Laptop for College

[Zinc]

Hi,
I'm looking for a quality laptop that will last me some years in college. I'm not a huge gamer, but I want one that can run the latest 3d games at least decently (Mobility Radeon 9700?). What brands or specific models do you guys suggest? I've heard lots of negative things about Dell, so I'll try to stay away from that, any brands/models I should particularly check out?

Thanks.

 

[ShellGuy]

Zinc,

It depends on a few things. One what is your price range. Two do you have a FAV chip maker, ie. AMD or Intel? Three what do you really need this lappy to do, ie. DVD burner if so what type + and or -, Wireless, Max memory. Just to name a few. If you want a custom system there are many companys that do those. I can refer u to a few as can the others who will respond to ur thread. If you don't mind me asking what have you heard bad about *ell? I personaly will be buying an AMD 64bit lappy next now if it is from Emachine or a custom system im not sure yet. Bang for buck the Emachine wins hands down for me. Now will it fit what you want? That is something you will have to decide.

Will

 

[Zinc]

Some features I want are:
- Good video card (Radeon 9700 ?)
- Intel processor probably (I don't have much info on the quality of the AMD Mobile processor)
- Definitely Wireless

I'm willing to pay anywhere from $1000 - $2000 for something that is quality and will last.

 

[ShellGuy]

Well that leaves you open to alot of things, and AMD makes great lappy processors. My biggest thing to suggest is that you get the longest warranty plan you can nomatter who you decide to buy from. The 9700 is the top of the line right now for the most part you can't go wrong with the 9600 that is used in the Emachines and others. What i can say is that you want to stay away from shared memory. Look at this thread to get some ideas about them.

 

[MuffD]

If you want something to last you a few years, I would suggest getting a Thinkpad. They have many good models right now that I think would be great for college. Plus, they are very durable and I think have great construction.

 

[Frightcrawler]

Battery life = ?
This is aimed towards Zinc. How much battery life do you need?

 

[ForceCalibur]

Look at Dell, Hypersonic, Cyberpower and Sager. Compare them and configure to your needs. These four companies have got some wicked price : performance ratio.

 

[ShellGuy]

I think for college that the Hypersonic would be a bit much. Depending on how much he knows about computers and installing an OS he could go with the Cyberpower but he is still over the price of the Emachine and has no OS. He also said he wanted to shy away from *ell.


Will

 

[paranoidandroid]

you also have to consider if you are gonna carry it around. try finding a light laptop. if you didnt mind carrying a widescreen laptop, i would look into getting a compaq x1000 series or hp zt3000 (same laptop, different color scheme) those are pretty good. the x1000 is probably the best quality laptop for the money right now IMHO. widescreen sxga+ is a beauty. battery life was approx 4+ hrs. and its pretty light for a desktop replacement, not like a sager. im pretty sure its only 6.5 lbs. just get yourself a bigger backpack to carry it around

 

[ForceCalibur]

I still say Hypersonic. Take a look at the CX6, it has everything this wants.

PM, Centrino- up to 1.7 gig (equivelent to 3 gig P4)
Radeon 9700 (ONLY Centrino based notebook that is equipped with this GPU)
Integrated Wireless and all the good stuff
Wicked Policies and support.

Price? Very good. A bit more than 2000 depending on how you configure it.

Personally, College isn't starting for another 6 months. I will wait until PCI-express, the socket switch, and the 533 FSB Alviso/Dothan processor comes out to get a notebook. Oh, and dont forget the ATI/Nvidias next gen cards!

 

[SLCentral]

Personally, I'd go for an Apple Powerbook for school-use (but that could just because I'm a Mac user ). The 15" and 17" models have 9600 Pro graphics, which is great, and games are pretty much coming out on both PC and Mac now, with the exception of a few, but for the most part it is OK. The Powerbooks are also incredibly light and thin for computers with such big screens (I think the 15" weighs like 5 pounds), and the screen is excellent, but that's my choice...

 

[Dacalo]

Originally posted by: SLCentral
Personally, I'd go for an Apple Powerbook for school-use (but that could just because I'm a Mac user ). The 15" and 17" models have 9600 Pro graphics, which is great, and games are pretty much coming out on both PC and Mac now, with the exception of a few, but for the most part it is OK. The Powerbooks are also incredibly light and thin for computers with such big screens (I think the 15" weighs like 5 pounds), and the screen is excellent, but that's my choice...

LOL you are kidding right?

 

[SLCentral]

Well I guess I exaturated a bit there, but, for example, Mac's have Halo, BF1942 was announced today, so popular games are finding their way towards the Mac.

 

[Mo0o]

I can tell you that over 50% of the students here all have dell laptops. I think there are 3 models to choose from (dont quote me on that). If you're not a big gamer I would go with the cheapest one.

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Originally posted by: SLCentral
Well I guess I exaturated a bit there, but, for example, Mac's have Halo, BF1942 was announced today, so popular games are finding their way towards the Mac.

Thanks, I haven't laughed that hard in weeks.

- M4H

 

[ShellGuy]

I would guess that the reason most students have *ells is that they give discounts for education use. And most don't think of Emachine as a good company yet. I would have to chose the E over a *ell for the time being.

Will

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Originally posted by: ShellGuy
I would guess that the reason most students have *ells is that they give discounts for education use. And most don't think of Emachine as a good company yet. I would have to chose the E over a *ell for the time being.

Will

W*at t*e *ell is *ith *ou and yo*r ra*dom a*ter*sk*?

- M4H

 

[Abhi]

Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire

Originally posted by: ShellGuy
I would guess that the reason most students have *ells is that they give discounts for education use. And most don't think of Emachine as a good company yet. I would have to chose the E over a *ell for the time being.

Will

W*at t*e *ell is *ith *ou and yo*r ra*dom a*ter*sk*?

- M4H

they aint random...

he just writes "dell" as "*ell"

Dont ask me y!

 

[SLCentral]

Whats so bad about Dell's anwayys, the laptops at least...

 

[Shoobie]

UT2k4 is also on the Mac. I can see where you're coming from, but you can't deny that more and more games are being released across all 3 OSs. The change is slow, but it's there.

 

[Crellion101]

I kinda of interested in this Hypersonic Centrino laptop.... Anyone know where I can find reviews for it?

 

[ScottyS]

Also, check out the Sagers at www.powernotebooks.com. I got my Dad setup with a 17" p4 2.8, but personally I'd want the 16" with RAID.....

 

[ShellGuy]

I can think of no real reason that you would want RAID for a Lappy. It is a beneifit for Servers and such but not a lappy.

Will

 

[BoomAM]

Is it just me whos noticed the contradiction here?
You want a Laptop for college, yet you want it to play games well?! You should be working boyo! lol.

As has been said, if you dont want something that`ll play every game out, prehaps something that`ll play a game or two that`ll keep you entertained, then i`d reccommend a iBook 12.1" & AOE:Gold. Perfect combo. More than enough power for almost any task, and AOE will keep you going for ages.

 

[pukemon]

Take a look at the emachines notebook with the Athlon64 chip in it. it comes with 512MB RAM, 15.4" widescreen display, combo drive, built in wireless, dunno what size hard drive, and an ATI mobility Radeon 9600. I think Best Buy has them for something like $1400 maybe less after rebates. check the hot deals forum.