5320 Configuration

I was looking for a laptop around 1500 and the Sager 5320 seemed like a good match.

At discount laptops they have an SATA 40GB hardrive for $15 more. I don't know much about hard drives and was wondering if worth getting (regular 40GB drive has same rpm).

Any opinions? Also, thanks for all the reviews and posts. This site was a great help.

Here is my configuration so far:
15.4" TFT WSXGA+ (1680x1050) Active Matrix Display
1.86 Intel Pentium M (750) Processor (2 MB Cache, Sonoma)
256 MB GDDR3 ATi MOBILITY™ RADEON® X700 / 16x PCI-Express Graphics
1024 MB DDR2 SDRAM (533 MHz, PC-4200, Dual Channel) (2 x 512 MB)
40 GB Hard Drive (5400 RPM) SATA
8X DVD / 24X CDRW / 24X CD-ROM Combo Drive w/ Software
Integrated V.90/56K Modem (V.92 compliant)
Internal Intel 2915ABG 802.11a/b/g Wireless LAN
8-cell Smart Lithium Ion Battery
4-in-1 Flash Card Reader (SD/MMC/MS/MSPro)
10/100/1000BASE-TX Fast Ethernet on board\LAN Card
Embedded 1.3M-pixel Video Camera module
Ac Adapter w/ power cord included
Free Carry Case
Microsoft Windows XP-Home Installed, recovery CD included
1-year parts / 1-year labor warranty from Sager

 

i think its worth getting the sata, coz apparently that comes with a connector for connecting sata drives. so if you want to put in a bigger drive later you can go sata or pata depending on your choice without having to buy a converter for 25$
and you might want to get 1GB single stick ram instead of 2x512MB. helps for future upgrades. dont worry too much about dual channel. its not that big a deal.

 

I'd go for the SATA drive for $15. They are more efficent than Ultra ATA drives - not by a huge or perhaps not even noticable amount, but it is worth getting for that little money. Go for it.

I would go with the base RAM and then upgrade it yourself. A 1GB stick of DDR2 is about $65 on Newegg.com.

Everything else looks nice. Coolness! Nice choice.

 

Thanks for the replies guys. I am going to skip the dual channel and go with the base memory. Also, I'm going to go with the 80GB SATA drive. Two more questions since I am clueless.

1) Is there any problems with memory compatability? Do I need to get the same brand that Sager is using or can I just buy whatever as long as it is the right type?

2) Is it worth getting the 2.0 processor instead of the 1.86. It looks like the upgrade is the same as going from the 1.73 to 1.86 ($55). It is after the 2.0 that it starts getting expensive. I would be using it for all kinds of stuff (games, office apps, web, poker, etc)

Thanks again for the help.

 

You can buy whatever brand of RAM you want, just as long as it is DDR2-533 (PC4200), 200-pin. Crucial, Corsair, and Kingston are all have reliable memory.

If you are on a bit of a tight budget, I would just stick with the 1.86GHz. You wouldn't notice the difference between the two, unless you are doing mathematical programs or something like that. Personally, I would go for the 1.86GHz, then get a faster hard drive. That will do more for your performance than anything.