Gaming laptop for $1,800 or less?

[Tailback]

I'm looking at getting my first laptop with my tax returns this year, so far what seems to be in my budget is the Inspiron 9300 but I also saw a Fujitsu at Fry's that looked nice. Since it will be probably 4-8 weeks before I buy is there any new model coming out soon that I should look at? I need long battery life, DVD combo drive, and wireless ability. I don't need a internal TV tuner (I'm going to get an external to use with either my desktop or the lappy), I don't need a high end sound card (the wife only lets me use headphones), I don't need a huge hard drive, 60 gigs is plenty but I probably want a 72k rpm.

 

[fbrdphreak]

Long battery life is going to be the catch here. Most notebooks that have the better graphics cards do not offer the best battery life. Since you need battery life, I assume you are looking for something mobile? Or are you just looking to take it around your house?
Other than the Dell 9300, I would say your options are the Acer 8100 series or the Asus Z71V's. The Acer uses the X700 and the Asus the GeForceGo6600, both of which are fairly respectable for gaming. You can see some benchmarks here. That forum also has a comprehensive Asus thread that should give you a lot of info on their lappy's if you're interested.
If you don't mind the size of the laptop and about 3 hours of battery life (with the 80WHr 9-cell), the 9300 is def the best gaming machine for the money period.

 

[Tailback]

3 hours for a 9cell battery is plenty long enough. The lappy doesn't really need to be super mobile. Mostly it will be used for desktop replacement and as a entertainment center while travelling. I'll give those other ones you included a look, thanks.