How to Choose a Gaming Laptop

Laptops traditionally have been a no go area for gamers. However, in recent years times have changed, from a business man play toy in the 1990s the next generation of gaming laptops have the raw power to cope with the most hungry of 3d gaming and graphic intensive software applications. With the obvious advantage of unique portability the gaming laptop is certain to gain a big slice in the gaming hardware market in the next few years with many PC users opting for a more versatile approach to playing PC games and the booming market of online games. Technology is changing even month by month but by reading the guide you should be able to grasp the basic understanding of what you should be looking for when choosing a gaming laptop.

Processor Power The engine of any laptop. The processor or CPU is one of the most vital components of a gaming laptop and you should be looking for a duel core processor, expensive yes but will stand you in good stead in the forthcoming months. If you cannot afford a duel core then a minimum of a 1.

8mhz processor is what you should be looking at. Random Access Memory (RAM) Often overlooked and forgotten about, RAM combined with the processor is pivotal in a gaming laptop. The bottom line is if you have a cutting edge CPU but only 256mb of RAM or even 512mb then you are seriously limiting your gaming laptop performance. Go for at least 1mb of RAM and even better for the all important frames per second count get 2mb.

Graphics Card This is where you have a decision to make. The big difference between a laptop and a desktop PC is the upgrade ability of your graphics card. In your desktop it is easy to upgrade your video card but inside a laptop it is difficult and often needs a pc engineer to carry out this process.

Most standard laptops come with a onboard graphics card and you must expect to pay for a top end card such as a Radeon or Geforce. Screen Clarity Wide screen is recommended for gamers but do not compromise on screen quality. 17inch screen will help with those long gaming sessions and a good tip for when you are looking at laptops is to use the machine for a few minutes to see if your comfortable with the clarity and image quality of the laptop screen. Battery Life With raw graphic power busting out of your laptop you will need make sure your battery is up to the job.

Lithium-ion battery that lasts up to 5 to 6 hours is ideal if your are looking to use your machine away from a wired power source. Gaming laptop prices Expensive. There is no point hiding this fact, if you compromise on CPU, RAM or video card then you will not have a gaming laptop at all, just a regular laptop with some costly components inside. Expect to pay nearly a third more for your gaming laptop compared to a normal spec machine.

Martin writes exclusive articles for pc and gadget websites like Free Registry Cleaner and iPod Accessories