Best gaming / school laptop?
I'm looking in getting a new laptop for school. Of coarse it's not going to just be used as a school laptop it will be used for games also. So I was wondering what I should look for. I've already looked at a Sony Vaio AMD Turion 15.5inch, that looked like a wonderful laptop, just wondering what other think. Thanks
Update:another Laptop i am looking at is the Toshiba 15.6 L655D 1.8GHz 640GB Notebook. Its the same graphics card as the first Vaio. The Radeon HD 4250 but the processor is a 1.8 quad core... i dont know which would be better the 2.3 duel core or the 1.8 quad
Update 3:HP Pavilion dv6 15.6" AMD Turion™ II Dual-Core P540 2.4GHz 640GB Notebook is another.
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Do you have a budget in mind? You can get a pretty good gaming laptop, but don't expect them to be cheap. An entry level gaming laptop will probably run about $700 with mid-range closer to $1000 and higher performing ones up from that (prices just a rough estimate, I'm sure someone can find exceptions that are a bit less).
As the first response indicated, a dedicated gaming quality video card is critical for gaming on a laptop. If it says Intel GMA graphics, don't expect it to handle most games.
** Edit **
I'll second Noodley's suggestion for Asus laptops. Linked one that I'd definitely consider now if I were in the market for a new one. I also link my (well my daughter's) laptop, which runs games nicely.
I really like the Sony Vaio series. They are really good computers. I'd also give Alienware laptops a good consideration as they are putting out some good machines.
You should pay attention to the processor speed and what time of processor to weigh in on the heat and battery life of the laptop, but that may not be an issue if you planned to be plugged in.
Make sure you have a dedicated graphics hard. You can browse other Sonys and gaming laptops for comparisons in the link below.
Kevin
I have a few that I would recommend and they have great price tags:
HP DV6-3143US Pavilion Notebook PC
*2.40GHz Intel Core i3-370M Processor 15.6" screen
*ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650 + Intel HD
*500GB (5400RPM) Hard Drive
*4GB DDR3 System Memory
*Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit Webcam
Just make sure whatever laptop you purchase has an Nvidia or ATI graphics adapter installed with DEDICATED VIDEO RAM.
Otherwise you will not be able to play any games. Keep in mind that even if you get a decent graphic adapter in your laptop, you should not expect it to be able to play the latest games at acceptable framerates.
Laptops are made with portability, not performance, as the main factor.
A Sony VAIO VGN FW510F, I have been given one on black friday a year in the past for 650. ? i could pretty propose it, i think of all my laptops from now on would be VAIOs. I run maximum video games on highish. It has countless potential for its cost.
I have two Asus laptops my kids use for school and gaming. I have found them to be very tough and extremely reliable. They aren't cheap, but you will easily do school work and game with the latest games with a newer model. You'll also game into the future because they are built to last both in components and plain ruggedness. I'd get the GS73SW. You can see it here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N8...