Looking to buy affordable, midrange laptop

P

Prose

Weaksauce
Joined
Oct 18, 2004
Messages
110
Hey guys,

I pretty much know nothing about the mobile side of computing. I'm traveling for a year in the next few weeks, and I'm going to need a machine to cover a lot of the stuff I do while I'm abroad.

I'm looking for a machine that is relatively affordable, but isn't really for games. I'm not too concerned with gaming, because the machine will be primarily for graphic design, and web design purposes on the road. I'm looking for something portable and light, with a brilliantly nice screen.

Any suggestions?
Thanks!
 
Thanks!

That's along the lines of what I'm looking for, and the price is looking right aswell.
 
youre very welcome. happy to help when i can. GL w/ your purchase and have safe travels.
 
The Sony VAIO® A250 Notebook is something along the lines of what I'd be looking for. Shipping time and all those variables play a pretty important role...

I'm also considering an Apple computer... what do you guys think? As I stated earlier, this would not be a gaming machine, but rather a design platform on the go.
 
I don't know what your budget is, but if you're traveling abroad, I'd suggest an IBM T series. a more reliable laptop you won't find (barring toughbooks)
 
How are the screens on the IBM T Series?
I'd be willing to spend up to 2000$ But the lower I can keep it, the better.
 
I got a Dell 700m a week ago that has the best screen I've seen on anything.. laptop or desktop, extremely sharp and bright with a glossy coating. It's only a 12" widescreen though so if you need larger then this isn't your laptop..but it does still do 1280x800 res. It's got a 1.6 centrino pentium-m, 512mb ram, 60gb hd and dvd drive and extended battery (goes for about 5hrs which isn't a lot but isn't too little either) for $1300 w/tax and shipping from the Dell small business website. It only took 8 days from ordering until it was on my doorstep.
 
Prose said:
How are the screens on the IBM T Series?
I'd be willing to spend up to 2000$ But the lower I can keep it, the better.
Click to expand...


The Flexview screens are amazing, but...they suck down battery life. my 15" gets about 3.5 hours of battery life where my 14" got about 5 hours w/ the same battery. On the extended battery, I got about 5.5 on the 15, and 6.75 on the 14"

If anything, I find my T42P's LCD to be too bright at its dimmest setting.

a 14" screen will get you a great screen, but doesn't have the wide angle of the FVs.


Also, the screens on the IBMs are matte. They don't have a glossy surface that will reflect light, your face, etc.
 
i dont recommend dells at all. i forgot about IBM. check IBM out. much much better. just make sure you get a dedicated graphics card. for graphics design id recommend at least a 9200, even a 9000, but never an intel onboard solution.

the IBM R and T series are really nice. R if youre on a really right budget. T if you need more performance for a great price. definately look at the T series.

Apples are also a great choice, but only if you have the money. if youre doing graphics, get a 15.2" PowerBook, but that almost breaks your budget from the beginning. if you had the budget for it, i would totally recommend the PowerBook.

So at this point id recommend buy a Sony w/e series i showed you, or an IBM T series.

i also have a really good performance lappy for sale, but i think it might be too big for ya. the price is under your maximum, but it probably too big and heavy for your liking, since youre traveling. if youre interested the specs are in my sig, or you can email me at andyman1100 AT suscom DOT net or just PM me.
 
Prose said:
Just another random question:

Are Toshibas any good?

Thanks for all the information guys, you're really speeding a process that would have normally taken me weeks!

Edit: http://www.toshibadirect.com/td/b2c/cmod.to?seg=HHO&coid=-28641&sel=0&rcid=-26367&ccid=1291021
This laptop is almost the same price as the Vaio's, and seems to have higher system specs..?
Click to expand...

o yea. i was going to mention toshiba in my last post but forgot. theyre also worth looking into, but be careful.

take a look at my lappy or just PM me. it fits what you need to do perfectly, and im sure we may be able to work on some sort of deal.
 
Ok I think I've grounded it down to what I'm intersted in...

The Sony VAIO® A250 Notebook
http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INT...tegoryName=cpu_VAIONotebookComputers_A_Series

vs.

