Laptop GPU?

[Nox51]

Heya all,

I'm in the market for a new laptop which will most likely be used for university work ie writing assignments and articles. At the same time I want to play some games on it since I most likely won't have acess to any other desktops where I can play them.

As such I'm looking for a couple of suggestions in what direction to look. The level of performance I'd like to aim for is something that can play Starcraft 2 at acceptable levels (and possibly diablo when that comes out.)

I've been out of the loop for a while with regards to laptops and especially mobile gpus where all the names gets mixed about. So what mobile gpus should I look at that would give that performance?

Cliff notes:

* what mobile gpus should I look at to provide decent performance in Starcraft 2 and similar games?

 

[ThatsABigOne]

What budget for a computer you want? What screen size? What resolution?

 

[fralexandr]

for portable notebooks:
you should be able to find the gtx 555 in some 14" notebooks like the m14x
otherwise you might settle for the gtx 540 in the m11x or several 13" notebooks
the ati 66xx is ~ nvidia 540 performance

battery life wise, nvidia optimus is ahead of ati's hybrid power (last i checked)

if you're using the notebook as a desktop replacement you might go for a 15.6"+ notebook and there you can find the nvidia 560 or ati 6870 or even higher just don't expect to lug it around everywhere

 

[Nox51]

It'll be a laptop to replace a desktop really. I'm not in the states so a budget is somewhat hard to qualify but looking at about 1250$. Off the top of my head.. could go for more if need be.
Thanks for the suggestions, really helping with my hunt!

 

[fralexandr]

you might be able to find some decent ASUS g53/54 or g73/74 notebooks, as they seem to be pretty well priced in most places, most of them come with the 460m which is still a pretty good notebook GPU

otherwise something like one of these would be ok (note the ASUS G and toshiba qosmia are the best gamers there):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...e=402%3A100440
note: i filtered out the lower res screens (1366x768 and 1280x800) since they REALLY suck with reading pdfs embedded in html >.< (although that's not too common, and you can always save the pdf and open it in a pdf viewer)

too bad the HP envy 17 is just out of your price range, it's pretty nicely built and priced (and not ugly like most gaming notebooks) i'd recommend that if you don't mind paying a bit more and getting a bit less performance (currently 1300 w/ $50 amazon GC) (although i suspect it might be more expensive out of the states?) http://www.amazon.com/HP-ENVY-17-228...4750367&amp;sr=8-1

why not just bring a computer?

 

[Meaker10]

Look out for the MSI 683 series too.

 

[Nox51]

The thought of getting a desktop did strike me but I'd be going overseas for uni and staying in on campus accommodation so I don't think it'd be particularly great to lug around a desktop on planes the next couple of years. Plus I kinda always wanted something I can use in a lecture that has a bigger screen than my phone.

As for the laptops, most I've seen we're various toshiba and acer models with 540 or 6630 in retail. Will be investigating online offerings around here now that I might have some more free time. Thanks for the suggestions again.


Edit update: In the end bought a Asus N75S locally. Pretty happy with it so far, especially since amazon apparently has an aversion to shipping here. Thanks for the help.