i3/i5 laptop with decent graphics chip?

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I have come to the conclusion that I need a laptop, I have always stuck to my trusty desktop because I made it myself and it's not going to melt - or whatever.

I am wanting something that will run most games relatively smoothly but I don't need high visuals. To that goal, all I need is a good graphics chip (330m?) and an i3 cpu. And I don't want to pay for windows again, I have an untouched win7 sitting around.

I will probably be playing dawn of war 40k, wow, cs:s, killing floor - that kind of thing. Not metro 2033.

My budget is around £500 - or a little more - which should be fine for anything with an i3 and a good gpu (330m?), particularly if I can get it without an OS. Is an i5 worth getting over an i3? - will an i3 cause some kind of bottleneck somewhere due to bus speeds etc?

I havn't really got any experience looking for laptops, is there anything in particular I need to pay attention to? Laptop manufacturers seem to rip people off quite badly. How do I negotiate having no OS?
 
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You can always check on notebookcheck for video card and CPU comparisons and performances. But imo, the best match would be a i5-540M and a HD 5650. Then again, you'll be hard pressed to find anything like that for £500. a i3-330M is a more likely prospect, but you may be able to stretch to a i3-370M, which brings it closer to a i5. For gaming, I'm not sure it would make much difference between all of them tbh.

I don't think you can negotiate a no-OS type deal. In fact, they might make you pay for the privilege!

For older game, check if you could get away with a lower spec graphics. Even a 310M will run CS:S quite competently.
 
Agree with the above - especially the bit about older games......tbh, I was looking for a decent gfx spec in a small laptop (was thinking the 5650/330m) for my occasional Oblivion bursts....but - to my pleasant surprise - the 4330 I have in my new laptop is more than capable :)
Moral of the story is that you may well be able to get away with lesser/older gfx than initially thought......but suggest research, as can't change afterwards :p
 
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