What is the absolute best Desktop replacement out there?

[Amritpaul]

Hi guys,
I need to buy a laptop and I would like the best one. Could you guys please tell me which desktop replacement is the biggest, fastest, and absolute best?
Any replies will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

[BargainSeeker]

How big of an issue is battery life? If the laptop could only run 65 minutes on batteries would that be a problem for you?

 

[Soybomb]

I would say too what type of desktop replacement? Are you a gamer who would consider 3d acceleration to be the most important, or a graphic designer and would rather have the best display, etc.

 

[alexruiz]

Welcome to the forums. If you check some of the posts, you will likely find several answers. I suggest you check the Andrew Ku's review of the VoodooPC envy m:855 (Athlon 64 3200+ DTR, mobility radeon 9600). If you want the absolute best and fastest, this should be

I know that in the review there was no P4 3.2 800 FSB, but it won't matter that much. Check the desktop reviews of the Athlon 64 and you could expect the same trend in the mobile front.... maybe even more, as the P4 really needs LOW latency memory to shine, and I don't think the PC3200 SODIMMs are there yet..... In addition, even if they run very close would you take the (6kg / 80 mins of battery life / frying pan machine) OR the (3.6 kg / 3 hours battery life / just warm machine).... easy choice if you ask me.

If you are not expecting at least 90 minutes of your battery (enought ot watch a DVD), get a CUBE mini desktop machine instead.... you don't need a laptop!

So in short:

Fastest, baddest: Athlon 64 (voodoo envy m:855), very good battery life by the way
More features: Sagers (clevo) with P4, optional raid, TV tuner, 17" screens, etc..... be sure you have some muscles, you will need them
Best battery life, good punch. A decent P-M machine

As I said, you will get different answers, but I am sure that the machine that fits more closely the bill of "fastest" is based in an Athlon 64... you have your choices

 

[alexruiz]

Originally posted by: Soybomb
I would say too what type of desktop replacement? Are you a gamer who would consider 3d acceleration to be the most important, or a graphic designer and would rather have the best display, etc.

You are right guys..... he needs to define first what he wants....

 

[Firus]

I have a Clevo (Eurocom D500p) with the Radeon 9600pro. 2.6c P4 800mhz fsb etc. Yes it is kind of heavy, but the ONLY time you notice it, is if you are trying to pick it up with one hand from the very corner where you have no leverage, other than that you never even think twice about the weight. It's still a laptop, I still use it everywhere in the house VIA wireless connection (on the couch or in bed is nice ). Eurocom does offer the PC3200 SODIMMS which mine has, so you don't have to worry about that...and my lord, the screen is like nothing I have ever seen, the clarity and crispness are astounding (Make sure you get something with at least the UXGA like mine) I have looked at many a laptop at stores/work and the screens are so mediocre complared to what this puppy can offer. For games it rocks too, so thats a bonus.

Edit: battery life easily gets 90 minutes, unless you are doing something very power intensive.

 

[bunnyfubbles]

Originally posted by: Firus
I have a Clevo (Eurocom D500p) with the Radeon 9600pro. 2.6c P4 800mhz fsb etc. Yes it is kind of heavy, but the ONLY time you notice it, is if you are trying to pick it up with one hand from the very corner where you have no leverage, other than that you never even think twice about the weight. It's still a laptop, I still use it everywhere in the house VIA wireless connection (on the couch or in bed is nice ). Eurocom does offer the PC3200 SODIMMS which mine has, so you don't have to worry about that...and my lord, the screen is like nothing I have ever seen, the clarity and crispness are astounding (Make sure you get something with at least the UXGA like mine) I have looked at many a laptop at stores/work and the screens are so mediocre complared to what this puppy can offer. For games it rocks too, so thats a bonus.

Edit: battery life easily gets 90 minutes, unless you are doing something very power intensive.

