A few HP questions.

This is my first laptop. I've been building my own systems since 1998 and really couldnt justify the purchase before. Laptops have more features, performance and a better price now so Im going to replace one of my desktops with the laptop. I was planning on getting an HP or Compaq but I have a few questions for the current owners.

I know mobile CPUs are different then the desktop versions Im used to dealing with so I was curious about speed and heat for the 2.8 Celeron, 2500+, 2600+, 2.4 P4. I guess Im most curious about the Celeron and the XP-M's. From what Ive read the 2.4GHz P4 would be a hot running CPU. How hot do the Celeron and XP-M's run? If this were a desktop system I wouldnt use the Celeron because of speed.... has anything changed in the mobile version?

Im looking at several screen sizes... 14", 15" and 15.4 depending on the model. Are there any differences in quality between the 14" and 15" screens that would cause me to pick one over the other?

Is there anything... quirks, praise.. I should know about the HP ZE4700/Compaq 2100z series? Its the one Im leaning toward now because of its size (1.6") and price ($824-924). I do plan to upgrade the HDD and memory with any laptop I choose.

The ZV5000z/R3000z is in the list as well but Ive read the thread so I have no questions about it. The final purchase will be based between it and another model.

Thanks for all the help

 

Sorry ... one last question. Do any of the HP or Compaq have a problem with Geil Golden dragon PC2700 or PC3200 SODIMMs? Would crucial be a better choice?

 

No matter what I wouldn't ever get a Celeron. They are slow and inefficent processors. The P4M and Centrino run relatively cool, whereas the P4 does require more power and generates more heat. I believe that the AthlonM will run fairly cool as well, probably equivealant to a P4M.

If your going to be watching dvds or using programs that have a lot of toolbars I think the 15.4" screen is really nice.

As for which model and specs it all depends on what you want to do with said machine. If you let us know this we can better guide you.

As for Geil memory I've never used it nor heard of any experience in laptops with it good/bad. I know a lot of people use crucial and are happy with it. It tends to be a few dollars more, but then it also seems to work more reliably and get along with more components.

zx5000 :: 2.4M :: 512 DDR :: 40gb 4200 RPM HD :: 15.4" :: Radeon 9600 Mobilty M10 :: Aquamark3 21,862

 

Thanks. I think im getting the ze4000 or 2100z now. So far its a 2600+, 256MB, 15" screen, dvd/cdrw. Im adding a 512MB stick of Adata or Crucial and a 60GB 16MB cache 5400rpm Toshiba.

Im still fighting with the A64 3200+ idea . I would love the 15.4 screen and the A64 power but to stay in budget Id have to drop to a 40GB Toshiba and only add 256MB more DDR unless I drop to the A64 3000+.

 

Our office has 2 nx9005 units that should be the same "chassis" as ze4000 or 2100z, so the components should be the same.

The 14" screen is very good, brighter and with higher contrast than many notebook displays, esp. the washed-out 12" iBook LCD. I can't imagine the 15" LCD to be much better in terms of quality (it may be worse due to a different supplier... I don't know). So maybe you can consider saving $50 for a slightly smaller screen.

 

Thank you for the help everyone. I think Ive made up my mind. Im going with a Compaq 2100z series...

2800+ /512 /40GB /54g wireless /15" /DVD-CDRW

Ill be upgrading the HDD later to something faster/bigger but other then that I think Ill be more then happy with this config. Again thanks for the help.

 

Congrats, it should works well for your needs.

zx5000 :: 2.4M :: 512 DDR :: 40gb 4200 RPM HD :: 15.4" :: Radeon 9600 Mobilty M10 :: Aquamark3 21,862

 

Havent changed my mind but my girlfriend is getting the R3000T model. While she was looking at the 3D view we noticed there is an expansion slot that reads ...

"1 type I/II/III PC card slot to add wireless or graphics cards or upload files from memory cards"

What exactly do they mean by graphics cards? Would this be like adding a PCI AGP to a desktop and would there be any reason to do this?

 

OK... changed my mind. My last question still applies though.

Problem with the 2100Z seris is lack of firewire. It has only two USB 1.1 slots. Im going with the R3000T now since its only $100 more and has 3x USB 2.0 and a firwire port. My plans for the laptop included my external DVDRW+/- firewire drive so its kind of important my laptop supports it...lol. Only decision to make now is mobile 2.4 or 2.8.

 

I was also looking at the R3000T and I ended up with the equivelant HP model because for the same specs it was ~50 cheaper.

For Cpu I went with 2.4 you wont really notice too much of a difference in the speed there and I didn't want to spend the extra money for minimal gain.

As far as PCMCIA slot i've never seen or heard of a graphics card for that, I think that perhaps that is a typo.

zx5000 :: 2.4M :: 512 DDR :: 40gb 4200 RPM HD :: 15.4" :: Radeon 9600 Mobilty M10 :: Aquamark3 21,862

 

Thanks. Well Ive changed my mind again. I might as well spend the money on dedicated graphics.

Im looking into the R3000T/zx5000 with the 9600 and the zv5000z with one of the A64's. Same config as the R3000T IGP except for the memory. Its cheaper to add another 256MB stick myself.

 

Sorry I missed your IM: but to answer your question I can run FarCry Splinter Cell and Counter-Strike with no problems so you can see it handles games fine. As for big programs, I can run Sonic-Foundry's Acid 3.0 with no problems, as well as Photoshop, Macromedia Studio 2004, Microsoft Office XP, Visio 2002, Netbeans and these are run fine, I'm not sure if this is what you meant by big apps, but this is what I have.

zx5000 :: 2.4M :: 512 DDR :: 40gb 4200 RPM HD :: 15.4" :: Radeon 9600 Mobilty M10 :: Aquamark3 21,862

 

Thats fine, I was in and out all day. I was mainly going to ask how you liked your CPU (which you answered) and if it would be worth the upgrade to a 2.8GHz. If its a small step forward Ill just save the cash. If its very noticable Ill go for it.

This would be easier with benchmarks or reviews like the desktop CPUs get but there really isnt much coverage of mobile CPU's out there.

 

Well, dont know how close the mobiles are to the desktop "B" cores but I went back into some older reviews at Tom's and heres what I came up with...

PCmark 2002
2.8 - 6965
2.4 - 5931

Sandra CPU
2.8 - 3678/7203
2.4 - 3148/6771

Sandra Multimedia
2.8 - 14220
2.4 - 12164

Sysmark 2002
2.8 - 273
2.4 - 251

(next 3 run with 9700 pro)

3DMark2001
2.8 - 15336
2.4 - 14448

UT2K3 (fps)
2.8 - 204.2
2.4 - 186.3

Comanche 4 (fps)
2.8 - 56.49
2.4 - 50.03

(next 2 in seconds, less is better)
MP3 maker platinum
2.8 - 83
2.4 - 96

mpeg2 rendering
2.8 - 256.4
2.4 - 295.6

Like I said... no clue how the mobile preforms against a desktop but if they are close then the extra $75 should be worth it.

 

Yeah, the 2.8 will give you some more performance, but I was trying to keep it right around 1000 and I thought that the 9600, and 12cell battery would be more useful.

zx5000 :: 2.4M :: 512 DDR :: 40gb 4200 RPM HD :: 15.4" :: Radeon 9600 Mobilty M10 :: Aquamark3 21,862