The Thoshiba Satellite® P35
http://www.toshibadirect.com/td/b2c/cmod.to?seg=HHO&coid=-28641&sel=0&rcid=-26367&ccid=1291021

The Toshiba is a little bit bigger, heavier... Bigger screen, although I cannot attest to the quality of the display itself. From what I've heard and read, the Vaio's screens are very nice.
Both are around the same price (almost exactly the same).
The Toshiba is a little more powerufl it seems as well.

Thoughts? I appreciate all the feedback you guys have given me.
Thanks again.
 
You said you need the computer for graphic design and I think some people are confusing that with something "graphic" intensive such as 3d modeling. If you're doing the graphic design that I'm thinking of (photoshop, fireworks, illustrator), then integrated graphics will work just fine, plus you'll get more battery life. I'd recommend the 700m but it's the only Dell I've had any experience with... if others have had bad experiences with these then maybe you should steer clear.

I will add, however, that I owned a Toshiba Satellite that had many problems such as overheating, a bad LCD and general flimsy construction but it's also 2 years old so I can't speak for the newer ones.
 
I've owned a Toshiba satellite, a IBM T42 , and I tried to buy a Dell(they kinda forgot about me and I cancelled my order after 1.5 months), and I would definitely recommend the IBM or Apple if you have the funds.
 
here's an unusual recommendation:

toshiba satellite 1415-s173
---------------------------------------
1.8ghz celeron (one of the originals to boot)
256mb pc2100 ddr sdram
nvidia geforce4 mx420 go
30gb hdd
internal modem
internal nic
10.4" active matrix tft

you'll have to get one used cuz it's a 2yr. old design (costs around $500-$600) but they are absolutely indestructable in my experience. i've treated mine about as bad as it gets (short of slamming the lid on a pen or carrying it by the screen) and it still runs half-decently.

it's got just enough oomph to run ms office 2k3 and similar stuff, i ran coreldraw 9 on it just fine (except for a bad case of chronic overheat, but you get that with prettymuch all laptops anyways) and an occasional bit of dreamweaver mx.
 
Hey guys thanks for the continued feedback, I think if I were to sum up my needs for graphic design, it would require something along these lines:

As stated earlier, I'm looking for an extremely good screen. It's important for me to be able to grasp what I'm looking at clearly and with as much color definition as possible. High resolutions aren't essential, but the higher the better. Bear in mind, however, that this is also a travel machine. I'm certainly looking for something light and ergonomic, something that I could keep in my backpack wherever I go along with my cameras and other equipment. The pounds can add up. My desktop at home is beefy and powerful enough on its own, so I'm not really looking for something to replace it on the road, so much as have something that will allow me to get by. To sum up, the screens brilliance and quality is pretty important to me. I also do use Maya and 3D Studio MAX, along with Shake, and other compositing software. However, I doubt that I would be doing much of this while on the road.

I do a lot of print work. This means working at high resolution images inside of photoshop etc. etc. Having SOME video ram and a graphics card is pretty much required. At least 64mb of video memory. This in fact leads to my next question. To what extent can you upgrade most notebooks? If I were to pick up the Sony Vaio A250, would I be able to upgrade its video card if need be, to say, an x700?

Anything under 512mb of ram is pretty much out of the question.

I guess that pretty much sums it up. As I stated earlier, it's not a machine to compete with my gear at home, but rather something that will sustain me on the road for the next year as I travel throughout Japan. But I also want this machine to serve some sort of purpose when I get home.

Thanks again for all the feedback and help. I can't tell you how much these forums have helped me in making decisions. I appreciate it!
 
(1) the toshiba that i suggested is upgradeable to 512mb ram... i upgraded mine.

(2) most of the graphics you'll find on lappys are embedded, and it's actually pretty rare that it has more than 64mb... and almost always that is shared with the system ram, rather than being dedicated.
 
Prose said:
Hey guys thanks for the continued feedback, I think if I were to sum up my needs for graphic design, it would require something along these lines:

As stated earlier, I'm looking for an extremely good screen. It's important for me to be able to grasp what I'm looking at clearly and with as much color definition as possible. High resolutions aren't essential, but the higher the better. Bear in mind, however, that this is also a travel machine. I'm certainly looking for something light and ergonomic, something that I could keep in my backpack wherever I go along with my cameras and other equipment. The pounds can add up. My desktop at home is beefy and powerful enough on its own, so I'm not really looking for something to replace it on the road, so much as have something that will allow me to get by. To sum up, the screens brilliance and quality is pretty important to me. I also do use Maya and 3D Studio MAX, along with Shake, and other compositing software. However, I doubt that I would be doing much of this while on the road.

