Best ultra-portable laptop under €1300

goreill2

I'm looking to buy a laptop. Spec is important but portability is essential so it's gotta be 12/13".

Min specs:
1.67 core duo / AMD equivalent
1Gb ram
80Gig hard drive

I have considered a macbook but need to run some windows based programs on it so that's out of the question. Pity since they're quite cheap with a student discount.
I don't need it for games so I won't need a pricey graphics card.

I'm willing to spend up to €1300 so could you knowledgeable folk suggest a couple of systems?

Cheers

Shad0r

The only well speced ultra portable lappies I've found after a bit of looking around there last week was from Sony, the Vaio (I think). They are a bit pricey though...maybe not if you were able to pick a second hand one up.

Not sure how helpful that is but if anyone has any other suggestions I would also love to hear them as I'm looking for something similar.

xebec

Get a macbook, 2Ghz, 80GB HD, comes in at just over €1300 at student prices, download bootcamp and stick a version of Windows on it for those programs and use OS X for everything else.

macbooks are a nice piece of kit, small, light and - dare I say it - look good. Picking one up myself over the next few weeks - one more pay cheque to go!!

rogue-entity

Go with the Macbook, or get a Dell Inspiron 6400 (you can get 1Gig of RAM if you order before September) It has a Core Du0 1.73GHz, 80Gig SATA HDD and a few other nice extras. I was thinking of ordering the very same for my sister so she will have it for college. Its selling for under 1000 with free shipping.

I bought a Macbook pro though, I wanted the extra power in it, and didnt mind paying for the premium (good bless savings accounts )

WizZard

I'd go with a Vaio as I found them fantastic (and sexy tbh). But if you are just using a few windows programs a MacBook would be good tioo.
Dell have a nice Latitude, D420 which could be an option as well - very slow hard drive though... same as iPod drive.

goreill2

xebec wrote:

Get a macbook, 2Ghz, 80GB HD, comes in at just over €1300 at student prices, download bootcamp and stick a version of Windows on it for those programs and use OS X for everything else.

To be honest I never considered getting a Mac. I know very little about them. How to they perform compared to a pc equivalent? Wouldn't there be some major compatibility issues? Do you have to buy Windows for Mac separately?

I do like the price though.. and the €160 rebate if bought along with an ipod.

trecool

I'd recommend the Apple iBook, or as it has been renamed Apple MacBook...

John

WizZard

Yes to run Windows on a Mac you need a separate license - around €100 OEM for XP Pro, but more for retail versions
What will you be using this laptop for?

Is dual core a definite requirement?

turbot

Given that you want it to be fast, my suggestion is get a Dell Inspiron XPS M1210.

Reasons:

2kg
Very fast
Good 12inch screen
Dual Core Processor
4 1/2 hour battery


If 2kg is too heavy, and you don't need a built in DVD RW, then I'd go for the D420, which is very smart and only 1.36kg!!! Even though it''ll run at only 60% of the speed of the XPS M1210.

sceptre

rogue-entity wrote:

or get a Dell Inspiron 6400

That isn't an ultra-portable (or even all that portable).

WizZard

turbot wrote:

Given that you want it to be fast, my suggestion is get a Dell Inspiron XPS M1210.

Reasons:

2kg
Very fast
Good 12inch screen
Dual Core Processor
4 1/2 hour battery


If 2kg is too heavy, and you don't need a built in DVD RW, then I'd go for the D420, which is very smart and only 1.36kg!!! Even though it''ll run at only 60% of the speed of the XPS M1210.

Is that not 2kg without DVD-RW drive (travel module - pay extra) and only a 4 cell battery. I think it becomes not "ultra-portable" when normal battery and drive are added.

IMHO the best ultra-portables are the VAIO SS/SZ series since they are a happy medium between 12" screens (too small) and 14" screens (too big). they are also very light and sexy looking (V. important)

goreill2

These are the options i've been looking at. I'm most likely going to get one of them. Tell me which one you'd get.

