Hey guys, I’ve been on these forums for months, giving info and advice and receiving tons of it myself. It’s been really fun and great being on these wonderful forums. But unlike most of you, I don’t have even have my own notebook. Well, I had one, but I accidentally killed it.
And I couldn’t decide on a replacement because of me never being able to choose between all of the models out there. :decision: Well, I’m off to college in about two weeks and it is time I get myself a notebook. Because I’m so indesicive, I’d like some advice and help from you guys. Here’s some info to help you guys out.
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General Usage
What will you be using the notebook mainly for? Will you be using it to play games? Will you be using it for word processing / general productivity? etc.
I’ll be using it for web browsing, playing old games, listening to music, watching DVD’s, and typing my college papers.
Are you looking more at a very small notebook, a standard notebook, or a large desktop replacement?
I’m looking for a thin and light or ultraportable.
Will you be carrying the notebook around a lot or be keeping it stationary most of the time?
I’ll be carrying it around a lot, so I think my laptop should weight around 5 pounds or less.
How important is battery life to you?
Pretty important, I’d like at least 3 hours and will probably buy an additional battery for even more time off the outlet.
How long do you intend on using this laptop?
Not too sure, 1 year minimum, 2 years max.
Features
Do you need lots of hard drive space?
Not too much, as I’ll burn my stuff on DVD’s. 60 gigs or more sounds good. Almost all notebooks have at least a 60 gig hard drive anyways.
Will you be burning DVD's or just CD's?
I’ll be burning DVD’s, I’d like a dual-layer burner so I can burn on those disks when they get cheaper. Their so expensive right now.
Do you tend to work with a lot of applications at once?
Yes, if you count multiple browser windows, RealPlayer, and an old 2D game like Baldur’s Gate. Nothing too intensive, my Lifebook with 512 megs of ram ran what I threw at it just fine, so I probably won’t need more than that.
Graphics & Display
How big would you like your screen to be? Do you care if it's widescreen or not?
It absolutely must be widescreen. I cannot stand to look at the 4:3 ratio screens anymore. I’d like it to be 14 inches or less. I might go for a 15.4 inch screen if there’s a really good deal on a notebook with that screen size. I’m pretty flexible, I could go down to a 10.6 inch screen as I had a Fujitsu Lifebook P5020D with that screen and had no problems with it or its tiny keyboard.
Are you willing to pay more for premium screens enhanced by XBRITE, Crystal View, or Bright View?
Yes, I’ve fallen in love with these screens. The glare doesn’t bother me at all.
(If applicable) Will you be playing casual games or the latest games?
Mostly 2d games like Age of Empires and older 3d games like Quake 3.
(If applicable) Will you be doing work in a 3D modeling program like 3D Studio Max or Maya?
Not at all.
Miscellaneous
Do you care if your notebook looks good or not?
Yes I do, but its not a huge concern.
Are there particular brands you prefer or won't buy from?
I prefer HP/Compaq. I will only be buying a notebook that’s available in a retail store like Bestbuy, Circuit City, CompUSA, etc. So brands like Dell, Asus and IBM are out.
How much are you willing to pay for this notebook?
Around $1300-1400.
Are there particular models you have already looked at?
I’ve looked at the HP DV1000 and Compaq V2000 a lot. I like the DV1000 more with its slick black case and Quickplay and remote control. I’ve also looked at the Averatec 1000 and 4000 a bit.
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This will be my only computer for a while, so I’d like it to be very reliable and give me no problems. So, maybe I shouldn’t be looking at the Averatecs? I’ve been interested in the Averatec 1000 since it’s the same form factor as my P5020D was. Yet, I’ve heard some serious problems plaguing them on the Unofficial Averatec forums at
www.averatecforums.com. Some people have also complained about the short battery life on the 4000 series.
I’m struggling over whether to pick a Turion or Pentium M. I like the Turion with its 64 bit capability and lower price tag, but the shorter battery life, excessive heat, and constantly running of the ran on some models like the with this processor is putting me off. Well, those models do have the ML version, I’m sure the MT version would get rid of those issues. Do any notebooks even have the MT Turion yet? The Averatec 4100 is supposed to right?
I don’t even think I’d take advantage of 64 bit computing. Isn’t that for the extreme gamers, 3d renderers, video encoders, etc? I’m not doing anything demanding on my notebook. Besides, I won’t be keeping my notebook for too long, so I guess I can wait for Windows Vista to come out and get all of its bugs and quirks ironed out and the same goes for the Turion before moving to 64 bit.
I’ll be a freshman at the University of Houston, majoring in computer engineering. That sort of major needs a powerful computer though right? Actually, for the computer engineering students out there, what exactly do you do during the first couple of years? I’m really clueless about the major I’m jumping into. I hear with engineering, you have to do a lot of rendering 3d models on the computer right? Do you really need your own computer for this type of work or can I just go over to the engineering computer labs they got? I'm guessing for this type of work, you'd need a desktop replacement or desktop with a dedicated GPU and that a thin and light or ultraportable with integrated graphics wouldn't cut it.
Sorry for the extremely long post. Any advice from you guys would be greatly appreciated!
Getting a notebook, finally! Advice needed!
