"inexpensive" desktop replacement - no games, BluRay ripping

[sgtrobo]

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General Questions

1) What is your budget?
preferably under $1400

2) What size notebook would you prefer?
d. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen
e. Desktop Replacement; 17"+ screen

also need to be able to output to a 42" HDTV

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

4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
a. Like: Huge fan of Lenovo Thinkpads
b. Dislike: Not interested in Apple

5) Would you consider laptops that are refurbished/redistributed?
if it is from the manufacturer, I suppose

6) What are the primary tasks will you be performing with this notebook?
No gaming, but I want to take my rather extensive BluRay collection, and rip them down into
- size playable on my 60" TV (for me!)
- size playable on a laptop (for daughter at college)
- size playable on media device (wife likes to take phone to gym and watch movies while she slaves away on the elliptical)

7) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places, leaving it on your desk or both?
it'll be on desk mostly, but I will be taking it around my house quite a bit, so I don't want a cheap build construction

8) Will you be playing games on your notebook? If so, please state which games or types of games?
nah.

9) How many hours of battery life do you need?
I know that a fast CPU and a large screen = smaller battery life, but I would prefer to have at least a few hours of battery life

10) Would you prefer to see the notebooks you're considering before purchasing it or buying a notebook on-line without seeing it is OK?
not really an issue

11) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista or Windows 7), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
Windows 7 or Windows 8

Screen Specifics
12) From the choices below, what screen resolution(s) would you prefer?
1600 is the minimum, if the screen is VERY high quality, although I'd prefer a full HD 1920 screen. I have an x220 and I'm purely spoiled by the IPS

13) Do you want a Glossy/reflective screen or a Matte/non-glossy screen?
glossy screens are annoying, I'd prefer to be able to have the laptop at any angle and still be able to read without glare from the seemingly inevitable "poorly placed" overhead light. Again, I've been spoiled by the IPS

Build Quality and Design

14) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
not an issue. A laptop isn't a fashion statement for me

15) When are you buying this laptop?
early August at the absolute LATEST

16) How long do you want this laptop to last?
forever, or longer. I would prefer to get a solid 2-3 years out of this. I'd like to skip the next 'tock' cycle if possible

Notebook Components

17) How much hard drive space do you need; 80GB to 640GB? Do you want a SSD drive?
I would like to go with a smaller SSD for my applications and OS, and then if possible go with a slightly larger HDD onboard for storage, although if I understand things, USB 3.0 means a USB 3.0 external drive will be just fine for holding the movies and pictures and music and such, so if it makes sense, I guess just an SSD and USB 3.0

18) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a DVD Burner, Blu-ray Reader or Blu-Ray Burner?
I plan on ripping bluRay's into mkv files (once I figure out how the heck to do that), so a BluRay seems rather important, unless external an BluRay player via 3.0 is feasible and cheaper (if such a thing exists)?
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so I have returned from the sandbox for the final time, and my college-bound daughter has fallen in love (and basically claimed) my beloved x220. Makes sense for her to take it with her since I cannot possibly picture a more ideal college laptop. However, i need a few things that the x220 doesn't do, namely USB 3.0 and a larger screen (and a backlit keyboard, doggone it!)

what I need:

- desktop replacement strength "innards" that will be able to rip my BluRay collection to mkv without taking 3 days per disk
- ability to connect to a HDTV fairly easily, as I plan on doing homework in my 'mancave' with my laptop connected to my 42" TV

Unfortunately, I made the mistake of buying the x220. Why is it a mistake?

1. I'm spoiled by the keyboard
2. I love the little red mouse control trackpoint thing, and I hate touchpads
3. I am spoiled by the screen
4. I'm spoiled by the build (nice and sturdy)
5. I'm spoiled by the battery life
6. I'm spoiled by the overall portability of it

As a result, I fear I will not be able to fit all of the above into an affordable machine, and I'm going to have to figure out how to earn enough brownie points with the finance minister (aka wife) to get the machine that will satisfy my needs.

I was a rather experienced computer guy quite some time ago but far too many deployments overseas has rendered me somewhat technologically archaic. I know that Ivy Bridge has good onboard graphics and should give a little boost to my battery life over the Sandy Bridge CPU I have now, and it also has USB 3.0 which seems the holy grail since it takes so darn long to copy crap from my TB passport to my HDD. I am also craving an SSD since I really don't store a bunch of crap on my laptop itself, it's all music and movies and such on an external.

[RefinedPower]

well if you like thinkpads it sounds like the T530 is a good fit... the 1080p matte screen is the same as the T520 had and that is just about one of the best TN panels you can get. battary life is great on those machines too (13-15 hours). naturally you get the red pointer since it is a thinkpad.

also if you want a SSD go ahead and install that yourself... just about all manufacturers overcharge on them

it is possible to install an aftermarket blueray drive or you can just use a USB blueray.

[Kawasaki268F]

I support your dislike for apple as I do not support their silly little patents and their quest to take over the world and our souls and patent them too!

Lenovo is a solid choice T530 seems like a good choice

[MidnightSun]

One problem for your usage is that no current Thinkpad comes configured with a Blu-Ray disc drive. I think it may be possible to do a little bit of optical drive faceplate surgery and transplant in an aftermarket Blu-Ray drive, though, especially since the T530 now uses a standard-thickness drive.

Other than that, though, you should be able to get the machine you want in a new T530, within your budget.

[sgtrobo]

so i went and configured a T530 with an i7, the 1920 screen, and a 128GB SSD and that pushed it up to $2000. Did I do something wrong? :P

thanks for the points though.

[RefinedPower]

you probably dont need the I7, I5 is good enough. Also like i said install an aftermarket SSD, lenovo charges almost twice what you would normally pay for their SSDs.

[sgtrobo]

so go for a base standard HDD, and grab an aftermarket SSD. that sounds good

it was my understanding that ripping a BluRay and doing the encoding and such is extremely CPU-intensive. If so, would that mean that an i7 would be beneficial in such a situation?

[baiii]

If you ripping alot, i7 + some kind of GPU is your best bet. Currently, there is more support on nVida for CUDA, but handbrake(x264 precisely) announce they should have openCL support "soon" (typcally AMD do better in CL).

Quicksync is quick but rather limited and not supported well. Review say it have quality issue.

Probably a w520, matte 1080p i7 with 1000m or 2000m. And I believe it have the old thinkpad keyboard lay out wink~~

Edit: One more thing I think I missed, Do you need HDMI(rare on thinkpad?) when you say output to TV. Displayport probably need a adapter of some sort depending on the TV.

[sgtrobo]

no clue what displayport is, i'll google that.

i would like HDMI. I know my x220 has it

[RefinedPower]

just for kicks i went on to see what config i could get for the price. all told it came to 1244.00 also make use of the barnes and nobles gold discount. Upgrad the SSD and ram yourself

http://shoplenovo.i2.com/SEUILibrary...arnesnoblegold



Processor: Intel Core i7-3720QM Processor (6M Cache, up to 3.60 GHz)

Operating system: Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium (64 bit)

Operating system language: Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 - English

Display type: 15.6" FHD (1920 x 1080) LED Backlit AntiGlare Display, Mobile Broadband Ready

System graphics: NVIDIA NVS 5400M Graphics with Optimus Technology, 1GB DDR3 Memory

Total memory: 4 GB PC3-12800 DDR3 (1 DIMM)

Hard drive: 320GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm

Optical device: DVD Recordable

System expansion slots: Express Card Slot & 4-in-1 Card Reader & Bezel

Battery: 6 Cell Li-Ion TWL 70+