Notebook/laptop/tablet Pc Buying Guide *updated 2011*

[Guest vannushka]

He's looking for a good quality one so I guess on the high end. He wants quality so the price isn't such a big factor. He likes playing games but he does't know much about computers since he's quite young. My brother kinda wants it around this year..at the moment he's using my laptop while looking at laptops but we are having trouble finding a suitable one.

[Godotology]

He's looking for a good quality one so I guess on the high end. He wants quality so the price isn't such a big factor. He likes playing games but he does't know much about computers since he's quite young. My brother kinda wants it around this year..at the moment he's using my laptop while looking at laptops but we are having trouble finding a suitable one.

it ultimately depends on how powerful he wants the vid card to be and the size of laptop he wants.

Since you're in Australia, I'm not too sure what kind of deals and brands are available.. but to help narrow it down..

No on: HP, Compaq, Gateway, Averatec, BenQ, IBM/Lenovo, LG and Sony. These companies usually aim towards the average user and generally do not produce "gaming" laptops. Most of them tend to use lower end video cards (such as the Nvidia Go 7400 in most Sony's) which are nice for today's games (but will not play them at high resolution).. and might not be enough power for those interested in tommorrow's games. The exception is the Sony BX series and HP DV which use the x700 card (a nice midrange card). However the BX is pretty pricey.

for the cards, you want something thats for ATI, uses at least an x700 and up (x700, x800, x1600, x1800, etc) and for Nvidia, at least a Go 6600 and up (Go 6600, 6700, 7600, 7800, etc). These cards won't be found on anything lower than 14".

as for models..

14: Asus W3J: Probably the most powerful 14" that is coming out in the next 2-3 months.. uses an ATi x1600 with 256mb dedicated. The Toshiba Tecra M3 is 14" and has a Go 6600, but I've heard some issues regarding heat and build quality.

15.4: You should have alot of options here.. MSI 1039, MSI 1029, and MSI 1032 have good mid range graphics cards and MSI is pretty affordable. the Asus M6va with the x700 was considered one of the best when it came out late last year as it had a nice mid range card, build quality, screen, and price. If it's too expensive, then the Asus Z71v is cheaper and uses the Nvidia Go 6600 (however I'm not sure what the name of this model is called in Australia as they use a different naming system than America). In the near future, Asus will have alot more options such as the V1J, A8Ja, etc. If you like standard ratio (over widescreen).. the Asus V6va is perfect.. it's pricey but if you can afford it, I highly reccomend this model. Samsumg has a 15.4" with an x1600, but I don't know the name unfortunately.. just look at their site.

17: This is where you'll find laptops with the best graphics card on a notebook. The only two brands that make good high performing laptops in this size range is Dell and Clevo. The Dell Inspiron 9400/E1705 (might be called something else in Australia) is a good value provided you can get a coupon (again, not sure if those are available in AUS).. as they can be configured with an Nvidia Go 6800 or 7800.

Clevo on the other hand, is well known for gaming notebooks.. companies like Alienware and VooDooPC basically just use Clevo and re name them. But because lots of companies like using Clevo laptops and Clevo rarely sells directly to customers.. you might have a hard time finding one simply because there's a bunch of small/unknown brands out there who basically use Clevo. However if you manage to find one, they make very powerful 15.4", 17", and even a 19" models. the 15.4" is called the M560.. it has an x700 like the models above..but has 256mb dedicated instead of 128. the 17" is the M570.. which can be configured with the Nvidia Go 7800.. and the 19" is the M590K. However Clevo tends to be heavy. You should google them so you can see how they look like and see what other brands are carrying something that looks like it (because chances are, it IS IT, but just renamed). If you're comfortable with mid range cards.. the Asus W2J is probably the lightest and best built, it looks like an Apple Powerbook, but black, and has feets and vents unlike Apple which vents out the heat through the keyboard.

[Guest megaSTEPxo]

Hi Range! Thanks for your previous feedback! So I guess Averatec will be out of my list..

What do you think about this one then?

Fujitsu LifeBook S7020A

$1518 CAD

XPP/CT-1.73G/512M/40G/Combo/14"

Those were the info given by a local computer store.

Other info about it I found on the official website:

DVD/CD-RW Combo, 802.11a/b/g wireless LAN

[Godotology]

Hi Range! Thanks for your previous feedback! So I guess Averatec will be out of my list..

