Dedicated video card or not for laptop
 

Right now I have an Asus with an I3 CPU and a NVIDIA GeForce 310M video card with Optimus. Now I'm looking at a Lenovo with a I7 CPU and Intel HD Graphics 3000 processor. I don't do any real gaming on the laptop mostly photoshop and some video editing. Will not having a dedicated video card be a problem for anything I do?

HD3000 is probably even faster than the GeForce 310M

It won't be a problem, but an i7 + Dedicated GPU can be significantly faster than a Core i7 + Integrated depending on the programs you're using

Are you looking at the Lenovo Ultrabook? I am debating if I should get an Ultrabook as well.. tough decision..:(

Even 'dedicated' cards are usually useless for games, unless it's a gaming specific laptop. However for video and photo editing, I think it's worth going with even a low end GeForce over the integrated Intel GPU.

Although integrated won't present a 'problem', it will be better to have a GPU.

No I'm looking at the T420.

$879 ThinkPad T420 w/Core i7-2640M, 6GB RAM, 1600x900 display, 500GB HD

Intel Core i7-2640M Processor
Windows 7 Home Premium
14.0" HD (1600x900) LED backlight Anti-Glare
Intel HD Graphics 3000
6GB DDR3 RAM
Fingerprint Reader
500GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm
DVDRW
6-cell Battery
ThinkPad b/g/n
Bluetooth 3.0
720p HD Camera


Did some research and the card I have in my Asus is about the same as the HD 3000.