Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
Well, I have bought a new laptop now. One of these in fact... Fujitsu Lifebook AH531 Laptop http://www.ebuyer.com/285962-fujitsu-lifebook-a530-laptop-vfy- a5300mrsa1gb (though mine is an Ex-display model, so ignore the price...) I'm pleased to report that it's a rather nice machine. Well packaged with a very nice monitor and good keyboard. The touchpad lacks a scroll facility, but otherwise it's very nice. As you might expect, it comes with more software than you really need, so I have spent most of the evening trimming the surplus windows software and getting Linux (Debian Squeeze) installed (which it now is). Two points of note on this; Firstly I was pleasantly surprised to see a disk-partitioning wizard as part of the windows setup, so reducing the windows system disk was easy. Secondly, I was less pleased to find out that the wired nic is by realtek and required a non-free bit of firmware which wasn't on the debian install cd. It is, however in the non-free repository, so you need to do a bit of package work to find it, and some old-school fiddling to install it. Once this was done, installation was reasonably smooth. I am yet to check out all the features under Linux, but I don't expect too many problems. I will post benchmark results tomorrow for anyone who's interested. Cheers, Tim B. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
Secondly, I was less pleased to find out that the wired nic is by realtek and required a non-free bit of firmware Which chipset is it? I've always had good results from Realtek wired stuff, and a very pleasant experience when I wanted to run a DVB chipset from them... Vic. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On 16 January 2012 23:22, Tim Brocklehurst t...@engineering.selfip.orgwrote: The touchpad lacks a scroll facility, but otherwise it's very nice. Really? That doesn't sound right, never seen a touchpad that cannot scroll. These days it tends to be two finger scrolling rather then the right side of the pad... though on linux this is configurable. On windows you may need some drivers to get it to work nicely though I thought windows has the side scrolling by default (though I haven't really used windows on a laptop in a while). -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Tuesday 17 January 2012 00:43:00 Michael Daffin wrote: On 16 January 2012 23:22, Tim Brocklehurst t...@engineering.selfip.orgwrote: The touchpad lacks a scroll facility, but otherwise it's very nice. Really? That doesn't sound right, never seen a touchpad that cannot scroll. These days it tends to be two finger scrolling rather then the right side of the pad... though on linux this is configurable. On windows you may need some drivers to get it to work nicely though I thought windows has the side scrolling by default (though I haven't really used windows on a laptop in a while). Ah, sorry, I was wrong, it does have scroll, it's just quite a way in from the edge of the pad. The realtek chipset is RTL8111/8168B PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet controller, and it is fine now that the full install is done. Anyway, benchmark results: You may remember from a previous post that the 2.4GHz P4 came in at an index of 447.3 The new laptop comes in at: 1 Concurrent1294.7 4 Concurrent3186.0 So all-in-all, quite a bit quicker! I have full results if anyone is interested. Cheers, Tim B -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
AMD A6 3400 vs, the Intel i5-2430 Well, The Toshiba is quad core @ 2.3 / 1.4GHz. 4MB cache (1MB per core) a Radeon 65xx series GPU. These tend to be pretty purdy, even my 5400 mobile GPU is quite nice. The ASUS is dual core, 4 threads per-core @2.4GHz can turbo upto 3GHz. It even supports enhanced features (on-die AES crypto accellerator), carries 3MB cache (1.5M per core) houses an nVidia GTX520M which are mouth watering. IMPO, i'd hit up the i5 (ASUS) - You will get far better load handling as you have more cache on this CPU as well as far better multi-threading per-core. Also, the ATI GPU (Toshiba) will most likely steal some of your RAM for the graphics. nVidia tend to ship theirs with it's own memory. Both these CPU's are rated 35W - so price-for-price, the i5 is more bang for your buck. happy hunting, Ian Yes, on further inspection it (www.tomshardware.com has a benchmark of some very similar kit) that the choice is between graphics and maths capability. The greater CPU performance of the i5 is very tempting, and the graphics capability is probably sufficient for what I want to do. I think I've swung to the i5 now, but the Toshiba I linked to doesn't have VGA out, so it'll have to be that CPU in a different box. More searching required, I think. Tim B. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Saturday 14 January 2012 10:09:44 t...@engineering.selfip.org wrote: AMD A6 3400 vs, the Intel i5-2430 Well, The Toshiba is quad core @ 2.3 / 1.4GHz. 4MB cache (1MB per core) a Radeon 65xx series GPU. These tend to be pretty purdy, even my 5400 mobile GPU is quite nice. The ASUS is dual core, 4 threads per-core @2.4GHz can turbo upto 3GHz. It even supports enhanced features (on-die AES crypto accellerator), carries 3MB cache (1.5M per core) houses an nVidia GTX520M which are mouth watering. IMPO, i'd hit up the i5 (ASUS) - You will get far better load handling as you have more cache on this CPU as well as far better multi-threading per-core. Also, the ATI GPU (Toshiba) will most likely steal some of your RAM for the graphics. nVidia tend to ship theirs with it's own memory. Both these CPU's are rated 35W - so price-for-price, the i5 is more bang for your buck. happy hunting, Ian Yes, on further inspection it (www.tomshardware.com has a benchmark of some very similar kit) that the choice is between graphics and maths capability. The greater CPU performance of the i5 is very tempting, and the graphics capability is probably sufficient for what I want to do. I think I've swung to the i5 now, but the Toshiba I linked to doesn't have VGA out, so it'll have to be that CPU in a different box. More searching required, I think. Tim B. