I am starting to look at laptops for school. It doesn't really look like my program will have any compelling deals. So, I am looking for any feedback/points to ponder about the following systems. I am looking for something lighter as I will be using public transport to get to school. This means my backpack will be "too heavy" no matter how light of a laptop i buy! Things i look for are: 1) decent battery life ( I could survive a day on campus without needing a recharge. Apparently foster has only "spotty" plugs available in classrooms). 2) lightweight. Prefer = 1.8ghz and AT LEAST 1gb RAM (prefer 2-3gb). I know there are different views on this, but mine is pretty non-negotiable. As a computer engineering grad student I can be stubborn with minimum computer specs 4) 11-13 inch screen. Yup, those are the rules. until they come up with a 3lb 19" laptop =) 5) built in Cd/dvd drive 6) less than ~USD1,700 So far I have seen promising standard contenders from ASUS,Fujitsu, dell and Tablet contenders from: Fujitsu, HP I am curious particularly what people think of tablet pcs they own. e.g. do you actually use them as such? I am willing to pay a small premium for table as even if I don't use it as a tablet it will still work as a standard laptop! Does anyone have strong opinions about these

Cool! Congrats And... how is it?

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The great Laptop discussion forum

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kryzak

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16 Jun 2008, 11:27

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this is what I got:

VBB MICROSOFT WINXP PROFESSION
41W2064 VBB 2GB PC2-5300 667MHZ 1DIMM
42X0133 SBB KEYBOARD US ENGLISH
42X1459 SBB TRACKPOINT W FINGERPR.READ
42X5224 SBB 160GB HARD DD,7200RPM
62P6054 VBB INTEGR.BLUETOOTH PAN
41W1685 SBB 11ABGWIFI WL LAN USEULAANZ
41W1832 SBB 8CELL LI-ION BATTERY 2.6AH
41W1787 SBB CPK NORTH AMERICA
42X0165 SBB LANG.PACK US ENGLISH
41C9169 LENOVO THINKPLUS EXTENDED SERVICE AGREEMENT - 2 YEARS - PICK-UP AND RETURN

$1273 after taxes (which was nearly $100).

helg

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16 Jun 2008, 11:36

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Here's mine:

46P4166 VBB MICROSOFT WINXP PROFESSION
42X0239 SBB MSWIN XP PROF US ENGLISH
41W2067 VBB 3GB PC2-5300 667MHZ 2DIMM
42X0133 SBB KEYBOARD US ENGLISH
42X1458 SBB TRACK POINT
42X5224 SBB 160GB HARD DD,7200RPM
41W1928 SBB THINKPAD X6 ULTRABASE
42V9146 SBB CD-RW/DVD-ROM_24X24X24X8XM
62P6054 VBB INTEGR.BLUETOOTH PAN
41W1685 SBB 11ABGWIFI WL LAN USEULAANZ
41W1832 SBB 8CELL LI-ION BATTERY 2.6AH
41W1787 SBB CPK NORTH AMERICA
42X0165 SBB LANG.PACK US ENGLISH
42X0068 SBB MS ONENOTE07ENG EXL EUEFTA
41C9169 LENOVO THINKPLUS EXTENDED SERVICE AGREEMENT - 2 YEARS - PICK-UP AND RETURN

$1,438.93 incl. taxes 8-)

The difference comes from the ultrabase with optical drive

kryzak

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16 Jun 2008, 12:44

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nice! Yeah, my shipment arrives Wednesday, 6/18, no later than 10:30am. Wow! That's express for you, from Shanghai no less!

helg

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16 Jun 2008, 22:22

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kryzak

nice! Yeah, my shipment arrives Wednesday, 6/18, no later than 10:30am. Wow! That's express for you, from Shanghai no less!

Ugh, don't want to scare you, but mine was held for a few days at customs by Homeland Security

Eventually it was released though 8-)

kryzak

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17 Jun 2008, 01:58

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oh, that kind of sucks... UPS International said that it will arrive for sure on Wednesday. Not sure if it passed customs already.

