Working on certifications, job hunting, light gaming, watching shows/anime, exercising, & doing house/yard work.

Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Extreme6
Processor: Intel Core i7-4790K with Hyper 212 Plus, ASUS ROG Strix XF120 & Arctic MX-6
GPU: PowerColor RX 7900 XTX (for optimal 4K gaming)
Memory: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB (4x4GB) DDR3-2133MHz | CAS 9 | Latency 8.439ns
Primary Drive: 2TB Samsung 980 Pro with Heatsink
Game Storage Drive: 2TB Samsung 980 Pro
Storage Drive 1 & 2: 8TB Seagate Exos 7E10 7200RPM
Storage Drive 3 & 4: 5TB Toshiba X300 7200RPM | 1TB Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 850 G5 (Replaced 850 G2 under warranty)
Case: Cooler Master Storm Stryker
OS: Windows 10 Professional
Monitor: LG OLED C2 42" AUA
Mouse: Razer DeathAdder Elite
Keyboard: Corsair K70 RGB LUX - Cherry MX Brown
UPS: CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD Pure Sine Wave
Amplifier: Arcam Delta 290 Integrated Amplifier
Speakers & Subwoofer: Infinity Reference 152 & Earthquake Sound CP-8
Headphone Amp/Preamp & DAC: Schiit Magni 2 Uber & Modi 2 Uber
Headphones: Philips Fidelio X2
Microphone: Antlion Audio ModMic USB Uni & Omni-Directional w/ Mute
• Waiting until AMD's Ryzen 9 9900X3D & 9950X3D release to evaluate which Zen 5 CPU has a good combination of: price/performance, low peak power, balance of performance between gaming and content creation, and DDR5-7000+ support.

• Next GPU upgrade won't be until sometime after GDDR7 is available. I'd like a less toasty version of the 7900 XTX.

• Holding off on a monitor upgrade until either 5K+ resolution OLEDs come out (in 42" - 50" sizes) or there's a significant increase in brightness in 42" 4K OLEDs (maybe LG C5 or C6).

Model: Dell Inspiron 1545 (Summer 2009)
Processor: Core 2 Duo T9500 2.60GHz (Replaced original T6500 2.1GHz)
Memory: 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2-667MHz
Graphics: AMD Mobility Radeon HD 4330
Hard Drive: 256GB Samsung 850 Pro
Monitor: 15.6" 300 Nits Glossy LED TN Panel (Modded to replace CCFL)
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium
I plan to get a laptop with the following minimum specs for around $1000 or less when I find it:
• 16" 500 nits 100% sRGB 120Hz 1080p (if IPS) | 1440p (if OLED) with FreeSync/Adaptive Sync
• 512GB PCIe4 NVMe SSD (w/ an extra M.2 slot)
• RTX 4050 Mobile GPU - I'd take integrated though if the other specs aligned
• 8-core CPU
• 16GB DDR5 RAM (no LPDDR nonsense)
• Decent Speakers (should be better than my phone's stereo speakers)
• Full-sized arrow keys (or half-sized with a full-sized Numpad)
• Quiet fans (during light use and quiet enough while gaming to hear the speakers)
• Battery life > 2 hours on power saver at max brightness with light usage
• 1x PD Port for portable charging
• 1-2x USB-C
• 1-2x HDMI 2.1
• 1x DisplayPort (optional)
• Sturdy Construction (optional)

I'd like something in the next year or so but it seems the features I want don't exist in any laptop that's $1500 or less, even when it's on sale. I'll have to settle for something with one or more drawbacks from the 'frustrating but tolerable' list below:

Unacceptable: Panel Lottery Issues (Dead/Stuck Pixels, Back Light Bleed, etc.), Mediocre Color Accuracy at 45% NTSC (~62.5% sRGB), Resolution lower than 1080p (or lower than 1440p if it's OLED), Insufficient Brightness to be used outside (250 - 400 nits), 60Hz Refresh Rate, Non-IPS/OLED Panel, Hardware/Software Stability Issues, No FreeSync/Adaptive Sync, LPDDR/Soldered RAM, Bad Audio/Speakers, Loud Fans even when doing light office work, Monitor Lid protrudes onto lap/desk as it's folded back (i.e. any ASUS Zephyrus laptop), inability to output audio through HDMI or any means onto a non-smart TV & all I/O ports are USB-C (i.e the Lenovo ARM laptop I tested in October 2024).

Frustrating but Tolerable: Screen size less than 15.6", Poor Battery Life, Budget GPU that sucks up battery life only to underperform in gaming (i.e. RTX 3050 Mobile), Inefficient CPU that sucks up battery life (i.e. any i7 or i9), Inability to Disable Cores to save battery life, Half-size Arrow Keys, No space around the Arrow Keys, No Print Screen Key, Overheating Issues with No Undervolting Support, Tactile Indicator Bump on the 'W' Key - Helios Neo 16, [imgur.com] Reorganized Numpad, Poor Anti-Reflection, any other issues.

