Laptop Opinions

[Fedora Gal]

Heyas guys, looking to buy a laptop and think I got some specs worked out, probably going with Dell or Alien ware due to financing options. Anyway, what do you think of the following.



Inspiron 9400  Qty     1  

Intel? Core? Duo Processor T2500 (2GHz/667MHz FSB), Genuine Windows XP Professional Unit Price    $3,324.00  

Dell Customers: Savings on your Online Purchase

Expires February 24, 2006        

    - $300.00  



Catalog Number:   70702  

Module   Description  Show Details

Inspiron 9400 Intel? Core? Duo Processor T2500 (2GHz/667MHz FSB)

Operating System  Genuine Windows XP Professional

Screen 17 inch UltraSharp? Wide Screen UXGA Display with TrueLife?

Memory 2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz

Video Card 256MB NVIDA? GeForce? Go 7800

Hard Drive Free Upgrade to 100GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive

Network Card Integrated 10/100 Network Card and Modem

Adobe Software Adobe? Acrobat? Elements 6.0

CD ROM/DVD ROM 8x CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) with double-layer DVD+R write capability

Wireless Intel PRO/Wireless 3945 802.11a/g Mini Card (54Mbps)

Office Software (not included in Windows XP) Microsoft Office Basic- Includes Word, Excel, and Outlook email

Anti-Virus/Security Suite (Pre-installed McAfee Security Center w/ VirusScan, Firewall and Privacy, 90-day trial

Primary Battery 80 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery

Carrying Cases Dell Nylon Deluxe Carrying Case

Hardware Support Services 1 Yr Return to Depot Service with 1 Yr Tech Support

Wireless Personal Networking Card Dell Wireless 350 Bluetooth Internal(2.0 + Enhanced Data Rate)

Operating System Backup & Recovery PC Restore recovery system by Symantec



TOTAL:$3,024.00

[Mr. Analog]

Are those all CDN prices?

[Fedora Gal]

yep... this one is canadian pricing, from dell.ca

[Mr. Analog]

Have you considered buying used? Seems like a lot of dough to fork out...

[flarearrow]

I have been using Dell laptops for a couple of years now, and have had very good experiences with them. Currently I have an Inspiron 9300 (Service Tag B6KX281), which I ran all of the games we've played at near max settings smoothly.



Looking at your specs for the 9400, performance will be awsome. However, I would look around for deals/coupons, the price tag is a bit steep. I was able to find a 40% off coupon when I purchased the 9300. Try the following sites:



http://www.fatwallet.com/deals.php

http://www.techbargains.com/



Also go to notebookforums.com. Very knowledgable and helpful people there. Also a coupon thread under Dell General that keeps track of current deals.



http://www.notebookforums.com/



If you're good at haggling, you can call up Dell Sales directly and get them to give you discounts. I swear, sometimes it's like buying a used car.

[Thorin]

Before looking at the specs/price, I have to ask you what you want to use it for.

[Ustauk]

I was going to suggest Voodoo PC, since they're Canadian, but they're bloody expensive.

[Fedora Gal]

I'm looking for excellent performance, and long-term usability. Lots of HD space, great graphics card. As it's often more costly to upgrade a laptop I'm seeking close to top of the line so it will last me for 3-5 years.



Essentially I want to be able to run my Everquest II on it at high settings with no problems.



They have cheaper models, I can get a single proc one that runs at 1.6 GHZ instead of this duo, but it only adjusts the price by about $50... plus I can nix a few things like office etc, to drop the price. I won't be forking out the money straight, it would be on payment plan, and $77/month for 48months isn't so bad.

[Melbosa]

Yeah, with the laptop your going to have to go top to get the life you want out of them.  But 3 years will be the max for gaming I think (and that is pushing it!).  And the upgrade path for laptops are pretty much HD and Memory.



Laptops - who do I recommend get them:



People who have a need for mobile computing or presentation.  Either your are a consultant or are on the road for business (unless your work will pay for one, then hell get one every 2 years!).  Laptops are pretty much used secondary as a gaming machine, would never recommend one for purely that purpose - because they go dated so fast due to the limited hardware upgrade availability.  So if you have a need for this, then a laptop makes sense - unless you have money to blow.  I could have gotten one through work a long time ago for myself - and sorta did, but was for my Ex as she was in school and required one for her courses - but just couldn't justify the cost for the hardware when I could get multiple upgrades for other systems for the same price.



Because they are mobile, chances of damage are obivously high.  Should consider more than the 1 year warranty, go with an upgrade to the 3 year no questions asked (basically the shelf life of the laptop).  We all say we will be careful with our stuff, but things happen.  I recommend that of any client that buys a laptop, as most have had something go wrong wtih theirs in that time frame.



Just my thoughts... for the home user they are more a toy that a tool... for the corporate user it is usually the reverse, but then gaming isn't the highest priority.

[Fedora Gal]

well for me it's a combo of business and pleasure. It's main purpose would be so that I could work on business related things while at my other work, but the ability to play the games I want on it is a bonus and a personal desire. Also for the fact that if I go traveling, I would prefer to have the laptop then to have to drag my PC with me

[Mr. Analog]

Do you get a subsidy for buying a laptop?

[flarearrow]

These laptops have good resale value, so at the end of 2-3 years, you could sell it and get a large % of the original price back. In my opinion, it's a good investment.



It's mostly personal preference as far as desktop vs. laptop. With the exception of high end FPS gaming, you won't feel the difference performance wise. Everquest 2 will run perfectly. One look of the 17" Truelife screen, you will be in love.



The key is the price. If you're not in a huge hurry, watch notebookforums and wait for one of those coupons. Then it will definitely be worthwhile.

[Ustauk]

Do you work at home? If the PC is not going to move much normally and  your primary concern is moving it to Frag, you might want to consider a Shuttle XPC, or another smaller case.  An XPC should fit under the seat in a plane, and I'm sure one of us could lend you a CRT if you're coming to Frag.  That way you could use mostly desktop parts and have an upgrade path.  Just a thought.

[Lazybones]

Quick comment on the specs.. I would go with a 7,200 RPM drive, those 5,400 drives make those Dells noticably less responsive.



Also  on the 802.11a/g Mini Card (54Mbps) , not sure if that is a typo because they are normally listed as a/b/g if they support a.. The cards that support a are more expensive and I have NEVER seen any 802.11a access points.. A b/g card should be all you need, stick to the intel ones as they have better range than the Dell ones.

[Thorin]

If it were me I would cut out XP Pro (saves $150), get the Windows XP backup CD (costs only $10), think about getting the regular 17" screen (saves $200), and probably stick with 1GB of memory (saves $350).  I'd keep the video card since you say it's supposed to be game-able.



So that'd save $690.  What could you buy for $690?  You could get a wireless optical mouse, and a nice keyboard and monitor for when you're at home sitting at a table for hours while gaming.



I say this only because I've found myself wishing I could use a properly sized keyboard with a proper mouse while looking at a monitor at the correct height when I'm using my laptop...  Keyboard Hand Cramp Syndrome, Touchpad Finger Numbness Syndrome and Awkward Screen Cramped Neck Syndrome all suck.