Requesting advice on possible Vortex IV purchase

[Rubyjuno]

I've been browsing these forums since around October(!) as I'm thinking of buying a new laptop and after time spent looking into PCS and their competitors decided PCS seem as good as anyone. One of the reasons is that a handful of members (not PCS staff) are willing to give support in these forums. I'm hoping some of those helpful members can advise me.

I've had laptops for around 15 years and unfortunately been spoiled by IBMs and Dells. I've had 2 Thinkpads and 3 Inspirons and the only problem I've ever had is a faulty CD drive in an aging Inspiron. My current main laptop is an excellent one but getting a bit long in the tooth. Although money isn't really a problem, I've realised that to get the spec I want somewhere like PCS will give me much better value. Having never had a laptop that gets very hot or very noisy I admit some of the threads concern me.

Apologies for waffling, here is an idea of what I'm looking for:

Windows 7 Pro
Max screen size 15.6" matte, not glossy
Good quality chassis (no flexing!) with a decent keyboard & facility to disable the touchpad (I only use a mouse)
Quiet during normal operation (ie web browsing, using Office)
Not prone to overheating or excessive fan noise
Capable of playing current games at reasonable settings (I'm not a massive gamer, but would like the option)

Here are the main details of the spec I was originally considering:
Vortex IV
15.6" Matte Full HD LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-4800MQ (2.70GHz) 6MB
8GB SAMSUNG 1600MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (1 x 8GB)
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 780M - 4.0GB DDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 11
1TB SEAGATE HYBRID GEN3 SSHD Drive, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (5400 rpm)
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND (£9)
GIGABIT LAN & KILLER™ 1202 WIRELESS GAMING 802.11N + BLUETOOTH 4.0
Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence (£109)
3 Year Gold Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 2 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£69)
1 Year Dead Pixel Guarantee Inc. Labour & Carriage Costs (£19)

However, it appears after research that this spec is prone to overheating and excessive fan speed/noise. I'm willing to lose some performance to avoid these problems. Would dropping down to an i7-4700Q processor and a GTX 770M video card reduce the heat/fan noise issues while still retaining a reasonable performance in games? Or am I asking for the impossible? Also, is the Vortex IV a good chassis? Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[keynes]

Hi,
Why do you think it overheats?i have a similar spec and I use it for work (showing ppt to clients) and is pretty silent. It is only loud when gaming. The chassis is pretty good quality and way better than the Inspiron. Is there a particular reason for windows professional? What is your intended use?

 

[Rubyjuno]

Hi keynes,

Thanks for your quick reply. The easy answer first, I have been using the Pro versions of Windows since Windows 2000 and have Windows 7 Pro on my desktop and laptop (as well as XP pro as a dual boot). I guess you're making the point that I don't really need Pro and you're probably right.

I will use the laptop for MS Office, programming, web browsing, the usual stuff, but I would also like the option to play games occasionally (mainly FPS or strategy) including recent ones. My questions about the heat and noise come only from reading comments on forums and in reviews, and that's why I'm looking for others' experiences and opinions. I certainly don't wish to argue after you've been good enough to reply but my Inspiron has an excellent chassis and I can't believe any chassis is way better - it's just the spec that's getting a bit past it! However, I concede your point that the Vortex IV is a decent chassis.

How long have you had your Vortex IV and would you have any reservations about recommending it? Do you know if dropping down to the GTX 770M would make a deal of difference heat (and therefore noise) wise? Thanks again for replying.

 

[keynes]

No worries didn't want to start an argument either. I have an Inspiron and a now death xps. From experience I find the vortex better with the backlit keyboard and the sturdy chassis. I don't think the gtx 770m would lower temps significantly and for gaming I would be apprehensive in downgrading the gpu but it also depends on the type of games you play.

 

[Rubyjuno]

Thanks for giving your opinion. I'm pretty likely to go for the Vortex IV with the GTX 780M, but I'm going to leave it for a while to see if anyone else has anything to say. Cheers.

 

[IAmMikowski]

Hello,

Given that I own a pretty similar spec to the one you're looking at getting (780M, 4800Mq and thermal paste) let me reassure you that the laptop is really quiet when using it for general browsing, typing docs, etc. Only when putting it through its paces do the fans really kick in, and I've certainly not had any problems with overheating even in the most intensive conditions (ie Maya fluids!). I'd definitely recommend investing in a decent cooling pad/stand (but I would advise this whatever laptop you went for).

In my opinion the chassis is really nice quality too; it feels solid, the matte screen is just lovely (games like Tomb Raider and Far Cry 3 look stunning!) and it's a handsome machine in an understated kinda way.

 

[Rubyjuno]

Thanks IAmMikowski, that's just the kind of advice I was looking for. Cheers!

 

[DarthBane]

I have a similarly spec'ed laptop and i agree with the other respondents that the chassis is very sturdy, its a well built laptop, When im idling / browsing / reading etc there is little fan noise however they do kick in when you start playing games but as you would expect from a high end machine this is going to happen.

 

[Rubyjuno]

Thanks, DarthBane, every opinion I get helps.

 

[davmur191]

I know this is a little past date of this thread but did you go for it in the nend and how are you getting on?
I've been pottering around with the various setups here, looking to replace my old Asus and I suspect will plump for a Vortex IV too, but 17" version (along the lines of IAmMikowski's sig suggests actually!)

 

[Rubyjuno]

Sorry to disappoint you, but no I have not bought a new laptop yet. I'm still not convinced that the Vortex IV is what I want. I've also considered the Skyfire III 14" and laptops from other manufacturers. I think the 17" will be too big for me. Hope you find what you want!