Please help, stuck between: GT72 and GS60

Hey everyone,

With the GTX 900 series coming out I'm finally ready to make a laptop purchase. I'm not really as qualified in this department as many of you out there, so any input is greatly appreciated.

-- EDIT --

After several responses, it turns out I am between the GS60 and the GT60. The GT72 is a little larger than what I am looking for.

That being said, I am between two:

- MSI GT60 Dominator-1065
- MSI GS60 Ghost Pro-064

MSI GS60 Ghost Pro-064 - [ETA: Oct.15]; $2,023

$1,944.00

On the GS60 there is 6GB of memory on the graphics card (+), plus the smaller form factor (+).
On the GT60 there is 3GB of memory on the graphics card (-), has a larger form factor (-), but I can get the copper cooling (+), plus it allows me to have 3 processor options within my budget (+):

- i7-4710MQ, $1,885
- i7-4800MQ, $2,123 (+200ish)
- i7-4910MQ, $2,298 (+400ish)

Form factor comparisons:

GS60
15.35" (L) x 10.47" (W) x 0.78" (H)
4.2 lbs w/ 6 Cell Battery

vs

GT60
15.55" (w) x 10.51" (d) x 2.16" (h)
7.70 lbs with 9-cell Battery

The GT60 weighs nearly twice as much and is over twice as thick.

It seems I can get almost the exact same specs on both laptops, which makes me keep trying to use form factor as a deciding factor. However, if the GT60 really is going to be significantly cooler, then that's another factor.

Yes, I game. But not hardcore, and not all the time. When I do, I want a good experience, but I also want to be able to work comfortably on the laptop as well. So:

- On the GT60, is it worth the extra $200ish for the upgrade to the 4800, or the $400ish for the 4910?
- Which option (and processor if GT60 is your answer) would you chose?


I really appreciate the help, I'm grateful for any input.

 

They are not nearly identical at all.
GT72 is a true powerhouse, it's heavy and should be used as a stationary system, however it will perform flawless without any limitation.
GS60 is a gaming ultrabook, performance is slightly limited when power draw is too high, and it may throttle down from high heat until you lower graphical setting to meet the sweet spot.

 

It comes down to how you intend to use it as Ken pointed out they are very different sizes, the GS60 is much lighter and if you are on the move a lot is the obvious choice. If you are stationary then the GT72 has that extra punch for gaming, a larger screen, more powerful speakers due to that extra size and weight it gets to play with/

 

Okay, so I definitely would like to be able to travel with it and not feel burdened. So the GS60 sounds like more of a fit.

That being said, would I be losing out on anything major? A little screen space + speakers doesn't bother me.

Also, how is the "15.6” FHD 16:9 LED Backlit Wide screen (1920x1080) Anti-Glare Matte Type Screen" ?

Thanks!

 

Consider the GT60 as well as its kinda in the middle of the two designs. Its more portable then a GT72 but still not too thin so it can cool nicely.

 

Hey Hutsady, I'm actually looking at your laptops right now .

So, there is only one GT60 that has a 900 series: MSI GT60 Dominator-1065. But, here's my big concern. It doesn't have the dual fans (one for cpu, one for gpu) like both the GS60 and GT72 have. I have heard that the older models of GSI have heat issues, so I definitely want the dual fans in there.

I tried building roughly the same spec laptop with the MSI GT60 Dominator-1065:

$2,179.00

But it seems like it's bigger, doesn't have dual fans, and only has 3GB memory in the 970 compared to 6GB. So I don't get why anyone would want it over the GS60

I really appreciate the help! Still going back and forth, the input is much appreciate guys.

Thanks

-- edit: paste error, pasted the wrong thing!

 

The cooling is inbetween the GT72 and GS60, it may be a single fan but the heatsinks are bigger and that single fan pushes more air than both the ones in the GS60.

 

Ahh, I see. Thanks for the clarification.

So... I think the GT72 is too big for me. I don't need an ultra-thin device or anything, but the GT72 is just a little more than what I'm looking for.

That means it's between the GS60 or the GT60

If they're both roughly equal, I would chose the smaller form factor GS60. But, I'm guessing they differ. How much do they *really* differ though? If the GT60 performs just marginally better (a percent or two), then it's no big deal to me. If there's a 10% performance difference between the two models though, that's fairly significant.

I appreciate the help!

