Finally narrowed my choices into 3

Sony VAIO E Series

VPCEC1S1E/BJ (17.3")

# Intel® CoreTM i5-430M, 2,26GHz
# Legales Windows® 7 Home Premium
# Weiß
# 500 GB Serial ATA (5400 U/Min)
# 4 GB 1066MHz DDR3-SDRAM
# Blu-ray Disc(TM) Player
# 43,8 cm LCD, 1920x1080+ Kamera
# ATI MobilityRadeon HD5650 1GB

1.028,99 € inkl. MwSt.


VPCEB1Z1E/B (15.5")

# Intel® CoreTM i5-430M, 2,26GHz
# Legales Windows® 7 Home Premium
# Schwarz
# 500 GB Serial ATA (5400 U/Min)
# 4 GB 1066MHz DDR3-SDRAM
# Blu-ray Disc(TM) Player
# 39,4 cm LCD, 1920x1080, Kamera
# ATI MobilityRadeon HD5650 1GB

988,98 € inkl. MwSt.


Sony VAIO F Series

VPCF12S1E/B (16.4")

# Intel CoreTM i7-720QM, 1,60GHz
# Legales Windows® 7 Home Premium
# Premium Black
# 500 GB Serial ATA (7200 U/Min)
# 6 GB 1333MHz DDR3-SDRAM
# Blu-ray Disc(TM) Player
# 41,6 cm LCD, 1920x1080, Kamera
# NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 330M 1GB

1.358,99 € inkl. MwSt.

My primary goal is gaming. I play HL2, TF2, MW2, BC2... at Stream. I read both E Series and F Series threads here.
These are my conclusions:

- F series (well at least some) have problem with display, morse code, fan stucking @ 100 sometimes and slows down when you hit a button sometimes
- E series (again some) had problems with battery draining but i guess they solved it with some updates

I'm also thinking about Envy 15 but i'm at Vienna it's not sold here, even it does more expensive than Sony...

So which one suits me best?

 

If your primary goal is gaming, I would remove the F12 from that list because it has a GT 330M, which is only a low/medium end graphics card. The rest of its high specs mean nothing without a top end gfx card, when it comes to gaming.

Edit: It seems even the HD 5650 is just about the same as the GT 330M. :/

I think you should look for something on the level of a GT 360M or HD 5850.

 

the cards above have the same 3d mark 05 score actually, so they are very similar.

i have managed to play DIRT2 at 1920x1080 at medium/high on the 330M, its a good card

 

True, 330M is a very good and powerful card, especially in the ultraportable laptops (like the Z12), but I think to someone with the primary goal of gaming it would be a little disappointing and not enough.

 

I was watching some youtube videos recorded from F, it was pretty fluid actually.

 

I cant say anything about the Radeon HD5650, but Notebookcheck has the cards rated pretty similarly.

Its quite interesting to see actually, that some games perform better on the nvidia, and others on the ati - so if you want to pick something thats perfect for you then that might be something to consider.

330M: Notebookcheck: NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M
5650: Notebookcheck: ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650

 

The ATI 5650 is a better card than the GT 330m. Not only does the 5650 get better 3DMark scores (which alone doesn't necessarily mean the world), but it also supports DX11, which the 330m does not. The 335m is more of a pound for pound match with the 5650. If gaming was my priority, I would definitely be looing into a system with a 5650.

But I agree that the 330m is a decent card. It's not top of the line, but overclock it a bit and you can get some nice gameplay out of it.

 

How about the screen res.? Should I pick the lower res. for more performance?

 

My personal opinion is no. Go for the 1080p screen.

Honestly, of the three options you listed, I like the cheapest one the best. The EB is what I would pick. I'm attracted to the smaller size. And I like the 5650 in the Es better than the F's 330m...if I'm concerned about gaming. I wouldn't be at all worried about the tradeoff of the i5-430m that you get going with the E. That will be so much nicer for prolonging battery life compared to the i7-720Qm on the F. The 430m is still a fast processor and won't be the source of any bottleneck in that system imo. If you have the option for 7200 HDD in the EB, I would spring a bit extra for that. But notwithstanding, I would still probably choose the EB, just based on the specs listed here.

 

Until the day that gaming laptops can last a full day on battery, don't weigh a tonne, and perform as well as a tower PC costing half as much, I cannot recommend them at all.
My recommendation is to go with the smallest laptop and use the difference on a cheap gaming tower PC. If you have to be mobile, get a PSP.

 

There's always different needs and situations. For my part, when I'm travelling for business and I want to get some MMO on, or take in some 3D gaming, then I like to have an option. I own a PSP and gave up on it to be honest. Too small for my taste. It's currently sitting somewhere in my home office, unused for about 2 years (or so).

I got a z555 2 years ago and even though the 9300GS was middle of the range at the time it allowed me to play my 3D games and log in comfortably on the road. At 3lbs it is light as they come, and pound per 3DMark score was solid back in the day. I'm still using that system today but confess looking forward to my z1290 arriving. It's not that I bought my z1290 FOR gaming, so much as I wanted the OPTION of gaming along with all the other goodness of a powerful mobile system.

At the same time, that z555 has been a trooper for business presentations. One of my current clients has a 1080p LCD in a meeting room. It's been a real blessing to be able connect through HDMI and present the collaboration web solutions we're configuring in 1080 resolution to those I'm working with.

I do agree though; laptops should not be primarily for gaming. You get a desktop for that. I have a 2 year old Blackbird 002 that at the time was totally specced for gaming and it still holds its own (watercooling and all). At home that 80lb beast still gives me silky smooth frame rates on high levels of detail. But in an airport lounge, when I am waiting for a delayed flight and I want to get my MMO on, well, the PSP dont cut it bub.

 

I'm saying it's my primary because I'm looking one to play the latest games. I'm not a 24/7 gamer as you guys think. I can't use desktop because I'm a student lives in a foreign country

And PSP??? what the... i can't even...

 

Oh I hear you. You have your own needs and circumstance; and some forum goers in their wisdom opted to question your requiremens without checking on your situation first.

The suggestion about PSP...well, that's not even worth biting on to be honest.