Accounting So you need to punch lots of number and may appreciate the dedicated numpad in 15" laptop. If you opt for 14", you may need to get those external numpad (models from Logitech are pretty good )

The games that you play are not too GPU demanding.

Asus 14"
A45VS-VX026H, i5-3210M + Nvidia GT645M@RM2199[2.4kg], 2GB, 500GB, W8
15"
A55VJ-SX093H, i5-3210M + Nvidia GT635M@RM2499[2.52kg], 4GB, 750GB, W8; color: black

Dell 14" (Dell 15" within your budget don't come with numpad in keyboard)
Inspiron 14R (Special Edition), i5-3210M + Nvidia GT640M(28nm Kepler)@RM2049[2.38kg], 4GB, 500GB(7200rpm), W7HP/W8
Vostro 3460, i5-3210M + Nvidia GT630M + 32GB mSATA+ 500GB(7200rpm) HDD@RM2559[2.23kg], 4GB, W7HB; colors: red/silver/bronze (matte screen)

HP 14"
Envy4-1238TX, i5-3337U + AMD HD8750M@RM2099[Beats][1.75kg], 2GB, 500GB(5400rpm), W8

Lenovo 14"
Z480, i5-3230M + Nvidia GT640M@RM1999, 4GB, 1TB(5400rpm) W8, colors: grey/red/blue
15"
Ideapad Z580, i5-3210M + Nvidia GT640M@RM2299, 4GB, 750GB(5400rpm), W7HB, white

Prices are RSP, negotiable.
Use your remaining budget to upgrade RAM (4G stick is ~ RM80), extend warranty (Dell, 3 year on site ~ RM250+).

http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/2357582
You may try him since he list N56VZ i7 in his price list (Disclaimer: I am not related to the re-seller, and this is not an endorsement of his services).

Btw, if you are from Australia, why are you looking to buy from Malaysia?

SSD don't come standard in lots of laptop (those mSATA SSD + SATA HDD combo is not satisfactory imho )
But you can easily arrange with re-seller to upgrade HDD to full SSD after market, it normally will not void laptop hardware warranty. SSD 128G is ~ RM300+/-, 256G ~ RM600+/-.

If you don't game on the laptop, your usage requirement don't demand powerful components, i5 (i3 also can, but i5 may give you better performance in photoshop) CPU, Intel HD 4000 will do. If you plan to game, with your budget you could get some decent discrete GPU.

Acer
V3-571G-736b8G1T, i7-3630QM + Nvidia GT730M(DDR3) + (1920x1080 IPS) @RM2899[2.6kg], 8GB, 1TB, W8 (good screen, see it to appreciate)

Asus
A45VS-VX026H, i5-3210M + Nvidia GT645M@RM2199[2.4kg], 2GB, 500GB, W8
K46CM-WX090H, i5-3317U + Nvidia GT635M@RM2199[2kg], 2GB, 500GB, W8, OD
N56VZ-S3151H, i5-3210M + Nvidia GT650M@RM2799[2.7kg][B&O], 4GB, 750GB, W8; color: black

Dell
Inspiron 14R (Special Edition), i5-3210M + Nvidia GT640M(28nm Kepler)@RM2049[2.38kg], 4GB, 500GB(7200rpm), W7HP/W8
Inspiron 14z, i5-3337U + AMD HD7570M + 32GB SSD + 500GB(5400rpm)@RM2549[1.87kg], 4GB, W8 *no VGA port, OD
Inspiron 15R (Special Edition), i7-3612QM + AMD HD7730M + (1920x1080; anti-glare) + 32GB SSD + 1TB HDD(5400rpm)@RM3199, 8GB, backlit keyboard optional, W8

Lenovo
Z480, i5-3230M + Nvidia GT640M@RM1999, 4GB, 1TB(5400rpm) W8, colors: grey/red/blue
S400, i5-3317U + Intel HD4000 + 24GB mSATA + 500GB(5400rpm)@RM1999[1.8kg], 4GB, W7HB; AMD HD7450M/W8@RM2199

Prices are RSP, negotiable.

