Need To Get A New Laptop..

[donrye18]

Im in need of a laptop ..the last one i had got damaged beyond repair..
im a graphic designer so i need something that can run adobe cs4/some video/ prolly no gaming..
General Questions

1) What is your budget? no more than $800

2) What size notebook would you prefer?

a. Netbook; 10” screen or less
b. Ultraportable; 11" - 12” screen
c. Thin and Light; 13" - 14" screen
d. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen
e. Desktop Replacement; 17"+ screen

3) Where will you buying this notebook? You can select the flag of your country as an indicator.

4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?

a. Like: asus, hp, toshiba
i dont know about brands like lenovo,
b. Dislike: dell...

5) What are the primary tasks will you be performing with this notebook?
alot of design work with illustrator, photoshop, some animation

6) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places, leaving it on your desk or both? yeah i always on the go..so i would take it with me

7) Will you be playing games on it; if so, which games or types of games?
no games..

8) How many hours of battery life do you need?

3 - 5+

9) Would you prefer to see the notebooks you're considering before purchasing it or buying a notebook on-line without seeing it is OK?
i would like to see it..but its not a big deal

10) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
xp or vista is fine..i love macs though just can afford them..

Screen Specifics

11) From the choices below, what screen resolutions would you prefer?

a. WXGA – 1280x800 or occasionally 1280x768; For people who like big text and icons that are easy to read. Less stuff fits on the screen, which translates into more scrolling.
b. WXGA+ – 1440x900; A modest bump over WXGA. Text and icons are a bit smaller. A little more stuff fits on the screen.
c. WSXGA+ – 1680x1050; The middle ground. Again, text and icons are smaller than WXGA+, and more stuff fits onto the screen. Good for having applications open side by side, like a web browser while playing a video.
d. WUXGA - 1920x1200; Very small text and icons, that can be hard to read. Lots of stuff fits on the screen, which means less scrolling. Good for applications that require a high level of detail like CAD or Photo Editing.


12) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non-glossy screen?
this isnt a big deal..

Build Quality and Design

13) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you? nope

14) When are you buying this laptop and how long do you want this laptop to last?
2-3 years...at least..

Notebook Components

15) How much hard drive space do you need; 80GB to 500GB? Do you want a SSD drive?

im confortable with 250 - 320..

16) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a CDRW/DVD-ROM, DVD Burner or Blu-Ray drive?

yeah i would prolly need this...





ok so any suggestions would help...so far on my list i have:
Asus x83vm-x2
Asus G50VT-x1
hpdv5 - 1235dx
toshiba satillite a305 - s6916
toshiba satellite m305-s4910

[Johnny T]

Check the Lenovo outlet for a T500. They are solid notebooks.

[Serg]

Hi! And welcome to the NBR Forums!

I recommend as a high-end business machine the T500 with 3650HD. It is a mid-level mid-range GPU with 128bit bandwidth. The build quality on the T500 is superb, very solid, robust and durable.

About hardware, it has a P series CPU, most likely a P8600 at 2.4GHz and 1GHz FSB 3MB L2 Cache. The GPU is as before mentioned an ATI Radeon 3650HD, capable of most graphic applications. The RAM installed is DDR3. It uses 5400RPM HDDs or 7200RPM HDDs for faster performance. The keyboard on ThinkPads are legendary, and reviews say it is still a top-of-the-line keyboard. The TFT CCFL screen is not as bright as a T400 (the smaller sibling) but it is very good and bright. The T500 offers up to 4 hours on Integrated Graphics, thanks to the switchable on-the-fly graphics it has. You can either switch between Intel GMA 4500MHD and ATI 3650HD whenever, for better battery life or better graphic solution. With 9 cell battery, the T500 reaches 6.5 hours.

Price is a bit high, but refurbished models can be found on that range (maybe you might even need to push it a little bit).

Other great laptop out there is the Dell Latitude E6500 15 inches of power in a rock solid built machine. It is very similar to the Lenovo, but it does not offer switchable graphics. It does have backlit keyboard, which some say it is as good as Lenovo's, it has LED screen for better battery life and they offer a Quadro NVS 160M suitable for 2D graphics applications.

In the Dell Outlet it can be found with great deals, also the Latitude E6400, a smaller and lighter version of the above.

Hope this helps!

[donrye18]

thanx guys ill definitly check these out...although im trying to stay away from dells right now...

[Serg]

thanx guys ill definitly check these out...although im trying to stay away from dells right now...

Any particular reason why not Dell?

Dell business laptops are very reliable. Dell consumer laptops are more good-looking over good-working IMO.

[donrye18]

no particular reason i had a del for a number of years the performance was ok..i just feel like trying someone else...havnt had a hp or toshiba or lenovo

any thoughts on acer laptops???

or HP?

[Serg]

I have never owned an Acer, so I can not really help you on that.

About HP. HP consumer line, aka Pavilions, I find them to be rather weak and plastic-feeling. Whenever I carry one around, I feel like it is going to brake on my hands on any given time, since I have a 2 years old Dell Vostro, which is very solid, I compare almost everything to this (may not be fair). Also the Pavilions, I really do not know what they are made of, but the surfaces seem like pure glossy plastic, and this is...they are fingerprint magnets!

On the other hand, HP business laptops are very solid. Reaching the levels of Dell business laptops and Lenovo's Thinkpad levels on build quality.

Hope this helps!