Looking to buy a laptop within the next 6 months or so

[Event]

It's too difficult lugging my entire desktop system around with me when I come home for breaks and such, and I would like to be able to go to the library to study, but I can't do that with a desktop. So I need a laptop for next semester.

This is the first time in my life I have ever considered an Apple Laptop

Here's what I want and what I want to do with it:
1. Schoolwork (Word processing, some photoshop work, Powerpoint (is there something for OSX that I can make presentations that can be displayed on windows machines?))
2. Good battery life
3. Portable and light
4. Sturdy
5. I do NOT want to be able to play games on this, or at least really addicting ones, which is one reason I might go with apple. This is for getting at least some work done!
6. SPEED!
7. A lit keyboard would be nice, but not necessarily needed
8. Knowledge of a second OS will be really nice, the last time I've used the Mac OS was in 5th grade, I've pretty much used XP my whole life, I know it like the back of my hand.

So far, the leader in my mind is the 12" iBook Duo (MacBook) that should hopefully be out by the summer. However, I can't seem to decide yet if I want to go with the 12" screen or the 14.1". I've heard that the keyboard on 12" laptops is scrunched, which takes time to get used to.

I went to the Apple Store at my school and played with a 14.1 iBook G4 and a 15" Powerbook G4, and I noticed some things. The iBook felt kind of cheap compared to the Powerbook. Also, the eyecandy was turned nearly off on the iBook. When dragging Konfabulator applets into the Konfab menu-thingy, the powerbook displayed this crazy ripple effect, while the iBook didn't. The iBook seemed boring compared to the powerbook in the eye-candy department. Was this because of the integrated 9550? Will the iBook Duo (MacBook non-pro) support these cool effects and integrate them smoothly? I figure that if I have OSX, might as well be able to see the eye-candy.

Also, the most important thing: Price range! I want it to be no more than $1500 with warranty!

And I haven't yet ruled out a windows machine, but I would get one with VIsta and Vista compatible hardware, and I don't know when that will be...

 

[Omnis]

Go with a MacBook or something with an AMD Turion.

 

[RobcioPL]

Go with a MacBook or something with an AMD Turion.

Intel Centrino

 

[Matrixhasu77]

If you're looking for a windows-based laptop, I highly recommend going Dell. I have an Inspiron 9300 and I simply love it. Granted it's a little heavy and huge compared to other laptops but it performs like a desktop rig. I've got it configured as a highend performer though.

The one major drawback of Dell is the fact that they install a large amount of unneeded services and software on their computers, so you might want to keep that in mind (cured by a complete reformat, in my case). I did have a harddrive fail in my laptop, but their excellent tech support via email got me up and running within a week due to parts shipments. I had the system running within a day once the parts all arrived.

 

[Omnis]

Don't buy Dell. They are Intel-exclusive. Not cool.

 

[Event]

Don't buy Dell. They are Intel-exclusive. Not cool.

I'm going intel, AMD has not wowed me in any mobile CPUs. Intel is the clear choice when it comes to mobile computing.

 

[Burnout]

I'm going intel, AMD has not wowed me in any mobile CPUs. Intel is the clear choice when it comes to mobile computing.

Well, not the "clear" choice.. Once again the line has been blured.

Right now AMD and Intel have similarly performing mobile processors, the only differences being that Intel has slightly more battery-friendly processors out, and AMD has 64-bit compatible processors out (something to keep in mind).

Personally I like laptops by a smaller company, they're called Averatec. Don't go Dell.

 

[Event]

Well, not the "clear" choice.. Once again the line has been blured.

Right now AMD and Intel have similarly performing mobile processors, the only differences being that Intel has slightly more battery-friendly processors out, and AMD has 64-bit compatible processors out (something to keep in mind).

Personally I like laptops by a smaller company, they're called Averatec. Don't go Dell.

but intel has dual-core. The performance advantages seem to be much greater with dual core vs. 64bit, as dual-core can be used now. I've used 64bit windows, and I notice little difference. I've noticed a much bigger difference with dual-core. besides, 64-bit only really makes more efficient use of large RAM which is only noticable with large amounts of memory.

 

[Burnout]

but intel has dual-core. The performance advantages seem to be much greater with dual core vs. 64bit, as dual-core can be used now. I've used 64bit windows, and I notice little difference. I've noticed a much bigger difference with dual-core. besides, 64-bit only really makes more efficient use of large RAM which is only noticable with large amounts of memory.

Up until last week practically the Dual Cores were not available; that is what I was basing my opinion on.

I'm curious to see what AMD will do in the mobile department to compete.