Asus
A45VS-VX026H, i5-3210M + Nvidia GT645M@RM2199[2.4kg], 2GB, 500GB, W8

Dell
Inspiron 14R (Special Edition), i5-3210M + Nvidia GT640M(28nm Kepler)@RM2049[2.38kg], 4GB, 500GB(7200rpm), W7HP/W8

Lenovo
Z480, i5-3230M + Nvidia GT640M@RM1999, 4GB, 1TB(5400rpm) W8, colors: grey/red/blue
Y400, i7-3630QM + Nvidia GT650M@RM2799, 4GB, 500GB, W8, 120wPSU, swappable ODD

Prices are RSP, negotiable.
Use your remaining budget to increase RAM (Asus, 4G stick ~ RM80), extend warranty period (Dell, 3 years on site ~ RM250+).
For Lenovo Malaysia, the standard warranty for Ideapad (S, U, Y, Z ... series) and Essential (G series) laptopas require owners to send unit to SC. If you send to SC run by IBM, the services are pretty good.
For certain series / model (like the Y series), Lenovo Malaysia offer owners the option to upgrade warranty from 2 year International to 3 years on site (~ RM250+). But buyer has to specifically ask for it (Lenovo Malaysia don't promote this service much), and some re-sellers don't even know Lenovo Malaysia has this type of services for consumer line laptops

This post has been edited by nexus2238: Mar 5 2013, 10:04 AM

GT645M and GT640M, I don't think you will notice much difference in real world performance unless you specifically look for it in benchmark

For Intel i5 M(obile) CPU, the 3210M is the lowest entry level CPU. The raw performance of i5 M is better i5 U(ltra Low Voltage) or i5 Y.

If you are someone who cannot "tahan" the thought of hardware failure, opt for Dell with 3 years warranty.
If you are someone who love aesthetic (though subjective) above anything eles, you will probably go for Asus

I am a risk / reward kind of guy. Except the very 1st laptop I bought for my sis 12 years ago, my laptop history has been Dell or Thinkpad (And recently Y series with 3 years on site warranty from Lenovo. Touch wood, don't need to call Lenovo yet )

This post has been edited by nexus2238: Mar 5 2013, 11:44 AM

I think it is more likely due to the i5 spec being cheaper (many people hesistant to pay ~ RM900 more for the FHD ), and the i7 spec is reportedly running too hot for comfort for some users

So you are currently in Malaysia? If not, the shipping cost may wipe out whatever saving you get from buying in Malaysia

This post has been edited by nexus2238: Mar 5 2013, 02:10 PM

Yes, 3230M is faster than 3210M (slightly).
It's convenient to extend warranty if you buy from Dell Online. If you buy Dell through re-seller, you could also extend warranty. Please check with re-sellers for service extension card.
Extend warranty at time of purchase. It's like buying life insurance for yourself. The older it is, the more expensive the premium for the same coverage

This post has been edited by nexus2238: Mar 5 2013, 02:09 PM

When you mentioned "work", do you mean like only MS Office softwares? Then i3 (or even Celeron or Pentium if you don't run big Excel or Access) and HD4000 is good enough.

Also by "work", do you also imply that you cannot afford down time (e.g. hardware problem, need to send to SC for days / weeks to get it fix)? (If you cannot afford down time, Dell is your best bet).

Dell
Inspiron 14-3421, i3-3217U + Intel HD4000@RM1399[1.99kg], Win8SL, 2GB, 500GB(5400rpm), 4-cell

HP
Pavilion Sleekbook 14-b051TU, i3-2367M + Intel HD3000@RM1499, 2GB, 500GB(5400rpm), W8

Lenovo
G480, i3-2328M + Intel HD3000@RM1299, 2GB, 500GB (5400rpm), FreeDOS; W8@RM1499

Prices are RSP, negotiable.
Use your remaining budget to increase RAM (4G stick is ~ RM80), extend warranty (Dell, 3 years on site ~ RM250+/-)

Different buyers have different priority. Asus Malaysia is generally deem the laptop brand with worst warranty support in Malaysia (we are seeing cases of units staying months in SC). But some owners swear by the quality, price/performance, aesthetic, and specifically ask for Asus recommendation, and sifus here will gladly comply

Some buyers also can afford down time, for example, as they may have back up machine that they fall back on

Care to share where is your hometown?

