light versatile laptop

dtra · 10th May 2008, 4:23 PM

hi all

i want to get a new laptop this week, but have no idea what to get
desktops are easy since they can be customised so easily

what i'm looking for is
2gb ram
200gb hdd
dvd burner
ability to use dual monitor (don't know if this is standard or not)
wireless lan (i assume this is standard for notebooks)

i'd like a small, light machine, so 12" display is not an issue, as long as it is portable, and especially if it can be used with an external display

uses, standard desktop applications, and image processing (large images)

i'm probably missing something here, but laptops aren't my speciality
i want to spend about $1 500, but can stretch further for something that fits the bill
macbook air would be good except the hdd is too small, and lack of dvd burner

thanks
dave

tht · 10th May 2008, 4:46 PM

You're requirements are pretty similar to mine. I've been actively looking around right now just to gauge pricing when I do buy it in jun-july.

There's the Dell XPS M1330 - 13.3" screen, ~1.8Kg, dvd burner, wifi, vga port (it's pretty much a standard for all laptops - i've yet to see a laptop without external monitor connectivity, could be wrong though) All for $1500 but I'm sure you can find a better deal if you talk to one of the guys that work for Dell on these forums.

Another is the HP 2210b - all requirements same as XPS above, but 12" screen. Searching on staticice, you can buy one of these for $1200.

Dell Vostro 1200 - like the HP, it's a 12" screen. Can be had for as low as $1K. Just go to the small business link. Just noticed it, you might wanna check out the Vostro 1310 in the same link.

Not sure about ram and hdd for all these as they didn't concern me. I'm looking for light-weight (<2kg), dvd reader/writer and low-cost. Out of those 3, I'm prob. going to buy the HP as I've heard their quality is superb from friends. I have seen Dells machines and I don't like the flex in their plastics. Feels sorta flimsy. But if you want best bang for buck, prob. go for the Dell M1330, it's got a dedicated graphics card and is generally more specced out. Prob. would be benefitial for your image processing needs.

dtra · 10th May 2008, 4:50 PM

thanks for your reply
should be very helpful

i'm not sure if a powerful graphics card is that important for photo processing
but i'll give those a look

thanks again
dave

10th May 2008, 4:23 PM	#1
dtra Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Melbourne Posts: 191	light versatile laptop hi all i want to get a new laptop this week, but have no idea what to get desktops are easy since they can be customised so easily what i'm looking for is 2gb ram 200gb hdd dvd burner ability to use dual monitor (don't know if this is standard or not) wireless lan (i assume this is standard for notebooks) i'd like a small, light machine, so 12" display is not an issue, as long as it is portable, and especially if it can be used with an external display uses, standard desktop applications, and image processing (large images) i'm probably missing something here, but laptops aren't my speciality i want to spend about $1 500, but can stretch further for something that fits the bill macbook air would be good except the hdd is too small, and lack of dvd burner thanks dave __________________ My web site

10th May 2008, 4:50 PM	#3
dtra Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Melbourne Posts: 191	thanks for your reply should be very helpful i'm not sure if a powerful graphics card is that important for photo processing but i'll give those a look thanks again dave __________________ My web site

10th May 2008, 4:46 PM	#2
tht Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 225	You're requirements are pretty similar to mine. I've been actively looking around right now just to gauge pricing when I do buy it in jun-july. There's the Dell XPS M1330 - 13.3" screen, ~1.8Kg, dvd burner, wifi, vga port (it's pretty much a standard for all laptops - i've yet to see a laptop without external monitor connectivity, could be wrong though) All for $1500 but I'm sure you can find a better deal if you talk to one of the guys that work for Dell on these forums. Another is the HP 2210b - all requirements same as XPS above, but 12" screen. Searching on staticice, you can buy one of these for $1200. Dell Vostro 1200 - like the HP, it's a 12" screen. Can be had for as low as $1K. Just go to the small business link. Just noticed it, you might wanna check out the Vostro 1310 in the same link. Not sure about ram and hdd for all these as they didn't concern me. I'm looking for light-weight (<2kg), dvd reader/writer and low-cost. Out of those 3, I'm prob. going to buy the HP as I've heard their quality is superb from friends. I have seen Dells machines and I don't like the flex in their plastics. Feels sorta flimsy. But if you want best bang for buck, prob. go for the Dell M1330, it's got a dedicated graphics card and is generally more specced out. Prob. would be benefitial for your image processing needs.