multiple monitors on a laptop...

[Basilisk]

A friend requested suggestions on a new desktop computer, but we ended up talking about a laptop as a better solution.
His use:
- office [non-game] spreadsheets, etc.
- (occasional) portability a plus for presentations & synchronizing data at his university office
- delivered s/w is irrelevant as his university IT staff will load a standard boot-set of bulk-licensed s/w (WinXP and all)
- two monitors would really benefit his work with large spreadsheet calculations [for enrollment grants!]
- wireless LAN would be a plus (requirement?) for his university office

His university IT staff regularly support Dell machines, so that's a plus for the Dell 8600 -- which, alas, only offers a 15.4" LCD laptop. Gateway [terrible resellerratings] and Sager have 17" models of particular interest as they have faster processors (-not- being Pentium-M) and faster memory (400 vs 333).

'Guess I'd suggest adding a wireless (802.11a,b,g) PCMCIA card for his university office, a 17" LCD for the second screen (Hitachi CML174SXWB?), and maybe a Logitech cordless/optical USB keyboard/mouse as he spends long hours working at home. And maybe a wireless router to replace his current router so he could work all through the house.

Finally, The Questions:
1) Is there any reason to think that laptop machines having ATI mobility 9600's would have any problem utilizing dual screens (onboard screen plus external LCD monitor) for things like spreadsheets? [Does mobility 9600 support wrap of one screen onto the other device??? Or just two separate windows? I understand how non-mobility Radeons work, but I haven't found documentation on the mobility models.]
2) Is there a strong argument for one laptop manufacturer over the others? [I've never bought a laptop, and I've assembled my own machines for over a decade: I haven't a clue about current manufacturers' quality.]
3) Is there any reason the USB keyboard/mouse would present problems with the typical laptop?

That's it. 'Appreciate any insight those of you who've used recent laptops can provide!

 

[Shivatron]

1) and 3) are easy. Mobility Radeons (and in fact just about every laptop video card with video out) support both mirroring and spanning across multiple monitors, just like you describe. I use it all the time (including with Excel) and love it. As for USB keyboard/mouse, that's no problem as well. Personally I love to have a regular mouse around, and some people even like a regular keyboard much better than the laptops built-in one (although that's never been a concern for me, YMMV of course.)

As for 2), there's a bit of debate, but most people view IBM's laptops as the top of the quality heap (because they're often ordered by corporations en masse and have developed quite a reputation for being rugged), followed by Toshiba and Dell (again, the fact that they are popular has a lot to do with it), then Acer, Compaq/HP, and lastly the econo-brands like eMachines (although I've heard good things about eM in the last few months). Of course it's entirely possible to get a bad box from ANY manufacturer so when all is said and done, make sure that the manufacturer you choose has a good warranty policy (and perhaps even a 30-day return policy, if you're really fussy).

[EDIT: I guess I should also mention that I find 15.4" displays very nice (and think that 17" is too large for a laptop) and also, most laptops come with an option for internal wireless so that PCMCIA card would be unnecessary.]

 

[1999gap]

...also to add. Just about all the laptops have an optional port replicator available which would greatly enhance their stationary useability as the perepherials(monitor, keyboard/mouse, wired lan, A/C power, phone line, speakers, printer, scanner, etc....) could always stay plugged into the replicator in his office. Pop the laptop into the replicator, boot up and you wouldn't know you were working off your laptop. I also think the 17 inch displays make a laptop that is MUCH too large to be very practical and if you had a monitor plugged into the replicator, the large laptop screen would not be neccessary. I have the Compaq X1000 which has a 15.4 inch display and I would consider this laptop the largest that I would want to carry around. The Centrino based laptops outperform their higher clocked cousins in one main area and that is battery life which doesn't really sound like much of a concern to him. Most laptops now have built in wireless available, whether it be the "B" standard which is a requirement to make the machine a Centrino(along with the Intel mainboard chipset), or the faster,newer and better "G" standard. I would also consider a high speed hardrive a must also. Many standar laptops ship with a 4200 RPM drive, with a 5400 RPM as optional. Both Toshiba and Hitachi offer 7200 RPM drives which will greatly increase the performance of just about any laptop sold. Also consider built in Bluetooth as that may help with the keyboard/mouse issues. I personally am contemplating building a new home PC or investing in a port replicator and new monitor for my home use. The new laptops perform VERY well, especially if you are not a hardcore gamer. Basically, if battery life isn't an issue, you can disregard the Centrino lineup, but don't be fooled by their lower clock speed as they do perform exceptionally. GP

 

[Basilisk]

Thanks to each of you for the several good points.

- I need to find out which rate (a,b,g) his university Wireless LAN requires: I'd mentioned the PCMCIA card for its 3-rate coverage (which I haven't seen in an embedded wireless). Is there any dominant rate (or multiple rates) for institutional wireless these days? I'd feel embarassed to have him buy into one standard, then have the school (or circumstances like a job change) obsolete the built-in rate.

