All right people, I need your help.
In the past, I’ve always custom built my own desktop systems, but now I’m looking to buy my first notebook. I’ve been looking at dozens of them over the past two weeks and am still unsure which one to buy. I want a laptop I can bring with me to school every day. Its primary uses will be programming and office applications; however, I’m a stickler for good performance and would like it to last a couple of years. I don’t play many games, but I would like to have the option to play something like World of Warcraft. I don’t need to burn DVDs and HD speed is more important than size.
I’m not convinced one way or the other on the premium displays, but I would like a screen that’s going to be easy on the eyes for long hours of typing, programming, movies, whatever. I would also like a solid keyboard with keys in pretty standard locations. I’d like to keep under $1500 if possible.
From what I’ve read, this is the type of system I’m after:
Thin-and-light (>= 6 pounds)
3+ hours use with a standard battery
Pentium M 1.6-2.0 Ghz
512 MB (w/ at least 1 available expansion slot for future upgrades)
5400 RPM (40+ GB)
14-15” TFT screen
32-64 MB dedicated video (ATI or nVidia)
CD-RW/DVD Combo
Here are a few notebooks that have caught my attention, followed by the reason I haven’t convinced myself to buy one of them:
Acer Travelmate 3200: This one is a strong contender, but the HD is only 4200 RPM and I’d rather not buy another HD.
IBM Thinkpad 42: Looks solid, but how do I say this nicely? It’s ugly.
HP DV1100: This one looks great. In fact, it would be almost exactly what I want, but it uses an integrated video card. If I could find a notebook just like this one with a better video card, I’d be pleased as punch.
iBook/PowerBook: I like how they look, but they always seem expensive compared with their PC counterparts. I don’t see the benefit.
I know I’m picky and asking for a lot, but as you can imagine, I want to get the absolute best bang for my buck. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
In the past, I’ve always custom built my own desktop systems, but now I’m looking to buy my first notebook. I’ve been looking at dozens of them over the past two weeks and am still unsure which one to buy. I want a laptop I can bring with me to school every day. Its primary uses will be programming and office applications; however, I’m a stickler for good performance and would like it to last a couple of years. I don’t play many games, but I would like to have the option to play something like World of Warcraft. I don’t need to burn DVDs and HD speed is more important than size.
I’m not convinced one way or the other on the premium displays, but I would like a screen that’s going to be easy on the eyes for long hours of typing, programming, movies, whatever. I would also like a solid keyboard with keys in pretty standard locations. I’d like to keep under $1500 if possible.
From what I’ve read, this is the type of system I’m after:
Thin-and-light (>= 6 pounds)
3+ hours use with a standard battery
Pentium M 1.6-2.0 Ghz
512 MB (w/ at least 1 available expansion slot for future upgrades)
5400 RPM (40+ GB)
14-15” TFT screen
32-64 MB dedicated video (ATI or nVidia)
CD-RW/DVD Combo
Here are a few notebooks that have caught my attention, followed by the reason I haven’t convinced myself to buy one of them:
Acer Travelmate 3200: This one is a strong contender, but the HD is only 4200 RPM and I’d rather not buy another HD.
IBM Thinkpad 42: Looks solid, but how do I say this nicely? It’s ugly.
HP DV1100: This one looks great. In fact, it would be almost exactly what I want, but it uses an integrated video card. If I could find a notebook just like this one with a better video card, I’d be pleased as punch.
iBook/PowerBook: I like how they look, but they always seem expensive compared with their PC counterparts. I don’t see the benefit.
I know I’m picky and asking for a lot, but as you can imagine, I want to get the absolute best bang for my buck. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
