Budget laptop: Integrated or Discrete Graphics?

[TheManWithNoPlan]

So I'm looking into buying a laptop with a budget equivalent to around $550 (stretch to $600 if it's worth it) and I've seen a good few options for all sorts of configurations. I will mostly be using this laptop for school, so that's a lot of publishing, chrome tabs and some light 3D modeling (nothing more than a few simple architectural models in SketchUp) but I also want to play some games on it, things like KSP, and Warthunder with some older AAA titles like Dishonored and MW2 - note that I really don't mind having to turn settings to low.

 

So with my uses down I want to ask, do I go for a better CPU with lots of RAM (i7 with 8-16GB) and use integrated graphics or get a slightly lower-end CPU with less RAM and a discrete GPU (i5 with up to a 950M, but mostly 940Ms available). Here in Malaysia there's plenty of choice for laptops of either configuration so I'm sure I can find something, I just wanted to hear the opinions of those more tech-savvy than I first. Thanks for reading.

[EmoChipmonk]

I would say option 2. Preferably with the 950m. THat should work well till you could upgrade to a better one after school. Also upgrade the HDD to an SDD at some point if you can. (Laptop HDD suck)

[BloodyWaters]

Discrete. It's worth it. And get no less than 8 gigs of ram. 

[JoaoPRSousa]

My 940Mx isn't that bad.

But I sure as hell would rather have the 950M.

[Mr.Meerkat]

i5 and 950m, the 950m is a downclocked 960m where as the 940m is a completely different GPU with half the cuda cores  

 

This is however me guessing both the i7s and i5s are intel ULV (i.e. xxxU) chips where the i7s are just higher clocked ULV i5s. 

[Droidbot]

if you have Lenovo in your country, call their sales team. they are amazing in AU and they give out discounts just to make a sale

[JFischer00]

3 hours ago, Droidbot said:

if you have Lenovo in your country, call their sales team. they are amazing in AU and they give out discounts just to make a sale

Do you have to say anything special? Or just pretend to decide no?

[JFischer00]

EDIT: Silly double post bug

[Droidbot]

5 hours ago, JFischer00 said:

Do you have to say anything special? Or just pretend to decide no?

just haggle with them. 

[aisle9]

17 hours ago, Mr.Meerkat said:

i5 and 950m, the 950m is a downclocked 960m where as the 940m is a completely different GPU with half the cuda cores  

I thought only the GDDR5 950M chips were downclocked 960Ms, and the DDR3 version was, uh, something else entirely.

[Mr.Meerkat]

6 hours ago, aisle9 said:

I thought only the GDDR5 950M chips were downclocked 960Ms, and the DDR3 version was, uh, something else entirely.

Fack, forgot about the DDR3 version...

Nevertheless, the DDR3 950M is still quite a lot faster than a 940m