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Smallest laptop

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pcslookout

Lifer
I am looking to buy a laptop and want something very mobile. Still want it to be powerful though. Should I wait for the new ones coming out or get it now ?

Would like at least a 11 to 13 inch screen.
 
powerful and mobile = thinkpad x220 (or the x230 if you wait).

I just ordered a x220 after I found out lenovo is switching out the legacy keyboard with a 6 row chiclet keyboard on the next generation. it's a deal breaker for me but might not be for you.

12.5 inch IPS screen and a i7 2640m is about as powerful and mobile as it gets, the price is good too especially if you're in the US.
 
yeah, I agree with x220... if you have the budget, you can pretty much get the beefiest dual core mobile i7 (it doesn't come with a quad 🙁...), with ips screen ,ssd, battery life with 9-cell over 7 hours... plus optional slice battery if you need >12 hours battery
 
I'll third that the x220 is perfect for you. I own one and the portability is excellent, it's very light (though not MBA light), it's powerful enough to be running CAD and it has the best laptop screen in its class if you get the IPS version.

The IB update to the x220 (x230) will likely come down in a few months, which would help with your load battery life (if you like running CAD on the go...)
 
Your druthers matchup with an ultrabook. The X220 is a good one.
 
Another vote for the X220 with an SSD here. I've used one with a Crucial M4 256GB SSD, orgasmic setup literally.
 
pcslookout said:
I am looking to buy a laptop and want something very mobile. Still want it to be powerful though. Should I wait for the new ones coming out or get it now ?

Would like at least a 11 to 13 inch screen.
Click to expand...

Avoid the Atom processor, slow as hell. Your best choices are:

11.6" HP Pavilion dm1z , $400-$500
11.6" Lenovo IdeaPad S205, $400-$500
11.6" Lenovo ThinkPad X130e , $600-$700
12.5" Lenovo ThinkPad X220, $1000
13.0" Lenovo IdeaPad U300, $1200
13.0" Lenovo IdeaPad Z380 <--this is what i am waiting for. $600-$800

Lenovo 3-year warranty (2-year extended) for $70, HP 3-year warranty (2-year extended) is $270. Avoid Acer and Gateway.

http://outlet.lenovo.com/ has some good deals, but warranty is 1-year only and cannot be extended.
 
I vote for the x220 as well. I've had mine for a year now and it's the best laptop I have ever used without contest. I put a 120gb Intel 320 SSD in mine and it's plenty fast with the i5 2410m.
 
I think we can expect more in the vein of the Clevo soon, but also bear in mind that the IB IGP is supposed to be not a slouch. I'd say wait until the initial IB offerings settles down.

If you had to buy now? The VAIO Z gives you better options than the X220 in a more portable - and arguably as travel-durable (and cosmetically just as vulnerable on the outside) package, despite the tendency towards flexibility. The GPU may be outboard, but if you don't use it (the GPU that is) while moving around then it might work for you. It's a hell of a machine. The X220 is a fine machine though if you can't afford a Z and don't need a GPU.
 
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vbuggy said:
I think we can expect more in the vein of the Clevo soon, but also bear in mind that the IB IGP is supposed to be not a slouch. I'd say wait until the initial IB offerings settles down.

If you had to buy now? The VAIO Z gives you better options than the X220 in a more portable - and arguably as travel-durable (and cosmetically just as vulnerable on the outside) package, despite the tendency towards flexibility. The GPU may be outboard, but if you don't use it (the GPU that is) while moving around then it might work for you. It's a hell of a machine. The X220 is a fine machine though if you can't afford a Z and don't need a GPU.
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true, though I think the x220 stands up to more abuse (mil-spec) and has optional on-site next-business-day service, and of course the IPS option
 
paperwastage said:
true, though I think the x220 stands up to more abuse (mil-spec) and has optional on-site next-business-day service, and of course the IPS option
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Yeah, I mean if you were to jump up and down on it, the likelihood of it surviving to a usable degree would probably be better than the Sony - but I'm surprised by how quickly the X220 starts looking really thirdhand (though I grant you the Sony also has it's fair share of cosmetic issues).

