I just feel that if I get a SSD, I'm actually downgrading. I value the space more than the actual speed. 128 gb just seems too cramped. I have 120 gb HDDs in my 2006 Acer TravelMate 4670 and my late 2007 MacBook Pro.

4/3/2011 4:23:59 PM

I think you're missing the point though. SSD's aren't really about storage. It's a laptop. It's not really for storing stuff. The 120 in my laptop is plenty for on the go stuff. In fact it's more than enough. 95% of the stuff I do on a laptop doesn't require any physical storage. Sure I might put a movie or two on it or edit some photos but none of that is hindered by having only 120 gigs. I have a 1TB external that's smaller than a wallet that I keep in my laptop bag and 8TB's on my server at home I use for media and photos that can be accessed remotely if I need it.

The speed and performance advantage of having an SSD will faaaaar out weight the negatives of having a little less space. Boot up is faster, programs open faster, things load quicker. The overall experience is just so much better.

I mean unless you have a purpose for needing more than 120GBs on a laptop. Are you so opposed to carrying around an external HDD for extra media? They're so incredibly small now and you'd be taking advantage of that USB3.0 on your Asus.

4/3/2011 5:25:00 PM

I got an SSD for my work laptop ... it blazes. I'll never go back. I have found other ways to store data than my laptop.

4/3/2011 8:10:20 PM

Quote :

"I just feel that if I get a SSD, I'm actually downgrading. I value the space more than the actual speed. 128 gb just seems too cramped."

ditto

Quote :

"I think you're missing the point though. SSD's aren't really about storage. It's a laptop. It's not really for storing stuff."

well, the "point" is all relative...the "point" of my laptop is to have everything i NEED and WANT with me at all times, as it's a portable device...if 128gb isn't enough space, then an SSD is simply inferior

i do a lot of HD video editing and working with RAW image files when i'm away from my desktop and 128gb is laughable...my 640gb is almost always 80-85% full and i carry another 640gb external around with me

4/4/2011 8:08:36 AM

Quote :

"if 128gb isn't enough space, then an SSD is simply inferior"

Again I think you're missing the point. If you use your laptop for media storage and require that much room then obviously an SSD isn't going to be a top priority for you. I'm simply pointing out that the vast majority of people can easily get by with 128GBs of storage. That's plenty for music, documents and photos for your average person.

I don't really edit video but I do edit photos often in raw and shooting 14MP RAW fills up space but doesn't hit the 60-80GBs I usually have free on my laptop. If it does I have a tiny 1TB external that isn't too much trouble to hook up.

Then again if you have a MBP or similar modded laptop you could run an SSD and a HDD for storage in the drive bay. I've thought about this but didn't want to sacrifice battery life and my DVD drive despite rarely ever using it.

-and holy shit is Photoshop a much better experience with an SSD. Especially with larger raw files. They open/save so fast compared to a traditional hdd. Photoshop was where I noticed the biggest improvement going to an SSD.

[Edited on April 4, 2011 at 9:20 AM. Reason : s]

4/4/2011 9:17:01 AM

Quote :

"Again I think you're missing the point."

but i'm not...obviously an SSD is for speed, but it's ONLY for the speed...it's the ONLY thing it does well, because it's crazy expensive and crazy small compared to traditional hard drive

if ANYTHING is more important than speed, then there's absolutely no reason to go with an SSD

it's great that you're able to get by with one...i agree with your point that the majority of people could toss in a 64gb or 128gb SSD and be perfectly happy...but to act like they are universally "better" is just silly, because they simply aren't

4/4/2011 10:00:26 AM

Well using your logic nothing is "universally better" because there's always an instance where some alternative is better in some way.

Quote :

"but to act like they are universally "better" is just silly, because they simply aren't"

OK yes I agree typically one component isn't usually universally better than another for 100% of the people.

I'm simply saying an SSD is better for the majority of people. I rarely see people using more than 60 gigs of space on their laptops much less 120 or more. If you really care about storing stuff on a laptop and don't want to spend the extra cash on a larger SSD then by all means stick to a traditional HDD.

But to your point to say it's a "downgrade" simply because you can't fit all your stuff on there isn't really fair. You're implying the sole reason of a HDD is storage disregarding how the majority of people actually use it.

