mx6421, how does it stack up for gaming?

I am seriously considering buying this laptop from best buy. It has 1 gig of memory installed, 100 gig hdd, and all the regulars. What I want to know is, how good is this ati x300 64 meg shared for gaming? Please let me know how well it runs recent games including World of Warcraft if you play it.

I have the oportunity to also buy instead a Compaq R3000 with an AMD64+ 3700, 1 gig memory, 80gig hdd, and it has the Nvidia Ge-Force 4 440 Go 4x AGP and 3D Architecture meg 64 DEDICATED. So overall which is a better buy? I can get the Compaq for $799 + shipping but it's refurbed and comes with 2 month warranty.

One of the reasons I am considering the Compaq is I already have one except it's a AMD 64+ 3200 I think, maybe 3400, I forget and it has the same video card with the dedicated. So since my wife is on it ALL the time I want another one. It also might be nice to have the same models as we can use each others power adaptor and not have to keep bringing it up and down stairs, but thats just me being lazy but it is kinda nice.

Please advise what type of performance difference I might be looking at between the 2 models I have listed.

Thanks in advanced.

 

That machine (Gateway) isn't what I would consider a "gaming notebook." First to note, it is not actually an X300.. it is an X200 on the X300 chipset (from what I understand). I am not sure on what the requirements on WoW are, but I can't imagine it running extremely fluently on an integrated GPU. You would be better off with the Compaq, though I don't know anything about the GPU on that either. Aside from the dedicated GPU, it has a very nice processor. Definently a plus over the Gateway (unless you are looking for battery life).
If you really want a decent gaming machine at an awesome price, take a look at the MX7525 at BestBuy. That will blow the [ ] out/off of both of those notebooks. It is more expensive than the notebooks that you listed, but it is undoubtedly one of the best bargains to date.
The Verdict: I would take the Compaq over the Gateway (if the Compaq is in good condition), but there are certainly better machines available to you.
Good luck.

 

best buy doesn't even sell the 7525 or whatever model you listed. I noticed online stores carry it for around $1400. Kinda pricey but I do agree the video and proc will smoke the ml-32.

 

Hmm, maybe they are sold out and waiting for an update?
BestBuy often ran sales that would put that particular model down to an astonishing $1200 or so. That and a service plan and you are all set for the next 3 years (if you only do light to moderate gaming in the distant future)
I can't wait to see what they pull out next (if they do continue the series).
If I were you, I would wait to see what Gateway does.
Heh, I just noticed that Gateway put the tablet PC with the X600se out for retail. That card scored suprisingly well in one of the reviews here. That makes me happy to see. If you care to see.

 

what about the 7515? it has the x600 in it, 128 dedicated I THINK, I could be wrong there.

 

Close. The 7515 has the X600 with 64mb dedicated. It lists 128 because it can borrow 64mb of system memory. Both cards, I feel, would suit you well. The 7515 is the previous generation of the 7525.

 

Do you know much about the GATEWAY 7426GX ?

specs:

# Athlon 64 3700+
# 1GB of memory
# 100GB hard drive
# DVD burner drive
# ATI Radeon 9550 video
# WiFi
# 15.4 XtraBrite screen

I checked around sounds like the ati 9550 is 64 meg dedicated but it's basicaly a 9600 underclocked. I read you can OC it though. I found one for $700 refurbed.

 

I have a Gateway 7426GX I am proud to say that, until I think about my hinges.
I would be turned away from the models 74xx and keep with the 75xx. The reason is the dreaded hinge issue. It has been resolved in the 7515/7525 series, but it still occurs in the 74xx series logically, because they don't make anymore of them. A 7510, 7515, or 7525 would be my suggestion.

 

I can't even find a 7525 for sale anywhere. I found a couple of 7515's. I'm just trying to sty below $1,000 total for one that's why I would really want to get the most bang for my buck. It sounds like I'm best off getting at least the x600 in the unit I'm going to buy. I'm not looking to make this my primary gaming laptop but I sure would like it to have some legs for some older games and maybe some room for future games even if I don't get all the glitzy gfx. I don't know, it's hard to figure out, I wish I could find some of these 7525's because they sound right about what I'm looking for. Maybe I should wait a month and see what happens.

