Is this a good buy?

[AUMM]

I've been looking for a decent laptop and came across this one...Text

What do you guys think? I was planning on upgrading the graphics card to the
128MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) Go 7200

Any other upgrades I should get?

My main uses would be the basics (MS Office, internet, etc), I also would like to be able to play games such as warcraft and CS:S....some dvd watching as well...

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Originally posted by: AUMM
I've been looking for a decent laptop and came across this one...Text

What do you guys think? I was planning on upgrading the graphics card to the
128MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) Go 7200

Any other upgrades I should get?

My main uses would be the basics (MS Office, internet, etc), I also would like to be able to play games such as warcraft and CS:S....some dvd watching as well...

Definitely upgrade. It might only be 32MB dedicated + 96MB TurboCache, but it's a piddling $35 for a decent kick in the pants graphically. Not to mention that nVidia's drivers have this advantage called "Not Sucking" 😉

Suggested upgrades:
CPU - T2060 at least.
Display - BrightView if you plan on doing a lot of DVD watching, and aren't going to work in an office with a lot of overhead lighting to cause glare.
GPU - Go7200 FTW.
Memory - Buy another 512MB stick aftermarket.
HDD - 120GB for $25? Sold!
Optical - Personally, I've already got 3 DVDR's in the house, so I might be tempted to cheap out here. YMMV.

And IIRC, you should be able to configure this at a CostCo store or website, and get a better deal and return policy to boot. 😀

- M4H

 

[AUMM]

Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire

Originally posted by: AUMM
I've been looking for a decent laptop and came across this one...Text

What do you guys think? I was planning on upgrading the graphics card to the
128MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) Go 7200

Any other upgrades I should get?

My main uses would be the basics (MS Office, internet, etc), I also would like to be able to play games such as warcraft and CS:S....some dvd watching as well...

Definitely upgrade. It might only be 32MB dedicated + 96MB TurboCache, but it's a piddling $35 for a decent kick in the pants graphically. Not to mention that nVidia's drivers have this advantage called "Not Sucking" 😉

Suggested upgrades:
CPU - T2060 at least.
Display - BrightView if you plan on doing a lot of DVD watching, and aren't going to work in an office with a lot of overhead lighting to cause glare.
GPU - Go7200 FTW.
Memory - Buy another 512MB stick aftermarket.
HDD - 120GB for $25? Sold!
Optical - Personally, I've already got 3 DVDR's in the house, so I might be tempted to cheap out here. YMMV.

And IIRC, you should be able to configure this at a CostCo store or website, and get a better deal and return policy to boot. 😀

- M4H

:thumbsup: Thanks man I think i'm going to be going with all the suggestions you made

is that a decent price for what i get? the total when I customized came out to around $880

Selected Features:

* Intel(R) Core(TM) Duo T2250 (1.73 GHz/2MB L2Cache)
* 512MB DDR2 System Memory (1 Dimm)
* FREE Upgrade from 80GB 5400RPM to 120GB 5400RPM!!
* Super Multi 8X DVD+/-R/RW w/Double Layer Support
* 128MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) Go 7200
* 802.11b/g WLAN
* 14.1" WXGA BrightView Widescreen (1280x800)
* Genuine Windows Vista Home Basic
* Microsoft(R) Works 8.0
* 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
* HP Imprint Finish + Microphone
* No TV Tuner w/remote control

 

[lobbyone]

Good deal :beer:

 

[alimoalem]

looks good. i'm too lazy to look now but did u configure using costco.com? all upgrades are ~10% cheaper if you configure via costco.com and you get a 6 month return policy (that's where i ordered my dv2000t 😀). if you can, go with a core 2 duo cpu. they used to have the T5500 but they seem to have dropped it from the config list. don't go for the T5200 if it's the only core 2 duo you can go with (it's stripped down in more ways than one). so basically i'd recommend either the T2060, T5600, or T7200. the T2250 is slightly faster but you really won't notice the speed increase.

if you can wait, wait a couple weeks. when i bought my laptop in september, i got a free BrightView display upgrade, free 1GB ram upgrade, and something else i think. the prices are up a bit just cause vista just came out (at least i think that's why).