4/4/2011 10:42:55 AM

Quote :

"But to your point to say it's a "downgrade" simply because you can't fit all your stuff on there isn't really fair. You're implying the sole reason of a HDD is storage disregarding how the majority of people actually use it."

it's perfectly fair because i was quoting (and agreeing with) merbig's take on it:

Quote :

"I just feel that if I get a SSD, I'm actually downgrading. I value the space more than the actual speed. 128 gb just seems too cramped."

which is very specific in pointing out that in his case (and mine), space is more important than speed

i never once made a blanket statement in regards to SSDs as everything i said was qualified...you, on the other hand, have said that for those of who believe that 128gb is too little space and not at all worth the cost per gb have "missed the point"

i'm not really trying to turn this into an argument, i just get tired of people touting SSDs as the end-all/be-all, because they're not for everyone (even cost aside, they're simply impractical for SOME people)...trust me, there are times i wish i didn't have to carry so much data around with me, but it is what it is

*shrug*

4/4/2011 10:49:16 AM

Quote :

"you, on the other hand, have said that for those of who believe that 128gb is too little space and not at all worth the cost per gb have "missed the point""

My point was to emphasize that only considering a hard drive for it's storage size was missing the point which I felt like you guys were doing by calling it a "downgrade". Maybe if you had worded it "a downgrade in storage space" it would have come off better.

But yes if your "point" is storage than an SSD won't do.

Quote :

"i'm not really trying to turn this into an argument, i just get tired of people touting SSDs as the end-all/be-all, because they're not for everyone (even cost aside, they're simply impractical for SOME people)...trust me, there are times i wish i didn't have to carry so much data around with me, but it is what it is"

You still haven't touched on externals. Is it really that difficult to plug in an external smaller than a wallet when ever you're editing or dealing with large quantities of data? I mean I can see it being a hassle if you do it every single time you open your laptop but if I were in your position I'd value the performance increases of an SSD over the downside of having to plug in an external every time I dealt with large amounts of data.

4/4/2011 11:42:43 AM

Quote :

"You still haven't touched on externals. Is it really that difficult to plug in an external smaller than a wallet when ever you're editing or dealing with large quantities of data? I mean I can see it being a hassle if you do it every single time you open your laptop but if I were in your position I'd value the performance increases of an SSD over the downside of having to plug in an external every time I dealt with large amounts of data."

well, i did say that i carry an external with me...the problem is that i don't have a USB 3.0 interface on my laptop and my external doesn't have an eSATA interface (which my laptop does have)

USB 2.0 will work, but it's far from ideal...certainly slower than working off the hard drive itself (even a traditional drive...i suppose i could get an SSD and then carry multiple externals with me (because i have more than a terabyte between my laptop drive and my external, but even if it were a single external, it's not always convenient to have something dangling by a cord...i don't always use the laptop in a way that having an external attached would be "safe" for the external

i guess, then, that i could get velcro and stick it to my laptop lid and do that...but now we're getting silly when a regular HDD works just fine

[Edited on April 4, 2011 at 1:41 PM. Reason : .]

4/4/2011 1:41:42 PM

haha true. You're right. USB 2.0 is slow especially if you have to load it to the internal HDD from a flash card then back to an external.

4/4/2011 2:51:19 PM

I'm not going to re-iterate what quagmire02 has said. He's pretty much hit the nail on the head for me.

Quote :

"Again I think you're missing the point. If you use your laptop for media storage and require that much room then obviously an SSD isn't going to be a top priority for you."

Which I do... I like being able to store movie, car races, all of my music, pictures, ect on it. Like I said earlier, I already have 120 GB HDD in my Macbook Pro and it is too small.

Quote :

" I'm simply pointing out that the vast majority of people can easily get by with 128GBs of storage."

No. You're pointing out that you can get by with 128GBs of storage. That's fine. I honestly don't think you can backup your claim that 128GBs is enough for the vast majority of people.

Quote :

"My point was to emphasize that only considering a hard drive for it's storage size was missing the point which I felt like you guys were doing by calling it a "downgrade". Maybe if you had worded it "a downgrade in storage space" it would have come off better. "

Well, did you read what I said, or did you just read the beginning and you ignored the rest?

Quote :

"I just feel that if I get a SSD, I'm actually downgrading. I value the space more than the actual speed. 128 gb just seems too cramped"

Is "I value the space more than the actual speed" and "128 gb just seems too cramped" not the same as saying "a downgrade in storage space?" You kept saying that I am missing the point, yet each time, you missed my point. An SSD does not afford me the storage space that I want. Yes, I know it is much faster. But a 320GB HDD is fast enough for me.

Quote :

"You still haven't touched on externals."

I will.

First of all, a 128 gb SSD will cost me at least $200. A 500 GB external portable HDDs will cost me $250.

