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All about avid technology informationPlay Online Games At The Coolest Online Gaming Portal And Shop Online At The Best Gem Store
Posted on April 12, 2012Whenever we think of online gaming, a few websites automatically come to our mind. If you are new to the world of online gaming and want to know where to start then we suggest you to out Online-Games-Zone.com. This website is more than just another gaming website. One of the biggest advantages of playing in this website is that you can play at any time of the day and night. There is no need to register to play and therefore you do not need to share any personal details. The website boost of a large collection of games that are powered by the best software in the market and therefore you are sure to have a glitch free gaming experience. Another website worth trying out is the Spiele-Zone.de. This website too is among the most popular ones when it comes to online gaming.
However, if jewelry shopping services are what you are looking for, then look no further than EuroGem.biz. This website is one of the best known providers of gemstones online. Not only can you go through their different collection of all well known gemstones, you can also shop according to your budget. The site offers special offers and discounts at all times and you are sure to get the best deals. The gems are hundred percent original and the site promises secure monetary transactions over the internet. You can therefore rest assured that you are getting quality gemstones without putting your safety and personal information at risk. This website is most definitely worth a try.
Choose the Best Gaming PC for your Needs
Posted on April 10, 2012Computer game technology is a rapidly-increasing field. In terms of both hardware and software, companies are constantly striving to push the envelope and increase performance. As the intricacy of individual games increases, however, it becomes important to select a computer gaming system that will best fit your particular needs. Unfortunately, there is no shortage of gaming PCs available on the market. How, then, do you select the best gaming system? By answering several questions about your gaming and financial needs, you can determine which direction to turn in terms of a proper gaming system.
What Kinds of Games do you Play?
The specific types of games that you tend to play will help decide which hardware configurations will best meet your needs. All games are not created equal, and depending on the genre developers will devote more of their energy to different aspects of the title. Strategy and simulation games, for example, tend to be less graphically-intensive than other types of games and thus can be run on a less powerful gaming system. As a point of reference, the specifications for Civilization IV, a lush and detailed strategy game, are as follows:
-1.8GHz Intel or AMD processor
-512MB RAM
-128MB video card
Compared to many of the newer gaming computers on the market today, the demands for running Civilization IV are not all that high. As with many strategy and simulation games, a greater weight is placed on AI and game calculations rather than graphics, and raw hardware power becomes less important to run the title effectively.
Conversely, first-person shooters (FPS) and action titles tend to rely more heavily on graphics and physics to create the proper ambiance and environment. As such, the system requirements for these types of games are usually significantly higher than other genres. Titles like Half-Life 2 and Quake 4 bombard the player with graphically intensive scenes, and the physics of the game are precisely calculated to create the most realistic scenarios possible. In contrast to the specifications listed above, the recommended system configuration for F.E.A.R., one of the more advanced FPS titles in terms of graphics prowess, are as follows:
-3.0 Pentium 4 or equivalent processor
-1GB RAM
-256MB video card
Although F.E.A.R. and Civilization IV released at roughly the same time last year, the recommended system requirements for the former are nearly double those of the latter. This is often the case with FPS titles; because developers largely intend these games to be “showcase” pieces of a particular technology or graphics engine, a more powerful gaming computer is usually required to run them in their full graphical glory. The graphic rendering takes enough resources, but when you figure in the requirements for precise real-time physics calculations, these get bumped up even further. As you can see, the types of computer games that you play invariably affect the hardware that you should purchase.
Must you have the Best Graphics?
Genre alone is not the sole deciding factor in determining which gaming PC to purchase, however. Many titles, including such showcase pieces as Half-Life 2 and Doom 3, provide the player with the option of scaling back the graphical effects in order to run the game smoothly on a less-powerful system. While FPS and other games often require a behemoth of a system in order to run with all graphical effects turned on, they will generally run adequately on older rigs. If you can live without such taxing effects as particle shading and frame rates in the hundreds, chances are that you can spend less on a gaming computer and still be able to play the latest games.
What’s more, in many cases game developers and players will discover ways to make a game run more smoothly and stably shortly after it releases. It is generally expected that, in the rush to hit the marketplace, many games are not truly “finished”; that is to say, the code behind them could stand to be optimized slightly more. Therefore, developers and publishers will usually releases patches or updates in order to fix certain technical problems. In the case of F.E.A.R., many players reported shortly after its release that the frame rate would often drop down to unplayable levels mid-game, chugging along even on powerful gaming systems. Once the game was patched, however, this shortcoming was largely rectified. Similarly, avid players or members of a gaming community will often find ways to improve a game’s performance on their own through hacks or tweaks. When this happens, their findings are usually released online in short order, and a game that might have taxed your gaming computer beyond its capabilities may suddenly become playable. Again, it’s not always necessary to have the absolute best hardware in order to play the latest games.
