Buying A New Laptop

[00obrimw]

Hi, I'm looking at buying a laptop for the first time probably before christmas but I can't decide on what to get. I'm looking for something portable, long battery life, definitely a centrino laptop. I'll be using it at university next year. Living in New Zealand the range of laptops i can get isn't huge and the models arent really customisable apart from dell laptops. The laptops I've been looking at are:

Sony S Series - 1.6 Ghz Pentium M, 512Mb Ram, 60Gb Hdd, Mobility 9700 64Mb, 13.3" widescreen LCD - $4200 NZD

Sony B Series - 1.5 Ghz Pentium M, 512Mb Ram, 40Gb Hdd, 14.1" SXGA LCD - $3100 NZD

HP dv1000 - 1.6 Ghz Pentium M, 512Mb Ram, 60Gb Hdd, 14" Widescreen LCD - $3000 NZD

Dell 700m - 1.8 Ghz Pentium M, 512Mb Ram, 60Gb Hdd, 12.1" Widescreen LCD - $3200 NZD

Toshiba Terca M2 - 1.6 Ghz Pentium M, 512Mb Ram, 60Gb Hdd, Geforce FX 5200 Go 64Mb, 14.1" XGA LCD - $3800 NZD

I really like the Sony S series but im not sure i can justify the price over the others. I think the 700m's screen could be a tad too small, and I personally think it looks a bit ugly with the white trim but I've never seen one in the flesh. The HP is nice but it's the heaviest of the 5, and probably one of the shorter battery lives too. The toshiba is nice apart from the XGA screen resolution. What's the build quality like on these laptops? Ive heard plenty of bad stories about most manufacturers but I think that could be a case of the people who are happy with their laptops not saying much. I shouldn't be playing many games on this laptop but I'd like to be able to, but it's not really a priority. I would be grateful for any thoughts or opinions on these laptops.

 

[LtPage1]

http://www.alienware.com/Produ...s/notebook_gaming.aspx
try those.

 

[fbrdphreak]

IIRC, the hp dv1000 is lighter than the 700M and not too far off of the Sony S-series. I would definitely go with the dv1000 over any of the models you've listed. The Sony S ISN'T worth the extra money IMO. In the US, you can get a dv1000 with decent specs for $1100, whereas the S series retails for $2000 with almost the exact same specs. Dunno about the B series, you might want to do some research. The specs seem okay. You need to find out if the 1.5Ghz P-M is a Banias or a Dothan chip, as that will make a diff in performance & batt life. Also, on all these models you want to know HDD speed. That will make a diff in performance. On the HP I think you can get a 60GB 5400RPM, which isn't a bad choice.
Never seen the Tecra M2, but I would never get an XGA screen on a laptop. ::shudder::
Check out the Sony B series and compare to the dv1000, I think that's your best bet. GL

 

[stingygrrl]

anandtech has posted reviews of the dv1000 and 700m. I had been considering both but now the 700m is out of the running. I don't like the keyboard on the DV1000- a little too much bounciness for me, coming from a Thinkpad. Can you get a thinkpad? Wait a few more weeks and your currency will buy you even more!

 

[Tiamat]

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak
IIRC, the hp dv1000 is lighter than the 700M and not too far off of the Sony S-series. I would definitely go with the dv1000 over any of the models you've listed. The Sony S ISN'T worth the extra money IMO. In the US, you can get a dv1000 with decent specs for $1100, whereas the S series retails for $2000 with almost the exact same specs. Dunno about the B series, you might want to do some research. The specs seem okay. You need to find out if the 1.5Ghz P-M is a Banias or a Dothan chip, as that will make a diff in performance & batt life. Also, on all these models you want to know HDD speed. That will make a diff in performance. On the HP I think you can get a 60GB 5400RPM, which isn't a bad choice.
Never seen the Tecra M2, but I would never get an XGA screen on a laptop. ::shudder::
Check out the Sony B series and compare to the dv1000, I think that's your best bet. GL

At that price difference betweem the HP and the Sony, you are getting a much much better GPU option. I've configured a Sony with good specs and 9700 for 1800$. Intel's IGP isnt that great when compared to the 9700mobility... However, I have also heard that Sony's break easily and Cus Support is lacking...

Its too bad Sony is the only manufacturer that I know of that allows you to place a 9700 in a 4.2 lb small laptop.

 

[00obrimw]

Thanks for all the replies, I think i'm getting closer to making a decision. At the moment i'm leaning towards the dv1000, and I've ruled out both the 700m and the toshiba. I read the 2 anandtech reviews on the 700m and the dv1000 and that helped me rule out the 700m. My Dad is being kind to me and helping me buy this and I might be able to convince him to pay for all of the dv1000, but for the S series a decent amount will be coming out of my wallet. I guess I've just got to decide whether the lighter weight, longer battery life and the mobility 9700 are worth the extra cash. The hard drives in both of them are 4200rpm i'm pretty sure, definitely for the HP anyway, which I'm a tad concerned about. I'm planning on buying a new desktop soon so performance isn't too critical as I wont be using it for everything. Any other ideas are more than welcome.

 

[halfadder]

I don't like the build quality of Sony notebooks. They have a nice fit and finish when new, but they go downhill really fast.

 

[00obrimw]

I've decided to save myself some cash and go with the dv1000, and I also think it's better value for money. The money I save will go towards my gaming desktop which I'm planning. Anyway my Dad whose helping me buy this wants to wait until early/mid january until we buy this, is there likely to be anything better in the market to buy by then? Come January I don't want to buy the dv1000 and find something better which had just been released. I hate doing all this research and deciding on something and then having to wait!