What do you think about this one then?

Fujitsu LifeBook S7020A

$1518 CAD

XPP/CT-1.73G/512M/40G/Combo/14"

Those were the info given by a local computer store.

Other info about it I found on the official website:

DVD/CD-RW Combo, 802.11a/b/g wireless LAN

not bad. the S7020 is a pretty nicely built notebook.. thin and light. Keep in mind that it's going to be replaced by the S7110 in the very near future, which is the same notebook.. but incorporates the newest Intel Core Duo processor.

I heard some people have had problems with the wireless, minor light leakage and, atheros card (but the S7020A will not have atheros).

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=23525

[Guest krngurl]

Does anyone know what those black screens for the laptops are called? The ones you place over your laptop screen so that other people can't see what you are doing? I tried to find one on Ebay but I dont know what it is called and so, does anyone know where i can get one?

Thanks!

[Godotology]

Does anyone know what those black screens for the laptops are called? The ones you place over your laptop screen so that other people can't see what you are doing? I tried to find one on Ebay but I dont know what it is called and so, does anyone know where i can get one?

Thanks!

The 3M privacy filter sounds like what you're lookin for

http://www.thetravelinsider.info/2003/0131.htm

[Guest Incise Soul]

Hi, I'm planning on buying a laptop for college soon. I want to use it for school and entertainment such as watching movies. I also want to be able to store a lot of music files without having the computer lag. I'm looking for a reasonable price between $800-$1000. Can you give me some suggestion, Range?

[Guest Phoën¡x]

nice.. makes me wonder 10x before buying one.. a really good guide

[Godotology]

Hi, I'm planning on buying a laptop for college soon. I want to use it for school and entertainment such as watching movies. I also want to be able to store a lot of music files without having the computer lag. I'm looking for a reasonable price between $800-$1000. Can you give me some suggestion, Range?

when do you need it by and what size laptop do you prefer? at that price range, you won't get something that's the best quality, nor will you get something that would perform games very well. if it's just music file and stuff you download, then you probably would want a hard drive that's at least 5400rpm (7200rpm would be best but they do generate more heat, so its a trade off). And at least 512mb of ram, preferably 1 gig and no more.

[Guest jeffy]

hi,

i'm looking for an Averatec AV2150EH1 (or is it 2155) model in toronto, but i can't seem to find one.

anyone have any suggestions? thanks!

edit: or if you have any suggestions to another laptop brand that looks similar to the white 2150 model around the same price, feel free to tell me (for school purposes) but i want like at least a ATI Radeon Xpress200M card.

[Godotology]

hi,

i'm looking for an Averatec AV2150EH1 (or is it 2155) model in toronto, but i can't seem to find one.

anyone have any suggestions? thanks!

edit: or if you have any suggestions to another laptop brand that looks similar to the white 2150 model around the same price, feel free to tell me (for school purposes) but i want like at least a ATI Radeon Xpress200M card.

the AV2150EH1 is the same laptop as the MSI 1013, which is the manufacturer..basically Averatec just bought it and renamed it. Unfortunately I don't know too many resellers and stores in Canada.. i know www.rawpowerpc.com sells to Canada, although its an American reseller specializing on MSI. While MSI is a decent brand in itself, the battery life on the Turion isn't that great and I heard some people had wi-fi problems with it. What's your size limit? MSI has a nice 14" model called the MSI 1022 that's got a better vid card (Nvidia Go 6200..its still low end but better than xpress 200M). and in the near future, they will release a 12" model similar to the MSI 1013, but using the new AMD dual core.

you might want to consider if you intend to game period.. the x200m is better than integrated graphics from intel...but if you are serious on gaming.. the x200 still won't cut it.

[Guest jeffy]

no i'm just trying to look for a 12.1" - 13.3" (or 14") not that expensive laptop. only minor gaming.

[Guest H1PP0]

hmm u knoe how you said that america doesnt sell samsung laptops? i was just wondering...; im going to korea this summer and my aunt might buy me a laptop for college. is it better to get it in korea or just buy it here in the states? hmm i trust samsung so im guessing their laptops will be good too? are computers cheaper in korea? are laptops cheap during back to school sales?

thanks in advance.

