P7010, S6231 or (Gasp!) Dell 700m

Hi all,

First allow me to say thanks for this wonderful forum. I've been researching my notebook decision for a while and had it not been for this place, I'd probably have never considered Fujitsu or found out about PortableOne. So anyway here's my story. I recently changed jobs. At the old place, I was issued an IBM T40 and was pretty much allowed to use it for whatever I wanted as long as it didn't interfere with its primary purpose (work!). At the new company, I've got a Dell D600 (decent enough), but for reasons not really worth getting into, it would be a bit dicey to try to use it for personal use. I also had an old desktop at home that was starting to fail me (basically it was going to require a complete re-install of the operating system, plus, someof the drives were acting up). I initially started shopping for a "desktop replacement" notebook to do everything for me but quickly came to the conclusion that such a thing really doesn't exist in truly portable form. So, to make a long story short, I thought about how I might use said computer and decided that I wanted a nice image editing machine at home and needed portability more than graphics capability in the laptop (insert lecture about 2D/3D graphics and whether or not I really need any graphics capability at all for image editing here). So, I bit the bullet and I built up a very nice new desktop (AMD 3500+, lots of RAM, 256MB 6600 graphics, etc., etc.) and decided to get a truly portable, yet inexpensive laptop for my travels.

As for the notebook's use: I do digital underwater photography and tend to pack the notebook to remote places on long flights so smaller (and lighter!) is good. I took the old T40 to Indonesia last year and found it to be acceptably (but just barely) portable. I would like a notebook with which I can store lots of photos and process some of them in Photoshop with acceptable speed, though final processing will be done on the desktop at home because I like my color-callibrated monitor for color matching. I don't tend to do much (if any) gaming, though smooth DVD playback is desirable. I also need to be able to run OpenOffice (I left MS Office behind this time) and a few other applications, but nothing major as far as I can tell. I'd hate to call the notebook a glorified image bank but must reluctantly admit that it is a possibility. Finally, an internal DVD burner is a rquirement for backing up photo files. So, despite desiring a bit more screen resolution (I'd really like to get more than 1280x768 for image editing, but this is a compromise, right?), I think I've narrowed the choices down to this: Fujitsu P7010 (advantages, small, portable, media slot built in for my CF cards), Fujitsu S6231 (a bit larger than the P7010, but not any heavier or more expensive as far as I can tell), Dell 700m (before you laugh, have you seen the coupons lately? I can get a 700m spec'd out quite nicely for $1000 delivered if Dell revisits their $500-off coupon (likely) -- disadv: it ain't really all that light once you put a decent battery in it).

If you're still with me after all this rambling, I'd appreciate any thoughts you might have on my choices or something I may not have considered . . .

Thanks,

Mike

 

I adore the Fujitsu S6231, although I don't own it I have used it for a couple of months when doing a review. I'd buy it if it weren't for two things: No SXGA option and no pointing stick. And for these reasons I pay more for an IBM T40. But I don't travel a whole lot, and if I travelled more I'd look at the Fujitsu S6231 because it is wonderfully light and easy to take around, it's very stylish and if you configure it with a nice amount of RAM and 1.6GHz+ Pentium M processor then it'll go as fast as what your needs demand. Now, it doesn't have a dedicated graphics processor but I still think that's okay in your case. I'd take the S6231 over the 700m any day of the week, better build and nicer overall (I've used both by the way).

So I recommend the S6231 for you. Good luck, and boy your job and travelling sounds like a lot of fun!

DigitalCameraReview.com | BargainPDA.com | TabletPCReviewSpot.com

 

I agree with abaxter. The Dell is not even in the same league as far as display and build quality....that's why its $500 cheaper.
I own the S6321 and couldn't be happier. Two things that set it apart - the 13.3 inch CV screen, and portability. If you ever use your computer outside of a building (sounds like you do), you will want the CV screen. It is the best screen on the market. I purchased my S6231 at Fry's, and was able to compare all other "bright" screen variations to the CV to confirm this.
The 13.3 screen is the perfect size. Not too big, not too small.
The P7010 is a cute little machine...but I couldn't live with a 10.6 wide view screen. If you are doing stuff with photos, you will want the 13.3 screen. The difference in overall size and weight between the S6231 and P7010 is minimal.
Also, I really like the SD slot in the S6231, because SD is what my digital camera uses.

 

I absolutely love my S6231. I've had it for about 3 weeks and it grows on me more and more each day. I had a Dell 700m for one day. I sent it back because it felt cheap and the keyboard was pint-sized. I also had a Dell 600m for about a year and a half and the Fujitsu simply runs circles around it. Am I a compensated endorser for Fujitsu? No, but if they paid me to endorse their products, I would. [ ]