Old lappy died. Replacment advice?

[GrantMeThePower]

About two and a half years ago (just over) i got an ABS PC notebook. At the time it was my all in one computer. I played games on it as well as mundane everyday tasks. I photoshopped on it, etc, etc. It was my only computer. I bought it at the time because of its good bang vs. buck value to me.

However, it died in just 2.5 years, which IMO is unacceptable. The ram in it had already died before that but this time the mobo is gonners, it wont even come close to post'ing.

I'm now looking for a new notebook, but my needs have changed slightly. I now have a HTPC in my living room and if i were to play games, i would use that system, so the notebook doesn't need to be a screamer.

I do still want to do my photoshopping on the notebook, though. Also, i use it for my music ( i do yahoo subscription service).

I'm looking at 'nicer' brands because quality and durability is important now. I didn't have that as an emphaisis before. I'm thinking maybe a Sony Vaio or something.

My desires are:

Core Duo
Bluetooth
Wifi a/b/g
Built in Xd and CF reader
Small form/light weight (ultraportable?)

plus the necessities for the above programs.

What do you guys think would be the best for me? Thanks!

 

[fbrdphreak]

You forgot the most important part: cost

If you're doing photoshopping, you probably won't want an ultraportable as the screens are relatively low resolution. The only one that comes close IMO is one of the Sony VAIO's with the odd 1333x900 something resolution.

Finding something with xD and CF reader will be hard; I've only seen notebooks with CF only or 5-in-1 excluding CF. Instead pick up this PC Card CF Adapter for $5 Shipped

For a high res portable machine look at Toshiba, Thinkpad T-series (14" SXGA+ or 15" UXGA), or maybe some HP business machines. If you can live with 15.4" your options open up greatly.

 

[GrantMeThePower]

Thanks for the tips.

I can do your recommendation on the CF reader simply because i already have it! I had to buy one for my last lappy, but I just thought it would be convinent to have it all built in, but that is a small consolation to make.

Which Toshiba would you recommend? I'll take a look at the T-series thinkpad also.

Any other recs? Thanks again

 

[fbrdphreak]

You forgot your price limit again

I think the Toshiba M-series is generally fairly light, high res screen, good options. A while ago I configured an M4 14" SXGA+ w/discrete graphics & host of other goodies for like $1900. Although honestly I'd rather have a Thinkpad at that cost.

Yeah CF isn't common on laptops today unfortunately, your best bet is just to use a separate adapter for CF and look for something with the 5-in-1 included.

Thinkpad T-series don't have card readers built in, but the new Z-series do. The Z61t is a 14" widescreen with available 1440x900 screen, Core Duo, and host of other options. Z-series info:
http://www.laptoplogic.com/news/detail.php?id=896

 

[GrantMeThePower]

Ok, lets say i'd go to a 15.4 as you mention it would give me lots more options? What else would you recommend?

My budget isn't set yet. I'm taking an open mind approach and seeing what quality costs and then i'll choose, but right now budget isn't as important as getting it right.

 

[fbrdphreak]

15.4" will give you more options at a lower price, as well as increasing your features and screen resolution (highly important for Photoshopping IMO).

You could go with the new Z61m Thinkpad; Core Duo, 15.4" WSXGA+ (gorgeous screen), dedicated graphics if you want it, top notch build quality.

For a better value machine the HP Pavilion dv4000 or dv5000 models are hot; good build quality, lots of multimedia features, available in AMD or Intel flavors. We reviewed the Turion 64 based dv5000z; it came pretty fully loaded for like $1400, can't beat it. http://www.laptoplogic.com/reviews/detail.php?id=107

A couple things to keep in mind:
*Intel's "Core 2 Duo" is coming out soon, i.e. Merom, the replacement for Yonah. This will replace existing Yonah CPU's in the same platform and at the end of this year/beginning of next, will emerge in a new platform called Santa Rosa. Intel is also planning CPU price cuts in a couple weeks on Yonah.

*AMD's dual core Turion 64 X2 just launched. HP will be a big vendor for these notebooks, but it will take some time. I love HP machines for the value, keep an eye out there.

Whatever you do, it sounds like you want a high res screen for the photo stuff. If 2.5 years is too short for a laptop's life for you and durability is important, a Thinkpad is a sure bet IMO.

 

[GrantMeThePower]

THanks a bunch, buddy!!! I'll check out all those recommendations. I'm probably in more of a hurry than waiting until the end of the year, but I can probably wait a couple weeks for the price cut on the Yonah.

Actually, your last post gives me one more question: which is better? the Yonah or the Turion 64 X2? I see so many more Core Duo's than the amd stuff out there.

Thanks yet again!

edit- I'm looking through your site (great site by the way!!!!) and see a lot of deals on the Dells (like the E1405). Is that a reasonable alternative?

 

[GrantMeThePower]

I'm now thinking about the E1405 from Dell, because for the cost of the Lenovo, I could buy one dell now and then in a couple years a new one! While cost isn't my deciding factor, when I look at it that way it is hard for me to justify the higher cost for a personal computer, not a work one. If it was very important to be reliable for the functioning of my business, I could understand. But for home use it just doesn't seem worth the cost.

Thoughts?

 

[fbrdphreak]

For $1235 I configured an E1405 Core Duo 1.66 2x512MB DDR2 40GB SATA HDD 14" WXGA+ TrueLife CDRW/DVDROM Intel wireless 6-cell & 9-cell 2 year at home service with accidental damage coverage, from here:
http://www.laptoplogic.com/deals/?store_id=9

I've not played with the new Inspirons, but the old ones had reasonable build quality. You can obviously save some money off the config I listed, and I personally would upgrade the hard drive separately, but it is a nice config. I'm a fan of accidental damage coverage warranties, 'cuz I like to use my stuff to the max

It also has two batteries, the Intel wireless (which is pretty good, I'd rather have that over the Dell wireless), and the higher resolution screen (1440x900). Not a bad deal at all

 

[GrantMeThePower]

Thanks...i just did it on dells website with a coupon i found and it came to $802 for Core Duo 1.66/ 1gig of ram/ a/b/g intel wireless/ bluetooth/ WXGA+ Truelife.

Should I jump on that deal?

 

[fbrdphreak]

Sounds like a good deal to me.

As to your question in OT, integrated graphics aren't a huge deal if you aren't gaming. The only thing to keep in mind is Vista's 3D accelerated user interface needs a little 3D horsepower to use it smoothly. The GMA950 is supposed to be compatible with the Vista AeroGlass interface, but it may not render as smoothly as a discrete card.

 

[GrantMeThePower]

Excellent! Thanks. Games won't be a problem. I guess I should go ahead and order it, then.

you've been a huge help, thank you so much

 

[fbrdphreak]

Yeah you might as well order it; $800 for a 14" Core Duo with those specs isn't shabby at all. Let us know how the build quality turns out

 

[Aarondeep]

As for your compact flash adapter, get a PCMCIA one. They work great!