Advice on Laptops

[Sppedmode]

I'm looking to get a laptop this month (spend around $1000-1200) and was curious what you guys use on the road. What do you like or dislike about certain models. I'm looking at a Dell or Gateway, but am open to other options. All I really need is something to get online with at the hotel and watch DVD's during the commute. Thanks for your help in advance!

 

[Gulfstream 200]

just bought a dell 2650 recently.
was pretty cheap and has a 15 inch screen / dvd.
perfect for movies and email and any office junk you may run.

Cant beat DELL price (mine was 1000$) but you DO get what you pay for, it is no doubt built CHEAP and feels CHEAP. But it works good so far. I have owned a few diffrent brands of laptops and have to say if you have the extra few dollars go with IBM. You WILL pay more but they are tops. They run quiet, realiably, and cool...but I wanted cheap so went with Dell. and like I said, It seems fine.

 

[TDTURBO]

Two products I won't buy.............EVER!

1) Dell.......due their stupid ass commercial showcasing the retarded slobbering idiot.

2) Mitsubishi...........By far, this company has the most irritating commercial on T.V. I wouldn't hesitate putting a bullet in that B*tch in the car that convulses while listening to that hideous song. My blood pressure is going up just thinking about it!

 

[bigD]

If you're just planning on doing internet and DVD stuff, I'd suggest an iBook. Now before you anti-Mac people jump all over me, I've been using one running OS X for about a year now, and the thing is pretty awesome. The 12" screen version is the perfect size, it's built like a tank, and I've been able to watch two DVD movies back to back on the battery (about 4 hours). On my high end Dell that's less than a month old, I can't get through one movie on the battery - let alone two. If I don't use the DVD drive on the iBook, I can get 5 hours reliably, and 6 hours if I spin down the hard drive.

The Dell is faster, and certainly more compatable, but when it comes to battery life, the iBook can't be beat. I've gotten pretty comfortable with OS X as well, and although it has its quirks, pretty much all of the old problems I had with the Mac (crashing, no pre-emptive multitasking, no protected memory, etc...) are all gone. The screen is incredible too, and since the wireless networking is built in, you don't get the little goofy antenna thingy sticking out the side.

I've always had some aversion to Macs, but Apple really got it right with this notebook.

 

[PilotMonkey]

I bought a Dell 4100 last year. It is a great laptop and the support from Dell is top notch. I paid about $1400 with many upgrades from the base model. My next computer will definitely be a Dell.

Two products I won't buy.............EVER!

1) Dell.......due their stupid ass commercial showcasing the retarded slobbering idiot

It is obvious that the marketing personnel at Dell are targeting the younger crowd. My bet is that you are over 40!

 

[bigD]

As a guy that worked for Dell for some time, I can attest that they really are customer-centric. There are always a few idiot tech's out there, but for the most part the company prides itself on how it takes care of its customers, and the service awards that Dell always tends to rake in bear that out.

Heh! If my Dell buddies ever find out I just tried to pimp an iBook to someone - they'd KILL me!

 

[navigator72]

Compaq

I purchased a Compaq system on Ebay last winter and I am very pleased with it.
Looking back I would buy a Dell. I saw a great system advertised in the local paper for about $1100.00 with all the bells and whistles.

Dude, you're getting a Dell!

 

[banned username 2]

Dude....

Get a Dell

 

[KlingonLRDRVR]

Typing on a Dell Inspiron 8200. About $2100 on sale two months ago. I love it.

KlingonLRDRVR

 

[lear24]

I vote for Apple as well, I own the larger screen iBook, and it is a great machine. Everyone I have spoken to who has the higher end powerbook (titanium case) is kind of disappointed for the extra money they spent and wish they had gotten an iBook instead. It's plenty fast (don't listen to the "it's only 700mHz vs. 1.whatever gHz" arguement until you consider the different architechture and bus speeds of different chips and mainboards and what really matters). The battery life is great, OS X is great, and it's built to take a beating if it comes to that.

Unless you're really into windows, I'd consider the iBook, go to a CompUSA or apple store in a mall and play with both the 12.1" and 14.1" screen models. For me it was the big one, but the 12.1" fits nicely in more places.

If you must have a windows machine, Toshiba makes a good laptop, the Portege models are pretty small and light, and have decent battery life. I would rather look at a dead apple than use a dell.


www.apple.com/switch

 

[ILLINI]

I'm also using a Dell Inspiron 8200. I absolutely love it and their customer service has been great! I haven't had any problems with it at all and the construction is very good. Battery life could be a little better, but oh well. If all you need it for is to play DVDs and surf the net you could get away with a less expensive one. If battery life is important to you, I would recommend getting a Pentium III instead of the P4. The P4 processors still have power consumption issues to be worked out, and aren't very power efficient. The P3 is much more power efficient, and is still powerful enough to suit your needs.

