# Buying A Laptop



## er.darshan (May 5, 2005)

Hi all techies
I am buying a Laptop. please help me in taking decision.I plan to use the laptop for work and games. Work: presentations, documents, Web designing the usual college stuff. Rest: movies, games [the high end kind i guess]. Also..i would like it to have some looks .My limit is 70k how is Dell  Inspiron 6000 & its after sales support, i heard that it is a big problem with Dell as it doesnt have any vendor & service centre here in India. Another model is Acer TravelMate 4002. how the Acer laptops are in build quality, after sale support & quality.
I would appreciate all the help here. 
Thanx in advance !!!!
Darshan


----------



## a_medico (May 6, 2005)

70k budget !!

umm... lets see...

If u get it from US, u might get Sony Vaio in that price (mayb around 75-80k) ..chk out compusa.com ..but u shud have some friends who are coming to india from US..

if not :-

Dell - nice finishing..great performance.
IBM- good in every aspect, only negative is looks
TOSHIBA- not much idea.

all three come close 2nd....

rest all brands are more or less same..

ps - heard very bad reports abt HP  and compaq

ps2 - no mater which brand, go for CENTRINO vonly...p4s are outdated now they say.


----------



## pradeep_chauhan (May 6, 2005)

Why dont you try ibm there quality is still good and the t42 series is realy good. If i had the money i would definetly go for one.


----------



## sumitava_b (May 6, 2005)

But the problem with IBM is that if u r looking for good connectivity, lot of space and a hi-end graphix card (as Darshan wants to play latest games) the price of a IBM model will soar high......IBM thonkpad (I forgot the exact model name, but it was full of features what is needed) will cost u around 1L or 1.25L......too high for Indian users...

Why not Acer? refer Digit April 05....Acer travelmate became the best buy...it's got plenty of features.


----------



## pradeep_chauhan (May 6, 2005)

obviously quality does not come cheap. Check out the build quality and the package nothing comes close to IBM stuff. Anyway the final choice is with the buyer.


----------



## rohanbee (May 6, 2005)

Planning for a laptop too..........but dell for me all the way. Used it from a long time no problems with service. Now intend to get one from the us, much cheaper and for the same amount can get loads of other things. 
Unfortunate that we can't get those sorts of deals in india though ?


----------



## sumitava_b (May 6, 2005)

Rohan, Which Dell model u r thinking of and how much US price u r paying?


----------



## realmmahesh (May 6, 2005)

*bought sony vaio*

hi 

i just bought a notebook from UK. its SONY VAIO FS115Z. hmm... its great with performance. it is centrino based 1.73GHz, 512mb ram 100gb HDD, 15.4'' widescreen (visual length greater than a flat 17'' not little smaller in height), it has dual layer DVD writer & a woophing 128mb geforce go 6200 buit-in, integrated wlan.. .. this pc has got super power.
check it out. costed me 1280 pounds(incl vat)

also check this presario model with 16'' screen and 80 gb with same config available worldwide. forgot the model no.

---
mahesh
bangalore


----------



## er.darshan (May 7, 2005)

Thank you to all...
 
if after sale support is good with DELL, i will go for DELL only bcoz i have bitter exp with HP COMPAQ & IBM just ddont have the looks& style


----------



## rohanbee (May 9, 2005)

sumitava_b said:
			
		

> Rohan, Which Dell model u r thinking of and how much US price u r paying?



Thinking of the inspiron 9300 a very high end dell model only second in comparison to the dell xps and around 1900$ with some customisation like a more ram, high end 6800 graphics card some more hard disc space etc etc



			
				er.darshan said:
			
		

> Thank you to all...
> Laughing
> if after sale support is good with DELL, i will go for DELL only bcoz i have bitter exp with HP COMPAQ & IBM just ddont have the looks& style



Well is asthetics/looks are your priority then sorry to say dell does not have much. Sony on the other hand is good money for looks and some amazing features like memory stick and other such goodies.


----------



## Nemesis (May 9, 2005)

I would recommend the Dell 9300 if you plan to get it from the US. You can get a good configuration for around $1600 which will also let you play games. I have the 9100 which was replaced by the 9300. So I know the 9xxx series is good


----------



## sumitava_b (May 10, 2005)

Till now, I dont have any known person living in US....So buying laptop from US is not my cup of tea, I think.  

What would be the Indian price of a Dell 9300/6000 model?

As I am a gamer too, I am searching for a laptop with 6600 card. Is there any?


----------



## rohanbee (May 10, 2005)

Over a 1.0 lac i think with the nvidia go 6800 card ....................anyways i have sent a request to dell india with my required specs, let see what price they would come up with.


----------



## er.darshan (May 12, 2005)

I have asked for Inspiron 6000, p4 1.6 centrine,ATi X300 with64, 512,80GB,DVD burner & 533 FSB for RS 80535/-


----------



## a_medico (May 13, 2005)

er.darshan said:
			
		

> I have asked for Inspiron 6000, p4 1.6 centrine,ATi X300 with64, 512,80GB,DVD burner & 533 FSB for RS 80535/-



umm..how cud it be p4 when its centrino 1.6? good combination anyway...enjoy and congrats


----------



## sumitava_b (May 13, 2005)

er.darshan said:
			
		

> I have asked for Inspiron 6000, p4 1.6 centrine,ATi X300 with64, 512,80GB,DVD burner & 533 FSB for RS 80535/-



Is this price including VAT?

What r the pros and cons if I get a laptop from a US/UK online store?


----------



## devilhead_satish (May 13, 2005)

Dell will give you a GeForce Go. Everybody else has an onboard solution. Not very wise. Dell has good support mind you. They'll respond very quickly and send an engineer if needed from Bangalore. IBM's are also good.


----------



## er.darshan (May 13, 2005)

YEAH.. this price includes delivery charges, VAT/octroi, leather carry case.


----------



## abhi_shake (May 14, 2005)

that's a good config. Dell's after sales support is the best. I have a dell dektop and whenever i ask them something they are really cooperative.......... enjoy ur laptop!!!!!!!!!!!


----------



## rohanbee (May 14, 2005)

er.darshan said:
			
		

> I have asked for Inspiron 6000, p4 1.6 centrine,ATi X300 with64, 512,80GB,DVD burner & 533 FSB for RS 80535/-



Is that with or without taxes?? I still dont have any info from dell india about my config. Talk about online being quick.