How Much do you Plan on Spending?
Naturally, all of this technology comes at a price. As the adage goes, you have to pay in order to play. Everybody aspires to one day own an ultimate gaming computer; the specifications are mind-boggling, and there is no shortage of companies offering monster gaming rigs. However, the cost of owning one of these machines is often prohibitive. Keep in mind that the newest and most powerful video cards tend to hit the market at the $500 price point. Additionally, the most powerful processors can be priced at $1000 or more. When you design a system around these top-level components–a system that can take the latest game releases, chew them up, and spit them out–you can expect the cost of it to soar. It’s not unheard of to see dedicated gaming PCs priced at $4000 or more for the tower only.
Obviously, the first two questions influence the third quite a bit. If you don’t play many graphically-intensive games, or if you are willing to live with slightly degraded in-game graphics, it is simply not necessary to spend that kind of money on a gaming system. There are plenty of computer companies that have in their lineups midrange setups that are perfectly capable of playing the majority of games on the market today–and at a significantly reduced price. Don’t despair if you can’t afford the latest and most powerful computer technology; while economic means may be the most influential of all deciding factors, it won’t necessarily prohibit you from playing the games that you want.
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By: Jordan Hall
Jewel Alchemy Lite
Posted on December 06, 2011
Jewel Alchemy Lite
Leaderboards: Yes
Multiplayer: No
Achievements on free version: Yes
Game Center compatible: Yes (high score based, no real time multiplayer)
Formats: iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad
Makers: Youngil HI-TECH Inc
Size: 32.9 MB
Modes
Classic
Time Attack
Achievements
Blue Topaz – Blue Topaz has the power to increase strength (14 points)
Garnet – Garnet is said to give the wearer victory, chastity, truth and fidelity (13 points)
Amethyst – Amethyst is thought to impact clarity of mind, health, luck (12 points)
Aquamarine – The aquamarine is said to give courage, victory and confidence (11 points)
Diamond – Diamonds are also the symbol of love (14 points)
Emerald – Emerald is said to represent hope, success and rebirth (13 points)
Peridot – Peridot is believed to help with nightmares, bring prosperity (11 points)
Sapphire – Sapphire is said to preserve the wearer from envy (10 points)
Citrine – Citrine is said to protect the wearer against evil words and thoughs (12 points)
Certificate – You have gained this certificate for clearing all classic stages (50 points)
Certificate – You have gained this certificate for clearing all time attack stages (100 points)
Gameplay
Numbered minerals fall from the top of the screen and it is your job to take a corresponding element from the bottom of the screen to make sure that the alchemy created adds up to ten. You have numbered one to nine elements in boxes at the bottom of the screen, when a number is moving around on screen you need to select the correct box so that alchemy adds to ten. But be careful throwing the wrong element upwards to create a number different to ten creates rocks that float around and prevent you from creating simple alchemy. Throwing the elements off the sides of the screen before creating alchemy leads to greater scores, so be creative!
The point scoring can be very elaborate but the trick is to create alchemy in a quick time and with plenty of rebounds.
Tips
Act fast. It is after all a numbers game where quick addition to ten is the key
Don’t go straight for the mineral if you know there is plenty of time to score rebound points before the next mineral
Avoid creating rocks – this means adding correctly and not trying too extravagant throws
Attempt to break up blocks as quickly as possible on each level, this paves the way for a clear run throughout the remainder of the level
Positives and Negatives
Positives
Addictive, yet simple gameplay. Create alchemy by throwing elements from the bottom of the screen to collide with other minerals that descend from the top of the screen and bounce around. It’s that simple.
The lite version is free and better than some of the paid apps on the app store.
There is enough content to warrant further extended play.
Game Center compatibility means that you will keep playing to try and achieve a high score and get on the leaderboard.
Two different modes containing six levels each with each level being slightly different means you get a lot for free.
Each level is just about the right length for an app, lasting from a few seconds to a couple of minutes.
Nice classical music.
