New lappy for sister ???

YoungFarting · 15th March 2007, 4:18 PM

Asking on behalf of my sister. (I don't have much to do with L'top's)
She needs new laptop.
Has a budget of under $2k (if possible)
Open to suggestions etc.
Shall copy her reply to my Q's here.

............................................

Last PC I used for 3 years, I'm not a big upgrader, so I'd like to have
something that is high specc'd now so it'll last the years.
So I want it to be capable of Vista Home Premium at least.

Hadn't really though about a Mac... Not that it's not an option. I guess.

I do:
- email, web
- documents (training material)
- spreadsheets (little not big)
- some media - music storage, photo storage and CD burning (not a lot of
manipulation of either), watch DVDs (burn DVDs would be handy)
- no games usually.

I would like:
- receive tv - maybe an external receiver?
- option for Bluetooth/mobile broadband access.
- good storage capacity.

I want simple, portable (15" is fine), good battery life (4 hrs would be nice),
cope with heat - often used outside in sunshine.

...........................

So, tall order ?????

Namheul · 16th March 2007, 11:16 AM

Not a tall order at all.

I got a Dell Inspiron 6400.

It has:
Intel Core 2 Duo T2050 (1.6ghz)
1Gb DDR2
80Gb SATA Hard Drive
DVD Burner
15.4" screen
Battery lasts around 3 hours or so i think.

It only has onboard Intel graphics, but i dont mind as i dont play games anyway.

This was only $1400, so you could get a better one for $2k.

SSJX · 16th March 2007, 8:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Namheul

Not a tall order at all.

I got a Dell Inspiron 6400.

It has:
Intel Core 2 Duo T2050 (1.6ghz)
1Gb DDR2
80Gb SATA Hard Drive
DVD Burner
15.4" screen
Battery lasts around 3 hours or so i think.

It only has onboard Intel graphics, but i dont mind as i dont play games anyway.

This was only $1400, so you could get a better one for $2k.

i'm going with namheul on this one
use the extra $600 or so to up the cpu, ram and hdd
and perhaps the gfx card (less stress on the cpu when watching dvds? and/or better rendering?)

YoungFarting · 18th March 2007, 9:07 AM

Ta.
Vista noob warning.

So these units with inbuilt vid will run aero ok ?
And is it advisable to get more than 1gig ram ?

FlyN · 18th March 2007, 9:26 AM

I dont know if the onboard gfx will run aero ok, but you want atleast 1gig of ram for vista, its resource hungry. my pc's currently using 39% of my 2gig ram and i only have firefox and mediaplayer open.

YoungFarting · 22nd March 2007, 1:27 PM

CPU's.
Which one ????

How do they stack up in relation to each other ?

C2D
Core duo (same as c2d ???)
Turion
Others..

FlyN · 22nd March 2007, 5:50 PM

stick to the C2D and Core Duos,

i believe there is a 10% performance difference with the C2D's comin out in front for a given clock speed, im not certain of this so you might want to search around in the intel hardware forum.

But im fairly certain the Core duos are less power hungry and definitely cheaper too.

YoungFarting · 22nd March 2007, 6:15 PM

Hmm, after a quick scan of amd's and intels site.

Turion is 64 bit. (available in dual core)
core 2 duo has bigger cache than core duo.

*sigh* it just never gets any easier to pick a cpu does it.

I know the core 2 duo's are spossed to 'own' for the desktop.
Is this still the case for the ltops ?

With no real numbers to go by, the turion looks the better unit, except it's a 754.

sanjay · 22nd March 2007, 10:39 PM

its easy.

buy her a compaq presario v3118AU from dick smith for $999.

turion dual core processor, 60gig HDD, geforce go 6150 graphics, yada yada yada...

or the pavilion dv1600 if youre lucky and there are any left, with the core duo and 80gb hard disk (but intel graphics)

check out my "laptops for under a grand" thread

Macbrand · 28th March 2007, 2:38 PM

I recently purchased a BENQ Joybook R55. I'm pretty damn happy with it and can even game on it as well. It does not have a tv card but that can be bought pretty cheap.

Intel Core Duo 1.66Ghz
1Gb Ram
80GB HD
NVIDIA 7400GO
WI-FI, Bluetooth and all that

See the CNET review here: http://www.cnet.com.au/laptops/lapto...0092002,00.htm

There is also a Vista version available now.

