If I may ask , If portability is not an issue , why buy a laptop at all ?
You could buy a pretty beefy PC for that kind of money.
Much more powerful than a laptop.

Quoting: razing32If I may ask , If portability is not an issue , why buy a laptop at all ?
You could buy a pretty beefy PC for that kind of money.
Much more powerful than a laptop.

Yes, well portability in the sense that I do not have space for a desktop at home (very small apartment) / it is inconvenient, and also, I want to bring it to work and home again every day. But for all I care it could weight 10 kg, I carry it rather seldomly.

As someone with a laptop with intel igpu, I say that since haswell intel is decent and ideal for laptops. I am very against nvidia on laptops.

That being said I strongly recomend to not go for a laptop but for a desktop. It does not take too much space as you monitors are now flat and keyboard and mouse you can put aside when not in use and sure you can find a corner to put a desktop. I really do not get the space argument. Unless you really need a computer that you have to carry a laptop is not recomended.

How good is intel igpu? It is not a gaming gpu but is still decent. Ideal for desktop use and movies (actually better than nvidia on linux) almost any light game has no problem. That includes any adventure (for example "The Book of Unwritten Tales 2" runs perfectly). Almost any strategy (for example "Civilization V" runs perfectly). You can have an idea for the upper limits as "The Talos Principle" runs perfectly on low settings which is actually very good, still really beautiful graphics. So intel is really good and I strongly recommend it for laptops although I do not recommend a laptop. I can believe that for some reason you have to be able to put your computer in a bag so you need a laptop, but I can not believe you can not find space for a case and a 19'' monitor which would still be a lot bigger than 15.6'' .

It is a _lot_ better to buy a desktop and a cheap laptop, than an expensive laptop.

Quoting: lucinosAs someone with a laptop with intel igpu, I say that since haswell intel is decent and ideal for laptops. I am very against nvidia on laptops.

That being said I strongly recomend to not go for a laptop but for a desktop. It does not take too much space as you monitors are now flat and keyboard and mouse you can put aside when not in use and sure you can find a corner to put a desktop. I really do not get the space argument. Unless you really need a computer that you have to carry a laptop is not recomended.

How good is intel igpu? It is not a gaming gpu but is still decent. Ideal for desktop use and movies (actually better than nvidia on linux) almost any light game has no problem. That includes any adventure (for example "The Book of Unwritten Tales 2" runs perfectly). Almost any strategy (for example "Civilization V" runs perfectly). You can have an idea for the upper limits as "The Talos Principle" runs perfectly on low settings which is actually very good, still really beautiful graphics. So intel is really good and I strongly recommend it for laptops although I do not recommend a laptop. I can believe that for some reason you have to be able to put your computer in a bag so you need a laptop, but I can not believe you can not find space for a case and a 19'' monitor which would still be a lot bigger than 15.6'' .

It is a _lot_ better to buy a desktop and a cheap laptop, than an expensive laptop.

Thank you for your thoughts! I do need to bring my computer in a bag to work every day, so portability is an issue - but not weight (I carry heavier things all the time, like my kids). I live in a one bedroom apartment with two kids and a wife so we have literally no table to put a desktop under (there are toys there instead) but I understand.

That performance seems perfectly adequate for me! I am happy with rock bottom settings as long as framerate is OK, like in shadow tactics, i can run it but it is slightly laggy, and that is boring. But as long as it is smooth it's OK.

So the Gazelle is a good choice value-wise otherwise? And how important is i3 compared to i7? That is the real question.

Quoting: buenaventuralike in shadow tactics

if you really want a specific game try to find some information for that specific game as there is no safe bet especially when it is not mentioned on the minimum requirements. A lot of games that did not mention intel turned ok but you are not safe if you do not know.

QuoteSo the Gazelle is a good choice value-wise otherwise?

personally I really like the specs (1080p, ssd, intel 7th gen, intel igpu) if I wanted now a laptop on that price range and could buy from system76, I would really be between Gazelle and Lemur (probably I would go for Lemur but that is because I value portability more on a laptop).

QuoteAnd how important is i3 compared to i7? That is the real question.

I don't know but probably is not going to make a difference on gaming because the igpu is also limiting. i3-7100 is already a decent cpu in my opinion so I would say keep your money, no need to throw more on that laptop. That being said, the difference between i3 and i5 is for sure bigger than the difference between i5 and i7, so if you think you may want a bit more power, you should really consider the i5 option.