 

Can't speak much for the GS60 as I've never seen one in action. However I own a GT60 with the 780m and the notebook runs great. Cooling wise I do reach 88° & 86° on both the GPU and CPU respectively (70% fan speed), but once I crank up the volume, the game sounds cover the fan noise almost completely. I believe with the cooler running 970m, the fan won't have to spin that much, and overall the laptop will run better. Also the CPU in the GT60 is socketed and upgradeable. The chasis too, although an old design, it's pretty sturdy. The GT72 is the better choice ofcourse but between the GT60 and the GS60 I'd take the former anyday

 

Hey everyone,

I really appreciate the feedback so far. It looks like I'm between these two (just updated/edited the first post to reflect this as well):

- MSI GT60 Dominator-1065
- MSI GS60 Ghost Pro-064

MSI GS60 Ghost Pro-064 - [ETA: Oct.15]; $2,023

MSI GT60 Dominator-1065; $1,944.00

On the GS60 there is 6GB of memory on the graphics card (+), plus the smaller form factor (+).
On the GT60 there is 3GB of memory on the graphics card (-), has a larger form factor (-), but I can get the copper cooling (+), plus it allows me to have 3 processor options within my budget (+):

- i7-4710MQ, $1,885
- i7-4800MQ, $2,123 (+200ish)
- i7-4910MQ, $2,298 (+400ish)

Form factor comparisons:

GS60
15.35" (L) x 10.47" (W) x 0.78" (H)
4.2 lbs w/ 6 Cell Battery

vs

GT60
15.55" (w) x 10.51" (d) x 2.16" (h)
7.70 lbs with 9-cell Battery

The GT60 weighs nearly twice as much and is over twice as thick.

What concerns me is that the older MSI style laptops get really bad heating reviews, and it was the new dual fan layout and reviews with the GT72 that got me excited. I see that the GS60 has the dual fan system, but several replies already state that the GT60 will cool better than the GS60. So, unless the GTX 900 series significantly reduces the heat, both of these laptops may get pretty hot.

It seems I can get almost the exact same specs on both laptops, which makes me keep trying to use form factor as a deciding factor. Yes, I game. But not hardcore, and not all the time. When I do, I want a good experience, but I also want to be able to work comfortably on the laptop as well. So:

- On the GT60, is it worth the extra $200ish for the upgrade to the 4800, or the $400ish for the 4910?
- Which option (and processor if GT60 is your answer) would you chose?
- Other things I'm missing? I'm sure there's a few


I really appreciate the help, I'm grateful for any input.

 

I hate how so many reviews talk about how bad the cooling is on the gt60/gt70 when it is really not bad at all. I would be much more worried about if the dual fans on the gs60 being able to keep it's components and chassis cool. I originally bought a gs70, but returned it after the weekend due to component temperatures reaching 93c and the chassis getting hot enough to cause burns. Keep in mind that 60c can cause 2nd degree skin burns in 3 seconds and 3rd degree burns in 5. The previous gs60 hit 78c on the bottom according to notebookcheck and even 50 on the top neither of which is where your hands will usually be during gaming, but still very dangerous in my opinion. If you like to game for longer periods of time I would definitely be looking at the gt series over the gs series. If you are looking for a computer that is very powerful and portable, but can also game for short periods of time then the gs might be for you. If it was my choice between the gs60 and gt60 I would take the gt60 all day long. If I had $2000 to burn on a gaming notebook it would be the gt72 for sure. I just wished that they kept the former gt70 screen, optimus and a socketed 4800 series processor for under $2k like the gt70 had. I had manual switching on my m17x r3 and hated it. I love how I can just grab my gt70 off my desk and walk over to the couch without having to worry about switching graphics and restarting.

 

Short Answer
GS60 can handle 970m easily, wont throttle and wont overheat if 970m is enough for you go with GS60 specially if you want a true light and portable laptop
GT72 is high end, need more SSD storage space? (gs60 got 2 only vs 4 of gt72) need extra power with 980m? want 32gb ram instead of 16? want optical drive? want less noise?

If you want portability don't need GT72 extras and 970m power is enough for you then the GS60 is a no brainer

 

Thanks for the input everyone .

GenTech does have a review of the new GS60 and GT72, but not the GT60:

GS60 w/ 970:

- 3dmark 11: P9129
- cpu: 84C max
- gpu: 75C max
- 3dmark fire strike: 6519

GT72 w/ 970:

- 3dmark 11: P9317
- cpu 60C max
- gpu 56C max
- 3dmark fire strick: 6568

So the temperatures are hugely different. Nearly 20C. However, the performance is nearly identical, which is a little odd. Maybe over extended gaming the performance between the two would start to differ more because of the heat?

