HP zv5000z or Emachines 6805

because of the video card alone, i would stick with the emachines. there is a massive difference between the 2.

and then there's the fact that i haven't heard anything negative about the emachines yet.

The HP is also around 2/3 of a LB heavier. Not much, but even the eMachines unit is not very light (7.5lbs vs 8.1).
The areas where the HP has better options can be upgraded on the eMachines. (new cpu, more ram, etc).
Most areas where the m6805 is better (weight, firewire, and video card) can not be upgraded on the HP. The wireless on the HP can be upgraded from 802.11b to .11g match the eMachines.
The HP equipped as the m6805 is $1,523.00. The eMachines is currently $1,549.99 (both have some rebates available, but that varies a bit from place to place, so I left that part off). So for 26 bucks you get a nicer CPU but a lesser (and non-upgradable) video card.
The HP is a compelling system. But, so is the m6805.

To me the price is a wash. It boils down to better cpu vs. better video... and since the cpu is upgradeable in both, I would lean towards the better video (since both are very fast CPUs)

Perhaps not even the Dell 8600. For a centrino, the i8600 is rather chunky. If my buying decision wasn't influenced both by my school needs and my gaming needs, I would have gotten an ultraportable such as a Fujitus P5000 series or HP/compq nc6000 (wait... I did buy that ).

The Dell 8600 is not much thinner or lighter. A non-game playing student that does not plan to have the need for a high-horsepower computer would probably be better served by a very light weight Centrino based laptop such as the NC6000 from HP. Also check out the cheaper x1000. Not as nice, and doesn't last as long, but alot less money. I would stay away from the boutique builders for your daughter since it complicates technical support.
Look at a 1.4ghz centrino (or around there). That is fast enough for most college needs. If the laptop comes with a small HD, I reccomend buying one after market (very easy to swap out).
If my kid was old enough for college today (and not a game player) I would look at:
Centrino(Pentium-M) 1.2 to 1.5
ram 512mb (ddr 2700)
CD-r/DVD combo
HD 60gb, or replace with aftermarket 80gb.
External HD for backup of key files (great use of the old internal drive if you upgrade)
Screen 14" to 15.5"
Battery run time of 4 hours or more. (ideally around 5 to 6)
Weight less then 6lbs, ideally around 4-5lbs
Graphics: any video card from ATI or NVidia (I do not like integrated graphics since it is such a drag on system performance and makes Windows feel alot less "clicky").

For my uses ( programming, photo editing, imaging stuff, game play and so on) the M6805 is a great balance of portability and power. I suspect it might not be the best for a student who will only use it for note taking and report writing.

Get the emachines. It appears that HP has decided to take the best part of a 64-bit computer and turn it off.

http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=14590

Those Fujitsu's are insane. My brother has one, and with dual batteries it gets something like 10+ hours. Awesome machine, so small and cute, widescreen too! I would have gotten one for myself, but its a tad too small for running AutoCad.


i'd still go with the emachines.... it gets some good battery life.
As for a centrino, have you looked at the gateway m505? Thats what i have, and i am loving it.

a friend of mine actually went the route of the dell 600m. it's pretty sweet. she is in college and needed something pretty powerful and portable. i set it up last night for her and re-installed the OS without all the dell junk, and it's a very light, fast, powerful little computer.

she came in around 1330 after it was all said and done. i got that price for her through an educational discount (only 5%, but every little bit helps).

girls seem to really dig this computer...or at least the last 4 that i've helped out have!

.a.

I'm probably a little biased but I think the 6805 is a good choice. Kudos!

I have never been a fan of store service plans. Granted, Best Buy does cover the battery and they use that fact to sell the plan but either way you're paying for the battery, either up front with the service plan or down the road without the plan. I asked about how they handle repairs. They still go to the factory regardless so wait time is the same. So, there's no real advantage there. OTOH for me Emachines' own service plan seems like a good deal (especially for the price) and covers the LCD. Anyway, by the time I need a new battery I might as well save the money an apply it toward a newer machine.