Best laptop to go for...

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MJB

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I am looking at buying a new laptop and am looking for advice here... Which is the best high performance laptop to go for these days? I am going to be traveling and am looking for something that can almost be a desktop replacement.

Have been looking at the HP Pavilion DV9200 series and the Acer Ferrari 5000.

Any advice?
 
hj2k_x said:
Great machines, but will set you back for a good one...

Check out the HP in the thread i quoted. R8999 and has great specs.
Click to expand...
Apple or not any high performance machine is likely to set him back but that's what he wants.
 
bwana said:
Apple or not any high performance machine is likely to set him back but that's what he wants.
Click to expand...

Fair enough.

I just think that HP has everything that you could need in a laptop, especially for that price.
 
hj2k_x said:
Fair enough.

I just think that HP has everything that you could need in a laptop, especially for that price.
Click to expand...
It could have, but when I'm looking for a machine to be a desktop replacement I usually go for a larger screen. I noticed one of his (the HP) had a 17" even if the other didnt.

I almost got the 15" MacBook Pro last week but, due to availability, I was forced instead to get the 17" - so glad I did - I would have missed the extra space.
 
bwana said:
It could have, but when I'm looking for a machine to be a desktop replacement I usually go for a larger screen. I noticed one of his (the HP) had a 17" even if the other didnt.

I almost got the 15" MacBook Pro last week but, due to availability, I was forced instead to get the 17" - so glad I did - I would have missed the extra space.
Click to expand...

Ah yes, forgot about the desktop replacement part...17" is pretty huge when it comes to a laptop. What's the weight like on that MacBook Pro beast of yours?
 
3.1 kg - lighter than the HP he was asking about but heavier than the Ferrari. Weight is only really important if you're a student or a commuter who uses public transportation.

The size is important if you fly economy - Dont try to use any 17" with the seat-back tray. :eek:
 
Make sure, AT LEAST duo core 2, 2ghz+ try for the 2.33ghz
Min 2gb RAM
A 7200rpm performance hdrive
Extended battery
Min 256mb gfx(not onboard!)

Then you sorted :)
 
ziglet said:
Make sure, AT LEAST duo core 2, 2ghz+ try for the 2.33ghz
Min 2gb RAM
A 7200rpm performance hdrive
Extended battery
Min 256mb gfx(not onboard!)

Then you sorted :)
Click to expand...
I'd sooner go for a 5400 - seems to me that larger drives are available at that speed and heat/power consumption might be an issue.
 
Im no LG fan but i saw some really nice looking ones at the LG store at Monte.
Also the Viaos are really good.
 
Alienware laptops? Not sure if their locally valiable
http://www.alienware.com/product_pages/notebook_all_default.aspx

Area-51® m5790
$4,024.00

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7600 2.33GHz 4MB Cache 667MHz FSB
Genuine Windows® Vista Ultimate
17" WideUXGA 1920 x 1200 LCD - Saucer Silver
Alienware® Intel® 945PM + ICH7 Chipset
2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SO-DIMM at 667MHz - 2 x 1024MB
200GB (100GB x 2) Serial ATA 1.5Gb/s 7,200 RPM w/ NCQ & 8MB Cache (RAID 0)
Dual Layer Blu-ray Disc Optical Drive Combo w/ Software
256MB ATI Mobility™ Radeon® X1900
Intel® 7.1 High-Definition Audio
Internal Intel® PRO Wireless 3945 a/b/g Mini-Card
Integrated 10/1000Mb Gigabit Ethernet & 56K V.92 Modem
 
Last edited:
DAMN, thats a seriously nice laptop :0
 
Last edited:
Its a shame, they dnt ship to UK, South Africa, Singapore :/
 
spiderz said:
Alienware laptops? Not sure if their locally valiable
http://www.alienware.com/product_pages/notebook_all_default.aspx

Area-51® m5790
$4,024.00

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7600 2.33GHz 4MB Cache 667MHz FSB
Genuine Windows® Vista Ultimate
17" WideUXGA 1920 x 1200 LCD - Saucer Silver
Alienware® Intel® 945PM + ICH7 Chipset
2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SO-DIMM at 667MHz - 2 x 1024MB
200GB (100GB x 2) Serial ATA 1.5Gb/s 7,200 RPM w/ NCQ & 8MB Cache (RAID 0)
Dual Layer Blu-ray Disc Optical Drive Combo w/ Software
256MB ATI Mobility™ Radeon® X1900
Intel® 7.1 High-Definition Audio
Internal Intel® PRO Wireless 3945 a/b/g Mini-Card
Integrated 10/1000Mb Gigabit Ethernet & 56K V.92 Modem
Click to expand...
That is quite some machine!

What kind of budget were u looking at , man?
 
Guys, thanks allot for all the different imput here...

I think I am pretty much set on going for a 17" screen as the size does not really bother me. As for the processor speed, I would like to go for the Intel Core 2 Duo 2.33ghz.

