Originally posted by: pseudocajun
I've just read that the g35 chipset offers hd-dvd and blu-ray decode accleration
That's plain wrong. Hardware decode G35 supports is:
MPEG2: Partially
VC-1: Partially
H.264 (AVC): None
Source
None of the current IGP supports complete hw decode for VC-1 or H.264, that means you will need a very fast processor for smooth playback (Core 2 Duo 2.4GHz or higher, or Athlon 64 X2 ~3.0GHz). The upcoming RS780 (AMD 780G), MCP78 (GeForce 8200 and nForce 730a), both expected in Q1 2008 and Intel G45 expected Q2 2008 will support perfect hw acceleration.
But I have no idea what "render home movies" means. The above comment only applies to playing back BD and HD DVD discs (meaning high bitrate with DRM). Maybe the current IGP is enough for your work.