You do realize the netbook only cost me $467? So you're suggesting that I pay a total of $717 on a netbook just so Windows will load faster and so I can cut the load time of Google Chrome from 4 seconds on the first start up to 0.75 seconds, yet on the next run of Google Chrome, it will be cached in the memory and will load almost as fast as it did off the SSD...

I'm sorry, but there is no way in hell that I will buy a SSD for a netbook, or really, anytime soon. I'm not doubting the speed increase. I am well aware of it. I just can't justify the cost in relationship to the cost of the netbook.

4/4/2011 8:17:12 PM

Quote :

"No. You're pointing out that you can get by with 128GBs of storage. That's fine. I honestly don't think you can backup your claim that 128GBs is enough for the vast majority of people."

128 gigs? You really think the majority of people even come close to 128 gigs? I think it's impressive when people I know have more than 80 gigs of music. That's like 25,000 songs.

If you're shooting 10 MP JPGs (high estimate for what your "average person" might use) 50 gigs should get you to maybe 12,500 photos? That's 100 photos a week for 2 and a half years.

Movies and TV shows are a completely different story. How many people do you actually know that STORE movies or TV shows on their laptops? Sure just like plenty of people in here I've got 8+ terabytes of media on my server I use in conjunction with an HTPC and desktop but really think about everyone else out there with laptops who aren't as tech savy as us. The vast majority of them use Red Box, Hulu, or Netflix.

I'm just saying from experience and from the countless laptops I've seen I RARELY see anyone going over 128.

Plus look at the direction everything is moving with cloud computing. The MacBook Air's are so popular and no one cares about storage space. Look at the iPod trend. The HDD based iPod topped out at 128GBs. When did you ever see anyone maxing out their iPod classic? Everyone gets iPod touches now and I rarely hear people complaining that 16 or 32 gigs is not enough.

Quote :

"No. You're pointing out that you can get by with 128GBs of storage."

On a laptop I can. I use it to browse the web, email, look at youtube videos, and edit photos. It's portable. I have other computers for work that uses lots of storage. I don't care that I can't carry EVERYTHING I store at home on it. I don't need everything all the time. If I want to bring a movie with me I'll download it where I am or stick it on an external.

Quote :

" First of all, a 128 gb SSD will cost me at least $200. A 500 GB external portable HDDs will cost me $250."

Dude. I don't even know where to begin. This makes me think you haven't gone online in 5 years. Check your prices. You can get 1 TB externals online for under $100. The 500GBs are rarely above $50-60. You can even get them the size of a wallet now!! Even the 500GB USB 3.0 externals are under $75.

Quote :

"I just can't justify the cost in relationship to the cost of the netbook."

I simply said it made a big difference with my Asus and if you wanted to spend the money it'd be a good upgrade. It just seemed like you guys were jumping down our throats for purchasing SSD's so I thought I'd spark a little debate over who actually needs that much space on a laptop. Obviously you guys use your laptops for storing lots of stuff so you need the space. I agree I kind of over did it with the semantics. Yes you guys shouldn't get SSD's.

4/4/2011 9:17:28 PM

Quote :

"Dude. I don't even know where to begin. This makes me think you haven't gone online in 5 years. Check your prices. You can get 1 TB externals online for under $100. The 500GBs are rarely above $50-60. You can even get them the size of a wallet now!! Even the 500GB USB 3.0 externals are under $75."

I screwed that up. I meant with the SSD and external, it will cost $250. I know that isn't what I said. It was what I meant.

[Edited on April 4, 2011 at 9:22 PM. Reason : .]

4/4/2011 9:22:27 PM

ah makes sense. Yeah you're right. Adding an SSD plus external to a netbook wouldn't be practical. Especially if it's half the price of the netbook alone.

4/5/2011 8:07:38 AM

ultimate laptop?

http://www.tcmagazine.com/tcm/news/hardware/36805/asus-rolling-out-sandy-bridge-based-lamborghini-vx7-gaming-laptop

Quote :

"Seen below, the VX7 features an aerodynamic and aggressive design inspired by the Italian company's Murcielago LP640, and utilizes premium materials like leather which is found on its palm rest. Asus' laptop comes in two colors - orange and carbon fiber, and packs a 15.6-inch (1920 x 1080) LED-backlit screen, a 2.0 GHz Core i7-2630QM quad-core processor, 16GB of RAM, up to 1.5TB of storage space (via two HDDs), a GeForce GTX 460M graphics card with 3GB of dedicated memory, a Blu-ray combo drive, a 2.0 megapixel webcam, an 8-in-1 card reader, Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, one USB 3.0 port, two speakers, a HDMI output, and an 8-cell battery. The Lamborghini VX7 comes with Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit pre-installed, is backed by a two-year warranty and is currently up for pre-order at €1,995."

