The FragBook 165
Petaris writes "For all of you hard core gamers out there a new choice is availiable for gaming notebooks. Introducing the Falcon Northwest FragBook. This notebook will be in direct competition with gaming notebooks from several competetors including Alienware and VooDoo. Falcon-nw, VooDoo, and more recently Alienware are the place to look for insanely high end and usually fairly expensive gaming systems. The gaming notebook, a more recent arrival in the industry, promises more recent processors than are commonly available for notebooks. Just make sure you stock up on batteries or settle in next to an outlet. :)"
Don't get it (Score:5, Insightful)
I guess I'll just stick to using my laptop for pr0n when I'm away on business trips...
Re:Don't get it (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Don't get it (Score:4, Funny)
That kinda depends on the pr0n, don't it?
Re:Don't get it (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Don't get it (Score:1)
The only reason to use a laptop for gaming is because you need to run on carryable battery power (you can run a desktop from a car or marine battery), which doesn't describe many LAN party situations.
KFG
Re:Don't get it (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Don't get it (Score:1)
KFG
Re:Don't get it (Score:3, Informative)
IT's a topsy-turvy world gone mad! (Score:2, Insightful)
Quite frankly I agree. laptops are just not ideal for gaming, unless it's some slow moving turn based strategy thing or somesuch.
Re:IT's a topsy-turvy world gone mad! (Score:1)
Especially since it is 3:00am Pacific (6:00 Eastern) - the only people still up (West) or getting up (East) are fucking lunatics either way.
Present company (West) included.
Re:IT's a topsy-turvy world gone mad! (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Don't get it (Score:5, Insightful)
Call me silly, when I go FPS, for audio I go headphones. Laptops amazingly enough are much closer to you then your 21inch screen. I'm a full yard back from my 20inch and am perfectly comfortable. Most people i've observed choose a monitor placement that is roughly the same as a piece of paper letter sized at arms lengh.
I have played quake many a time on a laptop... pentium II class, headphones and a tiny trackball control. While there was no contast between it an my desktop system, I could pick it up and take it with me.
Re:Don't get it (Score:5, Informative)
"Call me silly, when I go FPS, for audio I go headphones. Laptops amazingly enough are much closer to you then your 21inch screen. I'm a full yard back from my 20inch and am perfectly comfortable. Most people i've observed choose a monitor placement that is roughly the same as a piece of paper letter sized at arms lengh."
Not at all silly. As a 'Professional Gamer' (as in, I compete in leauges and attend large lan competitions), I can safely say any gamer worth anything has headphones. Most popular are the plantronics Audio.90's which are nice, decent quality, and insanely cheap($30). A lot of people say theirs broke easy, but at $30, its worth the risk. Then theres more expensive stuff like the pc150's and other high end phones. Pretty much anything listed here [chambergates.com] is good for gaming.
That site(thegamercompany.com [thegamercompany.com]) is filled with great hardware for gaming.
My oppinion is a nice high end desktop for gaming, maybe a lower end shuttle for lanning (which can double as your desktop, depending on pricerange), and a fujitsu lifebook for actually working. The only gaming I'd want on a laptop would be simple things like 16bit console emulation, anything more just wouldn't work. Laptop lcds are small and can ghost/have dead pixels. Laptop keyboards are flimsy plastic (as is the Logitech Elite keyboard which has became standard, but of course I won't abandon my model-m). And of course you'll need an external mouse and power source for any real use.
If you really wanted to make a FragBook (LanBook?) I'd say build a laptop without a keyboard and just a real nice screen thats durable, easy access to plug in keyboard/mouse/cat5/power, and just market it for the lanners.
Re:Don't get it (Score:1)
Re:Don't get it (Score:2)
Re:Don't get it (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Don't get it (Score:2)
I just want to say thanks. I've been looking for decent cheap headphones. Every review I've seen has $100+ headphones, and I just won't pay that much.
bah. (Score:2)
Obviously you, with a big stack of desktop gear, don't value m
Humbug. (Score:1)
why yes. yes, I could.
An LCD screen, keyboard and the right case will do just fine. IMHO laptops are best reserved for travel, where other passengers would complain about you carrying around a full PC and car battery.
And it's sheer power to cash outlay ratio where laptops always fall down. In fact, a friend of mine constructed a fantastic "luggable" from off-the-shelf components fitted to a flight case because he thought laptops simply didn't justify their cost/benifit rati
The Point is.. (Score:2)
Nothing will replace or duplicate the gaming desktop PC experience, but if you must frag on the go, these high-end laptops work great (albeit with a USB mouse plugged in).
Re:...that there is none. (Score:2)
Show me a $1000 laptop that will handle FarCry.
right
Re:...that there is none. (Score:2)
my 2.4 with 2GB of ram and a ati9700 has problems keeping up with that game.
