help!

Hi, i'm buying my first laptop and I don't know what I'm doing, it's kind of pathetic, really. I've come as far as customizing a studio 15 but I have some questions before I purchase.

Is it worth going for the 4GB? I heard somewhere that adobe photoshop doesn't work with that and I'm a photoshop fan.

What are the bluetooth benefits? Is there something great about it or is it frivilous?

Does is matter what model wifi card I go with? I figured I'd go with the wireless-N, as it's faster, but will it still be compatible everywhere?

Basically I'm looking for a fast computer. I generally have about 10 sites up at a time and I don't want to be waiting around for pages to open. I'm heading to college so I want mobility and all that. suggestions?

 

Welcome to the forums.

Worth the 4GB? not really, unless you plan on getting Vista 64-bit in the future, and even then you should just upgrade later, it'll be cheaper.

Bluetooth? it lets you connect to other bluetooth enabled devices (many phones have it) and transfer data, use the connected phone as a modem etc.

WiFi chipset? The 802.11n card will be compatible just as compatible as the g model, and from my experience the signal is a little stronger from it on g networks.

Suggestions? You might wanna look into getting something a little lighter if you are going to be moving it around a lot, the difference between 2kg and 2.7kg is surprisingly big, the XPS M1330 is a nice machine, but I guess it might be out of your price range.

 

Go for 4GB of RAM, Vista 32bit on mine uses 3581 and hopefully with future Service Pack it will use all 4. It's still better than 3GB

Do you have a blutooth device? Most cellular phones are bluetooth enabled, you can buy bluetooth wireless mouse + keyboard, etc.

Go for wireless-N. Better speed, longer range, WPA2 for protection, compatible with wireless-G wireless network.

Get at least the intel 8100 or 8300 for the processor, no need for the 9300 in your case. LED screen would be a nice addition for Photoshop.

I bought the Studio for my last year of University. It's as light as my friend 14" HP, runs cooler, quieter and way faster. Backlit keyboard will be a big bonus for when you're assisting a lecture with the lights turned off during the presentation.

 

If you're not going to use the bluetooth, don't bother getting it. You can always get it later if you need to (not internal though). It's possible for it to cause problems, and for example, with my studio it kept picking up headphones that didn't exist, and insisted I "reinstall the hardware" each time I turned on the computer.

Yes, go with the 4gig. Its just one less thing you have to upgrade, and only sets you back 50$. Speaking of which, make sure you buy your studio through this config (if you haven't already): http://configure.us.dell.com/dellst...n&s=dhs&cs=19&kc=features~laptops_great_deals

It'll save you around 400$ if you buy it by Aug 2nd. With the T8100 processor (I'd recommend it), 4gigs of ram, 320 gig hardrive, ATI card, and the wireless N, you're looking at $904.

 

Yeah the deal going on right now is amazing!!

Just make sure to click on the link in the post above mine to order it. The deal is not on the main Studio order pages.