Laptop help

MADXF · 4th April 2006, 8:31 PM

My current PC is an athlonXP 1600+ (@1.8ghz), 512mb ddr400, 40gb hdd, radeon 9800pro, 4x single layer dvd-r, all running on an abit NF7-s.

I'm after a laptop for uni that has about the same, maybe a touch more computing power than my current desktop. I will be running some CAD and some engineering simulation software on it.

Must haves are: sxga screen res, at least 60gb hdd, wireless networking, and dvd-rw (single or dual).
Some optional things I wouldnt mind but can live without, wsxga+ screen res, firewire, 5.1 sound output, 100gb+ hdd.

Basically this machine will be replacing my desktop so it would also have to run an external 19" crt.

What would be the best manufacturers to look at for something like this setup? and can it be done on the good side of $1000?

Thanks heaps.
Paul.

EvilGenius · 4th April 2006, 8:55 PM

Suggest you have a read of this thread here. Should give you and idea of whats out there on the happy side of a grand. Thats a very tall list of must haves for that money though. I think you might have to stretch your budget a little...

Seems laptops plus is having a bit of a sale, this looks good, as does this. Second doesnt quite meet the must have list though...

MADXF · 4th April 2006, 9:28 PM

Thanks for that, I looked a bit through the pages in this forum but didnt spot that thread.

I really can do without the burner, but mostly i'm interested in graphics and CPU power.

What laptops would match my desktop for cpu power?

EvilGenius · 4th April 2006, 9:39 PM

I'm not too well versed in amd, but I think a pentium m ~1.6 should be able to at least hold ground on your current machine. Graphics will be your major draw back. Good graphics and cheap laptop don't generally share the same sentence. As for cpu grunt, you may even want to make the leap to dual core. Cheapest I found just then was $1638

littlemaelstrom · 5th April 2006, 8:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EvilGenius

I'm not too well versed in amd, but I think a pentium m ~1.6 should be able to at least hold ground on your current machine.[/URL]

My laptop is a 1.7GHz Dothan, my desktop is an Athlon XP 1800+: the laptop is much much faster.

Did some research before I bought my lappy, and generally people were saying that the Dothan core Pentium M's were 1.5x to 2x the performance of an equivalent P4.

So a 1.6 P-M is like what? A 2.5GHz P4? Definitely faster than a 1600+ anyway.

holodeck3 · 7th April 2006, 7:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by littlemaelstrom

So a 1.6 P-M is like what? A 2.5GHz P4? Definitely faster than a 1600+ anyway.

I will second this. Even with a 60Gb 5400 rpm drive and only 512 megs ram, my notebook seems a lot faster than say my mates athlon xp 2100+. The trick is the Pentium-M's have 2mb of L2 cache in them. They run cooler and rqquire less juice than their amd counterparts. All that extra cache gives them faster throughput on cpu intensive tasks.

4th April 2006, 8:31 PM	#1
MADXF Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Melbourne Posts: 132	Laptop help My current PC is an athlonXP 1600+ (@1.8ghz), 512mb ddr400, 40gb hdd, radeon 9800pro, 4x single layer dvd-r, all running on an abit NF7-s. I'm after a laptop for uni that has about the same, maybe a touch more computing power than my current desktop. I will be running some CAD and some engineering simulation software on it. Must haves are: sxga screen res, at least 60gb hdd, wireless networking, and dvd-rw (single or dual). Some optional things I wouldnt mind but can live without, wsxga+ screen res, firewire, 5.1 sound output, 100gb+ hdd. Basically this machine will be replacing my desktop so it would also have to run an external 19" crt. What would be the best manufacturers to look at for something like this setup? and can it be done on the good side of $1000? Thanks heaps. Paul.

4th April 2006, 8:55 PM	#2
EvilGenius Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: _Rocky Status:_Folding! Posts: 4,365	Suggest you have a read of this thread here. Should give you and idea of whats out there on the happy side of a grand. Thats a very tall list of must haves for that money though. I think you might have to stretch your budget a little... Seems laptops plus is having a bit of a sale, this looks good, as does this. Second doesnt quite meet the must have list though... __________________ Q9450@3.4 \| GA-P35-DS4 \| 4GB Team Xtreme Dark PC-8500 \| 8800GT \| Enermax Revolution 1050w \| CMStacker810 Once more unto the breach dear friends, once more Cry fold for Team24, OCAU and all the world! WANTED: Large and/or well ventilated case. Pickup greatly prefered in Rockhampton. Last edited by EvilGenius; 4th April 2006 at 9:12 PM.

4th April 2006, 9:39 PM	#4
EvilGenius Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: _Rocky Status:_Folding! Posts: 4,365	I'm not too well versed in amd, but I think a pentium m ~1.6 should be able to at least hold ground on your current machine. Graphics will be your major draw back. Good graphics and cheap laptop don't generally share the same sentence. As for cpu grunt, you may even want to make the leap to dual core. Cheapest I found just then was $1638 __________________ Q9450@3.4 \| GA-P35-DS4 \| 4GB Team Xtreme Dark PC-8500 \| 8800GT \| Enermax Revolution 1050w \| CMStacker810 Once more unto the breach dear friends, once more Cry fold for Team24, OCAU and all the world! WANTED: Large and/or well ventilated case. Pickup greatly prefered in Rockhampton. Last edited by EvilGenius; 4th April 2006 at 9:43 PM.

4th April 2006, 9:28 PM	#3
MADXF Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Melbourne Posts: 132	Thanks for that, I looked a bit through the pages in this forum but didnt spot that thread. I really can do without the burner, but mostly i'm interested in graphics and CPU power. What laptops would match my desktop for cpu power?