MacBook Pro freezes

I have a MacBook Pro 15.4" Core Duo of mid 2007 (hardware specs shown below). Since three days ago, my macbook has started freezing. Attached is a photo of screen, at boot, right before freezing. Freezing happens any time and the system is not responding at all. At first, I suspected a heat problem, so I tried without a battery, but no difference I had. It seems like a hardware fault, but no idea I have. It's so embarrassing because I turned to a Mac due to annoying hardware faults in PC laptops. Any tips will be appreciated in advance.

--------- H/W Specifications -----------------

15.4-inch: 2.2GHz(MA895LL)
Display 15.4-inch (diagonal), 1440 by 900 resolution, TFT widescreen
Processor 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
Memory 2GB (two SO-DIMMs) 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM (PC2-5300)
PCI Express graphics NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT with 128MB of GDDR3 SDRAM and dual-link DVI
Hard disk drive1 120GB Serial ATA; 5400 rpm
Slot-loading optical drive 8x SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Expansion One FireWire 400, one FireWire 800, two USB 2.0 ports, and ExpressCard/34 slot
Video Built-in iSight camera, DVI, VGA (DVI to VGA adapter included)
Audio Combined optical digital input/audio line in, combined optical digital output/headphone out, stereo speakers, microphone
Ethernet Built-in 10/100/1000BASE-T (Gigabit)
Wireless2 Built-in AirPort Extreme (802.11n); built-in Bluetooth 2.0+EDR
Modem Apple USB Modem (sold separately)

Is it always freezing at the same spot (e.g. during boot before going into the OS) or does it happen here and there? I've had the occasional freezing before and it turned out to be faulty RAM. Maybe you can replace that and see if that changes anything?

See the following Apple KB article regarding the problem you're having. I believe the GPU on your machine has failed and may still be covered under an nVidia extended warranty.

Go to this LINK and then contact Apple.

dekan/Sorry for lateness, but it happens any time, i.e. here and there.

chscag/You're absolutely right, I guess. I went to an Apple store last night and that's what I found. An engineer who I met said that it would cost $902 to fix the issue because my macbook cannot be covered by NVIDIA warranty. That's very sad, though.

BTW, thank you for the replies. I'd better buy a new laptop, whether it be a Macbook or a PC laptop.

Two points here - if they confirmed the video issue is indeed the NVIDIA video issue, then the repair should be covered for four years from original date of purchase. If the computer is more than four years old, you should be able to mail your Mac to the repair center for a flat rate of $310 plus tax. Either way, the information you received appears to be incomplete. The technicians in the store can arrange shipping, and have the computer shipped back to your home when finished.

chscag, EvenStranger/You guys are absolutely right. I barely found a purchase record. It was Sep 15, '07. I don't understand why the engineer said it was expired, but "it is within 4 years from the date". I'll go talk to the Apple Store tonight.

You guys saved a life of a poor graduate student. Your helps are sincerely appreciated. Thank you so much.