Help Choosing A Laptop Please....

Hey guys,
I'm new here as you can see by my 1 post count lol.
I've been reading here a lot lately as I've been researching and looking around to find the perfect dell laptop for me.
I'm going to be using this laptop to replace my desktop, however, I also plan on bringing it with me to school (commuter college). I plan on using the computer for taking notes, word processing, internet, AOL, AIM, and playing games such as MVP Baseball 2005 and NHL 2005. The reason I'm getting rid of my desktop is because the video card is old and I cannot play the aforementioned games on it, and because I would like to start taking notes on a computer because I think it would help me in school.

Anyway, after looking around and doing some research, I've kind of narrowed it down to the 600m, 8600, or 6000. To me these seem like the best for gaming and for word processing and surfing. Now, please keep in mind that I wish to travel with this as well. I'm not sure what would best suit my needs. I'm trying to spend 1100 or less on this and the deal Dell has right now seems to be a good fit for around that number.

I'm unsure which model would be the best overall for me as well as if I need one of the fancier, more expensive screens and other specs as well.

I also do not want to buy a machine that will be absolete in the next couple of months, so if Dell is soon to be coming out with new machines or new technology I would be more than interested in hearing about its advantages and its release date.

I believe the deal at dell ends tomorrow at some point so if you could please give me any advice that you may have as soon as possible.

Thank you very much in advance!!! I really appreciate it!!!

~MSG

 

Also,
How fast do I need the CPU to be- 1.5 GHz, 1.6 GHz, etc.
And does it pay long-term to put together a machine that is 2000-750= 1250 or just do a 1500-500=1000 deal?

Any and all input is greatly appreciated!!!

~MSG

 

Please, anybody?

 

I myself bought an Inspiron 9200 and am very happy with it. I got the larger battery so my battery lasts around 3 1/2 hours on medium to light load. Gaming eats it up quicker. The deals at Dell cycle through every week so even if you miss a deal it will come back in some shape within a month.
Stefan

 

get the Dell 6000. You can configure a 128mb X300 ATI Card and it has a nice 15.4 widescreen. Make sure you have at least the 1.6ghz Pentinum M and 512mb DDR2. Its about 6.5lbs, so it wont really replace the desktop, but its light enough so you can move it around. Dont plan to play games like Half Life 2 though. But for your games, its just perfect.

 

I also went with the 9200 that Gelhardin did, got the bigger battery as well. Specs are listed in my sig. I also get 3 to 4 hours on light to med loads. Anywhere from 45mins to 2 hours depending on the game and about 2 hour and 30mins on DVD's, but i like to bring the brightness up, so i bet it could be a little longer. Check out the 9300, the replacement for the 9200, nice notebook if you want a 17inch display. Only problem is my setup ran me $2200 after all the rebates. Pricey but i wanted a descent desktop replacemnt and once i saw the 17 inch notebooks i knew i had to have one!

I configured a I6000 that should easily meet your needs, it won't be strong for games like Half-life 2 or Doom 3 but everything else should run descent.

Dell Inspiron 6000
P-M 1.86mhz 533mhz FSB
512mb ram 400mhz (free upgrade from 256mb)
15.4 inch SXGA+ screen
60gb 7200rpm harddrive
24x CD Burner, DVD player
128mb PCIxpress ATI x300 graphics card
9-cell battery
Intel ProWireless 802.11b/g
1 year warranty
Total: $1,326 with free 2 day shipping, most states have no tax from Dell.

A little higher than what you were looking for but should work great for your needs. If you want to play games i recommend getting the 7200rpm hard drive, doesn't affect games much, but ones that make you jump into your Virtual Memory will. Tweak the system as you need, just throwing out a base for you! Hope it helps! The deal runs out Wednesday!


*Dell Inspiron 9200, P-M 2.1ghz 400mhz FSB, 1 GB Ram 333mhz, 17inch WSXGA+ Screen, 60gb 7200rpm HD, 128 ATI M Radeon 9700 (OC: 485/270), XP Pro SP2, Wifi + Bluetooth*

*Sony MDR-G74SL Headphones for music and gaming, best 40 dollar pair i have ever bought!*

 

Hey guys,
Thank you so much for all the help so far.
That system you put 2gthr looks sweet DMJ but I just have a few concerns:
I've heard a lot or rumblings about how poor the performance of the X300 is. Should I still get it anyway or was everyone complaining about how it ran more advanced games such as Doom and Half-life, not the sports games I'm talking about? Also, I've heard that the screen if it's not the highest (WUXGA i believe) then it's dim and doesnt look good. Is this true, and if so, would the games look bad on the comp? Also, I'm just clariffying, you're saying I would need the faster processor (1.86 as opposed to 1.6) and faster HD- is this essential to the proper running of programs/games, or is it just to make things run smoother (meaning it's not necessary but would be nice)?

Thanks so much all you guys!!
Can't wait to hear back from you!!!

~MSG

 

hey guys,
I just wanted to know if this was a good deal for me and would fit my needs:
-Inspiron 6000D Intel® Pentium® M Processor 730 (1.60GHz/2MB Cache/533MHz FSB) TM16DM [221-5486] 1
-Operating System Microsoft® Windows® XP Home WHXP [420-4766][463-2282][412-0689][420-4928][420-4830] 11
-Display 15.4 inch WXGA LCD Panel 15XGA [320-4266] 2
-Memory 512MB DDR2 SDRAM 2 Dimms 512MB2D [311-4739] 3
-Video Card 128MB DDR ATI's MOBILITY™ RADEON X300 PCI Express x16 Graphics 128ATI [320-3897] 6
-Hard Drive 40GB Hard Drive 40GB [341-2121] 8
-Network Card Integrated 10/100 Network Card and Modem INTNIC [430-0493] 13
-Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 6.0 ADOBER [430-1048] 15
-CD/DVD Drives Free Upgrade! 24X CD-RW/DVD Combo Drive with Sonic RecordNow 24XCDVP [463-7836][420-5111] 16
-Wireless Networking Cards Intel® PRO/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless (802.11 b/g, 54Mbps) IP2200 [430-1255] 19
-Productivity Software WordPerfect®, Powerful Word Processing ICOREL [412-0714] 22
-Security Software No Security Subscription NS [412-0755] 25
Digital Music Dell Jukebox - easy-to-use music player and CD burning software MMBASE [412-0741] 26
-Battery 6-cell Lithium Ion Battery (53 WHr) 6BAT [312-0277] 27
-Limited Warranty, Services and Support Options 1 Year Basic Mail-In Plan T111YRR [950-9057][950-3520][960-2780] 29
-Dial-Up Internet Access No ISP requested NISPFSS [461-3063][412-0670] 37
-Digital Imaging Paint Shop™ Pro® Studio trial, Photo Album™ Starter Edition DPS [412-0744] 38
-Mail- In Rebate None NONE [463-1832] 81
-Financial Software QuickBooks® Simple Start Special Edition (limted to 50 contacts) QBSSP [420-5136] 83
-Dell Media Experience Dell Media Experience™ DMX [412-0706] 115
-Purchase Intent Purchase is not intended for resale. NOT4SEL [462-4506] 138
TOTAL: $989.95

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Subtotal: $1,523.00
35% Off: -$533.05
Total: $989.95
Tax: $86.64
Total Price: $1,076.59

 

You should switch to the 9 cell.