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new to the laptop market, advice appreciated

post #1 of 13
2/20/04 at 10:34am
Thread Starter 
I'm currently in the market for a laptop(obviously) to take with me when I go study in japan next year. I will need something graphically powerful to handle all the games I have(so far i've seen the ati 9600 128 as the only decent option), decent for video editing, andcapable of running my tv through it. I had customized one on hpshopping.com that comes close but I'm not too keen on only being able to burn DVD+R/RW being that I just hate the format.

I've read through a lot of these benchmarks and reviews and there are a dozen laptops that seem to fit what I want, but I've had it happen in the past where I buy one of the ones I think fits, but it turns out that it really wasnt the one. Gateway is the one that usually lays it on me the hardest.

Just looking for a few pointers, and if there is any more info needed, just let me know.
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post #2 of 13
2/20/04 at 10:42am
Well www.hypersonic-pc.com has some great gaming laptops and same with www.pctorque.com
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post #3 of 13
2/20/04 at 4:58pm
Just wondering, Jovox - why do you "hate" the DVD+R/RW format? It's still compatable with most DVD-top boxes, the media is only slightly more expensive, but people have been saying it's actually slightly more reliable than DVD-R/RW's...
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post #4 of 13
2/20/04 at 5:02pm
If you have the money, the guys at pctorque.com have what I feel are the best laptops for the price. If you are financing, I would look into the Dell XSP(?) that is shipping next month. Not sure how soon you need it though.

Sager is one of the best brands in terms of quality imho. When other companies sell their gaming setups by re-branding the sager laptops, that tells me something. I know quite a few people with the 56XX series of Sager notebooks and they will never think of another brand ever. They are all avid gamers and multimedia designers, as well as myself. Hope that helps a bit.
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post #5 of 13
2/20/04 at 5:44pm
Thread Starter 
there are multiple reasons i dislike the +r format. All 3 of my dvd players dont support its for one. My current burner messes up when i use +R's and its compatible with all formats(vcd, svcd, mp3, +-R/RW, etc). Its just not something I really really want. I also cannot burn ps2 "backups" with a +R disc because it simply will not work. I wouldnt mind having it as an option like i do now, but i do not want to be "forced" into only using +R.

This computer has to be my everything, TV, gaming machine, editing suite, dvd player, etc simply because all I can take with me to japan is a computer, clothes, and maybe an extra gaming system.

I also will want to reuse my lcd as a 2nd screen for some of my 3d modeling work. You get the idea of what I'd use it for....90% video work/gaming.
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post #6 of 13
2/20/04 at 6:35pm
Jovox,
I'm going oversea soon too. IMHO, you should take a look at whether the warranty is internation. You may need it someday.
If I'm not wrong, HP notebook for "Home" only comes with 1 yr in the US, while their "Business notebook" have 3 yrs global. Just for your info, Fujitsu and IBM both also have international warranty also.

Ed
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post #7 of 13
2/20/04 at 6:58pm
Thread Starter 
thats a very good idea, I hadnt thought of something like that. This is why I'm glad there are places to do some research online. I'll start looking up some of those links right now as well, I've only got a month to finish the paperwork on the trip, but I have till end of july to get a computer.

Never hurts to start early.
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post #8 of 13
2/20/04 at 8:22pm
If your interested in the athlon64, cyberpowerpc.com has a decent deal on the mitac (same as the aviator x6 or the voodoo envy: 855) plus if you order this week there is a 5% discount thing they are running (don't close that pop-up of theirs).

