[Dark_Lotus]

I'm looking for a laptop for college. I currently own a 20" iMac and I'm still not sure if I want to take that to college or not. A laptop would be great for taking to class and saving alot of space in the dorm room. I have to use Visual studio for my computer science courses, but I could run that using Boot Camp or Parallels. I also want to do some gaming, maybe WoW, F.E.A.R., and Rise of Nations. Could the MBP with the 128MB vid card and 1GB of RAM handle some light gaming?

The other laptop I was considering was the Alienware Area-51 m5550. I came up with a list of Pros vs cons for buying each. Any recommendations or advice? I wouldn't buy the Alienware spec'ed out like that, I was just seeing what you get for your money when buying from each brand.

Alienware Area-51 m5550: $1,928.00

Processor: Intel® CoreTM 2 Duo Processor T7200 2.0GHz 4MB Cache 667MHz FSB
Operating System (Office software not included): Genuine Windows® Vista
Display: 15.4" WideXGA 1280 x 800 LCD - Saucer Silver
Motherboard: Alienware® Intel® 945PM + ICH7 Chipset
Memory: 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SO-DIMM at 667MHz - 2 x 1024MB
System Drive: 100GB Serial ATA 1.5Gb/s 7,200 RPM w/ NCQ & 8MB Cache
Primary CD ROM/DVD ROM: 24x DVD-ROM/CD-RW Burner w/ Nero Software
Video/Graphics Card: 256MB NVidia® GeForceTM Go 7600
Sound Card: Intel® 7.1 High-Definition Audio
Wireless Network Card: Internal Intel® PRO Wireless 3945 a/b/g Mini-Card
Communications: Integrated 10/1000Mb Gigabit Ethernet & 56K V.92 Modem
Power: Additional Battery - Alienware® Area-51 m5550 9-cell Lithium-Ion Additional Battery
Warranty: 1-Year AlienCare Toll-Free 24/7 Phone Support w/ Onsite Service
AlienRespawn: Alienware® Respawn Recovery Kit
Alienware Extras: Alienware® Mousepad
Alienware Extras: AlienInspection - Exclusive Integration and Inspection - $100 Value - FREE!
Free Alienware® T-Shirt: Free Alienware® T-Shirt – Black

Macbook Pro: $2,299.00

Processor: 2.33GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
Operating System: OS X
Memory: 2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
System Drive: 120GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm
Primary CD ROM/DVD ROM: SuperDrive 6x (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Video/Graphics Card: 256MB Mobility Radeon ATI X1600
Display: MacBook Pro 15-inch Glossy Widescreen Display 1440 x 900 pixels
Keyboard: Backlit Keyboard/Mac OS - U.S. English
Other: Accessory Kit
Warranty: 90 days Phone Support – 1 Year hardware warranty

Pros – Alienware Area-51 m5550
• Lower Price
• Faster Hard Drive
• Better Video Card
• Better Sound Card
• Additional Battery
• Better Warranty
• Great for Gaming
• Great for running Visual Studio
• Can be Upgraded

Cons – Alienware Area-51 m5550
• Lower Resolution Screen
• 20GB less hard drive space
• No DVD Burner
• Slightly heavier & thicker
• Windows Vista

Pros – Macbook Pro
• Very portable for 15”
• Bigger Hard Drive
• DVD Burner
• Good Battery Life
• Runs OS X
• Higher Resolution Screen
• Made by Apple

Cons – Macbook Pro
• Already own a Mac
• Not good for gaming
• Short Warranty
• Expensive
• Not Upgradeable

[voicebox]

Dark_Lotus
Wow, what a list - dear, oh dear, oh dear, dear .....
You simply can't buy the gorgeous MacBook Pro - you must buy the Alienware .....oh and make sure you buy their 'Respawn Recovery Kit' - they say it's a 'must' .....

[RogueSqdn]

MBP IS good for gaming. I just got mine a week ago, and currently have Half-Life 2, Republic Commando, and Knights of the Old Republic running on it. All run very well: I get between 70-100 FPS in HL2 in most instances. The only problem is that some games don't like widescreen (KOTOR movies are a slight problem there), but you'll run into that with the Alienware also.

I reboot into Windows XP for those games via BootCamp, but I've also got CrossOver Mac, which lets you install Windows games and apps in Mac OS X without running Windows. It's not perfect, but it DOES support 3D acceleration. You can see their website for a compatibility list (www.codeweavers.com).

Another couple of PROs for the MBP you left out...

1) Sudden motion sensor for hard drive protection. There are also some programs that take advantage of it for anti-theft (iAlertU sounds off like a car alarm when the MBP is moved, takes a picture with the iSight, AND emails it wherever you wish), and also it can be used for virtual desktop switching (Google "SmackBook Pro").

2) Ambient Light Sensor. In darkness, the brightness of the screen is adjusted and the KEYS ARE BACKLIT. This sensor can also be used for virtual desktop switching, as well.

I also don't know that I'd say that Alienware has a better video card, though there ARE SLI setups for laptops available (but that'll run the price up, too).

[darkmatter]

Originally Posted by Dark_Lotus 

I have to use Visual studio for my computer science courses, but I could run that using Boot Camp or Parallels.

Pros – Alienware Area-51 m5550
• Great for running Visual Studio

Hi,
A good reason to consider it great is that MS VS runs 100.1% natively on the WIN based computer, if that is not your only consideration, may I know why you find the MAC based computer not better to run Visual Studio? Is Visual Studio limited somehow while using it on a Mac running Boot Camp? I ask because I would like to buy the next MBP revision and a crucial point on my buy is that I need to implement some software and drivers with MS VS.

I gave a quick try to MS VS on a a 20" iMac running Boot Camp Beta and for now I haven't found any problem... your feedback would be appreciated.

Originally Posted by Dark_Lotus 

Cons – Macbook Pro
• Expensive

MBP are expensive and if you want to get the most value of your money and you can wait a bit I recommend you to wait and take a look for what it is coming at WWDC.

Regards

[voicebox]

Hi again Dark_Lotus,
Having re-read your original post, I wonder if you have tried Google-ing 'Alienware problems' before you make up your mind which of the laptops - the MPB or the Alienware - to buy?
I think you will find the results rather interesting, if not alarming ....

[Rumor]

"Alienware Problems" - Google Search

"MacBook Pro Problems" - Google Search

[Dark_Lotus]

I've already decided to go with the MBP.

1. I can run Windows for gaming/VS and OS X.

2. I just got over $150 in Apple gift cards for graduation, plus a little over $1500 cash so that makes it easy to buy the MBP.

3. I can't turn my back on Apple. I don't know why, but I just can't spend the money on a PC.