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[eNDer]

Hi all,

I'm looking for a new laptop (for work) as my new role involves a fair bit of travel- thing is I haven't used one in ages and I've always played DF on desktops. Got a widescreen 24" at home and 22" at the office so I'm really used to having screen real estate.

My question is:
Is a laptop's physical screen size (13", 15") more important for DF gameplay than the native resolution on a laptop? Some 13"/14"/15" laptops I've compared have same physical size screens but wildly differing resolutions, so should I be shooting for as high resolutions as possible or does it not matter?

Also, the new 2013 MacBook Air has really caught my eye with its battery life but I'm assuming I will struggle with playing DF on a 13"... Or are people here doing it?

Thanks in advance folks!

[Sutremaine]

I'd go for resolution, since it allows you to fit more tiles on the screen.

[itg]

Neither one matters all that much for DF, honestly. The most important thing for DF is the single-core cpu speed.

[eNDer]

Thanks for the replies both.

I wasn't asking in terms of performance though, but more through ease of gaming eyesight-wise? Getting a 15" laptop would obviously make playing DF on the road more bearable (compared to a 13"), but is it worth the added weight and mobility?

[Broken]

I will go for size. Playing DF in a small screen is a pain (At least for me).

[King Mir]

I'd go for resolution. I recently got a new laptop with full HD and am loving the amount of windows I can tile on my screen. Which might matter a lot for DF if you like to have multiple tools open, like a browser, Dwarf therapist, and stone-sense. It means you can have an 80 charter wide DF display with 16 by 16 tiles, and room on the side for another window. Alternatively it means you use the tab mode with both menus and minimap showing, while having the playable map still be square. Or you can just have a wider playable map. Basically, with more resolution, you have options.

[eNDer]

Alright duly noted... I'm just gonna get a 15" laptop after all that can do very high resolution, was using a 13" a few years ago and it always felt too small...

i would rather have too bulky sometimes, then too small all the time!

[Manveru Taurënér]

Well, if bulky isn't an issue why not go all in with a 17"? Had one myself for a few years now. Sure, it's a bit unwieldy when travelling at times, but for me it's worth it having a proper screen. Also not to forget a complete keyboard with numpad and all.

[Sutremaine]

As mentioned previously, a high-res screen gives you more options. You can have a large number of average-sized tiles, a massive number of small tiles (I use a 7x7 tileset for fullscreen -- it's just this side of playable, but you can see a 4x3 embark all at once), an average number of large tiles, or an average number of average-sized tiles with another window alongside the DF one.