Which of these two notebooks is better for gaming?

[Prx]

Hey, I'm trying to decide between these two notebooks:

eMachines M5313 Mobile AMD Athlon 2500+ 1.867GHz Notebook

and

Toshiba Satellite A40-1LR Mobile P4 2.4GHz Notebook

I'm leaning towards the eMachines since it's a pound lighter. I'm not sure how the graphic chips compare, the ATI RADEON 320M vs the Intel 852GME 64MB. I'm looking for something that can play current games at a decent fps.

S-video out isn't listed on the Toshiba, which is something I definately want to have, does anyone know if it's a standard port on the A40. Also does the graphics card effect the quality at which video is output? I'd like to be able to play games/movies on the TV.

Thanks

 

[ShellGuy]

Have you looked at the Emachine M6807? And what is your price range?

Will

 

[Prx]

My price range is around 1700 Cdn, which is what those two notebooks are priced at. Not sure where I could find certain eMachines models here. I've heard some people complain about the quality of eMachines, specifically their desktops. Has anyone had a good/bad experience with them?

 

[Connoisseur]

well actually neither of those machines are particularly good gamers...depends on the game you want to play. If you're playing games like Counter-Strike or RTS games, then yeah both will run them pretty decently. For other games however (i.e. Quake 3 based games, UT2k3, BF1942 and other heavy 3d games) those integrated graphics chips will perform VERY poorly. If those are the only 2 laptops you can afford then I definitely recommend the emachines. it's sturdy, looks nice, and is thin and compact. also the radeon IGP graphics perform slightly better than the intel graphics. But once again, it depends on what games. If you're looking to play modern 3d games then I would take ShellGuy's advice and consider something like the M6805 or another similarly configured system. The M6805 offers the most bang for the buck you'll find but it depends on your spending limit. Take care.

 

[Connoisseur]

Lol just saw your post regarding your price range. I'm not sure what the conversion rate from Canadian to US is but the M6805 runs your 1300 USD after rebates. I'm typing on my 6805 right now and I like the build quality a lot. It's a lot sturdier (stiffer) than Dell models and personally I think it equals Toshiba. It gives me GREAT gaming performance and I haven't had a problem with it yet (reformatted hd, overclocked and everything). Hope this helps.

 

[Prx]

Hey thanks for all the info

1300 = 1750 Cdn, and would probably have to pay shipping and tax on top of that. Does anyone know of any good deals for notebooks in Canada? So far Futureshop seems to be offering the best prices.

How is the build for Compaq? This model has a 64MB Radeon, Svideo out, intergrated wireless, and is $200 cheaper.
Compaq 2199CA Mobile AMD Athlon 1.87GHz Notebook

Also would really consider getting this one for $1800 Cdn, includes a 128MB Shared ATI Radeon 9000.
Compaq R3055CA P4 2.4GHz Notebook

 

[Prx]

bump

 

[Corporate Thug]

out of the 4 you listed, the last one would be best for gaming as it has a radeon 9000 while the other 3 have crappy video cards

 

[Connoisseur]

Keep in mind, however, that the 9000 has "shared" memory. I personally haven't heard of a 128meg shared model, but if that's the case it severely impacts the amount of RAM you actually can use. For instance, if you have 512megs, when running an intensive game, you'll only have 384megs available. Furthermore, shared memory is significantly slower than discrete memory because the vid card has to access the system ram. If you can afford it, try to get a discrete solution. There are a lot of cheap laptops with Radeon 9000 and 64megs discrete solutions which should run most modern games decently.

 

[Connoisseur]

sorry for so many posts but I just looked at the link you had up for the Emachines 5312. I hope that price ($1699) is in Canadian money cause if it's in US, you're getting severely ripped off. You can find a 5312 at a US Best Buy for around 950 or so. Even with shipping that's a hell of a lot cheaper than the price shown there....if it's in US money of course.

 

[Prx]

Yeah all those prices are in Canadian

 

[dnuggett]

Ok, none of the laptops listed will be worth a squat on any intense games. I'm bit confused on the fact that you want to play on them on the TV, you do know that most TV only handles 640X480 right?

You must be not be playing any newer FPS games correct? (Call of Duty, America's Army, BF1942 etc....)

 

[Prx]

no nfsu looks awesome on the tv

more interested in playing movies on the tv

 

[Tango57]

pls don't get a laptop with shared video memory if you plan to do any serious or even casual gaming. look for one with a dedicated graphics card with at least 64 mb of ram. 128 mb would be better like the ATI mobility 9600 128 mb. Prostar makes a laptop with an ATI card that has 256 mb ram.