critique laptop

[rodrigu3]

So I finally pulled the trigger on getting a new laptop. I decided to go with the HP dv5z with the following specs:


AMD ZM-82 (2.2GHz)
15" BrightView Widescreen Display (1680 x 1050) (non-infinty)
4GB memory
Radeon HD 3200 Graphics
250GB 5400RPM SATA HD
Webcam + Fingerprint reader
Blu-Ray ROM with SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW Double Layer
12 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Vista 64-bit

The original build price after all rebates and deals was $923, but I noticed I could get a better deal yesterday, so when I called to cancel the order, they offered to give me an extra $50 credit, which gives me a much better deal in the end. After all that the final price for the build was $873. Let me know what you guys think.

 

[IlllI]

non-infinty?

 

[996GT2]

You paid $873 for something with a processor built on the 5 year old AMD K8 architecture? Fail.

For that price, a Core 2 Duo is really a must. A 2.2 AMD Turion X2 does not even begin to approach a similarly clocked Montevina Core 2 Duo in performance or battery life.

For the same price, you could have gotten a Dell Studio 15 with 2.2 GHz Core 2 Duo P8400, 1920x1200 screen, dedicated ATI HD 3450 graphics, 4 GB RAM, 320GB HDD, 9 Cell battery, etc after applying the 20% coupon Dell has going on right now...

 

[FleshLight]

Yeah, could've went with a Dell Studio, an Asus N8VN, or even a Dell XPS for around that price.

 

[rodrigu3]

Non-infinity = no glass plate over display that makes it look like a mac screen with no bezel between the screen and frame.



Dell Studio with a blu-ray player is out of my budget range (<$900 if possible), XPS models are absolutely not in my price range ($250 for blu-ray), and I've never heard of an Asus N8VN(2 results?). The studio configuration mentioned above, with a blu-ray drive is about $1280 and the 20% coupon, which does not even apply to studio laptops - only inspiron and XPS models, would only get me down to $1000, and that isn't even including taxes, which would bring the price back up to $1070.

The primary purpose of this laptop is for medical school and playing blu-rays at home or wherever. There will be no gaming on it, as I barely have time to play games and already have a custom desktop for that.

Looking at real-world performance, there would be no noticeable difference for me between a P8400 and the ZM-82 and absolutely no difference between a radeon 3200 and 3450. Besides, whatever battery life I gain from the P8400 would be erased by having dedicated graphics. Battery life isn't really that important to me anyway, since I'm always near an outlet. Regardless of whether the ZM-82 is 5-year old tech or not, it's still faster than what I currently have, and absolutely fast enough for what I need. If I were to go with an Intel, I would have had to deal with the Intel MHD 4500, which is vastly inferior to the HD 3200.

 

[Juked07]

Originally posted by: rodrigu3
Non-infinity = no glass plate over display that makes it look like a mac screen with no bezel between the screen and frame.



Dell Studio with a blu-ray player is out of my budget range (<$900 if possible), XPS models are absolutely not in my price range ($250 for blu-ray), and I've never heard of an Asus N8VN(2 results?). The studio configuration mentioned above, with a blu-ray drive is about $1280 and the 20% coupon, which does not even apply to studio laptops - only inspiron and XPS models, would only get me down to $1000, and that isn't even including taxes, which would bring the price back up to $1070.

The primary purpose of this laptop is for medical school and playing blu-rays at home or wherever. There will be no gaming on it, as I barely have time to play games and already have a custom desktop for that.

Looking at real-world performance, there would be no noticeable difference for me between a P8400 and the ZM-82 and absolutely no difference between a radeon 3200 and 3450. Besides, whatever battery life I gain from the P8400 would be erased by having dedicated graphics. Battery life isn't really that important to me anyway, since I'm always near an outlet. Regardless of whether the ZM-82 is 5-year old tech or not, it's still faster than what I currently have, and absolutely fast enough for what I need. If I were to go with an Intel, I would have had to deal with the Intel MHD 4500, which is vastly inferior to the HD 3200.

Shoulda said some of this in the op

 

[rodrigu3]

Originally posted by: Juked07

Shoulda said some of this in the op

Yeah, my bad.