There are different types of Laser eye treatment.  And also  there are different types of Lasers to perform the surgery. Laser Eye treatment will be performed by the Surgeon and what he want to accomplish. For instance, he would prefer Yag laser to perform secondary cataracts.

Or the surgeon could use an argon laser to perform iridotomies or possibly to treat leaking blood vessels in the retina. Or the surgeon could use an excimer laser to correct vision disorders such as near sightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism. This is the laser you are probably referring to. Now, excimer laser surgery is a broad term that can include PRK (photorefractive keratectomy) or LASIK (laser insitu keratomeleusis). PRK is used on the surface of the cornea to correct prescription errors whereas LASIK is used, after creating a flap, on the internal structures of the cornea. Both are capable of precisely correcting prescription errors.  

They don't permanently attach a lens to your eye. 

There are so many doctors willing to give you a free consultation now, you should look for a few in your area and talk to them about the pros and cons.  The surgery is quite popular and many more doctors are performing it and have been for some time. It's been refined quite a bit in the last 5 - 10 years.  From what it has been researched the surgery works best on people with minor to mid sight deficiencies. They have very poor eye sight without contacts and therefore run a high risk of "halo-ing" (where lights tend to have rings around them).  As far as contacts go - sounds like the old style hard lenses. Most doctors now prescribe soft or even extended wear that are placed directly on their eye. Hard lenses actually float on top of their eye and are easier to lose. They can get stuck behind your eye if you sleep with them on.