As the title suggests, I'm looking into getting a new laptop, but it might as well be my first. My first is about two inches thick, and gets comments like "Dinosaur loose it's computer." Obviously, I know little when it comes to Laptops, while I do know a bit about desktops, and have one capable of high FPS on games like Crysis. I need a laptop that can do gaming, won't need to be replaced anytime soon, and (hopefully) costs less than $1000. Backlit keyboard and case would be awesome. Any suggestions? I've looked into the Alienware M11x, but with a bigger hard drive, better processor and a longer warranty, I'm looking a bit above my price range.

Thanks in advance

If you want to do real gaming on a laptop $1000 is probably the starting point. The most important thing to look for is the best discrete video card you can find with the money you have to spend. Hard drive and memory can always be upgraded later.

The MX11x is probably a good starting point at $800 for stock hardware. But I don't think I would find gaming on an 11" screen very enjoyable. The video card overall isn't bad but it certainly won't run Crysis at max settings with high FPS, even on a very small 11" screen.

Gaming on laptops is expensive. You may want to rethink your budget, lower your expectations, or just leave gaming to your desktop.