Laptop Suggestions

[Devcon]

Anyone have any suggestions as to what Laptop I should purchase? Right now i'm considering the Alienware Area-51M or the Toshiba Satellite 5105-S702. My only concern w/ the Toshiba is the maximum amount of RAM, since previous models maxed out at 512 MB. I'm looking for pure performance and would like to know the best Brand and model to pursue.

Thanks in Advance...

 

[amdskip]

I'm gonna say this unfortunately but Dell happens to have the best overall laptops. Check out their refurbs, nice prices and you can't even tell they are refurbs.

 

[Devcon]

Are you serious? Dell... Anyone have a basis of comparison that can vouch for this. What about upgradeability? I was wondering if anyone actually has the alienware or toshiba that could perhaps give their overall impression.

 

[StevenF]

Well first let me say that I purchased the Dimension 8200 with the Ultrasharp screen, a great laptop. I wanted to get one of the Clevo's, but since my grandfather paid for it for college, he insisted it would be Dell.

If you go with the Toshiba, you should probably not upgrade anything that you could through a third party that would be cheaper. For example, I got an extra 256MB stick of ram for 100$ at crucial; dell wanted 250$.

As for the Alienware laptop, there have been differing opinions. Check out the site www.clevo.com.tw (i think that is right, but im not positive) for info about the "alienware" laptop. My recommendation is to go to www.powernotebooks.com to get the exact same laptop for a lot less. People say the alienware version has more venting holes. If you check out clevo, you'll see that all of them have those holes. PowerNotebooks just doesn't have many detailed pictures. The only reason you should go with Alienware is if you live in Nevada or feel the need to be color coordinated for an extra ~150$.

Clevo also has a new 8800 laptop( the alienware is a 5600) that has the second largest screen on the market like gateway's. It even comes with a TV tuner and a flash memory based portable music storage thing that can also be used as a suplemental storage for your PC.

I can't vouch for using PC CPU's in a laptop, but I doubt it will cause a problem. All of the major manufacturers are coming out with them. Dell just got one. I think IBM has one. The only thing to worry about is power drainage, but if you have a high power laptop, the battery life will stink anyway. If I had to do it all over again (and spend my own money), I would have gone with a Sager from powernotebooks or one of those nice slim portege's from toshiba.

Just a thought. If you really want color on your laptop, you could remove the plastic casing and paint it Start a whole new trend. Case moding for laptops. I can see it now....

 

[MWink]

Are you serious? Dell... Anyone have a basis of comparison that can vouch for this. What about upgradeability? I was wondering if anyone actually has the alienware or toshiba that could perhaps give their overall impression.

Yes I can. I have worked with Sager (Alienware), Toshiba, and Dell laptops. By FAR the Dell (Inspiron 8200) is the best. Sager's are in my experience just plain unreliable. I know someone who has one and it was nothing but problems from day 1.

I recently got a chance to work with a new Toshiba Satellite 5000 series laptop and I was very UNimpressed. The unit was not designed well IMO. The battery life was horrible. It ran on battery only 1:10 probably because it had a desktop CPU. I used to think Toshiba made good laptops but now I'm not as sure.

A few months ago I bought a Dell Inspiron 8200 and I have been extremely happy with it ever since. I have been using it as a desktop replacement and it is actually up to the job! The Inspiron is also the only laptop I consider truly upgradeable. Almost everything in it can be replaced. You can upgrade all the normal stuff (RAM, HD, etc.) as well as the CPU, video card, and other things that can't be replaced in other laptops.


BTW, I don't agree AT ALL with anything StevenF said.

 

[gsaldivar]

Listen to amdskip and MWink...

Stick to the big brands when it comes to buying a laptop - You can save some bucks on a home system by going with off-brand components, but with laptops, its crucial to get something with good build quality.

Avoid SAGER like the plague...

 

[Gibson486]

A few months ago I bought a Dell Inspiron 8200 and I have been extremely happy with it ever since. I have been using it as a desktop replacement and it is actually up to the job! The Inspiron is also the only laptop I consider truly upgradeable. Almost everything in it can be replaced. You can upgrade all the normal stuff (RAM, HD, etc.) as well as the CPU, video card, and other things that can't be replaced in other laptops.

how can you upgrade the videocard? I thought they were all intergrated in a laptop.

 

[gf4200isdabest]

then you'd be wrong gibson. Welcome to the new millenium bud. Laptops with everything integrated is a thing of the past...

I can also vouch for the Dell Inspiron laptops. Had one for a while. I sent it back because I decided I wanted a desktop instead. Everything worked fine. Don't get the Alienware. They rip you off. If you don't buy dell then try powernotebooks.com who sell the same Sager notebooks that Alienware has but they sell it for a lot less!!

The sager notebooks at powernotebooks.com use desktop CPU's which make them faster but hotter...If you're a hardcore gamer then maybe that's better for you. If you're like me and just play CS a few hours every day (no; that's by no means hardcore) then the Dell will be best. Btw, Dell laptops have that cool trackball in the middle of the keyboard. that is AMAZINGLY useful for sniping in a first person shooter if you don't have an external mouse hooked up...

