OT: Need a Laptop.. QUICK!

[coastal]

Hey guys,

As you may know I'm a web developer. I've always done my work in the office so I've never really needed a laptop, that is until now. Business is growing but so is my desire to get out of town, specifically this weekend!

I'll continue to do the more intense stuff at the office but what I really need is a laptop to do quick HTML edits, relatively mild graphics work, uploads and email when I'm away from the city.

At work I'm primarily on 1GHZ+ P4's with 512+MB of RAM. Will I be disappointed with a Celeron 1.2-1.8 with 256MB for the needs I've outlined above?

Pointing device option is a non issue as I can't stand anything but a mouse. I'll probably also cart around a full size keyboard as I prefer the extra space for me big mitts.

Time's a factor too (need it for the weekend) so I'll be limited to what's available in-store. Brand will probably be Compaq, Toshiba, Sony or HP. Any preferences among these?

To conclude, have you any general tips that might help in deciding on what I guess would be a mid-range laptop?

Cheerz!

[tzunuum]

Hi ,

I would suggest a Toshiba Satellite Pro. I have my third Toshiba so far and was satisfied with all of them. The first i used under extreme outdoor conditions (i.e. frost at night) in the Andes without any problem. However I would not go below 512 MB of RAM but the internal video resolutions is the most important issue at leat for me (I work in the Internet business as well). I do not know about availability in the States but here in good ols Germany Toshibas are on the stock at least the mid range and standard ones.

Hope this helps a bit.

Cheers
Thomas

[trzesnk]

I am recomending Toshiba Satelite Pro too. I have used them since 1996. Robust, but quite big and heavy (mine SP 4600 is 3.2kg). I have a docking station, which accomodates Satelite Pro only, so I might be a little biassed. In my company we are using Toshibas Tecra too. They are supposed to be more performance oriented. Moreover latest Tecras are much lighter (below 2 kg) then Satelite Pro. There is a Portege series, very light with a decent performance, bu pricey. I have not used other brands, but heard a lot of good comments from users of Fujitsu-Siemens laptops.

[allwheeldriver]

Hi Coastal,
I recommend you Dell Inspiron 8200. It's Dell's new notebook. The best configuration is: Pentium 4-2.0 GHz, 1GB memory, 40 GB harddisk (5400 rpm), GeForce 4 440 with 64 Mb DDR video and ultra sharp UXGA 15" display. If I were you I'll buy a Nokia Card Phone for it too. (That' s for wireless internet) http://xc70.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif
If you want to look that notebook its here:
www.dell.com/us

[coastal]

Thanks for the advice guys!

I'm going to pick up the Toshiba 2400 (http://www.toshiba.ca/web/product.grp?lg=en&section=1&group=1&product=531)

http://www.toshiba.ca/web/en/images/products/isg_satellite_2400.gif

I'd entertain the idea of a Dell but my short timeline limits me to what's locally available.

Getting her for $2599 CAD, pretty good deal me thinks http://xc70.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

Thanks again for the help!