Official Laptop Judging Thread

[Riosan]

Because of all the recent threads about laptops, I created this thread for you to tell everyone about a laptop you're thinking about buying, and everyone to tell you how much your processor sucks, the graphics card is underpowered, the resolution is small, the operating system sucks, it's a Mac, et cetera.

When posting laptop specs, be sure to include whether you're going to use it for gaming or not.

If you feel that you've gotten enough advice, strike through the stats in your post. Thanks.

[Kilroy]

Does it have to only be laptops? >_>

[Silverhawk79]

4GB RAM
320GB HDD @ 5400 rpm
Vista Ultimate Home 64-bit
Media Center remote thingy
358 shared (:() video memory
Might use it for some gaming, but not hardcore.
15.4" HD screen
HD Altec Lansing audio
Like 6.1lbs or something
Intel Centrino Core 2 Duo @ 1.83GHz

[Hero_Of_Time1]

Does it have to be just laptops?

[THEEVILSPERKY]

3GB RAM
250 HDD @ 5400 RPM
Vista Premium 32-bit
17" HD screen
1440 x 900 res.
Intel Core 2 Duo T5450 Processor @ 1.66GHz (:()
251 MB video memory, partially shared
Super DVD multi-drive
Wireless N
built-in webcam/mic
6 USB ports
7.2 lbs

Not chosen as a gaming PC, but an everyday use PC with internet browsing, streaming some audio and video, and just basic use in mind.  It's holding up very well.  It's a Toshiba Satellite Notebook.

[Light]

Processor & Memory:

Intel? Core? 2 Duo Processor T8100 (2.10GHz)
3MB L2 cache
800MHz front side bus
4GB DDR2 SDRAM (both slots occupied)

Drives:

320GB (5,400RPM) SATA hard drive
Blu-Ray ROM with DVD?RW drive Double Layer (in one optical drive)

Graphics & Video:

17.0" WXGA+ BrightView widescreen display; 1440 x 900 native resolution
512MB NVIDIA? GeForce? 8600M GS graphics

Communications:

Intel Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN WLAN
Integrated 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN
56K modem

Audio:

Built-in Altec Lansing speakers

Keyboard:

101-key compatible keyboard
Touch Pad with on/off and dedicated vertical scroll up/down pad
Two Quick Launch buttons
HP Mobile Remote Control

Personalization:

HP IMPRINT finish offers a smooth, high-gloss coating with a unique, inlaid design which provides greater durability than a traditional paint process
QuickPlay brings your notebook PC to life with the push of a button, without standard boot up, to listen to music or watch DVDs
Integrated microphone and webcam

Expandability:

ExpressCard/54 Slot
5-in-1 integrated digital media reader accepts Secure Digital, MultiMediaCard, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro or xD Picture Card

Ports:

Four USB 2.0 ports
One IEEE 1394 (Firewire) 4-pin
One HDMI
VGA (15-pin)
TV-Out (S-video)
RJ-11 (modem)
RJ-45 (LAN)
Two headphone outs
Microphone in
Notebook Expansion Port 3
Consumer IR

Operating System:

Microsoft? Windows Vista Home Premium with SP1 (64-bit) (ew.)


Additional Software:

Microsoft Works
Symantec? Norton Internet Security? 2008 (60 days complimentary live updates)

Power Supply:

8-cell Lithium Ion Battery
90W AC adapter

I plan on buying it. I'm going to use it for mostly going on the internet and writing papers, but I also plan to play games on it, too. Good, or not?

Bought it. =D

[PsychoYoshi]

LS:

-5400 RPM is sluggish for a hard drive; I'd recommend going down to a 200-250 gig 7200 RPM if possible. In many cases, switching to a faster hard drive is more effective in boosting performance than getting a beefier processor, and it's usually cheaper as well.
-In addition, make sure that the video card is discrete: this means that there's actually 512MB of memory on board, and it isn't a HyperMemory which has 256 on board and borrows 256 from the comp. itself.
-If you're planning on using this laptop in college, upgrade to Vista Ultimate; Home Premium usually has problems connecting to school networks.