----------



## IG (May 14, 2005)

Guys, I'm looking for laptop for Rs.40000.
Will be using it mainly for reading mails and other such office work.Also to play some games but no high end stuff.Will need a DVD/CD-RW drive definitely though.
Which brand and model should I go for?Does IBM have any laptops that come for around 40k with the same config?


----------



## Aftermath (May 14, 2005)

sumitava_b said:
			
		

> er.darshan said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...




hi sumit u asked abt the pro's and con's of getting a lappy from the us, as long as u or some1 u know is getting it for u into india there is really no con's concerned with buying a lappy from US, its not recommended that u get a lappy frm UK because of the high exchange rate, this will inflate ur price when u convert it into rupees.

         last month i bought the dell inspiron 6000d from the US for 1084$ (inclusive of taxes, shipping was free) (this was ofcourse thanx to the 750 $ discount coupon that dell had abt a month back)  thats abt 48k in rupees, the config is almost the same 1 compared to er.darshan's only difference is that i have the 128 mb version of the x300 video card, 1gb ram, and a bluetooth module and a cd writer, dvd combo instead of the dvd writer, fact is i saved abt 32k by buying a lappy in the us which infact has a better spec than the 1 mentioned above (except for the dvd writer) so if u have any friends in the us or have a chance of going to the us in the near future i'd suggest u buy 1 there itself, cause the amnt that u'll save is huge.


----------



## rohanbee (May 14, 2005)

IG said:
			
		

> Guys, I'm looking for laptop for Rs.40000.
> Will be using it mainly for reading mails and other such office work.Also to play some games but no high end stuff.Will need a DVD/CD-RW drive definitely though.
> Which brand and model should I go for?Does IBM have any laptops that come for around 40k with the same config?



There is a Compaq presario in that range around Rs42,000/- the model number i will let you know.


----------



## a_medico (May 14, 2005)

IG said:
			
		

> Guys, I'm looking for laptop for Rs.40000.
> Will be using it mainly for reading mails and other such office work.Also to play some games but no high end stuff.Will need a DVD/CD-RW drive definitely though.
> Which brand and model should I go for?Does IBM have any laptops that come for around 40k with the same config?



in india - acer and compaq

from US- u can get dell pentium m, may b ibm too. for 45k approx u get dell centrino in US... u have to keep a watch on dell coupans...they keep on releasing them every now and then.


----------



## rohanbee (May 14, 2005)

a_medico said:
			
		

> IG said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Hey medico, Can you let me know where exactly do i have to look for one of these Dell coupons, iam planning to get my dell laptop from the US.


----------



## er.darshan (May 14, 2005)

HI friends
check out the prices of some top end Laptops of various brands...

DELL Inspiron 6000
Pentium M 1.6 on 730,915 chipset, ATi Mobility X300 PCIe with 64 MB VRAM, 512MB DDR,80 GB 5400 rpm,15.4 Wide Screen, DVD burner with Dual layer writing.----------80535/-

DELL Inspiron 6000
Pentium M 1.6 on 730, 915 chipset,GMA900, 512MB DDR,40 GB 5400 rpm,15.4 Wide Screen, combo drive.----------67635/-

Compaq V2102AP
Pentium M 1.7 on 730, 855 chipset,Intel extreme graphics, 512MB 266 MHzDDR,80 GB ,14 Wide Screen, DVD burner.----------74500/-

Acer TravelMate 4002
Pentium M 1.6 on 725,ATi Mobility 9700 with 64 MB VRAM, 256 MB DDR,60 GB 5400 rpm,15.4 Wide Screen, combo drive ---------------- 69900/-

these prices are applicable in Jodhpur (Rajasthan) & all inclusive.

I am buying Inspiron with X300.


----------



## a_medico (May 15, 2005)

> Hey medico, Can you let me know where exactly do i have to look for one of these Dell coupons, iam planning to get my dell laptop from the US



try notebookreview.com or notebookforums.com ...also be in touch with all ur frns...most of them(or their frns) tend to know abt the coupons.....and if u r not in a hurry ...wait for sometime...at times they release some coupons around some festival with which u can by a dell centrino for as less as 750$ !!! thats the least i have heard. best luck....

ps- but the usual 950$ deal isnt bad either as compared to indian prices


----------



## IG (May 16, 2005)

ok...now pc fried and laptop seems to be more of a necessity 
Thanks guys....methinks will go with compaq.


----------



## rohanbee (May 16, 2005)

a_medico said:
			
		

> > Hey medico, Can you let me know where exactly do i have to look for one of these Dell coupons, iam planning to get my dell laptop from the US
> 
> 
> 
> ...



yes thanks for the info.


----------



## sumitava_b (May 17, 2005)

er.darshan said:
			
		

> HI friends
> check out the prices of some top end Laptops of various brands...
> 
> DELL Inspiron 6000
> ...



Er.darshan, I didnt get one spec u specified, i.e. GMA900. Is it a video card? Sorry I cant remember the name.

For Dell, how did u get the prices for models with modified specs? did u ask for a quotation or go to the vendors directly?


----------



## rohanbee (May 17, 2005)

sumitava_b said:
			
		

> er.darshan said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Sorry but dell is a direct marketing company. They have no vendors. You can either order through their website or call them on their toll free numbers. After the payment is sent the computer will be couriered to you.


----------



## sumitava_b (May 17, 2005)

OK, thats fine....How much time they take to deliver after getting the order?

Actually I missed an option in dell indian site that I found very useful in dell US site. There u can modify ur notebook specs and simultaneously get the corresponding price instantly. But this option is not avavilable in indian site. They have given price for the models with default specs. To get the price after modifying the specs, should I request for a quotation (this link is available in the indian site)? I think er.darshan has done the same..............

Can anybody clarify the GMA900 issue?


----------



## sumitava_b (May 18, 2005)

can anyone tell me why it is not possible to upgrade the vram in inspiron6000 to GT6600 where in inspiron9300 it is possible?


----------



## rohanbee (May 18, 2005)

sumitava_b said:
			
		

> can anyone tell me why it is not possible to upgrade the vram in inspiron6000 to GT6600 where in inspiron9300 it is possible?


