Laptop for photo editing

1) What is your budget?
$1000-1700
2) What size notebook would you prefer?
b. Thin and Light; 13" - 14" screen
c. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen

Preferably the 13"-14" screens though, but if there's a better deal for the mainstream laptops then more power to you.

3) What tasks will you be performing with the notebook?
Photoshop, some video editing, internet, word processor, dvd, very little gaming besides the flash ones

4) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places or leaving it on your desk?
will be taking it to classes, car rides, trips, library

5) Will you be playing games on it; if so, which games?
not really, besides free internet games online


6) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
I hear that asus is a very good brand, but because I've never had any previous experiences with it I'm kind of hesitant.

7) How many hours of battery life do you need?
4-6 hours

8) Do you mind buying online without seeing the notebook in person?
Yes

9) What country are you buying this in?
United States

Screen Specifics

10) From the choices below, what screen resolutions would you prefer?

I dont know anything about screen resolutions. All is acceptable to me.

11) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non-glossy screen?
glossy

Build Quality and Design

12) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
yes

13) How long do you want this laptop to last?
2-3 years at least

Notebook Components

14) How much hard drive space do you want; 40GB to 120GB?
60GB with 7200 rpm

15) Do you need a DVD, DVD-CD/RW or DVD-R drive?
Yes


Also, could someone suggest a good place to buy the suggested laptops? Thanks for taking the time to help me. I have to make a decision by March 6!

---edit---

oops wrong thread...

 

Sounds like you'll want to get the Asus Z63A.
Check out www.proportable.com or www.geared2play.com

 

bah.....

 

Whoops... and check out www.c9tech.com too!
Lol...sorry Sasha, I forgot about you!

 

LOL, not a problem...

 

so the z63a has an integrated graphics card? If I were to use photoshop with this notebook, will I need a dedicated graphics card instead or it doesn't make that big of a difference?

 

Photoshop puts more stress on the CPU and RAM (and hard drive) than the video card... so you should defnitely be okay there.
The integrated graphics should handle your work load just fine. Just get at LEAST 1GB of RAM and perhaps a 1.86+ Ghz CPU... 2.0 GHz even.

 

I would think a Z63a would be bad for photo editing. simply for the low resolution forget zooming in much and changing stuff. and for the very limited viewing angles. if color matching is important forget it wrong notebook choice.

I would look to get the V6Va its worth the extra bucks plus its as light and thinner than a z63a.

 

Z63A is not a bad choice, but the V6Va is the best.
The res isn't that low on the Z63A - 14" widescreen 1280x800... not bad.
However the res of the V6Va is 15" 1400x1050... very nice.
Plus the IPS screen [ more info here] will be perfect for grahpic work.
This will be the last ASUS model [announced] with IPS.
The V6J will not have it either... and only a few left.

 

I think you mean 1280 x 768 that is low. i mean its a comfortable rez for most things. But if you are serious about photo editing at the pixel level. If you can put a wuga monitor on a 15.4 in screen or 17in screen those are both way above 1280 x 768 then you could easily put a high rez on a 14.1 in not much but i think alittle higher would make it perfect. but the V6Va is a joy with work with that screen is awsome.

 

Yes, 1280x768... my mistake.
As far as the best notebook screen for Photoshop, the 15" V6Va w/IPS or 17" Z83V would have it.

 

the V6va is roughtly $2000! I can't afford that much unless there are some discounts out there I dont know about. And from two different stores, one says it weights 6.3lbs and the other says it weighs 5.73lbs? I can't seem to be able to configure this laptop at all. It comes as an ensemble package.

 

it is an ensemble. but it is 5.4lbs and just over 1in thick. you can get it for about 1900

 

$100 discount here.

 

The V6Va is roughly 5.5-5.7 pounds with the battery... it is great, but I didn't recommend it due to the price.
Overall, I still think the Z63A would be the ideal choice... but if you can fork out the extra cash, the V6Va would work beautifully.

 

what about the asus w3v? some people have been suggesting that as well

 

It's basically the Z63A with dedicated graphics [ATI X600].
The W3V has a defined spec, while the Z63A is a BTO [built to order] notebook.
Both are nice... just choose the one that will work best for you.

 

Well, it does have the dedicated graphics... performance wise, I still think you can configure the Z63A to perform better for your work (i.e 7200 RPM hard drive, more RAM, faster CPU).
Like I said, the graphics card won't be much of a factor during "photo editing"

 

That is correct. The Z63A is pretty much the customizeable version of the W3V (without the bells and whistles). If you didnt want the 7200, I'm sure they'd recommend it to you also. I also agree with SRD about the low res. Some may not feel that the lower res screen would be good for "photo editing". I prefer the 15.4" matte screen on the Z70Va, but I work with a lot of print/press work and I need the extra desktop space (& I'm also used to a high res screen). If you're just working with home pics and not layouts, I'm sure the Z63a should suit you fine. Plus the stylish V6 would be nice too.

 

So with integrated graphics, in the long run, you can't install an extra graphics card to help it along? You're just stuck with what you got?

 

That applies to 95% of notebooks... you're pretty much stuck with what you have.

 

Pretty much, except you can upgrade the CPU, RAM, and HD down the road...