I'm basically looking for the laptop chow_yun_fat suggested... minus the bamboo casing.. minus the NVIDIA (don't need it)... upgrade to 8 GB RAM... add a webcam.. That would be perfect. Rep to the first person who finds it!!
Ahh nevermind, that's way out of my price range (as is the Macbook pro). The only thing close to my price range is the extremely basic thick rookie macbook. No pro, no air. lol
It has a webcam. The only thing missing is the 8gb ram and I don't think you will find a laptop with 8gb ram under $1,000. I don't know of any laptops that come with a default of 8gb, I think you'll have to CTO (configure to order). Try this link, http://www.xoticpc.com/asus-u45jca1-p-2852.html?wconfigure=yes You can build a U45JC with 8gb ram for about $1,100. It has the nvidia graphics card, which is switchable. You can turn it off and use the default intel gpu. Actually, it'll be cheaper to buy 8gb of ram off newegg for $170 and install it yourself vs paying them $240.
You will have to check, but I think I've read that Win7 can't take advantage of more than 4gig of ram.
HP's business laptops are amazing. Although in recent years the consumer lines have improved as well so I'm not sure why you're against them.
I bought an HP laptop last year, hated that thing so much, couldn't stand it. Ended up selling it an getting a macbook pro, it is at least 10 x better than my hp.
F*** HP. That's my only advice. I've mentioned it a few times already: I treat my computers like a baby, only better. It broke down after a year (right after the warranty expired, thanks). Attributing it to bad luck, s*** happens, I gave HP a pass and bought another one (totally different model). Broke after a year (right after the warranty expired again...) decided to repair it, and the same fix broke again. Faulty design is faulty. But hey, that's just my experience.
I also bought 3 pc laptops in a 2 year span before my Macbook pro. The regular HP/gateway/asus plastic hinges broke on all 3 plastic constructed laptops. I love the unibody construction of my macbook, you get what you pay for.
lol at the lenovo haters. my thinkpad has taken a beating for 3 years and its still it top shape, if i have ANY issues they ship me a package via next day air and i get it back in a week. I had an issues after updated the bios last Christmas, even with the holidays it got back to me in 4 days.
Shouldn't be a problem at 1366x768. Don't know if you can max the sucker out, but for reference, I used to play Gears of War (med-low settings) on a dual core laptop with a 8600m GT. http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-310M.22439.0.html Definitely not a gaming laptop for first person shooters. Haven't tried starcraft on my laptop. My guess is that it's at least good for medium settings. I guess it's an okay deal if Amazon doesn't charge tax. I would do it only if the resolution was near 1080p.
Thank you. I think I might buy this sucker this evening. Pity the deal no longer includes the free netgear widi adapter, but I can pick that up later for cheap.
I have the smaller ASUS, the UL30VT-1A. Awesome laptop, with enough performance for em (I don't play games), really small and light and 10 hrs of battery life. Switchable graphics for when I do need performance, on-board graphics when I want max battery life. Plus, it even looks good with a brushed aluminum cover and island-style keyboard. ASUS offers a 2 yr warranty and even a year of accidental replacement. I will always buy ASUS from now on...
16" screen (likely heavy), but pretty nice specs (via SlickDeals) http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...=ATVPDKIKX0DER&prv=forums&cur=slickdeals&ses= Was: 1099.00 Now: 899.99 Ships from Amazon. Specifications Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) Display: 16-inch HD LED-backlit Widescreen (1366 x 768) CPU: Intel Core i7-720QM processor (1.60GHz Turbo-Boost to 2.8GHz Quad-Core) Graphics: ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5730 1GB DDR3 VRAM Wireless Data Network: 802.11 b/g/n (@ 2.4GHz) , Bluetooth v2.1+EDR LAN: 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet Memory: 4GB DDR3 (up to 8GB) Storage: 320GB 7,200RPM hard drive Optical Disc Drive: Super Multi DVD drive Camera: 2.0 Megapixel Speakers: Altec Lansing speakers with SRS premium sound Microphone: Digital Array Microphone Card Reader: : 1x 8-in-1 card reader (MMC/SD/Mini-SD/XD/Memory Stick/MS Pro/MS Duo/MS-Pro-Duo) Input/Output: 1x Headphone-out jack (SPDF support), 1x Microphone-in jack, 1x Express Card 34, 1x RJ45 LAN Jack for LAN insert, 1x USB 3.0 port, 2x USB 2.0 ports, 1x E-SATA Battery Pack: 6-Cell Dimensions: 14.98 x 10.33 x 1.08 (W x D x H) Weight: 6.38 lbs Color: Brown
I've been in IT a long time. People tend to ask me to look at their personal laptops. 80% of the completely dead laptops I see are HP/Compaq (same thing). Lenovo- thinkbooks started thinking as soon as Lenovo bought the brand from IBM. Unlike a lot of geeks, I don't have bias or personal vendetta against a certain brand or OS. They're all tools to me, and whatever works best, works best and I will accept that. Granted, I don't support HP's business line. But then again, the OP isn't going to drop $2k on a laptop from HP. Most consumers aren't even aware of manufacturer's business lines. We''re talking about consumer lines. Honestly, I think Dell has the best consumer bang-for-the-buck as far as reliability.
32bit OS....and 64bit OS. Different versions, retail comes with BOTH versions. Just about everything comes with 64bit these days.
