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Notebook choice help...

post #1 of 7
6/10/05 at 1:42am
Thread Starter 
Hey, I'm in the market for a laptop computer (my first.) Anyways, I've been doing lots of research over the past few months regarding which may be the better suited one for me. I'm going to college after summer, and need a computer to bring along with me. I currently use a P4 1.4ghz, with 128mb of ram and a Radeon 9000 video card. So, as you can see, I'm probably going to see a performance difference with any laptop.

Anyways, I'm looking into a laptop that will work well for a student in college who would like to bring the laptop around every now and then to take notes in classes. Although I do not play games often, I do want a computer that will be able to play the latest games smoothly (though i'm not looking for extremely high framerates). So far, I've looked at 6 different computers: Sager 3880, Sager 4880, Asus Z71v, Gateway M460XL, Dell i6000D, and the Dell Latitude D810. (All of which have a 1.86ghz Pentium M, and WILL be upgraded to 1024GB of ram)

All seem to have its pros and cons. Dell does not give complete information about the parts it uses so I'm kind of left in the dark about that. The Gateway is a tad cheaper than the others (comparably equipped but with a Radeon X600 128MB) but I have heard that the case sucks and the screen isn't great. I do like that the Asus Z71v has a SATA HDD and runs "quieter". The Sager has its nice speakers and an integrated webcam, which are nifty.

One of my biggest concerns however is the screen. Right now, I'm running a CRT monitor at 1280x1024 and it seems fine. I am aware that the WSXGA+ monitors are 1680x1050 or something along those lines. I'm not sure if that would be too small for me when writing papers or taking notes. Unfortunately, I do not have any great computer stores around that actually carry computers with the WSXGA+resolution so I have yet to see one in person.

Any recommendations or other computers I should look into?
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post #2 of 7
6/10/05 at 1:46am
Asus w3v, Asus z70v, IBM T-series with students disccount..

i've used 1600x1200 on a 19inch CRT.. i find the screen on z71v to be perfect size, about same size as 1600x1200 on my 19inch.. might be small for some ppl tho..
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post #3 of 7
6/10/05 at 2:23am
You'd be surprised how easily readable text is on the Z71v. I have HORRIBLE vision, wear glasses, and it's not annoying to me at all, glasses on or off. Some screens will give you eyestrain. The Z71v won't.
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post #4 of 7
6/10/05 at 2:54am
Thread Starter 
I see, thank you for the quick replies. Right now I am especially torn between the Z71v and the Dell i6000D. I can get the Dell for around $1150 (using coupons) if I go easy on upgrades. 1.6ghz, 512MB ram, 60 gig HDD, WXGA screen. But, for about $500 more, I can get the Asus Z71v with 1.86ghz, 1024ram, 80gig SATA HDD, GeForce Go 6600 and WSXGA+. I know that the $500 upgrade is extremely nice. Here's the thing, I plan to change computers in about 1.5-2 years and give it to my younger brother because he'd be especially needing a new laptop by then. What are your thoughts?
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post #5 of 7
6/10/05 at 11:38am
Well, think of it this way: Centrino technology had its debut in 2003, 2 years ago. The max processor you could get at the time was 1.7 Ghz, and it was very expensive. Currently, I've got a Centrino computer (Z71v) that has a second-generation Centrino chipset, a second or third-generation Pentium M processor, and a video card that easily beats the system I looked at first (Dell 8600). And I paid somewhat less for it than I would have for the Dell 2 years ago. In 2 years, you will probably be able to purchase a third generation Centrino notebook with a 64-bit multicore processor (I believe the code is Merom) and a vid card that will easily beat the one in the Z71v, even though it will have the same form factor. You won't be losing anything in that by passing your older computer to your brother, and if you initially buy the Z71v, it will still be able to play most games that come out in the next 2 years, a promise that I wouldn't necessarily make for the Dell 6000.
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post #6 of 7
6/12/05 at 2:14am
Thread Starter 
Well, I went to my local CompUSA again today to check out laptop screens. I found the WXGA to be a bit on the big side, the icons just seemed ridiculously huge (though it could have been set that way, forgot to check). I then went on and noticed a 17" 1900x1200 display. It looked awesome. I was wondering how this would translate into a 15.4" screen.

On a side note, do most new games support widescreen resolutions?

On a separate note, what do you think of the ASUS Z71v's screen. The "sparkles" thing (that supposedly look like that of a holographic card) frighten me, yet I've read in many other places that it really isn't anything at all. Also, how man hours of battery life do you get from the Z71v when doing "normal" non-CPU/GPU intensive tasks like word processing and web browsing?
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post #7 of 7
6/12/05 at 2:31am
The "sparkles" are noticeable on light solid colors, but aren't bothersome. I'm very impressed by the vibrant colors, the screen "real estate", and the wide viewing angles.

Stock battery life is 3-3.5 hours average usage (mixed internet, downloading, virus scan, word processing, some light gaming), and 3.5-4 hours with the CPU undervolted.

Regarding widescreen resolutions, a lot of newer games support them. Even some of the older games I play that don't support widescreen look fine. I haven't noticed any major stretching, but then again, that's just me.
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