Gaming Laptops - Four Factors to Check Before Buying

Gaming laptops are becoming more and more popular with the computer buying public. Once a true gamer wouldn't dream of buying a laptop for gaming, but now that laptop performances have increased a hundred fold since the first laptops came on the market, even some die-hard gamers are switching over to the other side.

Even so, many gamers still favor Desktop PCs for gaming, mainly because they're cheaper but mostly because PCs are much easier to upgrade. Notebook computers are not very suitable for upgrading so your system can go out of date very quickly.

Regardless, if you're in the market for a gaming laptop, there seems to be new systems coming on stream almost daily. So you shouldn't have a problem finding a laptop that will meet your needs, as long as you keep a few factors in mind.

Here are four major features you should check before buying your gaming laptop:

Graphics Card

Since your gaming system will be handling heavy visuals, graphics and 3D video you need a very robust video card that can get the job done. Many recent laptops now sport dual graphics with either SLI technology (NVIDIA) or CrossFire technology (ATI). Regardless, you should check to see if you have at least 512MB of video RAM, many now have 1 Gig of RAM or more. Most gamers go with NVIDIA GeForce 8800M, 9800M and ATI Radeon HD3870 or higher ones as they hit the market.

Some recent laptops now sport 3 GPUs such as the Toshiba Qosimo X305-Q708 which has a couple of GeForce 9800M GTS cards via SLI configuration, plus it also has a GeForce 9400M for quieter operation.

Processor

You need a powerful processor to perform all those applications with ease, we now have dual-core processors in most gaming laptops. Higher end models now sport quad-core processors which will deliver more than enough power to handle most games. You should get at least 2GHz processing speed, and many processors go higher such as the Intel Core2 Extreme X9000 processor which has 2.8GHz. Keep in mind, some systems can be overclocked, such as the Asus W90Vp-X1, at an amazing 3.28GHz.

Display

Another consideration for a gaming laptop is the all important display, native resolution and sound quality. Obviously, you want the best display so check the actual quality of the images on your laptop. Is there any glare? Are the colors brilliant and true? Are the images sharp and clear? Many gamers now go with bigger displays of 17, 18 or even 20 inches and look for a system that gives HD playback. Note if you have 1080p display which will give you true High Definition. Many high end laptops come with WUXGA (Widescreen Ultra eXtended Graphics) 1920x1200 with 16:10 screen aspect ratio.

Sound is also important in gaming so you want the best speakers and sound quality. Many systems are now sporting HD or Blu-ray Drives so this is something to check for if you want superior viewing visuals and sound.

Hard Drive

Since games, videos, music... all take up a lot of space, most gamers go with as large a hard drive as they can afford. At least 200GB of space, and many go for even more up to 1 TB terabyte of space. Solid State Drives are not yet common in gaming laptops but it is something to consider since these can last longer because you have no moving parts like you have in a hard drive. Higher end gaming laptops now have Solid State Drives but cost is still an issue.

Also remember to check the speed of your hard drive, 7200 RPM is faster than a 5400 RPM system. Since top performance is your ultimate goal, getting the fastest hard drive speed is essential. For this reason many gamers go with a SATA hard drive(s) which gives the best performance.

There are a few other things you might want to check out when buying a gaming laptop. One being style and looks; most of the higher end laptops will have plenty of style and pizazz. If the style and flash of your rig is important to you, than it is something to consider when buying your system. Perhaps, another less shadow and more important issue is warranty. Does your spectacular looking rig have a good warranty should things go south? The more expensive the rig, the more you should check the warranty, even buying an extended warranty for your brand new gaming laptop. Years of happy worry-free gaming should be your ultimate goal.

For a handy online Laptop Guide featuring the latest top gaming notebooks, click here: gaming laptops For the latest laptop discounts and bargains try here: cheap laptops

Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

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How to Choose the Right Gaming Laptop

Are you a hardcore gamer, like myself, looking to buy a gaming laptop that can play high quality games with little to no lag? The gaming laptop that's right for you really depends on what games you intend to play on your system. In order to discover your dream gaming laptop, there are a few things you should look out for.


Step 1

Before considering a gaming laptop, make sure you have or are able to save enough money for one. High quality gaming laptops can be expensive. Even so, don't be discouraged. You might be able to find a good deal on a gaming laptop of your choice online or, if you have goals set, you'll be able to save for and buy a gaming laptop faster than you might think.

Step 2

Before you buy a gaming laptop, make sure the graphics card is top notch. Most serious gamers are very concerned about graphics in their gaming laptops. Without a good graphics card, a lot of your games won't run smoothly. Some powerful and highly rated Graphic Chipsets are ATi Mobility
Radeon 9700, ATI's Mobility FireGL V3200, and Intel's Graphics Media
Accelerator 900.

Step 3

To insure that your computer will be able to handle the many games you intend to play, buy a gaming laptop with a large amount of RAM. Generally, the more RAM the gaming laptop has the better. If you can, buy a gaming laptop that has Video RAM (VRAM), which allows screen updates while the video processor processes new data. In other words, you'll have better graphics than the ordinary RAM but will have to pay more for the VRAM.

