Another Laptop thread

[Martin.T]

Hi guys,

I am currently shopping for a new laptop and I would like some advices. First, here are the answers to the important questions asked by MRoss in the other Laptop thread:

1) What screen size is optimal for you: The bigger the better but my priority is weight so I guess 13.3 inch would be a good compromise

2) Do you care about weight? A lot, I absolutely want something really light (under 4pounds)

3) How important is battery life for you? Medium (6-8 hours would be good)

4) What are the three main purposes you will be using this laptop for? School (Word, Excel, numerical method in Matlab, Monte-Carlo simulation in C, RATS, C++, etc...), watching shows and movies (I will probably connect my laptop to a HDTV or an HD Monitor so an HDMI port would be usefull), web surfing.

5)How much do you want to spend and whats the highest you will go? Would like to spend 1k after tax. Max 1500$ with tax.

6)Do you want a convertible tablet laptop? No

7)Any other specific features I missed Reliability is important. I would like to keep this laptop for more than 3 years

My main priority is weight. My current laptop weight 6 pounds and I find it too heavy to bring to school with my other books.

So far, I am debating between these 2 model:

Toshiba R830 with i5-2410m processor at 1200$ http://www.toshiba.ca/web/product.grp?lg=en&section=1&group=1&product=11230&part=11852#spectop

Pros: lightest, 3 year basic warranty, fastest HDD, matte screen

Cons: most expensive

Sony S-Series with i5-2410m at 1000$ http://www.sonystyle.ca/webapp/wcs/...&productId=8198552921666351686#specifications

Pros: cheaper

Cons: need to pay 50$ more for Windows 7 pro, 1 yr warranty, from online reviews: build quality is less than the toshiba

I am also wondering if an i7 processor would be better for Matlab, Monte-Carlo simulations, RATS, etc... or i5 will do the job without a problem.

I did also consider the Lenovo thinkpad x220 and the Acer timelineX series but with the similar configuration as Toshiba, the Lenovo was more expensive and only had a 1 yr warranty and no HDMI port while the Acer build quality and durability is not the best from what I've seen.

What is your opinion on this? I am also open to suggestion.

Thank you,

Martin

 

[MRoss]

Hi again . If your willing to go to $1,500 this is a MUCH better laptop than the Toshiba...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Sony-Vaio-Z-Cor...02976513?pt=Laptops_Nov05&hash=item3368e20b01

MUCH better.

I have a very similar model now. It's blazing fast, weighs only 3 pounds, and has ever possible feature on the market.

 

[Martin.T]

Hi again . If your willing to go to $1,500 this is a MUCH better laptop than the Toshiba...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Sony-Vaio-Z-Cor...02976513?pt=Laptops_Nov05&hash=item3368e20b01

MUCH better.

I have a very similar model now. It's blazing fast, weighs only 3 pounds, and has ever possible feature on the market.

Hi,

I know that the Sony Z is much better but after shipping, duty, and tax, this laptop will be close to 2k.

As mentioned before, I would prefer staying close to 1k.

 

[pandyajwalin]

how about dell laptops?

 

[Martin.T]

how about dell laptops?

Which model do you have in mind? From what I remember, they were either too big or not powerful enought (for the light one).

 

[pandyajwalin]

Dell Inspiron 17R 2nd gen or Dell XPS 15. Will customize if required.

 

[Andy Nguyen]

I find the 14.1" of my T60 perfect for all kind of tasks. They don't make that 4:3 configuration anymore.
If you want to play back some HD clips, the GPU is important.
Get the min RAM and upgrade later.
I don't have good experience with Dell, HP, Toshiba laptops so my next one would likely be another Thinkpad T series.

 

[pandyajwalin]

So is there any laptop tailor made for an MFE program or its more about the software you install?

 

[Andy Nguyen]

MFE program isn't some special niche where you need custom machine. Any computer would do.
You would spend everyday hacking away at it so durability is #1 priority. You don't want your HD to die the day before your coding final exam.

 

[The_Moroccan.]

I have ThinkPad lenovo W510 and it's beautiful and very good. It's a little heavier than what you re looking for but it's a little exercise.
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=5573&review=lenovo+thinkpad+w510

 

[Martin.T]

What about the Dell vostro V130. It is on special these day for 850$ and have comparable specs to the Toshiba. However, the main difference is the processor used in Dell is the first gen i5 compared to the second gen i5 for Toshiba.
http://www.dell.com/ca/business/p/vostro-v130/pd?oc=nb_v130w_f3_e&model_id=vostro-v130

 

[MRoss]

Unless you are using a laptop exclusively for web-surfing and word-processing DO NOT purchase a laptop with a ULV processor like the Dell Vostro. It will run painfully slow. Besides, at this point in time you should look to buy a laptop with a Sandy Bridges processor as they are getting consistently excellent review/ratings.

 

[Prashant.Kumar]

My vote has to go to the Vaio S that you were looking at.
Just to put the stats here for all to see
Link
- Dual Core Intel® Core™ i5-2410M (2.3GHz, Turbo's to 2.9Ghz, is Sandy Bridge)
- 4GB (upgradable to 8GB)
- 500 GB HDD
- AMD Radeon™ HD 6470M with Intel Graphics (512MB dedicated)
- Weight (Approx.): 3.8 lbs. (with Standard Capacity Battery)
- N-wireless + Gigabit ethernet + Bluetooth 2.1
- HDMI output, SD slot, USB 3.0 (1 port)
- Battery life up to 7.5 hours
- $999

Key features I like here are the long battery life, light weight, and the discrete graphics card (which ought to be Radeon or Geforce IMO).
I think the i5 should be sufficient to run small simulations.

 

[Martin.T]

Unless you are using a laptop exclusively for web-surfing and word-processing DO NOT purchase a laptop with a ULV processor like the Dell Vostro. It will run painfully slow. Besides, at this point in time you should look to buy a laptop with a Sandy Bridges processor as they are getting consistently excellent review/ratings.

Thanks for the input