back up computer for z12

I have a z12, as a super road warrior, it has been amazing. I use it daily and rely on it for all of my studying. I have an important licensing exam coming up in about a year or so and do not have the time to allow sony to sit on my computer for months to fix it if, if a problem occurs.
Any idea what a good back up will be?

I am leaning towards the Toshiba Portege R705

Pluses

• Thin and light
• Cheap (vs a another z)

Minuses

• Not sure if I can go back to HD
• I will have to buy a whole new set of extra cords
• No built in verizion card (which is a big issue for me)
• No blue ray (I can live without this)

Buy another Z with 256 G and Verizon card
Pluses

• Thinner and lighter
• I can use my same cords
• Built in Verizon card

Neg

• Will be pricey (over 2k vs less than 1k)
• Supporting Sony's poor customer support even further!

Are there any other alternatives?
I can forgo a DVD/CD rom drive if there is a built in Verizon card but I prefer both.

 

Man you must have deep pockets...

For the case one day my Z or a SSD dies, I run background data backups regularly to my NAS (I use cygwin+rsync which is free, versatile and fast) so I can continue working on whatever computer I like. Once I get my Z replaced/repaired I just recover it from my clones, resync with my recent data backups and I am ready to go.

The most important reason I do that is, I got a Z11 with those ZIF SSDs which virtually are not able to be connected to another computer. Don't know if my RAID config would even be recognized by another computer for data rescue purposes.

 

LOL... no i wish this was the case. I have all my files backup up on carbonite encrypted server daily, but I dont have another computer to access those files if something occurs.

 

Thinkpad X200 is a roadwarrior but the problem with all Lenovo thinkpads... HORRIBLE screen resolution

It's got:
- full powered dual-core processors
- mobile broadband card (Gobi 2000, same as VPC-Z)
- good batt life
- pretty rugged
- Thinkpad genes

not:
- DVD/optical drive

 

VAIO X? Especially that 14 hours battery can come in handy. Should cost about $1000

 

Please stay away from X. Or at least go see it physically in store before buying it. Pick it up in your hand.

It's like made of paper. Squeaky paper.

Anyway, you should just stick with your current Z and go buy a new one if yours dies. Otherwise, it'd be a waste if your current Z doesn't have any problems, yet your second one would be collecting dust for $2000+.

 

Maybe just get a decent enough VAIO S ?

 

Maybe it is enough to get an older used thinkpad for 200 bucks which can go into your storage room. At least this is what I call a "backup system"

 

There is absolutely NO point in buying a backup-laptop.
Take care about backups and buy a new notebook when your Z stops to work. Stores are open 6days a week...

 

Thanks. I went with the Toshiba Protege. It think it will do fine as a back up. I decided against another Z due to cost.
Thank you all

 

Update... i purchased the Toshiba Protege from best buy. I am returning it bc the screen resolution is terrible (the z12 has spoiled me). My work necessitates that I have good screen resolution for images, reading etc and the Protege does not cut it.
My next option will be a Mac book pro (since it has an Nvidia chip). But the costs are approaching that of buying a base Z12 or 13, well once I put windows 7, buy word etc.
Anyone know of another, mobile computer with a good screen resolution, slim and portable, with a dvd drive?
Any thoughts on the VPCS131FM/S (at best buy)?

 

Seriously. Laptops are devaluing assets. Just go to the shop and pick up a new one if yours breaks.

If you are OCD about it though, buy a cheap craigslist computer for under $100, a netbook or a cheap desktop around for in case something happens over a weekend. At best, you could buy something interesting and that you can actually use as a second computer like a TabletPC, a home theater PC, or a gaming desktop. At least you will get your money's worth out of those.

The worst part about your plan as it currently stands if your Z does break you'll be stuck with a decently expensive computer (that you don't like much) and you'll STILL HAVE to go out and buy yourself a new Z or whatever is the latest and greatest, because you sound crazy enough to want a backup to the backup.

 

Why not get an older VGN-Z? that has good resolution... and cheaper than a VPC-Z

 

Good point... Where would be the best venue? Ebay?

 

Having a portable computer that displays my work well, for my all important licensing exam is a necessity, that is why I got the z12. Since all my study materials are stored on my z12, but backed up on an carbonites server, if something happens to it, I will have to scramble last minute to buy an laptop that fits my needs. Even if this process takes one day, given my lack of free time, that will be one day too many. I have to have a laptop that fits my needs readily at hand (meaning in my possession with all of my apps preloaded).
yes, I am OCD, but that is a good trait for a surgeon!

 

Ebay, Sony outlet, craigslist... wherever is cheapest i guess. It's actually up to you if you want it used w/o warranty or with warranty and the specs, etc.

 

OT, but I am in medical school... what exam has you so stressed out? My first VGN-Z was held up in warranty repairs for an upsetting amount of time (which coincidentally ended up in part being the reason Sony gave me a new VPC-Z13), the day I sent the laptop in I bought a tablet PC to take notes on in the mean time using MS OneNote. The ability to annotate my readings and consolidate all my books onto one machine helped my studying immensely. Having OneNote 2010 and its online syncing ability also made my notes automatically available on all my machines is a godsend. There is never any downtime when going from one computer to another and all machines are update within seconds of running OneNote. I guess my point is you should also look into using MS OneNote to sync your notes across machines and you should also use something like MS Live Mesh to sync your PDFs and eBooks across machines.