Firstly in the inspiron 9300 you get an upgrade to the nvidia Go6800 not 6600Gt, i dont think they have made a mobile 6600gpu, but i might be mistaken.
Sony has come out with a computer with 6200 nvidia mobile gpu.
Yes unfortunately the options in india are very less   and the true correct time only the Dell marketing people can tell you and i dont think it would be more than a week for their standard machines.


----------



## rohanbee (May 18, 2005)

sumitava_b said:
			
		

> Can anybody clarify the GMA900 issue?



The GMA 900 is the onboard graphics display chip on your intel 915 series motherboards. It does a reasonable job of playing games+ other graphic based applications but is nothing in comparison to what a decent nvidia or ati graphics card could reproduce.


----------



## sumitava_b (May 18, 2005)

Thanx, Rohan. Meanwhile I too searched net about GMA900 and got the necessary info. However, thanx for ur input.

Can u tell me which sony model u r talking about?


----------



## rohanbee (May 18, 2005)

I will let you know the exact model number. But remember that the Sony Vaio will be one of the most expensive options you can buy in the same config with a different brand!!!


----------



## IG (May 23, 2005)

how good is the Aspire 1362 NLC notebook from acer?
is it worth buying?


----------



## er.darshan (May 23, 2005)

*Tips for buying LAPTOP*

HI guys
i am posting some tips which will help you in taking decision while buying a LAPTOP.

First of all, don't ask anyone "what computer should I buy", don't giving any clue of what kind of notebook do you need. I hope everyone will be kindly to you, but when you ask this you are just wasting your and other's time. As everything in your life, be objective. Go right to the point. That's why this kind of tutorial is so much appreciated on forums. They save time. When asking for suggestion, don't ask like that, tell what kind of computer do you need, how much money you think you need (and can) spend, if performance is important or not to you. Beeing simple: tell as much things as you can that help us to narrow the number of possible computers systems that you would probably be interested in. 

*Processor *
Chances are high that you already know at least the basics of processor performance. Forget the clock speed (those "my computer has more megahertz/gigahertz than yours"). You can't trust only on that factor anymore. Today, other things like size of the L2 cache, the architecture, the data size and all that can change processors performance. Don't get me wrong, it's just that the clock is not the only factor to consider anymore. 

There are processors that can handle data at 64 bits, for example. 32 bits processor can't process 64 bits, but "32 bits capable" 64 bits processor can process the other way. You probably want to consider a less powerful processor, those that consumes less energy, incresing battery life. The Pentium-M is a good example of such processors. And they are not less powerful than a Pentium 4 with a much greater clock speed, for instance. 

If you want an AMD processor with 64 bits of data handle capacity, be sure to choose one that fits your needs. There are several generations now, and even more are coming. The Athlon 64 processors can handle both size of data (32 and 64 bits), beeing a very good choice, if you rate performance as prioritary. They consume more power, but AMD have plans to release low power versions (~ 25W) of the Athlon 64 with 1MB of L2 cache on the first half of the next year, warming even more the mobile market. 


*RAM Memory *

Some people will say that this is the most important overall upgrade on your computer. More RAM memory can make your computer better at multi-processing, and means that your computer won't access your hard-disk so much, increasing the productivity of your computer (decreasing the total time nedded to do a given task). 

More RAM also helps your computer to run more stable and flawlessly. Windows XP requires at least 128MB, officialy. But everyone knows that 256MB is the practical minimum. To run other programs when you're at Windows XP, you need even more RAM memory. For an example, at the time of this document, it was quite common to buy a new notebook with 1GB of RAM. 

Also, you must consider the speed of the memory modules, as long as it's supported by the system and as long as it - the system - will use the "extra clock speed". There are several kinds of DDR SDRAM modules (the type most used today). They are represented by the letters "PC" plus a number, as "PC2100", "PC2700", "PC3200", "PC4000 and so on... They are named based on the speed that the memory bus runs. If you can, choose the memory with the higher clock on its bus, specially because if you buy a brand new system now, probably it supports, at least, PC2700 memory modules. 


*Video Card *

Also known as, but not limited to, "Graphics Card", "Graphics Processor Unit" or just "GPU", this component is, specially for gamers, one of the first considerations when buying a new computer/notebook. The video card renders the images that you see on your screen, appearing as two types: 


*Integrated Graphics: *

This kind of video card is, as the name says, integrated to the mainboard and usually doesn't have dedicated memory (or can have part dedicated and part shared). Besides the fact that this kind of video card normally doesn't have great performance and can't render graphics even like some of the cheapest "non-shared video card", the fact that the card shares memory with the main memory of the system (RAM) just slows down things even more. 

Any of GPU can handle (some times just not flawlessly) operations like Photoshop editions and simple CAD graphics. But they are also for those people on a budget, because these simple processors don't need a great cooling system and other things required by dedicated ones, cutting costs. Stay away from those if you are a gamer. 


*Dedicated graphics: *

This kind have its own processor. They make all the heavy-duty of rendering graphics alone and don't use system's memory, increasing the overall system's performance. 

If you don't mind (probably not), you will be amazed by how much better graphics can be rendered with these cards. Photoshop and other relatively simple renderings when did on these cards are a pleasure to do, and any gamer considers this not just a must have, but they also will go for the lastest (or so) generation. 

Today, you will find graphics cards with even 256mb of memory, however, you'll only find those on heavy notebooks, for the own size of the components, specially those about cooling. If you are thinking if such memory combined with the great processor capacity of the new GPUs will make a big difference for you, it will, and that's a fact. The question is if you need that much. Again, if you are a gamer, you want to get as much performance as you can. But, if your tasks are only related to some video, photo edition or CAD, you'll be more than fine with something like 128mb, or even 64mb (depending on how intense these tasks are). The "gamer" factor can normally decide this, too.

*
Hard Disk *

Hard disk, also known as "winchester" by the Old School, or just as "HD", is the device that can keep your data permanently. Today's hard disks' capacities offer much more than the average user needs. They have plenty of space and, if you choose wisely, probably you won't run out of space. 


