When the era of laptops and notebooks began few realised what a great leap ahead this technology was. To businessmen the advantages were always obvious. Then again, almost any processor will run the average spreadsheet. But suddenly laptops are stepping into the world of gaming, thanks to the latest Intel® Centrino® 2 processors.

Okay, I've seen many things on LAN, from guys freaking out on stage in the early morning, to case modders with desktop PCs in old TV cases, microwaves or even trashcans. But even if I reflect really hard on the parties I’ve been to, I don’t recall seeing laptop users in large numbers. And why should there be laptop users? As a gamer with attitude, you have your juicy modified desktop with its Intel® Core™2 Extreme processor for that untouchable performance, high frag count and near-zero lag. The desktop roars like a lion. You want people to hear your rig booting up from the other side of the hall! You need all the disk space and with all those peripherals you can fence your area.

But do you really need all that luggage? Or is it just a desktop dude’s not so open mind?

A lot of gamers still think that laptops unfit for games. But at LAN parties they give you a big advantage over desktop users. USB hubs and mobile storage are less expensive than a car-load of technology. And just think about the other possibilities. You have enough space to spread out your things and more room in your bag for anything else you might want to take. You have fewer security concerns, too. There isn’t much room in your sleeping bag for you and your tower.

There are other advantages to being mobile. When you are on your way to a tournament you have to practise, practise, practise! You need only the absolute minimum of space and do not need to worry about how to get your stuff into your car without it breaking.

One last thought: to be the last man standing after a blackout is a truly wonderful feature of this new mobile technology.

Read more about the latest mobile processor technology