Advice on a new laptop

[lamaros]

Going to hijack this thread for advice on a decent laptop!

Just looking for a well priced laptop that isn't too annoying to carry about (will be using it at uni and home) and must be comfortable to do a lot of typing on (larger keyboard the better). Decent enough to play some games though no need to be near the cutting edge.

[Trippy]

Just start your own thread next time. Now I've had to copy over Yoru's reply cause he responded to both topics in one post.

Going to hijack this thread for advice on a decent laptop!

Just looking for a well priced laptop that isn't too annoying to carry about (will be using it at uni and home) and must be comfortable to do a lot of typing on (larger keyboard the better). Decent enough to play some games though no need to be near the cutting edge.

I've been super happy with my Macbook Pro, but you pay a premium for them. Apparently they run Windows quite well, but I have no experience doing that. I know one of my former coworkers used his in a dualboot setup and said his ran XP with games just fine.

[lamaros]

I don't like starting threads, though!

Macbook Pro is out, far too expensive for me. I'm thinking maybe a Dell Studio laptop at the moment, but I haven't really had a look yet. Going to go have a look about tomorrow and hopefully get a better idea what's around.

[Evil Elvis]

If you want the best bang for your buck, look into a Sager.  They're redistributors for Compal and Clevo (Clevo makes the laptops Alienware sells) notebooks.  You can usually customize them somewhat as well.  I bought a Sager JFL92 a few months ago, and it's great.  It was better than anything I could get from Dell at the time, for about $200 dollars less.

http://www.xoticpc.com
http://www.powernotebooks.com
http://www.sagernotebook.com

[lamaros]

I should mention that I'm in Australia, by the by.

[Trippy]

I don't like starting threads, though!

Macbook Pro is out, far too expensive for me. I'm thinking maybe a Dell Studio laptop at the moment, but I haven't really had a look yet. Going to go have a look about tomorrow and hopefully get a better idea what's around.

The GPU options on the Dell Studio are way too sucky. I'd go with the XPS M1530 if you want a Dell.

ASUS makes a wide range of laptops, many with decent mobile GPUs, if those are available down under.

[Nebu]

ASUS makes a wide range of laptops, many with decent mobile GPUs, if those are available down under.

This is what I bought.  It's a bit of a behemoth, but I don't mind lugging it around.  For a mix of work and gaming I've been quite satisfied with it over the last year and I've travelled with it a lot.

[cironian]

I'm using an XPS M1530 myself. So far, it has worked fine for all my gaming needs, usually at the 1650x1050 resolution of my external display. Only game I couldnt play at native resolution has been Fallout 3.

I find it works very well for unplugged writing sessions on my couch, thats one of the reasons I chose a 15 inch model; while 17 inch gives you a massive boost in GPU options, it would be too unwieldy for my taste.

[Dtrain]

I've found that you either end up with a portable laptop or a gaming laptop. Capable options in gaming are usually up around the 8 to 10+ pounds range, and while that may sound fine, day in and day out it can get to be more than you want to deal with. If you go more portable, the ability to game degrades alarmingly.

Unless you need a ton of computing power at school, my suggestion is to investigate the possibility of using two devices. Drop $300-$400 on a netbook, and pick up your gaming rig later on.

I don't know too much about them yet, but I keep getting fascinated by these: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152074

[Righ]

Clevo system vendors in Australia:

http://www.pioneercomputers.com.au/

(as Dreambook)

http://www.p4laptops.com.au/
http://www.affordablelaptops.com.au/

(as Metabox)

Info was found here:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=91510

[lamaros]

Thanks for all the replies people. Lots to look over.

As far as portable vs gaming goes, I'm inclined to skew on the portable side. I'm really looking for a decent priced, portable, and comfortable laptop more than a gaming one.

Some of these darn companies need to make less notebooks. No wonder everyone just buys a mac, at least they dont have 30 different random letter and number named things on offer. I'm getting a headache.

[Nebu]

Some of these darn companies need to make less notebooks. No wonder everyone just buys a mac, at least they dont have 30 different random letter and number named things on offer. I'm getting a headache.

The key for me was to decide on what I wanted in my notebook (processor, video, and memory) and see which had what I wanted.  I found that just these three criteria narrowed the options enough to start looking at the merits of a few individual machines within a price point.

