Laptop Suggestions

[derrick]

Going to be mobile for a while. Moving and so forth so I thought I ditch the desktop and look at an laptop

Photoshop and Digital Editing I will need to do on this unit.. I was curious if anyone has any good experiences with certain laptops or would recommend one brand over another.

Lets here it

[phuckbunny]

Apple all the way for anything visual but make sure the screen is big enough which jacks up the price quite a bit at times. A new macbook pro with a 17" screen will be close to three beans but every cent is worth it if you can afford it.

[mynameisjim]

I bought an HP last year and have been happy with it. Well built, quite, and a good price.

I would stick with HP, Toshiba, etc and avoid Dells and Gateways which I consider second tier makers when it comes to notebooks....Just my opinion though.

[balls_deep]

I own relatively a relatively new Toshiba satellite, HP Pavilion, and a gateway. All are notebooks and relatively comparable in features.

out of the big three I listed I think that any model from them with the correct hardware will preform about the same in a real working environment.

unless of course you game, in which case Alienware has some awesome systems.


Things To Consider

1. RAM is King!
2. Pentium has the best chips out right now, but if you are going for a single core system choose AMD
3. Hard Drive Speed Is a major factor in a laptop. (ie. 4200rpm vs 7200rpm)
4. Get exactly what you need, not just a system with tons of extra features. Chances are you won't use unfamiliar features too much.

[kg2]

i have been VERY happy with my old panasonic toughbook. all of the toughbook line is ruggedized. the high end REALLY rugged toughbooks are in use by a lot of military and LEOs. mine, an old cf-48, has literally had water dripping out of its case after a pipe burst overhead during a cold snap a few years back. i thought it was totally gone. i took it apart, dried it all out thoroughly, and it fired right back up again. the only casualty was the floppy drive!

i am constantly tossing it in and out of my car because i use it to tune my engine management system. it's flown off the passenger's seat a few times during some quick stops!

you pay more for them but if you're anything like me (ie hard on your stuff) then they will pay off in the long haul. this battleaxe has 768mb ram and a 1ghz pentium yet it does surprisingly well with photoshop.

hth
kg

[jonnydoe]

I build all of my own workstations but it is not practical to build a laptop. My recommendation is go with a Dell through their business segment. You can design a Vostro and it does not have all of the crap trial software, etc. that hogs down your system. You don't need the top of the line processor in most cases. I would get 2 gigs of RAM and select XP over Vista. Also, think about spending extra on an upgraded battery if you will not be close to an outlet much.

Remember to Google "Dell coupon" before buying...

[theviking]

Toshiba don't like whisky, but other than that, it was a nice laptop. RIP..

[porn punk]

I've built two desktop systems for video editing, but I do all this stuff on a Toshiba Satellite. It was the first one I bought and I've bought two more since (also with some other pathetic brands in between).

You can't beat Sony if you want to splurge, but since you'll usually have to upgrade I can't see the sense of forking over that much cash.

If you're going to be traveling check into Wi-Fi providers. I'm constantly mobile because I have no choice. It will also allow you to "beat feet" in case of any emergencies

[Lana]

I bought an HP last year and have been happy with it. Well built, quite, and a good price.

I dunno Jim. I'm sitting with three conked out HP's I've bought in the last 2 years. They we're so powerful they ran too hot and burned out the video card (tied to the mother board) making them useless.
It's a known problem and I'm sure they've fixed it.
I've switched to a Mac and although I was scared at first, for what all of us do I truly believe it's the way to go.

[porn punk]

Originally posted by Lana
I dunno Jim. I'm sitting with three conked out HP's I've bought in the last 2 years. They we're so powerful they ran too hot and burned out the video card (tied to the mother board) making them useless.
It's a known problem and I'm sure they've fixed it.
I've switched to a Mac and although I was scared at first, for what all of us do I truly believe it's the way to go.

The only problem with a mac is that technology and programs upgrade so fast it gets expensive to keep up to date. You just can't find the bargains you can for PC's for programs or equipment

[Lana]

The only problem with a mac is that technology and programs upgrade so fast it gets expensive to keep up to date. You just can't find the bargains you can for PC's for programs or equipment

True. But the only thing we use it for is video/still editing and I truly coming to believe the Mac is tops. Surfing the net it doesn't matter. I'm no computer geek but what I'd like to know is; doing the same project why is my Mac cool and quiet and my PC is screaming and shooting flames out the sides.
Same performance but two different systems.
Cool and quiet versus hot and noisy??

[phuckbunny]

Glad to hear you're a convert now, Lana!

[mynameisjim]

I dunno Jim. I'm sitting with three conked out HP's I've bought in the last 2 years. They we're so powerful they ran too hot and burned out the video card

Lana, when you do your editing lying in the hot tub any computer is bound to overheat.

But seriously, every computer (and every product) will come with horror stories. Laptops are funny creatures in that some people will have one that lasts years while others have them fail seemingly every month.

I'm not a fan of HP but mine came with a 17" screen, dual hard drives, and a gig of memory and was well under $1500 on sale. At that price it can't be beat. But the Apple stuff is real good albeit a bit more expensive.

