£700 Laptop?

kbc · 7 Apr 2007 at 10:32

furnace said:
That looks ok, but I'd try and find something better than the X1400.

Would an X1400 run Vista fine though? An X1600 or a GeForce 7600 would be nice but that'll increase the price of the laptop quite considerably. I understand that you can't upgrade the graphics on a laptop.

Also... is it worth going for the faster CPU and opting for 1GB of RAM to begin with as RAM is always "easier" to upgrade on a laptop where as a CPU isn't?

furnace · 7 Apr 2007 at 10:43

Ninja edit!

No you can't upgrade laptop graphics. Somtimes, if your VERY lucky, you might be able to... but 9 times out of 10, you're stuck with the graphics in the laptop.

Upgrading a CPU is difficult too;
- will the laptop need better cooling?
- does the motherboard support the new CPU?
- will the laptop need a new power supply for the CPU?

I'd definately get less ram an more CPU power if it doesn't affect the price much. RAM is cheap and easy to upgrade (OcUK: start stocking laptop ram, damn you!).

But my best advice; make sure you've posted in a few laptop-specific forums. They spend a lot more time looking at laptops than most of us do

kbc · 7 Apr 2007 at 10:54

furnace said:
Ninja edit!

No you can't upgrade laptop graphics. Somtimes, if your VERY lucky, you might be able to... but 9 times out of 10, you're stuck with the graphics in the laptop.

Upgrading a CPU is difficult too;
- will the laptop need better cooling?
- does the motherboard support the new CPU?
- will the laptop need a new power supply for the CPU?

I'd definately get less ram an more CPU power if it doesn't affect the price much. RAM is cheap and easy to upgrade (OcUK: start stocking laptop ram, damn you!).

But my best advice; make sure you've posted in a few laptop-specific forums. They spend a lot more time looking at laptops than most of us do

Thanks for the advice. Are there any "laptop-specific" forums worth recommending?

The Inspiron mentioned above appeals to me, as it has the faster T7200 with the 4mb cache compared to the T5600... also it comes with 2GB RAM but with weaker graphics - although I don't intend to play many games on it.

The alternative were the Zepto models that come with the GeForce 7600 graphics. According to here - the 7600 scores much better than the X1400. But I'd have to sacrifice another aspect of the laptop to get the Zepto. I've still not made up my mind which route to take...

furnace · 7 Apr 2007 at 11:04

I used the "What Laptop" and "Notebook Review" forums. I think it's OK to talk about other forums here..? Sorry if it's not :confused:

OspreyO · 7 Apr 2007 at 11:19

I had a 9400/7900GS for a while and for a desktop replacement its great value. Yes its big, but unless you carry it around everyday what different does it make. Its still portable enough to carry here and there to LANs etc. I wish I hadn't sold mine.

mightynimrod · 7 Apr 2007 at 12:31

OspreyO said:
I had a 9400/7900GS for a while and for a desktop replacement its great value. Yes its big, but unless you carry it around everyday what different does it make. Its still portable enough to carry here and there to LANs etc. I wish I hadn't sold mine.

That's what im on now, it's a superb desktop replacement imho

I love the power of it with being able to carry it from room to room.

Battery power is decent too

kbc · 7 Apr 2007 at 17:29

Is it worth getting an X1400 over the integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950 for running Vista? :confused:

BoomAM · 7 Apr 2007 at 18:45

kbc said:
Is it worth getting an X1400 over the integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950 for running Vista?

The Intel GMA 950 will run the Aero interface, but tbh, i'd still get the AMD X1400 over the Intel stuff any day of the week.

mightynimrod · 7 Apr 2007 at 18:48

Dedicated gfx will be better than integrated gfx every day of the week.

kbc · 7 Apr 2007 at 20:47

With the Inspiron 6400 - is it worth going for the 1440x900 display over the 1280x800?

Energize · 7 Apr 2007 at 20:54

That depends wether or not you need the resolution.

kbc · 7 Apr 2007 at 21:20

Energize said:
That depends wether or not you need the resolution.

Hmm.... that's the thing. I'm used to my 20" 1680x1050 resolution at home. But if I do go for the 1440x900 resolution. It'll have to be this spec:

Dell Inspiron 6400
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T5600
15.4" UltraSharp Wide Screen WXGA+ (1440x900)
1024MB 533MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM (2x512)
80GB (5,400rpm) Hard Drive
256MB ATI® Mobility™ Radeon® X1400 HyperMemory
6 Cell Battery

£740 inc VAT+Shipping

Dell Inspiron 6400
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T7200
15.4" Wide Screen WXGA (1280 x 800) Display with TrueLife
2048MB 533MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM
120GB (5,400rpm) Hard Drive
256MB ATI® Mobility™ Radeon® X1400 HyperMemory
9 Cell Battery

£745 inc VAT+Shipping

What's the better deal? I fear I'm being very indecisive here.

I've read on several "Notebook" forums that a faster 7200RPM hard drive really does make a difference with laptops in terms of performance?

Energize · 7 Apr 2007 at 21:33

Personsally I would go with the 2nd spec, better performance and battery life, 7,200rpm drives are faster, they use more power though.

kbc · 7 Apr 2007 at 22:01

Energize said:
Personsally I would go with the 2nd spec, better performance and battery life, 7,200rpm drives are faster, they use more power though.

I think you just about made my decision Energize after 33 replies. :eek:

Energize · 7 Apr 2007 at 22:16

My laptop is the same screen size and resolution and I think 1200x800 is the perfect size for things like spreadsheets and games, high enough to display the information a spreadsheet has at a nice size but low enough so that the gpu has enough power to render games at that resolution.

Bald-Eagle22 · 7 Apr 2007 at 22:18

Im thiking of Buying a lappy as well , will any of the above Lappies play BF2 ?

Energize · 7 Apr 2007 at 22:21

Bald-Eagle22 said:
Im thiking of Buying a lappy as well , will any of the above Lappies play BF2 ?

Yes, the 7600 gpu is the lowest I would reccomend for bf2.

kbc · 7 Apr 2007 at 22:29

Bald-Eagle22 said:
Im thiking of Buying a lappy as well , will any of the above Lappies play BF2 ?

Definitely not as well as your spec in your sig.

Will an X1400 be ok for Counter Strike Source with the 2nd spec I mentioned?

Energize · 7 Apr 2007 at 22:35

Will definatley play it ok on low settings, remember that it will use 256mb of your ram though, because it's the "hyper memory" version.

kbc · 7 Apr 2007 at 22:44

Energize said:
Will definatley play it ok on low settings, remember that it will use 256mb of your ram though, because it's the "hyper memory" version.

Should be fine with the 2GB setup then....

Have I made the right choice in going for the above spec over the one below:

Dell Inspiron 9400 (E1705)
Core2Duo T5500 (1.66GHz)
17" UltraSharp Wide Screen WUXGA (1920x1200)
2GB DDR RAM
80GB 5,400RPM Hard Drive
ATI X1400 Mobility Radeon
6 Cell Battery
£665 inc VAT+Shipping