4/6/2011 9:27:00 AM

that thing is butt ugly.

4/6/2011 9:28:59 AM

that thing is butt ugly.

4/6/2011 11:35:38 AM

perhaps so, but i was referring to the bolded part.

seems like lambo design on a laptop doesn't look good... ferrari design would definitely look good.

4/6/2011 7:10:02 PM

4/6/2011 7:19:50 PM

It's not the ultimate laptop at all. The lenovo W series whomps that one in every aspect. And I'm sure a half dozen others do too. And it's ass ugly (btw so are the Ferrari Asus laptops)

4/6/2011 8:36:43 PM

you meant Ferrari Acer. and they look good, at least the ones below. and the Lambo Asus above doesn't look good, but the ones below do.

4/6/2011 8:44:36 PM

They all look flashy and completely ornamental in their design. Acer and Asus both make good laptops, but their design language is horrible. I can't believe Ferrari or Lambo ever gave them licensing rights. All painted plastic laptops featuring badges from all composite vehicles makes no sense.

There are CF laptops, brushed aluminum, magnesium and all sorts of beautiful materials. Blech to this plasticrap

4/6/2011 8:55:35 PM

^ agreed... as for the materials, they already charge a couple of hundred dollars more for the badges than other brands, so if they used those exotic materials, they would be a shit ton more expensive.

i have seen some like that (with exotic materials), also with car badges, maybe bentley, or maybe some other one. they cost $10,000 and above.

4/6/2011 8:59:52 PM

I was thinking about replacing my current laptop. I need Windows because of a few stupid programs (i.e. ArcGIS), but I also want a laptop that will last a long time.

What would be a good laptop to get? Would it be worth it to get a macbook pro and dualboot, or would it be better just to get a lenovo and dualboot linux?

Also, would there by any benefits to triplebooting a macbook pro other than just to say..."Yeah, I have linux on my mac!"?

4/8/2011 11:01:02 AM

Need a new laptop, Windows 7, looking for:

Important
- battery life
- CPU/RAM
- video card

Not Important
- screen size
- HDD capacity

wouldn't mind a keypad in addition to the standard keyboard and would enjoy a plethora of USB ports, but any suggestions?

Don't wanna pay more than $1000 hopefully a couple hundred less

4/24/2011 9:47:50 PM

I just got a 15" MacBook Pro. What are the bomb dot com Mac programs I need?

4/25/2011 3:32:55 PM

Alfred - one of the best launchers
Adium - hands down best IM client
Caffeine - Prevents computer from sleeping
Captur - makes use of built in screen capture tools

Aside from those I use Parallels a lot. My company is still on Exchange 2003 so when I use my MBP I need Windows 7 in parallels for Outlook.

Other than that Office 2011 is great.

What do you use a laptop for?

4/25/2011 4:17:04 PM

Quote :

"What do you use a laptop for?"

Porn. AMIRITE

4/26/2011 5:09:00 PM

I don't use mine for porn. Scrivener and starting out with Xcode.

4/27/2011 2:21:25 PM

Think I'm going to pull the trigger on this one in the next couple weeks. I just need something to make it through grad school and I'm poor.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834157672

[Edited on April 27, 2011 at 11:38 PM. Reason : I like that it has a number pad ]

4/27/2011 11:37:25 PM

I'm in the market for a new laptop and can't decide what I want. I'm probably going to end up with another MacBook pro but I'm open to windows laptops also. Currently, I'm looking at the HP Envy 14 and the new Dell XPS 15z. I like the Samsung series 9 but I'm not willing to spend $1500 on it since it's unknown to me and doesnt really add anything that I need. I'm looking for

13-15" screen (preferably better than 768 vertical res if it's larger than 13" and really prefer 13-14")
Thin & relatively light (1" & 5lbs or less)
GOOD trackpad/keyboard with a really solid chassis
Core i5+
Bare minimum battery life greater than 4 hours (prefer 6+)
$1000+/-

Had an Envy 13 but had some issues and even though the 14 has gotten great reviews, I'm kinda unsure. The Dell is a Dell so... Lenovo X1 looks good but it's brand new so want to wait on it. I know I've seen some Asus that fit these specs before but I can't find anything now that isn't either plastic or $1500+.