[porn punk]

Originally posted by Lana
True. But the only thing we use it for is video/still editing and I truly coming to believe the Mac is tops. Surfing the net it doesn't matter. I'm no computer geek but what I'd like to know is; doing the same project why is my Mac cool and quiet and my PC is screaming and shooting flames out the sides.
Same performance but two different systems.
Cool and quiet versus hot and noisy??

Well, I've worked around a lot of macs (companies full of them) and let me assure you they have problems too, and when they do you had best have decent tech support.

They are also lacking in certain programs that are available for pc's, certain gaming programs (last I've heard there was no 3D studio max available for them).

Their operating system is also no different than pc anymore which used to be their edge (actually they did a 180 with windows copying them with 95 and then them starting to emulate windows with that system that just came out before panther).

I'll tell you my philosophy: if I were on a ship and had to start tossing things overboard, I'd have no problems tossing all my pc's and starting over again. Mac I'd have a tougher time with because it takes so long and costs so much to get the complete system running right

I have a G3 sitting in storage right now that was given to me when this company closed down and I hardly used it except to hook the monitor up to a pc. I don't know where to find the programs I need for it, upgrade them or fix any hardware that goes down so it's making a nice ornament.

But i used it a lot at my last place of employment

[jonnydoe]

Originally posted by Lana
They we're so powerful they ran too hot and burned out the video card (tied to the mother board) making them useless.

Never buy a laptop with a desktop CPU. Lots of them got fried because the Pentium 4s ran so damn hot. Also, it is wise to buy a can of air and spray the dust out of the vent holes every month or so.

[misfit138]

http://voodoopc.com

[King Porn]

Shop around... You don't have to be stuck with a stock store bought machine.

I'm on my second Dell notebook and have been very happy with both of them. As JonnyDoe said, make sure you have a Dell coupon to get the best deal. Never settle for a stock machine. Notebook hard drives are slow. Make sure you have a 7200 RPM HDD with an 8MB cache and at least 1GB of ram.

You might be better off having the notebook shipped with a basic amount of ram and ordering 2GB directly through Crucial Technologies. Then sell the memory that came stock with your notebook on Ebay. Often times vendors overcharge for memory upgrades.

I have a 15.4" wide screen and it is perfect. If your looking for a desktop replacement then a 17" would do well but a 17" is hardly practical for a mobile user.

Choose a Intel mobile dual core processor at least 2.0 GHz. Remember that notebooks intentionally conserve energy and often run at half power / performance so that the battery last longer.

Get the bigger battery. It's well worth it. If you are mobile very often, you might even want a spare battery or car adapter.

Have any accessories internal if possible. I.E. bluetooth. You might not use it now but you may get a bluetooth cell phone down the line and the last thing you want is a USB bluetooth adapter sticking out the side of your notebook all of the time.

Don't settle for a basic video card with only shared memory. Get a video card with at least 64 MB of dedicated video memory. You will really notice a difference on everything graphic intensive. Keep in mind that even video cards with dedicated memory usually share a portion of your system memory.

If you plan on running Vista, pick up a 4GB SD card and run Readyboost. Use an SD card as opposed to a USB key because the SD card will fit mostly internal and won't stick out like a USB key. If you plan on running a 64-bit version of Vista or XP then verify that there is driver support for all of your hardware and peripherals.

Get a warranty! Many laptops experience problems just after a year of using them. One common problem is power cable wiggle. If you are not gentle when moving your notebook while it is plugged in then your power cable could start to wiggle causing your system to constantly switch back and forth between power and battery mode. This is an expensive fix and just one example where you need warranty. Mine has been running non-stop since I received it in February and I expect it to keep running until I sell and replace it a few years from now when it is time to upgrade. The only time my Dell shuts off is for reboots after installs or when I travel.

Get the right software. Often it is cheaper to purchase software such as Microsoft Office at the same time you purchase your system as compared with buying the software right off the shelf.

Enjoy the new notebook!

[King Porn]

Originally posted by misfit138
http://voodoopc.com

The cheapest, basic notebook is over $3,000. While these may look sleek, they are hardly practical for a business user.

[Hyballs]

Hi folks, A 17" is a big unit and my choice because I like the big screen and I am not on the hop all the time. If you buy a major brand get the extra warranty with express repair service.

At the moment Ebay Australia has a lot of laptop sellers with HP and Toshiba brands. The exchange rate may make it worthwhile considering. Just make sure it's got an International warranty.

These are going for around AU$2000 with 12 month warranty:
HP Pavilion dv9205TX Entertainment Notebook PC
HP pavilion dv9303TX Core2Duo 2.0Gz Notebook
TOSHIBA 17" P100 Pro /P105 LAPTOP

[trulymadly]

Why? Nobody like IBM anymore?

I love mine and is one of the most reliable piece of equipment I ever owned. Well, electronic one anyway :P

I know laptop is not designed to be built for abuse, but accidents do happen. And mine survived a few times ( touching wood ).