Please help me choose a laptop, here's the specs I want..

N

nimue

New Member
Hard Drive - minimum 40GB
Ram - 512MB
Processor - anything decent
Must have a PCMCIA Slot
DVD RW
Good battery life (I don't know much about laptop batteries..)
Not too heavy (mabye <= 6 lbs.)
I'm open to different screen sizes
preferably a 1 yr. warranty

Just FYI, I intend to install user-friendly version of linux (no, i'm not a programmer) and also keep windows on it. I will definitely be using the pcmcia slot to connect to a wireless broadband service (probably verizon). I may want to store some pictures or video on it if I go on a vacation, but I have an old desktop I can keep things on too.

Can you direct me to a specific laptop or company offering good prices on a laptop like this? Anyone running a good special? Not poor quality but it doesnt need to be top of the line or glitzy either. Please keep suggestions to systems under $1,000, but obviously the less the better as long as it's reliable.


thanks!!
 
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I know nothing about video cards....what's decent? What difference does it make? I don't really play games...not saying I never will, but currently no. I could see wanting to watch a DVD on the computer or watch a video i've downloaded...

alanuofm said:
any video card preferences? do you game?
Click to expand...
 
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nimue said:
I know nothing about video cards....what's decent? What difference does it make? I don't really play games...not saying I never will, but currently no. Probably not high on my priorities.
Click to expand...

well if all you do is go on the internet and word process, there is no need for a very good processor.
 
Ok, so lets say I dont need a very good processor then.

alanuofm said:
well if all you do is go on the internet and word process, there is no need for a very good processor.
Click to expand...
 
heres a very portable laptop with extremely long battery life with little/no gaming capability.

Intel® Pentium® M Processor 735 (1.70 GHz/400MHz FSB)12.1-in WXGA
512MB DDR SDRAM 2 Dimms
80 GB Hard Drive
24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive
Intel® PRO/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless (802.11 b/g, 54Mbps)
65 WHr 8-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
1 Year Limited Warranty plus 1 Year Mail-In Service
Free Dell Color Printer 720

total: $901

4.1 pounds less than 1.5'' thick.


http://www1.us.dell.com/content/pro...0m?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~tab=viewstab#tabtop

not sure if it has pcmcia slot.
 
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Would like DVD-RW (or at least DVD-R). Isn't 400MHz as low as the processors come? My few year old dell desktop has 1.69 Ghz.... 80GB is ok...but not necessary. Also, do some systems have better security than others as far as when using a wireless broadband service..And the pcmcia slot is a must.


alanuofm said:
heres a very portable laptop with extremely long battery life with little/no gaming capability.

Intel® Pentium® M Processor 735 (1.70 GHz/400MHz FSB)12.1-in WXGA
512MB DDR SDRAM 2 Dimms
80 GB Hard Drive
24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive
Intel® PRO/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless (802.11 b/g, 54Mbps)
65 WHr 8-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
1 Year Limited Warranty plus 1 Year Mail-In Service
Free Dell Color Printer 720

total: $901

4.1 pounds less than 1.5'' thick.


http://www1.us.dell.com/content/pro...0m?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~tab=viewstab#tabtop
Click to expand...
 
slightly bigger but still very portable. i actually own this laptop and love it.
this one has pretty good gaming capability and will most older fps/rpg games.

inspiron 600m
Pentium® M Processor 725(1.60 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/64MB Video
512MB DDR SDRAM 2 Dimms
80GB Hard Drive
24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive
6-Cell Lithium Ion Battery (53Whr)
Intel® PRO/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless (802.11 b/g, 54Mbps)
2Yr Ltd Warranty, 2Yr At-Home Service, and 2Yr Technical Support
Free Dell Color Printer 720

TOTAL:$906.00

has a pcmcia slot.
http://www1.us.dell.com/content/pro...0m?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~tab=specstab#tabtop
 
nimue said:
Would like DVD-RW (or at least DVD-R). Isn't 400MHz as low as the processors come? My few year old dell desktop has 1.69 Ghz.... 80GB is ok...but not necessary. Also, do some systems have better security than others as far as when using a wireless broadband service..
Click to expand...

its a 1.7ghz processor with a 400mhz bus.
 
is this one better?

inspiron 600m
Pentium® M Processor 725(1.60 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/64MB Video
Microsoft® Windows® XP Home
512MB DDR SDRAM 2 Dimms
40GB Hard Drive
8x CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) with double-layer DVD+R write capability
Intel® PRO/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless (802.11 b/g, 54Mbps)
6-Cell Lithium Ion Battery (53Whr)
2Yr Ltd Warranty, 2Yr At-Home Service, and 2Yr Technical Support
1Yr Ltd. Warranty- Advance Exchange

total: $906
 
That one looks pretty good if it has a pcmcia slot. How heavy is it? Is that a good battery it comes with...how long will a charge last? Do you have a link to the system?

alanuofm said:
is this one better?

inspiron 600m
Pentium® M Processor 725(1.60 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/64MB Video
Microsoft® Windows® XP Home
512MB DDR SDRAM 2 Dimms
40GB Hard Drive
8x CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) with double-layer DVD+R write capability
Intel® PRO/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless (802.11 b/g, 54Mbps)
6-Cell Lithium Ion Battery (53Whr)
2Yr Ltd Warranty, 2Yr At-Home Service, and 2Yr Technical Support
1Yr Ltd. Warranty- Advance Exchange

total: $906
Click to expand...
 
