"peterwn" <> wrote in message
news:b0762030-ebc9-4606-b7d4-...
> I am helping someone with purchase recommendation. 15 inch or so
> screen satisfactory and MS Office 2010 (with Publisher and Access) to
> be used. User under pressure could have various Word, Publisher and
> image files open.
> My gut feeling is mid range processor (i5 or similar) and 4G memory.
> However would bottom range laptops with 2G memory handle such a
> workload satisfactorily?
> Is there any pressing need for Windows 7 Professional over Home
> Premium - needs to network to another computer (shared documents) and
> a network photocopier/printer?
Peter
Do research your friends requirements 'carefully' as it is so easy to push
them toward a Laptop that you want rather than what they want.
In general you get what you pay for.
There is a reason why any given Laptop of the same spec is cheaper than
another and it usually means lower performance or reliability parts have
been used.
There a few 'bargains' out there as there are only a handful of 'real'
Laptop Manufacturers and the whole production process is pretty refined
nowadays.
From:
http://ezinearticles.com/?OEM---The-...ptop&id=482010
<quote>
True manufacturers like Quanta and Compal (which is not Compaq) alone
produce almost 50% of all the portables run out in the world. The remainder
is divided between Wistron, Asus, Uniwill, Clevo, FIC, Aopen, ECS, etc.
</quote>
You may like to note the only 'Brand' listed is Asus.
As for retail brands, have a read of this document produced by an extended
warranty insurance company
http://www.squaretrade.com/pages/lap..._war_buyerblog
In that report they put Toshiba and Asus at the top and HP at the bottom.
(which surprises a lot of people)
This is not the only 'reliability' survey that has appeared lately with HP
at the bottom and it all stems from the 'Pavilion' line of laptops.
The problem lies with the 'DV' series with nVidea graphics chips that got
hot and unsoldered themselves from the mother board.
Unless you have reflow soldering equipment to hand its a new motherboard and
at just under $700 they effectively write the laptop off.
The HP Probook and Elitebook range on the other hand are a different kettle
of fish, if they were separated out the surveys would show a different
picture.
So:
Stick to Toshiba, Asus or HP "Pro/Elitebook"
i3 or i5 CPU, i3 if virtualization is not important, i5 if you need to run
Pro's XPMode virtual XP PC (or a little more performance)
i7's are great if you want maximum performance but a) you pay for it in $
and heat b) often come in 17" LCD which is to big for convenient
portability.
AMD is simply not in the hunt, and although cheaper, loose their edge
quicker.
4 GB of RAM so Windows 7 runs properly, if you go for 64bit make sure the
Laptop will support 8GB of RAM to allow headroom for OS Bloat.
32 bit Windows can't use more than 3GB of RAM and should only be considered
if there are legacy applications that need 32 bit Windows to work.
One of the easiest 'fixes' I get to do these days is to add RAM to an
XP/Vist/W7 PC that came with the minimum 'recommended' RAM
Particularly so if their HD is a slower 5400 RPM one, Windows paging to slow
drives like this is 'painful' and simply solved by getting (today) 4GB of
RAM in the first place.
Hard drive size is a value call but most of the mainstream 15"ers are
offering 250 - 500GB these days.
SSD hard drives are not quite there yet, expensive per GB, and a bit
'bleeding edge' for general use.
Optical drive, most offer a DVD RW/Lightscribe/RAM drive, more bucks will
buy a BluRay, again a value call for the buyer.
Screen quality is not a particular worry as even the cheapest are 'good'
enough for Office, email use.
Screen size is a value call 15-16 " is mainstream, but if your friend
carries the Laptop around a lot 13-14" is a lot more convenient.
Resolution is mainstreaming at 1366 x 768, higher resolutions (eg 1600 x
1200) will cost.
Go for LED backlight to lower power consumption and extended life.
Graphics chipset is a trade off between power and convenience.
Despite what Woger says the Intel chipsets are good enough for general use
and some even include HDMI output.
(just checked 1080p movie on a HM57 Express chipset, ran just fine.)
Sure a separate Graphics chip is needed it you are into games, but you pay
for it in power consumption, a bigger power brick, shorter battery life and
much more heat from the Laptop and power brick.
There are some Laptops that hibernate the grunty graphics chip and use an
onboard when demands are low, but again you pay for the privilege.
Battery life, 6 cell or 9 cell ??? depends on a) the power consumption/spec
of the Laptop b) what the owner expects, another buyers value call.
Dial up Modem, I've noticed some laptops are omitting 56K modems, something
the buyer needs to consider if Dial up is required, though a USB modem from
DSE could be thrown in the bag 'in case'.
As for Windows other than the 32/64 bit issue the only practical advantage
of Pro over Home Premium is Pro will allow remote control out of the tin,
and 'XP Mode' Virtual XP PC.
There are other advantages but for the average user not significant.
Home Premium will network quite happily with any of the MS OS's (W3.1 up
AFAIK).
Best
Paul.
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