[KallDrexx]

I love my Acer Aspire laptop.  It's proven to be pretty durable so far (I'm not the most gentle person with my electronics I'll admit), gaming on it is good, the screen is good quality, and it has HDMI output which I love.   I've only had this laptop for a year now, but as of now I'd buy another acer if I needed a new laptop.

[IainC]

I found that the Dell small business machines were much better value than the consumer ones, more customisable and don't come with all the bloatware. The Vostro in particular I found to be a good option and will be ordering one myself just before I move to Germany. Will handle games reasonably well too with 4GB of RAM and a 512MB 8600M graphics card.

[lamaros]

Hmm, Dell XPS have 10% off atm:

Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor T9300 (2.5GHz, 6MB Cache, 800 MHz FSB)
15.4" UltraSharp(TM) Widescreen WSXGA+ (1680x1050) TFT Display with TrueLife(TM)
4GB ( 2 X 2048MB ) 667MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM
500GB SATA Hard Drive
Internal 8X DVD+/-RW Combination Drive with dual layer write capabilities
256MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) 8600M GT

for AU$1957

or an extra 2 gb ram (6gb at 800mhz) for another $100.

I'm thinking I'll go with something like that... the other option is a cheap notebook and upgrading the desktop, but I don't really have room for the desktop in my house, it's taking up too much space.

[Evil Elvis]

Hmm, Dell XPS have 10% off atm:

Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor T9300 (2.5GHz, 6MB Cache, 800 MHz FSB)
15.4" UltraSharp(TM) Widescreen WSXGA+ (1680x1050) TFT Display with TrueLife(TM)
4GB ( 2 X 2048MB ) 667MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM
500GB SATA Hard Drive
Internal 8X DVD+/-RW Combination Drive with dual layer write capabilities
256MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) 8600M GT

for AU$1957

or an extra 2 gb ram (6gb at 800mhz) for another $100.

I'm thinking I'll go with something like that... the other option is a cheap notebook and upgrading the desktop, but I don't really have room for the desktop in my house, it's taking up too much space.

You should find out what the shipping/tariff charges are from ordering from XoticPC.  The Sager np2096 they have sells for the same price as what you listed, with a faster c2d, faster ram, and a 512mb geforce 9600gt.

http://www.xoticpc.com/sager-np2096-custom-laptop-built-compal-jhl90-p-2409.html

edit: Or you could order basically the same thing from one of Righ's link: http://www.p4laptops.com.au/order-jhl90.htm

[lamaros]

Hmm, Dell XPS have 10% off atm:

Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor T9300 (2.5GHz, 6MB Cache, 800 MHz FSB)
15.4" UltraSharp(TM) Widescreen WSXGA+ (1680x1050) TFT Display with TrueLife(TM)
4GB ( 2 X 2048MB ) 667MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM
500GB SATA Hard Drive
Internal 8X DVD+/-RW Combination Drive with dual layer write capabilities
256MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) 8600M GT

for AU$1957

or an extra 2 gb ram (6gb at 800mhz) for another $100.

I'm thinking I'll go with something like that... the other option is a cheap notebook and upgrading the desktop, but I don't really have room for the desktop in my house, it's taking up too much space.

You should find out what the shipping/tariff charges are from ordering from XoticPC.  The Sager np2096 they have sells for the same price as what you listed, with a faster c2d, faster ram, and a 512mb geforce 9600gt.

http://www.xoticpc.com/sager-np2096-custom-laptop-built-compal-jhl90-p-2409.html

edit: Or you could order basically the same thing from one of Righ's link: http://www.p4laptops.com.au/order-jhl90.htm

Maybe I'm missing something, but running up the same spec on that site doesn't give me a cheaper laptop.

Ah I see, that one is a few $100 more but has a 512meg gpu.

[Evil Elvis]

Google said that $1950 au is about $1350 us, so I was going off that assumption.  And it's not just the GPU that's better, but the ram is 800mhz not 667.  Unfortunately, the Metalbox laptop from p4llaptops looks like its more expensive, and you'd actually have to get a slightly slower cpu to keep the same price range.  Still, I'd try calling them and see if you can get them to price match XoticPC, or at least come down a little bit.

Even then, I went to Sager's website, and looked up how much they're selling that PC for directly.  With tax and shipping to Australia, it's around $210 more us, bringing the total price to about $2150 aus.  I'd guess that Dell would charge you at least $50 for shipping, so it's only around $150 more aus for a laptop that's superior in every way.

[lamaros]

Also, it's uglier!  Something that I sortof care about, seeing how I'd be using it often. Hmm hmm food for thought!