Miscellaneous laptop discussions forum: Laptop Decisions -- Dell, Compaq/HP, or . . . Dell?

You have not read many posts on this forum or you would know that the Compaq X1000 series and the HPZT3000 series are the same notebook internally (the HP is all black inside with a silver touchpad and the Compaq is silver on the lower keyboard deck inside with a black touchpad). I have a Compaq X1360US prebuilt and I am very happy with it but I highly recommend you order at hpshopping.com to get the customized notebook you want at the best price. See X1000forums.com for all the information you need on specs and all the discounts available ($100 custom order rebate good through 12/1/04, 3% fatcash portal rebate, current coupon codes, 6% student APP discount, 12% qualified employer EPP discount, etc.

You should get the 5400rpm hard drive 60gb (very little cost over 4200rpm and much faster), 64mb dedicated video RAM (maximum), the Briteview XGA display 15.4", 256mb RAM 1 stick if you want to go to 768mb RAM (order 512mb PC2700 RAM yourself later for under $100 or order 512mb RAM 1 stick if you want to go to 1gb), CD-RW/DVD ROM or multiformat DVD burner options (many store prebuilt models only have DVD+ burners, etc).

The Dell 700M is pricey and unless you will be on an airplane alot the 12.1" LCD is not ideal for everyday use.

The Dell 600M has a lower Cnet rating (mid 7's) then the HPZT3000/Compaq X1000 (8.0 and 8.1) and Dell 8600 (good rating for specs but heavier, subpar keyboard and subpar case construction) as the 600M has heat issues around the left side of the touchpad as the harddrive is under there.

Order the Pentium M 725 Dothan as that is the lowest offered with the full 2mb L2 system cache.

I appreciate X1000forums.com as it gives you posts everyday for users of the 2 notebooks as well as the business HPnx7000 model.

The HPZT3000/Compaq X1000 is 6.5 pounds and will get 3.5-4 hours of battery life with the built in wi-fi (get any 54G router and it will work great) and up to 5 hours not using wi-fi (more battery life with LCD brightness not turned down, using touchpad instead of external optical USB mouse, etc.

If you want a lighter notebook (and don't require the dedicated video RAM --make sure you don't need it -- you can't go back later) --look at the 14" widescreen HP DV1000 series (just out in September) that is 5.3 pounds and has the same Briteview XGA and Pentium M processor options but has only shared video memory. It does, however, have CD and DVD playing capability with the computer operating system off which means instant on like a consumer DVD player and you get longer battery life. It also has a remote built into the PCcard slot and 2 headphone jacks in the front.

Both of these models can be bought in the $1000 - $1500 range depending on options and whether or not you need a DVD burner over a CD-RW/DVD ROM (about $200 more) -- see hpshopping.com

I only wanted to point out (it is obvious to me and perhaps not others that HP and Compaq are now the same company as HP is headquarted in Silicon valley and the San Jose Shark tank was renamed from Compaq Center to HP Pavilion) that HP and Compaq are the same company and often they have a notebook version for each line at hpshopping.com (some models have differences but mostly it is cosmetic).

When I bought my Compaq X1360US (retail version of Compaq X1000 series) it had the Pentium M 1.4 Banias (1st generation) with 1mb L2 system cache. I also have only 32mb dedicated video as it was a prebuilt. I was fortunate to get 512mb RAM 1 slot (prebuilts are often 256x2 filling both slots) so I was able to get another 512mb PC2700 RAM stick (Kingston) for 69.99 after rebate (much much less than getting more from HP/Compaq) to go to 1gb RAM.

