Which Notebook should i get?

I am kind of a Vaio fanboy, so don't suggest that i should get a sager, or other ****y notebooks.

Anyway, im mainly gonna use it for surfin the web, school work (not gonna take it to school) playin some games (Counter Strike 1.6) a 7 year old game + Fifa 09, PES 09, the Sims & Spore.

Looks are very important but functionality is even more important. i don't want somethin that noisy/loud and certainly not one that runs toooo hot.

My budget is around 1500$, but i rather it didn't go alot over 1000k.

Ive looked at both the CS & FW notebooks, and they both look awsome... im gonna try to have a closer look somewhere around a sony style shop, hopefully that`ll help me decide.

i have never had a 14 inch notebook, are they anygood?

anyway, which 1 should i get, and with which config?

 

VAIO CS lol... Integrated graphics and no HDMI.

 

I susopect the previous post ist very much to the point.
If you want to do some gaming a dedicated GPU would be a good idea (its not essential, its possible ot do so without, I played Empire Earth on an old integrated chipset) but a dedicated one definitely makes a difference.

I suppose in that respect you'll limit yourself to the FW which is a 16,4" as far as I'm aware.

 

Vaio SR for $1265 with HD3470 and HDMI
http://www.futurepowerpc.com/scripts/product.asp?PRDCODE=NOSO-SR129EB&REFID=FR

FW is good too, but it's not made for portability.

 

True - an excelen suggestion by our moderator.

 

Dont you get a Z serie for 1500$ in USA?

 

As you can see in the upper left corner Vaio Z starts at $1322. But that's a dressed down model.

 

Still...carbon fiber, hybrid gpu...

It does have 9300 and HDMI.

 

An FW with decent enough specs shouldn't cost you more than about $1300 all in. Sonystyle are doing a promo on hard drive and RAM upgrades at the moment.

 

OP's not planning on moving the Laptop, so I'd say FW is the best choice.

 

k, thx guys..

i have configured both of em & heres wat i got..



VGN-CS190 Configure-to-Order
VGN-CS190
Customization Details

* Microsoft® Windows Vista® Business 32-bit with Service Pack 1
* 3 GB DDR2-SDRAM (DDR2-800, 2GB+1GB) [Regular price $50]
* Standard Battery
* No Engraving
* None
* None
* DVD±R DL / DVD±RW / DVD-RAM Drive
* 250 GB SATA Hard Disk Drive [5400 rpm] [Regular price $50]
* LCD 14.1" WXGA+ (XBRITE-ECO™ with integrated video camera
* None
* Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T5800 (2.0GHz)
* Microsoft® Works
* Fresh Start
* WLAN (802.11a/b/g/n) with integrated Bluetooth® technology
* Glossy Black

for 960$ (b4 tax)

or




VGN-FW290 Configure-to-Order
VGN-FW290
Customization Details

* No Engraving
* Standard Battery
* None
* WLAN (802.11a/b/g/n) with integrated Bluetooth® technology
* ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 3650 with 512MB vRAM
* Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T5800 (2.0GHz)
* None
* DVD±R DL / DVD±RW / DVD-RAM Drive
* None
* Black
* Microsoft® Windows Vista® Business 32-bit with Service Pack 1
* 3 GB DDR2-SDRAM (DDR2-800, 2GB+1GB) [Regular price $50]
* Microsoft® Works
* LCD 16.4" (XBRITE-FullHD™
* Fresh Start™
* 320 GB SATA Hard Disk Drive [5400 rpm] [Regular price $90]
* None

for 1185$ (b4 tax).

*i can get 50$ off both prices if i get another version of vista (i only got the Business 1 so that i can chose the clean install (no crapware).

1.is the ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 3650 with 512MB vRAM any good? which games can/cant it play?

2.both fit in the budget so which 1 should i get? and should i upgarde anythin else on it?

3.is the T9400 worth an extra 300$?

4.i like the CS a tad bit more for some reason ... as some mentioned above, it has integrated graphics, does that mean it wont play any (lets say 2005+) games?

Edit:

Free shipping!(yay!)

 

When did Empire Earth 2 come out? I think I played that on an Intel 915 Chipset - it just about worked.

Now - Age of Empires 3 - you notice a difference between the Intel X3100 and the NVidia 8400GS - even though I beleive their benchmarks are close.

So unless you know you'll stop playing games I'd recommend the dedicated one.
Also - your 2005 game can differ significantly - one works, one doesn't.

I think you'll have to name some games for peopl to tell you that.

 

FW with P8400 or P8600. Should be about 100-150 more. No need for T9400...ATI HD3650 is very good for what you need.

 

FW all the way. Better screen, HDMI, better GPU.

CS looks very good especially the white and black one, other than that it's a disappointing laptop in my opinion. Way to heavy for a 14".

 

I'm thinking about playing Counter Strike 1.6, PES 2008 & Fifa 08 (and the newer 1s, 09, 10, (when they come out).

Are there alot of improvements over the T5800? and how good is the ATI HD3650

Yeah, it looks awesome, anyway HDMI isn`t a must for me (dont no y ppl think its a must), i have a HDTV, I connect my dell mini 9 to it every now and then (through vga), and the screen looks crisp and awsom, i don`t think HDMI would be a huge improvement over the VGA, or is it?

I don't care about weight, its the last thing on my mind. The only problem is the games i can play on it ...

 

I think in actual fact HDMI is a significan't improvement as you can get close to double the resolution looking at ppi.

Question is - do need it? Will you see it.

I can't be bothered by all the Blue Ray and HD stuff - I've got a DVD with the film at 800*600 - looked fine on a 1024*768 screen to me...