i'm very happy with my laptop but i wouldn't have minded having a webcam or bluetooth. see if you may want one of these later on.

lastly, how important is battery life for you? i have the 6-cell and it gets me maybe 2 hours on a full charge. my friend has the 9-cell and he gets ~3-3.5 hours. if you are considering the 9-cell, though, keep in mind it is bigger than the 6-cell battery so it sticks out the bottom of the laptop. to see what i'm talking about, go to the configure page and click on the "help me pick" button or whatever it is for the batteries. it'll show a diagram.

alright well enjoy your new laptop

 

[AUMM]

Originally posted by: alimoalem
looks good. i'm too lazy to look now but did u configure using costco.com? all upgrades are ~10% cheaper if you configure via costco.com and you get a 6 month return policy (that's where i ordered my dv2000t 😀). if you can, go with a core 2 duo cpu. they used to have the T5500 but they seem to have dropped it from the config list. don't go for the T5200 if it's the only core 2 duo you can go with (it's stripped down in more ways than one). so basically i'd recommend either the T2060, T5600, or T7200. the T2250 is slightly faster but you really won't notice the speed increase.

if you can wait, wait a couple weeks. when i bought my laptop in september, i got a free BrightView display upgrade, free 1GB ram upgrade, and something else i think. the prices are up a bit just cause vista just came out (at least i think that's why).

i'm very happy with my laptop but i wouldn't have minded having a webcam or bluetooth. see if you may want one of these later on.

lastly, how important is battery life for you? i have the 6-cell and it gets me maybe 2 hours on a full charge. my friend has the 9-cell and he gets ~3-3.5 hours. if you are considering the 9-cell, though, keep in mind it is bigger than the 6-cell battery so it sticks out the bottom of the laptop. to see what i'm talking about, go to the configure page and click on the "help me pick" button or whatever it is for the batteries. it'll show a diagram.

alright well enjoy your new laptop

Thanks for the advice!

Yeah I configured this through Costco. They have the T5200 and then after that it's the T5600... do you think the T5600 is worth the extra $91 over the T2250?

As for the battery, I would like a longer battery life than the 6 Cell, but the next upgrade is the 12 Cell and that just looks like it would be too big where it sticks out...

 

[alimoalem]

Originally posted by: AUMM

Originally posted by: alimoalem
looks good. i'm too lazy to look now but did u configure using costco.com? all upgrades are ~10% cheaper if you configure via costco.com and you get a 6 month return policy (that's where i ordered my dv2000t 😀). if you can, go with a core 2 duo cpu. they used to have the T5500 but they seem to have dropped it from the config list. don't go for the T5200 if it's the only core 2 duo you can go with (it's stripped down in more ways than one). so basically i'd recommend either the T2060, T5600, or T7200. the T2250 is slightly faster but you really won't notice the speed increase.

if you can wait, wait a couple weeks. when i bought my laptop in september, i got a free BrightView display upgrade, free 1GB ram upgrade, and something else i think. the prices are up a bit just cause vista just came out (at least i think that's why).

i'm very happy with my laptop but i wouldn't have minded having a webcam or bluetooth. see if you may want one of these later on.

lastly, how important is battery life for you? i have the 6-cell and it gets me maybe 2 hours on a full charge. my friend has the 9-cell and he gets ~3-3.5 hours. if you are considering the 9-cell, though, keep in mind it is bigger than the 6-cell battery so it sticks out the bottom of the laptop. to see what i'm talking about, go to the configure page and click on the "help me pick" button or whatever it is for the batteries. it'll show a diagram.

alright well enjoy your new laptop

Thanks for the advice!

Yeah I configured this through Costco. They have the T5200 and then after that it's the T5600... do you think the T5600 is worth the extra $91 over the T2250?

