3.0 GHz P4 Laptop! $1299!

[CarltheUnholy]

CDW has the following laptop on sale. It is an Acer Aspire.

http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.aspx?EDC=651055

PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS:

? 3.0GHz Intel Pentium 4 processor
? 512MB RAM
? 60GB hard drive
? DVD±RW
? 56K
? 10/100 Ethernet
? WiFi 802.11b/g
? Windows XP Pro and a 15.4" WXGA Wide Screen active-matrix display
? ATi Mobility Radeon with 64 megs of DDR RAM

Now, the list price is $1499, but there is a $200 Instant Rebate. I am not sure if this makes the deal hot or merely warm, but it's pretty decent.

I ordered one, and must say, I love it. I recommended it to two other people, who promptly ordered it as well. There are only three issues I have with it: It weighs in at a hefty 7.9 lbs, a fully charged battery only gives about 90 minutes, and it has a big-ass fan right over the keyboard to push air over the CPU heatsink. It can get pretty loud, for a laptop.

But to me, these issues are easily ignored considering the power it comes with. It's clean, the display is crisp, and everything works beautifully. Dell can't even compete, as it's closest model to this has half the HD space, half the RAM, no DVD burner, and it's STILL more expensive.

EDIT: Oh yeah, the P4 in this beast has Hyperthreading.

 

[AmitPatel]

Do you think this is better than the other Acer deal posted in the other thread:

http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.aspx?EDC=659603

They're both the same price, but the other one is lighter and has more battery life...

 

[CarltheUnholy]

My opinion is yes. The lighter one (which I also researched) only has a 1.5GHz Pentium M, which does not have hyperthreading and is less than the P4 in a few other areas.

3.0 Ghz w/ Hyperthreading is way better.

Also, it has a 64-meg ATi vid card, whereas the other has shared memory, which is crap for any kind of gaming. It also has a 60 gig HD, versus the 40 gig in the one you mention. It also has a DVD burner, as opposed to just a DVD ROM.

So, in my opinion, yes. This is WAY better.

Oh, and the TravelMate is only 1.3 lbs lighter. Not really that different. The battery life is nice, though.

 

[BigButt]

but the first one do have better mobo, video card, and a bigger HD. Though the 2nd one have a longer battery and lighter, i would rather choose the first one.

 

[chiragp]

I would think this to be a good deal too... its a Dothan and it has all the features mentioned in the first one.
Well, a little more expensite tho'
NewEgg

 

[frankqfrank]

do they charge sales tax in ohio?

 

[Crucial]

A full battery charge only gives 90minutes of use? WTF? This thing is useless as a laptop. Whats the point if you have to constantly plug it in to charge?

 

[CarltheUnholy]

A full battery charge only gives 90minutes of use? WTF? This thing is useless as a laptop. Whats the point if you have to constantly plug it in to charge?

I grant that it's on the light side for a battery, but most full P4's only give about 2 hours anyway. The Pentium-M's will give you 4 or 5 hours, but at a huge performance cost.

This is more of a gaming laptop.

 

[prometheusxls]

The P4 3Ghz is obviously a "Desktop Replacement" for someone who needs limited mobility. If you are contsantly on the go / traqveland needing to run off of batteries etc. its not goign to do the job. I mean for someone who travels 25%+ then you need a real mobile which are lighter, smaller, 5-7 hours battery life... not desktop replacement: 2 hours battery life, bigger more powerful, heavier....

 

[prometheusxls]

The P4 3Ghz is obviously a "Desktop Replacement" for someone who needs limited mobility. If you are contsantly on the go / traveland needing to run off of batteries etc. its not goign to do the job. I mean for someone who travels 25%+ then you need a real mobile which are lighter, smaller, 5-7 hours battery life... not desktop replacement: 2 hours battery life, bigger more powerful, heavier....

 

[nathansut]

Originally posted by: CarltheUnholy
My opinion is yes. The lighter one (which I also researched) only has a 1.5GHz Pentium M, which does not have hyperthreading and is less than the P4 in a few other areas.

3.0 Ghz w/ Hyperthreading is way better.

Also, it has a 64-meg ATi vid card, whereas the other has shared memory, which is crap for any kind of gaming. It also has a 60 gig HD, versus the 40 gig in the one you mention. It also has a DVD burner, as opposed to just a DVD ROM.

So, in my opinion, yes. This is WAY better.

Oh, and the TravelMate is only 1.3 lbs lighter. Not really that different. The battery life is nice, though.

Actually it depends what your doing as far as being "better", especially from a financial standpoint. To me, a gaming laptop is an oxymoron. It will be extinct within a year, perhaps a year and a half if the demand for new technology in games is low. If someone simply needs a laptop for coding use, or wordprocessing/email, an Intel 3GHZ HT machine will be absolutely no different than the Pentium M. Also, don't think clock speed = performance, that is simply not true. I have an ibook g4 1ghz that compiles code much faster than high end P4 (3GHZ+).

Also, keep in mind that to ever see any performance gains with HT, the software engineers on such a product must actually code with HT in mind. That is, the HT performance does not come with every app, and 99.9% of the applications/games out there do NOT support Hyperthreading.

Just some things to keep in mind - don't get caught in to the Mhz myth, or flashy "features" such as HT or 2MB more cache. More than likely, you will not see a performance difference.

 

[doinmybestatlast]

Pros:

Acer Aspire is the best laptop I have had. I have had Dells, Ibms, Compaqs
Pentium M is the way to go. I have been stuck in airports till 3AM on several occasions this year. 4 hours working with mp3's playing.
Working with wide screen makes things easier with two pages on the same screen. Great for excel files and debugging.
Gaming is a side issue, but you can buy one with a 9700. Since the screen is slow...
Subwoofer - I used to bring small speakers in my luggage, no more.
Speakers - great for a laptop
Arcade is nice if you're on the plane and only want to watch movies, or listen to music.
DVD-RW


Cons:
7 pounds and big.
Bad keyboard. I have had one for four months and the IBM is really much better.
Arcade switch is badly placed. If I am not careful I will turn this on.

Overall - 5 stars with a Pentium - M. Any other processor - I question your intelligence.

 

[cbrsurfr]

The Pentium M 1.5 is the better deal. I bought the 2012WLMi to replace my Dell 5150 3.06 P4-M 512mb 60gb 7200rpm 15 sxga+. My Dell always ran HOT, I also had trouble with it overheating whenever a little dust gets in the heatsink. It also liked to freeze in games for no apparant reason. I bought this because it is lighter, widescreen display, better video, runs cooler, runs quieter, and its thinner. I think this Acer feels just as fast if not faster than my 3ghz Dell. My only disappointments are the 2nd ram slot is under the keyboard and the plastic around the lcd bezel seems a little loose, other than that its a great laptop.

And the weight difference is really noticeable. My Dell weighed in around 8lbs, my Acer 6.6.

 

[mrEvil]

cbrsurfr - the word HOT is the key. Everyone seems to forget that most regular P4 laptops can cook an egg on the underside. If it's going to be on my lap for any length of time, give me one with a P4M model.