Friday, March 7, 2008

What to Look for When Choosing a Gaming Laptop



Gaming is all the rage nowadays. What used to be niche group of game players is now mainstream. This means that the gaming laptop has really come into its own. Gamers have a lot of options now in the area of laptops.

Gamers demand a lot out of their laptops. They tend to know a lot about computers and they know what they want. They like to order their gaming laptops with their own specs and configurations, essentially creating their own “Dream Machines.” If you are a gamer, here are some of the factors you should consider when choosing the best gaming laptop out there:

1.) Graphics
Well, this is a given. Of course you want awesome graphics. Your game-playing enjoyment practically depends on it. This should be your first area of consideration when choosing a laptop computer. Graphics make your laptop capable of many things, such as wide-screen HDTV, mobile video editing studio, and 3D games. Look for a laptop that includes integrated graphics and a large amount of video RAM. Some Graphic Chipsets that are highly rated include:
Intel’s Graphics Media Accelerator 900
Mobility Radeon 9700
ATI's Mobility FireGL V3200

2). Speed, Baby, Speed!
The speed of processors is known as clock speed, and is measured in megahertz (MHz) or in gigahertz (GHz). The higher the clock speed, the faster your laptop will work.

Get the fastest computer you can afford in order to receive the maximum performance from your gaming laptop. It’s that simple. Your laptop must be able to process the latest 3D games easily, or expect the worst to happen—freeze up. Our suggestion is to go with a SATA (Serial Advanced Technology Architecture) processor. SATA processors are advanced and use less power. They are perfect for laptops. Or, when in doubt, you are always safe with a Pentium.

And, always be aware of your hard drive speed. A 7,200rpm hard drive is faster than a 4,200rpm or 5,400rpm. The faster the hard drive, the better the performance, as well.

Loads of RAM
A lot of RAM (Random-Access Memory) is good. LOADS of RAM is better. In other words, get as much RAM as possible. This will determine how much graphics your laptop can handle. You need at least 246MB for Windows XP and Mac OS X.

Also check out DDR2-SDRAM. This is a new standard that can boost SDRAM memory up to speeds over 200MHz! And Video RAM or VRAM, is special memory that is used by video adaptors on your laptop. This specifically handles the graphic and is helpful when you play the latest 3D games on your laptop.

Display
Don’t forget, you need the brightest, sharpest display screen around to fully appreciate the utter coolness of modern gaming. What you need to keep in mind is this: SVA Resolution. In other words, images are made up of pixels or dots. The more pixels you have, the better the image. SVGA Resolution is made up of 800 x 600 pixels, which is very good.

So, in conclusion:
High Graphics + Speed + RAM + Display = Awesome Gaming Laptop Bliss. Enough said.

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