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- I'm an AMD lover personally. But in this case, that i5 is by far better. If it was an i3... AMD! i5 i7's are beasts. Both the ATI and nVidia GPU's on those would be capable of CUDA (OpenCL) computing too, but the GTX would fold superior mathematically. Ian -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Jan 14, 2012 10:57 AM, Ian Grody l...@grody.me.uk wrote: On Saturday 14 January 2012 10:09:44 t...@engineering.selfip.org wrote: AMD A6 3400 vs, the Intel i5-2430 Well, The Toshiba is quad core @ 2.3 / 1.4GHz. 4MB cache (1MB per core) a Radeon 65xx series GPU. These tend to be pretty purdy, even my 5400 mobile GPU is quite nice. The ASUS is dual core, 4 threads per-core @2.4GHz can turbo upto 3GHz. It even supports enhanced features (on-die AES crypto accellerator), carries 3MB cache (1.5M per core) houses an nVidia GTX520M which are mouth watering. IMPO, i'd hit up the i5 (ASUS) - You will get far better load handling as you have more cache on this CPU as well as far better multi-threading per-core. Also, the ATI GPU (Toshiba) will most likely steal some of your RAM for the graphics. nVidia tend to ship theirs with it's own memory. Both these CPU's are rated 35W - so price-for-price, the i5 is more bang for your buck. happy hunting, Ian Yes, on further inspection it (www.tomshardware.com has a benchmark of some very similar kit) that the choice is between graphics and maths capability. The greater CPU performance of the i5 is very tempting, and the graphics capability is probably sufficient for what I want to do. I think I've swung to the i5 now, but the Toshiba I linked to doesn't have VGA out, so it'll have to be that CPU in a different box. If it has HDMI then you only need an adapter iirc. More searching required, I think. Tim B. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- I'm an AMD lover personally. But in this case, that i5 is by far better. If it was an i3... AMD! i5 i7's are beasts. Both the ATI and nVidia GPU's on those would be capable of CUDA (OpenCL) computing too, but the GTX would fold superior mathematically. Ian -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Fri, 13 Jan 2012 22:34:51 +, pet...@gmail.com said: It was late. Give me a break! Had enuf that night to sink a boat. I enjoy a drink as much as most other people, but I take responsibility for my actions. You, on the other hand, are asking others to make allowances for the fact that you were (presumably) under the influence of alcohol. What you should have written was: I'm very sorry if I offended anyone with my recent postings. It won't happen again. -- You can have everything in life you want if you help enough other people get what they want - Zig Ziglar. Who did you help today? -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On 14/01/12 18:35, Keith Edmunds wrote: On Fri, 13 Jan 2012 22:34:51 +, pet...@gmail.com said: It was late. Give me a break! Had enuf that night to sink a boat. I enjoy a drink as much as most other people, but I take responsibility for my actions. You, on the other hand, are asking others to make allowances for the fact that you were (presumably) under the influence of alcohol. What you should have written was: I'm very sorry if I offended anyone with my recent postings. It won't happen again. Utter bollocks maybe Keith, but hardly offensive. And, even if it was to some, they could have switched off or simply tuned to another channel, so to speak. Sean -- music, film, comics, books, rants and drivel: www.funkygibbins.me.uk -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Sat, 14 Jan 2012 18:46:37 +, s...@funkygibbins.me.uk said: Utter bollocks maybe Keith, but hardly offensive. Yes, fair comment. I would maintain that we all should take responsibility for what we say online, regardless of our self-imposed condition. I've made many acerbic, poorly-considered or incorrect statements on Hants LUG, but I don't think I've ever asked anyone else to cut me slack because the many and varied (some would say interesting) flaws in my character. -- You can have everything in life you want if you help enough other people get what they want - Zig Ziglar. Who did you help today? -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Saturday 14 January 2012 18:46:37 Sean Gibbins wrote: On 14/01/12 18:35, Keith Edmunds wrote: On Fri, 13 Jan 2012 22:34:51 +, pet...@gmail.com said: It was late. Give me a break! Had enuf that night to sink a boat. I enjoy a drink as much as most other people, but I take responsibility for my actions. You, on the other hand, are asking others to make allowances for the fact that you were (presumably) under the influence of alcohol. What you should have written was: I'm very sorry if I offended anyone with my recent postings. It won't happen again. Utter bollocks maybe Keith, but hardly offensive. And, even if it was to some, they could have switched off or simply tuned to another channel, so to speak. Sean I was minorly upset at being told to give him a break, on the grounds that he was drunk and therefore deserved sympathy. But as you say, the remedy is in my own hands. I have survived for well over half a century without ever giving someone a break because he or she was drunk. I can continue to survive. I can simply ignore Peter B.'s existence, and he can ignore mine. That way we should both be happy. Lisi -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