 

If games are really your thing and you want a Sony, I'd definitely say go for the FW over the CS. (Just saying, since gaming is your goal and portability don't matter, there are other brands that are worth exploring, but if you know you want a Sony, I'd surely recommend the FW over CS. Then again, I must admit I find the CS incredibly cheesy, nothing special, and flashy in a cheap way.)

When considering final prices, keep in mind the student discount of 10% off, it's very easy to sign up for on the sonystyle website.

 

yeah, i downloaded a DVD last night & played it on my HDTV through the mini 9, the quality was so awesome that i don't think it could get any better.

Gaming isnt really my thing, i only play CS (counter strike 1.6, the old 1) and PES & Fifa (soccer games), + spore, & wow.

Will the CS be able to play em?

and what other brands are worth exploring? Dell are takin 4ever to get the new XPS notebooks out, apple are apple, alienware are plastic toys, samsung & panasonic make the worst laptops, lenovo thinkpads are for businessmen/retards & zepto`s build quality isn`t that good (correct me if im wrong on that).

so which other brands should i look into?

 

Ehm - I think you shouldn't insult Lenovo users!
Please consider that theirs are amongst the most reliable laptops around and that they have good specs.

In fact, when I was looking at a laptop for me I looked at Lenovo too, but I got so focused on the little SZ that in the end I got the SZ.
(Checked around around the time of the SZ2/3 sereis... got an SZ7 nowadays)

 

If you decide to order the FW there's a 200$ coupon available for BlackFriday.
BAD NEWS: configuring an FW right now on sonystyle you can only choose 2GB of RAM and the standard 160GB 5400rpm HDD as everything else is out of stock.

Use code BLACKFRIDAYVAIOFW to save $200 off the Sony VAIO FW 15.4" screen notebook at SonyStyle.com Coupon expires November 28th. FREE Shipping!

 

I did say it was just my opinion. Your opinion is what matters most, no doubt about that. And remember, even if you go for the CS you want and your games don't perform ... you can take advantage of Sony's return period and not be stuck with it.

Re: gaming ... forget semantics, you keep worrying about game performance so that's what I am referring to, the fact that you seem most concerned with how well your new laptop will play your games, you keep saying so yourself. If that were my big concern, I'm just giving the input that I feel the FW would be my choice between the two. Like Phil mentioned also, the better screen + HDMI would be a huge plus, and the difference in graphics card is a no-brainer to me.

Re: brands, the what notebook to buy forum here is quite helpful. You can answer the questionnaire with specifics about your wants/needs. I don't mean to push you away from Sony or anything, if you're kind of a Sony fanboy (or just a every-other-ban antifan) I could care less ... I just like to urge others to do good research on their own. Personally, I'm all for specifically researching your needs and comparing/contrasting the notebooks that seem to match them. But then, I'm not hugely repulsed by any brand, I tend to more so consider model-specific information/reviews.

 

alright, thx.

there is a 200$ coupon, would i be able to add the 10%student discount ontop of it? and how can i get the student discount?

i`m gonna try and get the TT (from the pink friday thingy), i probably won`t, but i`ll still give it a try. If i couldn`t & it turns out that i can stack the 200$ & student discounts, im gonna buy the notebook 2morrow. (coupon expires after friday).

I really really really like the CS, but if it`s not gonna play any games at all then there is no point in getting it.

I`ll get the CS if it plays Counter Strike, Spore & WoW (Does any1 know whether it can play them?).
If not then i`m gonna go with the FW. Then again if the coupons don't stack then i might just wait a bit more to see what dell are coming out with.

 

Go with the CS if you like it so much, it's better to love your notebook. Like I said, if it doesn't work out you can always return pretty easily. Or ask first on the hardware board? List the integrated graphics specifications and ask if they know if it'd handle your games.

 

Yes, the coupon is stackable. (you can't add the coupon with the 100 off deal they have going on right now tho but as long as it's just the student discount and the $200 off, you should be fine). If want to game, don't get the cs...period. The FW with 512vram+1080p screen+2.4ghz processor-10% student discount came down to $1087 for me. With the $200 black friday code, I think it's a steal. In the end it's up to you though.

 

$795 (inc. tax & shipping) for the CS, or $1090 (inc. tax & shipping) for the FW. Both of em are awsome deals.

As I said b4, I really like the CS. I love the FW 2, but the CS looks super awsome . Best looking thing I`ve ever seen. + the FW is kinda huge.

1.will it play Counter Strike, Spore & Wow? (these are the only games i play/will play for a while).

2.I have a dell mini 9 netbook, and it plays em. So the CS should be able to play them right?

if not then i`ll go ahead and get the FW.

3.If i wanna return it, do i have to pay any fees? (restocking, shipping?).

4.and how can i get the student discount?


thx..

 

well...if your dell mini can play those games you want, then the cs should be fine. As for returning your laptop with sonystyle.com, as long as you still have all the packaging that came with your laptop and you didn't damage it, you can return it without a restocking fee (you have to pay shipping though...it's like only $20 with insurance).

And the student discount, just follow the steps on their website from the banner "sony campus deal". (if you already knew that but couldn't complete the process-->you needed the pin. It's a little confusing but it is located on the right from the "Pin:" category...something like "sonycampusdeal").

 

thx..

i submitted the info, but i cant see the discounts.. when are they applied?

and will the CS be able to play the games that the mini plays at higher settings or the same settings?

and which processor should i get?

(im gonna get the CS, and i guess if i don`t like it i`ll just return it & get the FW). would i be able to get the 200$ off from the FW if i tell em my/the story? (that i couldn't decide which 1 to get so i tried the CS 1st?)