What should one look for when buying a computer for gaming?

Answer

If you want a computer that's good for gaming, you should make sure that it at least has Windows XP. Make sure that it has at least 1GB of memory, because everyone wants a good game, not a slow game. If you're looking for a gaming laptop, I would highly recommend a Toshiba Satellite M65-S9092. I have one, and I love it. You should get it from Best Buy like I did. If you need help with anything, the Geek Squad is there to help.

Answer

"I would recommend starting with a fast processor and lots of memory. Quality sound and graphic cards are also pretty much essential." - Tina

To add to Tina's answer I would defintely focus on getting a good graphics card. At the moment you can buy very good graphics cards from ATI that run most games at great resolutions for great prices. Bang for your buck. Second, you don't need a lot of memory these days, 1 gigabyte of RAM is defintely enough but you can still play most games with 512, if your graphics card is 256-512 it will handle most of the memory processing. The best processors on the market are dual-core and they are definitely affordable. Don't worry about a good sound card, you can get great quality out of a on-board soundcard. So, instead of wasting too much money on memory one should focus on a good video card when gaming and a decent processor and 512 RAM. Good luck if you decide to purchase a new computer or upgrades!

- Mike "Fiends" Cairns

Answer

Here is a list of the componants that make up the best possible pc for gaming today (excluding psu, case and exact motherboard specs):

Nvidia Geforce 9800 GX2, Intel core 2 Extreme Q6600, At least 2Gb of ddr800 Ram (if you want to play latest games), Motherboard with 6 SATA connectors, 2 PCI-E slots(SLI capable), 10000 Rpm harddrive

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