Step 4

The next thing you'll need to consider when buying a gaming laptop is speed. In order to prevent freezing during game play, you'll need to have the fastest speed possible for maximum performance. Try looking for gaming laptops with a Serial ATA (SATA) hard drive rather than a Parallel ATA (PATA) hard drive, since Serial ATA is 30 times faster than Parallel ATA. Make sure the hard drive speed on your gaming laptop is the best possible speed as well.

Step 5

The last thing to keep in mind when you buy a gaming laptop is the display quality. You'll need a laptop that can handle the graphics for gaming, so the resolution on your gaming laptop is important. Panasonic, Sony, Toshiba, and a few other computer companies are popular in regards to high quality monitors.

source: http://www.ehow.com

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Decent Gaming Laptops Guide

We always heard the rule to get the best specifications for a gaming laptop, and that's going to be very expensive. Sometimes we just need a laptop that we can work, surf the internet and can play most of the latest games in the market. This article will guide you how to find a decent gaming laptop without costing you a bomb.

Processor

Getting dual processor is ideal for gaming laptop as you have 2 processors working at the same time. It's recommended to have at least 2.4Ghz and above when choosing gaming laptop. The cost you save from getting a slower processor is not worth it, as it will seriously affect the gaming performance later. Getting Intel Core2 Duo 2.4Ghz and above is ideal for 3D intensive gaming. Intel Dual Core or Intel Atom should only play old games or 2D games.

RAM

Thanks to technology, RAM is getting cheaper each year. At today's standard, all laptops come with 1GB DDR2 SDRAM at least. For gaming laptop, it should be minimum 2GB DDR2 SDRAM. As RAM can be quite cheap, go for 3GB or 4GB whenever possible as it will benefit your OS and other applications as well.

Graphic Card

Those non-gaming laptops usually have on board graphic card that share the memory from the Ram. You can still play decent game with sacrificing the game resolution and will slow down then there are too many objects that need to render. For gaming purpose, you need a dedicated graphic card to process the heavy duty graphic rendering. Any dedicated graphic card from ATI or NVidia is fine, as long as it has 256MB on board memory.

Harddisk

It's normal to see that game installation requires 5GB of free harddisk space or more. For serious gamer, you should have at least a 160GB harddisk. Beside the capacity, you will need a SATA harddisk as it can transfer data faster than the normal harddisk. Choosing the speed is also important, get the 7200rpm compare to the 5400rpm. In summary get a least 160GB SATA harddisk with 7200rpm.

Screen

Gaming is about how good the game rendering appeal on the screen. Getting a big screen can enhance the gaming experience. A screen size of 15"-17" should be good for gaming. There are many types of screen out there, and you will need SXGA LCD (1280 x 1024 pixels) screen for your gaming purpose. Of course getting a HD screen will be best.

With the above guide, you should get a decent gaming laptop that not only can play games, but also let you do your routine tasks at reasonable price.

The author runs an online review on latest laptops in the market. Lately there is a new trend in the market which is find pink laptops. For all Sony fans, you may want to checkout Sony pink laptops.

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Gaming Laptops - The 5 Essential Points When Deciding When to Buy One

Whether you are purchasing your first gaming notebook or upgrading an old desktop, it's a brilliant idea to take some time and go searching, so you'll be able to find a P.C. that fits your gaming desires and your financial position. Many makers build PCs in particular for gaming. Additionally, they can customise a laptop based around the needs of you and sort of games you will be playing, with the parts wanted to maximise your gaming experience. Here are some items to think about while buying a gaming laptop:

Cost

Gaming PCs have a large price range from a $500 economy friendly notebook to a $500 luxury power house beast. The average gamer will have to think about price when buying a new laptop to play games on. When researching the price versus worth, consider shipping costs as well as the price of any upgrades. Infrequently a laptop seems to be a good buy but after adding the obligatory upgrades, it becomes unrealistic.

The most vital elements in a gaming Computer are the RAM, graphics card and processor. Complicated games like Massive Multi-player Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs) need higher end parts to avoid lag. Latency through networks and internet service providers can use lots of processing power and ram.

Use of the Notebook

The majority of people buying a high end laptop do not use their PC only for gaming. The other applications for which you intend to use your PC will help establish what sort of notebook you purchase. Are you going to use your notebook for home or office applications like word processing or media revising or for educational purposes? If that is so consider the dimensions of the drive and software programs the manufacturer offers. Of course, take into account that the average install of most games is huge, some take 5 gigabytes of memory and more to install on the hard drive.

In addition, consider the peripherals you need to use with your new computer . If you would like to catch up joysticks or other gaming devices, you will desire accessible USB ports or even perhaps a FireWire port. Especially if you are using the laptop for multimedia processing, or video capturing, fire wire ports are a necessity.

Portability

Some game players enjoy taking their Computer to buddy's houses or joining a LAN party. This is a grouping of game-players that get together and set up a neighbourhood network ( LAN ).Here they play against one another or other groups over the Net. Just about all gaming laptops are designed to portable. This is the greatest attraction to gaming laptops is the fact that you don't need to take so many bits and pieces when heading over to your friends place to game.

