Need Help From The Glorious PC Gaming Master Race

[oxymoron]

I have recently found myself with $650 of Amazon credit and was thinking about picking up a dedicated gaming PC. I was already looking for a laptop for school so the idea of a gaming laptop came naturally. All I need a laptop for is homework, Youtube, maybe a few indie games, FB, etc. Is it better to get a $600 gaming desktop and a $300 basic laptop or a $900+ dedicated gaming laptop?

How do these builds look?

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vFKKnQ
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/dcYm23

As for laptops I was looking at this.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00K2O ... PDKIKX0DER

I'd be open to seeing any better build you guys can make.

Thanks duders.

[noiseredux]

didn't click any links, but I can't see why it would make sense to buy two lesser machines instead of one really good machine?

[oxymoron]

After lurking on some gaming PC forums the main thing I read was that they're expensive, have so-so battery life and go obsolete quick. I know that's probably a generalization but for as many times as I saw it has to mean something.

[noiseredux]

Well yeah you cant really upgrade a laptop. I guess i see yr point if u want the gaming rig to last...

[marurun]

Gaming laptops do have a limited life, and they actually cost quite a bit to be competitive with desktops that are much cheaper. I am actually supportive of the split desktop/laptop plan. You have the serious desktop at home where you do your crunch work, and you have something portable, light, and easy on a battery to lug with you on the go.

[MrPopo]

Heck, you might want to get some form of tablet for your portable machine if you're mostly going to be using it as a portable internet terminal.

[TSTR]

Go two machines for sure. Laptop/netbook/tablet/whatever for your portable use, and then put more money towards the desktop rig.

[Cronozilla]

It totally make sense for two devices, but like Mr. PoPo says, you might want to look into a tablet with a keyboard for your on the go needs (it's even cheaper than a laptop, and most $250+ Tablets are relatively fast now. The really top end ones are in the $500 range, which spanks the pants off Laptop prices.)

Dump the rest into a budget build gaming Desktop, which is certainly possible at $600.

Gaming laptops are, generally, not a great choice. The hardware is limited no matter what, especially compared to desktop counterparts at similar price points. It's exceedingly expensive usually (Over $1K). The thing isn't really going to last long, like others have mentioned.

A Desktop + Tablet combo is a really nice solution. Considering most tablets (if you're going into Android land) will fully support Google Drive, and will sync across chrome and firefox. There's plenty of office software, artist tools, and all that kind of junk, for free.

[J T]

If you get a laptop and a desktop, this Steam in-home streaming may be useful at some point:

http://lifehacker.com/how-to-setup-stea ... 1579996803

[Pulsar_t]

17.3 inches aren't exactly what I'd call portable.