New Notebooks..Games..Video Cards..Pitfalls?

I will be buying a new notebook soon. I only buy a computer every 6 or so years, so I won't be looking for anything cutting edge.

I have been pretty happy with Compaq computers through the years and might want to stay with them, at least in my initial shopping.

My fastest computer to date was an XP machine 1.8 GHz, with a Radeon 300-something video card. It was ok for the few games I played (Medal of Honor, Call of Duty (through COD2)..that's really all I played as the video card wouldn't handle anything newer.

My question is: Are the current notebook video cards still limiting as to what games can be run on them?

I don't want to limit myself right away by not getting enough video power initially.

The games I would most likely play would be never versions of MOH and COD, and initially only in single player mode as I don't have a high speed connection, but probably will well before the computer gives out.

Thanks

Brian

 

Yes. And since they can't be upgraded either, you're looking at quite a large initial expense if you want to be able to play games on it for he next 5-6 years.

You might want to take a very close look at whether you really need a portable computer or not. A desktop that can be upgraded as needed will be much cheaper for you in the long run, if you want to do lots of PC gaming.

 

I understand what you're saying re: desktop and games. It's just that my notebook just died and as I need the portability my next purchase will have to be a notebook.

I have no idea (yet) what video cards are in the currently available notebooks, but they have to be considerably better than the one in my last notebook (Radeon 300 or something like that). That's old.

I'm not a big gamer at all, I just don't want to be limited in the future by not spending $20 more for a machine with a (hopefully) much better video card.

Thanks

 

If you really need the portability I'll tell you what I told someone else in another forum the other day: Don't buy anything marketed as a "gaming laptop". They tend to cost a lot more than they should just because of that obnoxious g-word. What you need is something with multiple processor cores, at least 4GB RAM, and discrete graphics. The laptop I do the majority of my PC gaming on these days is listed by its manufacturer as a "portable media center", and it can do recent games just fine.

 

Thanks. I'm learning quickly.

I was near a Game Stop today so I went in and told the clerk what I was thinking and he said I think something similar to what you're saying.

He said to get at least a quad core processor, and as much ram as I can afford (2 GM Min), and something about finding a video card which included a lot of it's own RAM.

I'm not sure what 'discrete graphics' are though.

He also said NVidea (spelling?) was a good video card to go with.

Other than all that, he said just look at the Video Requirements for the games I might be playing....but that my system's ram would factor in the most.

Seems to me that any current computer will open new gaming horizons over the last Radeon Video card I had. It was so 'old' I had to shop for games at Half Price Books.

Thanks

Brian

 

"Discrete graphics" means a dedicated 'stands on its own"-video card. One that is an entity in its own right, and not a part of the motherboard. Using my own laptop as an example, I have an i7-720 processor, and a Mobility Radeon HD5730 graphics card... as a more clear-cut example for you going forward, you want to get a laptop that has either ATI or nVidia graphics. If it has Intel, it's integrated and no good for gaming.

And you're right... any current PC will be miles ahead of what you had. But don't let that stop you from getting the best you can afford.

 

Mimsy:

Thanks for your help. I am at least now pointed in the right direction. I found a helpful site notebookcheck.com.

I even found my old notebook's video. ATI Radeon IGP 340M. Pretty much at the bottom of the list! haha.

Brian