Question:
3d studio/photoshop notebook
General Questions
1) What is your budget?
Looking for something used ~$700
2) What size notebook would you prefer?
c. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen
3) What tasks will you be performing with the notebook?
3d studio, photoshop, basic WP
4) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places or leaving it on your desk?
70% on the desk
5) Will you be playing games on it; if so, which games?
not likely
6) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
Just need something reliable as Im gearing towards used.
7) How many hours of battery life do you need?
2.5-3
8) Do you mind buying online without seeing the notebook in person?
no
9) What country are you buying this in?
USA
Screen Specifics
10) From the choices below, what screen resolutions would you prefer?
You tell me. Which GPU I should get for rendering is where Im lost. Will integrated work for rendering?
11) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non-glossy screen?
doesnt matter
Build Quality and Design
12) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
not really
13) How long do you want this laptop to last?
3yrs
Notebook Components
14) How much hard drive space do you want; 40GB to 120GB?
40gb is fine
15) Do you need a DVD, DVD-CD/RW or DVD-R drive?
cd/rw
My desktop is a P4 3.4ht, 1gb ram and 128mb video. The laptop doesnt need to be this quick, especially since I probably couldnt afford it, but someting around 75% as fast would be nice.
Im thinking I'll neeed at least a intel m740 for decent performance. Im open to AMD as well.
Thanks
Answer:
Re: 3d studio/photoshop notebook
I'd take a look at the HP dv5000z. It might run you over your budget on HP's site, but you might try going through your local Office Depot and see if that get's you anywhere. Reguarding the GPU: You should only need an X200M at most (which comes with the dv5000z) unless you're doing intense work with photoshop. I recommend the 5400 RPM drive for best performance.
Answer:
Re: 3d studio/photoshop notebook
for $700.00 it's difficult to find a good rendering notebook for 3D.
for used one, try to look for am IBM thinkpad t40p on ebay. It has the first generation centrino and a workstation fireGL graphics. but it is quite outdated.
you can get away with light 3Drendering with an 200m as mentioned above and it a newer model and will last longer in terms of current tech.
Answer:
Re: 3d studio/photoshop notebook
Thanks for the replies Guys. Loks like I mave have run across a decent deal on a used laptop that should work for me for the time being. I knew it would be hard to find something that had a fast CPU for rendering like my desktop in my price range but hopefully this one wont be too bad (Intel Pentium M processor 745). I just wanst sure on how well notebook GPU's worked with rendering.
Thanks again.