Of course, the game is not ATI friendly to begin with, but that is another thread.
As for your fascination with my "man pleaser"
Re:Don't get it (Score:2)
I don't know about your machine, but my base system (case + internals) weighs 50 pounds, and carrying that again with a 21" CRT, plus the keyboard, mouse and sound system is too much.
I think the "Desknotes" are ludicrous anyway
Re:Don't get it (Score:3, Interesting)
And the ironic part... the lan games are hosted at -my- house, and almost without exception, all the guests brin
My laptop is running Windows (Score:5, Funny)
I call it the DeFragBook.
Re:My laptop is running Windows (Score:2, Funny)
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Re: (Score:2)
Re:My laptop is running Windows (Score:3, Interesting)
Seriously, folks, the Powerbook I just bought looked major expensive until I tried finding a PC laptop that was roughly the same size and weight with a pleasant look. The closest competetors were from voodoopc ($500 more expensive) and the Acer Ferrari (same price, but I've heard iffy reports on the quality).
There's something nice about a machine that has a big enough screen for p-shop and gaming, runs (relatively) cool for 4 hours an
Re: (Score:2)
Re:Apple looks inexspensive... (Score:2)
Anyhow, I already have all the software I need for my new mac, I should have mentioned that as well. There wasn't a lot of it that I needed to replace, just Office X...game
Re:My laptop is running Windows (Score:2, Funny)
congratulations.
My laptop keeps running from Windows.
I tried (Score:5, Informative)
Re:I tried (Score:5, Informative)
A few hints on the fps/refresh subject:
Re:I tried (Score:1)
High and sudden differences in fps (200, 90, 150,
Re:I tried (Score:2)
Absolutely... (Score:5, Interesting)
If I was about 15-18 somewhere again I might have gotten one of these (translation: I may have suckered my parents into buying me one). Would be perfect for the kind of computer use I had back then. Newer LCDs work very good at games, just add an USB mouse and some good headphones. It's a gaming system in a backpack.
Kjella
except (Score:1, Insightful)
raid in a notebook?!? (Score:1)
Re:raid in a notebook?!? (Score:2, Informative)
If you're traveling 500 miles each way for a weekend long fragfest that you've already spent hundreds of dollars to attend you don't want to miss the whole thing because a drive crapped out.
KFG
Re:raid in a notebook?!? (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:raid in a notebook?!? (Score:5, Informative)
You only need to spin the drive when you write to it, which in a gaming system is a very occasional occurance. We're not talking "Enterprise" order processing database here. We're talking writing back to the config file after a gaming session is over and the ability to switch to that drive if the primary drive fails while actually gaming.
So it's a drain on the battery, but nowhere near twice the drain.
And I certainly never said that using a laptop for a LAN party makes a lot of sense anyway.
KFG
Re:raid in a notebook?!? (Score:2)
Not all people go to a LAN party to show off their UBER-1337 gaming rigs. Some people go to have fun, and don't mind only getting 64 fps, instead of 184 fps.
Re:raid in a notebook?!? (Score:1)
I get a pretty solid 36 fps with all the graphical candy turned on, and I like it.
It requires a metric purseload (much smaller than the SAE purseload) of cords, which I admit take about 15 seconds more to get up and running than your laptop. When using a laptop where it's going to be used in a desktop like situation
Re:raid in a notebook?!? (Score:2)
Phhbt. I'm a poor college student. And by poor, I mean I survived a semester on Burritos and PB&J sandwiches. I had a 266mhz machine until I was forced to upgrade for college (Min. System requirements).
That being said, with a gaming laptop, even if you're taking a keyboard and mouse, can fit in a backpack, no problem. I can't even fit a mini
Re:raid in a notebook?!? (Score:2, Funny)
KFG
Re:raid in a notebook?!? (Score:2)
Like I said, though. I don't take either when I LAN game...
Any chance I can get this "bare bones"? (Score:1)
Build a system (Score:3, Informative)
I just built a system using some of the high end hardware on their System Configuration Page. [falcon-nw.com] The cost? Over $8700 using a 19" CRT instead of their ~$1500 21" LCD.
Of course, if I wanted to park something that costs as much as a compact car on my desk I'd let Billy Joel [usatoday.com] do it.
Re:Build a system (Score:1)
Yeah, ok, it's a tarted up "Charleston" 2CV, but it's still just a 2CV. Reminds me of a P.J. O'Rourke maxim:
"Never buy a French car unless you are in France."
Couple of years ago I was walking down the main drag in my town and one of the orginal versions of these drove by, in that black and burgundy that's really kinda classy (classy 2CV. Oxymoron?) I stopped walking to watch it go by and man sitting on a st
professional use (Score:5, Insightful)
It is great to see all you gamers drive the market, so I can work better.
