Need a non Mac laptop
Zerodog
Registered Users Posts: 1,480 Major grins
I say non mac because my desktop is non mac. No desire to switch.
I just the ability to run LR3 and catalog and sort images from event shoots. And do light processing. I want something small and with a good battery life. Looking at them reveles a sea of computers that seem Ehh. Nothing I see I am really digging. The Alienware 11" one sound appealing due to an 8 hour battery life and a 1gig graphics card. But it is THICK. The ASUS thin ones look pretty good. But, will they have enough power for LR3?
Any ideas?
I just the ability to run LR3 and catalog and sort images from event shoots. And do light processing. I want something small and with a good battery life. Looking at them reveles a sea of computers that seem Ehh. Nothing I see I am really digging. The Alienware 11" one sound appealing due to an 8 hour battery life and a 1gig graphics card. But it is THICK. The ASUS thin ones look pretty good. But, will they have enough power for LR3?
Any ideas?
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I had a few probs in the beginning ...it seemed thay must have gotten a ton of BAD DVD writers in and I kept getting them....after 3 returns It has been right now for the last 9 months.....all returns were on their dime and they even sent all the needed packaging so I have dell laptop boxes stacked in my storage area......
I bought a current refurb, by current I am referring to the fact that it was a model that was in the current Dell Lineup not any out of production model......it is what I use when traveling to process my work on.....it run photoshop 2, 4 (32 and 64 bit) and LR 3.3 64bit with out a prob....I do not keep the 32 bit software on it but ran several tests with all open and working different pix at same time.....I also do not have any games or junk on the system......the C drive only has software loaded that I am currently actively working with.
I am not recommending that laptop, per se, but I am recommending you get an SSD. It has made such a difference in my performance.
Which one do you have?? Are they upto the 500gb size now??
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I use an external hd for LR storage and catalog, but cache files are on the SSD. I have the normal delay in loading the preview, but once in the develop module it is plenty fast.
In general, having an SSD in my laptop has been like getting a new computer. Win7 x64 cold boots faster now than it used to come back from standby.
I bought an i5 this past year and it works fine. Thing I noticed is there are tons of core-2-duo's around and i3's but no i5's....
Just make sure it is a core-i and preferably an i5 or above.
Add an SSD like MileHighAko mentioned and you're moon-walkin~
Cheers,
Anyone have any luck with Asus or HP?
Probably more with an ASUS. See page 6...
http://www.squaretrade.com/htm/pdf/SquareTrade_laptop_reliability_1109.pdf
Caveat.... a lot of people in various forums scoff at this survey stating it is statistically flawed. I say that in light of the lack of statistically correct reliability surveys, this is the best we have so take it into consideration.
I had thought that an OEM division of ASUS made the Sony laptops and until recently, maybe still, the Apple Mac Books. I can't find the link atm that backs that up but have found other interesting links on the subject. It is likely a fluid situation year to year.
Btw... I use a basic ASUS (N80 with dual core P8600 2.4Ghz CPU, 4G RAM) that is now a year old. It goes away on trips regularly. Nothing fancy but it is noticeably faster than the gaming desktop I built 3 years ago and which I do all of my post processing on. The ASUS has a few flakey OS issues related to using sleep mode but I have read that this is a common issue with both laptops and desktops and a reboot always clears things up for a week or two.
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12" screen
almost 10hr battery life
i5 processor
500gb 7200RPM HD
8gb ram
PC card/ expansion slot will let me use a compact flash card adapter! No extra cables or devices needed.
So for what I am doing I am hoping this thing will be fit the bill. Basically it will be my sorting machine. And be able to display some shots at an event to get people buying. In the end if it needs more speed, I will pick up an SSD.
Those are no doubt awesome machines. The dual SSD would make it scream for photo sorting. But they are $600-$1200 more than the one I bought. And the battery life is not as high on the sony.
The Alienware m11x's have notorious hinge-breaking issues and Dell isn't really addressing the issue after THOUSANDS of complaints. Everybody stay away from that one.
I bought an asus ul80vt recently, which has a lot of power but can go from 6-12hrs battery life as well due to hybrid CPU and graphics. Its a 14" laptop and spec-wise with battery life and features, its basically the next best all around laptop, at least in its price range. BTW some i3s are faster than i5s in the equivalent price range... it comes down to processor model which needs comparing. Sometimes the labels of i3 and i5 don't really mean anything since some overlap the other. Its odd.
In the end what I came up with was Lenovo, Asus, and Toshiba. They all seem to get the best reviews and have great specs, including battery life, all around. Just a bit more $$. The sony's are killer. Just too much $$ for me and not enough battery life.
My Lenovo should be shipping next week. I can't wait to get my hands on it to try it out. Now I get to figure out WiFi. I have never needed it until now.
What is good and easy?