Laptop Suggestions

[crab]

I'm going to be in the hospital for a bit, so I need a laptop. Price is not a problem as long as it's $3500 or less. I'm looking for the best, and after hearing about those PIII 1Ghz issues, i'm getting confused. Please let me know what you guys suggest.

 

[wyvrn]

Brand-wise, my first choice are the IBM Thinkpads. If you want a bit cheaper one with packed features, go Toshiba. Only one I really dislike are the Compaq because of their support policies, but their Armada's are fairly nice.

 

[bacillus]

<< I'm going to be in the hospital for a bit >>


I'm sorry to hear of your problem. hope that all goes well for you!

 

[crab]

Are any laptops out with the GeForce2 Go chip yet?

 

[erikistired]

i'd second that vote for thinkpads. i just bought myself a thinkpad a21m, and i love it. (the only thing lacking is 3d, but that's a laptop thing, altho with some of the new chips coming out, even bad 3d could be a thing of the past). i work on laptops from almost all vendors as part of my job, and i have to say, i consider the thinkpad one of the best built (and easiest to work on) machines out there. you can see my specs in my sig. i paid ~$2000 direct from ibm.

~erik

also, sorry to hear about having to spend time in the hospital, not fun at all.

 

[Rogue]

Dell Inspiron 8000, no questions asked.

 

[Lord Gwynz]

You'll probably pay a premium, but I think the Thinkpads are worth every penny. I also have a Toshiba Tecra 8100, and while it's a nice machine overall, the quality of the keyboard and chassis falls short next to a Thinkpad IMO.

 

[Oyeve]

I'm with Rogue on this one. Sweet lappy.

 

[Gunbuster]

Toshiba has a geforce2go model in retail stores now.

 

[Spook]

Satellite 2805-S402 Notebook

THis one has Go Tech...

Dell is supposed to be getting the 'Go' Chips, but When I called they weren't sure when...

I've been looking at Dell as well.... IF your going to get RAM for this thing, get the minimum, and order 128/$60 or 256/$120 from Crucial... Ram upgrades from these places are a rip...

I'm personnally waiting for Dell to get the Go Chips...

 

[erikistired]

i looked at dell machines, but i tried out one with the combo point stick/touchpad and didn't think either of them were very well built. the buttons for the point stick (which i prefer on a laptop) felt really cheesy, and the touchpad was, well, a touchpad. anyway, other than that, they seem to be okay machines (altho i had a problem getting an hp usb cdrw to work on a brand new 8000, but replacing it with a que drive worked fine). i'd definately try out one tho if you can find one, to make sure you'll be happy with the point situation (unless of course you plan to use an external mouse, then it won't matter).

~erik

 

[johnny1111]

I have Dell Inspiron 8000 &amp; I really like it, P3@800 32 meg video, DVD &amp; CDRW + firewire, S video ect... Dell now offers a combo DVD/CDRW drive so you could have a floppy or another battery in the modular bay. They also offer 5400 rpm hard drives, 32 gig or 48gig!!!
I do agree about the touch pad/ pointing stick situation, but I've never liked ether on any laptop that I have used. I got myself one of those &quot;palm&quot; mice that are meant for being used for presentations while standing, works well for laying in bed. I hope everything works out during your stay at the hospital, take care -john