steve - I know one of the issues w/laminate is the noise issue, since it is a floating floor - Does the $1.60 include pricing for the underlayment? - The concrete slab will need to be leveled or you will have problems w/install and longevity of flooring To me the $3.50 for carpet installed sounds like a better deal - but that is me - I am a somewhat DIY - but I think by the time I got the proper tools and figured out how to do the floor it would be well over the $3.50 ft - Add to that the need for some type of area rug/s following installation - Tools/material/time/mistakes - per sq ft + $1.60 initial product - Even though the basement is "dry" - basements are more likely than any other room to have a moisture problem - I went w/carpet just tacked down so that if I do have any water problems its a relatively easy fix Good luck

Pic above is my old basement. Yes, carpet is beige but there is a 'square' pattern with tons of colors in it including blue, red, brown, green, black...etc. This carpet shows no dirt & I think you should be thinking about that. Other rooms in this house had colored carpet. We ripped it all out to sell the house because yes, it is dated. Your idea of a neutral gray is fine. Think about where you want color - it is easy to repaint and relatively cheap. You'll only carpet once every 10 years. Put the color on your walls. Looks like the site had several patterned carpets, I think that is a good idea for a playroom and will add some pizazz.

eliza, my photos might be deceiving but the room is painted a pale green (BM Soft Fern) and isn't going to be re-painted any time soon! It's a big room (about 20' x 20') open to another big room (where our pool table is), and both were painted just about two years ago. Thanks for all the nice comments! I remembered 1 or 2 people were asking about playroom ideas recently so I figured I'd show mine.

I would vote for marmoleum -- true linoleum. It has a cork backing, which gives it a soft feel when you walk on it, and it seems to be fairly warm underfoot. Lots of different options available. Good flooring for active play. Easy to keep clean, kids can skate or ride bikes during the winter. Good for giant floor puzzles, too. You can always add the foam squares on top and put them away when they're done playing with them.