Please Help - looking for a fast Business Laptop

Mr Sustainable

Mr Sustainable

Mr Sustainable

Associate
Joined
16 Jun 2007
Posts
68
Location
Droitwich, UK
Dear All,

I was wondering if you can help, I have been looking around and reading this forum but I can't find what I am looking for, which is:

14 to 15 inch screen with resolution of around 1600*900 or maybe better.

i7 processor preferable, though i5 I'm sure would be fine, with integrated graphics

Plenty of Ram, maybe 6Gb to 8Gb

Solid State Hard Drive - At least 256Gb

Graphics - not so much concerned about dedicated/ switchable, but if the choice is limited in getting the above spec and it comes with it, then I will happily have it as a bonus.

Weight - not too concerned as most laptops have come down to reasonable levels.

Price - Don't mind paying for quality, though not willing to pay the new Sony Z series prices (Sony VAIO Z Series VPC-Z21V9E - Core i7 2620M 8 GB - HDD 256 GB SSD - W7 Pro 64-bit - 13.1" - £2,354.85)


As I said, I have been looking around, but there is always something that stops me hitting the 'buy' button e.g. found a Dell model with 256Gb SSD, but the screen resolution was poor.

Hope you can help and thank you in advance for any help!

Neil
 
Joshct said:
Thought of buying the ssd separately and putting it in yourself?
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply!

I actually have a older Z series sony laptop, which I am looking to do that with, before I pass it onto a colleague - the 4,200rpm :) hard drive just ain't cutting it any longer.

In terms of doing it with a new laptop, I'm sure there must be issues regarding voiding the warranty as well as it being more cost effective with buying it in from the start.
 
Did you find anything? Was that lowrez Dell a 13z? Its the 15z that hits your spec really:-
£1196 - Dell XPS 15z
Intel Core i7 2640M 2.8GHz
15.6in FHD WLED(1920x1080)
8GB
256GB SSD
DVD Writer
2GB Nvidia Geforce GT 525M
 
I would suggest checking the Dell Outlet (they seem to update it at around 14:00 each day). I picked up a Latitude E6520 with an i5-2540m, 4GB RAM, 128GB SSD, 9 cell battery and a 1920x1080 display for £660 incl VAT & delivery yesterday. I saw one with a quad core i7 on there with the same display for about £1050. It will work out much, much cheaper to add your own 256GB SSD than get a laptop configured with one, and it will not invalidate the warranty. You could always swap the mechanical drive back in before arranging a service call, if you really are that worried about it). Latitude systems from the outlet come with 3 years basic warranty as standard, but you can upgrade this to a 3 year next business day onsite warranty should you wish to.
 
DELL latitude E6420 gets my vote. I have the E6520 but it's a big bugger at 15.6" so the smaller E6420 sounds more suited to you.
 
Apologies for not getting back to this post earlier and thank you for all the comments.

I have moved towards a online company that builds laptops to your spec - don't think I can mention their names as they are now a competitor to Overclockers on that front.

The spec I am considering is as follows:
Chassis & Display
Vortex Series: 15.6" Matte 95% Gamut LED Widescreen (1920x1080) (£79)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-3610QM (2.30GHz) 6MB
Memory (RAM)
8GB SAMSUNG 1333MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
nVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 670M - 1.5GB DDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 11
Memory - Hard Disk
240GB KINGSTON HYPERX 3K SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 555MB/sR | 510MB/sW)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x SATA DVD±R/RW/Dual Layer (+ 24x CD-RW)
Memory Card Reader
Internal 9 in 1 Card Reader (MMC/RSMMC/SD: Mini, XC & HC/MS: Pro & Duo)
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND (£9)
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® ADVANCED-N 6230 (300Mbps) + BLUETOOTH
USB Options
3 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT AS STANDARD
Firewire & Video Editing
1 X 1394a FIREWIRE PORT

However I am currently trying to find out what the implication are if I just stick with the IB HD4000 graphics, in terms of connectivity and cost (no dedicated graphics saving).

What do you think?

lowrez, Saundie & Disco Boy - I looked and looked at Dell but could find the spec you both found. Will definitely have another look before hitting any buy button. Thanks for the find!
 
List for that 15z is actually 10% on top, you need to locate a voucher code to use at the check-out, can't point you directly to anything from here, let me know if google doesn't produce the goods. Saundie's options are Outlet related and have probably been snapped up by now, its a very popular place to pick up scratch and dent and refurbished and returned items, all still with a full year of warranty etc, I've taken several machines from there and I can't tell the difference from new. Again, you'll have to google it to get on the site, then steer to the options of your choice, if you are lucky, and fast on the draw then you can bag a real bargain.

HD4000 is very new, probably 30% improved over HD3000, you aren't into gaming though are you? If gaming is not a consideration then it will be a breeze for it to deliver web browsing, play movies, display business apps screens etc. It will reportedly do OK on low settings for games too but not a heap of stats around yet.

Machine above looks a nice spec!
 
Last edited:
lowrez is right, you can get some fantastic bargains on the Dell outlet - to get the system I ordered brand new via the main Dell site would cost you £1250. The refurbished Latitude and Precision laptops all come with 3 years warranty. You do have to be quick though; I had the site open at 13:30 and refreshed the page every few minutes, then pounced as soon as I saw the system appear.

I just had a look at the price for the system you listed; you certainly do get a lot of laptop for your money with that competitor. The fact that you get three years warranty is certainly a very encouraging sign. It'll be some time before Dell and the other major manufacturers start putting Ivy Bridge processors in their business systems, so if you have your heart set on one then you should probably go with the system you listed. My only reservation would be build quality - I don't know anything about the company that's selling that system, but I know from experience that Dell Latitudes are always well built. I am sure some time spent searching discussion forums for opinions on that brand will put that fear to rest for you, however.

As for your question regarding graphics, it depends on whether you need the discrete graphics card for gaming or other graphics acceleration. If you want to do CAD or use things like Photoshop (that utilise CUDA). Personally I have no need for it so I went with a system without discrete graphics (it also means less heat output, which is a bonus).
 
Hi Lowrez & Saundie,

Thanks again for the help, your not wrong in having to be quick with the Dell Outlet.

I have to admit though, I am somewhat with the Ivy Bridge system that I have configured. I did buy a laptop from another online company that used the same chassis company that the company I mentioned also use and it seem to last the test of time mostly (and I sure it must have improved since then).

I do like gaming and will probably have Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion on it, which on low to medium detail I am hoping that the HD4000 should be fine.

I do like the idea of not having discrete graphics in order to make the most out of the battery and as I don't do any rel photoshop or CAD then I am hoping I should be fine.

Looking forward to seeing how it plays with with Galaxy S3 when I have both :cool:

Thanks again!
 
So, did you go for the specification you listed earlier? As I said before, you certainly do get a lot for your money with that system.
 
Saundie said:
So, did you go for the specification you listed earlier? As I said before, you certainly do get a lot for your money with that system.
Click to expand...

Just waiting to hear back about a couple of queries I have. If I do save on the discrete graphics, might put a bit more towards a more powerful processor. I put the World Community Grid on all my personal and work computers, so I like the idea of pushing the model results out even faster.

I will post the final spec when I hit the buy button.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom