Santa Rosa question

Like a lot of other people everytime I've looked to buy a laptop I end up waiting for the next big upgrade, only to find out there is another big upgrade planned as well. Of course, I keep waiting, and why not? I have almost no use for a laptop right now. The only reason I had for wanting a laptop is my 7 year old desktop with a 4gb hard drive, 1mhz processor, and 273mb of RAM. However, I didn't feel it a necessity to get a laptop because 1) None of the programs I wanted to run needed higher specs and 2) I didn't need mobility. I could've easily gotten a desktop with the same (or better) specs and saved the extra money, but again, it wasn't a necessity. So I've held off until now.

Next year I'll be going to college and I'm aboslutely sure I'll need a laptop. To get to the point, I wondering what Santa Rosa will do to laptops. What exactly does this "new chipset" do? I haven't done any research on it (but maybe I should). Are there going to be a lot of benefits or just a few? How extreme are they? And most importantly, if you had to make an educated guess, when do you think, if you think so at all, the W3J (actually, the W3P) will be available with the new chipset? As I already mentioned, I'm going to college next September, so I can hold off buying a laptop until then, and I know Santa Rosa is to be released next January (or around there), but will ASUS laptops have the new chipset by next September? It seems like they have plenty of time to make the switch, although I'm also wondering whether they'll just upgrade their current models or create new ones. I know I'm asking for a lot of "guesses" but a hopefully I you guys have some clue, because I sure don't.

 

I would re-evaluate things about two months before schools starts, and put in an order based on what is available then, rather then engaging in any speculation.

 

Santa Rosa will give a nice speed increase, clock for clock, and also AFAIK they will have a smaller die size - which should enable less power (wattage), and more battery life.

I wouldn't expect any mainstream notebooks to ship until early Q2, and by end of Q2 should be quite easy to get hold of one. By September, I would estimate most manufactures would have adopted SR for their whole Notebook lineup, rather than their flagship's. The SR based Core2 chips, will also include lower (and higher) clock speed processors, and probably a Celeron-esque chip.

Inevitably though, manufacturers and retailers will still have old stock to get rid of, and will just sell a laptop as "Core 2 Duo", and not necessarily Santa Rosa ones.


Edit: Just to echo the above comment, unless you want to buy now, re asses the situation when you are looking to buy.

 

I believe Santa Rosa includes a wireless-n (new frequency standard that allows for greater bandwidth and range) chipset and maybe Intel's new GMA chips that are coming soon.

 

I am going to bet if you just need this for school and just need a laptop it isn't going to be necessary to wait or get the newest thing. I use a V6j and have not run into anything it can't do (except backflips). Don't get too excited about haveing the absolute newest thing, any Asus laptop you buy between now and school will be 100% suffifcient. If you have specific questions or uses, those are easier to answer than should I wait to get this type questions.

 

if you really need it now get it, and if you don't you can wait =)

 

Santa Rosa (the fourth-generation Centrino platform) will include (according to Wikipedia):

* second generation Intel Core 2 processor (code named Merom) that uses Socket P
* 800 MT/s front side bus with Dynamic Front Side Bus Switching to save power during low utilization
* Intel Mobile 965 Express chipset (code named Crestline) with Intel's GMA X3000 graphics technology
* Intel PRO/Wireless 4965AGN IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n mini-PCIe WiFi adapter (code named Kedron)
* NAND flash-memory caching (code-named Robson)
* WWAN Internet access via cellular networks (code-named Windigo)
* EFI, a successor to BIOS
* WiMAX
* Integrated HSDPA (3.5G) wireless technology from Nokia

~ Brett

 

sure does sound sweet!

 

I'm a big fan of the 'buy when you need it' strategy. That's why I ended up with the Z33Ae and not a Z33A (less RAM) or a Z35 (new platform, glossy screen). I ordered my laptop to arrive a month before I needed it for a big NASA presentation I had to give, and that way I got the best configuration for my money and I'm not stuck in an infinite waiting loop.

Since the original poster has been hanging on on his current desktop for so long, I think it would make the most sense to wait until just before school starts and make a decision based on what is available then, not what is available now or what might be available in 45 days.

As far as what will Asus have by next August/Sept, I don't know and I don't think any of us can speculate that far forward... But I'm sure you will find a model that fits your needs at that point in time, when you need it.

 

Thanks a lot guys. I'm going to take your advice and wait until June or July to re-asses the laptop market. Santa Rosa sounds great, mainly for the increased battery life. Anyone know how much of an increase it'll bring?

 

Way, way too early to tell...

IMHO Crestline won't be out until late 2Q 07 because the 802.11n standard isn't a standard yet and a lot of people are going to have problems with the built in WiFi. Intel is basically forcing everyone to adopt their version of 802.11n and it's gonna take a while before the router manufacturers come around to Intel's way of doing things. If you need a laptop now then buy one -you'll end up skipping Crestline and going with the next chipset which should have fewer bugs...