Re:professional use (Score:2)
I move around so often that it begins to be a real strain when I cannot have my entire work with me at all times. It's quite impressive to be able to make changes on a 3D model on demand from the client. That subsequently saves back and forth time, as the client inevitably says, "No, that's not what I was thinking.. it was more like this."
So yes, I agree - Gamers, keep driving that market!
ARGHHOOOOOWWWW (Score:3, Funny)
Hear the cry of a thousand geeks who gamed too long with a laptop on their lap. May their manhood rest in piece.
Actually, I would prefer... (Score:1, Offtopic)
Actually, wrong thread for Mac advocacy (Score:5, Informative)
In many applications it really is, but unfortunately, gaming is not one of them. In games, 1 GHz of a G4 is actually quite like 1 GHz of a P4 (there's no noticeable difference to the player, that is). No, I made no scientific research on this topic, but I played a lot on Macs and PCs since many years. There's also circumstantial evidence to my claim - system requirements of Mac game ports usually state the same CPU clock as their Windows equivalents. Being as much a Mac addict as I am, I wouldn't recommend powerbook as a "fragbook", even if the recent models should be quite capable with the 128 VRAM Radeon 9700 Mobility cards. But even if you put the lack of some titles aside (what if the LAN party you are invited to plays "Counterstrike"?), the 1.5 GHz CPU is exactly what it is, a 1.5 GHz CPU.
I am a Mac user. I am even a Mac gamer. I am even a Mac LAN gamer (as a geek parent, I play strategy games with my kids on iBooks/iMacs connected via Airport). I agree that Macs have interesting advantages in this case, like the incredible ease of the wireless LAN creation. But I wouldn't qualify any of the current Apple machines as a "fragbook" - and they certainly don't need that kind of publicity.
Re:Actually, wrong thread for Mac advocacy (Score:1)
It's hard for me to believe that statement. Performance is a relation of execution time. Execution time = #Instructions * Instructions/Cycle * Clock Cycle.
Your thinking is exactly what Intel has spent millions of dollars on advertising for. Apple and AMD has spent money trying to convince us that a lower IPC is what makes a computer
Re:Actually, wrong thread for Mac advocacy (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Actually, wrong thread for Mac advocacy (Score:2)
You are right, of course - maybe I just didn't make my point clear enough, sorry for that. I didn't mean that 1 GHz of one CPU can be compared to 1 GHz of another. What I said that in games there is no noticeable difference. Most likely, the reason is not the CPU architecture itself but the way the games are being ported to MacOS. In a (sad) majority o
Mac is awesome for Q3A and TA (Score:2)
Usually Team Arena, sometimes standard Q3A. Sure, there are more modern games out there, but it's hard to beat Quake 3 for its gameplay and feel and it runs perfectly well on a modest G4 system all the way up to our DP 2gig G5. Hell, it even runs on my 600Mhz iBook in a pinch, although the graphics system is what lets it down there - only 8Mb VRAM).
Thin and Light?? (Score:1)
well, it might be thin, but weighing in at 6.5 pounds, it is definately not light.
Re:Thin and Light?? (Score:3, Insightful)
If 6.5 lbs is too heavy for you, methinks you need to bust your ass to the gym.
Re:Thin and Light?? (Score:2)
Looks like a Compal (Score:1)
Re:Looks like a Compal (Score:2)
The other fragbook is a Clevo (www.clevo.com.tw) and the most well known reseller is Sager - www.sagernotebook.com. Again, much cheaper than this place.
"The computer you want always costs $5000". (Score:4, Interesting)
I can't remember who said it but it remains true. Fully tricked out this baby is a 5G+ machine.
I specked it with RAID 0 (yes, on a laptop), DVDRW (With a RAID 0 your Documents must go elsware), TV Card, Bluetooth, 1 GB RAM, 3 year warranty and little else. Now if they could offer an unpainted version and pass on the savings from that...
I care about how my PC runs, not how it looks.
PS: I chose XP Home (-$70) because I know I don't need pro to play games. I have herd that XPHome functions better under gamming loads than Pro. Is this true?
Re:"The computer you want always costs $5000". (Score:5, Funny)
Priceless.
Re:"The computer you want always costs $5000". (Score:3, Funny)
Re:"The computer you want always costs $5000". (Score:3, Informative)
That's Machrone's Law, named for a PC Magazine editor.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1545647,00
Re:"The computer you want always costs $5000". (Score:3, Funny)
Ugly resolutions (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Ugly resolutions (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Ugly resolutions (Score:2)
My Dell C840 does 1600x1200 on its 15" screen... This thing is 17" and only 1440x900?! Sounds too much like a Mac.
