suggest a new laptop

[EndUnknown]

2 at once, and yes, its 7 lbs, but thats not bad. my old dell 5150 is at least 12.

[Gow616]

Originally Posted by Dark Whole

well the alienware was quoted at 5-6 hrs in power save mode, and I just prefer xp because im used to it. if alienware offered I'd dualboot.

Originally Posted by Big Daddy Nutsacks

Take it from an ex-alienware Assembly Tech...DO NOT BUY AN ALIENWARE COMPUTER. Go with the Falcon system!!!

Remember your RAM limit is 3gb with XP.

If you have a computer that can handle it, try Vista x64, you might find that it doesn't take that long to learn to handle. Also, you don't see BSoDs, can handle more than 3gb of RAM and is an all around stable OS. Boots faster than XP on my computers and can run for weeks on end without a reboot. System does not need a Memory recovery and doesn't slow down with it being on extended periods of time. Registry is a lot more robust and with a little know how you can access the UXtheme.dll to change it to use Visual Styles from Deviant Art and elsewhere that are designed for Vista.

Vista gets a bad rap that is quite undeserved like the UAC thing that can be disabled right from the start by just going to Users in the Control Panel and disabling it.

User Access Control is like that annoying "Permission needed" pop up seen in all Linux distros.

Plus, if you are having trouble finding your way around you can change to stuff to the "Classic" look to find it easier until you get used to the new layout. Like the start menu and control panel.

If people actually took as much time just learning a little Vista as they often spend complaining about it they might find that the OS is a lot better than XP was even after Service Pack 2.

[EndUnknown]

I've decided to hold off on the m15x till mid june when they are going to offer black skullcap design on it. if I find something clearly better by then i'll do that.

[Gow616]

Originally Posted by Dark Whole

I've decided to hold off on the m15x till mid june when they are going to offer black skullcap design on it. if I find something clearly better by then i'll do that.

http://www.falcon-nw.com/config/fragbook.asp

At least check out Falcon Northwest even if you want to ignore Chiups (Big Daddy) advice.

[EndUnknown]

I hope Chiups doesn't change his name again I always get confused, and have to look at past posts to find out who.
I looked at the TLX, and im wanting something w/ a core 2 extreme, and im not ready for just vista(if you know someone offering to install xp and vista I would like that)

[Gow616]

Forgot how to install XP? You can install XP on these notebooks...in fact from experience it is better to install your own OS instead of sticking with the bundled OS as they usually load it down with junk. Got Vista Basic with my Lenovo...formatted it and put Vista Ultimate x64 on it. Eliminated the junk and got the OS I wanted. Win-win.

Problem is getting drivers for XP as some of the new hardware do not have drivers for XP.

Why Core 2 Extreme? Quad Core will be the better option.

[EndUnknown]

I haven't found a quad w/ good batt life

[runtohell121]

Originally Posted by Dark Whole

I haven't found a quad w/ good batt life

quad core will take more battery life no matter what.. have fun finding it lol dual core is enough for those programs you want to run for a low price.. but paying extra for the whole unnecessary equiped things on the laptop is your choice.. paying more than $2.5k for a laptop is already not worth it. most laptop for that price can do almost everything pretty well.

[Gregory]

The 5150 weighs 9.4 pounds...

Anyway what will you be using this for?

I'd still go with a maxed out version of this(pick the 2.5ghz processor),http://configure.us.dell.com/dellsto...YDWHR1&x=0&y=0

Includes 3 year warranty and 3 year accidental damage.

I'll bet you will love vista on that.

[runtohell121]

Originally Posted by Gregory

The 5150 weighs 9.4 pounds...

Anyway what will you be using this for?




I'll bet you will love vista on that.

what is there with:
3+ hrs batt life (gonna use it at college)
enough power to photoshop/dreamweaver/firefox/audacity simultaneously w/ minimal lag

thats what his planning to use for..

which there is no need for a super expensive laptop lol

[Gow616]

Well I would hate to break it to you all but 3+ hours battery life and running all those programs WON'T happen. You are lucky to get 3 hours of battery life if you are doing all that. Batteries weren't made to have a notebook run intensive operations for extended periods of time.

[jackluo923]

Why not get Dell latitude. They have faster processor and longer battery life and better build quality.

the Dell D630 ATG has

- Super bright 500 nit screen
- up to 12-14 hours maximum battery life with 9 cell mainbattery + 6 cell secondary battery
-Core2duo T9500 2.6Ghz Peryn
-Enough battery juice for a solid 8-9 hours of DVD (more than 10 hours with SSD option)
-Docking station for a whole lot of expansion ports and special feature
-They offer Windows XP or Vista
-No bloatware if you want to
-Options for 64GB SSD, shockmounted HDD, or 7200RPM hdd
-Very solid build, perfect for outdoor use, drop proof under certain conditions

It's perfect for
"what is there with:
3+ hrs batt life (gonna use it at college)
enough power to photoshop/dreamweaver/firefox/audacity simultaneously w/ minimal lag"

If your friend lets you choose any configuration you want without considering the price, I would suggest you getting the 64GBSSD + a 320GB external 2.5" HDD to store your unimportant data. This way, you'll get top notch performance and battery life.

[runtohell121]

usually any laptop saying 12-14 battery life... it would more be like 3-6 hours lol and computer saying 6 hours.. its usually less than 3 hours

[Gow616]

Dell ATG uses that built in Intel GPU. Better off getting a notebook with a Quadro especially if you are going to do graphics or engineering in Uni.

[EndUnknown]

greg, what would be needed to "really run vista" as you put it?

[jackluo923]

Originally Posted by runtohell121

usually any laptop saying 12-14 battery life... it would more be like 3-6 hours lol and computer saying 6 hours.. its usually less than 3 hours

Um... but that's not the case for the latop i suggested.
My relative has one and he verified that the battery life last that long. Besides...9 cell + secondary battery in the removable dvd rom slot has approximately 4 times as much battery as a 4 cell Dell xps standard battery. 85Whr ( 9 cell) + ~45Whr ( secondary) = 130Whr of power.

A lot of corporate people on notebookreview have also verified this too saying it last over 12 hours with minimum settings and solid 8 hours of dvd playback time.

@GOW... unless he's going to use 3d engineering software such as AutoCAD, a quadro graphic card will not make a slight difference to rendering time. Filter rendering for photoshop or any 2d work are either done with CPU or GPU. Intel x3100 is much much much more than enough for any 2D rendering. You can expect as much as 300-600FPS for 2D rendering using x3100.