*Capacity *

The main question at this point is how much things (and how big they are) you keep saved on your computer. 30 gb can represent plenty of storage to most people that only uses one operational system and those whose main usage is surfing the net and listening to some MP3s. If you play some light or old games, keep some videos saved and like having some free space for, who knows, try that Linux distribution that everyone is talking about, you want a minimum of 40 gb, but probably you will buy a 60 gb one. However, if you are a storage man, that keeps all your albums on your hard disk to listen, deal with videos and uses more than one operational system, even 80 gb can run out of space quickly. Therefore, you'll probably need an external, high capacity hard disk. 


*Speed *

The speed that your hard disk spins gives you an idea of how fast you can read data from it. Although 10,000 rpm are quite common on the desktop world, you are more limited when dealing with notebooks. If you don't mind to wait a few more seconds each time you read a great file, you can choose one with 5,400 rpm (those around 4,000 rpm are becoming obsolete). But if you need high performance, meaning less boot time and less "Loading" screens, settle for 7,200 rpm or more, if you can. However, be prepared to not just increase your computer's performance, but to increase the amount of money you will spend. 

Another factor that reflects how fast you can load things from them is the capacity (resulting from the higher density). Since a higher capacity disk keeps more data, the information stored on those disks are closer to each other, meaning that the disk is more dense than one with less capacity. Since the drive will waste less time to go from one point of information to another, you can say that higher capacity disks can load things proportionally faster if compared to a less capacity one at same speed.


*Media *

Almost nobody uses floppy disks today. Their 1.44mb capacity is obsolete. Unless you have a good reason, you can choose a notebook without such drive, saving money. Most systems don't even have the option of internal floppy drives. However, you should think more about the DVD/CD drive... 

Almost every computer today comes with a standard CD-RW drive, but normally the DVD burner only comes as a costly upgrade. If you don't burn DVDs often, consider buying an external one that fits your notebook (Firewire and/or USB), because the dual-layer internal DVD burners aren't common yet. Be sure to choose a dual-format (those that can burn either kind of media, like DVD-R or DVD+R). 


*Screen* 

It can appear a simple detail, as you should think that all screens are almost the same, since they just display what you're doing. You couldn't be more wrong. Resolution (both pixels and pixels per inch), aspect, viewing angles and the very own screen quality are subtle details that nobody can forget. 


*Resolution: *

The LCD screen on your notebook will have a given number of individual points, and it's important to know how much points it have on both horizontal and vertical directions. Every screen today has at least 1024 pixels on the horizontal and 768 pixels on vertical. This resolution is known as 1024x768 or just XGA. As you can see, an XGA screen can display an image using 786,432 points simultaneously. And the more points you have, more things you can display on a screen. For example, pixels are normally an image of 32x32 pixels. A screen of 128x96 pixels can display 12 icons at a time, and another one of 128x128 can display 16 icons at a time, just for comparision. 

Another detail of the screen is the "pixels per inch" (a.k.a. "dots per inch", or just DPI). Given the size of a screen, which is measured on its diagonal (a 15" screen has fifteen inches if you measure its diagonal), and the amount of pixels, you have the DPI of your screen. Normally, a screen has a DPI number of 80 to 110. 

You are probably wondering: how the DPI number can affect my computer experience? Did you ever noticed, specially those common and bulky desktop monitors (CRTs) that, when you change the resolution, the things on your screen gets bigger (or smaller)? That happens because more or less information is supposed to be displayed on that screen, but the real size doesn't change (obviously). For instance, if you increase the resolution (go from 800x600 - SVGA - to 1024x768 - XGA), more things can displayed at a time on your screen, but since your monitor itself doesn't get bigger, all the image needs to be "shrinked" to fit on the screen. That's the DPI effect on your life. 

The ratio between the amount of pixels and the size in whom they are displayed gives the DPI. Higher numbers means that things will be, _in proportion_ to your screen, smaller; and low numbers, bigger. You don't need to understand this completely, but certainly, it's useful. 


*Aspect: *

The proportion between the horizontal and vertical sizes of your screen gives you the "aspect ratio". Those "boxed", common screens are defined as 4:3 (4 units at horizontal and 3 at vertical), while the "new wave" of home entertainment screens are defined as 16:9, specially marketed as "widescreen". 16:9 screens (you'll find "16:10" on most of notebook screens) are better because they represent the image more naturally, with the same aspect of your eyes. 

"Widescreens" can also display those DVDs you have at home using all the screen, which doesn't happen with "Standard" screen, where the movie is displayed shrinked or distorted. 


*Viewing angles: *

LCDs (specially cheaper ones) have a common problem: if you don't sit exactly in front of the screen - "perfect spot" -, you will see images with some kind of distortion (normally brightness and/or color). Better LCDs have greater "viewing angles", which means that you can sit in a great "angle difference" in comparision to the perpendicular imaginary line that gets out of the middle of the screen. Putting it simple, if your screen has "limited" viewing angles, you probably need to sit exactly in front of it to see images correctly. 


*Dead pixels: *

Not everything on a new computer is paradise, as most not-aware users will be shocked. From such expensive items, you don't expect to get a defective system in any way, but when talking about screens, it's different. I won't discuss the very basics of image formation, but you must know that the image on a computer is rendered by points (lots of!) on your screen, each one with its color. They are so tiny and so close one with other that your brain gives you the "idea" that it's a real image.. 

But, resuming the main subject, a defective pixel occur when one of those points is stucked on one color or just doesn't work at all. A defective pixel is quite easy to spot on lower resolutions, but more difficult on higher ones, like UXGA. 

It's very easy to check for them. Create a picture with the same - or bigger - size of your screen resolotution and paint it using just one color (strong, warm colors are usually best, and more used, for this task). Display this image on full-screen and if there is a defective one, you'll probably notice. 

The bad news about defective pixels is that almost every reseller can ship to you a screen with a certain amount of dead pixels, and it won't be considered a defect on the product... others just charge to send a "No Dead Pixel" screen. Make sure to check your reseller terms about dead pixels when buying a notebook, or even a standalone LCD screen, because the same points apply for those, too. 


*Screen quality: *

There are other factors as well that gives the final product its quality. You can see better brightness (the manufacturers give a name to this or that enhancement), better viewing angles and so on.