Unfortunately there's not a GT60 to compare against. And of course the GT72 with the 980 kills it:

- 3dmark 11: P10997
- cpu 69C max
- gpu 71C max
- 3dmark fire strike: 8361

A question on the GT72. Do I have to reboot and switch the graphics mode manually every time I want to game? If I'm working for a while, then decide I want to game, do I have to manually click that button and restart? That's a little obnoxious :/.

Also, is there such a thing as the GT62? I don't see any 15" laptop with the 980 in it.

Thanks!

 

The gt60 with 970m will score the same as the gt72 with 970m. Thermal results will be between the two.

 

Okay, as long as the outside doesn't get too hot on my wrist / hands, then I think the GS60 is going to be my pick.

Before I make that decision though, is there going to be a 15" laptop with the 980? Or will that only be in the 17" ones?

 

Funnily enough, I'm actually almost in the same spot as the OP is... but since I ordered from Newegg and have a Premium membership (and enough credit to do this lols), I ordered a the GT72 and GT60 (880m gpu, bought RIGHT before the 970 and 980 came out) and will be trying them out side by side. Afterwards just going to send one back (no restocking fee with Premium)... I'll let you know how it works out if you'd like... can take pics side by side as well.

 

Really evaluate if you need a stronger CPU. The difference in performance is very minimal among most versions of CPU and it really depends on particular applications. I doubt you will see much benefit going from the base 4700 CPU to anything else in the 4000 core i7 family. The strongest choice would be an extreme edition with the GT72 since it has the better cooling, but even then, temps would get quite hot running at higher frequencies.

So choose whatever catches your eye more GT60 will have more upgradeability, more ports etc but it will be heavier and less portable. GT72 will be even less portable, but will have the choice of higher performance GPU, better cooling, even more ports with the "downside" of not being able to change CPUs. GS series only if you need power on a slim profile, with an adequate cooling system but definitely not as good as the GT series.

 

haha, forgot that I posted... well after trying bother out it's obvious that the GT72 has MUCH quieter/better cooling, is slightly heavier (but if you're worried about weight then both the GT60 and GT72 will be too heavy), noticeably better GPU, beautiful matte screen (don't miss the 3K screen for a moment), noticeably larger size (but not much thicker if at all), not noticeably faster CPU (didn't run too many tests and my uses generally tax the GPU more so it's not a concern... besides with the cooling this thing provides if I need a couple hundred more hzs I can easily grab them). Although the bulk (more the size than weight) was an iffy factor and is taking time to get used to, I'm sticking with the GT72.

 

Glad that you like your MSI notebook.
FYI, GT72's CPU is soldered therefore can't be upgraded at all if this is what you were talking about.
But you could use Intel XTU if you really need the extra MHz.

 

G72 at full load Turbo fans is much louder than GS60, G751 is not loud, GT72 is loud

 

GT72 doesn't need turbofan to remain completely cool even under stress. Without turbo fan it is hardly loud, and comparable to Asus G751.

GT72 with turbo fan should be the loudest notebook so far, but then again it should be able to cool things down to freezing them jk jk.

 

Honestly mine is pretty quiet - much quieter than my GT60 was (on turbo load and off)... LOLS I had to test it out after someone said it was louder. And I know that the CPU is soldered on but I don't typically upgrade laptop CPUs, usually just rather sell my old one and get a new one.

 

if I not mistaken, GS60 2QE has 2 M.2 SATA slots (can do 2x 512GB in Raid-0) and 1 2.5" Sata HDD slot, which you can put 1 TB HDD or SSD. So total storage is 2TB.

I will go for GS60 myself:
GS60: ultra-mobility slim and lightest gaming grade laptop, acceptable temp with 970m, acceptable 3K gaming (with fine-tuning to sweet spot)
Gx7x: bigger stationary beast that can take 980m with better cooling and power rating.

 

Yup, each model has its strengths and weaknesses.
If I am not constantly on the go then I would deal with Gx7x because of its unlimited performance.
But if I am, GS60 can fulfill most of my requirement at acceptable and reasonable range.

 

Yeah, I agree Though I tend to favor absolute performance more than slim and light. Even in college I used to lug around heavy hitter gaming laptops. Nowadays I tend to game more at home so I don't mind huge gaming laptops heh.

 

Some gamers (aka enthusiast) may find throttling unacceptable, and if you consider yourself part of this group then you will simply go with Gx7x with no hesitation.
Some do not have the need to carry the computer around all the time, so even if we do have the opportunity to carry it it's likely to be a rare occasion so we don't mind to carry the extra weight for a short period of time.

 

Yeah, throttling is not something that I accept! So if a machine I bough has throttling, I will do whatever means necessary and mods to keep it from throttling