This deal [slickdeals.net] was the closest I found so far that matched what I wanted in this price range.
Pros: $750, 15.6" 600 Nits OLED, 100% DCI-P3, 100% sRGB, a dedicated GPU, 13th-gen i7, 512GB SSD, 16GB RAM (1 slot user-replaceable), Print Screen Key, Numpad with Full-size Arrow Keys, RGB Per-Key Lighting, Thunderbolt 4, HDMI 2.1, SD Card Reader

Cons: Stability issues, Blurry Text (from insufficient resolution at 1080p), 60Hz Refresh Rate, Half-size Arrow Keys, Poor Battery Life, 1 stick of soldered RAM, 3050 is kind of weak (Mobile 3060 or 4050 for $100 extra would've been better with 2x the performance), 720p Webcam

If the screen had a higher resolution and refresh rate without the stability issues, blurry text, half-size arrow keys, and poor battery life, this would be a worthwhile deal. Found an open-box version (in excellent condition) recently for $100 less but still couldn't get it due to the issues I've been reading about.

The 3050 & soldered RAM sting a bit but I'd settle for that if everything else was good. That being said, I'd rather wait for AMD's Strix Point with integrated graphics comparable to a 1650. It might be a little worse than a 3050 but I'm confident it has a lower TDP with a longer battery life.

I feel that the bare minimum color accuracy any display should have is 72% NTSC (100% sRGB) for accurate colors in most content. I'm seeing a lot of laptops with 45% NTSC and the only time I can find that acceptable is with light productivity or games with generic colors (like Counter-Strike). If you're going to be playing RPGs, watching shows/movies, viewing/making art, or playing anything with a large color scheme, you'll want 72% NTSC (100% sRGB) minimum.

Aside from that, having enough brightness (nits) should be the next biggest factor when choosing a display. Most laptops and monitors are 250 nits which is somewhat adequate indoors but external light can make them appear dim. Having a bright enough screen can make it visible outside just like a phone (which can get up to 1500+ nits). Should aim for 300 nits minimum for indoor use and 500+ nits for outdoor use.

To help with visibility outside, look into getting a matted screen. If your display is glossy (like every OLED), you can apply a matted screen film to achieve a similar effect. Without an anti-reflection coating, the screen will appear about 100 nits dimmer, even if it's not in direct sunlight. The only displays that can really hold up to direct sunlight are Mini-LEDs. At 1100+ nits peak brightness, that's more in the realm of what flagship smartphones produce. However, like flagship phones, it seems only flagship laptops have these displays and those cost over $3000.

If you want a more reliable way to get a hold of me, add me to Discord (Ryusei6632). Message me when you do. I may not reply immediately but I usually see all Discord messages sent to me.

Steam: Ryusei^ or Sn/+/per^
DD Forum: Sn/+/per
Twitch/Nintendo/Origin: pHc_Ryusei
Diablo 2 Battletag: ArcticSun
Discord: Ryusei6632
Battle.net Battletag: Ryusei#11732
myanimelist.net/profile/Zerasu

X-Mode Energy Shots on tap [xmode.com] - Comes in 100oz towers with two reusable containers and 150mg Caffeine/1oz servings. Current flavors are Cherry, Tangerine, Watermelon, and Peach. They sell for $35 + Free Shipping on their website ($31.50 with 10% Subscription discount), eBay, and Amazon (for $1 more).
Note: To get $15 off on their website, use this friend referral link. [xmode.refr.cc]

Stepmania w/ Dance Mats - Aerobic exercise that's more enjoyable than walking/jogging/running. It's an incredible experience if you get it set up with a fan, and Hi-Fi stereo or surround sound. It becomes high-intensity when you're good enough to play on Heavy/Challenge though Standard difficulty can be intense sometimes (like with Kaneda's Theme).

Stepmaniaonline.net - Stepmania songpacks.

Etternaonline.com/packs - Stepmania songpacks with newer mixes. Average difficulty of 10 or less is usually a pad mix. Just be mindful - many songs are usually 1 or 2 feet harder than they're rated.

Zenius-i-vanisher.com/v5.2/simfiles.php - Stepmania songpacks and individual simfiles.

CyberiaStyle Reddit Downloads - Quality themes and arrow skins.

L-Theanine - Naturally found in tea, this works synergistically with caffeine and boosts the cognitive effects while promoting relaxation. Helpful if looking to avoid crashes or jitters. I primarily use it for sleep as it winds down the mind.

Magnesium Glycinate - Provides deeper dreams and helps prevent cramps. This is one of the better forms for sleep as it reduces anxiety and promotes a calming sensation.