Purchase now or wait for Vista?

I am planning on purchasing a T60 for college but I am unsure of whether or not I should wait til the release of Vista.

I already have a notebook which was purchased last October; it is a Toshiba Satellite with 100 GB of Ram and 100 GB of Hard Drive. It's fully functional and literally almost brand new. The only reasons why I want a new notebook is because it is a bit bulky to carry around and it also has poor battery life with a max of only 3 hours - both are very important to me, as I plan on taking my notebook with me to class.

With that said, what is stopping me are the facts that: Vista is coming out, the supposed price drops for notebooks, and the 32 bit processor that comes with the T60. What do you guys think? Should I buy one now and just upgrade later on or wait til Vistas are released? And if I wait, how long would I have to wait?

Thanks!

 

I'm going to be moving this thread to What Notebook Should I Buy, sorry for the confusion!

 

Get a Vista capable notebook, with dedicated graphics and at least 1 GB of RAM, then I think you're pretty much on the safe side. Core Duo or 64 bit recommended. But you definitely don't need to wait for Vista.

 

Given that no one knows when vista will be out...even MS cant put a date on it, waiting is not a good idea.....best off getting a notebook like kimizchamp said, ie one that at least meets the specs for vista ....ie dx9 dedicated gpu, and good recent cpu.
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What concerns me is the processor. It's 34 bit and I know that Vistas run on 64 bit - or at least the higher end. I'm not quite sure what version a college student would need but as of now XP Professional is required. And as far as I understand Lenovo isn't going to be switching to Core 2 anytime soon with the T60, considering it just came out.

You think 34 bit would become an issue later on? If I do purchase now I plan on getting a 2GHz with my processor.

 

32bit

Right now i don't even think 32/64bit is going to be a pressing point for maybe 2-3 years or more. Linux is just starting to become somewhat stable, but still has lots of issues with drivers and libraries in the 64bit distro's. Either system you choose will be still working 5-7 years from now at least unless it breaks or blows up ;

 

Haha. That's reassuring. Maybe I should set my Toshiba on fire, to cement my wavering commitment towards my T60. But if I do purchase the T60, it wouldn't be outdated in 4 years right? I'm hoping to have it last me throughout college. Haha. Hopefully.

 

I personally wouldn't base any decision strictly on the eventual, fabled emergence of Vista--especially a 64-bit version of that.

If you could wait until it gets too close for comfort to start of classes to see that Stepping B-2 (the production release) of Merom (Core 2) Duo isn't yet shipping to OEMs much less installed in ThinkPads, I'd probably go ahead and buy a T60. None of your school work is likely to be predicated on usage of a 64-bit mobile in the ensuing two years out at the very least, like fiend suggests.

It would be nice to have a 64-bit dual-core to play around with Linux and Solaris and BSD--but that's what desktops are for (if the mobile absolutely has to be ThinkPad).

If you're working for someone and have to set up a development framework to port the company's 32-bit apps to 64, that's when it becomes critical to have that self-purchased mobile capability. That kind of stuff all happened fairly quickly once 95 was released (a very big deal at the time)--but Pentiums had already been around for maybe 2 years. And of course the corporate porting doesn't happen a lot of times until they see that everyone else has it running for a few years without hitches.

If the time comes 3 or 4 years down the road that I need to get 64-bits portable, I'll sell the T60 I'm thinking about buying. In the meantime there's still too many 32-bit things to learn and do.

 

a T60 won't be much ligher than your Toshiba Satellite nor having 4+ hr battery life under normal use. or will it?

 

He didn't mention the model of Satellite he used so it's rather hard to tell on the weight issue and even the power issue. A 14" T60 throttled down for very minor tasks will last over 4 hrs on 6 cell I'd think....but if that is really a concern, I'd look at the X series with a 12" screen or get a 9 cell battery.

 

First, I am a "she". Haha. And I have a Satellite M45, it starts at 6 lbs. My father picked it out within a week, without researching the product, as he's a staunch believer in Toshiba's quality. And it's 15.4" screen, because in his opinion the bigger the better, when I had asked for a 14" so that it would be more portable. I think when he bought it, it was directed at what he wants in a notebook rather than what a college student needs. Because I definitely don't play any games or watch movies on my laptop.

And as for battery life, CNET says:

The Satellite M45's price, performance, and component strengths can't overcome its fatal flaw--deplorable battery life.

I could probably get an additional battery cell, except then it would just make the weight issue even worse. As for the X series, in my opinion anything with less than a 14" screen would strain the eyes and most likely have a cramped keyboard.

The reasons why I opted for the T60 is because of it's size and though it's a bit on the heavy side, it is still more reasonable than my current laptop. I am planning on carrying my notebook all over campus, so the lighter the better - but I don't want to go for cheaper and lesser quality either. And the one that I am looking at has everything I want. It's a preconfigured T60 designed for certain schools, with: 1 GB Ram, 80 GB Hard drive, 2 Ghz, Dual Core, ATI X1300 64 MB. For the price of $1588, which I hope is a reasonable price?

 

If you're referring to the T2600 (2.16GHz), it seems like a good price.

You can test price a somewhat similar configuration on the T60 customization page of lenovo.com, but their selection offers only a choice between the IGMA 950 and the Radeon X1400. Still you can get some idea of the rough $ difference between the two deals.

 

No, it's a T2500 (2 GHz). It is only available to the Education sector and certain schools, as is the Radeon X1300 64 MB. But with that, $1588 is still a solid deal is it not?

You think I should wait for the undoubted upcoming of a back-to-school-sale? I don't even know if it's possible to have additional discount on top of student discount.

 

I think student discount is it. But at least now the choice is probably between buying now, and maybe seeing what back-to-school looks like in a week or two.

Yeah, $1588 still looks like a deal.

 

I would stick with the student discount, that is a pretty good price for that laptop. I wouldn't expect to be able to combine any sale with the student discount. One thing I would check on, though, is the shipping date. Depending on the model, there might be several weeks wait, so you don't want to order too closely to school.

I carry my 14" t43 to class every day, and although it certainly isn't weightless, it doesn't bother me. It's pretty much like having another textbook in my bag. I also have a plastic placeholder (from IBM parts) that I keep in the optical bay to save some weight, since I almost never need my dvd burner while out.

If you are planning to use it for hours of class, I think the extra life of the 9-cell is worth the slight increase in weight. You could also bring your power cord if you need to use the computer throughout the day.

 

Don't wait for Vista, it sucks anyway. Don't listen to the hype. Microsoft pays bloggers to say good things about Vista. XP is just fine.

Whenever I go to Starbucks my old trusty T43 works just fine. I remind everybody using WIFI that I am indeed better than they are. At least my T43 is. I dread the day I cross paths with a new T60. I will feel so inferior. I may be forced to assault said T60. That day has not come yet.