 

[VIPFREAK]

Personally I like laptops by a smaller company, they're called Averatec. Don't go Dell.

Averatec?! There worse than GC laptops at Fry's I'd think?! Only place I've seen those is at OfficeMax.

Anyway, I wouldn't really recommend HP after my experience with them. Everyone at school used laptops like Dell, Alienware, and Sager for 3D rendering. (a couple of years have past since then)

I'd recommend Intel over AMD for the batt. life savings (if you wanna call it that), but dual core sounds pretty kick ass. 👍

 

[Burnout]

Averatec?! There worse than GC laptops at Fry's I'd think?! Only place I've seen those is at OfficeMax.

Anyway, I wouldn't really recommend HP after my experience with them. Everyone at school used laptops like Dell, Alienware, and Sager for 3D rendering. (a couple of years have past since then)

I'd recommend Intel over AMD for the batt. life savings (if you wanna call it that), but dual core sounds pretty kick ass. 👍

Yes, Averatec. I use three on a daily basis, as well as sale them to customers.

They're no gaming laptop manufacture, but they're good at what they do.

 

[h0ss]

I have a dell laptop, my wife has an iBook.

I've been a mac fan for a long time, just so you know that I am biased.

For battery life, her laptop p0wns mine. She gets around 6 hours on a charge; I'm lucky to go more than 1.5.

I'd be wary of getting a macbook right now, though. They're very new tech, and quite a bit of software is going to have to run in rosetta for a while. If you were a diehard mac guy, I could encourage it. As it is, though, they're too new in the product cycle to be trustworthy for someone who's new to the Mac .

I'm pretty sure that apple's Keynote software does powerpoint-compatible presentations. You could always use office for the mac, or even OpenOffice.org.

 

[Event]

Averatec?! There worse than GC laptops at Fry's I'd think?! Only place I've seen those is at OfficeMax.

Anyway, I wouldn't really recommend HP after my experience with them. Everyone at school used laptops like Dell, Alienware, and Sager for 3D rendering. (a couple of years have past since then)

I'd recommend Intel over AMD for the batt. life savings (if you wanna call it that), but dual core sounds pretty kick ass. 👍

Which is why I want the Centrino Duo. It's intel, so it gets awsome battery life, and it's dual core, excellent for multitasking, which I will be doing a lot with this laptop.

 

[Sage]

1. Schoolwork (Word processing, some photoshop work, Powerpoint (is there something for OSX that I can make presentations that can be displayed on windows machines?))

PowerPoint for OS X… Works fine, as long as you don’t use some of the fancier transitions. (I’ve done it myself. Much prefer to use Keynote though.)

So far, the leader in my mind is the 12" iBook Duo (MacBook) that should hopefully be out by the summer. However, I can't seem to decide yet if I want to go with the 12" screen or the 14.1". I've heard that the keyboard on 12" laptops is scrunched, which takes time to get used to.

Just FYI, there’s no guarantee that Apple will continue offering the 14" iBook (or MacBook, if they decide to call it that) when they make the transition. No one knows for sure right now.

Anyway, I’m typing this from school on my 12" iBook – I’ll more than likely be getting a 15" MacBook Pro, because I really don’t care for such a small screen anymore.

The keyboard’s no problem – it’s a fullsize keyboard, so I’m not sure how it can be scrunched.

Also, the most important thing: Price range! I want it to be no more than $1500 with warranty!

15" MacBook Pro is $1800 with a student discount (sans AppleCare); not sure how much the revised 12" MacBook Pro (or 13" widescreen, if Apple decides to go that route) will be.

My advice: If you can wait, then wait. This year—2006—will be the most unpredictable year for Apple in recent times, because this is the start of the Intel transition. You’ll want to wait until at least August, when is the next Jobs keynote. Right now I’m not really sure what I can tell you – if you need a new laptop ASAP, the 12" iBook or PowerBook is probably your best choice, but if you can wait, then that’d be much better.

BTW, though the aluminum casing feels more substantial than the iBook’s, the iBook is actually more “rugged” (but obviously not as good-looking) – the iBook’s case is a bulletproof polycarbonate casing that is very difficult to break. On the other hand, the aluminum casings dent relatively easily if you drop them.

And I can’t really help in regards to the eye-candy – this iBook is an old G3 running Panther (10.3), so I have no clue what the current iBooks do with Tiger. There’s little doubt in my mind though that an Intel iBook/MacBook would be able to run all of Tiger’s eye-candy.

Oh, another advantage to waiting is that there’ll be a lot more Intel-native apps by this summer (since August was the original starting date for the transition).