Suggestions?

5/30/2011 8:31:23 PM

^ didn't do a hard comparison, but the lenovo Z370 for $560 seems to fit most of your criteria...it's an ideapad, but the reviews are pretty good

http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2973667

5/31/2011 8:04:08 AM

^ thanks but it's a bit too thick and I haven't really cared for the idea pads that I've looked at. They feel a it cheap for me and the trackpads seem to be the typical useable but rather bleh standard.

5/31/2011 7:16:14 PM

I'll be buying an ENVY 17 3D on payday (the 15th) unless someone can convince me why I shouldn't. Only real problem I have with it is that I'd like a dual-hdd setup with one ssd and one sata hdd.

6/13/2011 11:28:03 AM

Hopefully Newegg will have a good deal on the Asus G73SW for July 4th weekend. If not, I'll be getting one then anyways...

Just saw the new G74SX and was strongly considering it since it's the same price at Best Buy. It's quite a powerful laptop, but the aesthetics just kill it for me. The G73SW is so much more appealing IMO.

[Edited on June 26, 2011 at 8:47 PM. Reason : .]

6/26/2011 8:38:36 PM

Any opinions on this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Acer-AOD255E-1482-10-1-Inch-Netbook-Diamond/dp/B004PYD7A2

Up to 8 hours of battery life with included 6-cell battery (4400 mAh)
10.1-inch LED-backlit CrystalBrite screen (1024 x 600 resolution)
1.66 GHz Intel Atom dual-core N570 processor (1 MB L2 cache, 667 MHz FSB) combines performance and energy efficiency to provide new levels of support for applications like games, as well as Adobe Flash technology for improved access to multimedia sites such as YouTube and Hulu.
250 GB hard drive (5400 RPM)
1 GB DDR3 RAM (1066 MHz; 1 GB maximum capacity with Windows 7 Starter)
Integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 3150 video processor with Microsoft DirectX 9.0 support
Wireless-N Wi-Fi networking capability provides up to five times the performance and twice the wireless range using 802.11n-compatible routers as you would with 802.11g networks. It's also backward compatible with 802.11b/g networks (commonly found at Wi-Fi hotspots and in older home routers).
Multi-gesture Touchpad for circular-motion scrolling, pinch-action zoom, and page flip. (Learn more)
Built-in 0.3 Megapixel Webcam integrated into the display bezel for easy video chats and conferencing
84-key FineTip keyboard, 93 percent of standard-size with bigger keys for easy typing.
Mono speaker
Microsoft Windows 7 Starter operating system (Learn more)
Preloaded with the Microsoft Office Starter 2010 free software offering with selected functionality of Word and Excel for your text and spreadsheet tasks. Plus, if you decide you want the full suite, just purchase a product key to activate an ad-free version that also includes the latest Outlook, PowerPoint, and Publisher programs.
Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.3 x 0.9 inches (WxDxH)
Weight: 2.76 pounds
Warranty: One-year parts and labor limited warranty with concurrent International Traveler's Warranty
Energy Star certified

Ports and Connectivity

3 USB 2.0 ports
Fast Ethernet (10/100)
VGA video output
2-in-1 Media Card Reader

6/26/2011 9:20:10 PM

HP Pavilion dv6t Entertainment PC
• dark umber
• Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• 2nd generation Intel(R) Dual Core(TM) i5-2520M (2.5GHz, 3MB L3 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to 3.2 GHz
• 1GB GDDR5 Radeon(TM) HD 6490M Graphics [HDMI, VGA]
• 6GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 500GB 7200RPM Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
• 30% OFF! 9-Cell Lithium-Ion Battery (over-sized) - Up to 9.75 hours of battery life +++
• 15.6" diagonal Full HD HP Anti-glare LED Display (1920 x 1080)
• Blu-ray writer & SuperMulti DVD burner
• HP TrueVision HD Webcam with Integrated Digital Microphone and HP SimplePass Fingerprint Reader
• Intel 802.11b/g/n WLAN with Wireless Display Support


For just over 750

6/28/2011 2:05:01 PM

Ironically, I was about to buy the G73SW on Newegg when I stopped at Best Buy to see what one looked like in person. I actually liked the G74 much more, and picked one up for $1199 and also got back a $100 gift card. Quite excited!!!

[Edited on July 2, 2011 at 3:16 PM. Reason : .]

7/2/2011 3:16:10 PM

my ole gaming laptop finally bit the dust yesterday. 5 years is well lived, was waiting for the tax free day for a new laptop next month to get a new one anyhow.