Hope that helps

 

[MWink]

how can you upgrade the videocard? I thought they were all intergrated in a laptop.

Nope. The video card in the Inspiron 8200 is a removable card. Just remove the keyboard, unplug the LCD, unscrew it, and pull up. That's one of the reasons I bought this laptop.

BTW, I've taken it out and it's really easy to replace.

 

[Gibson486]

Nope. The video card in the Inspiron 8200 is a removable card. Just remove the keyboard, unplug the LCD, unscrew it, and pull up. That's one of the reasons I bought this laptop.

COOL COOL! Does any other manufacture do that?

 

[Devcon]

Wow... thx for all the response... Its a good thing I decided to make this post cause I thought Toshiba was #1 when it comes to laptops, and I thought Alienware made quality computers. From your guys suggestions it looks like Dell is the most economical and even has the longest life as a result of upgradeable components... This is very good to here considering that I get an educational discount on Dell, Toshiba, or Gateway computers. The only thing reason I hesitate w/ Dell is the slower processor speed as opposed to the alienware. But, I am a spec. guy and a few high numbers would normally sell me something. Its good to here that in this case bigger is not necessarily better. Thanks again for the response and any more suggestions are welcome. I still have a month till school begins.

Also, I'm looking at the customize thing at Dell.com for the Inspiron 8200... Bumping up the processor speed to 2 GHZ, and the RAM to 512 MB rockets the price up to 3200$ This is with a 30 GB smaller hard drive than toshiba and alienware offers. My educational discount can prolly bring this down to about 2k, but I thought a comparable Dell was cheaper?

 

[John]

I agree that you should steer clear of any notebook using the desktop P4, and stick with the mobile version. Sager offers the P4-M as well.

 

[filmore crashcart]

I just picked up a Inspiron 8200 (refurb) from Dell with a UXGA screen, 64 meg Geforce4 440 go card, 1.6 pentium 4 mobile, and 384 megs of ram...... in fact I'm typing on it while my desktop sits idle. I'm waiting for a combo drive from Dell this week to complete what I need at the moment and down the road,I'll get a 5400 rpm hd (it has a 30 gig 4200 in it now). I never thought I was going to be so pleased with a laptop.

 

[MWink]

Also, I'm looking at the customize thing at Dell.com for the Inspiron 8200... Bumping up the processor speed to 2 GHZ, and the RAM to 512 MB rockets the price up to 3200$ This is with a 30 GB smaller hard drive than toshiba and alienware offers. My educational discount can prolly bring this down to about 2k, but I thought a comparable Dell was cheaper?

No, Dell is better not really cheaper. You can save a LOT of money by doing some of the upgrades yourself. For example, get the smallest HD and least amount of RAM. Then buy a bigger HD from Newegg or GoogleGear, and more RAM from Crucial.

Also, I don't recommend going with the fastest CPU. It causes the price to go up a lot and I don't think it's worth it. When I got my I8200 I went with the slowest CPU (P4-M 1.4GHz). I have been very happy with the performance. Everything I have run (including games) have run very well. Also, I've read that the non-mobile P4 does not run as well as the P4-M in laptops. So even though the Sager is rated faster it may not actually run faster.

 

[Gibson486]

i like dell laptops, but they lack the 15.7" screen

 

[Devcon]

Ok... this is the customized Dell I think I may go with. I'd really like suggestions as to what to change or add.

Inspiron 8200
Mobile Pentium®4 Processor,2.0 GHz-M,15.0
Dell®UltraSharp?


Inspiron 8200:

Mobile Pentium®4 Processor,2.0 GHz-M,15.0 Dell®UltraSharp?


Memory:

256MB,DDR,266M,1DIMM

Video Card:

64MB DDR 4XAGP NVIDIA GeForce4 440 Go? 3D Video

Hard Drives:

Save $99 (Savings included in price) 40GB Ultra ATA 5400 RPM Hard Drive

40GBFP

Floppy Drive:

Floppy Drive

Operating System:

Microsoft® Windows® XP Home Edition

Network Adapters:

Integrated Network Card

Modem:

Internal 56K Modem

Fixed CD/DVD Drives:

FREE 8XCD-RW/DVD Combo Upgrade (from DVD) Roxio's Easy CD Creator®

Wireless Networking Cards:

Internal TrueMobile 1150 miniPCI card (Wi-Fi Certified)

Bundle:

Upgrade to Microsoft®Office XP Small Business w/Money 2002 and Educate

Digital Music:

Dell Jukebox powered by MusicMatch

Limited Warranty, Services and Support Options:

3 Year Limited Warranty plus 3 Year At-Home Service

Internet Access Options:

6 Month Dellnet® by MSN Internet Access for XP

Digital Photography:

Dell Picture Studio, Image Expert Standard

Printers:

Epson Stylus C60

Protect Your System:

TrippLIte Notebook Surge Protector

 

[gf4200isdabest]

Good choice on parts.

 

[Devcon]

Well, I bought the above computer. I'll repost w/ my impressions when i get it in a couple weeks.

Thanks again for the information.