Good luck with whatever you decide to do. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

 

[Jondot]

Don't buy Dell. They are Intel-exclusive. Not cool.

Whoa whoa whoa, slow down there. Dell make some great notebooks. Like these:

Firstly there's the standard inspiron, with a celeron M processor,

Then there's the inspiron 8600, which gets a slightly better pentium m, and a 60gb hard drive,

Then the higher end laptops, with a quicker processor and higher specs.

Oh, and then of course there's the XPS:

They're all great, but i'd suggest that you instead move away from dell altogether, and head for a different brand, like HP:

Ok, seriously though, i've had no problems from my Compaq V4000. It rarely ever gets hot, and it handles ust about everything well
I have a tendancy to run about 6 backbreaking programs at once, and it handles it fine, considering
One thing though, whatever you choose, i urge you not to get a toshiba. The one i had overheated, and the one my friend bought has recently overheated too. I thought it was just that i had a P4, but his is pentium m:

 

[Danoff]

The sony TX is the laptop to beat right now. It's super light, has good battery life, and supposedly has a bright screen. I haven't seen one though so I can't give you first-hand impressions.

 

[Burnout]

The sony TX is the laptop to beat right now. It's super light, has good battery life, and supposedly has a bright screen. I haven't seen one though so I can't give you first-hand impressions.

$$$

 

[VIPFREAK]

They're all great, but i'd suggest that you instead move away from dell altogether, and head for a different brand, like HP:

If I had to go back to HP I'd probably get the dv1000t series. Everything looks good except for the vid card. It looks like warrenty programs wouldn't be that much more so you will be at you're budget.

 

[F1GTR]

The sony TX is the laptop to beat right now. It's super light, has good battery life, and supposedly has a bright screen. I haven't seen one though so I can't give you first-hand impressions.

The screens on those are very, very good, since it's a Sony X-black LCD (I'm using one right now) the colours on it are nice and rich and black really looks like black, not dark grey (hence the name). But the TX isn't cheap (£1500) since it's made out of carbon-fibre.

 

[Danoff]

Yea, it's like $1800 or something. Isn't that about what all laptops cost? Maybe you can find a good one for $1100, but why not blow the extra $700 and get something that's really good? I mean, cheap laptops fail on all fronts.

What do you want from a laptop?
Speed
Good Screen
Light weight
Good battery life
Lots of connectivity

If you get a cheap one you're going to get a laptop the blows most of those categories - so in my mind its a waste of money. If money is the top concern, don't buy a laptop. They're luxury.

Edit: My suggestion - Save up another $300 and get the TX.

 

[F1GTR]

Yea, it's like $1800 or something. Isn't that about what all laptops cost? Maybe you can find a good one for $1100, but why not blow the extra $700 and get something that's really good? I mean, cheap laptops fail on all fronts.

What do you want from a laptop?
Speed
Good Screen
Light weight
Good battery life
Lots of connectivity

If you get a cheap one you're going to get a laptop the blows most of those categories - so in my mind its a waste of money. If money is the top concern, don't buy a laptop. They're luxury.

Edit: My suggestion - Save up another $300 and get the TX.

Us Brits are getting ripped off again .

 

[Omnis]

The presario V2000Z and T might be nice.

 

[Burnout]

The presario V2000Z and T might be nice.

Agreed.

 

[Event]

Well, some info came to my attention recently that really makes me want to get an Apple Laptop. Windows Vista will have EFI support, so I will be able to dual-boot with Vista and OSX, which makes me happy. I used a 12" Powerbook G4, and loved it, the screen was a perfect size. It was only 867Mhz, but it was very snappy and responsive. I think I am going to end up gettting a 13" Widescreen iBook/MacBook with either the Core Solo or Duo, depending on the price difference, I would love the duo.

 

[dougiemeats]

I'd definitely suggest on waiting til this summer to make your decision when Apple announces more Intel-based hardware. That will give you more options on wether you want to wait and get a Vista laptop (not sure when Vista will ship, plus the fact that Vista will require very good hardware) or if you decide on an Apple. And the fact that Apple will probably have to smooth out some bugs that are inevitable with a major platform change.

If you decide on the Apple, you will not be disappointed with OS X Tiger and the incredible iLife '06 Suite.

And yes, there's no "ripple effect" with the dashboard widgets because the ibook's (and mac minis) graphics card is not as good as the Powerbook's/MacBook's. Hopefully, with the release of Intel iBooks, they can include this eye candy.

BTW... I also attend UIUC:tup: