Topic: Laptops/Notebooks -what to buy???

[andy750]

Ok so I know this has nothing to do with SOHC  bikes but I will be using my laptop to look at bikes online and i know some of you guys are computer experts so here i am seeking an opinion on what to buy next....

Price range ~$1200- $1300

Laptop currently have for 4.5 years with no problems - Toshiba Satellite Pro 4200

Laptops interested in  -Lenovo/IBM T43 or Z60T (1.86Ghz, 1GB RAM) (good academic deal on these IBMs)
                                Toshiba Satellite M55 or Tecra A5

i like the IBS but the screen brightness seems to me to be a factor.....any comments? Anyone have any issues with their own laptops? too hot? Battery life? Value for money?

Specs Im looking at are Pentium M, 186GhZ,533 Mhz FSB,  512 -1Gb RAM, 5400rpm hard drive speed, and +60Gb hard drive capacity.

Ive done all the reviews and research but looking for some real life opinions to help me decide. Thanks for any input.

Cheers
Andy in Boston
 

[Bob Wessner]

Will this be your primary PC/workstation, or do you also have a desktop system? If it's going to be your primary, do all machine, 60G drive may  be limiting down the road if you are at all into digital pics or video.

[eldar]

You are also more likely to be able to get a more powerful machine if you go with an AMD system. Amd is the top choice for gaming and many graphics programs. It is also cheaper for an equivalent power processor. So for the same money as an intel system, you can get a faster more powerful amd.

It is kinda like choosing between harley(intel) and honda(amd).

[andy750]

Thanks guys for the info. Yes this will be my primary workstation - for work and for taking home to work (and a couple of times a year for travel (UK, US etc...) but travel is not a major concern). Ok Ill look into the machines with AMD as well to keep options and cost open.
Cheers
Andy

[smithrelo]

I've had several:

Dell Inspiron- runs HOT and got real funky at the end...but saying that I have it in it's docking station and it does fine.  Not funky when moving it around - it is at least 6 years old.

Replaced it with a Gateway..don't knw the model, but can find out-cost about $1100 at Micro-center and I bought the extended warranty-for about $100  because it was basically free to me, and about 6 months in..errrrrrrrrr, I stepped on the dang thing where the screen top connects to the keyboard-broke it to smitheens...computer still worked like a charm-

I called Gateway and they sent me a return box and I got it back in 3 days!!! They put on a new case and also new keyboard..because my nails tend to eat up the keys!

Anyway, can't say enough about Gateway's service.  They simply looked up my computer number and said we'll overnight you a return box and fix it.  NO Questions asked!  And would I like any upgrades (LOL) even selling at the service level!

Having said that...MY NEXT (and probably last) laptop will be a "Panasonic Toughbook" used by our military, can withstand a EMP (to an extent) and has a HANDLE!!!   

DUH- why can't any other the other companies WAKE up and put a dang handle on them!    VERY PRICEY, but I'm worth it (IMHO)

Whatever you get, you'll probably love it-newer,faster,brighter!

Linda

[andy750]

Thanks Linda great info and if I could afford a Panasonic i agree I would buy one as well :-)

Cheers
Andy in Boston

[Bodain]

I work in IT in the corporate world. We've done Dell, Micron, Toshiba and IBM. This means we support thousands locally and across the globe at our other facitlities.

Micron ..... Bad news .... End of story.
Toshiba .... Ok but not great.
Dell...... Forget it. Constantly sending them back for lcd screen failure.
IBM Thinkpad... The absolute best notebook on the market. The most rugged and durable notebook out there.

Is that still true since Lenovo bought them? We will see.

[ElCheapo]

Dont know about your models that you are looking at.

I use a Compaq Preario M2000. I use my laptop as my main machine. I have given up my position on the desktop unit the rest of the family uses. I have NO complaints about mine aside from I should put in more ram. Yes there is faster out there but I was able to get into mine for $500 new. It is just now starting to show some rub wear below the spacebar. This machine has been to Colorado with me. It was with me at 14,000 feet when we summited Antero. I have had no problems with this machine.

quote from above:
"It is kinda like choosing between harley(intel) and honda(amd)."

The fact is that AMD's do more work per clock cycle than Intels. Another fact is that AMD's passed Intel processors apples-for-apples in performance. With that said mine is running on a Celron M

I use my machine for:
 
Dreamweaver MX
Macromedia Flash
Macromedia Director 8
Office 2000
Adobe Photoshop 7
Adobe Illustrator 9.0
Macromedia Fireworks
Sonic Foundry Vegas 4.0
Sonic Foundry Acid 4.0
Quark Express 4.0
AAA Logo
Auto CAD 2000
Solid Edge 8.0
Master CAM 8.0

And a host of other applications. Illustrator and Photoshop seem to be the only ones that are slow starters. The run great once they are started, just slow to start..