Hp South Africa's top of the line Pavilion Notebook DV9200:

Processor, operating system and memory
Processor type
Intel® Centrino® Duo Mobile Technology
• Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor T7200
• 2 GHz , Level 2 cache 4 MB
• Intel® PRO/Wireless 3945 802.11a/b/g Integrated Wireless LAN
Operating system installed
Genuine Windows Vista™ Home Premium
Standard memory
1024 MB
Maximum memory
Supports up to 2 GB DDR2 memory
Memory layout
(2 x 512 MB)
Internal drives
Internal hard disk drive
240 GB (2 x 120 GB)
Hard disk controller
SATA Hard Disk Drive
Hard disk drive speed
5400 rpm
Optical drive type
Lightscribe Super Multi DVD Writer (+/-R +/-RW) with Double Layer support
System features
Memory card device
5-in-1 integrated Digital Media Reader for Secure Digital cards, MultiMedia cards, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro, or xD Picture cards
Modem
High speed 56K modem
Network interface
Ethernet 10/100BT integrated network interface
Wireless technologies
Intel® PRO/Wireless 3945 802.11a/b/g Integrated Wireless LAN
Wireless capability
Bluetooth® wireless networking
External I/O ports
1 VGA port; 1 HDMI port; 4 USB 2.0 ports; 1 IEEE-1394; 1 RJ 11 modem connector; 1 RJ 45 Ethernet connector; S-video TV out; Remote control infrared port (Remote Control optional); 2 Headphones-out one w/ SPDIF Digital Audio, 1 Microphone-in port; Cable docking connector
Video capture interface
IEEE 1394 FireWire® Interface
Expansion slots
One ExpressCard/54 slot (also supports ExpressCard/34)
Display size
17" WXGA+ High Definition BrightView Widescreen
Display resolution
1440 x 900
Video adapter
NVIDIA® GeForce™ Go 7600
Video RAM
with 512 MB dedicated video memory
Control panel
HP QuickPlay media player software and its dedicated menu controls, music and DVD buttons
Webcam
HP Pavilion webcam with stereo integrated microphones
Handheld remote control
HP Mobile Remote Control
Internal audio
3D Sound Blaster Pro compatible sound 16 bit integrated
Speakers and microphone
Altec Lansing® speakers
Keyboard
Full size desktop keyboard (with separate numeric keypad layout)
Pointing device
Touch Pad with On/Off button and dedicated vertical Scroll Up/Down pad, volume control, mute buttons, 2 Quick Launch Buttons
Power supply type
90 W AC Power Adapter
Software
Software - Productivity & finance
Microsoft® Works Suite 2006: Microsoft® Word 2002, Microsoft® Works 8, Microsoft® Encarta® Encyclopedia Standard 2006, Microsoft® Money 2005 Standard, Microsoft® Digital Image 2006 Standard
Pre-installed software
Microsoft® Internet Explorer 7.0; Windows Mail; Adobe® Reader 7.0
Optical drive driver software
Windows Media Player ; HP Photosmart Essential, Windows Photo Gallery ; DVD Play ; Windows Movie Maker, Windows DVD Maker, Roxio MyDVD Basic ; Roxio Creator Basic ; Windows Media center, QuickPlay Direct and QuickPlay for Windows
Software included
Recovery partition (including possibility to recover system, applications and drivers separately); Optional re-allocation of recovery partition; Recovery CD/DVD creation tool; Symantec™ Norton Internet Security™ 2007 (60 days live update); Notebook Help & Support
Dimensions / weight / warranty
Weight
3.56 kg (7.8 lbs)
Package weight
5.10 kg
Dimensions (W x D x H)
28.50 cm (L) x 39.60 cm (W) x 3.16 cm (min)H / 4.18 cm (max) H
Package dimensions (W x D x H)
480 x 170 x 350 mm
Warranty statement
1 year, carry in, parts and labour



My questions are: Is there a noticeable difference in the 2ghz compared to the 2.33ghz? Also the hdd's are 5400 rpm not 7200rpm, is this a major drawback? As far as the ram goes, I would get it upgraded to 2048 DDR2. Also, going to the UK, is it better to maybe buy their?

However, maybe I should just look at another make... Any recommendations in this spec range?

Once again... Thanks

O yes, Allienware does look good, pity about availability here.
 
MJB said:
Also, going to the UK, is it better to maybe buy their?
Click to expand...
Odd that you ask but I just bought a kick ass ;) Mac here, with a UK creditcard, and it ended up being cheaper (more than £100) than if I had bought it back there so check the forex rates first.
 
hj2k_x said:
@MJB, do u have any kind of budget or can we go wild?
Click to expand...

Well I would not say any budget, but I am prepared to spend a decent amount. I need to get something here that I can use for a long time and something that can handle pretty much anything I throw at it.

I can get that HP somewhere between 15000 and 17000, so around there. Obviously, if you guys know of something good spec wise at a lower price, it would be great :D
 
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