Macbrand

15th March 2007, 4:18 PM	#1
YoungFarting Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 475	New lappy for sister ??? Asking on behalf of my sister. (I don't have much to do with L'top's) She needs new laptop. Has a budget of under $2k (if possible) Open to suggestions etc. Shall copy her reply to my Q's here. ............................................ Last PC I used for 3 years, I'm not a big upgrader, so I'd like to have something that is high specc'd now so it'll last the years. So I want it to be capable of Vista Home Premium at least. Hadn't really though about a Mac... Not that it's not an option. I guess. I do: - email, web - documents (training material) - spreadsheets (little not big) - some media - music storage, photo storage and CD burning (not a lot of manipulation of either), watch DVDs (burn DVDs would be handy) - no games usually. I would like: - receive tv - maybe an external receiver? - option for Bluetooth/mobile broadband access. - good storage capacity. I want simple, portable (15" is fine), good battery life (4 hrs would be nice), cope with heat - often used outside in sunshine. ........................... So, tall order ?????

16th March 2007, 11:16 AM	#2
Namheul Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Victoria Posts: 1,300	Not a tall order at all. I got a Dell Inspiron 6400. It has: Intel Core 2 Duo T2050 (1.6ghz) 1Gb DDR2 80Gb SATA Hard Drive DVD Burner 15.4" screen Battery lasts around 3 hours or so i think. It only has onboard Intel graphics, but i dont mind as i dont play games anyway. This was only $1400, so you could get a better one for $2k. __________________ Trades: feistl, Midz, slov

18th March 2007, 9:26 AM	#5
FlyN Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Brisbane Posts: 127	I dont know if the onboard gfx will run aero ok, but you want atleast 1gig of ram for vista, its resource hungry. my pc's currently using 39% of my 2gig ram and i only have firefox and mediaplayer open. __________________ Good Traders: WooKiE_MaN, Andrew357, FireFox.exe, Valtelino, pastafarian, Big Daddy, jeffblaz, Smokin Whale, ozdavo, DUO, xc351, yucatan, pantner, Utetopia, ANTH101, adante

22nd March 2007, 5:50 PM	#7
FlyN Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Brisbane Posts: 127	stick to the C2D and Core Duos, i believe there is a 10% performance difference with the C2D's comin out in front for a given clock speed, im not certain of this so you might want to search around in the intel hardware forum. But im fairly certain the Core duos are less power hungry and definitely cheaper too. __________________ Good Traders: WooKiE_MaN, Andrew357, FireFox.exe, Valtelino, pastafarian, Big Daddy, jeffblaz, Smokin Whale, ozdavo, DUO, xc351, yucatan, pantner, Utetopia, ANTH101, adante

22nd March 2007, 10:39 PM	#9
sanjay Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Lockleys, Adelaide, SA Posts: 10,320	its easy. buy her a compaq presario v3118AU from dick smith for $999. turion dual core processor, 60gig HDD, geforce go 6150 graphics, yada yada yada... or the pavilion dv1600 if youre lucky and there are any left, with the core duo and 80gb hard disk (but intel graphics) check out my "laptops for under a grand" thread __________________ My Ride: MY02 Mitsubishi Ralliart Magna Build #75 - 5sp Manual, 2.5" exhaust with Pacemaker extractors, 17" Enkei Alloys Over 120 Successful Trades on OCAU - Most Recent: dche5390, Rugal, Tornhelm, ummmz, darknight84, bumography, b4sk3tb4ll3r, marktadros, MoveIt, Maxknott, NoBooze, bnyboy, Stooge007, caddy, the_rick, Soupratt, Doktor, Logik47, KraniX, Talisman, start, gizmo_melb, Omarko, Arkanite, WooKiE_MaN, PM for full list

18th March 2007, 9:07 AM	#4
YoungFarting Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 475	Ta. Vista noob warning. So these units with inbuilt vid will run aero ok ? And is it advisable to get more than 1gig ram ?

22nd March 2007, 1:27 PM	#6
YoungFarting Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 475	CPU's. Which one ???? How do they stack up in relation to each other ? C2D Core duo (same as c2d ???) Turion Others..

22nd March 2007, 6:15 PM	#8
YoungFarting Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 475	Hmm, after a quick scan of amd's and intels site. Turion is 64 bit. (available in dual core) core 2 duo has bigger cache than core duo. sigh it just never gets any easier to pick a cpu does it. I know the core 2 duo's are spossed to 'own' for the desktop. Is this still the case for the ltops ? With no real numbers to go by, the turion looks the better unit, except it's a 754.

28th March 2007, 2:38 PM	#10
Macbrand Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 19	I recently purchased a BENQ Joybook R55. I'm pretty damn happy with it and can even game on it as well. It does not have a tv card but that can be bought pretty cheap. Intel Core Duo 1.66Ghz 1Gb Ram 80GB HD NVIDIA 7400GO WI-FI, Bluetooth and all that See the CNET review here: http://www.cnet.com.au/laptops/lapto...0092002,00.htm There is also a Vista version available now. Macbrand