Negatives
Sometimes you know the sum but because the layout is very tight at the bottom you end up throwing the wrong element by accident – this can be frustrating.
Can get fiddly when you’re trying to brush away the rocks that have congregated.
Whilst it is easy to understand what the aim is, the point scoring system can be complex and leave you unsure as to why your scores vary from one attempt to the next.
By: Harry J Carter
Nintendo DS Games – Best Games and Options
Posted on October 22, 2011
Nintendo DS has become popular among kids and young adults. Most of the games are designed for interactivity and simulation. There are also educational games and other simulations which are designed specifically for kids and young adults in mind.
The latest DS games have interesting plots, simulations, role playing, and other fun aspects which are really engaging. Although these games are designed for kids, they are just as much fun for young adults.
Many young adults who like dogs, however do not want to actually own a dog, enjoy the dog simulation DS games. There are games with puzzles and other mysteries, which provide excellent graphics in an easy to use hand held device.
There is a connection between DS Games and the Wii, both are made by Nintendo. Besides this fact, Wii and DS owners can preview DS games using the Wii’s Nintendo Channel on the main menu. This channel will allow previews of new DS games, which have been developed and will soon be hitting the stores.
Disney recently announced it will launch a DGamer, free avatar based community, which will be built into games they develop for the Nintendo DS. The DGamer has WIFI connectivity for DS users to play games with other DS users. The focus of the DGamer is to allow DS game players to participate in an online virtual world.
DS Games Themes and Genres
The following DS games are highly rated these playing themes or genres based on consumer reviews:
Action – The Legend of Zelda-Phantom Hour Glass Role Playing – Pok?mon Diamond Sports – Madden NFL 08 Racing/Driving – Mario Kart DS Music – Guitar Hero Strategy – Advance Wars-Days of Ruin Shooter – NanoStray 2 Puzzle – Picross DS Platformer – New Super Mario Brothers Simulation – Nintendogs all versions Educational – Professor Layton and the Curious Village Board and Cards – Battles of Prince of Persia Virtual – Animal Crossing-Wild World
Overall Best Nintendo DS Games
The current best Nintendo DS games, based on consumer reviews are:
New Super Mario Brothers Mario Kart The Legend of Zelda-Phantom Hour Glass Nintendogs – various versions
Buying a DS Game
Once you have decided which DS game to buy, check it for the following:
Reviews – compare the reviews given by consumers of the games Rankings – check out the rankings of the games by completing a Google Nintendo DS Games search Number of Players – see how many players the game allows at one time, some allow up to two players at the same time Compare Prices – not all retailers are the same; there can be a difference of $30 or more for the same game WIFI – is the game suited for WIFI connectivity DS Gamer – look for games having this feature for virtual world fun
By: David Wetzel
Supreme Commander – Forged Alliance Review
Posted on September 27, 2011A new favorite game of mine is a recent RTS called Supreme Commander: Forged alliance. This is a very complex and in depth RTS featuring five apposing factions, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. I’ve only just begun to become competent at this game, as it requires and extremely high degree of micro management to be a viable fighting force.
Starting a game is pretty simple. You begin with your intial command unit, and one thousand mass and energy, which are the resources for this game like gold and lumber was for such games as the Warcraft series. You begin by building one of three types of factories, land, sea, or air. After that there are literally an innumerable amount of ways to progress, all depending on your opponent’s play style.
The point of the game is to either destroy your opponent’s command unit (the most common play style), or to destroy every one of your enemies’ units and buildings. This may sound simple, but with the sheer number of different units and defensive/offensive buildings, this can be quite the chore.
There are also different levels of technology, or “tech levels” to go through, each only attainable after the previous has been reached. There are three main tech levels for each race, and one “experimental” level that yields extremely powerful units, each unique to the race that creates them. For example, the “UEF” race gains access to a giant tank that also acts as an extremely fast building land unit factory, while the “Cybrin” race can build a rapid fire artillery installation.
One of the main keys to success in this game is resource management and knowing what to build and when to build it. You can seriously cripple yourself by trying to build a very powerful, and thus expensive unit too early, and bringing your resource production and other works to a grinding halt. On the other hand, you can also mess up by focusing too much on building up your resources and forgetting to erect necessary defenses.
I have a very love/hate relationship with this game. I love watching my units fighting it out against my enemies, but I hate the sheer number of ways you can be taken out in turn.
By: Darryl Forsythe
How Do You Rank Up in Gears of War 2?
