Laptop opinions

[jamaljones]

So... I'm primarily in the market for a laptop for personal use (downloading music, movies, surfing the web etc) and for work stuff (mostly word processing type functions). I know that I needed it to be portable, and am not a gamer in the slightest and so I've been looking at the Dell 640M and wanted any opinions...I've configured it with the following specs:

Intel® Core? 2 Duo processor T5200 (2MB Cache/1.6GHz/533MHz FSB)
Genuine Windows® XP Media Center Edition 2005
14.1 inch WXGA+ UltraSharp? TFT Display with TrueLife?
2GB DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHZ, 2 DIMM
100GB 7200RPM Sata Hard Drive
8X CD/DVD Burner (DVD+/-RW) with double-layer DVD+R write capability
85 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
Intel PRO/Wireless 3945 Internal Wireless
Dell Wireless 355 Bluetooth Internal (2.0 + Enhanced Data Rate)
3 Year Return to Depot Service, Complete Care and Technical Support
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 950

This systems prices out at about $1650 Canadian Dollars, including tax (which is still a distusting 14%)

So far, i haven't been able to find something similarily priced with the same specs. But I've read some good and some not so good reviews on the Dell 640m and wanted any of your opinions...plus...is there anything i should upgrade (or downgrade for that matter..) on this configuration? I could select the 1.83GH/667Mhz processor but that would increase the price by at least $200 and i was originally trying to stay under $1,600 including tax. Plus...for my purposes, I'm not sure i would need it...

 

[cheesehead]

I'm none to keen on the Dell laptops - I've heard that the later-model Dells are good, but I've had enough headaches with their laptops for multiple lifetimes.

You can get an Apple MacBook for that price with a 13.3" widescreen, better battery life, the same amount of RAM, and a faster CPU. Unlike Dell, I've had good experience with Apple tech support, and the AppleCare warranty is not a bad idea at about $275CAD. Aside from a small issue with RAM compatibility (you may as well just have Apple install it), they're very durable - I know two people with MacBooks and one with a MacBook pro, and they all adore them. (I can't say the same about people I know with Dell laptops.)

Lenovo also makes excellent machines - just be prepared for an unplesantly large pricetag.

 

[hmsrolst]

I've had no significant problems with five Dell's, but Latitude's are much better builds than the Inspirons, although I've had no serious problems with either.

 

[TheStu]

I was also going to suggest the MacBook. Like Cheesehead said, for about the same price (maybe a little more) you can get one with 2GB RAM, 2GHz Proc, Wireless, BT, 13" Screen, and a 120GB HDD

 

[cheesehead]

Originally posted by: TheStu
I was also going to suggest the MacBook. Like Cheesehead said, for about the same price (maybe a little more) you can get one with 2GB RAM, 2GHz Proc, Wireless, BT, 13" Screen, and a 120GB HDD

Remember, he wants a 3-yr warranty - I'd drop the CPU speed to 1.83ghz, and the hard drive to the smallest you can live with. 1GB of RAM is plenty for most tasks, though audio/video editing really benifits from 2GB or more.

 

[TheStu]

That is very true. I have been very happy with my first gen MacBook (no Core2 for me... but meh) I bumped it from the stock 512 up to a gig, and that has been my only beef. 512 is nowhere near enough for OS X, especially if you are using Office Mac. Since it isnt UB yet, it has to be emulated which chews up the processor.

The advantage of OS X over XP in this sort of laptop though is that OS X is built for multi-tasking and multi-threading. If for instance you have 2 things going, they each get a core to work with, easy as that. Unfortunately, if you are ever just running one thing, then one of your cores is sitting there uselessly... but I can't remember the last time I only had one thing on. I always have iTunes, Mail, Firefox, and iChat running, and then during the school semester I have Office (Word and Excel mostly), iCal, Address Book, XCode, Emacs, Parallels, and a couple other apps open pretty much all the time.

If you do decide to get a macbook, definitely look into Parallels. The new version lets you access your bootcamp partition (if you decide to go with that) so you dont have to have 2 seperate windows installs on your laptop. Also, with the new Coherence Mode you can run any Windows Specific Apps you may have right on your OS X desktop without having to have the entire Windows interface there. It is very cool (I just wish mine worked all the time, but hey it is still in Beta last i checked)

 

[foges]

another vote for the macbook. I was going to get exactly that laptop, but its just too ugly and big for my taste. I therefore went for a macbook as they are only app. 250$ more expensive

 

[alimoalem]

i think macbooks are good but if the OP won't be using OSX at all, there's no need to get one

he can get a thinkpad t60 for the same price (equal or better specs).
OP, don't get 2gb of ram. 1gb should be more than enough for you. i have the same uses for my laptop as you and i have never used up the full gig on my laptop.

don't get a 7200rpm hdd. it adds a LOT of money to your total purchase. you're going to be using your laptop for basic uses, not hard drive intensive tasks. plus, it adds unneeded heat.

unless you're actually going to be burning DVDs, i would drop down to maybe a cd-burner. if the dell doesn't come with something "lower," that's fine, but if you decide to purchase your laptop elsewhere, i would think about whether a dvd-burner is needed or not.

i would personally go with a Lenovo Thinkpad or HP pavilion laptop. there's nothing wrong with an apple but, imo, unless you're going to use OS X, i wouldn't get one