*Mobility *
This is something that will be completely ignored by some, but can be well considered the main factor of decision by most people. Executives, outdoor technicians and all kind of mobile people knows what is beeing explained here. If you travel a lot and/or need to stay away from an electrical outlet, you probably are interested on these factors: 


*Battery life: *

To achieve great battery life, a notebook needs to be designed to consume less power, so you can stay away from an electrical outlet for a long period of time. Energy hogs notebooks with Pentium 4s hardly can pass more than 1 hour on the battery. 


Weight: 

If you carry your notebook a lot, consider giving up performance and getting a light notebook. There are lots of notebooks below 4 lbs, and due to the size of the components, it's impossible to put a high-performance system on a 3 or 4 lbs chassis. If you buy a very light notebook (12" screen and so), expect less battery life than mobile 15", for example, since the battery size needs to be reduced to fit on such small chassis. 

Remember that if you want raw performance instead of a light notebook that lasts a couple of hours using standard batteries, you probably want to buy a desktop replacement (DTR) model, with a powerful, yet power-hungry, components. 


"Tablet shaped" computers: 

Those computers are specially designed for all the people who need a very portable system and need to make handwritten annotations. They are the transition point between PDAs and common notebooks, but closer to the last ones, since they can act as a fully functional PC, running Windows XP, for example. However, since they need to be light to be carried often, and must dissipate a little amount of heat to not burn you at a business meeting, the hardware performance is limited. Normally, you will, from those systems, expect low voltage, mobile processors that improves battery life, and integrated graphics card, since they don't require all the cooling that most dedicated ones need. Besides that, most tablet PCs can act as an external monitor, too, which can be useful at some occasions. 

There are three types of tablet PCs: slate, convertible and hybrid. The slate kind doesn't have a keyboard, but you can use an external one with most of them. It is the closest "cousin" of the PDA that you'll find. The convertible, however, has a keyboard like common notebooks, and its screen can turn 180Âº, then folding to "convert" it to a slate tablet PC. It's perhaps the most common kind. Along, there is the hybrid type, which has a keyboard, like the convertible, but you can detach to use as a slate.


Networking 

There are three types of Ethernet connection (commonly associated with wired networks, but they're not the same thing), different mainly about speed. They are 10mbps, 100mbps "Fast Ethernet" and 1000mbps "Gigabit Ethernet". Most notebooks will come with a network card that supports both 10mbps and 100mbps, and that's probably much more than what you'll be using for a long time from now, even if you find a notebook with Gigabit Ethernet capable card. Those that only supports 10mbps speed transmission are pratically inexistent. 

You can, today, find not just the various Ethernet ports on your notebook, but you have wireless options, too. With wireless networking, you can connect through eletromagnetic waves to a specific hardware (normally a wireless router connected through wires to your existent network. Don't think you'll connect to the internet by an act of God. You still need a specific hardware at the other "side"). There are different protocols used, and the most common is the 802.11 standard, which can transmit data at 11 mbps, 802.11b. 54 mbps is 802.11g and 802.11a. Watch out: it works through "waves", and are susceptible to interference from cell/cordless phones. 

There are other protocols used, like Infrared, commonly used in cell phones; and Bluetooth, present specially in portable devices and wireless hardware. 


*Features *

You should consider other factor when buying your notebook. Different manufacturers put flash memory readers (be sure to buy the same standard you use), Firewire connections (a.k.a. "iLink" or "1394"), USB ports (how much of them depends mainly on the notebook's size) using the USB 2.0 standard. Even ECP (printer) and serial ports can be absent. Be sure to fit your needs.


----------



## sumitava_b (May 24, 2005)

@er.darshan, Ophhhsss...thats quite a well research u did. How ever a little personal question (others please excuse me  ), have u alraedy bought a laptop? You were, by latest, talking about a dell inspi6000 with modifications.  what about that?


----------



## rohanbee (May 24, 2005)

Yeah did you get your self one darshan. I wanted the 9300 but am not getting a good ship date..........


----------



## sumitava_b (May 24, 2005)

Rohan, have u got a quotation for 9300 from dellindia? If yes, can u please post it here?


----------



## er.darshan (May 24, 2005)

sumitava_b said:
			
		

> @er.darshan, Ophhhsss...thats quite a well research u did. How ever a little personal question (others please excuse me  ), have u alraedy bought a laptop? You were, by latest, talking about a dell inspi6000 with modifications.  what about that?




Dear friend sumitava_b
I have placed d order for DELL Inspiron 6000 with following config:

Pentium M 730-1.6GHz/ XP Home SP2 / 15.4" XGA / ATi radeon mobility X300 with 64 MB VRAM / 512MB Shared DDR2 533MHz SDRAM (2 DIMMs) / 80GB Hard Drive / 10/100 Network Card / Intel Pro/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless (802.11 B/G, 54mbps) / 8x CD/DVD Burner (DVD+/-RW) dual layer / 6 cell lithium ion battery (*65Whr)
I will get it in 2-3 days....  

And for taking the buying decision I did a lot of research(!)   & from that i could compile these tips from various Laptop forums to help our DIGIT friends. I will post more stuff like this in near future.


----------



## er.darshan (May 24, 2005)

sumitava_b said:
			
		

> Rohan, have u got a quotation for 9300 from dellindia? If yes, can u please post it here?



Hi Rohan
I ordered I6000 on 14may, but there was some prob with credit card so payment was made on 20 May & now i got info that on 24th it has been shipped.. now i am eagerly waiting for my first Lappy


----------



## sumitava_b (May 25, 2005)

er.darshan said:
			
		

> Dear friend sumitava_b
> I have placed d order for DELL Inspiron 6000 with following config:
> 
> Pentium M 730-1.6GHz/ XP Home SP2 / 15.4" XGA / ATi radeon mobility X300 with 64 MB VRAM / 512MB Shared DDR2 533MHz SDRAM (2 DIMMs) / 80GB Hard Drive / 10/100 Network Card / Intel Pro/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless (802.11 B/G, 54mbps) / 8x CD/DVD Burner (DVD+/-RW) dual layer / 6 cell lithium ion battery (*65Whr)
> I will get it in 2-3 days....



er.darshan: thats a perfect combination of inspi6000 at Rs. 80535 all total(Is it correct including taxes and all?). Just one more curiosity, is X300 the limit to upgrade the vram in 6000. Can it be upgraded more, like to GeForceFX 5900XT?


