Question:
Need some advice for a new laotop
General Questions
1) What is your budget?
700-800 GBP (around 1400-1600 USD)
2) What size notebook would you prefer?
15" wide screen
I have used 14" normal screen for about 4 years. I have seen many of my friend use wide screen ones. I wanna try something new this time:) but I don't like the 14" wide ones.
3) Please select your country's flag as a post icon and tell us what country are you buying this in.
UK
4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
well. I prefer asus (for gaming use)or Lenovo (for the service)
5) What tasks will you be performing with the notebook?
Watch movies, gaming (Counter Strikes, FIFA and WoW) and some Matlab simulation work
6) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places or leaving it on your desk?
I will be taking the notebook to different places.
7) Will you be playing games on it; if so, which games?
Counter Strikes, FIFA and WoW
8) How many hours of battery life do you need?
At least 2 hours.
9) Do you mind buying online without seeing the notebook in person?
Not a problem.
10) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
Win XP will be better. but Vista will be acceptable too.
Screen Specifics
11) Would you prefer standard or widescreen?
Widescreen
12) From the choices below, what screen resolutions would you prefer?
Standard
a. XGA -1024x768 - Large and easy to read text + graphics icons, but you fit less stuff on the screen.
b. SXGA - 1400x1050 - Compromise resolution between XGA and UXGA.
c. UXGA - 1600x1200 - Very small text and graphics icons, you can fit lots of stuff on the screen.
Widescreen
d. WXGA or WXGA+ - 1280x768/800 or 1440x900; Wider viewing version of XGA, good for movie viewing or spreadsheets.
e. WSXGA+ - 1680x1050; Wider viewing version of SXGA, good for movie viewing or spreadsheets.
f. WUXGA - 1920x1200; Wider viewing version of UXGA, good for movie viewing or spreadsheets.
D
13) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non-glossy screen?
Well, I have no idea what that these skills do. All I care is the the quality.
14) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
no, I only care the configration and quality.
15) When are you buying this laptop and how long do you want this laptop to last?
2-3 years.
Notebook Components
16) How much hard drive space do you want; 40GB to 200GB?
80g or more
17) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a DVD-ROM, DVD-CD/RW or DVD-RW drive?
I can burn DVD in the PC in my office so there no need for an expensive drive.
18) Other accessories or specifics:
* Firewire port (1xIEEE1394).
* No vent on the right side of the laptop.
* Atleast 4 USB ports.
* Quiet
Only need a 802.11B/G wifi and that is all I need.
Well, this is a huge pain for me to buy a new laptop in UK. I am not a rich guy, my budget is just 700-800 GBP. After reading some review posts in the forum. I think Asus F3SV fits me best, also maybe the new Lenovo T61P if it comes with a powerful video card.
I find all laptops' price in US website are much more cheaper in US than in UK. Like F3SV in newegg only 1599 USD which I can afford, but in UK the cheapeast one is still 981 GBP,which is over my budget a lot :(
So I am still thinking about if I should ask my friend in US buy it for me and mail it to UK or I have to buy a cheaper one. Anyone can give me any suggestion or knows some retailers who sell laptop with a reasonable price. Cheers
Answer:
Re: Need some advice for a new laotop
First, regarding import from the US. You would need to send the computer with a courier and have insurance cover. You may well find this could add up to £100 to the cost. Also, the package contents and value would need to be declared and you are liable to get hit for VAT at 17.5%. However, even with those costs it can sometimes be worthwhile importing.
There is a very big choice of 15.4" models in your price range. The deciding factor is probably the graphics processing requirement for your games. If the new Nvidia 8400 GPU is capable of playing your games then there are several models, such as the , within your budget. I would expect that any current CPU can do your Matlab simulations with acceptable speed.
John
Answer:
Re: Need some advice for a new laotop
There are only 2 Asus santa rosa laptops available in the UK. The only one within your budget in the Z99SC with the go8400G. This should be acceptable for low end gaming and wil happily play the games you listed.
Check it out here.
A 15" model is available from the same website but a bit more expensive. However the 14" of the Z99SC is at a higher than normal resolution for consumer laptops at 1440x900. So you will have plenty of screen space. Also, comparing the Asus to the Samsung R70 apart from the higher res screen the Asus also has has 40GB more HD sapce, comes with a 2 year warranty instead of 1 year that comes with the Samsung, the card reader on the Asus is an 8-in-1 whereas the Samsung is 6-in-1, the wireless card on the Asus supports the new N format whereas the Samsung only supports up to G.
If you really detest a 14" widescreen (?) then the R70 is the only laptop I know of in the market that has a core duo + go8400.
An alternative i have just thought of since the budget is tight is that you could get this. It had a core 2 duo, 15.4" screen, 2GB RAM and the x1700. Although the x1700 is not DX10 capable I doubt the go8400G is powerful enough to be able to have all the eye candy on in games to enjoy it. The x1700 is more powerful than the 8400G (more comparable to the go7400) and so you get more bang for you buck this way as its only £692.