And I'd take a top-notch X-black 900p/1080p screen over a rather second-rate looking (and I prefer matte screens) 768p screen that doesn't shift colours when you're looking at it at an odd angle, big whoop.
 
vbuggy said:
Yeah, I mean if you were to jump up and down on it, the likelihood of it surviving to a usable degree would probably be better than the Sony - but I'm surprised by how quickly the X220 starts looking really thirdhand (though I grant you the Sony also has it's fair share of cosmetic issues).
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The x220 (thinkpads in general actually) look third hand the day you buy them! 😀 If you're buying a thinkpad, you're not buying it to show off to other people. You're buying a rugged, dependable workhorse that can be dropped, crushed, spilled on, smacked, used as a weapon, and still work.

And I'd take a top-notch X-black 900p/1080p screen over a rather second-rate looking (and I prefer matte screens) 768p screen that doesn't shift colours when you're looking at it at an odd angle, big whoop.
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The IPS option on the x220 isn't second rate; it's either one of the best or the best 768p laptop screen available on a laptop today. To hate on 768p is one thing; to hate on the quality of the x220 IPS screen just because it's 768p is just silly.
 
kevinsbane said:
The x220 (thinkpads in general actually) look third hand the day you buy them! 😀 If you're buying a thinkpad, you're not buying it to show off to other people. You're buying a rugged, dependable workhorse that can be dropped, crushed, spilled on, smacked, used as a weapon, and still work.

The IPS option on the x220 isn't second rate; it's either one of the best or the best 768p laptop screen available on a laptop today. To hate on 768p is one thing; to hate on the quality of the x220 IPS screen just because it's 768p is just silly.
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No, I mean that it's fairly mediocre as far as screens go in terms of brightness and other factors affecting usability in a portable scenario even in contrast to other non-crud TN panels. Sure, the ability to see the display unimpeded from a much wider angle is a plus, but as I said, I'd take a superior (as far as TN goes) 900p/1080p TN panel with decent-but-not-amazing angles over the X220 display any time.

Also I've found the Thinkpads - the recent ones anyway - a distinct 'meh' in terms of ultimate roadability in a mass-for-real-world-durability-benefit ratio. The X Tablets are the only TP's I have left now and I only keep them around because there's not a lot of competition around in that respect, and I like using convertibles. Generally speaking I think Thinkpads are overrated with the devotees parroting things along the lines of what you said without any real comparative experience, and I also think they have a lot of catching up to do in terms of 'critical engineering'. They can't rely on increased bulk for ever. The new X1 seems interesting though.
 
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vbuggy said:
No, I mean that it's fairly mediocre as far as screens go in terms of brightness and other factors affecting usability in a portable scenario even in contrast to other non-crud TN panels. Sure, the ability to see the display unimpeded from a much wider angle is a plus, but as I said, I'd take a superior (as far as TN goes) 900p/1080p TN panel with decent-but-not-amazing angles over the X220 display any time.
Click to expand...

Er... Care to elucidate? Because the panel is more than usable in all the situations that I've found myself in than any other 768p panel I've seen, including outdoors. Only in direct sunlight is it hard to see. It is not as bright as some panels, to be sure, but higher brightness is not necessary except in direct sunlight, and I don't see many usage scenarios in direct sunlight. Do you know of a single 768p panel that is distinctly superior to the X220's?

Also I've found the Thinkpads - the recent ones anyway - a distinct 'meh' in terms of ultimate roadability in a mass-for-real-world-durability-benefit ratio. The X Tablets are the only TP's I have left now and I only keep them around because there's not a lot of competition around in that respect, and I like using convertibles. Generally speaking I think Thinkpads are overrated with the devotees parroting things along the lines of what you said without any real comparative experience, and I also think they have a lot of catching up to do in terms of 'critical engineering'. They can't rely on increased bulk for ever. The new X1 seems interesting though.
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Roadability? Mass-for-real-world-durability-benefit? Critical engineering for what? What exactly are you talking about here? You're saying a lot, but not saying very much at the same time... are you trying to say that the x220 is heavy?

My comaprative experience of my x220 is that it is light (holding it with one hand is very easy), it is small, but either way it does not need to be babied the way MBA and ultrabooks need to be. It's got a longer battery life than ultrabooks and MBA (and Vaio Z). The screen is better than all other 768p screens I've ever used or seen. The keyboard is heaven in a laptop, and the trackpoint means that I don't need an external mouse on the go. In general use, it's dead quiet; its fans do not spin.
 
The x220 should be everything my x120e is not, which means it should be awesome.
And the x120e is awesome already, if you ignore the E350 processor. 😀
 
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