Posted on September 21, 2011
Online gaming has exploded in popularity in recent years and many avid gamers have jumped into the mix to take part in their favorite games. Now, while it is true that most people play for fun, there is also a competitive edge found among many gamers. They want to show the fruits of their labor by logging win after win. Of course, it is not always possible to win all the time and even the most competitive gamer acknowledges such a point. However, in the game Gears of War 2, there is an added dimension of competitiveness found beyond the mere acquisition of wins and losses. Gears of War 2 also present a ranking system that many will aspire to achieve heights in.
For those that have not played Gears of War 2, this is a brilliantly designed science fiction tactical shooter game that takes place on a strange and violent planet. This game has been designed for the Xbox system and it is also compatible with online multiplayer modes. This is why the ranking system is so popular. It provides stripes of accomplishment that sets one player apart from the others. There are upwards of five ranks and those that have higher ranks certainly acquire a great deal of prestige. That is why there is so much competition for ranks. However, it is not easy to acquire increased rank. If there was, then ranking would lose much of its aforementioned prestige. Unfortunately, there is some confusion as to how rank is achieved. That is why a clear explanation on the basics of Gears of War 2 ranking would be helpful.
In order to understand how rank is figured out, it is important to look at how it is not tabulated. Let us make something very clear rank in Gears of War 2 is most definitely not accumulated by points and kills alone. A misunderstanding of this is often the root cause of players consternation over not being able to achieve rank advancements. There is, however, the misguided assumption that if a players scores and kill numbers increase, so will their rank. This is partially true as these factors are part of the mix. However, they comprise only a part.
So, what factors are the most important? The main factors considered in boosting ones ranking involve the players win loss record and whether or not the player was the favorite in the match up. In other words, defeating weak opponents does little for improving rank. However, many do not know this is the case and assume their ranking stats will increase amidst a bevy of kills. This is most assuredly not the case and a huge pile of weak kills will not move anyone up the ranking ladder. These players will need to compile a large number of victories over tough opponents in order to see their ranking improve. Those that can achieve such goals
Once again, it is not the easiest thing in the gaming world to move up on the ranking ladder of Gears of War 2. However, those that are able to rise to the occasion and increase their ranks can feel a sense of pride and accomplishment in their actions. After all, they have done something very few have been able to duplicate.
By: Andie Francese
The R4i Cards – A Little Bit of Information
Posted on September 20, 2011
The latest R4 DSi is creating quite an amount of buzz amidst the gizmo lovers. The Nintendo has created quite a stir in all avid gamers and R4 is just a great welcome to all of them for it allows them to accomplish a plethora of tasks without compromising on their games. The latest one comes in a bigger screen and has all the best things incorporated into it basing on the feedbacks received from the customers.
The latest R4 DSi console gets its appellation from the DSi card that is made use of for the execution of different types of video games that could be played in the console. With the help of a Micro SD card, one could play songs or video in the console. Portability is the biggest boon that one gets out of the gaming console.
The R4i card is compatible with the Nintendo DS, Nintendo DS Lite and the Nintendo DSi. Playing homebrew and Nintendo games on your Nintendo DS is very much possible with these cards. Apart from playing games, one cold also read ebooks, watch their favorite movie, browse through their picture galleries, or listen to their favorite songs in the MP3 format.
There are online retailers that sell these R4i cards but here is some word of caution…make sure that you receive a sturdy and reliable card that is intact. As the latest R4i cards do not possess internal memory one needs to buy the Micro SD card. This gives the option for the user to expand the memory from a range of 2GB to 32 GB. If you wish to accommodate a number of games, you could perhaps choose between the 16 GB or the 32 GB cards. So, one could store their movies, songs, pictures, games and eBooks in the Micro SD card.
R4i has the ability to access the above mentioned items belonging to different categories and play them on your Nintendo DS or Nintendo DS Lite or Nintendo DSi. It is this Micro SD card that also plays the role of a mediator between the computer and the R4i. The R4i is indeed a game lover’s savior for it takes the entire NDS gaming experience to a higher level giving great joy to the users. You could stay connected with all that you love with the help of R4i cards…procure one to experience the kind of facilities it offers!
By: Farango Cameron
Micropayment – The Future of Gaming?
Posted on September 11, 2011
There seems to be a general consensus within the gaming industry that the current pricing model for games cannot continue as development costs have risen dramatically this generation of consoles as gamers demand a visual feast from their HD games.
