Hey, I'm about to buy a new notebook for college. I suppose the main things I'd be doing are taking notes, playing DVDs, downloading/burning music and browsing the web and such. My college provides wireless internet access and I will definitely want to be taking advantage of that. I haven't played any games online in awhile, but I used to play quite a lot. It would be very nice to be able to play games that are pretty taxing, though to be honest I don't know if I will be...
I have been browsing some discount stores and I found a few things that stuck out. I should note that right now I'm on a 933mhz P3 Desktop and it's really got plenty of speed. My price range maxes out at around $1,200. Here's some stuff I found:
1.4Ghz P-M Compaq: http://www.ecost.com/ecost/shop/deta...=391054#scroll
Compaq 2.8Ghz Mobile P4
http://www.pcmall.com/pcmall/shop/de...sp?dpno=441003
Compaq 2.4Ghz Mobile P4: http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_g...sterid=2258681
Acer 1.4Ghz P4-M
http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_g...sterid=2258681
Dell 2.8ghz Mobile P4
http://configure.us.dell.com/dellsto...c=5150S1&s=dhs
Gateway Tablet: http://www.pcmall.com/pcmall/shop/de...sp?dpno=450839
I had a couple of questions besides just "which is best?" First, how good is something like a Radeon 9200? I have a PCI 32mb (maybe 16 mb, can't remember for sure) GeForce mx400. How much better/worse is the Radeon 9200? Can an "integrated video card" play any kind of games at all? How possible is it to upgrade the cards? I thought I heard something about a docking station ... how much would that all cost, minus the video card? Lastly, what does something like this mean:
ATI MOBILITY™ RADEON™ 9000 with 128MB DDR (Shared)
Does that mean that is a 128mb video card, the way mine is 16/32 mb? Is that going to be very high quality one or not as great as I seem to make it out to be?
If I buy a refurbished notebook/tablet, am I taking a gamble? Does refurbished mean that it was actually used by someone and then returned or what? How reliable is it?
I also have been leaning towards the gateway tablet PC. Is there any reason that I shouldn't get this? I love the idea of a 14.1" tablet, as it means I can take notes in class and have a large monitor (for a tablet anyway) at a low price. It also has everything I wanted except for a video card. Will the built-in one be able to play anything/is it possible to upgrade it?
Oh, and I suppose some companies make more reliable systems than others ... I'm on an HP right now, I had a Sony and both were just fine. I know enough about using a computer that I don't tend to have any problems. Is there still some reason that I just shouldn't get, say a Compaq/Gateway?
Also, if anyone knows of any other great deals, feel free to post them. Thanks a bunch, I know this was a lot to read..
I have been browsing some discount stores and I found a few things that stuck out. I should note that right now I'm on a 933mhz P3 Desktop and it's really got plenty of speed. My price range maxes out at around $1,200. Here's some stuff I found:
1.4Ghz P-M Compaq: http://www.ecost.com/ecost/shop/deta...=391054#scroll
Compaq 2.8Ghz Mobile P4
http://www.pcmall.com/pcmall/shop/de...sp?dpno=441003
Compaq 2.4Ghz Mobile P4: http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_g...sterid=2258681
Acer 1.4Ghz P4-M
http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_g...sterid=2258681
Dell 2.8ghz Mobile P4
http://configure.us.dell.com/dellsto...c=5150S1&s=dhs
Gateway Tablet: http://www.pcmall.com/pcmall/shop/de...sp?dpno=450839
I had a couple of questions besides just "which is best?" First, how good is something like a Radeon 9200? I have a PCI 32mb (maybe 16 mb, can't remember for sure) GeForce mx400. How much better/worse is the Radeon 9200? Can an "integrated video card" play any kind of games at all? How possible is it to upgrade the cards? I thought I heard something about a docking station ... how much would that all cost, minus the video card? Lastly, what does something like this mean:
ATI MOBILITY™ RADEON™ 9000 with 128MB DDR (Shared)
Does that mean that is a 128mb video card, the way mine is 16/32 mb? Is that going to be very high quality one or not as great as I seem to make it out to be?
If I buy a refurbished notebook/tablet, am I taking a gamble? Does refurbished mean that it was actually used by someone and then returned or what? How reliable is it?
I also have been leaning towards the gateway tablet PC. Is there any reason that I shouldn't get this? I love the idea of a 14.1" tablet, as it means I can take notes in class and have a large monitor (for a tablet anyway) at a low price. It also has everything I wanted except for a video card. Will the built-in one be able to play anything/is it possible to upgrade it?
Oh, and I suppose some companies make more reliable systems than others ... I'm on an HP right now, I had a Sony and both were just fine. I know enough about using a computer that I don't tend to have any problems. Is there still some reason that I just shouldn't get, say a Compaq/Gateway?
Also, if anyone knows of any other great deals, feel free to post them. Thanks a bunch, I know this was a lot to read..