Now now ladies this is a LUG, not a whores handbag club :-P Sean Gibbins s...@funkygibbins.me.uk wrote: On 14/01/12 18:35, Keith Edmunds wrote: On Fri, 13 Jan 2012 22:34:51 +, pet...@gmail.com said: It was late. Give me a break! Had enuf that night to sink a boat. I enjoy a drink as much as most other people, but I take responsibility for my actions. You, on the other hand, are asking others to make allowances for the fact that you were (presumably) under the influence of alcohol. What you should have written was: I'm very sorry if I offended anyone with my recent postings. It won't happen again. Utter bollocks maybe Keith, but hardly offensive. And, even if it was to some, they could have switched off or simply tuned to another channel, so to speak. Sean -- music, film, comics, books, rants and drivel: www.funkygibbins.me.uk -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
For GMail users I recommend installing Mail Goggles from the GMail labs. Then you have to answer a few hard sums if you want to post after a certain time of the evening. Except that as my wife has observed, geeky people seem to be able to still do mental arithmetic even after they have had enough glasses to have kippered their social skills... now to exercise my 13 times table ;-) -- best regards, Victor Churchill, Bournemouth -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
Now now ladies this is a LUG, not a whores handbag club :-P Aw, crap. Am I in the wrong place again? Vic. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Jan 12, 2012 11:10 PM, alan c aecl...@candt.waitrose.com wrote: On 12/01/12 22:05, Samuel Penn wrote: On Thursday 12 January 2012 17:28:41 Paul Tansom wrote: On a related note, does anyone have any experience of the laptops sold by Novatech? I'm considering whether to use them for a no-OS installed laptop to put Linux on, so if anyone knows of hardware issues with any current ones, or build quality issues - or perhaps how easy it is to get replacement batteries for them when the time comes. I'm thinking along the same lines, but haven't been able to find any good information on how well Linux works with them. I did think of popping into their Reading branch last weekend to see if I could obtain any better info, but dropped the idea when I realised that they don't seem to have many Laptops in stock in Reading. I think they do have a good range at Reading why do you think otherwise? I have on two occasions informally discussed with the (manager?) at Reading the possibility of using a Ubuntu Live CD with agreement, to check what the laptops can do - or not. It is an occasional but repeating problem for me. Also I would be in principle be happy to post reports on to the novatech linux forum if and when it happens. On both occasions the guy (whoever) said ok in principle. I am a returning customer: they can see on their system. They would, I think be nervous unless one of their guys could be part of the action - I guess their bonus is at stake re damage, and retail can be a bloody affair including from customers. So trust and competence is relevant. They recommended I think a very quiet time such as a Monday (morning??) I have not had the need nor the time yet to try it but I look forward to when I can. There are other approaches. You see a laptop you like. You then tell the salesman that you will not buy it unless you can put a test cd/flash stick in to generate a hardware report. I don't think it would be too hard for the LUG to host an automated Linux compatible hardware list. You would send the report to the lug server, and it would report the hardware compatiblity in a human readable form. If it could also take input from mssysinfo xml reports, you would not even need a boot cd. The method for working out the compatiblity list would be scanning the Linux kernel drivers for pci ids. That will give a list of all supported pci devices. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
The older laptop now has cracked hinges If you can work out the manufacturer / model number, you can usually get hold of replacement hinges. Vic. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
I've just done a bit more searching, and whilst PC-World hasn't in the past been known for incredible value, they have just occasionally come up with something impressive: http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/hp-pavilion-g6-1220sa-15-6-laptop-charcoal-grey-11361479-pdt.html This is quicker than the previous two laptops (at least from the benchmarks I've seen, which as I suggested in the first post of this thread, may be anecdotal), but it's also £50 cheaper. I didn't see much from Novatech which were really exciting for the price, but I know people who have had success with them for business. So many options, Tim B. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Fri, 2012-01-13 at 09:23 +, Vic wrote: The older laptop now has cracked hinges If you can work out the manufacturer / model number, you can usually get hold of replacement hinges. They haven't actually failed yet, and the laptop is now quite old, so I may never worry about fixing it. I'll keep that in mind, though. A new battery would be more useful if that's feasible and cost-effective. Model number 259KI1. Googling suggests Uniwill and I quickly found some batteies at EURO 59 and UKP50, which is probably worth spending. I wouldn't get precious about it, though. IIRC it's a Celeron M single core, and by current standards very slow. It's main use now is on my boat as a navigation planner, and also to run Pianoteq, so I can have Yamaha and Steinway Grand pianos on board :-) I'll match your concertina and raise you an M3. :-D G. -- Gordon Scottwww.gscott.co.uk 01256-476547 0794-1958207 -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On 13/01/2012 09:23, Vic wrote: The older laptop now has cracked hinges If you can work out the manufacturer / model number, you can usually get hold of replacement hinges. And there are a bunch of us on here and on SurreyLUG who are part of http://tvrrug.org.uk/ Who would be prepared to print platic parts that are no longer available :-) Jacqui -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