You should order custom at hpshopping and now that I am a dedicated X1000forums.com user I will do so next time also. You can upgrade to the 64mb dedicated video maximum (necessary for Doom 3 and other new robust games) for only $50-$75 over the 32mb. You can upgrade to the 5400rpm hard drive (much faster then 4200rpm) for very little cost custom. You can get either the Briteview XGA LCD (this was not out when I bought so I don't have Briteview but I would order it now) or non-Briteview for SXGA or UXGA resolutions (UXGA is very extreme but some people prefer the SXGA - remember a LCD has only 1 native resolution -- the higher the resolution the smaller the pixels and the more there will be on the screen (more data but smaller pixels with higher resolution).

Make sure you get the full Dothan Pentium M cpu (not a Celeron) -- with the full 2mb L2 system cache -- currently the Pentium M 725 1.6 is the lowest Dothan offered and the best value.

See X1000forums.com for all the best specs and discounts (6% APP student discount, $100 custom order mail in rebate, etc) and you can find links to other HP dedicated forums like R3000forums.com, zd7000forums.com and one for the new HP DV1000 (shared video but very slick 14" widescreen and instant on DVD/CD functions and remote) there.

Note that in early 2005 they will be upgrading the chipset in Centrinos and you there will be faster RAM (now at PC2700 333mhz) but the Pentium M Dothan cpu will remain the same basically.

The HPZT3000 is a bit more popular now I think with its all black interior and silver touchpad but the Compaq X1000 was out first and has half black/half silver inside with a black touchpad. The Compaq has a ridge between the scroll and the mouse area of the touchpad the HP doesn't have. Otherwise, they operate the same and share the same forum X1000forums.com

Such a laptop may a compromise and you'll regret this for years. I've learned this lesson both firsthand and now by watching others.

Bob

If you go to X1000forums.com and look in the For sale area you will see a few people lately that have listed their X1000's/ZT3000's for sale. You can see the history of many of these people on the board (you can see all their posts) -- there were two older X1000/ZT3000 notebooks that ended up selling on Ebay for either $900 or $930 -- that were posted at X1000forums.com first.

These had the Banias Pentium M processor mine has -- it has 1mb L2 system cache instead of 2mb on the Dothan but this is still a good cpu (and not the decontented Celeron M).

Also, one of these was sold with the original 1 year warranty still not expired (original 1 year warranty at least is transferable -- not sure about extended warranties) which means if you had a problem in the short term you could get HP to repair it.

If you get a notebook from a source that did not register the warranty (or it is expired or whatever) that could be an expensive mistake if the LCD or motherboard goes.

Also, there are many people who were able to get a brand new X1000 or ZT3000 with the smallest 4200rpm hard drive, 256mb RAM, the Pentium M 1.6 Dothan cpu (lowest available), 32mb dedicated video (64mb is $50-$75 more), DVDROM/CD-RW drive for close to $1000 after discounts ($100 custom order rebate, 6% student APP rebate, 3% fatcash deferred portal rebate (via Paypal), coupon codes (10% code recently - but may not work with APP but if you are not a college student use the code), etc.

So be very careful ordering from Ebay when a new system (and by ordering custom you can get less RAM and add more later, get smaller hard drive and upgrade later ,etc) at hpshopping.com with the full 1 year warranty is only $200 more perhaps.

X1000forums.com posts what are the best order specs and discounts so look there for sure.

It is my understanding that the Employer EPP discount is 12% off and the APP student discount is 6% off -- I have seen posts where some people were able to 'stack' a coupon code with APP or EPP while others were not able to.

But configure the system using the EPP you are elligible for as that may in fact be higher than any 10% coupon code.

My accounting firm also has EPP but I did not order my X1360US this way (as I found the forums after the fact) but I of course will use EPP next time.

Well you know, I had two Aptivas in the 1990s. And I have a GX somethingorother as my server in the house right now. It's true they have a high build quality, but there are two reasons I'm not going with them. A similarly equipped Thinkpad (sacrificing down to a 14.1" XGA) is $1600. I've looked on eBay, they don't sell for much less than that either. That is well above what I want or can spend on a Laptop.

