Need to get a laptop..where and what would you get

[nealh]

I have am looking to get my first laptop computer and need some help...

What is consider heavy wgt for a laptop...

I want "fast and late model"...while I will not be doing very intensive stuff...word processing, internet, gaming I do not want something that feels slow as comapred to the desktops and will be obsolete in terms of longevity ...I realize all computers have a short life but with my desktops I can upgrade and keep them going.....but a laptop well what you buy is what you get...they are harder to upgrade right

I have 2 desktops...AthlonXP 1700@1900 and P42.4@3.0...I have to say the P4 and AthlonXP seem to be very close in speed...It maybe winxp needs to better setup on the P4 but it sure does not feel much faster than my AthlonXP(and I am disappointed about this..wish I had stayed AMD and moved to faster Athlon)

I would like to get the best graphics card possible as I believe this is one of the weaker spots on a laptop and would like at least 256 mg DDR ram

P4/AthlonXP mobile
256mg DDR or more
Geforce 460 or Radeon 9000??
nice screen
HDD is not as important so long as I can have FW port

Any ideas would be apppreciated

what and where would you buy from

I do not expect desktop performance in gaming
I am thinking AMD would be best as I am unimpressed by my P4

 

[techfuzz]

I'm partial to Dell's laptops, especially their Latitude series. It's tried and true and like Timex, it takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin'. Very important words for those of us in the IT support field! I think you can get up-to a 2.4Ghz P4 mobile and they are soon going to come out with a Banais based system which will be even faster and more efficient battery-wise. Most come with 32MB ATI mobility chipsets, 14.1"-15" screens, SXGA+ for clarity, and lots of other built in options. The only thing I'm not sure about is Firewire.

techfuzz

 

[everman]

I would look at Dell, Toshiba, and IBM.

 

[nealh]

thanks guys...no good athlon based systems..It just seems the athlonxp are better given lack of dual channel ddr or rdram setup for the P4

 

[techfuzz]

Centrino is actually the trademarked name for new chip architecture from Intel. I couldn't remember before what they had renamed it to. It is suggested they will be released at 1.3 and 1.6 Ghz but will operate faster and more efficiently than Pentium 4 mobile processors.

The Dell Latitude series does use DDR SDRAM which runs at PC2100 speed. I doubt you're going to find any RDRAM notebooks, it wouldn't be worth the extra cost IMO.

techfuzz

 

[nealh]

I agree rdram will not be pratical...thanks techfuzz

 

[DrVos]

Something to consider is what you plan on doing with the laotop. I undersntand that you want to be able to play games on it, but are you intending this a desktop replacement that you can take home during the holidays? Are you intending to take this to the library and class? If you plan on hardly moving the thing, weight wont be much of a factor, but if you plan on taking the thing to the library and class and stuff you really wouldnt want to get a laptop over 6 lbs. It doesn't sound like a lot but it trust me your arm/shoulder/back will definetly feel it.

 

[DX2Player]

Yes what will you be using it for?

 

[nealh]

It primary will do word processing and surfing..occasional gaming and video stuff...probably not alot of video editing or photoshop

It is not intended as desktop replacement...I do not expect that kinda performance but would like a nice versatile machine

I am not a student but portability is always nice....

Not asking much am I...LOL

 

[hdeck]

Powerbook

 

[Spicedaddy]

IBM T-series, Fujitsu E-series, Dell 4150 (no firewire)...

 

[DX2Player]

Well if mostly used for Works and Web surfing I would buy a failry decent one so it wont become obsolete soon but i wouldnt wory about getting a good graphics card either. Just get a 2GHz+ with a 7500 card. I cheapo graphics card wont hurt your e-mail capability.

 

[Darien]

Originally posted by: hdeck
Powerbook

Or iBook, depending on budget and what you're looking for exactly.

 

[Markfw]

How about this one :
http://www.compusa.com/products/product_info.asp?product_code=299580&pfp=cat1

I like Compaq laptops, it has an XP2000 (mobile) that you like, and Radeon mobility graphics. Also it has 512 meg ram and a DVD/CDRW. What more could you want !

 

[nealh]

thanks guys

I the only thing about compusa is there return policies if there is a problem....but I know laptops are much shorter and hard to return

spicedaddy...I at the usual retail locations I have not seen IBM or Fujistu(are these releiable)

 

[alexruiz]

I am also looking for a laptop. I need to admit that I am partial to AMD, so I have skipped the P4 notebooks. Unfortunately, the best Athlon XP laptops are not fully loaded, don't have a dedicated video card and lack some ports. The compaq presario 900 and 2100 series seem to be a good buy, but video is only the radeon 7000 core integrated in the ATI 320M IGP. They are also cheap and have some good basic features. But if you want the best laptop based on an AMD CPU you should get the Sony VAIO NVR-23 (AXP 1800+, kn266a chipset, GeForce 420 Go, firewire). It is not cheap ($1500) and not light (8.6 pounds) but it should be a powerhouse on the road. I think that also it performance should surpass the laptops based on ATI's IGP 320. The kt266a was a fast chipset, and the mobile part should be the same. the 320 IGP is still maturing.

Whatever your choice (P4, Athlon, etc) I would say that if you want high performance make sure to have 512 MB in RAM, and you MUST change whatever hard drive it has for the IBM travelstar 40gnx.... 5400 rpm with 8 MB cache!!! The WD SE of the laptop world. It would make the machine feel way faster!!! (I know some laptops have 5400 rpms drives, but is any of those a 8MB cache baby??)

Happy hunting and good luck!

Alex