AMD A6 3400 vs, the Intel i5-2430 Well, The Toshiba is quad core @ 2.3 / 1.4GHz. 4MB cache (1MB per core) a Radeon 65xx series GPU. These tend to be pretty purdy, even my 5400 mobile GPU is quite nice. The ASUS is dual core, 4 threads per-core @2.4GHz can turbo upto 3GHz. It even supports enhanced features (on-die AES crypto accellerator), carries 3MB cache (1.5M per core) houses an nVidia GTX520M which are mouth watering. IMPO, i'd hit up the i5 (ASUS) - You will get far better load handling as you have more cache on this CPU as well as far better multi-threading per-core. Also, the ATI GPU (Toshiba) will most likely steal some of your RAM for the graphics. nVidia tend to ship theirs with it's own memory. Both these CPU's are rated 35W - so price-for-price, the i5 is more bang for your buck. happy hunting, Ian On Wednesday 11 January 2012 22:24:38 Tim Brocklehurst wrote: Hi guys! I realise I haven't posted anything on the list for ages, and that most of you will think that's a good thing. However, I need a little help... For a while now I have thought that my 2.4GHz P4 has been a little underpowered, and was considering replacing it with a big desktop rig. However, I now find myself reasoning thus: I am going to be doing more mobile computing, presentations etc. A laptop is more useful for mobile development (ie. at LUG Meets). A laptop is still going to be several times faster than my current desktop. Unfortunately, I don't have limitless money. Consequently, I'm after the best bang for my buck, and here's the problem. Having identified two laptops (below) which look good, and are a sensible price, how does one choose between them when all the information available (benchmarks and user reviews) seem to be either sketchy or very similar (and sometimes wildly different for no adequately explored reason). Therefore, if anyone has either of these laptops, could you run the Byte benchmark for me, over 1,2,3 and 4 copies? If not, does anyone have any general advice? Toshiba L750D-14F (AMD A6-3400, 6GB Ram) http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.215-7397.aspx ASUS K53SC-SX307V (Intel Core i5-2430, 4GB RAM) http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.213-9815.aspx Byte Unix Benchmark v5.1.3 http://code.google.com/p/byte-unixbench/ For reference, Byte records the following speed indexes for my current machines (overall results): Copies/Threads 1 2 3 4 TS7550 - ARM9 SBC 15.6 Pentium 4 - 2.4GHz447.3 Intel Atom D525 (Server) 389.7 637.7 698.0 770.1 Yes, that does mean that my server is quicker than my desktop on well-threaded tasks for about 1/3 of the power consumption (educated guess). The TS7550 is an intentionally low-power system, so the low result is not surprising. Any help would be much appreciated, Tim B. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
It was late. Give me a break! Had enuf that night to sink a boat. I am sure a few can empathise at least Damn badgers On Jan 13, 2012 5:18 PM, hants...@googlemail.com wrote: On Wednesday 11 January 2012 22:54:50 Peter B. wrote: My main point is to trigger the thing in your head that made u say - Linux is the way. Outsourcing is good sometimes. Maybe a rent-a-box and run it fRom home solution. could b the key for u. Then u can turn that box into Wat u need. do Wat the hello u like and if all goes pear u can ask 4 a reboot. If u need links And in English??? Please, don't let's start to write on the list in Gobbledygook. Pretty please? Lisi -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
Hi Tim, One thing I have noticed from the Tesco pics, one laptop has what appears to be VGA out while the other has HDMI. I mention this if you are going to connect into someone's projector (for your presentations). Also, with amusement, Tesco indicate the Asus comes with 802.11b ! Bob. -- Bob Beattie Senior Technical Support Engineer Camera Development Systems, MP RD, Nokia Southwood, UK Tel : +44 (0)1252 866452 www.nokia.com -- -Original Message- From: hampshire-boun...@mailman.lug.org.uk [mailto:hampshire-boun...@mailman.lug.org.uk] On Behalf Of ext Tim Brocklehurst Sent: 11 January 2012 22:25 To: hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Subject: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop. Hi guys! I realise I haven't posted anything on the list for ages, and that most of you will think that's a good thing. However, I need a little help... For a while now I have thought that my 2.4GHz P4 has been a little underpowered, and was considering replacing it with a big desktop rig. However, I now find myself reasoning thus: I am going to be doing more mobile computing, presentations etc. A laptop is more useful for mobile development (ie. at LUG Meets). A laptop is still going to be several times faster than my current desktop. Unfortunately, I don't have limitless money. Consequently, I'm after the best bang for my buck, and here's the problem. Having identified two laptops (below) which look good, and are a sensible price, how does one choose between them when all the information available (benchmarks and user reviews) seem to be either sketchy or very similar (and sometimes wildly different for no adequately explored reason). Therefore, if anyone has either of these laptops, could you run the Byte benchmark for me, over 1,2,3 and 4 copies? If not, does anyone have any general advice? Toshiba L750D-14F (AMD A6-3400, 6GB Ram) http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.215-7397.aspx ASUS K53SC-SX307V (Intel Core i5-2430, 4GB RAM) http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.213-9815.aspx Byte Unix Benchmark v5.1.3 http://code.google.com/p/byte-unixbench/ For reference, Byte records the following speed indexes for my current machines (overall results): Copies/Threads 1 2 3 4 TS7550 - ARM9 SBC 15.6 Pentium 4 - 2.4GHz 447.3 Intel Atom D525 (Server)389.7 637.7 698.0 770.1 Yes, that does mean that my server is quicker than my desktop on well-threaded tasks for about 1/3 of the power consumption (educated guess). The TS7550 is an intentionally low-power system, so the low result is not surprising. Any help would be much appreciated, Tim B. -- OpenPilot - Open-source Marine Chart Plotter openDynamics - Open-source Vessel Motions Calculation Lead Developer http://openpilot.sourceforge.net http://opendynamics.engineering.selfip.org -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