Add-Ons

All laptops have built in human interface devices, a small pad on the front of the laptop to move a mouse on the screen. It is pretty essential that a USB mouse be purchased if you are going to play games on the laptop. Another thing to consider is the keyboard. Most keyboards on laptops can be a little prohibitive so a gaming or multimedia keyboard could be a good purchase as well. A new addition to laptops is the dual screen displays that are out now. This is a second monitor that slides out of the main monitor giving you a second screen. This allows the main screen to view the game and the second monitor to view web pages, perfect for MMORPG when researching quest or quest items, or gaming tactics for first person shooters or rpg's.

Warranties

Just about all laptops come with 12 month warranties, but it could be a great idea to upgrade to a second or third year. Some computer companies offer these upgrades as optional upgrades or alternatively, there are third party insurance companies that will underwrite a warranty for an additional fee. Either way, it is a good idea to take on one of these upgrades. Also, ensure there is some sort of antivirus or spyware program in the package as well. Either way, these software programs are an essential piece of software for any laptop.

A p.c game is only as good as the PC supporting it. A gaming laptop with a top of the line graphics card and processor can make a massive difference in your total gaming experience. So, when shopping, make sure it has enough grant to handle the games you want to play, otherwise, you may have a quite expensive bit of hardware, that could leave you sorely disappointed.

Glen Wilson writes extensively on forex trading. Involved in forex trading for over 5 years, he trades full time and has seen the growth of the forex industry to what it is today. Writing for his many forex sites including http://www.tradingcurrencyonline.us, Glen is an avid online marketer. Writing for many of his niche websites and blogs as well including http://www.cheapgaminglaptops.net on gaming laptops.

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Gaming Laptops - Are They Really Suitable For Gaming?

Despite the ever increasing demand and popularity of gaming laptops; there still remains one persistent issue that just won't go away. Are gaming laptops really suitable for video gaming in the first place?

Many die-hard gamers still mock the whole notion of video gaming on a laptop computer. The two simply are not compatible, they do not compute. They argue a laptop is simply too small and too compact to handle all that heat --- literally, figuratively and physically.

Achieving high performance usually means any computer, whether desktop or laptop, will give off a lot of heat. And cramming all those high-end components into such a small confined space only adds to this problem. Many gamers complain that gaming notebooks simply produce too much heat and there is the ever persistent problem of frying your rig. Given the fact that many gamers also have a long-term obsession to overclocking gives this concern even more weight.

If you monitor the different gaming forums, you will hear constant anecdotal stories of gaming laptops simply unable to handle all that heat. And then there is the issue of fan noise as your gaming rig tries to keep everything on the cool side. Many find gaming laptops just too noisy and would rather try their luck with a gaming PC instead.

Besides why waste all that money on a gaming notebook when you can get a much better gaming system at a far cheaper price by going with a desktop PC. This issue of price advantage is one of the most compelling arguments for NOT buying a gaming laptop.

However, there are also several more very legitimate arguments that those die-hard and battle-wary gamers also know and make. One has to do with the whole idea of upgrading since gaming laptops can't be upgraded as easily as a desktop PC. Actually, with most laptops you can upgrade the RAM with ease if you have the free slots available. You can also upgrade the Hard Drive but depending on your laptop model, other components such as Graphics Cards and processors may be hard (if not impossible or worthwhile) to upgrade in a laptop compared with upgrading a desktop PC.

On the other hand, with a desktop PC, there is amble room for upgrading which makes it a much more suitable candidate since gaming systems need to be constantly upgraded if you want the best gaming performance possible; which after all is the unwritten creed of most true gamers. They want the best and they want it now.

However, major laptop makers know a good thing (profit) when they see it and are jumping all over the gaming laptop market. We are constantly seeing more and more powerful gaming systems hitting the marketplace. Recently, we saw Dell muscling in on Alienware (which Dell owns) by launching the new all-powerful Alienware m17x through its marketing outlets as well as through Alienware.

It's powerful mobile gaming systems like M17x which will gradually defeat this argument that laptops are no good for gaming. The M17x offers extreme high performance with an Intel Core 2 Extreme Quad overclockable processor and Dual 1 gigabyte Nvidia GeForce GTX 280M graphics card (SLI Enabled 1,024MB) and with up to 8GB shared dual DDR3 at 1,333MHz. Impressive specs which would make many a desktop PC blush with envy.

Then again, there is the whole issue of style over performance. Many gamers just want and desire all that flash and cool style of high-end gaming laptops. They just might be the coolest looking devices on the planet. Plus, they are easier to lug around than a desktop PC, no matter which way you swing it.

Gaming laptops, despite the obvious objections from die-hard gamers with upgrading, overheating, fan noise and those hefty price tags, are probably here to stay and will gradually eat into the gaming desktop market. Whether they can also fully capture the hearts of true gamers is an entirely different question, one that won't be answered any time soon.

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For information on the top gaming laptops try here: gaming laptops

If you want to learn more about laptop computers try our: laptop computer guide

Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

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