Question about Laptop LCDs and gaming below native resolution

First and foremost the build that is sitting in my cart awaiting my CC that is burning a hole in my pocket as I type:

Vostro 1500
Windows XP Home
T5470 1.6 Duo Core
15.4" Widescreen (S)XGA(+) with TrueLife
1GB 667mhz RAM
120GB 5400RPM Hard Drive
256MB GeForce 8600M GT with DDR2 Memory

When I first configured the laptop I want I figured WXGA (1280x800) would be sufficient because I didn't expect my laptop to run games higher than that resolution at the settings I desire. Upon further review I had a concern regarding the instances (which may be numerous) in which I won't be able to run a game at my preferred settings due to FPS. If I were to, for example, have to run Oblivion or Bioshock at 960x600 I would not be in native resolution and enjoying the benefits that come with that.

For example, I understand that if I had an LCD with native resolution of 1600x1200 I would run 800x600 with 4 pixels rendering as if 1. So if I had a native resolution of 1440x900, and were gaming at 960x600, pixels would have to be emulated by a ratio of 1.46:1 and 1.5:1 respectively, or 1.46/1.5 pixels for every 1 (negligible aspect ratio modification). For 1280x800 native running at 960x600 the emulation would be 1.33.


So my question is, in the very likely event I am gaming below native resolution, would it greatly benefit me to have more pixels to render/emulate the desired resolution, and/or am I totally missing the point as to how all this works?

 

First of all, you won't have to play Bioshock or Oblivion below 1280x800 with that video card.

However, on upcoming games, it's true that having a higher native resolution will increase the picture quality of a game played at 960x600.

What you need to decide is if you want to be able to play games at native for a while (with a 1280x800 screen) or if you want to pretty much always play games at below native (with a 1680x1050 screen) but have the extra real estate for other tasks.

 

So far, 1680x1050 screen on my Vostro 1500 has been great. Running games @ 1280x800 for the most part and running desktop @ 1680x1050 is flawless. Downscaling has zero issues that I can see. Still looks crisp and clean.

 

my post is the same as htwingnut...
i game at all different resolutions and they all look beautiful...bioshock, quakewars, oblivion..