Best GPU in notebook under $525

[Zenara25]

I'm helping my teenage brother find a notebook. Either a 14"-15.6". 250-320gb hard drive 3-4gb ram. Windows 7 Home Premium. Webcam. Battery that will last 2.5hrs.

Found an Acer for $634 on newegg but it's over his budget. It has the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5470
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...SID=eg7tc7oahk

Also looking at a Toshiba with an HD 4250 for $470 after $50 off coupon
http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Satell...3185786&sr=8-1

Does anyone know of any good notebooks with a better GPU than an ATI HD 4250 or an Intel 4500m that's under $525?

 

[NYHoustonman]

Here's a good comparison of AMD and Intel's integrated offerings in the mobile space, and while Intel has done a good job of catching up (with the Core i3/i5), I wouldn't want to game on either:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/3773/amd-and-intel-mobile-rematch-gateway-nv5933u-vs-acer-5542/1
Sandy Bridge (Intel's new architecture) looks a lot better, but that's still several months away...

The problem with the Acer you linked is that for only a bit more $$$ you can end up with a great deal more performance (either Intel CPU or better GPU)...

I'd honestly recommend keeping an eye on the various 'hot deal' websites out there (techbargains, fatwallet forums), unless he needs the laptop immediately. Don't know if you'll find anything great for $525, but if you up that to maybe $600 or so I'd imagine something will show up fairly soon.

 

[AndroidVageta]

Have you thought about checking NotebookReview forums Link and looking into their For Sale/Trade forum there (Marketplace).

You can often find used laptops (mainly gaming) for pretty cheap. I know some guy let go of a Gateway P-7811FX for like $500 (this particular model has a 1200p screen, Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB DDR3 RAM, 9800GTS 512MB video card...very nice, especially when compared to what you have picked out)...I ALWAYS recommend people check their first if you dont mind slightly used items and buying from a private party...

 

[Zenara25]

Thanks for the help. Will give him the info.