One thing I have noticed from the Tesco pics, one laptop has what appears Also, with amusement, Tesco indicate the Asus comes with 802.11b ! Bob. Thanks, Bob, nice catch. The VGA output certainly swings the balance in favour of the Toshiba. I'm not too worried about wireless, It's a nice to have, but nothing that I'm going to lose any sleep over. The VGA port also allows a second monitor for on-desk use, so that is good. This will mostly replace my desktop for a few years, but not completely as I said in another post. Backup of data is no problem; and I'll only store what I'm actually working on on the laptop anyway. I am also considering swapping the HDD for a solid-state drive that I have, and a possible RAM upgrade, to take full advantage of the multi-channel memory bus, if it's not already fully utilised. However, these are minor changes that I'm used to making! Cheers, Tim B. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
For what it's worth, everyone I know who's bought either E-Systems or E-Machines branded kit (laptops and desktops) has had reliability troubles. Bargain bucket pricing means bargain bucket build quality. RC On 12 January 2012 02:18, Michael Daffin james1...@gmail.com wrote: These days I don't think it makes much difference, for general computing, which you go for... unless you have something that needs a more beefy computer (like gaming, image/video editing). But either way it mostly depends on what you want out of it. I will say that one of the most important things when deciding is what manufacture made it ^^ but both Toshiba and ASUS I have found very reliable. Also, think carefully about fully replacing your desktop entirely :) both have a 15 screen, which can be quite small if your use to larger and the keyboard and mice can get annoying for intense use (though this is down to personal preference, its just something to make note of). Personally I like having a very powerful desktop (which are generally have a better cost to performance ratio and easier to upgrade) and a low spec'd laptop for when I cannot use my desktop (which is quite often). One hidden advantage of not relying on a laptop is that its not a huge loss (assuming its all back up properly) when it gets damaged/lost/stolen, which laptops have a tendency to do more often then desktops. And as for benchmarking, it highly depends on what you want to do as different computer will come out top on different benchmarks... I find they are only useful if your looking at a particular aspect (ie you want to know how good it is for doing X and only really X). Just for comparison, I have a ASUS 1018p 10 netbook [1] as my mobile computer, and find it is capable of doing just about everything I need it to when away from my desktop. This includes programming and compiling, even running the occasional virtual machine. The only think I found it lacking in is its graphical capability which is more then made up for by it being small, light-weight and having large battery life. But then this is what I generally want I want from a laptop. But what ever you decide to do, make sure its if from a trusted manufacture, can do what you need it to and you cannot really go wrong :) Michael Daffin. [1] http://uk.asus.com/Eee/Eee_PC/Eee_PC_1018P/ -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- -- Rgds RC Robin Catling Full Circle Podcast -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
My wife had an eMachines PC many years ago that was very unstable - USB/sound only working periodically. Unsurprisingly in hindsight a few months later the PSU blew up and took out the motherboard, RAM and CPU with it. HDD survived, thankfully! I wouldn't trust them again after that. Benjie. On 12 Jan 2012, at 17:15, Full Circle Podcast wrote: For what it's worth, everyone I know who's bought either E-Systems or E-Machines branded kit (laptops and desktops) has had reliability troubles. Bargain bucket pricing means bargain bucket build quality. RC On 12 January 2012 02:18, Michael Daffin james1...@gmail.com wrote: These days I don't think it makes much difference, for general computing, which you go for... unless you have something that needs a more beefy computer (like gaming, image/video editing). But either way it mostly depends on what you want out of it. I will say that one of the most important things when deciding is what manufacture made it ^^ but both Toshiba and ASUS I have found very reliable. Also, think carefully about fully replacing your desktop entirely :) both have a 15 screen, which can be quite small if your use to larger and the keyboard and mice can get annoying for intense use (though this is down to personal preference, its just something to make note of). Personally I like having a very powerful desktop (which are generally have a better cost to performance ratio and easier to upgrade) and a low spec'd laptop for when I cannot use my desktop (which is quite often). One hidden advantage of not relying on a laptop is that its not a huge loss (assuming its all back up properly) when it gets damaged/lost/stolen, which laptops have a tendency to do more often then desktops. And as for benchmarking, it highly depends on what you want to do as different computer will come out top on different benchmarks... I find they are only useful if your looking at a particular aspect (ie you want to know how good it is for doing X and only really X). Just for comparison, I have a ASUS 1018p 10 netbook [1] as my mobile computer, and find it is capable of doing just about everything I need it to when away from my desktop. This includes programming and compiling, even running the occasional virtual machine. The only think I found it lacking in is its graphical capability which is more then made up for by it being small, light-weight and having large battery life. But then this is what I generally want I want from a laptop. But what ever you decide to do, make sure its if from a trusted manufacture, can do what you need it to and you cannot really go wrong :) Michael Daffin. [1] http://uk.asus.com/Eee/Eee_PC/Eee_PC_1018P/ -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- -- Rgds RC Robin Catling Full Circle Podcast -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