I would definetely recommed getting a Dell.

 

[DJS]

Dell

Note: I've been in the computer industry since I sold my first program at age 15. I may be a low-hour pilot at this point, but I have a zillion hours in front of a computer, have worked at large companies and small, and have built and sold my own software company.

I feel fairly confident when I say:

Right now, today, you can't go wrong with a Dell.

At various times in history, other companies have held this title. And tomorrow, things may change. But right now, Dell is it. Don't bother with Compaq, IBM, Gateway, etc. If you're looking to purchase a PC, buy a Dell.

Some folks have recommended an Apple product. They're just fine, if you know exactly what you want and why you want it. There are perfectly valid reasons for purchasing Apple...but you darned well better know what those reasons are.

For 95% of the world who wants internet access, email, word processing, a couple games, perhaps a spreadsheet or even a minor database or two, you want a PC.

You don't want Linux unless you're at least 1/2 way to computer guru (think instrument and commercial rated, working on your CFI...but with computers).

You don't want Mac if you don't have a good reason for wanting Mac. That is, there are specific reasons for wanting a Mac. If you don't know what those reasons are, then you want a PC.

While there's nothing wrong with Compaq, IBM, etc. in PC land today, right now you can't go wrong with Dell.

...Dave

 

[46Driver]

Somewhat related - I am looking to purchase a new home computer. I was thinking of plugging it into my TV via the S-VHS input on the video card into the same port on the TV. Any computer gurus out there know if this will work and I can surf the net and play some video games [ PONG! ] on the big screen? Finally, is there any real difference between SDRAM, DDRAM, and RDRAM? Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[banned username 2]

Somewhat related - I am looking to purchase a new home computer. I was thinking of plugging it into my TV via the S-VHS input on the video card into the same port on the TV. Any computer gurus out there know if this will work and I can surf the net and play some video games [ PONG! ] on the big screen? Finally, is there any real difference between SDRAM, DDRAM, and RDRAM? Thanks in advance for the help.

Remember a TV has a far LOWER resolution than a computer monitor... it will work but the picture is not very desirable...

 

[a-v-8er]

I've always been a little apprehensive about getting a pre-assembled computer or package (like Dell and others), since I've always in the past built my own systems or selected parts and had someone put them together. This year however, I bought a new Dell 8200 (which is a little more on the steep side moneywise compared to other Dells, but you could get a cheaper 4550 or 2650, which I'm sure would be just as nice as long as you don't demand too much out of graphics or multimedia apps). I can't say how impressed I've been with this machine since I got it, especially considering the price... So, it's no joke (although the ad is a little lame): GET A DELL, DUDE!!! Right now, that's much more worth your money than anything else on the market in my opinion! If you for some reason don't like Dell, I'd also take a look at Gateway systems which also seem to give you a lot of power per dollar...

 

[learflyer]

I agree with Turbo, I'd like to take a 36" louisville slugger to the back of her head! I don't know, maybe i'm just jealous that my saturday nights don't consist of driving down an EMPTY STREET and dancing around in my car.

 

[ShawnC]

Somewhat related - I am looking to purchase a new home computer. I was thinking of plugging it into my TV via the S-VHS input on the video card into the same port on the TV. Any computer gurus out there know if this will work and I can surf the net and play some video games [ PONG! ] on the big screen? Finally, is there any real difference between SDRAM, DDRAM, and RDRAM? Thanks in advance for the help.

Speed, and processor compatbillity.

SDRAM: Normal RAM used on almost every newer computer.

DDRAM: Highspeed RAM used on AMD processor computers.

RDRAM: Highspeed RAM used on Intel computer.

If you are a normal person that doesn't play hardcore games you will do alright with SDRAM.

 

[jetdriven]

SDRAM - Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory
DDR SDRAM (DDR) Double Data Rate Dynamic Random Acess memory
RDRAM Rambus Dynamic access memory

all RAM functions on AC, and we all know AC is alternating current, a waveform if looked at on an ocilloscope.

SDRAM only does work (data moves in or out of it) on 1/2 of the clock cycle, I cannot remember if it is the up or down stroke, but just the same.

DDR does work on the up and down sides of the waveform. therefore, with a given MB of RAM, DDR is TWICE as fast.

RAMBUS is only used on some P4 boards and I havent used it. Should be as good as DDR but i think its more expensive.

Avoid SDRAM, get a good DDR system. DDR 333 (mhz) preferably. DDR400 is 3% faster and 50% more cost. RAMBUS (RDRAM) is used in the newest dell desktops.