I do a lot of print work. This means working at high resolution images inside of photoshop etc. etc. Having SOME video ram and a graphics card is pretty much required. At least 64mb of video memory. This in fact leads to my next question. To what extent can you upgrade most notebooks? If I were to pick up the Sony Vaio A250, would I be able to upgrade its video card if need be, to say, an x700?

Anything under 512mb of ram is pretty much out of the question.

I guess that pretty much sums it up. As I stated earlier, it's not a machine to compete with my gear at home, but rather something that will sustain me on the road for the next year as I travel throughout Japan. But I also want this machine to serve some sort of purpose when I get home.

Thanks again for all the feedback and help. I can't tell you how much these forums have helped me in making decisions. I appreciate it!
Click to expand...

1) Screen: best screen quality, IMHO is the Sony VAIO A240. the 15.4 widescreen will definately aid in graphics and animation. the extra space is well worth it. youll not only get more working space, but the notebook itself will be less deep. convenient for traveling, at least in airplanes.
The Toshiba has a 17" screen, which is AWESOME (i own a HP zd7000 notebook), but doesnt have quality as good as the Sony.

2) Weight and Size: the IBM is the best to keep your backpack light and thin. the only problem is that it sacrifices performance, and most of that performance is what you need.
The Toshiba is out of the question if weight and size are important. its far too big and heavy for you. i have a HP zd7000 17" widescreen notebook, and its MASSIVE. i dread taking it along for trips, because its so big and heavy. im a very big guy, but even i get tired w/ this lappy riding on my shoulder/back.

3) Graphics: the Toshiba has the best graphics card, but far. the 9700 Mobility is an awesome chipset. the only problem is that the Toshiba is basically ruled out for you because of its size and weight. the Sony comes in second w/ the 64MB 9200. the 9200 will be perfect for Photoshop, and even has enough power to play most games.

4) Expandable: Aside from HDDs, some optical drives, and RAM, laptops are basically unexpandable. There are only maybe 5 different laptop models on the market where you can change their graphics card. and technology changes so fast, its been 3 months by the time you 'need' to upgrade. get something good the first time and make it last. ive already lasted a whole year w/ my lappy ;)

5) RAM: Sony is currently offering a free upgrade from 256MB to 512MB of RAM is you order on or before the 27th (3 days left). What Id recommend buying an additional 512MB SODIMM RAM stick from www.newegg.com, and when your new lappy comes in, open her up and slap in the 512MB. if you order w/in the deal period, you can have 1GB of RAM for about an additonal 100$. otherwise you can get the stock 256MB (if you miss the deal) and just use 768MB of RAM. either way, but the 512MB. thats what i did (768MB now) and the additonal RAM really helps w/ games and graphics.

All in all, i think that the Sony VAIO A240 is your best bet. it has a great price, good specs, sleek looks, and a great build/screen quality. its the best bang for your buck in your situation.

sorry for the long post....
 
TSS Modder said:
2) Weight and Size: the IBM is the best to keep your backpack light and thin. the only problem is that it sacrifices performance, and most of that performance is what you need.
Click to expand...

how does IBM sacrifice performance?

you can easily buy an IBM with a 60gb 7200rpm and a Radeon 9600. That's by no means lacking in performance.
 
You might look at something like this:

http://store.ekm.com/15wsceno25at.html

Its a Uniwill frame. ekm.com and rjtech.com have them in stock. Cyberpowersystem.com and IBuyPower.com use the frame as well. Its super thin but has a 256meg MR9700. And the price tag wont break the bank. Just another option for you.
 
NecessaryEvil said:
how does IBM sacrifice performance?

you can easily buy an IBM with a 60gb 7200rpm and a Radeon 9600. That's by no means lacking in performance.
Click to expand...

show me... i cant find this model on their site.