----------



## rohanbee (May 25, 2005)

sumitava_b said:
			
		

> Rohan, have u got a quotation for 9300 from dellindia? If yes, can u please post it here?



Hi sumiatava, darshan, No the surprising thing is that i have not even been contacted till now !!   very weird.



			
				sumitava_b said:
			
		

> er.darshan: thats a perfect combination of inspi6000 at Rs. 80535 all total(Is it correct including taxes and all?). Just one more curiosity, is X300 the limit to upgrade the vram in 6000. Can it be upgraded more, like to GeForceFX 5900XT?



Dude unfortunately Dell has the worst site in india. There are not just enough upgrades available. Also the deals that you get abroad are really phenomenol. Wonder why 

Anyways i am getting mine from singapore now in the price they are giving in india for 10,000 more 

 i can get upgraded to 80gb sata hard drive + 

 nvidia 6800 gpu graphics card  

 Higher processor 1.8ghz

 bluetooth enabled

 1gb ram

What do think about this deal guys??


----------



## sumitava_b (May 25, 2005)

Rohan, I went to the Dell singapore site and searched for 6000. Found every upgrade U mentioned but nvidia 6800 gpu graphics card option.   

One thing caught me offguerd in that site, which is their currency "S$". Can you tell me the equivalency in INR? Without it, I cant compare them.  

 Will u be able to get the dell support from india once u get one from singapore?


----------



## sumitava_b (May 27, 2005)

What happened, Rohan? Still no response?


----------



## rohanbee (May 27, 2005)

No no it doesn't matter. Rarely do things go wrong + im getting it from malaysia........(already ordered). Going to cost me around 95k but compaed to the indian version which costs 91k approx this one will be a mean machine unlike its indian counterpart.

Singapore $ is around 28.rs..............Check and see what dell offeres over there.......

I will be doing a review of my new laptop after i get back from abroad on the 20th.
cheers!!!


----------



## sumitava_b (May 27, 2005)

rohanbee said:
			
		

> Going to cost me around 95k but compaed to the indian version which costs 91k approx this one will be a mean machine unlike its indian counterpart.



"A mean machine"??? ooops, sorry, didnt understand. Can u give some specs to explain?


----------



## rohanbee (May 27, 2005)

Well ok...........i gotta rest after this. Have fever. 
its 
 1.86 GHz, 2MB Cache, 533 MHz FSB
 Integrated Stereo Sound with Subwoofer
 17" UltraSharp(TM) Wide Screen UXGA Display with TrueLife(TM):            1920x1200
 1024MB (2 X 512MB) 533MHz DDR2 SDRAM
 Dell(TM) Optical USB Mouse
 80GB Ultra ATA Hard Drive
 Internal 8X DVD+/-RW Combination Drive with dual layer write capabilities
 Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2200 802.11b/g 54Mbps MiniPCI Wireless Card
 256MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(TM) Go 6800
 Regional Support Within Asia Pacific Countries For Notebooks With 1 Yr NBD


----------



## sumitava_b (May 27, 2005)

Pheewwww....Congrats, Rohan on going to have such a super lappy.  

I am also ready to lighten my bank balance by around 80K for a good lappy, but unfortunately what I am getting in India has half of ur specs!!    Bad enough, right now, I cant go abroad to buy a lappy like u  . I have to manage something from dellindia    

Have a nice time there


----------



## rohanbee (May 28, 2005)

I could get one for you too.............
But i guess it would be too much of a risk for both you and me.......
so hopefully you too will get a good deal over here.


----------



## er.darshan (May 29, 2005)

Very congrate to both of you sumitava_b & rohanbee. after spending 80K I am very eager to get my lappy in my hand but after many reminders today Dell rep mailed me that i will get it in 2nd week of June...that is very bad as i saw on Order watch on their site that it is out of manufacturing unit on 23 May. 
After buying now it is the time to tweak the hardware...what do you suggest about Omega drivers for ATi & overclocking the GPU.


----------



## Delta (May 29, 2005)

Hey I wanna buy a Laptop. My budget is 50k. pls suggest me one. I want to replace my old pc. So, suggest me p4 laps also. Thanx in advance!!!


----------



## er.darshan (May 29, 2005)

Delta said:
			
		

> Hey I wanna buy a Laptop. My budget is 50k. pls suggest me one. I want to replace my old pc. So, suggest me p4 laps also. Thanx in advance!!!



Delta,
you can buy Compaq HP or Acer... Dell also starts from 55K. You can consider Toshiba P4 Laptop which can be yours in 52K. You can go through The tips to buy Laptops on previous page..


----------



## sumitava_b (May 30, 2005)

Delta said:
			
		

> Hey I wanna buy a Laptop. My budget is 50k. pls suggest me one. I want to replace my old pc. So, suggest me p4 laps also. Thanx in advance!!!



Acer Travelmate wud be a good option 4 u if u want it as replacement for pc. For this u have to expand ur budget a little (by 5-7K  ). If its a prob for u, go for aspire series. They r real cheap and value for money too. But still u wont get a replacement for pc in those models.


----------



## supernova (May 30, 2005)

@Delta
I am using COmpaq 2200 series for the past 8 months and am very much satisfied with the performance. Plus if gives good valu for money. Available in delhi for 36k now. 
Config: Cel M 1.3, 256MB, 40GB, CDRW/DVD Combo, 15" TFT, 3.5hrs battery backup


----------



## rohanbee (May 30, 2005)

er.darshan said:
			
		

> Very congrate to both of you sumitava_b & rohanbee. after spending 80K I am very eager to get my lappy in my hand but after many reminders today Dell rep mailed me that i will get it in 2nd week of June...that is very bad as i saw on Order watch on their site that it is out of manufacturing unit on 23 May.
> After buying now it is the time to tweak the hardware...what do you suggest about Omega drivers for ATi & overclocking the GPU.



Man thats awfull !!!    Though i think it does take around 2 weeks but that makes it more than three. Why dont you tell the sales rep. about it and in the mean time send an e-mail to Dell (usa) regarding poor customer care in dell india. Make sure you get the lappy first.


----------



## sumitava_b (May 30, 2005)

It's confusing me. Everywhere i heard that Dell India support is good and reliable (compared to hp or acer support). Now u r telling that its pretty bad to get things without delay.

