Laptop - What do I need?

[Canew]

Dell is pretty cheap but it weighs a ton... their range of 14 inchers start from 2.48kg for basic config, whereas most others in a comparable range weigh in at ard 1.8 (Sony) to 2.4kg battery included.

Construction wise I don't find theirs as sleek and stylish (if it matters to you). IIRC they use integrated graphics and don't have an option for discrete cards for this range... mainly business oriented.

But they are cheap. A little over 2K for a pretty fast model. They might be ideal for some... depends on what you're looking for.

solari, since that you have mentioned it, yes, I did notice that DELL does not have a dedicated graphics card. All their model that I've seen on their flyers are all Intel integrated graphics type.

Yes, I would need to have a graphic card on my laptop. From the ASUS and ACER model that you have recomended, both of them have the ATI X1600 cards. That would be my target. Looking forward to the COMEX fair in September. (if there will be one - their website is still reflecting last year's show while the SITEX website has publicise this year's date)

 

[Artosoft]

solari, since that you have mentioned it, yes, I did notice that DELL does not have a dedicated graphics card. All their model that I've seen on their flyers are all Intel integrated graphics type.

Yes, I would need to have a graphic card on my laptop. From the ASUS and ACER model that you have recomended, both of them have the ATI X1600 cards. That would be my target. Looking forward to the COMEX fair in September. (if there will be one - their website is still reflecting last year's show while the SITEX website has publicise this year's date)

AFAIK you can configure your DELL notebook purchase to have a dedicated graphics card on DELL website (for some notebook model, not all model). Of course you need to pay more.

Regards,
Arto.

 

[solarii]

Hi, really sorry for always posting questions to you.. But you seem like you really did ur homework :sweatsm: What do you think of fujitsu? I was really thinking of getting one because of its size !!

Price wise they're more costly than the others... they're very fond of using integrated graphics as well except on their higher end models which are more desktop replacements. If you don't mind the integrated graphics, the S7110 looks promising.

For that price I'd rather go for a Sony which has a REALLY good LCD screen. I rate it outstanding! The only crappy thing about Sony other than price is that they load a ton of useless software AND they do not give you an XP cd or a recovery cd... you'll have to burn your own using the software provided.

 

[LightStalker]

Hey ! I was looking forward to the COMEX Show as well !! Reason being that if i get my laptop from my company, my pay will be deducted accordingly until its settled. However, i need to have a 1 yr bond with the company. (They also know i got laptop will give me more work ;( ) See you there !!

 

[Canew]

LightStalker, which company are you working for?

 

[LightStalker]

LightStalker, which company are you working for?

Investment Company. Really headache ah.. Sometimes nothing to do until can even play lan games from shockwave.com.. Sometimes so busy until go home at 2.. Sienz.. hahaha

 

[LightStalker]

Price wise they're more costly than the others... they're very fond of using integrated graphics as well except on their higher end models which are more desktop replacements. If you don't mind the integrated graphics, the S7110 looks promising.

For that price I'd rather go for a Sony which has a REALLY good LCD screen. I rate it outstanding! The only crappy thing about Sony other than price is that they load a ton of useless software AND they do not give you an XP cd or a recovery cd... you'll have to burn your own using the software provided.

Noted. Thanks for your time solarii. you're the man :thumbsup:

 

[JL1500k]

I would have to disagree, I've been through 1 acer, 3 sony laptops, and finally a IBMT43. For stability and realibility, the IBM wins hands down. It is a work horse, I use average of 15 Hrs daily. Sony has a lot of software problems and tends to hang a lot. Again, you pay for what you need.

The warranty should cover for any problems of the hard disk.

So you have IBM T43 Laptop. Next time when you want to upgrade to a higher capacity Hdd (80Gb or more bought from Sim Lin) you will know what I mean.

Other brand of Laptop should be ok

 

[wind30]

during the PC show there was a great offer for the samsung Q35 at $1999. Heard from my friend that it was flying of the shelves on the last day. Duo core, 1GB ram.

You running finite element analysis on Matlab? Shouldn't you be using a compute server on the university? Should be faster right? I remember when I was in NUS 10 years back, I had an account in the supercomting lab to run my jobs. I just have to telnet and submit the jobs. My fnite difference jobs on Matlab during those time need like 1GB of ram which was like super rare on normal Desktops.

As for light laptops, I think the dell X1 or the samsung Q30 is the lightest 12 inch laptop in the market currently. Full size keyboards and 1.1kg. But CPU slow.... not suited for matlab but should be able to do everything else.

 

[LightStalker]

So you have IBM T43 Laptop. Next time when you want to upgrade to a higher capacity Hdd (80Gb or more bought from Sim Lin) you will know what I mean.

