Extreme Budget: <$500 with dedicated GPU

[vaillant]

General Questions

1) What is your budget?
<$500
2) What size notebook would you prefer?

a. Netbook; 10” screen or less
b. Ultraportable; 11" - 12” screen
c. Thin and Light; 13" - 14" screen
d. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen
e. Desktop Replacement; 17"+ screen

3) Where will you buying this notebook? You can select the flag of your country as an indicator.
USA

4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
a. Like: lenovo, ASUS, etc.
b. Dislike: Acer

5) Would you consider laptops that are refurbished/redistributed?
No

6) What are the primary tasks will you be performing with this notebook?
Schoolwork, casual gaming

7) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places, leaving it on your desk or both?
Both

8) Will you be playing games on your notebook? If so, please state which games or types of games?
League of Legends

9) How many hours of battery life do you need?
Doesn't matter

10) Would you prefer to see the notebooks you're considering before purchasing it or buying a notebook on-line without seeing it is OK?
Online is fine

11) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista or Windows 7), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
Windows

Screen Specifics

12) From the choices below, what screen resolution(s) would you prefer? Keep in mind screen size in conjunction with resolution will play a large role in overall viewing comfort level. Everyone is different. Some like really small text, while others like their text big and easy to read. Click here for Screen resolution information.
1366x768

13) Do you want a Glossy/reflective screen or a Matte/non-glossy screen?
No preference

Build Quality and Design

14) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
No

15) When are you buying this laptop?
In the next week

16) How long do you want this laptop to last?
2-3 years

Notebook Components

17) How much hard drive space do you need; 80GB to 640GB? Do you want a SSD drive?
120+ GB

18) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a DVD Burner, Blu-ray Reader or Blu-Ray Burner?
Just CD-ROM drive

Looking for a laptop for my friend who's on a tight budget. Was going to buy this laptop: Newegg.com - lenovo IdeaPad Z575 (12992PU) Notebook AMD A-Series A6-3420M(1.5GHz) 15.6" 6GB Memory DDR3 1333 500GB HDD 5400rpm DVD±R/RW AMD Radeon HD 6650M
but it sold out. $480 for an AMD A6 quad-core and a 6650M GPU...

Anything comparable in the same price range?

[Bronsky]

Microcosft Store has an Acer 4830TG in its Market for $449. Buy Acer Aspire AS4830TG-6457, 14 inch notebook pc with Intel Core i5 processor and HDMI, laptop computing - Microsoft Store Online These are last generation models with Sandybridge CPUs and GT540M GPUs. These units are known to throttle under extreme stress but are a decent general gaming notebook for the money. Standard 1 year warranty as well.

[cognus]

Acer Aspire AS5560G-7809 NX.RURAA.001 Notebook PC - AMD Quad-Core A6-3420M 1.5GHz, 4GB DDR3, 320GB HDD, DVDRW, AMD Radeon HD 7670M, 15.6 Display, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, Black at TigerDirect.com

General Questions

1) What is your budget?
<$500
2) What size notebook would you prefer?

a. Netbook; 10” screen or less
b. Ultraportable; 11" - 12” screen
c. Thin and Light; 13" - 14" screen
d. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen
e. Desktop Replacement; 17"+ screen

3) Where will you buying this notebook? You can select the flag of your country as an indicator.
USA

4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
a. Like: lenovo, ASUS, etc.
b. Dislike: Acer

5) Would you consider laptops that are refurbished/redistributed?
No

6) What are the primary tasks will you be performing with this notebook?
Schoolwork, casual gaming

7) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places, leaving it on your desk or both?
Both

8) Will you be playing games on your notebook? If so, please state which games or types of games?
League of Legends

9) How many hours of battery life do you need?
Doesn't matter

10) Would you prefer to see the notebooks you're considering before purchasing it or buying a notebook on-line without seeing it is OK?
Online is fine

11) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista or Windows 7), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
Windows

Screen Specifics

12) From the choices below, what screen resolution(s) would you prefer? Keep in mind screen size in conjunction with resolution will play a large role in overall viewing comfort level. Everyone is different. Some like really small text, while others like their text big and easy to read. Click here for Screen resolution information.
1366x768

13) Do you want a Glossy/reflective screen or a Matte/non-glossy screen?
No preference

Build Quality and Design

14) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
No

15) When are you buying this laptop?
In the next week

16) How long do you want this laptop to last?
2-3 years

Notebook Components

17) How much hard drive space do you need; 80GB to 640GB? Do you want a SSD drive?
120+ GB

18) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a DVD Burner, Blu-ray Reader or Blu-Ray Burner?
Just CD-ROM drive

Looking for a laptop for my friend who's on a tight budget. Was going to buy this laptop: Newegg.com - lenovo IdeaPad Z575 (12992PU) Notebook AMD A-Series A6-3420M(1.5GHz) 15.6" 6GB Memory DDR3 1333 500GB HDD 5400rpm DVD±R/RW AMD Radeon HD 6650M
but it sold out. $480 for an AMD A6 quad-core and a 6650M GPU...

Anything comparable in the same price range?

[bneale1285]

consider the third gen Intel procs. The integrated GPU is better than one would think. Check out benchmarks online

[kanuk]

consider the third gen Intel procs. The integrated GPU is better than one would think. Check out benchmarks online

There really isn't much out there under $500 with Ivy Bridge, and in any case Sandy with a dGPU would probably be better for his needs.

[MattB85]

I'd suggest reconsidering that you don't want a refurbished unit. The last two notebooks I've purchased have been refurbished and both have been as good as new. Refurbished units will also save you a lot of money over new ones.