Needing some help deciding on a laptop

So, I'm trying to replace my desktop machine for a more mobile solution that can run games decently--I'm not looking for the latest and greatest graphics card, here, but I also don't really have that much of an idea as to what might be suitable for day-to-day use and some light to moderate gaming.

The laptop I'm looking at so far is an Acer Aspire 9300-5005 (this), as I'm trying to keep myself under $1,000~1,100.

For a bit of a comparison, the desktop system I presently use has a 256 MB AGP GeForce FX 5500, while this lappy has a dedicated Go 7300. Might that video card be capable of playing a game such as Guild Wars at good graphical levels (and at a good framerate), if anyone has some insight here? My desktop runs it without terrible issue, but I've also found in my research that laptop variants of GPUs are somewhat weaker than their desktop brethren.

As far as gaming goes, I play Guild Wars and some shmups (Touhou, being a good example) almost exclusively, with a little bit of Mame thrown in on the side; that's about it, though the ability to run the upcoming Guild Wars 2 would be super. I don't do much photo editing, or encoding, but compiling things is a common event; though, the CPU looks more than capable of handling this like my desktop (an Athlon XP-M @ 1.86 GHz) does.

Those games, and Linux compatibilty, are my main concerns. Vista is irrelevant, since I'll be blowing it up, should a machine come with it. Due to the Linux concern, I need to avoid ATI video cards--at least for the time being.

Beyond that system, I have yet to find something that looks to fit my needs under $1,100. Any tips or insight as to the above post would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for the read~

Jam it back in, in the dark.

You know we're in for it when you start posting for help.

That Aspire you linked is insanely cheap for the heavy specs it has. In my opinion, the chassis on the Aspires are cheap feeling and flimsy. I don't know how well you'll like that TruBrite glossy coating on the screen since you'll get something like 50% reflections. It also appears that the GeForce card still uses shared memory from your system, so performance probably won't be too far off from your FX5500.

Unless you suck it up and spend the dough or find a deal or coupon, this one laptop might look like it's the your best bet. :/ (I hate laptops >:U)

There's nowhere I can't reach.

I don't really get the first comment, but oki~

Anyways, I've actually seen a glossy monitor like that (friend has an Acer, which is why I went to that company first)--doesn't bug me one bit. And yeah, the GeForce does use shared memory (128 dedi and up to 128 shared, I believe), which seems unfortunate.

I used Dell second, and put a configuration with a 7900 in it into my cart for about $1100 after a coupon--the only reason I did not go with them is that I've found a load of complaints about the particular model (E1705), and the reputation they have. Horrid. HP doesn't seem like an option, either.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

If you're looking at Dell, be sure to browse the deals on the Small Business website. There tends to be better sales and you don't actually have to belong to a business in order to buy from there. I suppose you can also check out their educational site if you're a student since that gets around a 10-15% discount, I believe.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I'm actually avoiding Dell, Racin. Their reputation sucks something else, so I'd prefer not to deal with them.

Though, I can't find information as to what wireless chipset that Acer is using anywhere--not even on their official site. Need to figure that one out.

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Maybe, you might want to consider visiting this site (http://www.smartratings.com/computers/notebooks) and see what you can find. Good luck.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?