[andy750]

Hey guys thanks for the great feedback and definitely giving me some new options to think about. Much appreciated before spending many $$s.

Cheers
Andy in Boston

[Clutch Cargo]

Stick with Toshiba.  My first Toshiba laptop - purchased in 1993 still runs. My 2nd Toshiba - purchased in 1998 -  is used by my youngest son for low tech games.  My third Toshiba - purchased in 2003 - is running fine.  The latter had a mother board issue in 2004 that was fixed in four working days by Toshiba.  All were mid to low end Satellite models.  My wife just purchased a Satellite at Office Depot for $ 850 (after rebates) and it met all of your benchmark specs.

Mike

[dusterdude]

damn,all you guys are on drugs.if you can afford and are not too worried aboaut stupid internet stuff,buy a mac.windows is junk.

[eldar]

Mac is no better duster. But mac users would still say a mac is better even if it did not WORK! Mac is behind the times in terms of performance to cost ratio as they always have been. THey also run about 10 - 15% of available software, even linux is runnning more and the linux OS can be obtained for FREE.
Mac has ONE good aspect and that is graphics but with the vast array of graphics cards now using PCI-express and SLI now, mac does not stand a chance unless they really do a major upgrade.
Most user now also have a harder time using a mac than windows.
As for security, mac is not better. If mac had 70 - 80% of market share, they would suffer just as much from viruses as any windows.
Simple fact is that hackers and virus spawners try to target the most people possible and so that means windows.
Mac did have its uses but those uses are growing smaller every few months.

I do not have anything against mac but they are just not worth the cost when you can now get a windows sytem that works just as well for much less cost.

[dusterdude]

eldar,i hate to say it but i agree with you on the money issue,but as far as stability,macs have windows beat hands down.

[clarkjh]

Not to get in the middle of the PC/MAC pissing match, but in the school system, them Macs are on par with the PC as far as repair time.  Most times it's abuser, I mean user error.  VirtualPC on the MAC and you have the best of both world.

I have a Dell Latitude D800, that is going on 3 years, only one warranty call, bad pressure point in the keyboard, (known problem), never had any problems with the LCDs and I move mine from home to work, and the cover is opened and closed at least 3 to 4 time daily.  Battery life was around 3 hours new and now is between 2 and 3 hours depending on what i'm doing.  Some of the older IBM thinkpads were crap, ether that or we got a bad run.  We will be starting to use HP soon, the NB government made some sort of deal with HP for "Laptops in the Classroom" project.

Big thing is, as a primary machine, get spill and accident warranty coverage.  The kids let one of the rabbits out and it cut my power cord, (Dell replaced under Warranty)

Hope this helps

James

[eldar]

Windows 3.1 was very stable virtually never crashed. Windows got the bad stability image from windows 95 and ME. 98 was good uless you screwed around without knowing what you were doing. My 98 crashed maybe once a month with use of 4-5 hours a day., Even most macs cant come close to that.
Windows NT, 2000, and XP are very stable though. Which is the main reason The vast majority of IT departments use windows. Next most used is linux as it is cheap.
Where I work we have more trouble with our mac OS 10.2 locking up just trying to run safari sometimes than any other computer.
And what if you have a hardware failure?? That will cost 2 - 3 times the amount to fix as well.

There are more macs in schools butthat is mainly because of the discounts offered to educational institutions.

[dusterdude]

yea and you dont have virus issues with macs either

[eldar]

you would if mac was as popular as windows. It is not worth it to hackers and spawners to create viruses and such for mac when they will only affect a max of 15% of computer users. Once Microsofts new vista comes out, security will be much better all around.

[dusterdude]

you made my point eldar,thanks

[eldar]

What point? That if mac could ever magically gain enourmous amounts of popularity, that they would suffer from viruses as much as any pc?
I have only had 1 pc crash from a virus. I recovered from it, something macs dont do very well, Dropped norton and went to avg and no more viruses.
 I now also use a firewall and keep spyware updated. I have no security trouble. So right there my XP is as good as any mac.
Duster, you want to use mac? Thats fine. But I work with both systems on a daily basis and find that unless the user does something dumb, windows is just as good as mac in security.

[Bob Wessner]

What point? That if mac could ever magically gain enourmous amounts of popularity, that they would suffer from viruses as much as any pc?

Well, yes. A little like how many terrorists are trying to gain access to Iceland vs. the U.S. or a European country? Sometimes being most popular (or unpopular  )sucks.

