For those of you who just can’t be without a few rounds of Team Fortress 2 even when you aren’t at home, then a Gaming laptop is the way to go. No longer the poorer cousin to desktop rigs, these days gaming mobility is a realistic option.

The key attributes of a good gaming machine are high spec processor, dedicated graphics chip and a large amount of system memory.

Dual Core processors such as Intel Core 2 Duo and AMD Turion X2 are recommended to ensure the laptop have the computing power to handle the complex code behind modern games.

Dedicated performance graphics processors are vital if you don’t want your games to slow to a crawl in the middle of a firefight. Both major graphics vendors Nvidia and ATI have offerings to suit. Some mobile graphics have a base amount of dedicated memory and use additional system RAM as required, this is known are “HyperMemory”(ATI) or “Turbocache” (Nvidia). For the ultimate performance look out for SLI based laptops which have two dedicated graphics chips and offer blistering speed at the highest levels of detail.

2Gb system RAM is the minimum we recommend for smooth gaming. Upgrading to 3Gb offers performance gains, but 32Bit operating system limits mean there’s little point moving to 4GB.

For the most vivid and realistic gaming experience, chose a laptop which features screen technology such as CrystalBrite from Acer or X-Black from Sony. Most manufacturers have their own version which ensures a crystal clear display with much sharper colours, ensuring you can appreciate the detail found in the latest games. A 15.4” widescreen display will provide a large enough viewing area but a 17” screen would provide the ultimate experience if mobility and cost aren't large factors.

Most laptops in this price range come packed with excellent features as standard, like wireless online gaming and DVD writers for large backups.