Hi,

I am primarily looking for a Notebook for my research work (physiology/pharmacology/biochemistry).

BUT, I do also have some hobbys: music and rarely playing a game (like Civ or Sacred (or alike)). So either I need two computers (one mobile and one desktop) or one all in all...

For work:
- I need a reliable notebook for MOBILITY (in terms of stability)
- as much pixel on the screen as possible...

For music:
- I need FW, preferably two independent firewire ports (that's a plus for the Samsung, new T series doesn't have one, so I need PCMCIA). One for my interface and one for an external DSP processor
- I will mixdown up to 24 tracks at 24bit and maximum 48k, so any harddisk should do
- I want to run a sampled piano, which is said to need >2G ram to work pleasently... and may be a second harddrive....

For gaming:
- I would like to be able to play actual role/strategy games in low details, that's fine with me.
- I would like to be able to play the upcoming sacred 2... upcoming somewhen in December, but what will the graphics needs be like then?

So, it comes down to me to the question, whether there is a notebook which does all of that. I somehow doubt it...
For music I have figured out, that any presently avaiable core duo will be good enough for my needs, but rarely any notebook will be able to do the sampled piano.
The question comes down to: buy the cheapest notebook right now and save the money for a desktop? This could possibly save me an external DSP, when waiting for new processors...

I started to get focused on the graphics issue, in which I do not have any idea:
- I am just a fun gamer, I do not need the most detailed graphics and won't play quake or anything alike.....
- Will the x1600 mobile be still good enough for the upcoming games generation? If not, I can stick to the x1400/x1300.
- Will the x1300 with 64MB be significantly slower than the x1400 with 128MB when playing sacred 1 or Civ4 ? Right now its a radeon 9000 with 32 MB, and this is with sacred 1 OK to me...

AND: IS THE SAMSUNG X SERIES QUALITY EQUAL TO A LENOVO THINKPAD?

Now, consider the prices:
- t60 2x1,83Ghz, 1024 Ram, ATI x1300 64 MB, 60 GB= 1600 Euros
- t60 2x2,00Ghz, 1024 Ram, ATI x1400 128 MB, 100 GB= 2000 Euros
- Samsung x60 2x1,66Ghz, 1024 Ram, ATI x1600 256 MB, 100 GB= 1600 Euro

I could also wait for the new Z series.

Wouldn't it make most sense to get t60 1x1,83Ghz Notebook and get a specifically designed desktop for music and occassional gaming later this year?

I can't tell... it is all about spending more and more money... such is life...

I hope you find some time to help me deciding.

Best and thanks for any help


Leif