I'm graduating from high school this June, and I'll be attending college this fall.  The College of Engineering at my university requires students to have a laptop.  I'm not really a fan of them, as the performance is always less than what you could get from a desktop of equal price, but I don't have a choice.

That said, what's the best laptop I could get (gaming-wise) for ~$1000?  Feel free to go a bit over that, as I'll be buying it in August and prices might have dropped a bit by then.

Minimum Specs are listed in the link, but I don't think it'll be an issue:

http://www.eos.ncsu.edu/soc/purchasing/rec_specs.php

Laptops will never be ideal for gaming, even if you do pay a premium (well beyond a $1000 budget). At best, they're still a compromise.

I would recommend staying within spec and budget and just building a desktop PC later on with an emphasis on gaming if that's what you're really planning on using it for. Keeping it smaller and lighter (5lbs or less) would be a plus as well if you're taking it to every class.

The main use for the laptop I'm guessing is for taking notes in class and to run the basic office productivity software. Maybe some compilers if you're taking CSE classes.

But if you're really set on a desktop replacement for gaming and work, take a look at some of Asus' current offerings.

A quick check on Newegg currently shows at $1000 and $1099

ASUS N80 Series N80Vn-X5 NoteBook Intel Core 2 Duo P8600(2.40GHz) 14.1" Wide XGA 4GB Memory 320GB HDD 7200rpm DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 9650M GT - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220488

ASUS G Series G50V-X5 NoteBook Intel Core 2 Duo P8600(2.40GHz) 15.6" Wide XGA 4GB Memory 320GB HDD 7200rpm DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 9700M GT
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220490


For gaming at $1299:

ASUS G Series G50VT-X6 NoteBook Intel Core 2 Duo P8700(2.53GHz) 15.4" Wide SXGA+ 4GB Memory 320GB HDD 7200rpm DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 9800M GS - Retail
Equipped w/ P8700 CPU & 512MB DDR3 NVIDIA GPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220483


I'd buy the last one personally if I had any interest in laptop gaming and I wasn't more interested in something smaller, lighter and more mobile for general purpose computing instead.

But look into all vendors to see what's available first; it's your money and your computer after all.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152086

4GB RAM
Vista
9600M GT Graphic Card 512MB
Inter Core 2 Duo
802.11 a/b/g/n
2 MP Webcam
DVD Multi Drive
+ Gaming Bag

All for $949 w/o rebate

I no for a engineer, you will be using a lot of programs to design w/e your doing (mechanical, automotive, etc.), so a powerful graphics card can come in handy.

Yeah, I'm going to be majoring in mechanical engineering, with a focus on automotive engineering. I hope to be doing undergraduate research starting this summer, so I'm betting that graphics card will come in handy. Any idea on how quickly the prices drop on those things? That last ASUS looked pretty good.

I'd recommend checking this site, and posting in the "What Notebook Should I buy?" section of the forum:

http://www.notebookreview.com/

It's probably the best place to get information on laptops.

wait til windows 7.

I'll second that laptops are not practical for gaming. Your better of getting a DS or a PSP, buying some games, and then using the leftover money to get a EEEPc laptop from ASUS.

Not that fast unless vendors are just clearing stock that's being replaced by a newer model. Most manufacturers are pretty good about tapering off inventory/production prior to this though, so you have to watch closely.

Just look at the difference in specs between the $1100 model and the $1300 model to give you an idea of what the incremental difference would be from one update to the next.

Asus offers rebates from time to time, so buying when they are available often makes more sense than waiting for the price to drop.

Also consider that Windows 7 is coming soon, although it's currently not scheduled until Jan 2010 (too late for Fall semester). All that really means is that if you're planning on using it, it's another cost to factor in. Maybe it will be discounted for Vista users (on an OEM license seems unlikely), and maybe an OEM license will only cost $99 (like VistaX64).

The only reason I said I would be buying in August was because the first friday in August is a No-Sales-Tax holiday in North Carolina.  I can buy it any time before the fall semester starts.  I'm aware of Windows 7, but there's not much I can do...

I have a DS, but I hardly think the PC game market and DS market are very similar.  I'm not going to need something bleeding edge, but I want to be able to play reasonable games without any issue.

So you're looking at about a $70 savings off a $1000, maybe a bit more. But if you ordered from a non-NC company like NewEgg, you wouldn't be paying sales tax anyway.

The rebates vary, but I've seen them go as high as $200-300 (for the top models) range, so keep an eye out once you know what you want to buy.

The Asus G50 is good enough to play any current games (X5 or X6 update). Should be fine for all 3D programs, etc. as well.