Even the big boys of the industry are starting to struggle, EA lost $82 million last quarter and have cancelled many games and has stated their intention to concentrate on core franchises, which means less perceived risk which in turn means less innovation and new experiences for the gamer.
The gaming industry needs to find a way to pay for the experience that gamers are demanding and the current financial model isn’t working for the majority of developers and publishers. The industry has seen the explosion of casual gaming and the huge financial rewards that this has brought and want to adapt that financial model into the more hardcore gaming experience.
Of course, there are other financial models already out there than that of the industry standard single fixed price, perhaps the most popular is the pay monthly plan. This is usually deployed by MMORPG’s (massively multiplayer online role playing games) such as World of Warcraft whereby consumers usually pay an initially lower fee for the game but then pay a monthly fee for continued access to the game and its content. This monthly fee entitles the user to continued access, bug updates and usually content updates as well (though big content updates are sometimes sold separately). This model allows developers to be more adventurous and try new things as they can release new content as and when its finished and gain instant feedback on it from the consumer whereas the more traditional flat fee yearly purchase the developer needs to play it safer in order to make sure that they get the sales they need to make a profit.
Another model that gets trotted out a lot as the potential saviour of the gaming industry is the micro transaction gaming model, whereby the initial and base experience may be free but then the user is required to pay small fee’s in order to access more content or additional features.
A popular example of this is the numerous games on the social network Facebook, with the prime example being FarmVille. The game is entirely free to play, though you can ‘enhance’ your experience by buying in game items for real cash.
I’m not quite so sure however how the gaming industry expects to be able to transfer this model from such a casual game market into the more hardcore market that the Xbox and PS3 provides. The industry would suggest that gamers would look favourably upon paying less upfront for the game and trying the core experience and deciding if they like it or not before shelling out extra money for additional access to content or features. However as a gamer I will either know before I buy the game either by playing the demo (or playing previous years if its a franchise) or following the press’ coverage of the game as to whether I wish to purchase and play the game. Do I as a gamer really want to have to feel I have to shell out an extra $5 for a particular feature or item in game in order to feel competitive against other people as they all have it and I don’t?
The industry argues that some people will be able to experience games for cheaper than they can currently due to the flexible pricing that micro transactions offers and whilst this may be true for the very casual gamer, for the hardcore gamer that has been supporting the game industry for years paying hundreds of dollars a years for games it will surely cost them a lot more in order to achieve the same experience that they are currently receiving for their $60.
I believe that this micro transaction model also has a lot of risks for the developers and publishers, if the consumer is paying a lot less upfront then it requires the user to spend quite a lot in game to enhance their experience, this means that they need to be having a compelling experience already to warrant spending more. Currently shovelware still makes a lot of cash as the consumer has no choice but to pay the full fee upfront, if however a user buys it for cheap and then realises how crap it really is then the developer has lost out on money that it would have otherwise already got. This also works the same for more innovative and risky games, the industry isn’t guaranteed a certain profit from each copy sold which means that they will have to be more conservative in the games that they create in order to make sure they make the money back that the shelled out on creating it.
The industry has been testing the waters with going towards a more micro transactional system this generation with the addition of DLC (downloadable content), whilst some of the content is clearly extra than that of which the developer had originally planned for the game, some content for games has been deliberately removed from the core package and repackaged as DLC in order to nickel and dime the consumer for every penny they have.
In conclusion I feel that the industry must change something in the way that they either make games or the way that they price games in order to survive. Either we as gamers must accept smaller lower visual quality games to keep costs low or if we continue to want a movie like experience we must accept that we will be asked to pay more for the experience. It will be hard for the industry to try and persuade the gamer that its in their best interest to move away from the current pricing model as it is currently very favourable to the consumer, however im not sure that micro transactions are the future of gaming.
By: Scott AR Saunders
Do You Have What It Takes To Produce A Game?
Posted on May 24, 2011
No offense, I know a lot of people who start out a mmorpg with a month of experience! We even see those “Gimma da linkz for doom3 making program!!11″ type people everyday on forums!
So, first you need to make sure you have piled up enough experience. If not, you should finish some tiny projects like a pong, galaxian, then small projects like tetris then medium ones like mario only after these processes, come here and try to make a commercial project.
Above may sound discouraging but if you jump to a commercial game right away it will both spend your time and your money. Also it will effect your game career as it will be a huge letdown and lose of self confidence.
