OK I know laptops are not preferable for gaming, desktops are generally better, but that is not an option I need a laptop (for college) so please don't say "just get a desktop". I am looking for a laptop than can handle any modern game and run it well (I will certainly want to play Skyrim on it next fall, I know specs are not out yet but I'm sure some comp experts have some idea of what to expect.). I know very little about laptops so any advice on a good solid gaming laptop would be appreciated. As for price, of course I would like to save money, but I would rather fork out the extra bucks and have a real solid laptop that will last me a while so price will not really a factor in the decision.
-Thanks in advance for any advice.

what computer are you on currently?

I have a decent laptop right now (had it for a couple years about 2.5 years), I don't now the specs off my head becasue I am not home and on soembody elses comp. It can run Oblivion fairly well on high setting, but I can already tell it will struggle with Skyrim. I usually have to use low or medium setting for FO3 and FNV. But I am looking to get a really nice gaming laptop so I can play at college next semester.
-Its a Dell Studio and uses Vista but that's all I know for sure off my head.

Gaming on a laptop is obviously not the cheapest or best solution, but I understand where you're coming from, as I have been exclusively gaming on a laptop for a couple years. (Don't own any consoles or windows desktop.)

Might be a good idea to wait another month or so, as you will see a lot more new Sandy Bridge laptops released.

I've found that the experience gaming on a lower resolution simply cannot compare to a 1600x900 or 1920x1080 display.

Envy 15 is a great machine. AFAIK, it is the only thin (1.05") and portable laptop that can deliver decent frame rates for demanding games at 1920x1080, all detail settings maxed. It is also available with 4 DIMM slots (up to 16GB RAM), USB 3.0 and dual Intel SSDs in Raid0, making it a powerful workhorse in apps like CS5, etc

cons
- crappy battery life
- no optical drive
- the case is metal and acts as a heat sink, so it gets very hot on the bottom near the power supply if you run demanding apps or games while plugged in to AC power
- it's been discontinued and can only be bought from resellers or refurb

Sager, Asus, MSI and Dell make a number of laptops that are able to handle demanding games as well, but they are significantly bigger, less portable and not great battery life either.
for an idea of a few good models, take a look on www.xoticpc.com, or http://www.sagernotebook.com/index.php?page=product_customed&model_name=NP5160
- go for something with 5830M or better (AMD) or 435M or better (NVIDIA), look for the laptop cards near the top of the Class 2 list or bottom of the Class 1 list on notebookcheck
- I would not consider any laptop with less than 1600x900, 1680x1050 or 1920x1080 display for gaming

I sort of have a gamer computer. Well I call it that becasue the hardware is a bit better but not the greatest. But still mine is over 10 pounds and pretty heavy. I wouldn't be really using it for collage or uinversty because its heave to lug around.

So you have to decided, light laptop or heavy one to be carrying around school. Also the lighter and more powerfull the more expensive. Are you willing and take the chance it can be stolen? There are a lot of light weight computer, but to my knowladge they are not powerfull enough for gaming, so be leary of that.

You need to tell us how much you're willing to spend. I can certainly link a ton of laptops that will surely at least run Skyrim (don't know the reqs yet), but the budget is the big question here.

I've had a lot of friends that were happy with Alien Ware. They told me it was the best one out there. I'm a macintosh guy myself and I can say that you definitely don't want one of those since there are barely any games available for it! though I don't see why.... the graphics on macs are pretty sweet!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-purchase_rationalization :teehee:

I don't think a gaming laptop for college is a good idea. It will be heavy and bulky to carry, and you may need to recharge it a few times a day.

My advice, don't.

He could always buy a gaming laptop and then a tablet or netbook for notes in-class. If he needs the extra power he could do projects back where he keeps his gaming laptop. :shrug:

Anyways, I'm on one of http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220704 right now, but it's a year old and will probably be fairly out dated soon. I would wait for Asus' next gaming laptops myself. Just don't buy an Alienware.

OP, I understand exactly where you're coming from, as I was in your very position four years ago. I went with an expensive Asus gaming laptop. Worked great for a year, then it started to give me trouble. Had to send it in for repairs several times, until it finally broke down completely after three years. Though Asus' repair service has been excellent, I still regret my purchase. After my laptop died I got a gaming pc, which is doing absolutely great. Much more power than my laptop ever had, not a single hardware or software related problem yet and it only cost half of what I paid for my laptop, I love it (thanks to Tig Ol Bitties for helping me make up my mind back then!). My brother bought the same pc, and I got his old one, which he got at the same time as my old laptop and hasn't yet had any serious trouble. It's still good enough for many of the games I play, it can run an unmodded Oblivion on high graphics. I have that one at my room at univ, and my gaming pc at my parents place. If I want to work in the library I just take my USB stick and work on the computers there.

To make a long story short, getting two desktops turned out to be much less frustrating and even a little cheaper than one gaming laptop. I know it isn't the advice you're looking for, but it may be something worth considering.

If that were the case then a netbook + desktop would make more sense.

Alienware is good but waay to expensive. I suggest ASUS ROG

People seem to think you can't have desktops in college.

its not practical for me, becasue I often bring it room to room. And I can't buy both a laptop and desktop.

Even if it's the same price as a single gaming laptop?

Why not get a hand held system? PSP, DS?

how would that work?

I think what he means is you can get a serviceable laptop for school that's about $500 and a pretty decent desktop for gaming for around $1,000. Many "gaming" laptops run about $1,500.00. If you are open to a recertified laptop you can get one with a decent CPU/GPU combo that would allow you do game as medium to high settings for most games. This one would perform about like a dual-core desktop with a 9800 GT:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220707

If you wanted a new one with better specs thats also a little more compact for hauling to classes this one looks good:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220921

Because laptops cost more money for less power, and in making them powerful, you ruin everything useful about a laptop. Portability, and battery life. A portable computer should actually be good at being portable, and leave the power to desktops. A $1000 desktop would out-perform a $1500 gaming laptop, and be upgradeable, and then you can get a pretty reasonable portable laptop for $500. Really, specialization is much better than compromising both power and portability, at a price premium, in one device.

For a portable desktop replacement, I recommend the Asus G73JW-A1 or the Toshiba Qosmio X505-Q896.

Gandler, feel free to PM me if you have any questions. I got a gaming laptop back in November for the very same reason. After using the both the Asus and Toshiba, I decided with the Asus. http://usa.asus.com/product.aspx?P_ID=WzU7IKA6SWdBvaRd
Just to give you an idea. I can play Bad Company 2 maxed settings 1920x1080 with very good frame rates. Oblivion maxed rarely drops below 50 fps, usually hovering around 70-100 fps. And this is without overclocking. The Asus allows you to overclock.

haha completely right! Thats why I haven't bought one.... But if they are happy, then they can be happy. I'll stick with my Macintosh.