As for the battery, I would like a longer battery life than the 6 Cell, but the next upgrade is the 12 Cell and that just looks like it would be too big where it sticks out...

i meant 12 cell but yea, it sticks out 😛

about the processor upgrade, it's really up to you. the advantages of the T5600 are: a faster bus speed (667 vs 533), faster clock speed, i think cache size, and core 2 duo processors (not core duo) can run 64-bit operating systems. if you think you'll be using a 64-bit OS during the time you'll own the laptop, it may be a good thing to consider.

you said the laptop comes out to $880 with the T2250. if you wait a couple weeks (i'm not sure, i'm only guessing) then you may get a 1gb free upgrade. also, after taxes, it should come out to ~$950. we're all looking to spend as little as possible but there's always a max budget. what are you trying to stay under? if the $91 for the T5600 will keep you in budget, and you have a need for a CPU that can operate 64-bit OS's, go for it. if not, then don't. you're not going to see ANY performance difference between the T2250 and T5600 as you're not doing anything that'll stress your CPU 100%

 

[AUMM]

Originally posted by: alimoalem

Originally posted by: AUMM

Originally posted by: alimoalem
looks good. i'm too lazy to look now but did u configure using costco.com? all upgrades are ~10% cheaper if you configure via costco.com and you get a 6 month return policy (that's where i ordered my dv2000t 😀). if you can, go with a core 2 duo cpu. they used to have the T5500 but they seem to have dropped it from the config list. don't go for the T5200 if it's the only core 2 duo you can go with (it's stripped down in more ways than one). so basically i'd recommend either the T2060, T5600, or T7200. the T2250 is slightly faster but you really won't notice the speed increase.

if you can wait, wait a couple weeks. when i bought my laptop in september, i got a free BrightView display upgrade, free 1GB ram upgrade, and something else i think. the prices are up a bit just cause vista just came out (at least i think that's why).

i'm very happy with my laptop but i wouldn't have minded having a webcam or bluetooth. see if you may want one of these later on.

lastly, how important is battery life for you? i have the 6-cell and it gets me maybe 2 hours on a full charge. my friend has the 9-cell and he gets ~3-3.5 hours. if you are considering the 9-cell, though, keep in mind it is bigger than the 6-cell battery so it sticks out the bottom of the laptop. to see what i'm talking about, go to the configure page and click on the "help me pick" button or whatever it is for the batteries. it'll show a diagram.

alright well enjoy your new laptop

Thanks for the advice!

Yeah I configured this through Costco. They have the T5200 and then after that it's the T5600... do you think the T5600 is worth the extra $91 over the T2250?

As for the battery, I would like a longer battery life than the 6 Cell, but the next upgrade is the 12 Cell and that just looks like it would be too big where it sticks out...

i meant 12 cell but yea, it sticks out 😛

about the processor upgrade, it's really up to you. the advantages of the T5600 are: a faster bus speed (667 vs 533), faster clock speed, i think cache size, and core 2 duo processors (not core duo) can run 64-bit operating systems. if you think you'll be using a 64-bit OS during the time you'll own the laptop, it may be a good thing to consider.

you said the laptop comes out to $880 with the T2250. if you wait a couple weeks (i'm not sure, i'm only guessing) then you may get a 1gb free upgrade. also, after taxes, it should come out to ~$950. we're all looking to spend as little as possible but there's always a max budget. what are you trying to stay under? if the $91 for the T5600 will keep you in budget, and you have a need for a CPU that can operate 64-bit OS's, go for it. if not, then don't. you're not going to see ANY performance difference between the T2250 and T5600 as you're not doing anything that'll stress your CPU 100%

Yeah, I think i'll wait for a week or two to see if the price comes down at all as im in no rush to get it. As for my budget, it's pretty much open but I have no need for a 64-bit OS, my use for it is just the basics, surfing the web, movies, word processing etc, and some gaming....

Thanks again for the help!

 

[corkyg]

I have the 12-cell and a 6 cell with my HP. The 12 cell is thicker, and sticks out about 1/5 in more towards the bottom. That isn't at all bad because it gives the keyboard, etc., a nice tilt. It does not stick out laterally or to the rear. It is just thicker towards the bottom.

I use the 12-cell when travelling and the 6 cell at home.