7/6/2011 11:56:39 AM

^ why worry about tax-free day when buying from amazon/newegg/whatever is always tax free?

i mean, it's not supposed to be, but it is

7/6/2011 1:13:02 PM

^^ I thought about that too... At BestBuy though, even at $1,200, the tax is only about $80. If you can use the $100 gift card, then you've saved an additional $20, or you could have the laptop now and sell the GC for at least $80.

Just throwing that out there..

7/6/2011 4:29:40 PM

Quote :

"http://www.staples.com/Toshiba-Satellite-L775D-S7222-17.3-Laptop/product_331466 Processor AMD Quad-Core A6-3400M Accelerated Processor Memory (RAM) 6GB Memory Type DDR3 Memory Expandable to 8GB Hard Drive Size 500GB Hard Drive Type SATA Optical Drive DVD SuperMulti drive supporting 11 formats Display Size 17.3" Display Type TruBrite TFT display Operating System Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit Battery Type 6 cell/48Wh Lithium Ion Network Card Wi-Fi Wireless networking (802.11b/g/n) Video Graphics AMD Radeon HD 6520M Graphics Other ports Media Card Reader # of USB slots 3 Bluetooth Enabled No Dimensions 16.3"W x10.6"D x 1.10"/1.49"H Weight 6.2lbs Warranty 1 year Extra Features Integrated Webcam and microphone VGA Connection Yes HDMI Port 1 X HDMI I can get it for 450 via slickdeals. been looking to update my laptop but its been a while since i've worked with computers so i'm out of the technology loop."

7/13/2011 3:22:57 PM

^ if you use your laptop as your desktop, why not just get a desktop? do you need your desktop to be portable? you could just get a decent desktop (faster and cheaper than what you listed) and then spend a bit more on a low-end netbook for those times you want to take a computer with you

7/13/2011 5:08:40 PM

because many people (myself included) would rather sit on the couch or in bed for the time we're messing with the computer at home.

7/13/2011 6:12:04 PM

Then get a netbook and call it a day.

I found it cumbersome to use my 15" macbook pro in bed. My 12" netbook is perfect for the job.

Unless she needs 4 cores, she's buying a bulky fucking machine with more power than she needs when something smaller and possibly cheaper (my 12" netbook was $450 though) would fit her needs better.

7/13/2011 6:53:00 PM

Finally getting a new work laptop. They'll probably just give me a Dell 6520 but hey it's better than my Ancient Lenovo T61.

Quote :

"because many people (myself included) would rather sit on the couch or in bed for the time we're messing with the computer at home."

This is why you have a work laptop, home laptop, home desktop, server, and htpc. You never have to compromise! The trouble is keeping them all in sync.

[Edited on July 13, 2011 at 7:24 PM. Reason : s]

7/13/2011 7:13:03 PM

Need some advice...my current laptop is a Dell Studio 15 (great deal on a refurb, but will swear off Dell as soon as I replace this one)...dedicated graphics, blu-ray, 1920x1200 display. My big issue with it is that it gets very hot if you do anything even remotely intensive. Try playing a 3D game, and it will get hot enough to shut off. I recently learned that I will have some classes coming up that will require use of SecondLife. I installed it to try it out (had an old account I hadnt touched in forever)...lots of heat, plus it didnt really run well at all. Its a 3D game, yes, but its not exactly Crysis either.

Im wondering if there is anything in particular I need to look for to avoid this issue with my next laptop purchase. Would it basically be "dont buy a Dell" or anything more specific. I dont want to purchase a gaming laptop (unless its a killer deal), but I do want it to be 3D graphics capable, and Id definitely prefer to have blu-ray and 1080p graphics as well.

7/22/2011 4:14:47 PM

budget? most laptops that are a "great deal" will run hot when doing processor/graphics-intensive things

7/22/2011 6:37:32 PM

Quote :

"I recently learned that I will have some classes coming up that will require use of SecondLife."

A few questions:
1) Wut?
2) What the heck kind of degree are you working on?
3) Are your parents paying for these courses?
4) This is college, not summer camp, right?

On another note, my wife and I have a mid-2007 iMac and a mid-2008 black Macbook. The iMac is pretty useless to us now, with how our lives are. She is a couponer and a seamstress and would like the blackie for herself, which means we are looking to get another laptop. After hemming and hawing between the 13" Pro or the new 13" Air, I think I've decided to go with the Air.

7/24/2011 7:56:18 AM