so which laptop to get?

crazyFeet

I finally decided to get something up to 15" (17 hd i have now doesn't suit me anymore) with a good spec.

This is what i have at the moment:

Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium
AMD Turion 64 X2 Mobile Technology TL-60
2048 MB (2 x 1024 MB)
320 GB (2 x 160 GB) SATA Hard Disk Drive 5400 rpm
NVIDIA GeForce 8400M
17" WXGA High Definition BrightView Widescreen
Up to 895 MB total graphics memory with 128 MB dedicated
IEEE 1394 FireWire Interface
Lightscribe Super Multi DVD Writer ( /-R /-RW) with Double Layer support
Bluetooth wireless networking
802.11a/b/g WLAN
TV Tuner DVB-T, HP Mobile Remote Control
with remote control
Integrated finger print reader
HP Pavilion WebCam with stereo Integrated Microphones
5-in-1 integrated Digital Media Reader for Secure Digital cards, MultiMedia cards, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro, or xD Picture cards

I got this machine 3 years ago and paid a crazy money for it at that time. When buying it I was thinking 'oh wow it has so much stuff, this is brilliant', but no it wasn't. This thing packed so much stuff that has no use (or not much), like TV tuner which doesn't work in IE
Now i have projects all the time and must bring my machine with me, but this 'thing' is like a dumbell to cary, massive and heavy.

Went threw reviews but everything looks so similar these days and i really don't know what to go for. Heard bad things about Dell, people don't like HP either... I use my machine for SQL, .Net, CMS, Adobe etc... Little bit of multimedia too. Any advice will be appreciated :rolleyes:

Monotype

The laptops forum is a good place to start.

The sticky has some good info on current processors etc.- http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055887837

Dell aren't bad, if you watch out for the right deals. They'll overcharge you can. Check out their website to see if there's anything you like. There's nearly always coupon codes around to 'save' a couple of percent.
Friends and I have bought from laptopsdirect.ie (UK company) and everything has worked out well. Their prices are pretty good and they have a big selection.

crazyFeet

Thank you for you reply. I got offers between 350 - 400 for my machine but i can still ipgrade ram to 4G on it so i'm not sure should i sell it or not. Alienware 11x and 15 look amazing. but 11x doesn't seem to have a cd drive, i don't get that?

Zapho

crazyFeet wrote: »

Thank you for you reply. I got offers between 350 - 400 for my machine but i can still ipgrade ram to 4G on it so i'm not sure should i sell it or not. Alienware 11x and 15 look amazing. but 11x doesn't seem to have a cd drive, i don't get that?

Is an optical drive really all that important anymore? I'd much rather have a laptop sans the drive - I barely use it. Could always get an external one if need be.

crazyFeet

well, if you wana play a game or watch a rented dvd... i guess not that ofter yea...

VenomIreland

You could get an external DVD drive.

zappb

Crazyfeet,

I've used thinkpads for the last 8 years, but now to be honest, ASUS has caught my eye, in particular 2 13.3inch models and ill link the reviews for one, and the release info for the other. They even are good for light gaming,

I have a T410s (i5 - 520) (great machine) but wish i saved some money and went with one of these two core i3 Asus's

One is aluminum (U30JC) the other is bamboo (U33JC) - they also have a U35...version with no optical drive, and i think the u33 and u35 have usb 3

U30JC Review: http://www.anandtech.com/show/3730/asus-u30jc-refining-thin-and-light-performance

U30JC revisited with an SSD http://www.anandtech.com/show/3741/asus-u30jc-ssd

U33JC http://www.anandtech.com/show/3832/asus-u33jc-bamboo-for-the-masses

These machines will retail for about 800 - 900 euro and I hope komlpett and elara will stock them, but haven't found them yet in ireland.

Here is a buyers guide for 14inch an small laptops - very current and published by anandtech

http://www.anandtech.com/show/3822/laptop-buyers-guide-14inch-and-smaller


fantastic reviews for the U30JC on newegg (except 1 bad review at the top for asus support) - http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=N82E16834220717


Apart from the Asus, I'd go with a Mac because they have the best screens in the business, just run windows in a VM. although the higher end Asus laptops like that beast of a gaming laptop beats them,

crazyFeet

Yea they look pretty good. The price is high enough, if it had i5 with the boost i would go for it right away; what do you think about it's screen? i don't want a Mac as all my software is for Win and i am not planning to change for another few years as there is no need at the moment.

Really wish i could get my hands on i5-7 but they are prices really high as they is no competition at the moment. Heard that AMD is releasing their Danube which should work with ATI Radeon really well (even better than intel); if Danube comes out as any competitor they will do something about the price to sell; hence this latest generation of chips might go down? I hope it won't take long though. Plus i heard so much about Radeon lately and am willing to give it a shot as Nvidia has been crap for while now (until lately as it finally copd on)