I’m going to be buying a laptop soon. It’ll replace my PC because I’m going to be traveling and don’t particular want to haul around the tower.
I mostly do graphics work with a little bit of 3D (which my computer now can just barely handle). I have Adobe Creative Suite 4 and plan to upgrade to 5 at some point. I usually have two or three programs open at a time (often Illustrator, Photoshop, & Itunes). I use Windows and I’m (and I can’t believe I’m saying this) actually excited to get Windows 7. I’m not looking forward to reinstalling all my software, but who does?
What companies are to be avoided? Which companies are good? What processor should I try to get?
I know I don’t want a smaller than 500mb hard drive.
Notebooks with discrete video subsystems are usually $ 800 and up.
Spending some extra dough for a faster CPU if you are rendering 3D would probably be a good investment in your case, unfortunately that puts you into a a $ 1000 and up price class. Re build quality and value I like HP and Lenovo (was IBM Thinkpad) these days. Toshiba build quality has gone down quite a bit over the last few years (IMO) and Sony units are too expensive for what you get and are not as feature laden vs the competition as they used to be. Here are some Lenovo units that meet your spec.
My company has stopped buying Dell laptops (were buying Latitudes) due to too many unit failures and has switched to Lenovo units. We still buy Dell desktops (Optiplex line now, after a few years of buying the Precision line).
It has capable 3d graphics (which automatically switches to lower power graphics when the capability is not needed), 500 GB hard drive, fast CPU. 16 inch display, which is on the large side, depending on your needs.
There’s an in depth review here if you’re interested. Just skip to the last section if you want the summary. Very good review.
I have, but I don’t really want to convert all my software. I grew up using Windows and I’m relatively proficient in it. I don’t really want to have to relearn everything. (I’ve used Macs, of course, but not in a down and gritty way.)
And thanks everybody. My mom (who is paying for it) pulled out some coupons for laptops at Costco, but I wasn’t sure if that wasn’t going to be good enough (although all of them are at least twice as good as my current PC).
You don’t have to run OS X - a MacBook Pro actually makes a very good Windows laptop. Bootcamp comes with it, and all the drivers for it are provided by Apple on the install DVD.
If you like the physical configuration (great screen, solid metal body, great trackpad, no doors or latches to break off, low weight, decent internal hardware), then there’ no reason not to run windows on it full time.
With bootcamp, it effortlessly dual boots, and you can specify either OS as the main one, so it boots into that one by default.
Sit down and make a list of your “must-haves” and “really want” and “don’t care.”
Laptop buying is an endless series of tradeoffs. You want it light? You have to get a smaller screen. You want a more powerful processor? Then you get a shorter battery life.
Here’s a short list:
Weight: The “sweet spot” is generally 4-5 lbs., which generally translates into a 15" screen and usually a non-standard keyboard. Over 15" and you end up with a 7 lb machine. Note that after including the case, power cord, external mouse, and other extras, you’re adding an additional 2-3 lbs.
Battery: Batteries generally come in two flavors: 4 cell (usually denoted as 2000 mAh) and 6 cell (4000 mAh). A 4 cell battery will usually give around 2-3 hours of performance, while a 6 cell will give 4+. It is possible to get more performance from a smaller battery, but then you have to sacrifice performance and/or size.
Graphics: the better your graphics, the shorter your battery life and higher your price.
Memory and Harddrive: this is pretty much a non-factor if you are getting Windows 7. Memory and storage are dirt cheap nowadays, and external HD’s are plentiful.
Processor: right now, dual core chips are the best balance between portability and performance. Avoid the Atom at all cost. Quad core chips are available for laptops, but they eat through batteries really fast. Again, another trade off: if you are never going to move the laptop, then getting a quad core chip won’t hurt you.
What is your budget? Usually, this will answer nearly all your questions for you.