1) Mobeus (from net – www.go-mv.com )
[can be customised further]
• Intel Core Duo T2300 Processor 1.66GHz
• 1024 MB RAM
• 80 GB Hard Drive 5400 serial ATA
• 8X DVD writer Dual Layer
• 224MB Intel GMA950 Integrated Graphics
• Bluetooth Module
• 13” screen
• Warranty- 1 year C&R Parts and Labour, 2 years labour only
Incl vat and delivery €1,245




2) Philips X53 (from PCworld/ Dixons)
• Intel Core Duo T2050 Processor 1.66GHz
• 1024 MB RAM
• 80 GB Hard Drive
• DVD ReWriter MultiDrive
• 12.1 Widescreen Display
• 224MB Intel GMA950 Integrated Graphics
• 1 year warranty
Incl Vat: € 1199.99


3) Dell XPS M1210
• Intel Core Duo T2300 Processor 1.66GHz
• 1024 MB RAM
• 80 GB Hard Drive
• DVD +/- ReWriter
• 12.1 Widescreen Display
• 224MB Intel GMA950 Integrated Graphics
• 1 year XPS service
Incl Vat and Delivery €1493



4) Macbook
• 13” screen; black unit
• 2Ghz Intel Core Duo
• 80GB 5400-rpm Serial ATA hard drive
• 512MB memory
• 224MB Intel GMA950 Integrated Graphics
• SuperDrive (DVD±RW, CD-RW)
• Bluetooth
• 1 year warranty

With Student discount €1,428

K.O.Kiki

Why are you letting yourself be fleeced by opting for a black Macbook? Spend the money on RAM!!

xebec

Yeah, that macbook price is way over the top. The one that I'm looking at is a white one with basic (2Ghz T2500 and 60GB HD) spec for €1187 (only available within a college price scheme) but should be about €1250 to all students. Steer clear of the black one, it's not worth the extra €150 after you upgrade the HD of the white one.

This will be the first time I've bought a mac, but from what I've heard both on the web and from friends who are recent converts its the way to go, takes a little bit of effort to get the most out of one but far more versatile than a Windows machine.

tywy

im so tempted by the mac...but all my friends are like NO! macs suck. But you seem to get more for your money especially with the student offer

K.O.Kiki

Your friends are ignorant Windoze fanboys!
Don't worry, all my friends were like "No! Macs suck!" too. Then I reminded them that their laptops which were used for email/surfing/music only had a battery life of... 1-2hrs... compared to my iBook's 4-5hrs
And the iBook can do all it needs to do -- surf, check mail & be used for coding.

Now, back to your shopping -- since you're not gaming, I would recommend you forfeit the 2Ghz Macbook, and go for the 1.83Ghz one instead -- spend the extra money on RAM (but not at the Apple store!*), a good case/bag, a wireless mouse, wired/wireless headset (for Skype-ing if you want) & an external DVD±RW burner or HDD.


*edit*--just remembered that Apple ship the Macbook with both RAM slots occupied -- so you have to either eBay the RAM, or pay them about €40 more than it should be <_<

tywy

yeah I'm thinking of getting the basic macbook with 1GB of RAM and the 3yr warranty which brings it up to just over €1400 which seems good enough.

I had a Dell Latitude D505 so I have a laptop backpack for that and a mouse and all that. My desktop has a DVD writer so I should be grand.

So tempting but I'm still afraid to take the plunge!

K.O.Kiki

Let's put it this way -- my grandad "took the plunge".
...
He's 77 & had no problems adjusting

iopjkl

Intel Centrino Core Duo Processor 1.66 GHz
1024 MB DDRII-533MHz SDRAM
80 GB Hard Drive
DVD Dual Layer Drive
14.1" WXGA Widescreen TFT Screen
NVIDIA GeForce FX Go7300 256 MB TurboCache (64 MB dedicated memory)
Integrated wireless 802.11 LAN
Integrated Bluetooth
Integrated 4-in-1 card reader
2.4Kg
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition Pre Loaded
2 year warranty

€1051.20 plus delivery

http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/Asus_A8JC_Laptop_A8JC-H002H/version-1.asp

tywy

that's a pretty sweet deal but aren't laptopsdirect kinda dodgy?