Please clarify me what assumption I should take for dell india support. Is it reliable or not?


----------



## rohanbee (May 30, 2005)

Well i always said it was good and reliable but mr.darshan has a opinion to the contrary and it is to do with delivery times...............which can go wrong with any one including the vendors in our own towns.


----------



## sumitava_b (May 30, 2005)

er.darshan, it seems that dell india is offering a Rs. 3000 reduction on inspiron 6000. This started from the last few days of this month. R u getting the benefit also? I know u have already paid. 

Hope one day dell will introduce some kind of rebate coupon in india too....


----------



## er.darshan (May 30, 2005)

rohanbee said:
			
		

> er.darshan said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Yeah! I talked to Dell CS rep & he told me that they mention the date with some extra time so that in worst case i will get it  earlier than 2 nd week of June....


----------



## er.darshan (May 30, 2005)

sumitava_b said:
			
		

> er.darshan, it seems that dell india is offering a Rs. 3000 reduction on inspiron 6000. This started from the last few days of this month. R u getting the benefit also? I know u have already paid.
> 
> Hope one day dell will introduce some kind of rebate coupon in india too....



Thanx for your concern.... i also saw on their site & talked to Dell CS Rep but he told me that he cant avail me this as the Lappy is now out from man. unit......I think it will take 1-2 years as they started coupan system in NZ & Aus last year only.


----------



## er.darshan (May 30, 2005)

when i will get my lappy...how can i check its WIFI connectivity as i dont hav ant wifi spot here & is there any software or BM to check it..


----------



## sumitava_b (May 31, 2005)

Can it be possible to upgrade the vram of Inspiron6000 to 256MB NvidiaÂ®  GeForceTM  6800 Go or any other graphics card better than ATI Radeon X300?

If yes, how much will I need to pay extra?


----------



## er.darshan (May 31, 2005)

sumitava_b said:
			
		

> Can it be possible to upgrade the vram of Inspiron6000 to 256MB NvidiaÂ®  GeForceTM  6800 Go or any other graphics card better than ATI Radeon X300?
> 
> If yes, how much will I need to pay extra?


You can always upgrade PCIe based X300 64 to 128..but at present it is not clear if we can switch to GF6800...you can find all the details about the hadware modification in Inspiron on www.notebookforums.com


----------



## rohanbee (May 31, 2005)

Well i asked Dell the same thing!! unfortunately they only seem to be interested in replying if you confirm order. I confirmed my order too !!
The whole package seems to have come around 96000/- for the inspiron 9300.............
hope its worth it. Even there they have given me a 2 week date..........


----------



## sumitava_b (May 31, 2005)

rohanbee said:
			
		

> Well i asked Dell the same thing!! unfortunately they only seem to be interested in replying if you confirm order. I confirmed my order too !!
> The whole package seems to have come around 96000/- for the inspiron 9300.............
> hope its worth it. Even there they have given me a 2 week date..........



Rohan, I knew that Dell is giving 6800 vcard with Inspi9300. Thats why I asked whether with inspi6000, they r upgrading the vcard to it or not?

One little thing, Rohan, how many laptop r u buying simultaneously? One from abroad, one from dell india....


----------



## Pragna (May 31, 2005)

*Laptop Buying Problems*

Hello Guys ( Sorry I am new Here Please Bear With Me )

I am thinking of buying a laptop from America and i think i have some configurations which accepts my taste.I wanted a Intel Processor with HT more than 3.4Ghz, 512DDR Ram, 17 inch LCD panel, 40Gb Hard disk, a double layer support dvd writer, 256Mb Graphics Card, 56k modem, LAN Card, and all other specifications of a laptop usually which is accustomed.

I also wanted to know that is there any AMD Processor equal to Intel pentium 4 processor 3.4GHz because if there is i would accept the AMD procesor compared to Intel.

I also wanted to ask that if there is ant website where can i customize my laptop according to my needs and the configuration i have given u top, i got that from compaq website with a cost of !700$ and i am asking whether it is a good price to spend that much on a laptop and i want a laptop of that configuration.
So please help me guys i am very confused !!!!!!!!!! Confused

      Guys i need a laptop and i want a palce where i can customize my laptop other than dell and compaq please help me


----------



## er.darshan (Jun 1, 2005)

Pragna...you are lucky enough to buy it from USA, so loads of options are there for you. you can give a look on Toshiba M40 or Sony VAIO VGN-FS15GP but Dell Inspiron XPS(P4 HT 3.4GHz) or XPS Gen2 suits your config best. you can go for Apple powerbook M9689SA/A also.


----------



## sumitava_b (Jun 2, 2005)

Is Apple powerbook is available in India? I checked apple site of India. Di'nt find   Its available in its US site.


----------



## Pragna (Jun 2, 2005)

*Thanks darshan*

Thanks darshan for the advice but i found out that dell is offering is intel mobile processor and i wanted intel pentium 4 processor and it is not providing me with any graphics card as i wanted and the thing about sony viao is that u cannot configure for yourself and about apple i am not that much interested in Mac operating systems as i do not know it correctly.

     Anyway thanks for the advice


----------



## sumitava_b (Jun 3, 2005)

Pragna, u can go for pentium 4 processor if u need a power-monster in ur laptop. Really it is a monster. It performs like a horse as well as eats ur battery life hard too.   So think about it.


----------



## premrajeev (Jun 3, 2005)

also consider amd's 64 bit mobile processors..donno wether it's available with dell or not...well with ibm,it's available ,donno abt 64bit,but athlon series,but not a good spec alltogether..we have to wait some more time till amd's gets popular in the lappy segment too..


----------



## sumitava_b (Jun 3, 2005)

Although AMD is giving a tough time to Intel in desktop section, but it is not yet getting a real crack in laptop section. Sempron is running little bit good only.

AMD 64bit plus IBM--------it will be heavily priced, I suppose. I am going to search for it.............


----------



## plasmafire (Jun 3, 2005)

hey guys
If i am to go for a lappy that is sleek and light, has a good screen, light on battery.. which should i buy?

post a pic plz.. it has to be aesthetic..i want it to make presentations mainly.


