Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
Well, yeah. Of course. But I wonder if it's easier to manage things like spill proofing a chiclet keyboard or something.
Laptop Recommendations?
- Thread starter Will Rickards
- Start date
sechs
Storage? I am Storage!
One might think that this is really a way to make some bucks by offering the classic keyboard and a price.
Will Rickards
Storage Is My Life
So the new apple macbook pros are out. And their is a retina display option which is an IPS display at 2880x1800. Is there anything comparable to that display in a wintel laptop? Either released or announced?
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
I don't even think anyone is offering that in a desktop display.
timwhit
Hairy Aussie
Maybe this will be the tipping point and other manufacturers will start offering higher resolution displays.
Will Rickards
Storage Is My Life
How about just a decent resolution IPS display?
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
From what I've read, Apple absolutely has a stranglehold on the supply chain for IPS display components that stems from the popularity of the ipad. I'm not sure if it applies to larger screens, but I guess a lot of options are off the table for companies that don't already own or control factories for similar parts. Samsung might be well-positioned to compete but smaller operations may very well be SOL.
DrunkenBastard
Storage is cool
Waiting for my work laptop to arrive. Unknown what model I am getting, perhaps a T530, though I have requested Optimus switching video so I can use the laptop screen in addition to the two 1080p panels on the desk (attached to the dock).
IS an i5-3320M sufficient for a 12" 3lb. laptop? Is it worth an extra $150 for the i7-3667U? From what I gather the U is the low-voltage, lower power CPU. I'm not sure how much turbo-bootsing would occur with the presumably hotter 3320M compared to the 3667U. The i5-3320M starts at 2.6GHz and boosts to 3.3GHz, as compared to the i7-3667U, which starts at only 2GHz and boosts to 3.1GHz. I don't care much about battery life since it is on AC mains 99% of the time. However, I'm not sure how much cooling there is in the 12" notebook smallish case or how noisy the fan would be after an hour of D800 raw conversions.
ddrueding
Fixture
The more powerful processor will certainly be busy for less time, and will therefore produce less heat. If you are going to be logging hours doing 36.3MP RAW conversions, getting the fastest processor and hard drive seem like no-brainers. In fact, you would likely be much better off having something with even more cojones for that task.
ddrueding
Fixture
The i7 is the fastest, but the mobile versions are the slowest of the i7s. If you are going to be doing that kind of hardcore computing, you might consider bringing along a small form factor desktop of some kind.
CougTek
Hairy Aussie
If you compare the i7 3667U to the i5 3320M, you'll see that the latter should beat the former most of the time. Except for the additional 1MB of cache, the i5 3320M beats or equals the i7 3667U in all departments. The M version is rated at 35W TDP while the U version is not supposed to need more than 17W, so the 150$ would mostly be to allow your laptop to run cooler and the battery to last longer. But you wouldn't get more performance out of it, quite the contrary.
Apparently the laptop does not exist yet and is listed as out of stock. I really prefer a standard configuration so that it Can be returned. What is with the two USB 3.0 and one USB 2.0 Ports all the notebooks seem to have? I want three USB 3.0. 
Chewy509
Wotty wot wot.
Apparently the laptop does not exist yet and is listed as out of stock. I really prefer a standard configuration so that it Can be returned. What is with the two USB 3.0 and one USB 2.0 Ports all the notebooks seem to have? I want three USB 3.0.
Chipset limitations, most mobile chipsets only come with 2 actual ports... You could embedded a USB hub to give you more, but that costs money and reduces overall bandwidth in the case of 3 actual devices connected and being used at the same time...
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
I'm curious to know your opinions on the keyboard.
I'm a little annoyed about my T420. I rest my left thumb on the space bar. That's what I've ALWAYS done. The plastic on my T420's keyboard is so soft that I've visibly worn away the plastic where my thumb sits in just six months. I don't mind seeing that wear on a machine that's a couple years old, but I'm probably going to try to get a warranty replacement every six months if it's going to be like that.
DrunkenBastard
Storage is cool
Ended up with a T520 so can't give you feedback on the chiclet keys on a T series.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
Gosh. The light weight and insane battery life must be a terrible burden.
There are two critical constraints. The weight should be 3.0-3.5lbs. (or 1/2 more if it can accept two full hard drives) and the y dimension must be under 9in. I'm currently using a 3lb. machine that has two 1TB drives. It works fine, but the 1.2GHz C2D CPU, USB 2.0 and archaic CardBus slot are too slow for modern times.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
The T430s weighs under 4lbs, has an ultrabay that can be adapted to hold a second hard disk and a 1600x900 screen. Why is it not in contention again?
I'm not thrilled with a 16:9, but maybe I should look. Is Lenovo any good?
ddrueding
Fixture
Lenovo ThinkPads (T- and W- series in particular are my #1 pick for laptops. Above Dell Latitude, perhaps equal to Dell Precision in terms of build quality. But the Precision is available with 32GB of RAM.
I checked everything and it's basically hopeless.
ddrueding
Fixture
On the newest Lenovo Edge E350 laptops they have done away with the touchpad buttons altogether, just making the bottom of the touchpad clickable. I don't like it at all.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
Can't you tap on EVERY notebook with a touchpad? The only difference on an MBP is that the whole stupid pad moves when you do it.
Lenovo has a sexy new X1 coming out in a couple weeks. 14", 3lbs, 18mm thick and, importantly, proper buttons.
Lenovo has a sexy new X1 coming out in a couple weeks. 14", 3lbs, 18mm thick and, importantly, proper buttons.
On a Mac you can single tap for left click and two finger tap for right-click. This works in windows in boot camp and I would assume on a pc with the Mac touchpad.
I don't use the "push the whole pad down click" except for logging in before the above preferences kick in.
I don't use the "push the whole pad down click" except for logging in before the above preferences kick in.
ddrueding
Fixture
Tap to click does work, and it does have a 10-key which is awesome. But there is considerable lag/lack of confidence in the touchpad...really awful.
CougTek
Hairy Aussie
I barely escaped going into an infinite loop following your link.
Will Rickards
Storage Is My Life
Newtun
Storage is nice, especially if it doesn't rotate
I am in error about the projector, as it does appear in the cart at the last minute. Yet what I really need is the extra hard drive carrier. :cursin:
I don't know why this notebook is $2000 with a crummy 320GB HD; perhaps it is the Japananese name. If I order the unit with 4GB RAM and add 8GB to the user slot, that should work fine, right?
So I ordered the laptop last week. According to the configurator, the ship date was supposed to be Oct 2. However after I paid, the delivery date was TBD. Then a few hours later I received E-mail indicating that the ship date was Dec. 6. Yesterday there was another e-mail stating the date was February something. WTF is wrong with them?
Then a few hours later I received E-mail indicating that the ship date was Dec. 6. Yesterday there was another e-mail stating the date was February something. WTF is wrong with them?