 

[lear24]

DJS-
You said
" For 95% of the world who wants internet access, email, word processing, a couple games, perhaps a spreadsheet or even a minor database or two, you want a PC."

I don't know what you know about macs, but you can do all of that on a Macintosh. If anything, accessing the internet is easier on a mac than it is on a PC.

Macs are easy to use, hardly ever crash, and the hardware gets along great. If there are only "specific reasons" to get a mac, I think those are a few. They just work.

 

[ShawnC]

...hardly ever crash... They just work.

Macs hardly crashing, you must not turn it on. Every Mac that I have used crashed when you asked it to anything remotely stressful, and these are G4s running OS X.

On the other hand all my PC hasn't had an OS crash in the last year, and I rarely ever have software crashes. All those commericals make me laugh, only idiots have the problems like those guys do on the Mac commericals.

Mac's just don't work, anyone that honestly believe that Macs are better than PC are kidding themselves. Even in the graphics design fields, PC is gaining ground in a field that has normally been Mac only. Servers, Macs, don't make me laugh IT departments are already running Win 2K or Unix (or derivative), why would they want to switch to Macs?

Mac's are a dieing breed, they have a small market share right now, but it's only getting smaller with time. Anyone that buys a Mac in the next few years will be in for a rude awakning when they will have to concede defeat.

 

[I.P. Freley]

A vote for Compaq

The number of Compaq products available has been shrinking since the Compaq/HP merger, but my nearly 3-yr-old notebook is still running strong. If you can find one that suits your needs, it might even be available with a price break.

This thing was nearly two grand back in early 2000, but that was for a fairly high-end machine and it did include a three-year warranty... Which is nearly up, of course, and that is when this computer will die, naturally! At least on the basis of my experience, I can't hesitate to recommend Compaqs. This thing has travelled with me on every overnight, has been dropped, stepped on, kicked, bashed, fallen off of tables, left in hot car trunks, cold airplanes, etc. You name it, this machine has seen it all.

 

[bigD]

Shawn - I'm usually the last guy to defend Macs, but at school we have a lab of 75 G4's running X, and none of them seem to crash. The IT people love it. At least the OS, that is. Friggin Explorer likes to shut down from time to time. I don't know what you're doing wrong, but 99.9% of people out there don't seem to have any problems with X, so maybe you need to look at the hardware or something. This isn't to mean that X is crash proof, but I think your situation is very much the exception, instead of the rule. Like I said before, I've had my iBook for about a year, and have had to reboot X maybe twice in that time, both times involving Apple's DVD player. Dunno what the deal is. I run XP too. Both OS's have their pluses and minuses.

And since '97, the Mac's market share has increased every year (from Byte magazine). I don't know where you're getting your information from, but take another look. It'll always be a niche player, but I don't think it's going away anytime soon.

 

[ShawnC]

Well note sure about the hardware of the Mac, but from what I understand its a stock G4, I'm not involved beyond using it, so I can't tell you specifics.

As far as IT people loving it, doubtful, not if they have to get it to talk to PCs, considering the PC will do everything that the Macs can do and more. I also don't place high regards in what IT people at schools say, espically if it's those kids that they got running around, too many of those don't relize what the real world of IT is about. Dealing with students is alot diffrent than dealing with employees that have to have a working computer, also you can't just label a computer inop, you don't have the luxery of 74 spares lieing around.

And as far as market share, the Mac has increased it's consumer market share, but in the graphics design industry (it's main customers) it is seriously losing market share, why would one want to deal with two seperate systems, when one will work just fine and is just as reliable?

I have never had to deal with Macs in a IT enviroment since my specialty is SQL though, it might be ok, but they sure as heck aren't a PC where I can pick up the parts and such at Best Buy if push came to shove.

 

[bigD]

Well, I'll certainly agree that finding spares for a PC is a lot easier, and PC's can certainly do what any Mac can do. Honestly, the differences between the two platforms is pretty negligable - especially looking at XP and OS X. It's a personal preference for 99% of the people out there. Most users don't run SQL, or deal in the server space at all. And to be fair to our IT people - these guys are true geeks - this is a CS computer lab, and runs along side all the other UNIX labs (Sun and SGI, basically) for the department. The OS X boxes do the same things that the Sun and SGI boxes do - for what we're doing in CS, it's all the same code. We can't use XP.

Bottom line - I recommended the iBook because at this moment, there does not exist a $1200 PC laptop that mixes the performance and battery life that the iBook does. Judging by the original post, I thought battery life would be important. Intel is unwilling to do any R&D beyond stuffing more transistors into their processors. So for a Pentium to draw the kind of power conducive to good battery life, they have to labotomize the caches. My Dell has a kick asss processor in it, and it's fast as hell. But I'll be daamned if I'll ever be able to watch a full DVD with it, let alone two.

