that looks like a beast laptop. maybe a little overkill for your current needs but that vanishes over the years as everything requires more powerfull hardware.
also yes 200$ for such an upgrade is really good. i imagined they would ask more than that for just upgrading to a ssd.
obviously getting a desktop is your only true answer even thought you might not want to hear it. otherwise i'd look for second hand laptops because honestly with 500 youre not gonna get more than a gt 930m if youre lucky and that's just terrible for gaming.
to answer the question, yes that is an intel i7. the amd component is a gpu http://www.amd.com/us/products/desktop/graphics/8000/Pages/8570.aspx that is the gpu. won't cut it in games but perfectly fine for everyday brwosing and stuff.
samsung/asus/lenovo ultrabook but these are all failry expensive(little cheaper than macbooks). they all have a premium feel and look though.
have a look at the ASUS N series, the lenovo S and L series and the Samsung ultrabooks
the real advantage of the asus is quality and therefor reliability. the only other useful thing (to me) of that list would be HDMI out. Did u look at the hardware specs? they are probably different as well tho maybe not in ASUS's favor