Cheapest place to configure a HEL80

Looking for specs of this

Intel T7200
1GB PC2-5300 RAM
100 GB 7200 RPM HDD
8x Dual Layer DVD-RW Drive
Intel Pro Wireless 3945ABG
Onboard Sound
No software installed

I was using powernotebook, but I end up with $1400, but no bluetooth or tv tuner

 

Be careful with this thread or fear the wrath of Chrisyano's mega-post on building your own system vs buying with a nice warranty. (had to poke at Chris, it's an old joke, but still good )

Anyways... No matter how you look at it, it's about the value for the money. I personally like powernotebooks because the people are real on the other end of the phone in more ways then one. The first is that they give you the info you need to know without trying to slant your choice to fatten their wallet, the second being that 24/7 domestic tech support. Their tech support is also very customer oriented and doesn't try to treat you like "What did you do to make it stop working". If you go with the powerpro you even get that nice 3 year cushy paid return policy, and I've known them to cross ship parts to make it right even faster. Donald also helps out here when he can on the forums.

That being said, there is also good stuff to be said about Justin at Xotic PC, and the guys over at Milestone. Again, they help out here when they can.

Looking at your rig I'd say you would be better off kicking down that processor a couple notches and getting yourself 2gb of ram instead. You won't notice the slower processor like you will notice the lack of ram in 99% of usage. Going off the 7200RPM drive and T7200 I'm assuming you plan to do some gaming, which the HEL80 is great at.. I'll say though that I game everything with my config just peachy as can be (see my sig). Something to consider is that with 2 gig's of ram you will use your swap / page file way less, which means the 7200rpm isn't helping you do much but load maps a few seconds faster. Last I checked no game played with high FPS at the resource loading screen

If you haven't figured this out by now, I'm suggesting you go with a good company to back your support if you need it, and maybe try shaving a little back in some less truly needed area's while upping your real-world performance. You might come out with the price you want.

Also, give Powernotebooks a call because they offer some phone order only deals.

I'll end this with the tried and true : You get what you pay for.

 

Yeah I was going to add another stick on my own since Ive seen a 1 GB stick on sale for like $68 and it would be cheaper....Ill suppose lll give them a call tomorrow

 

xoticpc has the cheapest HEL80 that i could find. not to mention their service is on par with pretty much anyone out there. so you save money without the expense of anything win win.

 

The barebone (1680 X 1050, 9cell, with multi dvd burner) at microexpress.net costs 729.00$ + shiping(30$). At newegg you can buy: t7200 - 300$, 1gb transcend(5300) 64$, seagate 100gb 7200 - 110$, shipping7.5$, intel 3945abg at ebay - 20$. So we have 760+482+20=1262$

 

I don't want to build it on my own......anyways...Xotic offers 2 things, a HEL60 model with my specs at $1350, while it also offers a Sager NP2080 with the same exact settings for $1280 shipped(though only one year warranty but 3 years for labour warranty....is the Sager NP2080 better? And how good is Xotic on warranty and everything compared to powernotebooks?

 

The Sager NP2080 is the Compal HEL80 just under a diffrent warranty. The Sager warranty is geared towards business people who need a diff/more comprensive warranty then us regular folk

Both Xoticpc and Powernotbook have great warrenty/ customer support from what i hear/read.

 

I have benefited from and much appreciated the attention and service offered by Justin at XoticPC. While I do not doubt the glowing reports of service of other resellers as indicated throughout these forums, my experience is with XoticPC, and it's been great so far. Check out their ratings and client comments at resellerratings.com.

The configuration that Pyro suggests you consider for the HEL80 is precisely what I am thinking through right now for a new notebook. I will keep watching this thread to see what you decide. Good luck!

 

http://www.resellerratings.com/topstores.pl

This link says it all about powernotebooks.com

 

yeah I was hoping to find my specs for $1300-$1325 total shipped...powernotebook will end me with my specs after shipping for $1400, $100 more than I want to spend....I can knock off $50 if I do the wire transfer, but then theres a fee with my bank so I still end up with a PC at $1375....meh Ill look around some more

they did offer free Artic Silver and free upgrade to second day air, but meh, Id rather have them know of the cost of those items from my final price

well if anyone knows a dealer that can do my price, Id be happy

 

Fee with your bank for what? Just go to your bank, withdraw $1350 in cash, take it to US Bank (powernotebooks bank) and deposit into their account for free. If your bank is charging you to withdraw your own money that is reason to find a new bank.

As for the price, you can see the cost of adding Artic Silver on their system configuration page, so just do the math yourself. you can also get shipping if you get far enough into the process. I think the second day shipping is around $45 for a HEL80.