RM2k can buy you i5 CPU, mid level GPU like GT640M, etc. But if your usage requirement does not demand high performing parts, why waste the budget buying something that you don't need?

Do note that each brands has lemon unit. According to 1 large samples study, the best 3 year laptop failure rate among the brands is ~ 15% (Asus) and the worst go as high as ~ 25%

This post has been edited by nexus2238: Mar 5 2013, 03:51 PM

Your budget can't get you any 13" with your spec requirement
Suggest you look at some 14" ultrabook.

Asus
K46CM-WX090H, i5-3317U + Nvidia GT635M@RM2199[2kg], 2GB, 500GB, W8, OD

HP
Envy4-1238TX, i5-3337U + AMD HD8750M@RM2099[Beats][1.75kg], 2GB, 500GB(5400rpm), W8

Lenovo
S400, i5-3317U + Intel HD4000 + 24GB mSATA + 500GB(5400rpm)@RM1999[1.8kg], 4GB, W7HB; AMD HD7450M/W8@RM2199

Prices are RSP, negotiable.

For normal usage, 4G RAM is about right. But RAM is cheap now, 4G stick is ~ RM80. You could probably convince the re-seller to throw in the RAM upgrade "for free" during your negotiation

All the models suggested has similar battery performance, around 4 hours normal usage (wireless surfing, video, ... ).

All the models are recommended, that why they were listed It's pretty much down to your personal preference. Go out and look and touch the real things (screen, keyboard, touch pad, speakers, carry it around ... ) and take your pick

This post has been edited by nexus2238: Mar 5 2013, 06:04 PM

Yes, there are specific brands that warrant minimum downtime. You have to pay through your nose for it
Dell Latitude / Precision, Lenovo Thinkpad T, HP Elitebook. Opt for 24x7 mission critical warranty support. They guarantee technician will be at your door within 1 hour after you make a phone call (any day of the year, any time of the day), and hardware will be repaired within 6 hours upon technician arrival.

Warranty support service is like you buying insurance. How much premium are you willing to pay?
Of course no users like to experience bad support services. But the fact is for consumer class laptops, you have to deal with SC, and service turn-around time is dictated by parts availability. And read your warranty support agreement from most brands. In no way the brands guarantee you the time you will get back your laptop once send into SC.

This post has been edited by nexus2238: Mar 5 2013, 05:42 PM

Asus
A45VS-VX026H, i5-3210M + Nvidia GT645M@RM2199[2.4kg], 2GB, 500GB, W8

Dell
Inspiron 14R (Special Edition), i5-3210M + Nvidia GT640M(28nm Kepler)@RM2049[2.38kg], 4GB, 500GB(7200rpm), W7HP/W8

Lenovo
Z480, i5-3230M + Nvidia GT640M@RM1999, 4GB, 1TB(5400rpm) W8, colors: grey/red/blue

Prices are RSP, negotiable.

http://www.squaretrade.com/laptop-reliability-1109/
Read the pdf in this link Understand the methodology of the study before you draw any conclusion

http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Asus-N...ok.78305.0.html
Read this review. Specs may differ slightly.

Usually brands allow owners to upgrade RAM after market, it will not void hardware warranty. 4G stick ~ RM80.
SSD don't come standard in lot of models. Again, owners can upgrade HDD after market to SSD, it will not void hardware warranty. SSD normally carry 3-5 years warranty from SSD brands. SSD 128G ~ RM300+/-, 256G ~ RM600+/-.

Acer
V3-571G-736b8G1T, i7-3630QM + Nvidia GT730M(DDR3) + (1920x1080 IPS) @RM2899[2.6kg], 8GB, 1TB, W8 (good screen)

Asus
N56VZ-S4284H, i7-3630QM + Nvidia GT650M + (1920x1080) + Bluray@RM3699[2.7kg][B&O], 4GB, 1TB, W8; color: black
G55VW-S1216H, i7-3630QM +Nvidia GTX660M (2GB) + (1920x1080)@RM3999[3.78kg], 4GB, 1TB(5400rpm), W8

Dell
Inspiron 15R (Special Edition), i7-3612QM + AMD HD7730M + (1920x1080; anti-glare) + 32GB SSD + 1TB HDD(5400rpm)@RM3199, 8GB, backlit keyboard optional, W8