Other brand of Laptop should be ok

I wouldnt want to upgrade my laptop to a 80gb. If its 40gb i'll let it be. Reason being that the data threads on the disk becomes thinner to give more space for more data. This results in a higher end laser to read the data. The more you shake, move etc. the higher the possibility of generating dust or bad sectors. High end brands counters this problems. Lenovo has warranty for its harddisk, now even if you drop it, they have data recovery warranty with it also. It cost abit btw ;p But try not to go beyond 80 gb for a hdd. It helps improve the lifespan of your hdd. After warranty you can always choose to renew the licence, or sell as 2nd hand and get another one at pc shows. After all, laptops are only meant to be kept not more than 5 yrs :bsmilie: read it in some pc site.. forgot which one liaw.. Its their way of getting you to keep buying their laptops..

 

[dennisc]

Any laptop today more than meet ur requirement. But personally I dont like compaq, not so durable, lenovo ones are quite good. You can even get the 900+sgd Fujitsu ones from simlin and have it run decently for all ur programs. Then spend another 900 for me for recommending u. haha kidding.

 

[Artosoft]

If I were you, I will wait for Vista next year to buy a new notebook. I just don't want to upgrade the OS while Vista is schedule for next year.

But some will just happy with XP. I am not, I must using the latest OS for my notebook or PC , especially if only about 6 month ahead.

Regards,
Arto.

 

[Canew]

Arto, when will Vista be launched?

 

[Artosoft]

Arto, when will Vista be launched?

IIRC Vista will be launch somewhere in January 2007. If it is not delayed again .

Regards,
Arto.

 

[LightStalker]

Yeah im waiting for the vista too.. However i feel that they're copying the Mac theme.. When i see the photos of it i feel like its a mac (without the functions). Just my 2cents.

 

[Artosoft]

Yeah im waiting for the vista too.. However i feel that they're copying the Mac theme.. When i see the photos of it i feel like its a mac (without the functions). Just my 2cents.

IIRC, when you have Vista as your notebook OS, the notebook must have dedicated Video Card, as that's the requirement of Vista.

So I can play CIV4 on notebook next year :vhappy: .

Regards,
Arto.

 

[alwayschampion]

I would recommend Thinkpad.

I have come across the early posts comparing Thinkpad and Dell Inspiron. Dell produce 2 lines of notebooks. 1 is a business notebook call Latitude and the other one of course a consumber notebook call Inspiron. You have to compare apples with apples.

Well, I am not going to touch on those notebooks with flying high specs at low prices. These most likely belongs to consumer line notebook.

Dell Latitude, HP Evo and IBM are business line notebooks. The notebook is usually built with alloy, harden plastics, protecting the notebook under tough conditions. They are also built with very good airflow cooling condition.

IBM has the hinges make with metal making it long lasting. They also have this harddisk protection which stops the HDD when movement is detected. They also have the best international warranty coverage. This is very good for students who are studying overseas. Their warranty covers parts and labour. These are things that are more value than specs.

 

[justarius]

IIRC, when you have Vista as your notebook OS, the notebook must have dedicated Video Card, as that's the requirement of Vista.

So I can play CIV4 on notebook next year :vhappy: .

Regards,
Arto.

You will also need a 64bit processor too... either the new Intel Core Duo2 or the existing AMD 64 /64 x2.

And Dell always have the option of configuring a discrete gfx card into their laptops... the new Dell XPS M1210 packs a into a 12.1" frame.

Was also thinking of getting a laptop too during the recent PC Show... wanted a <2.5kg machine with discrete graphics for work and play. Acer laptops are always very value for money, though I'm distrustful of its stability, having seen 3 separate friends' Acers crash and burn during uni. Fujitsu and Sony are well built, but the high end models meeting my requirements also require a huge wad of cash. Toshiba's reputation seemed to have gone down the drain too in recent years, and I knew 2 friends whose Toshiba's crashed very frequently. I personally used a Dell, which lasted me for 5 years and went into the bodyshop twice before dying (hence the need for a new laptop...)

 

[adamadam]

Thanks all for the replies!!!
I'm looking into each of the models now

I said "maybe counterstrike, solidworks and ansys" because I think I can live without counter-strike and solidworks and ansys can be done on the lab computers - which would probably be faster anyway - and I don't have to worry about it getting stolen if I leave it running also, solidworks on a small screen may be difficult.

Is it worth comparing to a macbook? if it can run windows? after reading the posts here, some people really like post processing on mac - is it a lot better? how?

Thanks everybody! I'm going to read about those laptops now

 

[LightStalker]

macbook documents can run on windows with the software, my sis bought the original for about 160+ at the pc show.. Reason for original is because her documents are confidential and cannot use fake stuff :bsmilie: Worst part is that ur project softwares like finite elements may not be compatible with your macbook and you have to search for one or buy a macfriendly original software $$ :sweatsm: It's gonna burn a hole in ur wallet !