Help me - zx5000-zd7000-R3000T-Ispiron 9100?

I need a new notebook for school....actually, mostly gaming

Im looking for the following specs for max of $1450:

-Pentium 4 3.0 HT or AMD64 3000+
-512RAM total (1 or 2 sticks - I'll upgrade later anyway)
-XP Pro
-40-60GB HD 4200RPM+
-128MB MR9600/9700 or nVidia Go5700
-Basic DVD/CDRW
-802.1b/g wireless

I found 4 notebooks that fit my specs, more or less

Pavilion zx5000 (MR 9600)- $1310 after student discount
Pavillion zd7000 (Go 5700) - $1425 after discount
Presario R3000T (MR 9600) - around $1290 after discount
Ispiron 9100 (MR 9700) - $1551

I am not sure if Dell has a student discount...do they?

I did some research and MR9600 and Go5700 are pretty equal, although nVidia's card is a little better. The MR 9700 kick's both asses by 30-35%.

-I like the zx5000 for it's price but the MR9600 is the downside
-R3000T looks even better than ZX but it's keyboard is crazy - large letters and too much contrast; again the MR 9600
-The zd7000's Go5700 is a little better, but it's $115 more.
-Inspiron's 9100 is ugly but has the best GPU...which bumps it to $1551

I'm leaning towards the zd7000 or zx5000, but I would gladly get the Ispiron 9100 if it was at least $100 cheaper - are there any discounts?

What do you think is the best deal and machine for gamin?

 

There is supposed to be a discount for Dell, however how you get it I don't know.

As for the machines your 9600 will do the trick fine and the zx5000 and R3000T are nearly identical except for differences in speakers (HP slightly better), chasis, touchpad, and button placement.

A warning about the 9100, many people complain about poor design esp. in reference to the keyboard. It is too high up, from what I've read almost an 1" high, thus causing a lot of problems with their wrists hurting. I don't know about you, but if I pay that much for a laptop, i'm not going to like suggestions of oh well just get a USB keyboard or just deal with it and have hurt wrists. The specs are very nice, but personally the price and poor design would turn me away, not too mention HP/Compaq seems to have better reliabilty.

zx5000 :: 2.4M :: 512 DDR :: 40gb 4200 RPM HD :: 15.4" :: Radeon 9600 Mobilty M10 :: Aquamark3 22,856

 

The Dell Student discount is located under their higher education section. Just follow the links and you should be able to get to it. The links eventually lead to their Member Purchase Program.

The discount usually runs between 5 and 8% of the total price, but it's directly tied to the "warranty plan" you purchase--more warranty time=greater discount.

I tried to configure a 9100 to your specs under the member purchase prgram and it ended up being about $150.00 more expensive than the price you listed. This was because the coupon code for 150 off isn't valid under the member puchase program--you can only use it in the "Dell home" area. I think this is why people get frustrated with Dell, the pricing is highly variable. Visit on day 1500, another 1700--surfers luck I guess--and I don't have it that's for sure[ ]

Hope this helps and best of luck with your decision.

 

You've pretty much described the eMachines M6800 series (64MB Radeon 9600, close enough). Buy the best one you can afford that Best Buy has on sale, probably the M6805 in your case. Go check the eMachines forum here first though.

I would say get a zv5000z like I have but they put in a GeForce 440 Go GPU. I've still got a cluestick beating waiting for the marketing weasle responsible for that decision.

The Athlon 64 is definitely the preferred gaming chip, doubly so when 64-bit WinXP is ready. I'm already playing 64-bit UT2004 under Linux.

The zd7000 is tempting though. I prefer nVidia to ATI (for Linux compatibility), and that 17" screen...

 

Due to current major issues with the eMatchines I wouldn't buy one, and I'm talking about a lot of peoples hinges cracking and breaking on their monitor.

http://www.notebookreview.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=3355

zx5000 :: 2.4M :: 512 DDR :: 40gb 4200 RPM HD :: 15.4" :: Radeon 9600 Mobilty M10 :: Aquamark3 22,856

 

Thanks for the responses.

I've narrowed it down to the zx5000 or R3000T. I will go to Circuit City to check out the cases...

BTW, I'll get a 256MB DDR and order a separate 512 stick online - cheaper than buying the 768 from HP..

Also, has anyone had any significant gaming limitaions with the MR9600 128MB?

 

i got the last revision of the zx5000 and thus have the 64mb 9600 and have been able to play every game i've tried. I do recommend that you use the omega drivers or at least the current catalyst drivers for best performance.

zx5000 :: 2.4M :: 512 DDR :: 40gb 4200 RPM HD :: 15.4" :: Radeon 9600 Mobilty M10 :: Aquamark3 22,856