looking to buy a new dell. need advice.

Okay I am new to the boards, haven't been here for very long. My laptop broke, and I need a new one. I'm think Dell because they seem fairly cheap for what they offer. I'm curious on which model will fit my needs best. I was thinking either getting a Dell Studio 15 and it specs follows:


Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition, 32-bit SP1
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T6400 (2.0GHz/800Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
Microsoft Works
1Yr Ltd Warranty and Mail-In Service
15.6” High Definition (720p) LED Display with TrueLife™ and Camera
3GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 800MHz
Size: 250GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
512MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4570
8X Slot Load Super Multi (DL DVD+/-R Drive + RAM support)
Dell Wireless 1397 802.11g Half Mini-Card
56 Whr Lithium Ion Battery (6 cell)
High Definition Audio 2.0
Back-lit Keyboard
Black Chainlink
My Accessories
McAfee 30 day Trial
Dell Online Backup 2GB for 1 year
Dell Remote Access, free basic service
Price: $799

or I may get a Dell Inspiron 15 and here are the specs for that:

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T6400 (2.00GHz/800Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition SP1 32 Bit
Microsoft® Works 9
1Yr Ltd Warranty and Mail-In Service
Bright, glossy widescreen 15.6 WLED display (1366x768)
3GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 800MHz
250GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
256MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD4330
8X CD / DVD Burner (Dual Layer DVD+/-R Drive)
6-cell battery
Dell Wireless 1397 802.11g Half Mini-Card
No Webcam Option
High Definition Audio 2.0
Jet Black
My Accessories
McAfee 30 day Trial
Dell Online Backup 2GB for 1 year
Dell Remote Access, free basic service
Price: $689

The price difference is almost 100 dollars, but I like both. I do play some games on PC but I am not a hardcore PC gamer. I am wondering if the Dell Studio is better for gaming because it has a better card. Also I can't really invest in a gaming rig like an Alienware or Sager (I am sure there other cheaper systems...but whatever)

I just need a good system that can play games decently.

 

Don't be overly confused by the "better" card on the Studio. The HD 4570 is just a higher clocked HD 4330. It still has a 64bit bus, which is going to hurt gaming. Not saying it's not capable; if you look at this post link you will see that even the HD 4330 is capable of gaming at basic resolutions. In fact at lunch time today at work I took a half hour to have a go on Tom Clancy's Hawx... which I must say is really good fun and after playing now on my Sager I can say is even more good fun. Especially with my Saitek Cyborg X joystick.


Anyway, I digress.

There are so many questions left unasked in your post, I really don't think we can offer you good enough advice based on what you've given us. What I would suggest is that you head on over to this forum NBR What Notebook Do I Buy and fill out a document in one of the first few threads and post it in that forum. That way you'll give everyone enough information to offer their opinions, and you are not restricting yourself to one brand when there may be more suitable offerings available.

Regards