It looks like it has an 8600M GS, which isn't quite as nice as a GT, but still a decent card. I agree with you that Asus makes great notebooks. Seems like a nice system and at a reasonable price.
Another option is the Vostro line from Dell (yeah I know, Dell, yuck), but they are a great value if nothing else. I priced out a 15.4" Vostro with a C2D and 8600M GT graphics for $800. The two downsides to Vostros:
1) Some ship with grainy screens, and there's really no way to know if you have one of the bad screens until you open the box and turn it on.
2) Style is put aside since Vostro's are small-business models. Like Henry Ford said, "you can have any color you want, as long as it's black".
But you really can't find an 8600M GT in any other notebook for that price. So if you are a gamer, it's definitely worth considering.
You could also look into the HP Pavilion DV6500T. The style is great and it's actually one of the nicer looking notebooks that has a really durable finish. Like the Asus, you can only get GS flavor graphics. Here's a review from NBR:
HP Pavilion dv6500t Review
I have an older AMD based DV6000Z (the DV6500T is Santa Rosa Intel based and offers fingerprint reader and a new finish), and I love it. Perfect size for at home use and occasional mobility, and it looks great (but it attracts fingerprints). One possible complaint, since you said you will be Photoshopping on this, is the screens vertical viewing angle is... well... typical for a consumer notebook. Even when you have it adjusted perfectly for your height, there is a noticeable gradient difference looking at the top and bottom of the screen when it comes to contrast, so you might want to look for a more professional screen (Lenovo ThinkPads offer nice viewing angles on their upgraded screens) if you plan to do any pro Photoshopping. You will, however, notice this problem on nearly all consumer notebooks- it's not just common to Pavilions. It's not terribly bad, but if you are picky, you will notice it, and it might get a little annoying.
No matter which notebook you choose, if it's a configurable to order model (CTO), make sure you opt for the minimum amount of RAM and upgrade later. They charge as much as $250 for 2GB, which is absolutely ridiculous, considering you can buy some at NewEgg for much cheaper than what they charge, and it's very easy to install.
Good luck on your purchase!