You gotta pick your tools, and no tool is great for every task. But to say that Macs have no use whatsoever is shortsighted, and just shows that you're unwilling to try and be objective. You remind me of the Mac zealots, only on the other side! And btw, every new Mac can connect to any Windows network out of the box. You don't need any extra software, and it's not at all hard to do - no harder than connecting to any other Mac anyway. From the Finder, select "Connect to Server" from the Go menu. It'll give you a list of everything it sees on the network. I'm doing it right now, and on my home network, I see my two Win 2K boxes, my roommate's Win ME box, my XP system, my SGI Octane, and my Sun Ultra. A double click, a username and password entry, another click, and voila! Their drives are on my desktop. It's not that hard to do - you just have to stop saying "Macs SUCK!" long enough to give it a try!

 

[ShawnC]

The biggest thing to remember is that Mac can't live on consumer purchase, businesses buy a majority of computers, and in most cases they do PC, the company is on it's last legs, it will be only a matter of time before they crumble. Do you really want to be stuck wonder what's next for your $2000 purchase (more for those that have the G4s)?

The thing about a PC is that I know that I will Microsoft, Unix, Linux, and many more companies here to provide me the software. Buying a Mac now is about the equivilant of buying a Loran-C, you only have a few years of support left.

Yeah I know that Macs will connect to servers, but peer to peer is needed also, and Mac doesn't support that unlike PCs, peer to peer is clumsy in a business enviroment but thats the best way to network in a home enviroment. Microsoft has a better handling of peer to peer networking, and has the normal server based networking too.

 

[njcapt]

I made myself promise that I wouldn't get involved in ShawnC's Mac vs. PC debate a couple of hours ago, but I can't resist. I don't know why you seem to have such a hard - on for Macs, but your 'Macs will be gone tomorrow' diatribe has fallen on jaded ears for fifteen years. So Photoshop has developed a DOS version - most graphics professionals wouldn't use that version unless forced to by the boss. Mac OS X is UNIX based, which has given me more than six months of crash free operation. This is not to say that some programs haven't frozen, but OS X lets me force quit out of those apps without going through a re - boot. Oh... by the way, I haven't been the victim of a virus in the twelve years I have been a Mac user. Don't let this fact pisz you off to the point that you write a new one just for me.

So you don't like Macs. You have convinced yourself they are inferior since the herd of sheep hasn't bucked the trend and given Apple 90% market share. Fine. This post was started by a pilot who is looking for advice on buying a new laptop. BigD made a balanced presentation that stated the iBook's strengths and weaknesses. You could have offered a contrast with Dell's strengths, but you could muster nothing more than the same old tired stereotypes about Macs.

 

[ShawnC]

Actually more and more graphics design companies that I know and deal with are going to PC over Apple. Now this is what I notice.

 

[bigD]

Shawn, as a game developer, I see what you're seeing. There has been a migration to the PC over the past 5 years or so - especially since the hardware has matured to the point where even the low end hardware can do pretty much anything that even a graphic designer could want. There's no longer the need to pay a premium to get the features you need.

Still, Apple is selling more machines than they ever have, and their overall market share is increasing. The iMac line is everything that hard core computer users hate in a system - yet more iMacs have been sold than any other single model of computer in the history of the industry. My point is that the power users aren't the guys deciding Apple's fate - it's John Q. Public. And really, I don't see Apple going away anytime soon.

Anyway, sorry this thread has been hijacked to this. I'll try and keep in on topin in the future!

 

[Sonic Cruzer]

Just bought (~4 hr ago) a refurbed HP ZT1180 directly from HP for $1199. It's a 1.2 Ghz PIII-M, with 512MB SDRAM, 40 GB HD, 15" SXGA screen and DVD/CD-RW.

For the same price, I could have bought the ZT1175 with a P4 and 256 MB DDRAM, but those P4's get way too hot (as in deg F) to be called a laptop. I've had a lot of computer geeks tell me the high end PIIIs are better performers than the lower end battery draining, flesh burning P4s.




HP Refurbished Notebooks Direct

 

[SPBRIAN]

Last year around this time I bought myself a sony VAIO laptop. At that point I was looking hard between Dell and sony. The same ammount of features on the dell would have cost me $500+ more. Now it's a year later and the roles have reversed, Dell is cheaper than sony this year. All in all I love my sony, big screen, lots of features for doing videos if you wish to, and i've had no problems with it.

Brian