 

It's not exactly the specs you outline in your opening post to this thread, but the following configuration comes to about $1320 at XoticPC as their Force 3295 (HEL80):

Core 2 Duo 1.66 2MB 677 FSB
15.4" WXGA Glossy
GeForce Go 7600 GPU
1GB DDR2 667 RAM (1 SODIMM)
Combo Dual Layer 8X DVDRW
Intel PRO Wireless 3945 a/b/g WiFi
60GB 7200
XP Home w/Vista coupon
Warranty: 3yr/3yr w/2-day ship ​

I bet you can come close to your exact configuration at somewhere around $1350-1375, at most.

 

For 1279.00 (Cash discount)

1.66ghz C2D
2048mb PC667
120gb 5400rpm (higher density platters will act faster then lower density, so it's real world performance is nearly the same as a smaller 7200rpm drive)
Dual layer optical
A/B/G Intel Wireless

Same system with 1.83ghz is $1327 Cash discounted.

I'm serious when I say you should consider this setup. Real world results will be almost identical -> marginally better depending on how much ram your needs have.

These systems have a lot of muscle to them, so no matter where you get it from I'd make sure you get some really good thermal paste installed to help make them stay as cool as possible.

 

Yep, I get the same configuration at $1277 cash discounted. For my own needs, though, I would want XP Home as an installed OS, which brings this configuration total to $1367 cash discounted. Amazing the differences individual items can make in the total costs of things. Add $37 for AS5 Thermal paste.

 

AS5 you can sometimes get as a free upgrade if you call PNB.

 

For the fee at the bank, it was for wiring money from my bank to their bank, Ive talked to the people at Xotic and unless I get the 1 year Sager warranty, I will be backordered for a week .

As for getting 1.83 Ghz instead, I plan to upgrade the memory on my own later....since dealing with the processor upgrades are more difficult.

Instead of getting the free AS5 and free 2nd air free...for AS5, umm Im not sure whats wrong with generic paste...and for shipping I could care less about ground vs 2nd day air, Id rather save the 70 dollars that come from using the AS5 and the 2nd day air.


As for Operating Systems, my college offers XP Pro 64 and 32 bit for $15, so Im getting pro from my school and installing KDE along with XP Pro

 

Nothing is wrong with generic paste,but if you haven't noticed from a number of threads these systems are a bit warm because of how powerful they are. That extra couple degree's cooler you run is nice to the hardware and your hands.

Again on the processor, you aren't going to feel a difference by upgrading it for just about anything you do, including gaming... So then leave the system with your 1gb and you can make the system even cheaper then I mentioned a few posts up by not upgrading it to a higher processor. Now you can afford it from powernotebooks, get the free upgrades, and stay under 1300.

Anyways, I've said what I can to help you out. Hope something works out for you.

 

Do either xoticpc or PNB negotiate (besides AS5 and shipping upgrade)? If so, how much do you think they will be able to discount?

 

This conversation is best had with them...

 

pyro has made some great comments in this thread. His suggestions run very much in line with what I would have posted myself. The vast majority of users overestimate the processing power that they actually need--and rarely max out what they do have (and I mean rarely).

As far as the extra $100 being a deal-breaker though...isn't it worth it to save a little bit to get everything the way you want it rather than making compromises on a relatively large purchase? This is going to be the system you'll be using for 2+ years...wouldn't coughing up a little extra money be worth it if you would be happier with the specs you want? Otherwise--cutting back as pyro mentioned would be a great way to save that money without losing much performance.

You would not notice the difference between the T7200 and the T5600. And unless you need to do a lot of CPU-intensive processes--the extra 2MB of L2 cache won't really do anything either.

That said, I personally would pony up for a T7200 were I buying a system right now--but that's just me. I don't mind paying a little extra for things like this. When budget's a concern--I recommend the T5500 or T5600 right now.

@pyro--and this isn't really a "Barebones vs. Pre-built" mega-post-worthy thread .

 

put my order through XoticPC, I got the specs I specified initially minus a wireless card Ill pick up on ebay....Initially my order came to like $1320ish and I ordered from XoticPC getting the free AS5 and 2nd day shipping....I then for some reason or another I went to PNBs and saw the exact same specs with similar servicing and free goodies for like $1310ish....both places after cash discount....

So I go online to cancel my order with XoticPC to save $10(Wire transfer costs me 22 bucks and neither sellers has their bank branch within 2 hours)....ended up the CSR matched the price and knocked off another $5...so I ended up paying only like $1305 for everything but the wireless...I was contemplating on getting the Everex listed in another board for $700...but I wanted a laptop that would last me 4+ years...and the Compal would seem to do it....

all-in-all, nice service from xoticpc....and my bank sucks for have a $22 wiring fee

also I got the T7200...cause Im the kind of guy that gets giddy/happy when I know I've got the greatest value as low as possible...thus buying my OS from my college, Wireless from ebay and RAM from an unknown source....im sure I could have done better but I wanted around $1300 to be my range...even though Im not really on a budget, im just cheap....

I plan to add in the Wireless card myself and another gig of ram later...

 

Congratulations on your purchase. Enjoy your new Compal and we hope to see you around here in the future.