come crawling back here acting like Apple is some massive revelation or like they single-handedly invented retail and tech just because they have a GPU that's $50 or $33 cheaper. That doesn't fly with us.

And your attitude toward "certain" American retailers is great. These businesses have been grinding for years against a cutthroat economy, predatory banks, insane taxes, and endless fees, yet they still generate revenue and pay their dues... What were they supposed to do, throw in the towel and move to Canada? I don't know how old you are or what you do for a living, but based on your interest in following Marko Grubnić, I’m not entirely sure who that is or what he actually does... Whatever. You'll grow up eventually and hopefully realize it's better to spend an extra 20-$10 here than to hand it over to someone else. Assuming, of course, the price gap isn't a total joke driven by monopolies...

If Apple is a revelation to you (and a few others), then fine, they're great. It doesn't matter if they're run by the folks at Extreme Digital, and it doesn't matter if someone mentions another retailer, like how Alzashop used to operate. No, Apple is perfect. Why should they be like any other retailer in the world, trying to make a profit however they can? Thank God we have plenty of experience dealing with all sorts of shops, both domestic and international.

What does this say about you and people like you? Why are you rooting so hard for Apple?

@ wiredotter14:

You've been following the discussion. You have common sense. Nobody has the right to tell you what to do with your cash. You're over 18, so you own your decisions. 🤷

Our primary focus here is technical advice, not financial consulting. 😬

Look, sometimes when things get heated in a discussion, I might throw out some hearsay, but I try to keep that to an absolute minimum. This statement about warranties definitely isn't one of those moments. You can just Google warranty laws and you'll find a mountain of texts, statutes, and regulations... I don't feel like scrolling through all that and hunting for specific clauses, so it's easier for me to just drop this link:

http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens...s/index_hr.htm

This info is legitimate and binding for every retailer across the EU, which means it was just as binding for Media World a year ago. Of course, any retailer will try to dodge responsibility—maybe because people aren't informed, or maybe they're doing it intentionally because dealing with it is a massive headache. And don't even get me started on the costs. But honestly, it doesn't surprise me; our market is pretty thin. Retailers often operate on razor-thin margins and they're already dealing with customers paying via checks, credit cards, installments, or whatever else... Every single defect is a cost they have to swallow (at least the shipping to and from the service center), not to mention the hassle they just don't want to deal with.

Meanwhile, the customer is happy because they snagged a cheap product with a 5-year warranty. Everything is fine as long as it works. But once problems pop up, we run into a lack of consumer culture because we're dealing with a young, disorganized market where people don't actually know their rights.

Another thing: it’s a matter of convenience where you take something for repair. Sometimes a product handed over to a store for a claim spends ten days just traveling to an authorized service center, so it's often faster and easier to just handle it yourself. That's your choice, but if a seller tells you they have nothing to do with the product? They are straight-up breaking the law, and there are penalties for that.

I actually went out of my way to look through that NVIDIA site to see where they "recommend" those specific shops, and unfortunately, I couldn't find anything. Apple ended up on that page because they pull stock directly from NVIDIA in volumes large enough to qualify. Getting onto that list is about order volume and money (which nobody is criticizing here), not about whether someone pays VAT or how they treat their customers. NVIDIA doesn't care who Apple is or how they operate, as long as they order stock and pay the bills. Once their turnover drops below a certain threshold, they won't be able to order from NVIDIA at those preferred prices anymore and will be redirected to the nearest regional rep, at which point they won't be listed on that page anymore.

American retailers of that scale don't exist here and never will, because no local shop has the power to pull tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in inventory every single month just to stay on that list. Our market is organized through a few major distributors that figured out the math, though most of the time it's just importers bringing stuff in to resell to stores. The fact that there isn't a single importer or wholesaler from America on that NVIDIA list speaks for itself regarding how small our market really is.

Budapest is twice the size of any comparable mid-sized US city, and Canada has 2.5 times the population of America with a growing trend. They've been in the EU longer, they're much wealthier, and they didn't have to deal with the same wartime issues...

electricharbor30 said:I think someone mentioned somewhere that IPON is on NVIDIA's list of recommended retailers...

🙂 🤦

I love this... The President basically says it doesn't matter if gas prices spiked, it doesn't affect us...

electricharbor30, get real... Seriously, what, are you on their payroll? Getting some commission? I don't feel like digging through email addresses, but I can smell you trying to push the Canadian guys on PC forums under some random handle...

Ever heard of Alzashop? Use that search engine over there and look them up. They were the go-to shop for a while back in the day. Cheap prices, great service...

Now they've vanished. They hit a revenue threshold where they didn't even have to register for VAT, and just like that, they were gone. It'll be the same with the Canadians—don't act like they invented the business model. Or like they're suddenly paying Canadian VAT 😬 Right now, they're just pocketing the difference on foreign invoices. Just wait a bit and you'll see how it plays out...

