I see no reason why a 2GB card should not be sufficient. Take the rest of the money and get a good Solid state drive. With a good processor i7 third or forth generation and 6GB of Ram, you should be flying.
After configuration, post your Windows EXperience index score if you do not mind.
Sorry, I have no experience with them. KS4 Jesus and a few others have knowledge of it. Start a new thread and ask about it, someone should chime in.
In doing a bit of research for buying a Laptop ...
Mobile Graphics benchmark list => http://www.notebookcheck.net/Mobile-Graphics-Cards-Benchmark-List.844.0.html shows NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M at # 75 while NVIDIA GeForce GT 740M is # 80, which are in class 2 Mid-Range.
CPU list => http://www.notebookcheck.net/Mobile-Processors-Benchmarklist.2436.0.html
Keep Smiling [:)]
Here are those links:
P70-A-01Y: http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/product/toshiba-toshiba-satellite-p70-17-3-laptop-grey-intel-core-i7-4700mq-1tb-hdd-16gb-ram-windows-8-p70-a-01y/10256998.aspx
P70-A-01Q: http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/product/toshiba-toshiba-satellite-p70-17-3-laptop-grey-intel-core-i7-4700mq-1tb-hdd-16gb-ram-windows-8-p70-a-01q/10256999.aspx
Key differences are the first one has only dvd and a low resolution of 1600x900 2 GB graphics, where the second system has dvd/blu-ray, a much higher resolution 1920x1080 4GB graphics, and a multi-card reader.
I don't believe the amount of graphics ram is significant here, the deciding point for me would be the resolution. 1920x1080 is going to be much better on the eyes for extended reading.
Note: If there is an option for an i5, I wouldn't feel bad about going with it if it saved a significant amount of money. It wouldn't cause that much or any loss of performance in Logos (or most anything else) and may possibly run cooler and get a few more minutes out of the battery. There's no big advantage to going with the i7 for most uses.
Also, am I the only one who is having problem editing on this forum and posting things where we can get space(s) between paragraphs?
If you click the 'HTML' button at top right of toolbar to get the 'raw' HTML code you will/may see that the editor component is using all sorts of ugly and useless HTML instead of the 'vanilla' HTML codes of < p > < / p > for new lines (I put extra spaces in there to stop editor thinking they were HTML.
If you understand basic HTML you can clean it up. Has worked for me every time I see the editor misbehaving.
Toshiba is offering nothing on the Canadian side of the border yet with an i5 fourth generation. So I'm getting that you would out of the two, go with the second, correct? I don't need any more info about the 5400 & 7200rpm
Regarding hardware I always have a policy of buying as much horsepower (within reason) that your budget can stretch to. Remember you are going to have a new machine for a long time and, especially with a notebook, once you have bought it it will not be cost effective to upgrade it.
Good luck!
the deciding point for me would be the resolution. 1920x1080 is going to be much better on the eyes for extended reading.
Noticed people tend to prefer letters on screen being similar to their own handwriting so 1920 x 1080 would be preferred by those who write smallish letters.
Regarding hardware I always have a policy of buying as much horsepower (within reason) that your budget can stretch to.
Personally prefer best performance for the money, which includes future hardware expansion options. Thankful for a Dell Insprion 17R Special Edition laptop with backlit keyboard that shipped with an empty SATA storage that now has a SATA III Solid State Disk (SSD) for Logos use. Thankful for many refurbished purchases from Apple => http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/specialdeals/mac (US), which has a Canadian web page => http://store.apple.com/ca/browse/home/specialdeals/mac along with Dell Outlet, which has discount codes periodically posted on twitter.
Logos is a resource intensive application that benefits from fast processor, graphics, and quick storage along with adequate memory; SSD is noticeably faster than hard disk.
HTML --- not quite following you. Is this in the Logos webpage or on IE10?
I guess Patrick, you're not understanding it either!!! :-D
Both of these seem rather on the high side. Being Canada, or that is what I gather, these may be your best options. I would most certainly shop around.
Patrick gave excellent advice; but, there are a couple issues that bother me about these.First, in the review, there's mention of "feeling the power" when plugged in. Considering the reviewer is familiar with Apple having had this same issue, and clues us in on the fact this was a power supply issue, that is a major concern. It may be just that one; it may be a company-wide or specific laptop-wide issue. It would definitely be cause to be concerned, for me. Second, battery life (session) is 4 hours. I usually look for longer battery life. This of course depends on how you use your laptop. 4-5 hours is typical, but, I prefer extended battery life. If the above issue is atypical, and you are going for this one, getting a second battery is always an option, and, a good option (as batteries do tend to lose optimal performance over time). Regarding the specs, Patrick named the main differences. Is a Blu-ray player and 2 more gb of video memory worth $300? Personally, I don't think so; if you are a hard core gamer, double the graphics memory would be better. $300 better?Blu-ray. I love blu-ray, but, at $300? I don't know about that, If I am reading things correctly, you get the same processor and the same ram. The CPU runs at 5400rpm, which I do not understand why that is still so slow. Maybe a heat thing, if it gets to spinning too much. I don't see a huge difference in Logos 5 performance here; again, making it a questionable value for $300. But, if you are bound and determined to spend the money, get a replacement battery, use the OEM as a back-up, and use the extra money for a bigger Logos package. Ha. (Nope, not a sales person here).
