buying a laptop

[Goshin]

I am buying a laptop. I don't have much money($800 max and I am thinking of buying one of these. I'm not a tech savie so I don't know If I am getting my money's worth so what do you think is should get

out of those laptops which has the better integrated video memery, I know they are not made for gaming, but which has the best graphics cards?

Compaq - Presario Laptop with AMD Turion™ 64 X2 includes with case and wireless mouse $614 if I buy this one than a printer by its self it will be around $750

• Graphics
  NVIDIA GeForce 7000M
• Video Memory
  Up to 335MB shared

Toshiba - Satellite Laptop with AMD Turion™ 64 X2 - Onyx Blue includes with 3-in-1 printer, wireless mouse, and turbotax(don't really need) $768

• Graphics
  ATI RADEON X1200
• Video Memory
  128MB-319MB (shared)

Acer - Extensa Laptop with AMD Turion™ 64 X $650

• Graphics
  ATI RADEON X1250
• Video Memory
  Up to 896MB HyperMemory

_________________________
this one is over my budget but if its really worth it, I guess I can borrow the extra $50
Dell - Inspiron Laptop with AMD Turion™ 64 X2 - Midnight Blue includes 3-in-1 printer, case, mouse, and flashdrive(already have one) $850

• Graphics
  ATI RADEON XPRESS 1270 with HyperMemory
• Video Memory
  Unspecified

[Ledgem]

Before anyone can offer you a truly valid opinion, we need to know what you really want out of your computer. What are you going to be using it for? There's no such thing as a perfect laptop overall - various laptops have strengths and weaknesses. Do you want to use it for gaming? Are you going to use it as a laptop (weight and battery life matter to you) or as a desktop replacement (hardware and screen size matter to you)?

[hobbes_fan]

As much as I love AMD you're way better off getting Intel. Stick with Toshiba and Asus and maybe Lennovo, Dell I like for the warranty. don't worry abot video capabilities - none of them will run the gfx intensive games. There's really little or no difference between what you'd find in performance. Focus on processor and HDD

dell is also rnning some specials the inspiron 1525 and 1420 have better specs
http://www.dell.com/content/products...=19&l=en&s=dhs

Of those 3 listed - I'd pick the Toshiba but be warned a 17" laptop isn't exactly the easiest thing to carry around.

[Goshin]

[quote=Ledgem;1413568]Before anyone can offer you a truly valid opinion, we need to know what you really want out of your computer. What are you going to be using it for?quote]

I plan to use it mostly for school, watching anime, and maybe some low graphics games. I do plan to use it as a laptop going from home to school. weight not much a factor to me, cause I don't walk around a lot

Originally Posted by hobbes_fan

As much as I love AMD you're way better off getting Intel. Stick with Toshiba and Asus and maybe Lennovo, Dell I like for the warranty. don't worry abot video capabilities - none of them will run the gfx intensive games. There's really little or no difference between what you'd find in performance. Focus on processor and HDD

dell is also rnning some specials the inspiron 1525 and 1420 have better specs
http://www.dell.com/content/products...=19&l=en&s=dhs

Of those 3 listed - I'd pick the Toshiba but be warned a 17" laptop isn't exactly the easiest thing to carry around.

what do you mean, its heavy? bulky?

I looked at those before.. don't know why I overlooked them

[hobbes_fan]

Weight and just general size, particlarly if you commute or use public transport a lot. trust me the size jmp from 15 to 17 is massive if you travel around a lot. It really ends up being around 18-19". It's just very awkward. Also battery life tends to be worse (bigger screen more battery power needed)

[Potatochobit]

you usually cant go wrong with a toshiba. it's a safe buy.

[arcadeplayer987]

Originally Posted by Potatochobit

you usually cant go wrong with a toshiba. it's a safe buy.

I couldn't say it better

[tripperazn]

Originally Posted by hobbes_fan

Weight and just general size, particlarly if you commute or use public transport a lot. trust me the size jmp from 15 to 17 is massive if you travel around a lot. It really ends up being around 18-19". It's just very awkward. Also battery life tends to be worse (bigger screen more battery power needed)

QFT.

17" laptops just end up looking and feeling really awkward. It's only seventeen inches you might say, but trust me, they're ridiculously huge. 15.4" is the perfect size IMO, you get a good mix between visual enjoyment and portability. I'm guessing you're a college student, you don't want to drag a fatty 17" around campus just for that slightly bigger screen.

Also, if you're only using it for anime and low-end gaming, video cards and video memory is NOT important. The basic features like processor, RAM, and hard disk capacity are MUCH more important.

[nikorai]

tripperazn
You're right. I'm also thinking about getting a laptop and those 17" ones looked really huge. There's a Sony VAIO that I thought would suit my needs (but it comes up to about 2k).

[Eviltape]

Originally Posted by Goshin

I plan to use it mostly for school, watching anime, and maybe some low graphics games. I do plan to use it as a laptop going from home to school. weight not much a factor to me, cause I don't walk around a lot.