Only experience itself won’t take you so far. To be successful you need the tools of the trade, money, time, determination and dedication. And most important of all, you have to love what you do. If you really blend your passion into your game the gamers will love it too.
So let’s get into details a bit;
A) Right Tools;
You may already know, tools are the applications you will develop your game in. I will break them to branches per purpose.
1. Producer tools
2. Programmer tools
3. Artist tools
4. Music / Sound tools
1.Producer Tools
Well, producers use a lot of tools. As a producer you need
to write a good design document. For that, I recommend html knowledge as other Microsoft Word – like documents may have comparability problems and simple notepad won’t be sufficient.
Instead of writing, you may want to draw something to give
the impression of what you want for artist and coders. You can
use Gimp as it’s free or you can buy photoshop / paintshop pro.
You can download a free ToDo program too. Or you can ask your coder to create one specific for your need as it’s a simple task to create such an application.
If you work in an office or garage, you may want a board to write daily tasks or to-do there. It may prove useful while brainstorming too.
Well you need more than these tools, which are your tools since you born. Your brain, your creativity, your faith in project, your leadership, your relations with others… This list goes like this.
2.Programmer Tools
An indie programmer doesn’t need a lot of tools. An advanced IDE will suffice the programmers needs. For instance, I use Blitz3D but to be honest default IDE su**s. So I’ve downloaded IDEal named free IDE which is great.
But of course you have to select the suitable language and the suitable engine for you game.
3.Artist Tools
There are numerous types of artists. 2D artists, 3D artists, Animators… Each of them use different kind of software and those softwares may vary.
2D artists usually use Photoshop, but let’s assume you are a new indie group, you can use Gimp. It’s free and a lot of people use and recommend it. It will be also great if you can buy a drawing tablet.
3D artists can use 3DStudioMax, of course if you can afford its huge sum of licence fee.(3500$?) Milkshape3D is a cheap and a good solution for overall needs, modelling, texturing and animation. If you want something free, you can give Blender a try. I used Wings3d when I was a solo developer. It’s really easy to use and finally there is Gmax from Autodesk (Author of 3dsmax) which is a free tool much like 3DStudioMax alas it’s no longer supported by Autodesk.
Animators can use Milkshape and Blender too but if you want something animation specific, there is Character Studio, Fragmotion and Pacemaker.
4.Music / Sound Tools
Well I’m not an expert here so I’ll just list the programs I know.
Fruity Loops, Reason, Cool Edit, Ableton Live, GoldWave. That’s all I know. You can do a little research on them and find which is suitable for you.
B) Time;
In today’s world, time is everything. You can’t get anything done without giving it needed time. If you have everything but time, you just can’t do. So before you start producing a game think twice if you will be able to commit you precious time to the project. It will be hard if you already have a job, because you have to sacrifice your holidays, weekends for the game. So make sure you’ll have enough time.
C) Money;
Depends on your project’s scale, you’ll need some amount of money. You have to pay for artists, web hosting services, advertisement, application licences and it goes like this. The most important thing is “do as much as you can at lowest expenditure.”
D) Passion;
I kept the most important to the last. It is simple, If you don’t have a great passion for games, you can’t make them. At least you can’t make games that people will play. Ask yourself;
o Do you play games everyday?
o How often do you read game related magazines / websites?
o Do you have a handheld gaming console that you take everywhere?
o How much money do you spend on games in a year?
o Do you really want to make a game?
o Have you ever bought a new graphics card for a specific game like FarCry or Doom 3?
It is possible to multiply the questions. If you really feel like you are in love with video games then you got the needed passion.
By: Sarper Soher
Are Gaming Laptops Worth the Price of Admission?
Posted on May 23, 2011
For years, the idea of a proper gaming computer has conjured up the image of a hulking desktop system, one that towers over the player and hums with the sound of the fans required to cool its powerful components. Notebook computers were always seen as the “little brothers” of their desktop counterparts: great for general computing, word processing, and web browsing on the go, but nowhere near powerful enough to run the same software as your desktop.
Much of this perception has changed in recent years due to the overwhelming advances in micro-computer technology. Notebook computers have grown more and more powerful and advanced even as their size and cost has been reduced. Today, the idea of a true gaming laptop is a feasible one, and plenty of companies have offered their units onto the marketplace as proof of this. While it may not be as convenient as gaming on a dedicated desktop computer, it is now possible to enjoy the latest computer game releases on a portable system.