Quoting: lucinos

Quoting: buenaventuralike in shadow tactics

if you really want a specific game try to find some information for that specific game as there is no safe bet especially when it is not mentioned on the minimum requirements. A lot of games that did not mention intel turned ok but you are not safe if you do not know.

QuoteSo the Gazelle is a good choice value-wise otherwise?

personally I really like the specs (1080p, ssd, intel 7th gen, intel igpu) if I wanted now a laptop on that price range and could buy from system76, I would really be between Gazelle and Lemur (probably I would go for Lemur but that is because I value portability more on a laptop).

QuoteAnd how important is i3 compared to i7? That is the real question.

I don't know but probably is not going to make a difference on gaming because the igpu is also limiting. i3-7100 is already a decent cpu in my opinion so I would say keep your money, no need to throw more on that laptop. That being said, the difference between i3 and i5 is for sure bigger than the difference between i5 and i7, so if you think you may want a bit more power, you should really consider the i5 option.

That is very good to hear, my budget is limited! I guess I will try and go for the i5 but not be too dissapointed with the i3 then. Thank you so much for your help!

Ouch, I realized that shipping from the US might incur tax/border fees :( Also, shipping to Sweden is 100+ dollars, wtf. Is there any comparable company in the EU?

Edit: This one looks almost the same:

https://www.entroware.com/store/aether

About the same price too, but in the EU. Only difference is that it is a Intel HD 620 instead of 630, according to OMGUbuntu, does that make any difference?

Edit2:

Here is a Swedish site with a similar one, http://www.ggsdata.se/index.php?page=laptops/n240wu8250.php

8th gen i5 seems solid then, and just about OK price, probably less shipping cost since it's a Swedish company.

Edit: entroware does not ship to sweden :( What else...

I have the 9th revision of the Gazelle Pro (about 4 years old); I believe they've introduced another revision in the meanwhile, with improved specs -- though the chassis, cooling, etc., appear to have stayed the same. I can make a couple of points about the latter:

During any task involving 3d rendering, the CPU jumps to +70 degrees C, to the accompaniment of a very shrill fully cranked up fan. To be sure, the fan cranks up during web browsing, even the lightdm login screen, and so on; but when games enter the picture (say, lowest-settings Civ V, or Race the Sun ... or even Thomas Was Alone) it goes into jet plane mode. I don't think it's possible to tune the fan manually either (I could point you to a support forum post on the official website, but I haven't kept the link; a forum search for fan noise should yield reading material, though.)

As to the chassis -- well, the plastic-with-a-brushed-aluminum-look appears nice on photographs, but in person the chassis as a whole feels flimsy. I know that this shouldn't be a big deal; but on the same price point and even *lower*, Lenovo, for instance, has laptops that are quite a bit more sturdy.

The display is excellent, by the way.

I would suggest shopping around a bit more. I'd like to support System76, I think they're doing important work, etc.; but having had my frustrations with the gazp9, I can't in good conscience recommend it wholeheartedly -- especially to someone looking to play games on it.

Note: I believe other vendors sell a different version of the same Clevo laptop with a discrete nvidia GPU. The reason why System76 sticks with this one might be that the proprietary drivers still don't provide a seamless dual GPU experience.

Quoting: buenaventuraOuch, I realized that shipping from the US might incur tax/border fees :( Also, shipping to Sweden is 100+ dollars, wtf. Is there any comparable company in the EU?

Edit: This one looks almost the same:

https://www.entroware.com/store/aether

About the same price too, but in the EU. Only difference is that it is a Intel HD 620 instead of 630, according to OMGUbuntu, does that make any difference?

Edit2:

Here is a Swedish site with a similar one, http://www.ggsdata.se/index.php?page=laptops/n240wu8250.php

8th gen i5 seems solid then, and just about OK price, probably less shipping cost since it's a Swedish company.

Edit: entroware does not ship to sweden :( What else...

In Europe try Tuxedo laptops.
Not sure how far along Brexit negotiations went so not sure if importing an Entroware from UK might hit your bottom line.
Tuxedo Computers is in Germany and still in the one area market - so no risk on extra tarrifs.

https://www.tuxedocomputers.com/

I found this forum thread searching for clevo eu http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/clevo-resellers-in-the-european-union-v1.652403/
Last updated in 2016 but might be a good starting point for people looking for those in europe