** Full Circle Podcast fullcirclepodc...@googlemail.com [2012-01-12 17:19]: For what it's worth, everyone I know who's bought either E-Systems or E-Machines branded kit (laptops and desktops) has had reliability troubles. Bargain bucket pricing means bargain bucket build quality. ** end quote [Full Circle Podcast] On a related note, does anyone have any experience of the laptops sold by Novatech? I'm considering whether to use them for a no-OS installed laptop to put Linux on, so if anyone knows of hardware issues with any current ones, or build quality issues - or perhaps how easy it is to get replacement batteries for them when the time comes. -- Paul Tansom | Aptanet Ltd. | http://www.aptanet.com/ | 023 9238 0001 == Registered in England | Company No: 4905028 | Registered Office: Crawford House, Hambledon Road, Denmead, Waterlooville, Hants, PO7 6NU -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On a related note, does anyone have any experience of the laptops sold by Novatech? I've got a couple in my repair pile. That's not sufficient to say anything meaningful, but I don't see any common problems (like I sometimes do with certain other manufacturers). build quality issues They're good enough. Not bomb-proof, but not especially fragile either (except that some of the top shells are a bit thin, so do not allow small children to stand on them). or perhaps how easy it is to get replacement batteries for them when the time comes. Dead easy - they're all Uniwill machines rebadged as Novatech. You can pick up very cheap batteries from eBay, as long as you don't mind them failing in short order... Vic. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
I had a Novatech Laptop a couple years ago, had a few problems during its life including having to send it back to get its screen fixed. It died completely after just over a year... my sister had the same model and it died sooner. It could have just been that one model, but either way I don't trust them any more when there are more reliable manufactures out there. But a spare battery was easy to get from Novatech but eBay is probably cheaper. On 12 January 2012 17:28, Paul Tansom p...@aptanet.com wrote: ** Full Circle Podcast fullcirclepodc...@googlemail.com [2012-01-12 17 :19]: For what it's worth, everyone I know who's bought either E-Systems or E-Machines branded kit (laptops and desktops) has had reliability troubles. Bargain bucket pricing means bargain bucket build quality. ** end quote [Full Circle Podcast] On a related note, does anyone have any experience of the laptops sold by Novatech? I'm considering whether to use them for a no-OS installed laptop to put Linux on, so if anyone knows of hardware issues with any current ones, or build quality issues - or perhaps how easy it is to get replacement batteries for them when the time comes. -- Paul Tansom | Aptanet Ltd. | http://www.aptanet.com/ | 023 9238 0001 == Registered in England | Company No: 4905028 | Registered Office: Crawford House, Hambledon Road, Denmead, Waterlooville, Hants, PO7 6NU -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Thursday 12 January 2012 17:28:41 Paul Tansom wrote: On a related note, does anyone have any experience of the laptops sold by Novatech? I'm considering whether to use them for a no-OS installed laptop to put Linux on, so if anyone knows of hardware issues with any current ones, or build quality issues - or perhaps how easy it is to get replacement batteries for them when the time comes. I'm thinking along the same lines, but haven't been able to find any good information on how well Linux works with them. I did think of popping into their Reading branch last weekend to see if I could obtain any better info, but dropped the idea when I realised that they don't seem to have many Laptops in stock in Reading. -- Be seeing you,Games: http://www.glendale.org.uk/ Sam. Posts: http://www.google.com/profiles/samuel.penn -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On 12/01/12 22:05, Samuel Penn wrote: On Thursday 12 January 2012 17:28:41 Paul Tansom wrote: On a related note, does anyone have any experience of the laptops sold by Novatech? I'm considering whether to use them for a no-OS installed laptop to put Linux on, so if anyone knows of hardware issues with any current ones, or build quality issues - or perhaps how easy it is to get replacement batteries for them when the time comes. I'm thinking along the same lines, but haven't been able to find any good information on how well Linux works with them. I did think of popping into their Reading branch last weekend to see if I could obtain any better info, but dropped the idea when I realised that they don't seem to have many Laptops in stock in Reading. I think they do have a good range at Reading why do you think otherwise? I have on two occasions informally discussed with the (manager?) at Reading the possibility of using a Ubuntu Live CD with agreement, to check what the laptops can do - or not. It is an occasional but repeating problem for me. Also I would be in principle be happy to post reports on to the novatech linux forum if and when it