Laptop questions

So I may be looking to get a laptop soon, the problem, I don't know what to get. I have wireless internet at my home. I also want to be able to travel easily with it, etc.
Any recommendations?

Do you need a burner on the go?

If not, I'd say an X series Thinkpad might be right for you. They're light, and well made.

[quote7e417149b6="Tholek"]Do you need a burner on the go?

If not, I'd say an X series Thinkpad might be right for you. They're light, and well made.[/quote7e417149b6]

In my opinion they're slightly overpriced, I've had a pretty good experience with Dell laptops, but don't go too big on the screen, I think there are more problems as the screen size gets bigger.

IMO, the higher cost comes with the better build, but actually, they dropped prices on Thinkpads recently. (Saw it on SD) I think you could get one at around $900 for a bit.

You ought to give us a price range and what you will be using it for. If you want to play games like BF 2142, I recommend getting one from alienware; I don't know any other brand-name gaming laptop company.

I just want one that will run fast and maybe be able to play a game or two. I really don't have a price range for this.

Ahem... Macbook? Base model is $999 (free shipping) and damned nice... After trying Mac, fuck Windows (I have a black MacBook, Duo 2 Core, 1G RAM, 120GB hdd - $1499.99)! Besides, Parallels Desktop supports virtual Windows extremely well. Better than my desktop PC! And I'm sure you're a little torrent savvy. You can find Parallels ($80) online for free.

... and if you wanna play a few games, Mac's fine. I hear it's not good for hard core gaming, but I had Halo and Call of Duty 2 on mine and they were fine. I just got bored of them rather quick because I'm not crazy about gaming with keyboards, so I deleted them.

I have never used anything but Windows. I would still use my home computer which has windows on it. Is it that hard to switch back and forth from Mac to Windows?

I'd still put the quality of a Thinkpad over a MacBook. MacBooks are nice, though.

Any more thoughts/opinions?

It's not difficult at all to switch between Mac and Windows... You just open Parallels... seconds later you are presented with the Virtual machine profile page. Just click the start button and VOILA! Windows begins loading. It boots faster than my desktop PC (but my desktop has a ton of crap on it). You can switch back and forth as simple as minimizing and maximizing the windows, unless You have Windows in full screen, which will requires pressing alt+enter first.

I have no complaints with Parallels ability to run Windows and it's only a matter of time before they work out all of the bugs and you wont be able to tell the difference as Windows will be FULLY supported. Of course you have to install Windows first, which from what I remember is no different than installation on a PC.

All of the MacBooks have the Intel Core 2 Duo, which is the shit. If you get the $1,299 Macbook, you get the 2.0 GHz processor (as opposed to 1.83) and 1GB of memory (as opposed to 512mb... and I definitely recommend 1GB if you'll be running Windows AND OS X), 80GB hdd and a double layer SUPER drive capable of burning/ripping CDs AND DVDs. Great choice.

Some people have trouble accepting the size of the notebook's screen. But I have come to more or less prefer it. 13.3 inches doesn't sound like a lot, but it's notebook! It's made for portability. It's supposed to be small and convenient. A friend of mine just bought a 15 inch Sony Vaio and DAMN it's ugly! It's huge... thick as shit and just overall bulky! When he has it in it's bag, it looks like he's carrying around a VCR. The Macbook is so god damned thin (less than an inch, if I remember correctly) and weighs next to nothing. It doesn't have vents, buttons, flaps and indentions and shit... it's sleek and definitionless. It's just a seamless, solid slab of notebook.

Now, if you've never used a Mac, in my opinion, it's awesome. I have used Windows forever until I got my iBook from Niutech. Now, I didn't like the iBook, but not because of the operating system. I loved Tiger right away, however the physical characteristics were junk. It had a 12 inch screen... square not widescreen, and it wasn't glossy. The plastic casing also seemed cheap looking to me. But, OS X was awesome. It was so elegant and clean. EVERYTHING looks better on a Mac. After seeing Tiger in action, Windows just looks nasty to me. The programs, the color schemes... everything just looks ugly. But not on a Mac... and those of you awaiting Vistas official release, save yourself some time and get Mac. Windows has completely ripped Mac off with Vista. There are several features that Mac has had forever that MS wants a piece of. I only used my Mac for 1 day before I sold it on eBay so I could buy the MacBook (that came out days later), but I missed the operating system everyday.

Anyway, if you haven't stopped reading by now, I would get a MacBook.

[quote85528dd18b="mistertomlinson"]A friend of mine just bought a 15 inch Sony Vaio and DAMN it's ugly! It's huge... thick as shit and just overall bulky! When he has it in it's bag, it looks like he's carrying around a VCR.[/quote85528dd18b]

When? 10 years ago? P

I own a 15" VAIO. A FS series model, and it's damned thin for a laptop with an internal burner. In fact, the chassis curves in just past that burner. A VCR it isn't.