[dusterdude]

bob,windows isnt the most popular system in the world because its good,its because its cheap to buy.you old guys remember when vcr`s first came out,does beta and vhs ring a bell.beta was a hell of a lot better than vhs,but vhs won due to better marketing.oh eldar btw,are you on microsofts payroll?

[Bob Wessner]

Actually, though I'm pretty satisfied with XP (how long did it take to get it right??) I'm not extolling the virtues of any particular OS, just pointing out that Win is a target more than Mac OS for very practical reasons from a virus writer's standpoint. More targets, more potential damage if they succeed.

[csendker]

I'm running a Dell Latitude D505, Windows XP w/SP-2, Pentium-M 1.6Gig, 512 RAM and 60G HD.  I have the DVD-player/CD-burner.  DVD burners were hyper expensive when I bought it (actually work bought it), so I went with the CD burner.  As it's courtesy of work, my options were limited and I think it was around $12-1500.  

I take it everywhere, home, work, camping, strap it to the bike and away I go. The only problem I've had in over a year is a sticky/dead "9" key problem that comes and goes.

I suggest a real good case; I have two - my daily soft breifcase with padded laptop slot and a killer one with wheels & handle for when I'm on the road.

You may want to get a second power supply chord, leave one at work and one at home.  Helps keep the load down for the commute.  Using a laptop as a primary computer beats up on the battery a bit, but this one seems to be holding up OK.

[dusterdude]

i use xp pro here at work and yes it seems to be a good system,its just overall i dont like windows machines

[eldar]

Duster, do you have any idea how many operating systems mac put out in the last 10 years alone? They averaged over 1 a year. In 91 the mac os was 7. So we will start there.

    * System 7.0 (released in late 1991; integrated MultiFinder into the OS as default)
    * System 7.0.1 (introduced with LC II and Quadra series)
    * System 7 Tuner (update for both 7.0 and 7.0.1)
    * System 7.1
    * System 7.1 Pro (version 7.1.1, combined with PowerTalk, Speech Manager & Macintalk, Thread Manager)
    * System 7.1.2 (first version for Macs equipped with a PowerPC processor)
    * System 7.1.2P -- only for Performa/LC/Quadra 630 series, very quickly replaced by 7.5
    * System 7.5
    * System 7.5.1 (System 7.5 Update 1.0) -- the first Macintosh operating system to call itself "Mac OS"
    * System 7.5.2 -- first version for PowerMacs that use PCI expansion cards, usable only on these Power Macs and PowerBooks 5300 and Duo 2300
    * System 7.5.3 (System 7.5 Update 2.0)
    * System 7.5.3L -- only for Mac clones
    * System 7.5.3 Revision 2
    * System 7.5.3 Revision 2.1 -- only for Performa 6400/180 and 6400/120
    * System 7.5.5
    * Mac OS 7.6 (name formally changed because of the experimental clone program, although System 7.5.1 and later used the "Mac OS" name on the splash screen)
    * Mac OS 7.6.1

Macintosh Performa computers used to have their own, exclusive operating system before they were merged into System 7.5.

    * System 7.0.1P
    * System 7.1P1
    * System 7.1P2
    * System 7.1P3 -- last release with new features
    * System 7.1P4
    * System 7.1P5
    * System 7.1P6

This is just a list of the 7 series. Lets do 8 now.
8.1
8.5
8.6

Now 9.

    * Mac OS 9.0
    * Mac OS 9.0.2
    * Mac OS 9.0.3
    * Mac OS 9.0.4
    * Mac OS 9.1
    * Mac OS 9.2
    * Mac OS 9.2.1
    * Mac OS 9.2.2

And finally 10

    * Mac OS X Public Beta
    * Mac OS X v10.0 "Cheetah"
    * Mac OS X v10.1 "Puma"
    * Mac OS X v10.2 "Jaguar"
    * Mac OS X v10.3 "Panther"
    * Mac OS X v10.4 "Tiger"
    * Mac OS X v10.5 "Leopard" (planned for release in late 2006)

Now tell me again how mac got it right?
Each time a version came out, a person had to buy it if they wanted it.
Windows just does service packs which are downloads that are free.

As for windows being cheaper. It is but the biggest reason is that a comparable windows machine is an average of 33 - 50% percent cheaper.

Even back in the 90s apple admitted the only reason they had a better pc was because of a 10 year headstart and hardware/os integration.

A 10-year head start is only one reason why Macintosh computers have the edge on PCs running Windows 95. The other reason is that Apple is the only major personal computer company to craft both the hardware and operating system software—together. That makes it easier for Macintosh users to start using new features.” — Apple Computer

Like I said, if you like mac thats fine. But you should really know that it is not any better these days. In the 80s and 90s, yes it was, but no longer.
not trying to start a microwar just stating some easy to find facts.