Do video cards matter?
 

I'm still looking of a laptop and don't really understand the importance of graphics cards. Everyone says you need a good one for gaming. I don't game but do edit and use the laptop as a external monitor. Should I worry about a dedicated graphics card?

Some of the newer, higher end graphics cards will help with 3D rendering as well as provide video acceleration.

Here's a thread I started in the wrong forum :
http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=85557

3d rendering as in animation?

What does video acceleration mean?

If you limit yourself to a recent video card with dedicated memory, not shared, you can't go wrong for editing. The video acceleration means that the capabilities of the GPU are used for some effects and that means faster rendering in comparison to using only the CPU.

3d rendering as in seeing 3d titles and effects in real time while you're editing. Graphic acceleration in that video playback is smoother, less 'stuttering' or dropped frames when you have dedicated ram instead of borrowing ram while playing back several layers of video.

Each NLE has different requirements and makes differnt demands on the video card. Make sure you check to see if their are specific requirements for the NLE you wish to cut on.