<p>I'm really not too knowledgeable when it comes to laptops, so I am wondering if anyone could help me out (I understand that too heavy/large can be subject to individual taste). Thanks!</p>
<p>It really depends on what’s inside it, the screen size, and various other factors.</p>
<p>What laptop are you thinking? I can help you out.</p>
<p>I’m looking at a Lenovo IdeaPad Y550. This one specifically:</p>
<p>Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor P8700 ( 2.53GHz 1066MHz 3MB )
Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium
NVIDIA GeForce G 105M 512MB
4 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1066MHz
15.6 " HD Wide LED 1366x768
Industry Standard Touchpad
500GB 5400
DVD Recordable (Dual Layer)</p>
<p>One thing that I’m not sure about is its ability to play games - in particular the vid card.</p>
<p>I have a 2.1 duo, 2.0 gb, 8800 gt dell xps desktop that runs Crysis on the highest settings, but I’m not sure I want to take a desktop to college or not. </p>
<p>Basically, I’m looking for a fairly powerful laptop that will do the job with games but not be so large/heavy that I can’t take it places conveniently. If that’s not possible, I suppose I could take a desktop (new or old).</p>
<p>I’d consider anything over six pounds to be heavy and anything over seven pounds to be obscene.</p>
<p>I agree, try to stay below 6 pounds, if not 5.</p>
<p>I don’t want anything heavier than 6-7lbs, or larger than 13-15 inches.</p>
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<p>the nvidia 105m isn’t a very powerful card…</p>
<p>I think I’ve decided what I’ll probably do - Get one of the more portable lenovo laptops and forget about gaming on it. </p>
<p>I might just upgrade my current desktop/take it for games, might not.</p>
<p>That’s a good idea, I suggest that. I am doing the same as well.</p>
<p>Actually, what do people think about this choice? </p>
<p>[Newegg.com</a> - ASUS N81 Series N81Vp-C1 NoteBook Intel Core 2 Duo T9550(2.66GHz) 14.1" 4GB Memory 320GB HDD 7200rpm DVD Super Multi ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650 - Laptops / Notebooks](<a href=“http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220510]Newegg.com”>Are you a human?)</p>
<p>How portable would this thing be? Seems pretty reasonable at:
Dimensions - 13.46" x 10.08" x 1.4-1.42"
Weight - 5.51 lbs.</p>
<p>That’s a nice laptop. It has a nice video card, LED backlighting (compared to LCD- helps with battery life), and the FSB of the CPU is fast as well. You can’t go wrong with an ASUS.</p>
<p>will its size be appropriate for campus use?</p>
<p>Yeah, I’ve actually used that laptop before and I can tell you that it is pretty nice. Theres many laptops with 1 GB VRAM, but ones with DDR3 are rare. DDR3 is much, much faster than DDR2 from my experience. I will tell you that it <em>feels</em> more like a 15" laptop even though it is 14.1", but don’t get me wrong, it is still very portable for what it packs, and although not as scary silent as some of the laptops with SSDs, it is very quiet for what it packs. And of course its made by ASUS. ASUS is one of the highest quality computer brands that you can buy; I use ASUS parts for all the desktops that I build :), so you can be sure that it is not at all flimsy. Battery life wise, of course it will not be as high as some other laptops because of its specs, but it can still reach almost 3 hours of life when not gaming. Overall, that is about the best that you will find meeting your requirements with that price.</p>
<p>Hope this helped.</p>
<p>Gaming on a laptop really depends on what games you’re playing. Most laptops are not capable of playing newer games. If you’re just playing World of Warcraft or Solitaire then you should be fine. </p>
<p>If you’re concerned about a laptop being too heavy/large, you will most definitely not be able to get the high end gaming laptops. </p>
<p>It may be best to look into a desktop if gaming is a priority</p>