[Godotology]

no i'm just trying to look for a 12.1" - 13.3" (or 14") not that expensive laptop. only minor gaming.

well given that size range and price range, minor gaming is what you'll get. Virtually no 12" model has a dedicated video card..but some (actually only the MSI 1012 and it's successor model the 1052?) has a good integrated card, while this one new samsung 12" has an Nvidia Go 7300. However Samsung does not sell in the US and in general, they are a higher end brand, thus will be expensive.

As for 13" models.. you are limited to the Sony Vaio S series, the Fujitsu S series, and the Asus W6 and W7 series (the former not in the US, and the latter to be released soon).

the Sony S series varies in model and cards.. but they generally use the best vid card you can get inside a 13" frame. the S3xx series has the ATi 9700, the S4xx has the Nvidia Go 6400, and the new SZ has the Nvidia Go 7400 and the Intel Core Duo. the first one might be found (but you'll have a hard time finding it since its kinda old) for cheap. the second one might be on sale now but you'll have to look hard.. the SZ is expensive.

the Fujitsu S2110 is a 13" standard ratio and has the same ATi xpress 200m too. It's a very well built machine, pretty light, and a good value..it should be slightly more expensive than the Averatec/MSI but it has much better battery life and is worth the extra cost.

14" has more selection.. theres a number with the xpress 200m (i.e the Compaq v2000) a number with low end cards (MSI 1022 with Nvidia Go 6200, Compal EFL 30 with Nvidia Go 6400, Asus W3V with x600), and nice mid end ones (Asus W3J with x1600).

However the ones with the higher end cards like the W3J will be around $1899 USD. the MSI 1022 is a good value and it'll be cheaper than the Averatec/MSI 1013. In this month or next, there is a new MSI 14" model using the same chassis but using the new Intel Core Duo processor and an ATi x300 card (which is still low end)..and should be cheap too.

those are your options pretty much.

hmm u knoe how you said that america doesnt sell samsung laptops? i was just wondering...; im going to korea this summer and my aunt might buy me a laptop for college. is it better to get it in korea or just buy it here in the states? hmm i trust samsung so im guessing their laptops will be good too? are computers cheaper in korea? are laptops cheap during back to school sales?

thanks in advance.

www.dynamism.com is an American importer that sells "unavailable" models like those from Samsung, or Sony Vaios that aren't sold in the US..but prepared to pay an arm and a leg. Samsung is a high end brand.. so they cost alot more in general.. not sure how much it'll be in Korea so I can't help you there. Samsung specializes in making thin and powerful laptops (powerful for their form factor)..so it'll be expensive. But they are good.

Laptops will always be cheaper by then because most models come around early spring..so by the time Fall arrives, the price will go down as new models are being prepared, and other models reaching EOL.

However I suggest you look at American alternatives first.

[Guest vc1188]

Oh my god. Thank you SO much for the detailed guide. I need to buy a laptop soon because I'm going off to college this fall. There's so much to consider; I'm so lucky to have a brother who's well-informed on these things. I'm just worried about battery life, since my brother said it'd be useful to bring my laptop with me to every class so I can take notes and such.

[Guest Xarthan]

Nice, Dell Latitude D620, 14" Widescreen with Magnesium Alloy Casing, and under 900 bucks. That looks like a good solid laptop

[Godotology]

Nice, Dell Latitude D620, 14" Widescreen with Magnesium Alloy Casing, and under 900 bucks. That looks like a good solid laptop

that one's real nice. I always preferred the latitude line over the inspirons. Good solid laptop and value for those who don't need gaming. For others interested, here's a pretty good review of it. I think what I like about it the most is that it has a trackpoint! I prefer that so much more than the touch pad

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=46900

[Guest Xarthan]

the only thing i don't like is the 9 cell battery extends too far out and there is a mono speaker on the unit.

[Guest cbxjenn]

do you think this laptop

http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/con...610&oc=ixm140s1

is okay for the price of $749 ? im just going to use it for surfing sites, homework, and some downloading :] i dont need anything super great..but as long as the battery lasts, then im fine.

[Godotology]

do you think this laptop

http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/con...610&oc=ixm140s1

is okay for the price of $749 ? im just going to use it for surfing sites, homework, and some downloading :] i dont need anything super great..but as long as the battery lasts, then im fine.

yes that's a pretty nice price for the M140, especially since it seems you're just using it for basic tasks. that particular model also seems to get good battery life too.. at least 4 hours.