The second reason is that they don't have WXGA's. And it's not like I'm a sucker for bright lights and shiny things, but I actually need a WXGA. I do ASP.NET and C# Winform development. I use Visual Studio .NET 2003 (actually I have 2005 if I can get a better laptop). The best layout for me for that environment is to have the solution explorer to the left and the Properties and Toolbox on the right, with my code in the middle.

Well, currently if you dock the two on a 1024x768 screen, your workspace is shot and you can't even see the end of any of your lines of code.

http://ryan.racesimcentral.com/1024.jpg
http://ryan.racesimcentral.com/wxga.jpg

You can see the improvement. And while IBM's high-quality screens can do a lot more resolution, the aspect ratio is the same and that doesn't help. And the tiny text size would leave me squinting like Gilbert Godfrey. And that'll put me in a bad mood, and then I'll start TALKING like Gilbert Godfrey. And nobody wants that.

So thanks for the suggestion, but I think I'll be satisfied with an X1000/zt3000. I tried a zt3000 in Compusa yesterday, and I really liked the look and feel. It's the one for me.

But this is funny, and Ken will shout hallelujah when I say this, but they were selling a CLOSEOUT CELERON M with 256 MB of Ram, a store DEMO, for $1500!

I felt like laughing in their faces. I did help two old ladies that were looking at a stripped 2200 series for $800. ("Ladies, I saw this on hpshopping.com for $550.")

I think you misunderstood the thrust of my post.

COMPUSA sucks. I was pointing out how they were selling a low-end HP zt3000 Closeout for more than a new high-end one. It was ridiculous. That's what I was pointing out. I'd never buy a computer from a store. Ever. There's too much markup for one, 2, you're subject to their return, 3 it complicates the support process, and 4 I just hate hate hate compusa. They're snotty and not knowledgable, and the tech department is abominable. I have a couple clients with computers that have to be taken in there for service. So I usually just go back in the tech shop, which freaks teh peons out, and I show them the problem.

Anyway, I wasn't trying to say I was going to buy there, going to CompUSA made me appreciate hpshopping even more.

Wait just a bit and you will see thin and light notebooks with a low power mobile Athlon 64
processor. AMD started shipping the chips for these in August, and there are already a few models available, but mostly in Europe. They should probably appear in the US in quantity before the end of the year. Don't buy a notebook with a 32 bit processor. Many who do might greatly regret in in the second half of '05 as plenty of great 64 bit software is released.

Just noting that if you increase some machine's time to 8 hours plus, the next step in the cost reductions is to halve the battery power. You get a lower price and they sell more.

As to desktop replacement laptops, there is no desire to saddle such with the cost of a big battery.

Some don't realize there are actually a few classes of laptops. Ones that are designed for battery use and the others that are nice desktop replacements.

Bob

Toshibas cost less than Sonys and beat them across the board for value where they have a comparable product in nearly every manufacturing category.

Also, Sonys are great if they don't break but if they do Sony has been rated dead last in large US notebook companies (Acer,Fujitsu, etc not rated) in both notebook service and desktop service.

Toshiba, HP/Compaq and Dell were nearly dead even for service and Apple was #1 (quality also) and IBM was #2 and Gateway was #3 (see Consumer Reports and PC magazine for recent surveys).

Apple is pricey but you get the best in quality and service for that premium I(if you don't need a PC).You get the flash Sony but not much else but you won't save anything on the price (and dead last in service).

25 years ago Sony had the best TV's and they still make some great higher end TV's and they have the PS2 but I have been very happy with Toshiba TV's, DVD's , etc in the middle price ranges ----I would take Toshiba over Sony if you insist on those 2 unless it is an ultralight that Sony has many exclusives in (at huge price premiums of course).

To be fair, Sony was #3 in notebook quality I think (Apple #1, Toshiba #2 or #4 -- I don't remember which but it is not significant -- but the service is the kicker.....

But I already decided on an 8600 from Dell. And I must say I cant imagine life without my 15.4" WXGA. It's glorious really.