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nimue said:
That one looks pretty good if it has a pcmcia slot. How heavy is it? Is that a good battery it comes with...how long will a charge last?
Click to expand...

yes it has a pcmcia slot.

it is 5.3 pounds and 1.29 inches thick.

how long the battery last depends on what you're doing. if you are playing a game then probably not long at all (1 hour if that). however when i am just surfing the internet and talking on line it lasts 4-5 hours.
 
Can you give me a link to this system? Do you have any idea how much a spare battery would cost?

alanuofm said:
yes it has a pcmcia slot.

it is 5.3 pounds and 1.29 inches thick.

how long the battery last depends on what you're doing. if you are playing a game then probably not long at all (1 hour if that). however when i am just surfing the internet and talking on line it lasts 4-5 hours.
Click to expand...
 
Why is the processor you mentioned better than the other processor options?

Pentium®M Processor 755(2 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in SXGA+ w/64MB Video [add $319 or $9/month2] May delay your Inspiron 600m ship date
Pentium®M Processor 745(1.80 GHz/400MHz FSB)14.1-in SXGA+ w/64MB Video [add $169 or $5/month2] May delay your Inspiron 600m ship date
Pentium®M Processor 725(1.60 GHz/400MHz FSB)14.1-in SXGA+ w/64MB Video [add $94 or $3/month2] May delay your Inspiron 600m ship date
Pentium® M Processor 755(2 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/64MB Video [add $263 or $8/month2] May delay your Inspiron 600m ship date
Pentium® M Processor 745(1.80 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/64MB Video [add $113 or $3/month2] May delay your Inspiron 600m ship date
Pentium® M Processor 725(1.60 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/64MB Video [add $38 or $1/month2] May delay your Inspiron 600m ship date
Pentium®M Processor 755(2 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in SXGA+ w/32MB Video [add $281 or $8/month2]
Pentium®M Processor 745(1.80 GHz/400MHz FSB)14.1-in SXGA+ w/32MB Video [add $131 or $4/month2]
Pentium®M Processor 725(1.60 GHz/400MHz FSB)14.1-in SXGA+ w/32MB Video [add $56 or $1/month2]
Pentium® M Processor 755(2 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/32MB Video [add $225 or $7/month2]
Pentium® M Processor 745(1.80 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/32MB Video [add $75 or $2/month2]
Pentium® M Processor 725(1.60 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/32MB Video


alanuofm said:
is this one better?

inspiron 600m
Pentium® M Processor 725(1.60 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/64MB Video
Microsoft® Windows® XP Home
512MB DDR SDRAM 2 Dimms
40GB Hard Drive
8x CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) with double-layer DVD+R write capability
Intel® PRO/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless (802.11 b/g, 54Mbps)
6-Cell Lithium Ion Battery (53Whr)
2Yr Ltd Warranty, 2Yr At-Home Service, and 2Yr Technical Support
1Yr Ltd. Warranty- Advance Exchange

total: $906
Click to expand...
 
its not. you do not seem to be using the laptop for any gaming purposes so it would make little sense to get a pentium M 2.0 ghz processor. the pentium M 1.6 is plenty fast and is faster than any processor clock for clock.
 
The one you had mentioned seems to be $38 more for 64MB video rather than the 32MB Video on the base....is the base cpu ok...thie one?

Pentium® M Processor 725(1.60 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/32MB Video



alanuofm said:
its not. you do not seem to be using the laptop for any gaming purposes so it would make little sense to get a pentium M 2.0 ghz processor. the pentium M 1.6 is plenty fast and is faster than any processor clock for clock.
Click to expand...
 
nimue said:
The one you had mentioned seems to be $38 more for 64MB video rather than the 32MB Video on the base....is the base cpu ok...thie one?

Pentium® M Processor 725(1.60 GHz/400MHz FSB) 14.1-in XGA w/32MB Video
Click to expand...

i got the computer just above 1499 in order to use the coupon code that deducts 600$ off the price (it was actually 1506$). thats why i got the better video card. plus in the future if you wanted, you can play some video games. its an agp 4x radeon 9000 video card.
 
What's the difference between these...

Intel® PRO/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless (802.11 b/g, 54Mbps)
Intel® PRO/Wireless 2915 Internal Wireless (802.11 a/b/g, 54Mbps) [add $19]


Also, is this a good deal or is it cheaper to get the card/service from verizon?

Novatel V620 1xEVDO PC Card with Verizon Wireless BroadbandAcces Service [add $187 or $5/month2]
 
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nimue said:
What's the difference between these...

Intel® PRO/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless (802.11 b/g, 54Mbps)
Intel® PRO/Wireless 2915 Internal Wireless (802.11 a/b/g, 54Mbps) [add $19]


Also, is this a good deal or is it cheaper to get the card/service from verizon?

Novatel V620 1xEVDO PC Card with Verizon Wireless BroadbandAcces Service [add $187 or $5/month2]
Click to expand...

these are wireless card for your homenetwork. you might need verizons broadband card to operate. not sure. for sbc i just need to a regular minipci card. the difference in those is the speed. 802.11a has speeds up to 108mb/s. the first one should be sufficient.
 
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