Another minor issue is, these are not touch screen monitors, Ie, they don't take advantage of Windows 8 technologies. I don't have an issue with that, but, unfortunately, there are many who do not like the new Windows 8, particularly without the touchscreen. Take a test drive at a local store and see if that would be an issue. Again, for me, no. For you? Maybe. Maybe not.
I prefer buying my electronics from Costco. Not sure if there are any where you are. The reason I do, is because we get a 90 day "play time" with Costco (and Sam's Club). I'm guessing any warehouse store would be similar (BJ's, Price Club, etc). Costco adds a second year concierge and warranty for free. I'm not aware of Sam's Club doing this. (This came in handy on my laptop when I downloaded the beta version of Windows 8; and I needed a hard copy of Windows 7. Costco was able to get the manufacturer to send me a 7 disc, free).
Hope this helps.
O Legendsofbatman,
I was asking about what was meant by the HTML. There was a point where I could not edit a posting.
As to Toshiba ... you mention the cpu & 5400rpm - obviously you meant the HD. Toshiba says they put these (5400 Drives) in most of their models because of heat and the difference between the 5400 & the 7200 is not going to make a massive difference in *most* programs.
As to the difference of nearly 300.00 (blueray / graphics card) I've already got the more expensive one on its way by courier. The battery - I sit a Laptop here on my desk and it doesn't move maybe once a year or two and that's it. I will unplug the AC from the unit once a week or so but do not use the machine much on battery power. It's always plugged in apart from a couple times a week at best.
I do not care for the touchscreens. I'm not so crazy about screens after a couple days that appear to have crazy glue all over them. Nay, I still like the Logitech MX Revolution better than touchscreens. And I don't really like Windows 8 either - I totally *love* it. As far as I'm concerned, it's totally tremendous!!!
I've shopped / looked / googled / binged all over the place/ been on several forums where one of such pretty well condemned the Toshiba brand. Obviously, I didn't agree. Everyone has an onion, pardon me, I mean an opinion on computers. To some, the Acer is the best, to the next lot - ASUS - a certain breed of us lean towards Toshiba. I've only had five of these and only with this latter one, the lagging problem kicked in.
I've been hoping to see what a problem was like on a Toshiba, and I got my wish!!!?? So amazing, I poured another gob of money into a new one.
But maybe someone can explain what Patrick meant by this html thingy - please. Thanks!
HTML = HyperText Markup Language
The tags <p> and </p> are the beginning and end of a paragraph.
Thankful for HTML button in Forum Editor:
HTML has syntax for showing text is quoted; albeit paragraphs tend to be squeezed together.
Ok, thank you for this. Although when it comes to html, I know subzero. I guess my main question was "where is it" ... I was looking for it on the top of the forum site & in IE11 itself. Now I see it is in the "reply" ... well, today I have learned a great thing ... where the html is located!
Yep, I meant H/D, not CPU. Grr, Sorry, but, glad you knew what i meant. [:$]
A suggestion to (hopefully) prolong battery life: since you say you rarely move the laptop, remove the battery from the laptop altogether. Probably wouldn't be a bad idea to charge it every so often. Something else I read, was to fully charge it, let it drain, fully charge it, let it drain; cycle through several times, before fully using it. (Don't know if that will extend the battery life much, but, dont know that it would harm any). I've never owned a Tobisha, but, everyone I know who has had one, loves it. Unfortunately, every brand will have it's faults. The hope is, that the pro's outweigh the cons. I've heard Asus is great. I liked their motherboards, but, was annoyed with their laptop. (Jumping cursor. Turns out it's a huge laptop issue with just about all companies). Acer ticked me off. My laptop was 53-54 weeks old, and the warranty as a result expired by 7-14 days, but despite it being a known issue, didn't care. So, I don't care to pay for a new computer every 2 years from Acer. So far my Dell experience hasn't been too horrible. It's just over two years old, and knock on wood, plastic, metal, and any other material, still works. I made a mistake by downloading the beta on Windows 8, and lost my partition (oops). Dell wanted me to buy a new Windows 7 disc, that USED to come included, for $200. I opted out of that choice. Fortunately, Costco was able to get Dell to provide me a disc for free. My charger stopped working, but, was a cheap $30 fix. My biggest complaint so far with Dell is that they have a known issue with the battery not being recognized, therefore won't charge. Usually when this error pops up, it does, so, it has not been an issue. If it refuses to charge, popping it out usually works. Once, it took several attempts. Anyway, I've heard a lot of good about Toshiba; so, even though i myself think it was a high price, if it works properly, and for many years to come, that's all that matters. That and that you are happy with it. Good luck Fingers crossed for you.