Travels a lot. Internationally. Process a lot of digital photos. Uses photoshop elements. Writes a lot. Uses e-mail. Surfs the web for information and research. Needs a small laptop that will slide eaily into a smallish backpack. Wants a optical drive (Macbook Air is out). Some degree of ruggedization would be good. Wants to spend less than $2000.
What should this guy buy?
get a 13in macbook (elements is out for mac as well)
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more people spending my goddamn tax rebates!
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second the macbook vote…
I have a Vaio TZ - 11" screen, 2 pound weight, DVD writer, Carbon Fibre body. I have the model with 32Gb flash disk which means most of the time there is nothing moving. Keyboard is great.
I get about 6 hours battery life on normal usage and it is so light I have it in my backpack most of the time without noticing it.
It might be more than $2000 though.
Macbook -
I slip mine in a neoprene sleeve and throw it in my backpack.
I run Photoshop Elements.
Macbook’s polycarbonate case is pretty tough (I’ve dropped mine a couple of times.)
It has the CD / DVD RW.
Never had a problem getting on a wireless network (in a hotel in Hong Kong I connected wireless to an office building network in the tower next door.)
They run around $1300.
+1 for the macbook - no one ever regrets going mac, perfect for your criteria.
Available in black as well as the standard white:
Tom,
Your thread is going to start more of a Mac versus Windows soon! Either ways- I will do you one better. Instead of naming a product right off the bat, I will give you the specs that best suits you.
CPU-anything dual core. I’m sure there’s some quad core laptops out there but at this moment, those are merely two dual core processors(the true quad cores are actually out but costs am arm and a leg). The Intel versus AMD war will not end too soon. AMD purchased nVidia and so future AMD’s will have onboard graphics built on nVidia’s engine. This however, isn’t soon enough and I do believe once Intel starts up the next gen N-series chips, AMD will be out. Regardless, I regress. We’re not talking about top end, so this should not matter. There is talk however that AMD’s run cooler, which is a larger concern on laptops.
Memory-nothing less than 2 gb. In fact, I would go for 3 or 4gb if the choice is given. This rules out 32bit Vista, so you’d have to go with the 64 bit Vista or XP. Frankly, I like the Vista- yes I’m a minority.
Video Card-with anything more than 2 gb of memory, you don’t really need a dedicated video card. Sharing it would work, especially if you’re not editing HUGE amounts of pictures using a large program like photoshop. Although, I would still recommend a dedicated video card cause I’m a geek about my graphics. Look at nVidia’s.
Sound Card-who the heck cares about sound on a laptop. More often, I have my bluetooth earphones(Motorola S9) hooked onto my laptop or iTouch so quality of sound isn’t really a big concern. Even with DVD’s or game. This should be the last thing on your mind really.
Network Card- Definitely get a built in wifi card with the new N series. The new generation is out and you definitely want your laptop to stay at the top of the game for the next 3-4 years(which is eternity for computers these days)
Brand- I would recommend Toshiba, Asus, Sony and HP. Frankly, I’m not a fan of HP but they have proven me wrong time and time again and has made quality products. The only drawback is the friggin freeware. Get the store you buy it from to clear all that crap or do it yourself. Burn a recovery CD using Norton Ghost from the clean install and you’re good to go. As a matter of fact, I just saw a HP that had 3gb and dedicated 256 DEDICATED nVidia graphics card for about 1.2k. For less than 2k, you can really have your pick. I dug up a few examples for you;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834117654<–5.5lbs(your best bet in all honesty)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834117676<---- drool 6.5lbs
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220255<—GREAT price for a GREAT brand-this is what I would pick but it is almost twice the weight of other two at close to 10lbs.
The other final choice you have is also to get a private company to build one for you. You see quite a few of them around and can be an awesome choice if you have someone who knows the exact specs and build you’d like. Price will be a concern but if you can fork out 2k, it shouldn’t be an issue for your needs. I miss Alienware ever since Dell bought it. -.-
And a final note- these are not AMAZINGLY slim like the new Mac but frankly who cannot carry a 5-6lb laptop? -.-
I know a guy who has a Sony Vaio, travels w/ it constantly (including taking to the field for Guard annual training at Ft. McCoy), and says it really stands up to the abuse. FWIW, my HP is good, but the keyboard is not the greatest- sometimes will not register the key strike (my misspelling rate has increased since putting my 5 y/o Dell out to pasture)
Panasonic toughbook, CF-Y5, CF-Y7, CF-73, CF-52 built like tanks in Japan, 3 year warranty.
hey, tom -
looking myself, at the moment, for a laptop with pretty similar specs. i also travel a lot, and to the 3rd world, so durability was key for me. i seem to keep hearing that IBM’s thinkpads have the best build quality in the business. tough as, spill-resistant keyboards, drop-resistant hard drives, etc etc. these things come with LoJack installed! i’m a day or two away from pulling the trigger on a Thinkpad X61. ~3 pounds, under $2000, and well appointed. only thing is they’re tough to find in shops - IBM’s moved mostly to online sales through their Lenovo.com brand. lastly, the optical drive on these comes on a removable ‘docking station,’ so you can have an ultra-light version for travel and a slightly heavier one for more involved stuff.
my 2 cents!
-mike
The 13" mac-book 2.2 GHz 160 g hard , kick the ram up to 2 GB $1500 -$1650 . Wireless - you can carry it like a dinner plate pinched with two fingers. It wont over heat on your leg ( all side ventilation ) . They are great on planes - in airports - hotel beds .
Don’t know about the optical drive , I carry a small usb drive to backup email - photos - passport - contact info - in case I die or it does .