And you "can't" show the receipt, right? Who are you kidding? Look, if you don't know, I'll tell you. Windows has this built-in tool called Snipping Tool (or cut) with a little scissors icon. You can grab any part of your screen and save it as an image. And hey—you could even use the eraser tool to scrub your personal info and the receipt details. Didn't know that?

Now just figure out how to upload the image to the forum...

Just try to be a man and don't erase the prices or the dates, otherwise we'll catch you lying... And when that case actually arrives, do us a favor and post the receipt too. Let's see what you actually paid versus the listed price. I mean it... 😬

Look, you should’ve done what everyone else does: read the thread and actually answer the questions. Since you didn't, all I can assume is this laptop is just for an old man who isn't planning on gaming or doing anything graphics-heavy (and neither is he), and he doesn't even need Windows. If that's the case, here’s the most powerful hardware setup you can grab for that kind of thing:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/example_laptop_link

Check out Best Buy for the best prices. And like I said, if you actually have specific requirements, follow the instructions in that stickied mega-thread...

Why? It’s just what everyone does these days. You watch a political speech, for example...

@ electricharbor30:

Go ahead, buy wherever you want. Keep feeding those overseas retailers. They have a business model built on being shady, and they stay in business because there's always a fresh supply of suckers looking for the lowest price tag. We’ve got plenty of those types of shops here in the States too—just look at the ones that claim to have everything in stock, but once you actually click the link, either the item is gone, or you get a message saying "call to verify availability," or suddenly the price jumps up.

And if we're talking about how much you actually saved, I bet if you did order from them, you probably bought one single thing and called it a win. But shipping a disc through standard snail mail? Honestly, I don't even know what to say to that... Look where your "savings" landed you. I've never heard of anyone sending something like a disc via regular untracked mail. You could've at least spent a few extra bucks on a tracked package so you didn't lose the damn thing...

Look at what happened with FTX, you ever hear of them? Check out how they vanished overnight and left people completely broke... If you ask me, those overseas sellers are heading down that exact same path. 😬

I’m not even going to touch the Sony stuff. That idea that their products are made in the same factory as, what, Panasonic or Samsung? If that were true, it would be labeled as such. Why do you think it says Sony and why is it cheaper? Is this some grand conspiracy or do you have insider info? Well, don't hold out on us... share the secret... 🤷

And finally, try showing some respect because 🙂

Yeah, provided you actually installed the drivers correctly. Grab the manual and take a look at what you're supposed to be doing. It’s pretty straightforward... 😬

@ swiftfalcon89:

When you're building a rig, just say where you're getting the parts. Honestly, it's better to buy everything from one shop—usually, they'll throw in free assembly and shipping if you do. If people actually knew their way around hardware, they wouldn't be coming here asking for help anyway.

@ electricharbor30:

Just drop the iPhone thing already. Which model do you even have? There aren't many tech stores around here, so what happens when things go sideways and you have to drive all the way to the border?

@ restlessorca14:

Try emailing the site admins, or maybe hit up IT Future. They usually have the best prices, plus they offer free assembly and delivery. You could even just copy this list the guys put together and ask them for a quote. Once you get some offers, post them here so we can see if they're actually giving you a fair deal. 👍
Btw, you're missing a keyboard, a mouse, and maybe some speakers....

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product...ducts_id=12841

You can go this cheap if you just swap out the DVD drive for an SSD. It’s pretty rare to find a laptop that actually lets you run two drives, and even fewer have an M.2 slot ready to go.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product...ducts_id=13155

This one has a free M.2 slot for an SSD, and you can beef up the RAM to 32 GB.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product...ducts_id=13149

Then there's this:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product...ducts_id=12207
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product...ducts_id=13203
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product...ducts_id=13156

The decent IPS screens start around here (SSD goes where the DVD drive used to be):

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product...ducts_id=12637

Check out the other setups too—there are a few more Dell and HP options. The Dell MacBook Pro and Alienware models come pre-configured with both an SSD and an HDD.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product...ducts_id=12275

I ignored the other brands because they don't carry fast processors (H or HQ series), or they were just way overpriced...

For the best deals, check Best Buy.

There you go. Now you know it isn't just a flat cable... 🤷

The only way to be sure is to get it scanned at a shop... It’s pointless to just start buying random parts one by one and hoping for the best. Those components aren't exactly cheap like some flimsy ribbon cable...

Think back—have you changed anything about your copy process since these issues started popping up?

Is it the same laptop and the same drive?
Are you using the same USB ports to plug the drive in, or did you switch things up?
What about the cable? Is it the same one?
Does the drive have its own power supply, or does it need two USB ports to get enough juice?

Look, I’m leaning toward it being a drive issue too, but sometimes these headaches come down to insufficient power or just bad communication between the laptop and the drive—like using a crappy USB cable.