Silver:
-RPM speed of HD?
-Get a graphics card, for the love of God. You can get a discrete 256MB one for 50 bucks off of NewEgg.

[Light]

LS:

-5400 RPM is sluggish for a hard drive; I'd recommend going down to a 200-250 gig 7200 RPM if possible. In many cases, switching to a faster hard drive is more effective in boosting performance than getting a beefier processor, and it's usually cheaper as well.
-In addition, make sure that the video card is discrete: this means that there's actually 512MB of memory on board, and it isn't a HyperMemory which has 256 on board and borrows 256 from the comp. itself.
-If you're planning on using this laptop in college, upgrade to Vista Ultimate; Home Premium usually has problems connecting to school networks.

Thanks for the comment, and I'm pretty sure the 512MB is dedicated.

Also, I'll be using this comp in High School. :X

[PsychoYoshi]

LS:

-5400 RPM is sluggish for a hard drive; I'd recommend going down to a 200-250 gig 7200 RPM if possible. In many cases, switching to a faster hard drive is more effective in boosting performance than getting a beefier processor, and it's usually cheaper as well.
-In addition, make sure that the video card is discrete: this means that there's actually 512MB of memory on board, and it isn't a HyperMemory which has 256 on board and borrows 256 from the comp. itself.
-If you're planning on using this laptop in college, upgrade to Vista Ultimate; Home Premium usually has problems connecting to school networks.

Thanks for the comment, and I'm pretty sure the 512MB is dedicated.

Also, I'll be using this comp in High School. :X

OK, cool. My comment about Ultimate still holds; if you're going to be connecting to the Internet from inside the school or using the school network, get it.

[Hero_Of_Time1]

3GB RAM
250 HDD @ 5400 RPM
Vista Premium 32-bit
17" HD screen
1440 x 900 res.
Intel Core 2 Duo T5450 Processor @ 1.66GHz (:()
251 MB video memory, partially shared
Super DVD multi-drive
Wireless N
built-in webcam/mic
6 USB ports
7.2 lbs

Not chosen as a gaming PC, but an everyday use PC with internet browsing, streaming some audio and video, and just basic use in mind.  It's holding up very well.  It's a Toshiba Satellite Notebook.

Stay away from Toshiba.. Their laptops are poop. Every friend I know who bought a Toshiba's is regretting it Right now. They'll die out within a year. Most of the problems that occurred were the fan poopting out which cause a lot of preformace problems and even some components melting.

But then again, we're in Iraq. That's just my opinion.

[Silverhawk79]

PY, HDD is at 5400rpm. D;
But I don't have much money for upgrades right now, so I'll just live with it.

[RevolutionSoldier]

I was thinking about getting this laptop. I don't play much pc games but thats because my current computer sucks but  I'm getting a new one so I probably will get into pc gaming so I would like to know what you think o f it as a gaming pc.

Features

Desktop replacement: The HP Pavilion dv9730us is a large notebook, with high-performance processing power and entertainment features to rival most desktops. This model features a powerful dual-core processor as well as premium features such as a built-in webcam, a SuperMulti drive, LightScribe technology and Windows Vista Home Premium.

Dual core/64-bit processing: The 2.2GHz Turion 64 X2 TL-64 has two processing engines that work in tandem, providing much more power than standard 2.2GHz processors. This processor is also capable of processing 64 bits of information at once, twice as much as standard 32-bit processors. AMD PowerNow! technology enhances mobile performance and extends battery life.

    * This laptop features 3GB of DDR2 system memory?enough for the most demanding users, gamers and multimedia professionals. DDR2 is slightly faster than DDR, the previous standard in system memory.

