Getting my first laptop for College! Suggestions?

[ContraEuph]

I need to get a new laptop before I go to college this fall. I will need something with really solid multimedia for music playing/writing and gaming.

What country will you be buying this in?
USA

What size notebook do you prefer?
Mainstream (15 - 16-inch screen)

What brands do you like or dislike?
Dislike: Mac, Dell

Would you consider a refurbished laptop?
Maybe

What are the primary tasks you need this notebook for?
Web Surfing, Listening to Music, Video Chat and Conference, Output Video to TV or Large Monitor, Casual Gaming, Graphic Intense 3D Gaming

Arranging and composing music with Sibelius 7, making and mixing recordings

What games will you be playing?
Battlefield, Skyrim, Civilization 5, Team Fortress 2, Shogun Total War. Some FPS/RPG, but mostly strategy

Where will you be using this laptop?
Will be used different places and Will stay on desk

Will you be buying online or in store?
online

Which OS do you prefer?
Windows 7 or Linux

List the screen resolutions that interest you:
High Resolution (1600 x 900)

Do you prefer a glossy or matte screen?
Glossy or Matte is fine

Is the laptops design important to you?
No

How long do you want this laptop to last?
6 years

How much storage capacity do you need?
500 GB

Are you interested in SSD for storage?
Maybe

Do you want a built-in optical drive, what type?
DVD Burner

[WCFire]

What's your price range and how important is size?

[maverick1989]

Graphics intensive 3D gaming plus BF3 plus 1600x900 would be hard to find. Most laptops that offer 3D graphics would have a 1920x1080 screen. In fact, I doubt there are any that offer 900p.

Again, those first two options would mean you are looking at 1500+ as your price range. I would suggest Sager.

[ContraEuph]

Preferably $2k and under for the price. I'd probably be ok with 1920x1080 too.

[s2odin]

6 years on any single laptop is pushing it. 4-5 years is an average.

Sager NP9150 / Clevo P150EM
Drop down to 8gb 1333
Upgrade to 7970M
Choose OS or get it through school cheaper.

[Curs3]

The NP9150 with the 7970m should be perfect. As you want it to last that long and also the games you will be playing def require the the best GPU. Since the 7970m is just a 100$ upgrade definitely that is the GPU you should be looking for.

Stick with the stock 3610QM and 8gb 1600Mhz ram. If possible downgrade to the 1333Mhz ram at Xoticpc and save 50$.

You should be able to buy a crucial m4 128gb SSD and install it ur self or you can give it to Xoticpc and they can fix it for you. No issues there.

Chk out Xoticpc here.

Sager NP9150 / Clevo P150EM

And yes the NP9150 does not have 2 HDD bays so you are gonna have to remove the DVD bay or just get the mSATA Drive preconfigured as the OS. That should do just fine. And get a 750GB HDD.