Go ahead and knock PCs, but at least be truthful. wink

I went to dell.com to build a laptop, and this is what I came up with-
Price- $1,872
Components
PROCESSOR Intel® Core™ Duo T2050 (1.60GHz, 2MB L2 Cache, 533MHz FSB) edit
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows® XP Home edit
UPGRADE TO WINDOWS VISTA No Express Upgrade to Windows Vista Selected edit
LCD PANEL 15.4 inch UltraSharp™ Wide Screen SXGA+ Display with TrueLife™ edit
MEMORY 2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHZ, 2 DIMM edit
HARD DRIVE 120GB 5400rpm SATA Hard Drive edit
OPTICAL DRIVE 8X CD/DVD Burner (DVD+/-RW) with double-layer DVD+R write capability edit
VIDEO CARD 256MB ATI MOBILITY™ RADEON® X1400 HyperMemory™ edit
WI-FI WIRELESS CARD Intel PRO/Wireless 3945 Internal Wireless edit
BLUETOOTH WIRELESS Dell Wireless 355 Bluetooth Internal (2.0 + Enhanced Data Rate) edit
SOUND OPTION Integrated Sound Blaster® Audigy™ HD Software Edition edit
MEDIA DIRECT Media Direct 3.0 edit
Accessories
BATTERIES 85 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery edit
TRAVEL & MOBILITY Belkin 4-port Hi-Speed USB 2.0 Pocket Hub and Travel Surge Protector edit
TRAVEL & MOBILITY Targus Stow & Go Mouse edit
FLOPPY DRIVE External USB Floppy Drive edit
Software
PRE-INSTALLED PRODUCTIVITY Microsoft Office Small Business Ed.- Basic plus PowerPoint and Publisher edit
PRE-INSTALLED SECURITY No Security Subscription edit
PRE-INSTALLED BURN DigitalMedia PlusBurn,Copy CD Music/Data,Backup,Label(CD-RW/DVD+RW only) edit
Service
WARRANTY & SERVICE 3 Year On-site Economy Plan edit
ACCIDENTAL DAMAGE SERVICE Add CompleteCare Accidental Damage Protection to 3Yr Lim Warranty edit
DIAL-UP INTERNET ACCESS 6 Months of America Online Membership Included edit
PURCHASE INTENT Purchase is not intended for resale. edit
ALSO INCLUDED WITH YOUR SYSTEM
Network Card and Modem Integrated 10/100 Network Card and Modem
Miscellaneous 6400 dual
Processor Branding Intel Centrino Core Duo Processor
Labels Windows Vista™ Capable
A/C ADAPTER Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 7.0
Digital Music Music Jukebox by Yahoo! Music - Basic music software
Digital Imaging Corel Snapfire Basic - Organize and Edit your photos

[quote52ae70261c="Tholek"][quote52ae70261c="mistertomlinson"]A friend of mine just bought a 15 inch Sony Vaio and DAMN it's ugly! It's huge... thick as shit and just overall bulky! When he has it in it's bag, it looks like he's carrying around a VCR.[/quote52ae70261c]

When? 10 years ago? P

I own a 15" VAIO. A FS series model, and it's damned thin for a laptop with an internal burner. In fact, the chassis curves in just past that burner. A VCR it isn't.

Go ahead and knock PCs, but at least be truthful. wink[/quote52ae70261c]

So I exagerated a little... and it isn't old. He just got it about a month ago for $799 after the rebate. Before I think it was $1,000. But, it's not one of the fancier models of Vaio. It's got core duo, 1GB of RAM, DVD burner/ripper... the features aren't bad, but it is too big.

... and I wasn't trying to completely trash Windows. I have just come to prefer Mac. I still have to have Windows.

Fair enough, but "too big"? It's a widescreen, so it's gonna be wide.

The OP chose a widescreen when configuring one at Dell, so I think we know his feelings about screen size. ;)

[quoteb64017f9b0="CustomOrderThis"]I just want one that will run fast and maybe be able to play a game or two. I really don't have a price range for this.[/quoteb64017f9b0]

You might want to expound on which game(s). There is a big difference between if you want to play AOE or Fear on max settings.

I don't think I will play games. I just want fast internet, etc. D

[quoteb8f40827ec="CustomOrderThis"]I don't think I will play games. I just want fast internet, etc. D[/quoteb8f40827ec]

Internet speed is dependent on your ISP, not your computer.

Idk what I mean then, haha. I just want a good connection, and to be able to be on the internet and on AIM a lot. Lol.
If it helps, I have a wireless connection. )