    * AMD employs HyperTransport technology, which works like a fully-integrated frontside bus that increases bandwidth, reduces bottlenecks and enables processors to work more efficiently. The end result is better performance.

    * Processors search for the same data over and over. L2 caches keep this data neat, organized, and nearby so it can be retrieved more quickly. This 1MB L2 cache (2 x 512KB) gives the processor a little boost.

Hard drive: This hard drive features a 250GB capacity?perfect for robust collections of music, movies and multimedia. This drive?s data disks spin at 5400rpm. The faster they spin, the faster the data is read and written.

Blazing-fast wireless N: Built-in 802.11abgn wireless LAN lets you take advantage of the speed of the latest and fastest networks, as well as networks using the most popular standards.

DVD SuperMulti drive: Use this drive to burn DVDs and CDs to share your files, music mixes or home movies. You can even burn DVD-RAM discs?specially-formatted discs that let you drag and drop, or write and rewrite your files up to 100,000 times.

LightScribe disc-labeling: Burn custom, silkscreen-quality labels and images onto your discs with the same drive that burns the data.

Widescreen display: This notebook features a gorgeous 17" high-definition widescreen display with 1440 x 900 pixel (WXGA+) resolution. Your documents and movies will look fantastic.

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium: Windows Vista Home Premium is the operating system for homes with advanced computer needs. And Vista Premium features the elegant new Aero interface. You?ll be able to use your notebook more effectively and enjoy new entertainment experiences?all with the benefit of added security and reliability.

Audio/video: This notebook features NVIDIA GeForce 7150M graphics and 1071MB of total available shared video memory, which is drawn from the main system memory. This video memory is perfect for everyday activities like casual movie watching or gaming. The built-in Altec Lansing speakers provide compelling 3D sound.

Media card reader: Seamlessly transfer images from your digital camera or camcorder. This 5-in-1 reader is compatible with Secure Digital, xD, Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO and MultiMedia Card.

ExpressCard/54 slot: This notebook supports ExpressCard, an emerging standard in smaller, faster PC card solutions. This slot is also compatible with ExpressCard/34. Use it to add memory, graphics upgrades, security devices and more.

Built-in camera/mic: Stay connected to family, friends or business associates wherever you go. Video chatting face-to-face is easy with the built-in camera and microphone.

Instant cinema to go: Enjoy digital movies and music within seconds with the press of an external button and HP QuickPlay. Dedicated external controls let you to navigate your movies and music easily and quickly.

Elegant design: The high-gloss HP Imprint finish in the Radiance pattern, an ornate mixture of ripples on a sea of radial lines speaking to the fluid way we?ve come to live and connect.

It seems good to be but I a noob when comes to computers. I am concerned that it don't have a Intel processor and I'm wondering if I need one for games. O and the processing speed is 2.20GHz. It that good enough for gaming?

[Silverhawk79]

RevSoldier, that sounds like a solid laptop, but like PY said, 5400rpm for a hard drive is probably kind of slow, but I'm sure 7200rpm HDDs would suck up a lot more battery power.
And apparently Pavilions are popular here. :o

[RevolutionSoldier]

RevSoldier, that sounds like a solid laptop, but like PY said, 5400rpm for a hard drive is probably kind of slow, but I'm sure 7200rpm HDDs would suck up a lot more battery power.
And apparently Pavilions are popular here. :o

What does the rpm mean and do you thing to good enough for gamming? Like I said I'm a bit of a noob when it comes to computers.

[Silverhawk79]

RevSoldier, that sounds like a solid laptop, but like PY said, 5400rpm for a hard drive is probably kind of slow, but I'm sure 7200rpm HDDs would suck up a lot more battery power.
And apparently Pavilions are popular here. :o

What does the rpm mean and do you thing to good enough for gamming? Like I said I'm a bit of a noob when it comes to computers.

The rpm is just how fast the drive spins, and how fast it reads and writes data. Yeah, it's good enough for gaming, as long as that graphics card is dedicated, not shared.