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Hey Guys, I Need a Laptop

DerHoggz

DerHoggz

I like cats :|
Inactive
Feb 13, 2009
1,704
1,037
33
Western Pennsylvania
#1
So, I'm going to college in the fall and I need a laptop. I'm going to be studying engineering/physics so something powerful.

I won't be gaming or anything of that sort, but probably some CAD type stuff.

I'm looking for something pretty cheap and I don't care about all the frilly stuff i.e. webcam. Windows, not Mac.

Suggestions?
 
#3
I'd get the kind that the screen folds down.


You're gonna hate a laptop for intensive programs as you are describing. If you're running CAD, make sure you get about 6-8 gigs minimum of RAM. A quad-core processor wouldn't hurt either.
Thing is gonna run hot constantly, so keep it ventilated.

I've run AutoCad and SolidEdge on this lappy, alongside ProTools sessions, a Dell 2.4mHz CoreDuo (correction this one is the 1.66) and it wants to kill me.

I would rather run a full desktop for this use.
t-minus 3..2...1 "get a Mac" guys, where are you?
 
#5
I can vouch for the HP laptops (DV7). I was sworn off HP for years after having to deal with family members HP desktops and all sorts of issues, but I was in the market for a new laptop about a year ago and this HP was on special at 40% off, top of the range floor stock model.

Haven't had any trouble with it so far, it runs really hot, and some of the ports/plugs are in akward positions, but apart from that its great.

For CAD and stuff i'd definitely say go with 8gb ram and some sort of quad core. Mines an i7, which is pretty kickass, has no trouble with hefty video editing and graphic design stuff.
 
#7
LOL, when I was in college, an 8088 running MS-DOS was the hot setup. I was the first student at my college to turn in a word processed term paper.

I do engineering for my day job. From what I've observed, the notebook computers with enough horsepower and screen size to do CAD, are also big enough to be a hassle to lug around, especially when the giant power supply brick has to be brought along. Personally, I greatly prefer mobility over computing power, and always request one of the slim little notebooks that the managers use, which are also cheaper. You can always plug into a full size display in your dorm.

The physics people probably use Linux. :D
 
#9
fdeck said:
do engineering for my day job. From what I've observed, the notebook computers with enough horsepower and screen size to do CAD, are also big enough to be a hassle to lug around, especially when the giant power supply brick has to be brought along. Personally, I greatly prefer mobility over computing power, and always request one of the slim little notebooks that the managers use, which are also cheaper. You can always plug into a full size display in your dorm.

The physics people probably use Linux. :D
Click to expand...

They have pretty well equipped computer labs, so that is an option.

I'm possibly/probably doubling up engineering and physics, so that must mean... dual booting!
 
#10
DerHoggz said:
They have pretty well equipped computer labs, so that is an option.

I'm possibly/probably doubling up engineering and physics, so that must mean... dual booting!
Click to expand...

The computer labs would be a good way to get your CAD assignments done. And I can offer you the paternalistic advice that my mom gave to me: You never have to wait for a terminal in the computer lab at 7:00 AM. :D

Dual booting might have its benefits anyway. If you can live with a really lightweight Linux distro such as Puppy, it might extend your battery life, and you can keep Windows for the stuff that really needs it.

Oddly enough, you might find yourself making the most intensive use of your computer in your non-major courses. That was my experience all the way back in 1982-86. Probably 90% of my computer use was devoted to written assignments for Humanities classes.
 
#11
I have had a lot of luck with Dell laptops being able to take a lot of physical abuse but I have no experience with the more recent models.

fdeck said:
LOL, when I was in college, an 8088 running MS-DOS was the hot setup. I was the first student at my college to turn in a word processed term paper.
Click to expand...

That's it. I give up. The day that Mr Fdeck makes me feel extremely old has finally arrived. I did my first year of tech school with a slide rule because four function calculators cost $150-200. That was a real lot of money at the time since minimum wage had just gone up to about $1.85/hr. The next year fairly fancy calculators were available for the same sort of cash and I got one. My school got a computer lab that year. It was a single teletype connected by acoustic modem to a Fortran timesharing system. I think the 4004 microprocessor was announced that year.

Time to start looking for a nursing home...

S
 
#17
TheSuzie said:
I have had a lot of luck with Dell laptops being able to take a lot of physical abuse but I have no experience with the more recent models.



That's it. I give up. The day that Mr Fdeck makes me feel extremely old has finally arrived. I did my first year of tech school with a slide rule because four function calculators cost $150-200. That was a real lot of money at the time since minimum wage had just gone up to about $1.85/hr. The next year fairly fancy calculators were available for the same sort of cash and I got one. My school got a computer lab that year. It was a single teletype connected by acoustic modem to a Fortran timesharing system. I think the 4004 microprocessor was announced that year.

Time to start looking for a nursing home...

S
Click to expand...

Calculators had become affordable when I was in high school, but we weren't allowed to use them. My dad got a calculator at work, and a week later his slide rule went on the shelf forever -- a beautiful K&E that was two feet long.

For one high school physics exam, we were allowed to bring a sheet of notes, but not a calculator. So I photocopied a slide rule. The teacher said: "Nice try, smartass."
 

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