Hello everyone
The format here is copied from the notebookreviews.com site. I posted there but couldn't get too much info.
I am buying a notebook for my sister who is leaving a management position and going out on her own as a consultant in the same sector. I will answer these questions and then provide some additional details. We are In Toronto, Canada. Please check out the brief comments at the end of the questions section. I'm especially interested in the Vista/XP question. I have a link to the Lenovo Employee Family and Friends Pricing page.
General Questions
1) What is your budget?
$1800 including the 14% sales tax up here
2) What size notebook would you prefer?
c. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen
4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
I have developed the impression that Lenovo are the first choice for enterprise quality machines, and that retail units like Dell and Compaq are generally to be avoided. I am hoping to have this confirmed or corrected.
5) What tasks will you be performing with the notebook?
Primary business laptop ? creating and giving Powerpoint presentations, all word processing, wireless internet access at home and in the field, and possibly optimized for video conferencing (however, this is not certain). Remind me if there?s something I?m missing.
6) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places or leaving it on your desk?
Both, extensive field work
7) Will you be playing games on it; if so, which games?
None
8) How many hours of battery life do you need?
We need maximum battery life
9) Do you mind buying online without seeing the notebook in person?
No. I have a link to Employee Family and Friends pricing for Lenovo, although some units are deeply discounted while others are just 5% or less off retail prices.
10) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
This is a big question for me. I do some trading and I talk to other traders about their equipment a lot. It seems to me that Vista is ?not ready for Prime Time? at this point. My sister is not hugely tech savvy and she has absolutely no need for the 3D aspect of Vista display capabilities, if these capabilities are purely cosmetic. She needs stability over everything.
Screen Specifics
11) Would you prefer standard or widescreen?
WXGA or WXGA+ - 1280x768/800 or 1440x900 WSXGA+ - 1680x1050; WUXGA - 1920x1200
We are going to go to a store and check out the different screens. The resolution question is one that I can?t really answer at this point. I assume that she will want to maximize the efficiency of her screen space and therefore will go with higher resolution.
13) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non-glossy screen?
We need to go look at these as well, as I do not really have an idea about the distinctions. Any comments vis-à-vis using the unit in multiple, various lighting conditions are appreciated.
Build Quality and Design
14) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
Not at all
15) When are you buying this laptop and how long do you want this laptop to last?
Hoping for 36 months
Notebook Components
16) How much hard drive space do you want; 40GB to 200GB?
Since she is not deeply into personal use multimedia (music, movies at home, etc), I assume that a medium size will suffice, unless Powerpoint presentations are much more storage-intensive than I thought.
17) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a DVD, Blu-Ray or HD-DVD drive?
Recently I purchased a piece of software. Got it home and the install disc was a DVD! I could not have installed it had I not had a DVD drive on my rig. So I assume we need one of those. I know that Blu-Ray and HD-DVD are in competition, correct? Any comments on this for future-proofing purposes are appreciated.
Now? I will try hard to make this short.
1. At the Lenovo site I have seen a few T60?s that seem to fit the bill in terms of budget, power, etc. I am wondering about buying the extended Lenovo warranty. The choices at the Employee Purchase Program site are a bit confusing. Is this always a good purchase?
2. I asked my sister what she thinks is important and the first thing she said was ?It has to be light?.
3. Is 1 GB of Ram going to give her a good chance of getting 36 months use or should we go for 1.5 or 2 GB?
4. Reliability is the #1 concern that trumps all. I really don?t think that she needs the absolute bleeding edge of performance.
5. I see that I am paying a premium for Lenovo - I can compare other manufacturers with similar specs at up to 15% less. Is Lenovo worth the premium?
I hope this is a start. Thanks in advance for any comments or recommendations.
The format here is copied from the notebookreviews.com site. I posted there but couldn't get too much info.
I am buying a notebook for my sister who is leaving a management position and going out on her own as a consultant in the same sector. I will answer these questions and then provide some additional details. We are In Toronto, Canada. Please check out the brief comments at the end of the questions section. I'm especially interested in the Vista/XP question. I have a link to the Lenovo Employee Family and Friends Pricing page.
General Questions
1) What is your budget?
$1800 including the 14% sales tax up here
2) What size notebook would you prefer?
c. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen
4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
I have developed the impression that Lenovo are the first choice for enterprise quality machines, and that retail units like Dell and Compaq are generally to be avoided. I am hoping to have this confirmed or corrected.
5) What tasks will you be performing with the notebook?
Primary business laptop ? creating and giving Powerpoint presentations, all word processing, wireless internet access at home and in the field, and possibly optimized for video conferencing (however, this is not certain). Remind me if there?s something I?m missing.
6) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places or leaving it on your desk?
Both, extensive field work
7) Will you be playing games on it; if so, which games?
None
8) How many hours of battery life do you need?
We need maximum battery life
9) Do you mind buying online without seeing the notebook in person?
No. I have a link to Employee Family and Friends pricing for Lenovo, although some units are deeply discounted while others are just 5% or less off retail prices.
10) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
This is a big question for me. I do some trading and I talk to other traders about their equipment a lot. It seems to me that Vista is ?not ready for Prime Time? at this point. My sister is not hugely tech savvy and she has absolutely no need for the 3D aspect of Vista display capabilities, if these capabilities are purely cosmetic. She needs stability over everything.
Screen Specifics
11) Would you prefer standard or widescreen?
WXGA or WXGA+ - 1280x768/800 or 1440x900 WSXGA+ - 1680x1050; WUXGA - 1920x1200
We are going to go to a store and check out the different screens. The resolution question is one that I can?t really answer at this point. I assume that she will want to maximize the efficiency of her screen space and therefore will go with higher resolution.
13) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non-glossy screen?
We need to go look at these as well, as I do not really have an idea about the distinctions. Any comments vis-à-vis using the unit in multiple, various lighting conditions are appreciated.
Build Quality and Design
14) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
Not at all
15) When are you buying this laptop and how long do you want this laptop to last?
Hoping for 36 months
Notebook Components
16) How much hard drive space do you want; 40GB to 200GB?
Since she is not deeply into personal use multimedia (music, movies at home, etc), I assume that a medium size will suffice, unless Powerpoint presentations are much more storage-intensive than I thought.
17) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a DVD, Blu-Ray or HD-DVD drive?
Recently I purchased a piece of software. Got it home and the install disc was a DVD! I could not have installed it had I not had a DVD drive on my rig. So I assume we need one of those. I know that Blu-Ray and HD-DVD are in competition, correct? Any comments on this for future-proofing purposes are appreciated.
Now? I will try hard to make this short.
1. At the Lenovo site I have seen a few T60?s that seem to fit the bill in terms of budget, power, etc. I am wondering about buying the extended Lenovo warranty. The choices at the Employee Purchase Program site are a bit confusing. Is this always a good purchase?
2. I asked my sister what she thinks is important and the first thing she said was ?It has to be light?.
3. Is 1 GB of Ram going to give her a good chance of getting 36 months use or should we go for 1.5 or 2 GB?
4. Reliability is the #1 concern that trumps all. I really don?t think that she needs the absolute bleeding edge of performance.
5. I see that I am paying a premium for Lenovo - I can compare other manufacturers with similar specs at up to 15% less. Is Lenovo worth the premium?
I hope this is a start. Thanks in advance for any comments or recommendations.
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