Maybe the Asus EEE PC, if you don't plan on viewing 720p (rather, anything with high-res on h264) on that laptop and don't mind mashing your head with your palm for 4 or so hours learning how to be somewhat proficient at Linux commands and stuff. It's $350 US, just so you know.

It doesn't come with XP, but it can run on it. Don't know about the speed.

[hobbes_fan]

EEE IMO is a ripoff - no storage space, half the storage is taken up by the o/s. Damn small Linux should of been installed. So you'll need an external 2.5 HDD or a massive USB stick. , which 32gb is the biggest I've seenThat pretty much kills battery life. It's also ridiculously cramped, it's not something you'd want to be typing a thesis on.

Here spend the rest on a Canon all in one printer as they generally have good PQ and cheap ink. If you can afford another $50 buy another 1 gb stick of RAM to bump it up to 2gb
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834114429
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16828102248

[Goshin]

I've decided to get this laptop. its not much but it lets me buy the laptop and some other stuff and lets me stay under my budget 800

Wallmart Wish List

[Ledgem]

I don't see why everyone is making a huge fuss over the laptop's HD space. I think the current maximum for laptop HDs is 200 GB now - that's nothing and it costs a ton. Just get something that can store your programs and your working data, and then buy an external HD or two. Much more cost-efficient, and in most cases it fits the user's needs nicely.

[hobbes_fan]

IMO HDD space is crucial. 2.5 hdd's are the only USB powered HDD's and they're bloody expensive. Out in the field very rarely can you find mains power. You don't want to be using the dvd drive or a USB powered device because it kills your operating time. And personally its about value (as I said with th the EEE) there's very little in pricing between 2 similar spec model laptops but one with a 120gb vs 160gb usually less than $30. You'd be hard pressed to find a 2.5 40gb external hdd for the same price.

eg
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834115430

vs

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834110294

sure one has a 1.6ghz CPU as opposed to 1.5ghz, but in terms of performance is 160mhz going to make a significant difference? Not IMO and not in most benches.

[Ledgem]

Originally Posted by hobbes_fan

IMO HDD space is crucial. 2.5 hdd's are the only USB powered HDD's and they're bloody expensive. Out in the field very rarely can you find mains power. You don't want to be using the dvd drive or a USB powered device because it kills your operating time. And personally its about value (as I said with th the EEE) there's very little in pricing between 2 similar spec model laptops but one with a 120gb vs 160gb usually less than $30. You'd be hard pressed to find a 2.5 40gb external hdd for the same price.

I still hold to what I said before - for most users, using a big external drive is fine and better than trying to boost your internal drive. If you're dealing with huge gobs of data and you're constantly mobile (a road warrior might fit this description, and I can't think of many others) then yes - you want as much as you can get in as little space as possible. For the users who use their laptops and then come home each day, having an external or an array of externals is the better option. All you need the space for is for storing your programs, OS, vital data, and data that you'll be working with each day.

[Claies]

Originally Posted by tripperazn

QFT.

17" laptops just end up looking and feeling really awkward. It's only seventeen inches you might say, but trust me, they're ridiculously huge. 15.4" is the perfect size IMO, you get a good mix between visual enjoyment and portability. I'm guessing you're a college student, you don't want to drag a fatty 17" around campus just for that slightly bigger screen.

Also, if you're only using it for anime and low-end gaming, video cards and video memory is NOT important. The basic features like processor, RAM, and hard disk capacity are MUCH more important.

I second that. I have this gigantic 17" Toshiba Satellite. While I do like its huge screen, I now know a lot of drawbacks. For one, it doesn't have the computing power for very pretty things. For two, when it shows pretty things, the battery drains faster than you can dive towards an outlet. And three, it's massively bulky and heavy. It makes up a third to a half of my backpack weight (and that's without the charger, which almost always comes along), and now I get immensely jealous when my friend pulls out his 15" Thinkpad with ease.

Also, not as importantly, it despises Linux.

There are really more serious things you should consider than screen size when you pick a laptop. Feature-packed, sustainable, cheap: Pick any two.

Originally Posted by Ledgem

I still hold to what I said before - for most users, using a big external drive is fine and better than trying to boost your internal drive. If you're dealing with huge gobs of data and you're constantly mobile (a road warrior might fit this description, and I can't think of many others) then yes - you want as much as you can get in as little space as possible. For the users who use their laptops and then come home each day, having an external or an array of externals is the better option. All you need the space for is for storing your programs, OS, vital data, and data that you'll be working with each day.

Seconded. All my entertainment data (that includes anime, manga, music, eBooks, among other things) go on my external. I also have this little "downloads limbo" in my internal HDD where my downloaded files first arrive, so they don't take as much time to load (and most importantly, the download process isn't slowed down due to USB of all things), but they all eventually go to my external.

Really, the internal HDD is there for booting and gaming. Everything in between can be done over a USB cord and nothing more.

[Furuno]

Well, i'll go with the Acer...
Cheap and good.

ATi Radeon Xpress X1250 = ATi Radeon X700. Good enough to play Call of Duty 4. However, i believe you dont want to use that much amount of video memory (it'll eat up your system memory / RAM). Just set it for 256MB and your good.

In other words, the Acer one plays more game. If you want to...