helg

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17 Jun 2008, 02:11

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Here's my tracking report:
06/09/2008 4:47 A.M. OUT FOR DELIVERY
PALATINE,
IL, US 06/07/2008 7:10 A.M. ARRIVAL SCAN
CHICAGO,
IL, US 06/07/2008 6:29 A.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
06/07/2008 5:34 A.M. ARRIVAL SCAN
LOUISVILLE,
KY, US 06/07/2008 5:18 A.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
06/07/2008 3:49 A.M. IMPORT SCAN
ANCHORAGE,
AK, US 06/06/2008 4:03 P.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
06/06/2008 2:07 P.M. ARRIVAL SCAN
LOUISVILLE,
KY, US 06/06/2008 1:39 P.M. BROKERAGE RELEASED SHIPMENT. SHIPMENT IS SUBMITTED TO CLEARING AGENCY FOR FURTHER CLEARANCE
SHANGHAI,
CN 06/06/2008 9:45 P.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
LOUISVILLE,
KY, US 06/05/2008 1:28 P.M. THE SHIPMENT IS BEING HELD BY BROKERAGE FOR REASONS BEYOND UPS' CONTROL
SHANGHAI,
CN 06/05/2008 8:37 P.M. EXPORT SCAN
06/05/2008 8:35 P.M. HUB SCAN
06/05/2008 9:23 A.M. ORIGIN SCAN
CN 06/05/2008 2:06 A.M. BILLING INFORMATION RECEIVED

Looks like somewhere in between they also shipped it to Alaska by mistake :lol:

dosa_don

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17 Jun 2008, 08:34

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I think I am going to take a shot with the X61. I shall try and sell the T61 that I have currently and put in the extra $'s to get the X.

kryzak

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17 Jun 2008, 11:23

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yay dosa!

helg, wow, that's strange it went to Alaska!

Wow, mine arrived this morning (Tuesday) instead of Wednesday as they told me... strange.

bherronp

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17 Jun 2008, 11:36

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dosa_don

I think I am going to take a shot with the X61. I shall try and sell the T61 that I have currently and put in the extra $'s to get the X.

Dosa, what kind of hardware does your T61 have?

helg

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17 Jun 2008, 13:34

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kryzak

Wow, mine arrived this morning (Tuesday) instead of Wednesday as they told me... strange.

Cool! Congrats :-D

And... how is it? :wink:

dosa_don

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17 Jun 2008, 14:06

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T7250
200 GB HDD
CDRW/DVD ROM
2GB RAM (1GB Installed by me)
14.1" Screen

bherronp

dosa_don

I think I am going to take a shot with the X61. I shall try and sell the T61 that I have currently and put in the extra $'s to get the X.

Dosa, what kind of hardware does your T61 have?

kryzak

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17 Jun 2008, 18:00

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helg

Cool! Congrats :-D

And... how is it? :wink:

well, because it came one day early, I wasn't expecting it and missed the delivery person.

Their stupid same day will call thing is between 8:30-9:30pm, when I have a meeting to attend. So it seems that I will be picking it up after 12pm tomorrow (when they open) myself, later than when I originally would have had it. Sigh.

TimeSquareDesi

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18 Jun 2008, 13:57

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We have the T61 on the standards list at my company but almost NO-ONE buys it due to its size. Everyone opted for the x61's instead and they're loving it. The T61 is a beast though, in terms of performance... and dimensions. :lol:

- tsd

kryzak

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18 Jun 2008, 22:00

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got my x61, it's soooo nice and light. Screen size is ok so far, we'll see how I like it after more use.

Question, Windows XP comes with the computer, but if I ever need to reinstall, how does that work since it didn't come with a CD?

Also, I seem to have Microsoft Office 2007 installed on there already, even though I didn't buy it. But then it asks for CD key... I guess they really want you to pay for the CD key?

rhyme

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19 Jun 2008, 05:02

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kryzak,

IBMs come with a hidden partition that holds the recovery data. You can reinstall without even a CD. In fact, I recommend you do it and customize the install so that its clean and not full of junk. I'll look for instructions.

TimeSquareDesi

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19 Jun 2008, 05:50

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^ You have to enter the Lenovo Rescue and Recovery console. When you turn the laptop on, press the blue button labeled "ThinkVantage." From there, it will load a GUI that will allow you to do several things:

1) Entirely wipe out the HD and have windows + apps reinstall to a "factory new" state

2) Reinstall windows only - allowing you to keep your data on C - works well but sometimes, some apps need to be reinstalled.

3) Diagnose / scan your harddrive for any hardware related problems.

and a whole bunch of other things. Here is the link to the X61 troubleshooting guide:

ftp://ftp.software.ibm.com/pc/pccbbs/mo ... 2x3408.pdf

The recovery details start on page 29.
- tsd

skaballet

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19 Jun 2008, 09:35

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The Microsoft Office is a 60 day trial version. After that you'll have to purchase. Look into getting it through Haas if you haven't already. It is WAY cheaper through Michigan, for example, than buying direct.

kryzak

dabots

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19 Jun 2008, 10:51

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check with your company. i got my office 2007 enterprise for $20 from my company.

MiamiMBA

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19 Jun 2008, 11:07

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I was just looking around on Lenovo's web site at the various configurations for the T61 and can't find a setup that allows you to select Windows XP....it only has Vista. Granted this is only through their web site - I plan to give them a call this afternoon to see if I can build a T61 with XP. From what I have read, XP is still the way to go over Vista.