Donk3y said:
You might look at something like this:

http://store.ekm.com/15wsceno25at.html

Its a Uniwill frame. ekm.com and rjtech.com have them in stock. Cyberpowersystem.com and IBuyPower.com use the frame as well. Its super thin but has a 256meg MR9700. And the price tag wont break the bank. Just another option for you.
Click to expand...

wow... if i ever sell my laptop, i am definately looking into that barebones stuff. i can get a lappy w/ a LOAD of performance for far less than i paid for mine.
 
IBM's site isn't working for me, I imagine it's due to their adding the T43s.

until then, http://www5.pc.ibm.com/us/products.nsf/$wwwPartNumLookup/_2373K5U will have to do. (although this only has an 80gb 5400rpm, it can be configured with a 60/7200)
 
nice..... but wats the final price for that?? remember the word 'affordable' in the title. considering its an IBM product, it weighs less than 5 pounds, and it has a 9600 64MB, thats looking like a pretty hefty price.... :-\
 
I didn't say that that particular model was affordable...I was just commenting that IBMs do have high performance machines out there. Unfortunately, the high performance comes with a high price. Comparatively speaking, an IBM for 1500 vs a toshiba or dell for 1500 will be under powered. However, you're comparing IBM's low end with the others mid to high end.
 
Have you looked at the Uniwell 259IA3? If you ever considered building a notebook, this is you best best. It features a 256meg Radeon 9700 Mobile, and can support up to a 2ghz Dorthan Processor and 2 gig of ram. It has a beautiful 15.4 WSXGA Screen(1680x1050), and it almost looks better than the Sony screen. You can find a quick review here.
 
Acidwrz said:
Have you looked at the Uniwell 259IA3? If you ever considered building a notebook, this is you best best. It features a 256meg Radeon 9700 Mobile, and can support up to a 2ghz Dorthan Processor and 2 gig of ram. It has a beautiful 15.4 WSXGA Screen(1680x1050), and it almost looks better than the Sony screen. You can find a quick review here.
Click to expand...

That is the same exact laptop I linked to as well. Very popular machine at the moment. Looks promising.
 
NecessaryEvil said:
I didn't say that that particular model was affordable...I was just commenting that IBMs do have high performance machines out there. Unfortunately, the high performance comes with a high price. Comparatively speaking, an IBM for 1500 vs a toshiba or dell for 1500 will be under powered. However, you're comparing IBM's low end with the others mid to high end.
Click to expand...

im quite aware that IBM have high performance, but i was making my statement in regards to his budget. anybody can get anything that suits their needs 100%, as long as they have the money.

i love IBM, and am not dissing on them in any way. i was just saying that their laptops are too far overpriced for what the end user is getting. there are others out there that are more powerful but far less expensive.

that link w/ the barebones is really really interesting. should i go w/ Athlon 64-M, Centrino, or P4?
 
Donk3y said:
That is the same exact laptop I linked to as well. Very popular machine at the moment. Looks promising.
Click to expand...

I just ordered mine, and all that I need is a proc. Hopefully I can get a friend at fry's to give me a discount.
 
TSS- I would recommend a P-M followed by an A64-Mobile on the barebones. Less heat and power consumption than a P4.

acid- Congrats on the purchase of your Uniwill! Let us know what you think once you get it fired up.
 
omg dont listen to any of the above posts Sony Toshiba, dell, IBM all suck for the price, for 2000USD you can get

Compal CL56
1.8GHz Dothan 2MB Cache
1024MB PC2700 Ram
Radeon 9700 Pro 128MB (anything under radeon 9600 will not play any games worth playing, IE 9200 is crap)
60GB 7200RPM or 80GB 5400 RPM drive both have 8MB cache
Wireless B and G
SD reader
SXGA Screen

or try a Sager

AMD64 3400+
17" WSXGA :)
Radeon 9700 Pro 128MB
1024MB pc3200 Ram
80GB 5400 RPM drive
gigabit lan
8x DVDRW
4in1 card reader

or try ibuypower.com

Battalion 101 ML-Series

2.0GHz Dothan
15.4 WSXGA
1024MB Ram
Radeon 9700 pro 256MB (thats right 256MB!!!)
80GB 5400 RPM Drive
4x DVDRW
only 3x usb though
3in1 card reader (im thinking its not able to do MS pro)
 
jsut an update: the ibuypower laptop IS a uniwill 259IA3

edit: DONT SETTLE for a 9200 Radeon, it is utter garbage, you can't even run some winamp plugins cuz it just doesn't have the power. don't settle for anything less than 9600 pro 128MB because you can get it in alot of laptops for under $1500
 