- 17"? I'll bet you're right that it's too large. This was basically a desktop computer with "improved portability" and he doesn't need to commute with it on a regular basis, but he does need two biggish monitors for good spreadsheet exposure. Maybe a 15.4" laptop with a similar LCD monitor makes sense -- and save a fair amount of change -- so we should make a trip to someplace to see what they're like.

- The Centrino would be fine for spreadsheets and his other work, but he doesn't need the power savings, as you noted, and it's pricier-but-slower. 'Guess I'll take that off my "disadvantages list" and let total price speak for itself.

- I'd noticed the various disk rates and was puzzling how to factor that in: 7200's can be noisy disks, which might be a greater problem in a laptop, and he's not banging all that much on the disk accesses. Are the 7200's pretty quiet in the laptops?

- I've read that Toshiba is getting out of the laptop business, alas. Guess it's time to study the IBM models.

Thanks again for your suggestions... I think you've helped us a lot.

 

[Shivatron]

Originally posted by: Basilisk
Thanks to each of you for the several good points.

- I need to find out which rate (a,b,g) his university Wireless LAN requires: I'd mentioned the PCMCIA card for its 3-rate coverage (which I haven't seen in an embedded wireless). Is there any dominant rate (or multiple rates) for institutional wireless these days? I'd feel embarassed to have him buy into one standard, then have the school (or circumstances like a job change) obsolete the built-in rate.

IBM (and Dell, AFAIK) both sell A/B/G wireless mini-PCI (read: internal) cards. Of course, any "G" card is automatically "B" compatible (both standards operate at 2.4 GHz) so if you're super-concerned about compatibility and can't buy an A/B/G card, then just buy an A/B card. As for institutional wireless, it can be any one of the three, which isn't much help to you. I can tell you however that I've never seen "A" outside of a large corporate WLAN (ie, it's not used by average consumers).

- 17"? I'll bet you're right that it's too large. This was basically a desktop computer with "improved portability" and he doesn't need to commute with it on a regular basis, but he does need two biggish monitors for good spreadsheet exposure. Maybe a 15.4" laptop with a similar LCD monitor makes sense -- and save a fair amount of change -- so we should make a trip to someplace to see what they're like.

Definitely, try before you buy. Another thing to think of resolution -- lots of laptops come with an option to choose between 1024*768 and 1400*1050 (remember, the native resolution of an LCD panel cannot be exceeded, and things can look blurry when the panel is operated at a lower resolution than designed for). Some people find the larger resolution too small, but I find it can really help maximize usable screen space on a small display.

The other thing to remember is that you could always buy a bigger external LCD and operate it at a different resolution, although that might not be useful for you application.

- The Centrino would be fine for spreadsheets and his other work, but he doesn't need the power savings, as you noted, and it's pricier-but-slower. 'Guess I'll take that off my "disadvantages list" and let total price speak for itself.

Yeah, it's pricier, but since a 1.6GHz Pentium M (the name of the processor is "Pentium M", it only becomes a "Centrino" when paired with the Intel chipset and wireless card) is roughly equivalent to a 2.4GHz P4, unless you were looking at a really fast P4 laptop, the Pentium M laptops can be just as fast, if not faster.

Also, a word about Centrino -- unless you really like the sound of the name, or have some other reason for wanting that Intel wireless card, you're usually better off to buy a Pentium M laptop with another type of wireless card (ie. Dell's TrueMobile, IBM's wireless card, or Cisco's Aironet). Intel's card tends to be more expensive and when I bought my laptop, Intel only had a wireless "B" card (although I heard there was a "G" card in the works).

- I'd noticed the various disk rates and was puzzling how to factor that in: 7200's can be noisy disks, which might be a greater problem in a laptop, and he's not banging all that much on the disk accesses. Are the 7200's pretty quiet in the laptops?

Apparantly, the IBM Travelstar 7K60 (which is the most popular 7200 RPM drive right now) is only slightly noisier than the 5400. It's hallmark is apparantly a soft high-pitched whine. Personally I'd take a 7K60 if I could get it, but you might be more sensitive to noise than me so YMMV. I certainly wouldn't buy a 4200RPM laptop, that's too slow and having worked with both 4200 and 5400RPM laptops I can safely say that you probably wouldn't notice the difference.

- I've read that Toshiba is getting out of the laptop business, alas. Guess it's time to study the IBM models.

News to me. Where did you read that? Laptops are Toshiba's only form of computer sales (they don't make desktops) and I really can't see them focusing on their PDA line. Anyway, I can attest to the IBM name, they really are rugged, and my T40p has got to be one of the fastest laptops I've ever used. One thing to keep in mind is that a Thinkpad WILL be more expensive than a comparable laptop by another manufacturer. My advice is to see if you can find a ThinkPad and give it a try, and then go down to BestBuy or whatever and try the Toshibas, Compaqs, and others. As for Dell, well you'll just have to read reviews...

Thanks again for your suggestions... I think you've helped us a lot.

No problem, HTH.