Games I can play on integrated GPU/is integrated always cheaper?

So I need to buy a laptop on a budget. Before I start asking questions and searching, I'm trying to figure out how much light gaming would affect the price and what kind of specs I'm searching for as far as graphics.

I want to try to save money by getting a laptop with an integrated GPU (if that's the only way) and see if that GPU would run certain games.

I was hoping to spend around $300 on the laptop, and I'd like to it to be something decent, as in I'd like it to have a nice display, good build, and perform well, perhaps even be lighter weight (I've seen budget gaming Acers and their screens are ****ty, build also seems to not be great etc.).

At the same time I want to know, is older gaming capability/light editing using photoshop+premier pro going to make the price dramatically higher, or can I run those on integrated GPUs?

The games I want to play are, as far as most demanding graphics-wise, would be something like Dragon Age: Awakening and Mass Effect 2. Could I run those at good settings on integrated GPUs, for example Intel HD 500/600 series?
If so, how much would I find most decent general laptops with those kinds of GPUs?

If I need a dedicated card for those games and their analogue (as well as older ones), what are some cards that could handle these that I can find built into decent quality general use laptops that are budget (if this even exists)?

 

With my experience latest Intel GPU give very nice perfomance, for exemple i has ony MSI laptop 3 years old and he run on His Intel 5000 Gothic 3, its was for me so impressive. I hase 13 years ago a desctop and he have laggy with Gothic 3, and now you play such games even on integrated GPU at High level of perfomance. Of cource if you planning something like Witcher 3 or latest titles or even 2-3 years big titels then integrated GPU not best idea. Games like MassEffect wil work on Intel 6000 without a problem i guess but you must chose a laptop wise, chek he is cooling system, i mean from outside, how its looks like. Because some laptop dont to be expected to play on it, working programms yes but not gaming, them manufacture will not provide sufficient cooling system for that purpose even if GPU can handle it. So please check his ventilation.

 

at low settings 1366x768? probably yes. At high settings 1080p? Not a chance.

Look at it this way, a 750 TI (960M) performs about 3 times better than HD 630 - check notebookcheck for detailed benchmarks

EDIT: Also, ULV CPUs throttle the iGPU and CPU when you use both - so the performance on most 300$ laptops is about 50% of what the iGPU is actually capable of - in short, gaming on the iGPU is a really poor experience.

 

For games such Mass Effect 2 on ultra setting you can buy a laptop 2n hand about 300 USD. Even on GTX 580m Mass Effect will work fluently.

 

Correct me if I am wrong but, from what I remember, Fermi (400/500 series) were a molten inferno plagued by problems.

 

Yes please don't buy a 580m laptop lol.

 

You'll get at best one of these, from a $300 laptop.

Nah, the 460M, 470M, and 485M were amazing.

 

Today's integrated GPU's are better than most mid-range Nvidia 4xx and 5xx series GPU's. Just make sure it's like HD 5500, 6000, 530, etc just not plain "HD Graphics". Because plain ol' "HD Graphics" are worse than a calculator watch.

 

I beat Mass Effects 1~3 on a Surface Pro 2 which has the 4200u and HD4000 iGPU. This was at 720p and it ran comfortably at lowest detail settings.

Based off this, I would hazard a guess that any UE3/UE2.5 engine game can play at 720p at low details. You'll not have much luck at full 1080p, though.

Here are some videos on Youtube about it: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=gaming+on+intel+4200u

And that CPU/iGPU is a couple of generations old, I'm not sure how much better new ones are.

 

Well you mentioned the $300 range... what about running DA: Origins and ME2 or even DA: II and ME 3 on this laptop with iGPU?:

ASUS ZenBook UX330UA-AH54 13.3-inch

 

TDP cap is at 15W on this model so expect CPU/iGPU throttling ingame - I'd say Origins and ME will run at 768p but idk about DA2 or ME3 - that's a gamble. But you won't be able to game at 1080p, that is for certain.

 

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Do you know of/can recommend any laptop that will play such games and older, that also has the solid build factor/portability/comfort of that model?

 

I told ya - you're looking at a used machine with a budget of 300$. Generally, the minimum I'd say is a 930M for playing those games at 768p)

 

Apologies for being confusing/not clarifying - my budget IS $600-800 (as long as I can finance), and I'm looking for the machine that I mentioned - one that will play such games and older on good settings, and that has elements of that solid 13.3" ASUS from the link.

 

For 800$ - the Dell Inspiron 7567 or Lenovo Legion Y520 is what I would suggest. Both have quad-core CPUs and 1050 GPUs - those games would be playable at maximum settings likely.

 

Yeah for $800 you should come out with a GTX 1050.

http://store.hp.com/us/en/Configure...1&storeId=10151&catEntryId=1581652&quantity=1

 

It's actually pretty amazing how Intel is advertising their iGPUs for gaming lol

https://gameplay.intel.com/