Advice: Is this laptop any good?

http://www.staples.ca/ENG/Catalog/cat_sku.asp?webid=594871&CatIds=%2C&AffixedCode=WW

Any input is appreciated! thanks

 

If you are going to leave it on your desk, it will be fine. It is a Pentium 4, so it will run hot. It has an integrated video card, so gaming is out. Good Luck.






I know things, things that could get me killed


Thinkpad T41:
* 1.6Ghz Pentium M * 768Mb Memory * 40Gb Hitachi 7200RPM * Panasonic UJ-845-B DVD+RW *

 

Would i get any gaming off it??

 

Not really a gaming person. Some games will probably run on lower levels.





I know things, things that could get me killed


Thinkpad T41:
* 1.6Ghz Pentium M * 768Mb Memory * 40Gb Hitachi 7200RPM * Panasonic UJ-845-B DVD+RW *

 

- Yep, this laptop is a brick to carry (8 pounds plus the charger which is just under 1 pound, depending on the type of person you are, it can be a BIG burden to carry around), and it'll probably run very hot, like zazonz said. Read: probably not very good to use on your lap, so the Lap in LapTop is nowadays often a lie

- As for games, older ones (1 or 2 years ago) will run fine, newer ones, perhaps no really great, but perhaps acceptably at low settings. It's still a better choice than an Intel Extreme.

- However, for a desktop replacement, it'd do fine. You have a full fledged DVD burner, except it doesn't have the newer Dual Layer capabilities if it's any important to you. The P4 will give you great performance.

- The screen is of the glare type, you'll get some reflections in low light and dark conditions, but in sunshine you're actually able to read it. If it's the same type as my M40, I can tell you the screne is gorgeous. But it'd be of the 18bits type (some dithering is present, but barely noticeable for someone not used to notice this).

- The hard drive is 4200rpm, but if you keep your disk tidy and defrag'd it won't bother you.

- The built-in card reader has newer formats checked in, that's good for most people, except those who still use CompactFlash for example, but for someone like me the inclusion of xD format is really interesting.

- One thing to note though, Toshiba only seems to include a recovery CD for their machines, so no original XP disc, I find that pretty unacceptable, as you're forced to have another copy if you want to do a custom reinstall.

- I can't tell about warranty, not used it yet.

- I think the keyboard on this model is the same as mine, so I can say it's good, it has a nice feel, but a very little amount of flex is still present, but keys respond well enough.

That's about it, hope it helps.

Toshiba Satellite M40 - Pentium-M Sonoma 1.6ghz - 512mb DDR333 - 60gb 4200rpm - GeForce 6600 128mb - 15.4" BrightView WXGA TFT LCD

 

I've had this computer for seven months and it's been phenomenal.

I'm constantly reading about a static problem that effects the A70 (causing spontaneous shutdowns), but I've never experienced it. Truth be told I would inquire with a salesperson at Staples to see if the static problem has been resolved in this particular model.

This is a desktop replacement so:

- it is quite heavy but that's the price you pay for a huge screen.
- it's a desktop processor so it will eat up the battery very quickly
- as far as notebook heating problems go this computer is a light weight. I leave it on all day long and it's never gotten uncomfortably hot. In comparison to the Dells that will burn you hand if you lay it down while typing these are as cool as a fall breeze....

It is an integrated video card but if you up the RAM you can up the video to 128MB and as far as video cards go it is one of the better ones on a reasonably priced notebook.

Inevitable cons:

- the soundcard (just like every notebook)
- there is very, very little you can change in the BIOS (just like *almost* every notebook) so I'd highly recommended setting you computer us as a "Standard PC" not "ACPI" so you can do things like manually assign IRQs,etc.

If you want a computer that is portable BUT you don't plan on carrying around town every day this is damn good for the price.

The true test of a computer is if you'd buy it again six months later and I would definitely but it again.




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