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Getting a laptop for college -- thoughts?(Click here to view the original thread with full colors/images)
Posted by: Bernie
I know I want to go laptop over desktop. My parents need it to be from a well-known company so my three options are Dell, Gateway, or Apple.
I'll want to do some gaming but I don't need to ma all the specs up to wazoo for this-- I won't be playing games that require that. I've never owned an Apple computer, but I've used alot at school and used an iBook or two and I like them. I went ahead and customized an Inspiron 8600 from Dell, an iBook, and a Gateway laptop.
Inspiron 8600: $2,426
1.5 Ghz Pentium M
15.4" Screen
512 MB DDR SDRAM
64MB GeForce Fx Go5200
8x CD/DVD burner (dual-layer)
80 GB HD
(all sorts of warranty stuff added a lot of money)
iBook: $2,048.00
1.2 Ghz
14" Screen
512MB DDR266 RAM
60 GB HD
(4x or 6x i think) CD/DVD Burner
ATI Mobilitiy Radeon 9600
Gateway M675X: $2,434.95
Pentium 4 2.8Ghz (w/ hyper-threading ?)
512MB DDR SDRAM
80 GB HD
4x CD/DVD Burner
ATI Mobility Radeon 9600
---------------------------------
I guess my questions are these:
The Gateway has double the processor speed, but its P4 vs/ Pentium M--- what's the deal there?
What kind of gaming limitations would the iBook impose on me?
Answers to those along with insight about the three different options is GREATLY APPRECIATED.
Thanks very much.
--Matt
Posted by: Rune
I'm getting a 486 I'll re-sell to ya ... cheap. 
Posted by: Bernie
Maybe a PowerBook: $2,848 (includes 3-year warranty/support)
1.5GHz PowerPC G4
512 MB DDR333 SDRAM
80 GB HD
CD/DVD Burner
15.2" Screen
ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 (w/ 64MB DDR)
Posted by: gen0c1de
ok, first off going with the ibook will limit your gaming big time... unless the game you want to play is on both the mac and win plateforms.
the mobile CPUs consume less power but do as much work as a p4 2.8ghz ... that is if you have a mobile 1.4 ghz CPU and you compare it to a p4 2.8 they will run about the speed. Thou i'm not sure how well the mobile CPUs run for gaming because i have not been able to try one for myself you will have to look for some reviews on the internet.
and as for company i would stay away from gateway lappies, I have had my dell now just over a month and have run the sucker 24/7 and folding@home and it hasn't let me down. I have a Dell Inspiron 1150, running a cel 2.4 ghz, 384 ram, 40 gig hd, and intel extreme graphics card... thou it shares my system resources to run the graphics i can still play q3a, Ut, and a handful of other games.  at any rate i would sugest dell.
Posted by: maverik
i've had a pretty good experiance with dell. had a major problem earlier this year, musta friead a mobo or something cause the comp wouldn't power up at all. . ..they had it back to me in a couple weeks, good as new, adn i was on one of the lower warranty packages.
Posted by: Bernie
Okay-- this is what I think I'm going with:
Dell Inspiron 9100 -- $2,351 (before adding warranties)
P4 3.2 GHz
15.4" WSXGA+ Screen
XP Pro
1GB DDR Ram (@400Mhz)
128MB DDR ATI Mobility Radeon 9700
24X CD-RW/DVD Combo Drive
100GB Ultra ATA HD
Dell 1350 Wireless miniPCI
Added in a 3.5" Floppy Disk Module
My step-dad offered to pick up the tab for adding a long-term warranty so that allowed me to beef up the system a little bit-- decided to go against a DVD burner because I didn't think I'd really use it much and its very expensive. Splurged for the extra RAM and better Video Card.
I think this is what I am going to get-- gonna do it today because their 10% Off special ends today and thats quite a bit of money.
Any thoughts?
Posted by: gen0c1de
That is a pretty nice system setup, i would suggest getting a second battery for it so you can have more uptime when you are being mobile. I didn't because i'll be near an outlet 95% of the time while in class 
Posted by: Bernie
GG_ORDERED
Posted by: gen0c1de
quote:
Originally posted by Bernie
GG_ORDERED
you will be happy, the the shit they give you for free with the lappie is great .. it is just like christmas ... 
Posted by: Bernie
quote:
Originally posted by gen0c1de
you will be happy, the the shit they give you for free with the lappie is great .. it is just like christmas ...
what shit?
Posted by: gen0c1de
quote:
Originally posted by Bernie
what shit?
I got a shit load of free software with my lappie that i didn't ask for... like a photo editing suite (paint shop pro) ... stuff like that.
Posted by: The Warden
the dells are good.
good man ordering the 1 Gig of ram., the mobility ATI 9700 pro is a KICKIN card. you should get about 4000 3dmarks 03 (v.340)
Do not expect the clocks of a Desktop radeon 9700 pro, the best drivers for the Mobile Radeons seems to be the Omega Corners( http://www.omegacorner.com )
the only things I'll warn about : Battery life= Horrid, and it's a wee bit heavy. in the Future if you can afford it, get a spare battery, and see if it works with 2 batteries at one time.
My lappie Checks in at Just under 10 Lbs
p4 3.2 (800fsb)
512 megs ram ddr 400(pc3200)
60 gig hd
ATI radeon 9600 pro(128 meg)
15" UXGA (1600X1200)
Posted by: The Warden
side note: looked at the date, you should be close to getting it.
http://www.notebookforums.com
they have a Dell section there too, I'm usually in the Sager area!
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