happens. On both occasions the guy (whoever) said ok in principle. I am a returning customer: they can see on their system. They would, I think be nervous unless one of their guys could be part of the action - I guess their bonus is at stake re damage, and retail can be a bloody affair including from customers. So trust and competence is relevant. They recommended I think a very quiet time such as a Monday (morning??) I have not had the need nor the time yet to try it but I look forward to when I can. One factor (a bit of putting at first) is that they all seem top wear MS logo T shirts, but I think writing a few notes on the back of your cheque book might also help. let us know? -- alan cocks Ubuntu user -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Thursday 12 January 2012 23:09:46 alan c wrote: On 12/01/12 22:05, Samuel Penn wrote: On Thursday 12 January 2012 17:28:41 Paul Tansom wrote: On a related note, does anyone have any experience of the laptops sold by Novatech? I'm considering whether to use them for a no-OS installed laptop to put Linux on, so if anyone knows of hardware issues with any current ones, or build quality issues - or perhaps how easy it is to get replacement batteries for them when the time comes. I'm thinking along the same lines, but haven't been able to find any good information on how well Linux works with them. I did think of popping into their Reading branch last weekend to see if I could obtain any better info, but dropped the idea when I realised that they don't seem to have many Laptops in stock in Reading. I think they do have a good range at Reading why do you think otherwise? Checking their website showed the 'instock' values for each store. Pretty much all the laptops I was interested in came up as only being instock at Portsmouth. -- Be seeing you,Games: http://www.glendale.org.uk/ Sam. Posts: http://www.google.com/profiles/samuel.penn -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
Pretty much all the laptops I was interested in came up as only being instock at Portsmouth. There is an active Novatech forum. Whilst there are a substantial number of idiots on it, there are also some very knowledgeable and helpful people. If you've got a specific question on Linux compatibility, I'd recommend a visit. Just be prepared for numpties... Vic. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
Consulting firm I did some work for ran a handful of Novatech laptops far longer than they or I thought was feasible for the spec or the money. Not bomb-proof but surprising nonetheless. On 12 January 2012 23:33, Vic l...@beer.org.uk wrote: Pretty much all the laptops I was interested in came up as only being instock at Portsmouth. There is an active Novatech forum. Whilst there are a substantial number of idiots on it, there are also some very knowledgeable and helpful people. If you've got a specific question on Linux compatibility, I'd recommend a visit. Just be prepared for numpties... Vic. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- -- Rgds RC Robin Catling Full Circle Podcast -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
[Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
Hi guys! I realise I haven't posted anything on the list for ages, and that most of you will think that's a good thing. However, I need a little help... For a while now I have thought that my 2.4GHz P4 has been a little underpowered, and was considering replacing it with a big desktop rig. However, I now find myself reasoning thus: I am going to be doing more mobile computing, presentations etc. A laptop is more useful for mobile development (ie. at LUG Meets). A laptop is still going to be several times faster than my current desktop. Unfortunately, I don't have limitless money. Consequently, I'm after the best bang for my buck, and here's the problem. Having identified two laptops (below) which look good, and are a sensible price, how does one choose between them when all the information available (benchmarks and user reviews) seem to be either sketchy or very similar (and sometimes wildly different for no adequately explored reason). Therefore, if anyone has either of these laptops, could you run the Byte benchmark for me, over 1,2,3 and 4 copies? If not, does anyone have any general advice? Toshiba L750D-14F (AMD A6-3400, 6GB Ram) http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.215-7397.aspx ASUS K53SC-SX307V (Intel Core i5-2430, 4GB RAM) http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.213-9815.aspx Byte Unix Benchmark v5.1.3 http://code.google.com/p/byte-unixbench/ For reference, Byte records the following speed indexes for my current machines (overall results): Copies/Threads 1 2 3 4 TS7550 - ARM9 SBC 15.6 Pentium 4 - 2.4GHz 447.3 Intel Atom D525 (Server)389.7 637.7 698.0 770.1 Yes, that does mean that my server is quicker than my desktop on well-threaded tasks for about 1/3 of the power consumption (educated guess). The TS7550 is an intentionally low-power system, so the low result is not surprising. Any help would be much appreciated, Tim B. -- OpenPilot - Open-source Marine Chart Plotter openDynamics - Open-source Vessel Motions Calculation Lead Developer http://openpilot.sourceforge.net http://opendynamics.engineering.selfip.org -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Wednesday 11 January 2012 22:34:41 Peter B. wrote: As someone had to say it. Make your own 1 Sorry if that doesn't help but if it doesn't y did u try Linux? No need to be sarcy :-). If I was looking for a desktop, I'd definitely build it, but here I'm trying to use the mass market to provide reliability at a reasonable cost. The idea of building a laptop doesn't fill me with joy, more of a cold dread; but I could be over-reacting. I use Linux for the same reason. Well tested reliable systems. The question is which to go for. Tim B. -- OpenPilot - Open-source Marine Chart Plotter openDynamics - Open-source Vessel Motions Calculation Lead Developer http://openpilot.sourceforge.net http://opendynamics.engineering.selfip.org -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
