Building a computer? Need advice/suggestions? Come here!

[Cortexian]

get the asus g51 :v
although it is kind of big, it says 15.6" screen but if you include the bajeezus huge bezel it fits 17" slipcases snugly

http://www.modacity.net/forums/showthread.php?t=21456

Friend has a year or two year old G51, they're pretty nice but I really wanted some backlit keyboard going on!

[mR_r0b0to]

mine has a backlit keyboard o_0

[Cortexian]

Must be a new optional extra since he ordered his...

The Orion backpack I ordered to go with my laptop has shipped, and apparently "left Vancouver" so I'll expect it in 3-4 days. Laptop itself is still "In Production".

E: Oh and I should probably add what I wanted to really ask in this post. Lots of reviews and such state that Alienware recommends using the laptop without a "laptop cooler", however I often find myself working with the laptop on my lap or on a non-ideal surface (such as a bed/couch/padded chair arm). We all know this isn't great for laptops since if they're sitting on such a surface there's no where for the hot air and radiant heat from the bottom of the laptop to go, so I'm looking for a low-profile cooler (that's large enough to sit under the M15x at: Width: 370mm and Height: 260mm) that doesn't angle the laptop very much. Mainly just looking for something that I can throw into the backpack beside the laptop and take out when I need it between the laptop and the surface it's going to be on. I don't need to have my legs fried while quickly browsing something online haha!

I'm looking at this Zalman cooler:
http://www.zalman.co.kr/ENG/product/...ad.asp?idx=394

It's not quite big enough but it should work, however I'd like something that's slightly larger than the stated dimensions. I would prefer coolers that run off the laptop USB ports, and provide a replacement USB port(s) for the one being used.

[PlasbianX]

Hardcore QQing here. My girlfriend is an absolute money sink and saving money with her is like next to impossible.

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/Pu...umber=10666914

That's my current build for my rig I wanna build this summer. Can anyone see any changes that can be made to save me some money but still have a kickass rig?

[Pyong Kawaguchi]

I'd go with the 5850 instead, and the 920 instead.

[CN3089]

Why are you buying an 850W power supply there is no way you will need that much


The i7 and 1366 are overkill, go with a 1156 chip.

[Bhamid]

I'd go with the 5850 instead, and the 920 instead.

^^

[PlasbianX]

Link me what you guys are talking about. Remember, I am pretty damn dumb when it comes to selecting the parts D:

[Warsaw]

Dropping to an i7 920 will only save you $9, I don't know if that's worth it to you. If the 1156-pin socket weren't such a piece of crap I'd recommend dropping to that socket as well, but it's an evolutionary dead end with its dual-channel RAM limitation. It performs well enough for now, but I'd rather switch to AMD's socket AM3 than jump onto that bandwagon, even if the Core i5 outperforms the Phenom II X4.

[PlasbianX]

Had someone put this together and said it would be a good build:
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/Pu...umber=14744186

compared to my original build:
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/Pu...umber=10666914

Thoughts and criticism?