Ditto, mines a Sager but it's pretty much identical (Clevo D500P). $2000 will get you 2.8GHz P4C, mobile 9600 Pro, UXGA, 1GB of DDR400, and an extra batter for the media expansion bay. $3600 for Voodoo's Athlon 64 notebook seems a little absurd in comparison if you're going for a desktop replacement notebook. Hell, you could get yourself a nice Centrino notebook ontop of a D500P with the money you'd save and have nearly the best of both worlds.

 

[Abhi]

Biggest? in a laptop ?

Anyway... i ll keep shut since u want a desktop replacement.

You must have a budget dude.... dont you?

 

[Frightcrawler]

if battery life didnt matter to him, then he'd be better off getting a SfF or desktop.

 

[alexruiz]

Originally posted by: bunnyfubbles
$2000 will get you 2.8GHz P4C, mobile 9600 Pro, UXGA, 1GB of DDR400, and an extra batter for the media expansion bay. $3600 for Voodoo's Athlon 64 notebook seems a little absurd in comparison if you're going for a desktop replacement notebook.....

$2000 gets you also an Athlon 64 3200+, mobility radeon 9600 and travelstar 7K60 in addition to 512 MB PC3200.... downgrade to the 3000+ and you get 1 GB of RAM, plus money for the case...... all of them based in the same MITAC 8355 design.

Where?? Check the thread about more vendors offering the Athlon 64 lappies. What you are paying for in the voodoo machine is the craftmanship (the machine is assembled by them) plus all the details and customized items.

 

[WJB05]

bunnyfubbles, I am torn between IBM and Sager. Which Sager do you have and did you consider others before buying Sager? Thank you. . .

 

[bunnyfubbles]

I was seriously considering a Centrino based notebook, everything from IBM to Panasonic's Toughbook but the price was a little too high for me... spending $3-4000 for a laptop just wasn't going to fly. I didn't need just a tough/portabale notebook, I'd never had nor absolutely needed to be completely wireless for extended periods of time. Once I found Sager I'd made my choice. Such power packed into a notebook for such a price, I couldn't help but pull the trigger.

My Sager is the 5680 and I've never had any regrets with it. The amazing part is that it's nearly as fast as you could want it to be and for me then some coming from an Athlon 1700+, 512MB DDR266, Radeon 8500. There is a larger model with a 16" screen and offers a full size keyboard and the option for hard drives in a RAID setup, which would help you to approach desktop HDD space/speed leaving only sound to be desired (which you can get with an Audigy 2 NX external USB 2.0 sound card).

Now I'd just say if you want a desktop replacement laptop then you'd probably want the Sager. The 15" UXGA is incredible and the price/performance is great. That's just my advice. If you want wireless portability for extended periods of time then I'd suggest looking away from Sager.

 

[WJB05]

Thank you! You have probably solved my dilemma. I have read reviews and looked at laptops for a month - and have considered the Sager 5680. The 5680 it will be! One question: how is the keyboard? Thanks again

 

[Bateluer]

The Voodoo M855. Thats the one I am getting in a couple weeks.

 

[Ramses]

I have a 5660 Sager, same keyboard as the 5680, I'm happy with it. I've used dell's and IBM's and this one compares favorably I think. I really have no complaints in general other than the heat and battery life, but mine is a special case(don't ask).

The Sager's and the like are really an amazing deal, look into a used one, there dirt cheap, couple have been on the forums recently.

 

[WJB05]

Do you find the SXGA= (1400 x 1050) or the UXGA (1600 x 1200) icons, etc. to be extremely small? I understand that the UXGA can be viewed at 800 x 600. That is my primary concern.

 

[Amused]

 

[alexruiz]

Originally posted by: Bateluer
The Voodoo M855. Thats the one I am getting in a couple weeks.

Let us know how the baby works..... I will be following your steps shortly

Alex

 

[WJB05]

Can anyone else comment on their experience with the Sager 5680? I'm 98% certain the 5680 will be under our tree this year. Does its reliability rank near IBM? Thanks