The real stinker for this machine is that you can't get a nVidia card. Sorry, but I've been burned too many times by ATI. I only use nVidia and just that feature alone could determine if I buy a particular machine. nVidia "just works" whether I'm running Windows, Linux, whatever, and it performs well.
For that DR model (the one with the desktop
We are high. (Score:3, Insightful)
Looking on how the other 99% live maybe we should realize that our prosperity is an aberation, and use our money and time more wisely.
Anyone for Linux on a Falcon FragBook? (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Anyone for Linux on a Falcon FragBook? (Score:1)
forgot to mention in my other post... mobile gfx drivers don't get updated very often, and while I like having a 15.4" screen most of the time, for gaming it makes things look streched, and i really wish i could just get black bars on the side so the games dont look warped (fps's, other games it isnt that noticeable)...
Re:Anyone for Linux on a Falcon FragBook? (Score:2, Informative)
Good gaming laptops? (Score:1)
Re:Good gaming laptops? (Score:1)
Re:Good gaming laptops? (Score:1)
Re:Good gaming laptops? (Score:1)
First gaming and laptop don't get well together. Now matter what they try to sell you.
Secondly at college you'll most likely end up online 24/7 sucking the juice of p2p. Which is what many of my friends did (I just graduated). I haven't seen anyone's desktop die cause of being on too much but at least 5 laptops have died after being used 24/7 for a few months or so.
Last but seriously not least are you sure you want something you will bring to the library that you can
What a rip... (Score:2, Informative)
Or... (Score:2, Informative)
Astroturfing today (Score:4, Interesting)
First "TheTechLounge" writes about an article on... thetechlounge.com! Not that I'm complaining about the content, it's a good article, but why couldn't you have just posted it on Slashdot directly?
Then this article, does anyone else think that this was written by the guy that makes these laptops? I suppose it still has some interest to nerds (and people who care about what matters), but it doesn't seem right to allow free advertising like this...
Some things to remember... (Score:4, Informative)
techbargains.com + dell OR powernotebooks.com will save you a good bit over your voodoos and alienwares...
also busses/ram/hard drives tend to be slower in laptops as well, just a few things to remember. Laptops have come a long way, and now they'll even play the newest games at good res without freezing, but due to heat and size (and therefore monetary
Re:Some things to remember... (Score:3, Informative)
I think the more important point is that there isn't an option. Compare to the Alienware notebook with modular video so you can choose between ATI or NVidia and then upgrade in the future.
how is this high end? (Score:1)
either way, i still can't believe they charge that much... maybe some people really love the paint job.
No thanks (Score:1)
It seems it is not an original manufacturer (Score:3, Informative)
Re:It seems it is not an original manufacturer (Score:2)
Hmm, where have I seen this before? (Score:3, Informative)
Sager (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Sager (Score:2)
Here's another good link: | Clevo | [clevo.com.tw]
Re:Sager (Score:2)
Disappointed in Falcon-Northwest (Score:4, Informative)
Now, granted, this is a box that was meant to be more portable than powerful, with limited upgradability, but I sent it back. Since then, I've purchased parts for a fairly decent Athlon 64 system which should wipe the floor with the Fragbox for a few hundred more. It's one of those "If you want it right, build it yourself" things.
Book of Notes? (Score:2, Funny)
This is nothing special! (Score:4, Informative)
Why would you pay $500 more for a laptop to get a little green guy or a threatening-looking face sticker? You can get a damn good laptop from the place I mentioned and stick your own threatening-looking sticker on it for $2. *shakes head in disbelief*
Look here for the already-configured laptops [jscustompcs.com]. You can click on the "customize" link and trick it out even more.
It's a shame to see a great company like this go unnoticed. I love my JS systems and recommend them to everyone.
Re:This is nothing special! (Score:2)
PowerNotebooks [powernotebooks.com]
For less than $1500.00 (!!) you can get a fully loaded PowerPro 5:6 [powernotebooks.com] which has a Radeon Mobility 9700 with 128 megs of ram and a 1.5 ghz Centrino (or get a 1.7 ghz for $1650.) They also have crazy desktop replacement models at great prices also (10 pounds though!)
These guys also have an incredible Reseller Rating [resellerratings.com] from ResellerRatings.com.
I did a bunch of research into gaming laptops a week ago and these guys came out on top. I also sent them an email i
Re:This is nothing special! (Score:2)
You can get the desktop replacement models at JS, as well. It looks like they're really starting to catch on.
Re:I saw these things (Score:1, Flamebait)
Re:Power vs Cost (Score:2)
Coffee? Why not a fuel cell that runs on urine? That way you don't have to share your precious caffeine until after you're already done with it.