OMG Shopping!
I have been spending entirely too much time lately shopping for a new laptop. Classes have been pretty stressful, and I have been spending a lot of time working on a project for a startup called piXlogic, so looking at different laptops has been a way to relieve some of that stress while daydreaming about my ideal notebook computer. Of course, actually getting one is contingent upon getting sufficient money for my work.
Picking a favorite, however, has proven extremely impossible, mainly due to the fact that every laptop I consider severely lacks in one or more areas.
Here are my criteria:
Weight: Must be 5 lbs or lighter. My current laptop weighs 6 lbs, and I'd like to better that with my new laptop.
Dimensions: The thinner the better. My current one is 1.77" thick, so I'm shooting for under 1.5" thick. It doesn't have to be the smallest thing in the world, but I'm shooting for something in the "thin-and-light" category.
Screen Size: Really, anything is fine here. As long as the screen fits the dimensions of the laptop, it's fine. Meaning that if it's really thin and small, a 12-inch screen is okay.
Battery Life: 3 hours or better with standard battery.
Other: Must have a comfortable, full keyboard, built in WiFi, touchpad, and USB 2.0. A DVD/CD-R combo would be a plus, although I would drop the requirement of an optical drive altogether for a good ultralight notebook.
Above all, it must be devoid of nonsense. I don't need a parallel port or a docking slot. It doesn't have to look spacey or be aerodynamic. I want a simple, clean design with no bullshit. I will be using this laptop as my main computer, so that means I need it to be reliable and unintrusive.
Cost: I don't know yet. Surprisingly, I haven't found any laptops that fit all of my criteria regardless of cost.
Here are the closest matches I have found to date:
iBook G4
Pros: This is by far my favorite case design. It meets all of my requirements. OS X also has some incredibly cool features. Phil's got one.
Cons: It's not a PC, and I see myself getting a PC. The whole "switch." Phil's got one.
Dell Inspiron 300M
Pros: It's tiny and neat.
Cons: No built-in DVD/CD-R. From reading reviews, it seems to have a bad battery life.
Sony V505
Pros: Good design, although a little flashy. Very small for the features. My current one is also a Sony.
Cons: All the reviews say the touchpad malfunctions in most cases and it has to be sent back to get fixed. Weird keyboard, though it may be okay. The battery life is also iffy.
IBM ThinkPad T40
Pros: No nonsense. Reliable, top-of-the-line insides. Good battery life. The classiest notebook around.
Cons: May be too costly if I decide to actually get one. And it has one of those stupid docking slots on the bottom. A small point, but I would rather it didn't.
If only the iBook were somehow also a PC. My hope is that more models will be offered by the time I actually buy a new laptop, which should be sometime in April. As it stands, I haven't found the perfect laptop. Does it exist?
Picking a favorite, however, has proven extremely impossible, mainly due to the fact that every laptop I consider severely lacks in one or more areas.
Here are my criteria:
Weight: Must be 5 lbs or lighter. My current laptop weighs 6 lbs, and I'd like to better that with my new laptop.
Dimensions: The thinner the better. My current one is 1.77" thick, so I'm shooting for under 1.5" thick. It doesn't have to be the smallest thing in the world, but I'm shooting for something in the "thin-and-light" category.
Screen Size: Really, anything is fine here. As long as the screen fits the dimensions of the laptop, it's fine. Meaning that if it's really thin and small, a 12-inch screen is okay.
Battery Life: 3 hours or better with standard battery.
Other: Must have a comfortable, full keyboard, built in WiFi, touchpad, and USB 2.0. A DVD/CD-R combo would be a plus, although I would drop the requirement of an optical drive altogether for a good ultralight notebook.
Above all, it must be devoid of nonsense. I don't need a parallel port or a docking slot. It doesn't have to look spacey or be aerodynamic. I want a simple, clean design with no bullshit. I will be using this laptop as my main computer, so that means I need it to be reliable and unintrusive.
Cost: I don't know yet. Surprisingly, I haven't found any laptops that fit all of my criteria regardless of cost.
Here are the closest matches I have found to date:
iBook G4
Pros: This is by far my favorite case design. It meets all of my requirements. OS X also has some incredibly cool features. Phil's got one.
Cons: It's not a PC, and I see myself getting a PC. The whole "switch." Phil's got one.
Dell Inspiron 300M
Pros: It's tiny and neat.
Cons: No built-in DVD/CD-R. From reading reviews, it seems to have a bad battery life.
Sony V505
Pros: Good design, although a little flashy. Very small for the features. My current one is also a Sony.
Cons: All the reviews say the touchpad malfunctions in most cases and it has to be sent back to get fixed. Weird keyboard, though it may be okay. The battery life is also iffy.
IBM ThinkPad T40
Pros: No nonsense. Reliable, top-of-the-line insides. Good battery life. The classiest notebook around.
Cons: May be too costly if I decide to actually get one. And it has one of those stupid docking slots on the bottom. A small point, but I would rather it didn't.
If only the iBook were somehow also a PC. My hope is that more models will be offered by the time I actually buy a new laptop, which should be sometime in April. As it stands, I haven't found the perfect laptop. Does it exist?