Choosing a laptop!!!

C

carrolf2

Geek Trainee
Can someone please advise me on which of the following two laptops I should buy and why?

1)
Pentium 4 - 2.8GHz with Hyper-Threading (desktop processor - NOT mobile P4)
512 333MHz DDR RAM
64Mb ATI Graphics
60GB HD
15" SXGA TFT Screen
XP Pro

2)
Pentuim M 1.6GHz Centrino
512 333MHz DDR RAM
64Mb ATI Graphics
60GB HD
15.4" Wide-Aspect SXGA TFT Screen
XP Pro

My uses will mostly be at my desk with little use on the road. Will generally be plugged in to the mains. Is Pentium-M (Centrino) worth it for a desktop replacement?
Is it true that Pentium-M processes instruction on both the rising and falling edge of the clock thus effectively doubling its speed of intructions per second? SO a 1.6GHz P-M would be equivilant to a 3.2GHz P4???

Thanks
 
Alienware - Any Good?

I am trying to decide whether to buy an Alienware laptop and am having doubts over whether or not they are any good. The model I want is the Alienware Area-51m Sentia with a 1.6GHz Pentium-M Centrino processor. Here are the specs:

Pentium-M 1.6GHz 1Mb Cache 400MHz FSB
512MB DDR PC-2100 - Two SO-DIMMs
60GB 7200 RPM ATA100 with 8MB Cache - Hitachi
14.1"SXGA+ 1400x1050 LCD Display
Intel® Extreme Graphics 2 technology


I am not sure about the 'Graphics 2 Technology' or whether anyone has had good or bad experiences with Alienware (USA or UK)?

Is this above spec worth buying or should I look elsewhere? The price is GB£1,210 = US$2,261
 
I know DDR works on the rising and falling of the edge of the clock, but I've never heard of that applying to the CPU.

If you plan to do mostly office work, I'd stick with the Centrino. The P4 is going to suck alot more juice down than it's mobile version. Even though you're planning to keep it plugged in most of the time, it's a full desktop chip running in a laptop.
 
Why should I?

Could someone please convince me why I should buy a Centrino laptop over a 2.8GHz or 3.0GHz P4 laptop when most of the time my laptop will be on my desk?
I cant decide what to get?
 
carrolf2 said:
Could someone please convince me why I should buy a Centrino laptop over a 2.8GHz or 3.0GHz P4 laptop when most of the time my laptop will be on my desk?
Click to expand...
No, I can't convince you. But, then again I'm not making any sales commision, either. ;) Yeah, "Centrino Mobile Technology" is really just a gimmick anyway. Even if you did a lot of wireless networking, personally I'd rather go for a standard chipset (non-Centrino) laptop and just add the necessary wireless card(s) via PCMCIA.

As far as the laptop VS desktop debate, there really is no comparison of price and performance. If, for example, you take two machines -- one desktop, one laptop -- of equally clocked CPUs (ie 3GHz each) and compare the actual performance, the desktop will win hands down on any test or benchmark. Not to mention stability; laptops are made for size, not stability or performance. The average lifespan of a laptop is about 1/3-1/4 of the avg. life of a desktop. That being said, if you absolutely need a laptop, your hands are tied and you must pay the extra $500-$2,000 cost a laptop will incur, and put up with the instability and poor performance. Otherwise, steer clear :) If you do spring for a laptop, my best advice to you is to get a 3-year warranty with it.
 
I didn't even think about the voltage issue of the P4-M processor (good call B :)). My limited faculties were considering the performance difference between the multithreaded P4 and the Centrino, which also has integrated wireless in the chipset and costs more. Battery life never even crossed my mind. While the P4-M is lower voltage than its desktop equivilent, the Centrino uses much less still, which makes things easier on your LIon.

Forgive me for trolling this point, but this is coming from somebody who's fixed many laptops. (More often than not, they had to be RMA'd). Laptops are made for convenience, not cost, speed or durability. If there's any way you can work around getting a laptop (ie get a desktop + PDA for mobile use), I suggest you take that recourse. Not only will you have a faster, more stable PC at your desk, you'll end up spending less overall. OK, there's my 2 cents, flame away! :jump2:
 
I used to work alongside Alienware a few years back; they were the primary sponsor for a news site I worked for. They make very high-end stuff and spare no expenses on cooling. Still, I think you can get similar laptop hardware for a lot less. I like Toshiba laptops for longevity/reliablity. However, you should know that some other IT guys I've spoken to recently say that Toshiba has moved their tech support overseas, and it's difficult to get proper support these days.

My personal bias is that laptops can be a necessary evil. They generally cost more, are less stable and have inferior performance to desktop PCs. My free advice to you is to buy a desktop PC and a PDA instead of a laptop, if you can. You'll get more and still spend less. :)
 
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