Buying a new laptop, need some help

[bigspenda73]

Looking to spend ~$800. All I care about is

-watching videos when I'm traveling
-being able to play poker
-surfing the web sitting on my couch
-internal wireless card

I've owned Dell stuff my entire life, and don't mind spending my money with them. Looking at upgrades on their $550 15" model, I see a few things I might want.

9 cell battery (stock 6 cell) for $100 more
Processor, comes with Intel® Pentium® Dual Core T4300 (2.1GHz/800Mhz FSB/1MB cache). Should I look to upgrade this?

There is also a $720 17", but I'm not sure how big a difference 15" vs. 17" will be, what is the consensus grinding poker-wise, should I go with the 17"? Any suggestions about brands, where to buy, etc... would be helpful. I'd like to get it ASAP but if you think I can get a sick deal post-Christmas I might just wait.

[bigspenda73]

Also, should I be worried about Windows 7, I remember when I bought my desktop ~18 months ago I got them to throw on XP when Vista was getting trashed by the media. Is this even a possibility anymore?

[boost]

I was considering going with a 17", but really.. whats the point? A laptop is meant to be mobile.. 17 inches is fucking hudge, and heavy. 15 is pretty big, but its manageable. A 17" laptop on a airplane tray is not happening.

I went with vista when I got my laptop a year ago, idk.. I think its fine. Windows 7 is probably fine too. Youll get used to either in a few days at the most.

Id definitely upgrade the battery, and upgrade the processor as far as your budget will allow as PT3 and HEM, while much better than the first iterations of PT, can be resource hogs.

[kingnat]

i've always thought the size of the screen is a bit secondary compared to the screen resolution. If you plan to haul it around much at all... definitely go with 15".

[bigspenda73]

in terms of brands, anyone have experience with the following (laptop related):

-hp
-Acer
-sony

[Alexos]

i have an hp and its fine...

apparently sony sucks at laptops though

[a500lbgorilla]

I just bought a cheap dell lappy for my little brother. He likes it a lot but wishes he had a mac.

[givememyleg]

I just bought a cheap dell lappy for my little brother. He likes it a lot but wishes he had a mac.

nothins ever gud enuf!

[lolzzz_321]

i played video poker to pay for mine!

[boost]

Oh ya, resolution! Dont get a 15" with crappy resolution.. youll regret it.

[a500lbgorilla]

15.4, i think, inches is the smallest size for a "big" lappy screen. And I think it's as big as almost everyone needs.

[swiggidy]

Sonys laptops are awesome. They're expensive and Sony's driver support was terrible, not sure if that's changed in 6 years. If you wanted to go high end though Toshiba is the best big name I believe, but that's not your goal.

The main reason I haven't bought a new laptop is I'm a resolution whore. Using a 1375x720 screen (or whatever) would irritate me. Although I'm considering going the other extreme and getting a netbook. If you want a mobile laptop worry about 17", if you want a mobile desktop def get a bigger screen (with higher resolution). 1920x1080 is pretty pimp

Recent post on gizmodo that may or may not be helpful (they do recommend an Asus)
http://gizmodo.com/5421823/the-best-...om-400-to-1500

[boost]

15.4 wit h1920/1080 is fine for 4 tabling imo. I keep the tables at stardard size and have just a bit of overlap on the vertical axis. I really believe 17 is overkill unless you plan to rarely move it from your desk. Also dont forget that for the price difference between 15 and 17 you could get a decent desktop monitor. Hook your 15.4 up to the desktop monitor (thats what Im doing) and youve got tons of desktop realestate.

[Jack Sawyer]

This one seems to be pretty good value for your purposes

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...0951583&sr=1-7

[Donachello]

HP and Sony are generally pretty solid choices. I'd say the highest quality, or at least most well known from my experience would be Toshiba for laptops. Obviously a lot of people love the macbook but if you're a windows user like myself I'd probably put my money on one of those first 3.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/14295...nder_1000.html

The last one in the slide show showed up numerous times in Top 5-10 lists.

Granted you're generally always better off customizing one from company's website though it does cost more.

[swiggidy]

15.4 wit h1920/1080 is fine for 4 tabling imo. I keep the tables at stardard size and have just a bit of overlap on the vertical axis. I really believe 17 is overkill unless you plan to rarely move it from your desk. Also dont forget that for the price difference between 15 and 17 you could get a decent desktop monitor. Hook your 15.4 up to the desktop monitor (thats what Im doing) and youve got tons of desktop realestate.

You have a 15.4" with 1920x1080 (WUXGA)? Most of the 16" I've seen run around $1500.

[boost]

15.4 wit h1920/1080 is fine for 4 tabling imo. I keep the tables at stardard size and have just a bit of overlap on the vertical axis. I really believe 17 is overkill unless you plan to rarely move it from your desk. Also dont forget that for the price difference between 15 and 17 you could get a decent desktop monitor. Hook your 15.4 up to the desktop monitor (thats what Im doing) and youve got tons of desktop realestate.

You have a 15.4" with 1920x1080 (WUXGA)? Most of the 16" I've seen run around $1500.

mine was like 1350 shipped a year ago.