^^^ buddy... you need to SETTLE DOWN. were here to help, advise, and critique.... not yell, jump up and down like a little boy, and criticize. if you have a suggestion for a good notebook, then post it. dont criticize anybody elses opinions and act like an ass doing it.

the Uniwill 259IA is an awesome notebook. (btw, its already been suggested, klowngoblin) im looking at teh 259 myself. itd be perfect for your traveling. it has a P-M, a 9700 256MB, and a brilliant screen. all at a really nice cost.

has anyone ordered/received the Uniwill 259IA from: http://store.ekm.com/15wsceno25at.html
? i want to buy one, but i dont want to mess anything up. how are the CPU and VPU cooled? id like to take their cooling solution off and apply some Arctic Silver 5. the main thing w/ me buying this notebook is the installation of the CPU and VPU, and using AS5. if anybody can give me some detailed info about this notebook, thatd be awesome. o and some PICS too. esp. some pics.

EDIT: is it possible to OC this notebook? is it even possible to OC a P-M? Id like to get the P-M 2GHz, but dont feel like spending another 200$ for just 200MHz. Is there a big performance difference between teh 1.8 and 2GHz?

and what are the OC capabilities of the VPU?
 
I have two Dell laptops, the Inspiron 9100 and the 600m. Both great notebooks. I also like Sager.
 
TSS Modder: I can't verify right now, but I believe that you cannot oc the proc. The GPU is possible, and someone at wisedudes.com got the gpu to run at 200/440(If I remember correctly). I can test and verify these in a few days when I receive my barebone.

I ordered mine from www.rjtech.com; they may appear to be a little bit more expensive than ekm, but if you look at it option for option(and shipping) rjtech is your best bet. Plus, you cannot beat a 9.64 Lifetime Reseller Rating Score, and ekm can't spell "Thank u for choosing EKM Online Store!" HOTT! :p .

I don't know if you noticed this link earlier, http://www.wisedudes.com/forum/showthread.php?t=879 , but it contains a decent review.

Sorry about any grammatical errors, on the clock.
 
TSS: Here are some links to reviews of the Uniwill. For the most part there will not be much difference between a 1.8 and a 2.0. Especially not for the cost difference. The MR9700 comes with heat pad instead of an arctic silver compound on it. Because of the slim design its actually a little bit underclocked to keep the heat down. That can easily be fixed by getting in there and replacing the heat pads with arctic silver and overclocking it. Its a beautiful machine from all the reviews I have read.


http://notebookforums.com/showthread.php?t=60146
http://notebookforums.com/showthread.php?t=53334

Hope this helps you decide

Edit-- And I would also recommend rjtech.com. After free shipping on their site it actually is just about the same price as EKM overall.
 
This Sony is $2000 but I like the specs:
http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INT...tegoryName=cpu_VAIONotebookComputers_SSeries#
This place apparently has it for $1,700+ship with XP home and MIR:
http://datavisioncomputer.com/webapp/commerce/command/ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=1246466&prmenbr=2000


13.3" WXGA 1280x800
1.70GHz Pentium M 735
ATI Mobility™ Radeon™ 9700 64MB VRAM
80GB hdd, 512MB RAM
3.9 lbs <-- or 4.2 lbs, it says both...

Those Sagers and whatnot seem to be stupid heavy. I can't find weights on the barebones ones. Personally, if it's heavy there's no point. Even an Apple Powerbook 15" is 5.7 lbs, but that's a nice machine. Of course I've never seen this Sony in person. Also I wish it had 128MB VRAM. The Apple can have that but it's $2400 with the 1.5GHz G4. Not sure how the processors compare but both are fast enough. The Apple gets you the bigger display of course, but about the same resolution, and you can't use your existing software. Both will look pretty slick and have a better resale value than some noname.
 
I didn't look at the exact model, but I highly recommend Toshiba laptops, second only to IBM as the big brand names go.

ASI has some nice ones as well. Looks like the biggest thing that will be hard to find is a SXGA+ or UXGA screen on a cheap laptop.
 
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