Haswell for laptops - a few thoughts

So I was thinking, since I need a laptop...

If I'd wait ~2 months until Haswell shows up, great. But Haswell laptops would probably cost more than Ivy, especially if I want at the very least an i5. Sure they'd be more efficient, but the efficiency would add maybe extra half hour to the battery life under average use and the performance increment wouldn't be higher than 5% due to the efficiency trade-off.

The new laptops would mainly be costlier because of the supposedly 20-30% more efficient, which I wouldn't need unless I'd want to game on my laptop, but I game on my PC, so I don't need that.

Therefore, I'm leaning towards the "not worth the wait" option. I could probably save $100 a month after the release of Haswell on an older Ivy model, but waiting 3 months to save $100 is nonsense.

Looking for thoughts from more knowledgeable people than me about my logic.

Thanks.

P.S. Looking at Yoga 13 at the moment. No 1080p screen, but what the hell, it's 1600x900, decent hardware, flexible for touch-screen use.

 

Well, you could look at it this way:

Wait for Haswell laptops to come out. Likely, Ivy Bridge laptops will go on a discount. Shop around to see what offers are out there for "out-dated" laptops. Snag up a nice IB system for cheap.

 

Why would you want to smudge up a high rez (1080p) screen by constantly touching it???

The whole "touch-screen" thing started w/ very small mobile units (1st cell phones then tablets), based on their lame low rez screens.

This whole "touch-screen" thing impresses me as putting the cart in front of the horse for any real computer (i.e. desktop PC or true laptop).

Or perhaps it's more an indicator of just how many people truly hate PC's and laptops???

 

There are pros and cons to either approach. You may save yourself some money and use it towards upgrading an IB system after prices drop, or hold off for a Haswell system with better power management and slightly better CPU performance (but marginally better iGPU performance).

Or just buy now if you want immediate satisfaction, though - from a technical and monetary standpoint - you gain nothing.

 

Well put. People think it's "neat" and all. And for a tablet a necessity. But for a laptop with keyboard and decent tracking device (i.e. touchpad, mouse, etc) it just doesn't make sense. The small form factor had no keyboard, so they had to make it touchscreen to make it useful. Instead it's worked it's way up to laptops. Bah well, wish I still had my Palm PDA.

 

If you need a notebook computer now - buy it. (Period).

If you can wait until a Haswell computer is in your price range and at or above the performance level you want/need - then it is worth it even if you don't save any $$$ now.

Why? Because for a few short weeks wait, the computer will still be two year's more current than any SNB model you can buy now.

Don't underestimate the power of a current system/platform. It is not measured in the small percentage points that the new cpu is better then yesteryear's cpu (was).

It is about having the best available platform you can buy NOW.

$100 or more in your pocket will be a small consolation over the ownership (3-5 yrs) of the new system vs. the many small and some large benefits that the new platform will bring. Buy the most computer you can - while also buying the most current tech available - even if it means you need to use your old system a few weeks longer to allow the new platform to become available.

Hope this helps.

Good luck.

 

I recently bought an IB laptop, so I was thinking about this issue as well. Personally, I'd love to wait for a Haswell machine, and I would have only pulled the trigger on it after waiting if the added efficiency led to better battery life results. Unfortunately, as someone has mentioned, as laptops have gotten more efficient over the years, manufacturers have made them lighter by fitting them with lower capacity batteries, so it hasn't really improved all that much. Plus, battery technology isn't getting enough attention these days, which is shocking, considering how pretty much everything that is electronic and portable runs on them.

Mr. Mysterious

 

The problem with battery technology is that we're running in to the basic limits of chemistry (at least for li-ion batteries, possibly li-poly ones as well). So right now, the options that OEMs have for now is: 1) place a bigger battery in the machine (adds lots of weight), or 2) use more efficient computer parts to give the same battery life in a smaller battery as a bigger one of the past.

 

Yeah, hence the "not enough attention" comment. By that I mean that R&D should be focusing on battery technology, not processor and GPU tech.

Mr. Mysterious

 

For me the touchscreen on a laptop thrill wore off after just 5 mins of playing with one in Best Buy. Maybe that and I absolutely hated Windows 8. Supposedly they are made for each other. So I figured why put two things into a laptop that don't interest me? I could see using it on a Yoga or tablet hybrid, but that's it.

 

But is it really a problem that money alone can solve? From what I've heard, it would take a Nobel prize winning revolutionary breakthrough in chemistry to achieve significantly better battery life than what we have today.

 

Well, batteries are far from optimum when it comes to laptops and could definitely use some improvement. Many cells they use aren't maximum capacity for the volume. I'm sure it's to cut costs, as we wouldn't want to pay $200 for a battery, but then again, battery life is important at least offer a high capacity option. I like the slice batteries that are offered, but it does add to overall weight and cost.