----------



## sumitava_b (Jun 3, 2005)

plasmafire said:
			
		

> hey guys
> If i am to go for a lappy that is sleek and light, has a good screen, light on battery.. which should i buy?
> 
> post a pic plz.. it has to be aesthetic..i want it to make presentations mainly.



plasmafire, u r doing the same mistake........Before asking for advice about lappy, first mention ur BUDGET :roll: . It is more important for ur case as u r asking for ultraportable ones which r on the costlier side.....


----------



## er.darshan (Jun 9, 2005)

Hi guys 
i am still waiting for the laptop
dell ppl told me that due to mistake of sales person they will deliver it on 13th
I hate waiting


----------



## sumitava_b (Jun 9, 2005)

So ultimately they r going to deliver it in june 2nd week only, not before than that...............


----------



## rohanbee (Jun 9, 2005)

Dell malaysia delivered to me in 3 days............india is awfull........I got my inspiroin for a total of 95k......
  Firstly you buy expensive .......then you get horrendous delivery dates........
  Even in the US the delivery is something like 2 weeks ............


----------



## Nemesis (Jun 9, 2005)

Dell has a major assembly plant in Malaysia. Even when you order from Dell India, the product comes from the Malaysia plant. Even a lot of components used in their US systems come from Malaysia. That is why you got it this quick from Malaysia. You got it from where Dell makes most of its computers


----------



## er.darshan (Jun 9, 2005)

They told me that system was arrived on 26th may. 
Here we go
Malaysia-Bangalore ---- 3Days
Bangalore-Rajasthan ------ depends on sales person (in my case 17 Days)


----------



## sumitava_b (Jun 10, 2005)

Outside India everything goes fine. But whenever something reaches India, every sort of problem starts to rise. For the laptop to reach Rajasthan from Bangalore u r still counting the days. I Love My India.


----------



## er.darshan (Jun 14, 2005)

Hi Guys
Finally I received my Laptop (Dell Inspiron 6000) yesterday   & i just 

wanted to let you people know that its just awesome  . its performance is 

superb & the speakers just rocks  . i will post its full review in few 

days. 
 
I6000 | ATi Radeon x300-64MB VRAM | Pentium M 1.6 | 15.4 WXGA|512MB |80GB 5400rpm | NEC 8X DVD  | DELL 802.11 B/G | XP Home with SP2 | 512 MB DDR2


----------



## suave_guy (Jun 14, 2005)

gr8 darshan...

i'm also getting dell inspiron 6000 on 13th of july, so how's the screen quality?

does this widescreen looks cool...

and how's the overall look of the laptop...

does it looks sleek?

ENjoy...


----------



## sumitava_b (Jun 15, 2005)

Congrats Darshan !! Nice to hear ur first review although brief! Looks like u got so busy with ur new lappy that u dent get time to write more about ur cute machine. Looking for ur elaborated review....Anyway, is ur avatar the pic of ur new lappy? 

So at last they kept their promise as to deliver on 13th June. Do they deliver only on 13th of any month?? suave_guy is also got 13th date.

I got elated to know that the speaker of ur ins6000 is performing great because recently I was getting some bad review about the dell speakers. 

 yesterday I read that A DVD writer may not be able to write CD unless it's a super drive. Is it true? Please anyone clear my doubt.


----------



## super_i_man (Jun 15, 2005)

Finally your thread made it! From the first post to the last its a complete life cycle. So finally the Dell is in your hands. Congrats for that. Waiting for the Review and pics.


----------



## Nemesis (Jun 15, 2005)

@sumitava: No, Dell does not have a fixed delivery date of the 13th of every month. And suave is not getting it from Dell India so let's keep him out


----------



## rohanbee (Jun 15, 2005)

The speakers on my dell 9300 are quite amazing too............usually i keep them at less than 1/2 the output.........
still abroad........
will write review soon........
good to see so many dell afficianados.....maybe we should start a club or something


----------



## Aniruddh (Jun 15, 2005)

hii guyz
can any one suggest me a gud lappy under 60k?basically i'll be playing loads of games,surfing,movies...i want atleast 15''inch screen...i know my budget is quite less for all those things but still if any one can help me out then plz i'll b thankful.centrino 1.5 min,40-60GB hdd,512ram,CD-RW/DVD-ROM combo.and yaa i'll like to hav a card for it and it wont be included in 60k i'll buy it seperatly.so temme sum gpu for lappy from cheapest to mid range and if possible then plz wid model and price.


----------



## Aniruddh (Jun 15, 2005)

eva i thought of going for a DELL Inspiron 6000 but afta few changes it was going beyond my budget.i neva thought nor i m a any fan of ACER  and have any idea bout it but dun mav much choice wat u guyz hav to say bout ACER TravelMate 4150?it will cost me bout 47k includin taxes.or i can get a betta lappy then that of acer plz suggest me.. ..
thanx in advance...


----------



## sumitava_b (Jun 16, 2005)

Aniruddh, what changes r u thinking about? because, dell ins6000 is fulfilling ur reqs as far as mentioned in ur 1st mail. Only for card, it will cross the limit, obviously.

Acer TM 4150 is a budget lappie. It is never meant for high-end application like ram-hungry games and all, which u wud be doing as u mentioned. And support of acer is one of the worst. So think over it. Somewhere I heard that every acer model is very much expected to get one or many problems in initial days. As far as support is concerned, which is one of the most important aspect of laptop, Dell is smashing...


----------



## Nemesis (Jun 16, 2005)

IMO, 60k is NOT enough if you want gaming performance out of a laptop. You will either have to stretch your budget by a long way or go for a low-end system and compromise gaming performance. BTW, what kind of games are you looking to play on your laptop?


----------



## Aniruddh (Jun 16, 2005)

@sumitava_b,Nemesis thanks a lot.
 i kno nemesis budget is my biggest problem but wont get more then dat from dad so cant help it but now i hav got a betta idea...
well i guess now i can get a gud dell lappy for a very gud price.my sister is going to US and one of my cousin is in US and i hav asked her for the details for lappy and she said eva there Dell is No.1 and she'll find out all the detail and will let me kno.but still i want to ask u guyz that which one is shud opt?for sum where around 1300$ that means around 60-65k i can get a very gud config there so plz suggest me that i shud go for customized dell lappy or any other brand?i dun hav much idea so need ur help.and temme if i buy from aboard then i m gonna get service in india or not?


----------

