Notebook for 3D rendering

[zepfan_75]

I am going to college this year and I am considering a laptop so that I can work on school work while away from my desktop. My desktop is plenty powerful, an I5 2400 @3.951 Ghz/GTX560ti, but there might come a time where I might need to run more demanding software like Autocad and photoshop for projects. I feel if I ever have to leave my desktop then It would set back my work, so do you know any laptops that would be able to fulfill these requirements: portability of a laptop, the performance I need(software mentioned), and costing in the range of $800-$1000?

Thanks in advance

Edit: maybe listing this way will be more useful to those trying to help me.

What is your budget?
800-1000

2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
~15in

3. What screen resolution do you want?
1600x900 or 1920x1080

4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
I will have my desktop there so it is mainly for class and around campus.

5. How much battery life do you need?
A standard 6cell battery is fine.

6. Do you want to play games with your laptop? If so then please list the games that you want to with the settings that you want for these games. (Low,Medium or High)?
I will use my desktop for gaming.

7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo / Video editing,watching movies, Etc.)
Some photo editing but I will primarily be using CAD software and Office 2010 throughout my college career.

8. How much storage (H.D.D Capacity) do you need?
500gb is fine

9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.
I prefer Newegg.com and Amazon.com

10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?
I will be in college for 4-5 years and I would like the laptop to last that long.

11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
DVD/CD combo drive.

12. Please tell us about the brands that you prefer to buy from them and the brands that you don't like and explain the reasons.
I've been looking at Asus, Lenovo, and HP but as long as it is durable and it fits my needs then it will be ok.

13. What country do you live in?
USA

14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.
As stated before I will be using this for CAD software since I am majoring in Mechanical Engineering. I would prefer it to have Intel Core i3, i5, or i7 (2.6 - 3.0GHz) with a dedicated GPU (preferably nVidia but I'm not too picky). They say I should have 4 GB RAM and run Windows 7 Pro. I need to have built in wireless, preferably n so that I can get internet around campus.

 

[Maziar]

5-8hrs is a little too much especially for 15" notebooks.
This Toshiba Satellite is a decent choice but will last for 3-4 hours
http/www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834214593

 

[zepfan_75]

ok, well I really didn't know what to expect because this is going to be my first laptop, so a standard battery will be fine I guess, it is more about the performance.

 

[zepfan_75]

how will the 540m perform with 3D rendering do you know?

 

[Maziar]

It'll perform fine.3D Rendering benefits more from the CPU than GPU

 

[zepfan_75]

Best answer selected by zepfan_75.