What do I need in a laptop?

[shredman]

I need some guidance for a laptop purchase in the next few months. I will be traveling all the time (airplane) and mostly want this laptop for use in my hotel room/coffee shops. I will have to take it out all the time for going through security, so I don't want it to be too big or heavy. I want to use it for internet access in my hotel room/hotspots with wi/fi etc... and also for playing movies and games in my room (I don't expect to play rainbow 6 vegas, but maybe some strategy games, and a little MMO like Wow). Budget is $1500 or so.

Size: I'm thinking about 5.5 lbs max
Screen: is 14.1" good enough for gaming? Dell also sells a High res 14.1" that takes the resolution up to 1400x900? Glossy or anti glare?
video: want a pretty good card..8600m or 8400m
CPU/Mem: Intel Dual core, 2.0? 2gb mem
Drives: I'd like 7200rpm if possible and min of 160gb
DVD/CD - I don't need a burner
Comms: What kind of wireless/bluetooth/ethernet/modem do I need?
Audio: what is needed for compatibility with games?
Slots and I/O ports??
also want a good webcam for staying in touch with the family while on the road...

Basically what I am looking for is a the lightest and smallest laptop I can play a decent range of games on and also has all the latest connectivity for now and as far in the future as possible.

I'm eyeing this Dell: Dell 1420
I'm not sure if downsizing to a 14.1" screen is worth the tradeoff ....for one more pound I could do the 15". But it seems to have everything else I need/want.... the only downsides I see are only 128mb on the 8400GS and standard high def audio - which I'm not sure will be compatible with games.

 

[Commodus]

Size: anything 14 inches or smaller should weigh less than 5.5 pounds. Don't worry about weight.

That display area won't be perfect for gaming, but it'll be enough. Go anti-glare if you can -- the colors aren't quite as vivid, but they're also more accurate and you won't spend half your time adjusting your seat to avoid the reflection of a lamp in the background.

You'll have a hard time finding a GeForce 8600M in any 14-inch notebook -- not just heat concerns but also the question of cost. Most of the major PC vendors will let you custom-order with an 8400M GS, which should be enough for what you're doing.

Don't stress too much about getting a 7200RPM drive -- they're expensive and won't necessarily be worthwhile if you're not doing any especially disk-intensive gaming or work.

You'll get 802.11g with any notebook you buy today, which is enough for most uses. Only stress about 802.11n if you either want to be absolutely future-proof or you know you'll do a lot of heavy file transfers on a local network (such as to an Apple TV hub).

Any built-in audio today will be fine with games. We're past the days of Gravis Ultrasounds and chipsets that couldn't work in some games. Don't put too much stock into "high definition audio." Unless you're going to hook up your laptop to a 7.1-channel surround system, the default is fine.

For I/O: don't fret about an ExpressCard slot unless you need cellular broadband (EVDO, HSDPA, etc.) or other specialized gear.

Dell's system is one option; so is the HP dv2500t, and you may want to consider the 14-inch Lenovo ThinkPad T61 as well (its Quadro graphics are roughly on par). For the first two companies, though: get an extended warranty, and watch out for "traps" in the custom-order process. For example, HP makes the recovery DVD optional; forget to check the $20 option and you'll be hosed if you want to reformat the drive or install Windows components that weren't already there. HP also gives you the option of a "high-capacity 6-cell battery" -- choose that, since it gives you extra capacity for little extra and without adding to the bulk of the system.

 

[shredman]

Commodus, great info!

Any specific recommendations? I kind of like the ability to buy a 3 yr warranty and a theft/breakage warranty...dell offers this - I need to check if HP/lenovo do.

Any thoughts on AMD Turion performance and ATI Hyperexpress 1270 graphics?? If they compare well to Intel/nvidia, there is a good amount of cost savings there it seems.

Also, what processor speeds intel.amd should I be looking at?

Right now I'm thinking of....

14 or 15 " (I need to go to a store to compare them)
Intel 2 ghz??
2 gb ram
nvidia 8400gs (HP says 328 memory is it still just 128 dedicated the rest shared?)
160gb HD (5400or7200 either ok)
Lan/blue 2.0/wireless N
webcam/mic
extra life battery (no extra size though)

models:

Inspiron 1420 / 1520 / 1521 (amd option)
HP dv2500t, hp 5600t
Sony would be nice, but very pricey I think.........

 

[TheStu]

If you aren't playing much in the way of games (WoW is not exactly the most graphics intense game) then you can get away with any integrated graphics solution. The new Intel X3100 chip brings DX10 support and overall better performance, without costing you too much in the way of battery life.

Look for a processor at about 1.8GHz or better, and it can be either Turion or Core 2. You will see some benefit from the Core 2, but nothing incredibly drastic. Maybe 30 minutes more at best.

 

[shredman]

The new Intel X3100 chip brings DX10 support and overall better performance

Better performance than which?

 

[TheStu]

Sorry, must have been distracted before I could finish that sentence... better performance than any previous intel integrated (obviously) and I think also better performance than any other integrated solution out there right now. To the best of my knowledge, nVidia has not yet released an 8100 series chipset (a hypothetical name based off of the 6100 series integrated).

The HyperExpress 1270 that you are talking about may be DX10 integrated ATi graphics, and if that is the case, then you may want to check that out since it will probably do moderately better than the X3100. Bear in mind that integrated is integrated.

 

[shredman]

Ok, thanks for all the inputs thus far....after much ado, here is what I am down to.

Dell 1420 14"

or
Dell xps 1330 13" costs about $480 more than similarly equipped 1420

Is the XPS any faster than the 1420 given the same cpu/ram/HDD?? I've read some posts that seem to suggest so.

As far as the CPU, does 1.8 vs. 2.0 or 2.2 make a significant diff?

 

[shredman]

bump

 

[Fraggable]

Originally posted by: shredman
Ok, thanks for all the inputs thus far....after much ado, here is what I am down to.

Dell 1420 14"

or
Dell xps 1330 13" costs about $480 more than similarly equipped 1420

Is the XPS any faster than the 1420 given the same cpu/ram/HDD?? I've read some posts that seem to suggest so.

As far as the CPU, does 1.8 vs. 2.0 or 2.2 make a significant diff?

I can't see how it would be faster, given identical components. Maybe they use a better quality motherboard, which I guess could add up to a 1% boost in performance, but in reality I don't think so. I would never pay that much extra for the XPS 1330 unless I needed the smaller system.

 

[TheStu]

Yea, no way that claim is real. If you don't mind the extra size of the 1420 over the 1330, then go for the 1420... save your green.

Though there was a guy here in SFF/notebooks that picked up an XPS1330 for $740... and this was from Dell apparently. So it didn't fall off a truck if you know what I mean

 

[vshah]

do you care much about battery life? if you want more than ~3-4 hours, you should get a dell d630 like i did, with dual batteries. i had a 2ghz core 2 and a quadro 135m (like a 8400gs) for under 1300, and it will probably get ~8 hours of battery life. very useful for long flights/long coffeshop visits

 

[shredman]

The $740 deal was a student discount while also on sale at his university, so that is right out for us mortals.

I agree, similarly equiped 1420 and 1330 should perform fairly close.

I don't need battery much at all. 2 hrs is fine for my uses.

I've had some second thoughts about the 8400g gpu. Check out this Laptop GPU comparison chart the 8400 eats its shorts. The 8600gt does much better....so now I am considering if getting a little bit bigger laptop is worth the 8600gt. Currently considering:

Asus G1S
Sager 2090 (way backordered)
Dell 1520

Still thinking about the 1420 and HP 2500 if I don't get the 8600gt. The HP seems like a much smaller footprint which I like.