 

You could look into Dell if you don't mind buying direct. They have some really good offers at times.
You can customize a base E1505 for pretty cheap.
1.66ghz dual core
1gb ram
ATi X1400 (slightly better than an X600)
40gb 5400rpm harddrive
$930 and shipping costs

That is an outstanding deal. Have a look.
http://www1.us.dell.com/content/products/features.aspx/entnb_e1505?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs
Base is the one all the way to the right.

 

**** that is a pretty sweet deal. The x1400 256 meg is dedicated right? I wonder how much different the 128 ver would be. This is definitely a sweet deal, might have to think about this one. What do you think about the processor though? Will it be a bottle kneck or anything like that? And whats the diff between the
15.4 inch Wide Screen XGA Display with TrueLife™ [Included in Price]


15.4 inch UltraSharp™ Wide Screen SXGA+ Display with TrueLife™ [add $71 or $2/month2]

 

The X1400 has 128 dedicated, 128 from the system ram, which is pretty much as good as you can get out of a mainstream card.
The processor will not be a bottleneck at all. The dual cores are superb. Super-Pi 2M digits in the mid to low 1:20s (that's my guess for the 1.66, the 1.8s get low 1:10s) which is great. The Athlon 64 in the MX7525 will do about 1:25 and is 64 bit... but.. dual core! I'd get a dual-core today rather than a 64-bit.
As for the screen, the only difference is the resolution. The SXGA+ has a higher resolution (hence the higher price). To me, it's not worth it. I think that 1280x800 on a 15.4" is perfect. Yes, a higher one would be nice, but it isn't entirely necessary. IMO, not worth $70.
Yeah, I agree, it is a nice notebook.

 

SYSTEM COMPONENTS

E1505 Dual Core Qty 1
Intel® Core™ Duo processor T2300 (2MB Cache/1.66GHz/667MHz FSB), Genuine Windows® XP Media Center Edition 2005 Unit Price $1,157.00
Dell Home Customers: Save $200 off Dell Inspiron E1505!
Limited Time Offer! View Details
- $200.00
Catalog Number: 29
Module Description Show Details
Inspiron E1505 Intel® Core™ Duo processor T2300 (2MB Cache/1.66GHz/667MHz FSB)
Operating System (Office software not included) Genuine Windows® XP Media Center Edition 2005
LCD Panel 15.4 inch Wide Screen XGA Display with TrueLife™
Memory FREE 1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz, 2 Dimm
Video Card 256MB ATI MOBILITY™ RADEON® X1400 HyperMemory™
Hard Drive 40GB 5400rpm SATA Hard Drive
Network Card and Modem Integrated 10/100 Network Card and Modem
Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 6.0
Combo/DVD+RW Drives 24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive
Wireless Networking Cards Dell Wireless 1390 802.11b/g Mini Card (54Mbps)
Office Productivity Software (Pre-Installed) No productivity suite- Corel WordPerfect word processor only
Anti-Virus/Security Suite (Pre-installed) No Security Subscription
Primary Battery 53 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
Hardware Warranty 1Yr Ltd Warranty, 1Yr Mail-In Service, and 1Yr HW Warranty Support
Dial-Up Internet Access 6 Months America Online Internet Access Included
Mobile Broadband No Broadband Expresscard technology is available in the market now
Operating System Re-Installation CD PC Restore recovery system by Symantec
Dell Digital Entertainment Starter Entertainment Pack - Basic digital Music, Photo and Game experience
TOTAL:$957.00

Total Price
Sub-total $957.00
Shipping & Handling $49.00
Shipping & Handling Discount -$49.00
Tax $59.82
Total Price $1,016.82

not bad at all, I might check with the 2yr warranty and -$300 off they have too, instead of $200 off

 

Nice. I think you found your system