Lenovo
Ideapad Y500, i7-3630QM + Nvidia GT650M + (1920x1080)@RM3799, 4GB, 500GB, W8; GN36 exGPU, 120W & 170W AC adapter
Ideapad Y580, i7-3610QM + Nvidia GTX660M (2GB) + (1920x1080) + Bluray@RM3499[JBL], 8GB, 1TB HDD(7200rpm), W7HP, backlit keyboard, 2 years international warranty

MSI
GE60, i7-3610QM + Nvidia GTX660M + (1920x1080; anti-glare) + Bluray@RM4199, 8GB, 1TB(7200rpm), W7HP, 2 years warranty, gaming mouse & backpack, Free SteelSeries QCK Mass mousepad

Prices are RSP, negotiable.

All 3 models carry similar CPU and GPU, and performance should be roughly the same as well

This post has been edited by nexus2238: Mar 5 2013, 06:02 PM

VivoBook S400CA-CA006H, i5-3317U + Intel HD4000 + 24GB mSATA + 500GB + (1366x768; touch)@RM2499[2kg], 4GB, W8

I think you mean this, with the touch screen
If you really like Asus, S400CA is more expensive than K46CM, but actually has less powerful component (K46CM has more powerful GPU, but you may not need it).
The S400CA has touch screen.
Purely personal opinion: I find touchscreen on traditional laptop not ergonomical to use (hands get tired fast poking across keyboard) (touchscreen is nice on those hybrid laptop). Also concern about the strength of the hinge holding screen to keyboard base, whether it could stand the abuse of constant poke poke
S400CA can satisfy your usage requirement.

Touch screen is really useful for those laptop that can be transformed to tablet format (one way or another).
W8 is a good OS. For someone who are familiar with W7 or earlier, users may get frustrated if trying to grope in the dark on their own (keep hearing people saying don't know how to shut down ). There are plenty of video, article, even manual from brands that give tutorial on how to use W8

1. It's 15R SE The mSATA SSD is factory default set for caching. You will not even find it in the OS file explorer (ie you will not be able to install apps or save files on it). You can go into BIOS to change the setting, to turn off caching and make the small SSD available for storage. If you intend to install OS on it, obviously you need to change the boot sequence in the BIOS as well. But do note the install size of OS vs the size of the SSD

2. 15" laptop normally only has 1 HDD bay with SATA interface. So normally you could not put in another SATA SSD, but has to swap out the SATA HDD for the SATA SSD (17" laptop on the other hand may have 2 bays with SATA interface). Most of the newer 15" models has the mSATA interface, so owners do have the options to keep the SATA HDD, and put in a mSATA SSD. SSD is not price/capacity competitive yet. SATA SSD 128G ~ RM300+/-, 256G ~ RM600+/-. And mSATA SSD is more expensive than SATA SSD (and not easy to find in retail stores)

3. MSI has been manufacturing laptops for a long time. In Malaysia, their presence is not big, and is mostly well known to gaming enthusiasts for the gaming laptop (the GE60 is aim for gamers, you will realise it when you see the real thing ).
GE70, i7-3610QM + Nvidia GT650M (2GB) + (1920x1080; anti-glare)@RM4599, 8GB, 750GB(7200rpm), W7HP, 2 years warranty, gaming mouse & backpack, free SteelSeries QCK Mass Mousepad
The price you quoted for GE70 probably is the re-sellers' price after discount from the RSP.
For the same resolution in 15" and 17", you will see the same image and same amount of workspace. Whether FHD look better on 15" or 17" is a personal preference, you should look at the real thing yourself to determine. (Eg. my mum find FHD on 15" make text looking too small, my son on the other hand love it )
There are quite a few shops in LYP selling MSI laptops.

4. All the FHD models in Malaysia that are within your budget were listed already

The G480 has 1 year warranty standard spec. You need to send to SC. If you send to SC run by IBM, service is good.

Aiyo Thinkpad and Essential (G series) has big difference The T series has internal roll cage, tough like nail (you can't bend it anywhere unless you try really hard), matte screen, and I've personally drop 2 from waist height to the floor and the laptops continue to run fine (Don't try that with G series )