What are some Benefits of Gaming Laptops?
Why, you ask, should you bother with notebooks for gaming when desktop systems are so readily available? Gaming laptops do have their decided advantages. Obviously, their reduced size can be a huge plus for gamers. By the time you factor in a computer case, monitor, keyboard and mouse, speakers, printer, and other peripherals, a standard-size desktop computer system can fill up an entire desk or table surface. Laptops today have become so advanced that they can realistically be seen as desktop replacements. As everything from speakers to keyboard is incorporated into the body of a notebook computer, the space required for it in your home is comparatively minimal. In fact, a dedicated computer desk becomes largely unnecessary when talking about a system as small as a laptop; any table or surface will do.
The smaller size of laptops also lends itself to their portability, which is another of their obvious advantages. There is something to be said about having the ability to use your computer in any location that you like. Laptops allow you to work or browse the web wherever you like, and gaming laptops take that idea even further by allowing you to play the latest games wherever is convenient. After all, Unreal Tournament is probably a more worthwhile distraction for many people than Hearts. Moreover, the portability of laptops makes them ideally suited for community gaming. As anybody who has ever dragged their desktop system to a LAN party can attest, gaming with other people locally is not always the easiest or most convenient thing to accomplish. Having a smaller-scale, self-contained gaming system makes this process exponentially easier. In addition, the wireless capabilities of many laptops make connecting to other systems locally or online a cinch.
Which Gaming Laptops are Best?
Given the advantages of gaming notebook systems, then, what are some of the more successful entries into the marketplace? Upon first glancing at a laptop’s specifications, it is not always immediately evident whether or not it is suited for gaming. CNET (cnet.com) is widely considered to be an industry leader in terms of computer and technology reviews, and they list several models as the best options for laptop gaming.
- Dell XPS M1710 – Dell’s XPS laptop line was designed specifically for high-end gaming, and the M1710 model is testament to that fact. The XPS M1710, when configured to the highest degree, carries such lofty specifications as a 2.13GHz dual-core Intel processor, 2GB of RAM, and a 512MB mobile nVidia video card. Dell even takes the unheard-of step of including an internal subwoofer to the mix. In terms of raw power, this is one of the most powerful gaming laptops on the market today–and one of the most expensive, clocking it at just over $4000 fully configured.
- Toshiba Satellite P105-S921 – Toshiba’s offering into the laptop gaming fray is priced considerably lower than the Dell XPS, but its performance is nonetheless admirable. At just about $2000, the S921 includes such features as a 1.83GHz dual-core Intel processor, 1GB of RAM, and a 256MB mobile video processor. While the S921′s performance pales in comparison to the Dell M1710′s, it has more than enough power to run the latest games at medium to medium-high graphical settings, and it represents a substantial value at $2000 less than the Dell.
- Alienware m7700 – Though this Alienware model is not listed on CNET.com, and though Alienware itself was recently acquired by Dell, its name has long been synonymous with high-quality gaming hardware. This notebook model is no exception. For roughly the same price as the Dell model, you can take advantage of such features as a 64-bit dual-core AMD processor, 2GB of RAM, and a 256MB nVidia mobile graphics card. Moreover, the external casing of Alienware models is generally quite a bit more interesting than most companies’ offerings. As with the Dell M1710, you will be able to run most games at their highest graphical settings.
So, What’s the Catch with Gaming Laptops?
Surely there are some drawbacks to gaming on laptop computers, right? As you have undoubtedly noticed above, the cost associated with a high-quality gaming notebook is generally quite a bit more than a corresponding desktop. For as much as it costs for the Dell M1710, you could purchase a monstrous, dual graphics card-powered gaming powerhouse. And in most cases, you can easily find a suitable desktop gaming rig for under $1000.
Another detriment of including such advanced technology in such a small package is that gaming laptops tend to be quite a bit heavier than their non-gaming counterparts, and their battery life is generally nowhere near as long. It’s not unheard of for gaming notebook systems to clock in at eight pounds or more, and when you’re toting this weight around for significant amounts of time, it can be prohibitive. Additionally, it is rare for the battery in a dedicated gaming laptop to last for more than a couple of hours; the technology inside puts such a drain on the battery that it usually goes dead within a short amount of time. If you plan on using a gaming laptop specifically as a desktop replacement, this ceases to be an issue. However, anybody who plans on using their laptop exclusively on the go might find the reduced battery life slightly off-putting.
By: Jordan Hall