My main point is to trigger the thing in your head that made u say - Linux is the way. Outsourcing is good sometimes. Maybe a rent-a-box and run it fRom home solution. could b the key for u. Then u can turn that box into Wat u need. do Wat the hello u like and if all goes pear u can ask 4 a reboot. If u need links :-) Sorry not mean to b saucy On Jan 11, 2012 10:43 PM, Tim Brocklehurst t...@engineering.selfip.org wrote: On Wednesday 11 January 2012 22:34:41 Peter B. wrote: As someone had to say it. Make your own 1 Sorry if that doesn't help but if it doesn't y did u try Linux? No need to be sarcy :-). If I was looking for a desktop, I'd definitely build it, but here I'm trying to use the mass market to provide reliability at a reasonable cost. The idea of building a laptop doesn't fill me with joy, more of a cold dread; but I could be over-reacting. I use Linux for the same reason. Well tested reliable systems. The question is which to go for. Tim B. -- OpenPilot - Open-source Marine Chart Plotter openDynamics - Open-source Vessel Motions Calculation Lead Developer http://openpilot.sourceforge.net http://opendynamics.engineering.selfip.org -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk -- -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
My main point is to trigger the thing in your head that made u say - Linux is the way. Have you ever actually tried to build a laptop? DIY really isn't an option. Addressing your next paragraph is rather tricky; perhaps you'd like to give us old farts a break and try writing sentences? It does make comprehension easier. But I'll see if I can untangle your response... Outsourcing is good sometimes. Maybe a rent-a-box and run it fRom home solution. Outsource a laptop and run it from home? Rent a laptop? Where exactly do you expect to find such laptops for rent? Then u can turn that box into Wat u need. You've still overlooked the fact that getting hold of a laptop usually means buying a pre-packaged lump from a manufacturer. Whilst you *can* buy parts separately, they rarely go together... do Wat the hello u like and if all goes pear u can ask 4 a reboot. No, you've lost me there. I have no idea what you're trying to say. Vic. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
On Wednesday 11 January 2012 22:54:50 Peter B. wrote: My main point is to trigger the thing in your head that made u say - Linux is the way. Outsourcing is good sometimes. Maybe a rent-a-box and run it fRom home solution. could b the key for u. Then u can turn that box into Wat u need. do Wat the hello u like and if all goes pear u can ask 4 a reboot. If u need links Thank you, I know what I'm doing; and I know why I use Linux, why I use Windows, and why (in laptops and embedded systems) I buy hardware that someone else has tested. There is no one true way, just the best option for the job you're doing; at least for me. Incidentally, this laptop will be dual-booted, as I will need the Win7 capability. I'm just wondering if anyone has any objective data on the aforementioned machines; or similar alternatives. Renting isn't going to be cost-effective over what I'd expect the life of the laptop to be. I will look for a new (home-built) desktop in a few years, but it won't replace the laptop (in the same way that the laptop will only retire the current PC to light duties, I'm not going to bin it). Cheers, Tim B. -- OpenPilot - Open-source Marine Chart Plotter openDynamics - Open-source Vessel Motions Calculation Lead Developer http://openpilot.sourceforge.net http://opendynamics.engineering.selfip.org -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Help! I'm buying a laptop.
These days I don't think it makes much difference, for general computing, which you go for... unless you have something that needs a more beefy computer (like gaming, image/video editing). But either way it mostly depends on what you want out of it. I will say that one of the most important things when deciding is what manufacture made it ^^ but both Toshiba and ASUS I have found very reliable. Also, think carefully about fully replacing your desktop entirely :) both have a 15 screen, which can be quite small if your use to larger and the keyboard and mice can get annoying for intense use (though this is down to personal preference, its just something to make note of). Personally I like having a very powerful desktop (which are generally have a better cost to performance ratio and easier to upgrade) and a low spec'd laptop for when I cannot use my desktop (which is quite often). One hidden advantage of not relying on a laptop is that its not a huge loss (assuming its all back up properly) when it gets damaged/lost/stolen, which laptops have a tendency to do more often then desktops. And as for benchmarking, it highly depends on what you want to do as different computer will come out top on different benchmarks... I find they are only useful if your looking at a particular aspect (ie you want to know how good it is for doing X and only really X). Just for comparison, I have a ASUS 1018p 10 netbook [1] as my mobile computer, and find it is capable of doing just about everything I need it to when away from my desktop. This includes programming and compiling, even running the occasional virtual machine. The only think I found it lacking in is its graphical capability which is more then made up for by it being small, light-weight and having large battery life. But then this is what I generally want I want from a laptop. But what ever you decide to do, make sure its if from a trusted manufacture, can do what you need it to and you cannot really go wrong :) Michael Daffin. [1] http://uk.asus.com/Eee/Eee_PC/Eee_PC_1018P/ -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
