Ok, I'm considering a Sager because, like you all know, it doesn't seem that there are more powerful laptops available for the price. Why do I need power? Well, not for games. I don't own or play a single PC game () but I am a musician who is looking to do heavy duty audio recording and sequencing, so I need a fast CPU and a ton of fast memory. The Sager line has that.

My plan is to get rid of my desktop and my craptop and get an all in one system. But even so, I'm concerned about the weight of the Sagers. Sure, I realize that a desktop replacement is going to need to be a bit beefy but I want to know what people
s experience is with acutally LAP use. I travel alot and need my computer with me at all times when I do travel. Also, I'm a DVD buff who likes to chill with my laptop and a movie without getting crushed to death.

That's why I was excited to hear about the 4080 release since it was much lighter than the 5680 I was considering. But the when I was comparing specs I couldn't figure out where the 5680 got it's extra weight. First, what configuration is the 9.65 spec for? With or without battery? With all bays filled? Because all I want is a single HDD (I use firewire drives for mass storage of audio files) and the optical drive...no extra anything. So if I got a 4080 and a 5680 with the exact same specs, would the 5680 weigh more or is it only more when I add the extra drives, batteries etc.?

Finally, being that I mainly need CPU and memory in a relatively light package do I really need a Sager? I don't need the 3D graphics power for games etc so is there another laptop that might be better?

Here's what I need:
2.8Ghz with 800FSB and HT (at least)
1GB 400 RAM
1000 ethernet
802.11g wireless
bluetooth
DVD/CDRW (DVDR would be nice)
USB 2.0 and firewire
15" min screen

the rest is all open to variety including video, sound and HDD

Thanks

Sagers in general tend to be heavier than a lot of other laptops. I wouldn't plan on saving much weight with a "lean" 5680 config. Bear in mind also that Sager battery life tends to be quite low, and a lot of the models require unscrewing the battery from the bottom and swapping, rather than an easy "bay" swap like other brands. If the specs at www.pctorque.com or here in the forums are not sufficient, www.powernotebooks.com has excellent specs on the same laptops. If you surf these forums you'll see that most of us are rabid Sager advocates, but still it may not suit your purposes. The latest issue of PC Mag had some reviews on "mainstream" (big brand) laptops for desktop replacements. Let us know what you finally decide.

I would figure in any situation that carrying a laptop with all the other stuff you travel with is simply inane. True, I have a handicap and so I can't even consider carrying it but even if I didn't, why would I want to haul all that weight around. Man long ago invented the wheel, one of his greatest achievements, why not use it? There are plenty of carts and such for airline travel that are perfect for carrying a laptop and all the rest of the stuff one needs in their lives. With such a device, a couple of pounds more or less become meaningless.

I'd suggest not worrying about the weight and focus on the performance criteria. Will the machine do the work you need done. Given your musical direction, I'd look at jahlove's posts for some guidance. There are others as well that are using their SAGERs for DAWs. You should use the search function and check it out.

you said you will be doing audio editing. This means not only a lot of sytem ram and speed, but also you need a very good sound card or all the work you do will be fuzzy and stuff. You say you will be on the road so I would recommend an echo indigo. www.echoindigo.com Although I have never used this, I have heard a lot of good reviews. Not so much for the indigo, but at that site you will see a much better pcmcia based card. I use the sound blastery extigy which is great with sound but is not as compact as your needs require. Good luck in this.. Anything unclear just mention it.