Heli
looking myself, at the moment, for a laptop with pretty similar specs. i also travel a lot, and to the 3rd world, so durability was key for me. i seem to keep hearing that IBM’s thinkpads have the best build quality in the business. tough as, spill-resistant keyboards, drop-resistant hard drives, etc etc. these things come with LoJack installed! i’m a day or two away from pulling the trigger on a Thinkpad X61. ~3 pounds, under $2000, and well appointed. only thing is they’re tough to find in shops - IBM’s moved mostly to online sales through their Lenovo.com brand.
Thinkpads aren’t IBM anymore - they sold the brand to a Chinese company called Lenovo.
There is a similar thread to this over on the flyertalk.com forum and someone suggested checking out the Refurbished laptops that Lenovo sells. They are still Thinkpads, sold by the OEM, but significantly cheaper.
I don’t think you can go much wrong with a Sony TZ (I have one) or the Sony SZ (My wife’s). Panasonic’s are light and tough too and Lenovo seem to still be putting out good machines.
Tom,
Your thread is going to start more of a Mac versus Windows soon! Either ways- I will do you one better. Instead of naming a product right off the bat, I will give you the specs that best suits you.
CPU-anything dual core. I’m sure there’s some quad core laptops out there but at this moment, those are merely two dual core processors(the true quad cores are actually out but costs am arm and a leg). The Intel versus AMD war will not end too soon. AMD purchased nVidia and so future AMD’s will have onboard graphics built on nVidia’s engine. This however, isn’t soon enough and I do believe once Intel starts up the next gen N-series chips, AMD will be out. Regardless, I regress. We’re not talking about top end, so this should not matter. There is talk however that AMD’s run cooler, which is a larger concern on laptops.
Memory-nothing less than 2 gb. In fact, I would go for 3 or 4gb if the choice is given. This rules out 32bit Vista, so you’d have to go with the 64 bit Vista or XP. Frankly, I like the Vista- yes I’m a minority.
Video Card-with anything more than 2 gb of memory, you don’t really need a dedicated video card. Sharing it would work, especially if you’re not editing HUGE amounts of pictures using a large program like photoshop. Although, I would still recommend a dedicated video card cause I’m a geek about my graphics. Look at nVidia’s.
Sound Card-who the heck cares about sound on a laptop. More often, I have my bluetooth earphones(Motorola S9) hooked onto my laptop or iTouch so quality of sound isn’t really a big concern. Even with DVD’s or game. This should be the last thing on your mind really.
Network Card- Definitely get a built in wifi card with the new N series. The new generation is out and you definitely want your laptop to stay at the top of the game for the next 3-4 years(which is eternity for computers these days)
Brand- I would recommend Toshiba, Asus, Sony and HP. Frankly, I’m not a fan of HP but they have proven me wrong time and time again and has made quality products. The only drawback is the friggin freeware. Get the store you buy it from to clear all that crap or do it yourself. Burn a recovery CD using Norton Ghost from the clean install and you’re good to go. As a matter of fact, I just saw a HP that had 3gb and dedicated 256 DEDICATED nVidia graphics card for about 1.2k. For less than 2k, you can really have your pick. I dug up a few examples for you;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834117654<–5.5lbs(your best bet in all honesty)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834117676<---- drool 6.5lbs
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220255<—GREAT price for a GREAT brand-this is what I would pick but it is almost twice the weight of other two at close to 10lbs.
The other final choice you have is also to get a private company to build one for you. You see quite a few of them around and can be an awesome choice if you have someone who knows the exact specs and build you’d like. Price will be a concern but if you can fork out 2k, it shouldn’t be an issue for your needs. I miss Alienware ever since Dell bought it. -.-
And a final note- these are not AMAZINGLY slim like the new Mac but frankly who cannot carry a 5-6lb laptop? -.-
AMD did not purchase NVIDIA -- they purchased ATI.
OK guys, so a fellow buys a mac. Here’s the problem though, that I am aware of, there is no way to run a Computrainer through a Mac. I know I didn’t initially specify that, but it is a possibility.
Also, will all the Garmin type software run on Mac? What about stuff like Dive Computers and so forth?
Macbook. Hands down.
I travel a lot - internationally.
Do the photo thing.
Need email, wireless, etc.
Need the drive to watch movies on long flights.
Go Mac…
This is how I roll for the computrainer etc:
http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/bootcamp.html
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Please keep the suggestion coming. I am in the market for a new Laptop as well. I have a beat up old Toshiba Satellite. Very durable and suits most of my needs, but the thing is a brick. Would like to get something way lighter. Don’t need alll the fancy Photo processing and editing that Tom needs. I am into music though, and typically have a ton of music saved on the Laptop in Windows Media Player. On the road quite a bit and it needs to be durable and easily hook up with wireless networks. Would look at Mac but am fine with PC. Budget?? Not sure - $1000 - $1500
Macbook. Hands down.
I travel a lot - internationally.
Do the photo thing.
Need email, wireless, etc.
Need the drive to watch movies on long flights.
I travel a lot too - I will be in 2 (or possibly 3) countries this week and for me the MacBook is just too big and heavy for regular carting about. My travel machine is the Sony TZ - I’m in a cafe in Hong Kong at the moment on it.
I love mac’s, and if Apple ever bring out a smaller machine again I will be snapping one up. But my Sony has a brilliant 11" widescreen for movies, twice the battery life and half the weight of the MacBook- it was an easy decision since I can have it in my bag and carry all day for those just in case moments. My wife’s Sony SZ (which is also a great machine) is similar in size and weight to the MacBook - and we often decide to leave it at home and take the TZ instead.