Which laptop for gaming + general usage?

[auronini]

Currently i have a acer aspire 5742 with i5-480m 2.67ghz processor(turbo boost 2.9Ghz), 4gb ram(expandable to 8gb), Intel HD graphics.

I want to return it and get one with better graphics capabilities because i'll be keeping it for around 5 years and will undoubtedly want to play a decent game on it at some point in that time.

I was thinking about changing to one of these:

 

TOSHIBA A500-1GL £379

Intel Core i3-330m(first generation), 2.13Ghz

4GB RAM (expandable to 8 which i will)

NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 330M with CUDA™ technology

Windows 7 home premium 64bit

http://laptopoutlet.co.uk/laptops-notebooks/96407-toshiba-a665-14q-cheapest-3d-laptop-intel-core-i5-m460-4gb-500gb-win-7-pro-156-display-4026203849280.html

 

Asus P53E-SO102X £379

Intel Core i3-2330m(second generation sandy bridge technology), 2.2Ghz

2GB RAM (Will be expanded to 8gb straight away)

Intel HD 3000

Windows 7 home premium 64bit

http://www.ilgs.co.uk/products.asp?partno=P53E-SO102X

 

Which do you think would be better for occassional heavy gaming such as skyrim, GTA, etc and general speed when browsing the internet? Will i see much difference in graphics and computing performance between the 2 i3's? Will it be better to just keep the faster i5 with intel HD?

 

Any help would be appreciated!

[KenB]

Hi,

 

If you are spending £379 on a laptop no matter which one you select you are not going to get a high-end gaming machine.

 

Found this for your Intel HD3000

click here

 

Nvidia

click here

 

Many newer games require DirectX 11 compatability and if you are expecting to keep this for 5 years DirectX 10 will soon become dated.

[auronini]

Which one would be best for gaming from these which i can afford on my budget do you think?

 

My first choice

http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/HP_Pavilion_DV6-6c05ea_1165433.html

 

My second choice

http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/hp-g6-1336sa-15-6-laptop-charcoal-12303695-pdt.html

 

Third choice (says 1gb dedicated ram, but same radeon 6520g as the HP above, does the hp also havve 1gb ram?)

http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/HP_ProBook_4535_1134731.html

 

Last choice (refurb..but better graphics capability than others?)

http://laptopoutlet.co.uk/laptops-notebooks/96407-toshiba-a665-14q-cheapest-3d-laptop-intel-core-i5-m460-4gb-500gb-win-7-pro-156-display-4026203849280.html

[KenB]

I think the Toshiba has the better graphics as you say.

The problem is that it has only 4GB RAM.

 

To get the best out of the Graphics Card you need 8GB RAM.

 

If you want this machine for gaming I would consider putting another 4GB RAM in.

 

The Toshiba has an Intel i3 processor too.

[auronini]

I'll definitely be upgrading to 8GB as you say!

Before i purchase, does anyone know of any other laptops with a better graphics card than the GT330m within a £400 price range?