The mitac comes with a 9600 128mb and most of all the fixings plus they have a dvd-rw option, they only offer pc2700ram which bugged me enough to buy my ram seperatly, but it's price is right.
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post #9 of 13
2/20/04 at 8:39pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Datheron
Just wondering, Jovox - why do you "hate" the DVD+R/RW format? It's still compatable with most DVD-top boxes, the media is only slightly more expensive, but people have been saying it's actually slightly more reliable than DVD-R/RW's...
DVD-r is the older standard and slightly bette supported. The +R format is a little less compatible with DVD set-top boxes (stand alone DVD players used on of TVs).
It is slightly less reliable, in my opinion. But it is from to time a little faster.
When DVD-R was at 2x DVD+r was at 2.4. Then out came DVD+R 4x, two months later out came the DVD-R of the same speed. Recently DVD+r 8x came out, DVD-r 8x followed after it.

Also DVD-r media is quite a bit cheaper. I checked today at Fry's and -r media was more then 17% cheaper.
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post #10 of 13
2/20/04 at 8:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jovox
there are multiple reasons i dislike the +r format. All 3 of my dvd players dont support its for one. My current burner messes up when i use +R's and its compatible with all formats(vcd, svcd, mp3, +-R/RW, etc). Its just not something I really really want. I also cannot burn ps2 "backups" with a +R disc because it simply will not work. I wouldnt mind having it as an option like i do now, but i do not want to be "forced" into only using +R.
Oh, hm. I guess that's just bad luck on your part, b/c when I had my Dell i8600, I was able to make DivX movies, DVD rips, and <ahem> PS2 backups no problem (but maybe that's dependent on the modchip).

But as someone recommended, your best bet is to try Sager or a similar reseller. Most of the first-tier companies I've seen like DVD+R/RW drives.
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post #11 of 13
2/21/04 at 5:13am
Thread Starter 
at this point any kind of media will do, since my computer will also be my dvd player I guess it wont matter as much when you think about it. I did forget to mention that I was looking for the 17" WXGA monitor. I've seen a few sagers that have this and will keep looking but I do have a slightly new angle to throw on it.

What kind of hard drives should i look to get for storing video mem? I was thinking about only putting 60 gigs base on the laptop itself and maybe getting a 120 gb ext drive. I'm just really worried about the pricing on these, being I can get a cheaper external dvd burner and just burn all my stuff to dvd. Granted it would take longer, but i'd end up saving a couple hundred in the process.

Any ideas as far as storage goes?
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post #12 of 13
2/21/04 at 7:06am
The 17" requirement will make your notebook harder to come by...if you don't mind 16" then you may want to check out Fujitsu's line.

As far as storage...I have a 200GB ext. HDD myself; the casing was like $35, and the hard drive was $30 (a Dell 200GB mistake back in October that I capitalized on ). One thing you have to be wary of is that w/ full 3.5-inch enclosures, the hard drive will be spinning, and it's louder than my w/ my P-M 1.6Ghz. You can get enclosures for 2.5-inch quiet notebook drives, but the drives themselves come at a premium.

*But* - a hard drive is just really convenient; just plug it in and play whatever. I have around 30 GB of Simpsons episodes on mine, a few GB's of .iso's, and backup of a lot of my documents and music.
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post #13 of 13
3/20/04 at 9:35pm
Thread Starter 
I've done a little research and found a few things i'd like to pick up and made a general config on the sager 8790 that i'm looking to pick up.

p4 2.4ghz northwood
ATI Radeon 9700 256mb
1024mb 400DDR Dual channel 2-512
2-60gb 7200rpm hd's raid-0
windows xp professional
2x dvd+-R/RW
Subwoofer
external floppy drive
internal bluetooth
802.11g turbo
5.1 gaming headphones
i'm also gonna get 2 external hard drives, both using the metal gear box(unless someone can recommend a better solution).

What I would like some help with now is the tv capture/media solution. I've seen quite a few tv capture cards but i'm not well versed on what is good and what isnt good to have on those things. I'm also trying to find a decent external sound card so I can use my 5.1 cambridge soundworks with them. I know there is an external sound blaster but I'm having trouble finding it online.

any advice or alternatives to any of this? i'm still months away from ordering anything but i'd love to have something down on paper so the folks wont be as aggitated.
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