Hi-Tech Notebook … Anyone?
For someone who views computers as a simple office tool, being around guys who speak "chipset" languages can sometimes be quite intimidating, but definitely very advantageous.
I just bought a 2.3kg notebook and it’s what you would consider my latest baby. It’s not really up to par with my techie friends’ standards, but I’m quite satisfied by it. Its from these friends of mine that I get to have a clearer picture of what I need and what I want out of my notebook.
The processor is not Pentium M nor Centrino. It’s just an Intel Celeron. In fact, the processor speed is just 1.3GHz, quite low for the current industry standard of 2Ghz. Chipset is also old at 852 considering the latest chipset model is 915. But as long as the processor can run my server applications on stand-alone mode, the configuration I have is acceptable.
Memory is 1GB. Original configuration was 512MB memory, but since a lot of applications, not to mention Windows itself, are memory intensive, I chose to have it upgraded to 1GB. Its better to pay a premium than have my notebook hang everytime it runs out of memory to use.
HDD is also low at 40GB capacity. I have an external 80GB HDD, which you can actually carry in the pocket of your polo shirt, so imagine the difference in capacity. But then again, I already have the 80GB external so 40GB internal is already acceptable. It will just house all the software installations. All my data and installers will be in the bigger external HDD.
Mouse… Ahhh… That is something that I have to admit I cannot live without. It’s been almost a week now that I am only using the Touchpad to control the cursor, and frankly speaking, it’s not something that I can learn to love nor live by.
Combo drive is also acceptable. At least I can still watch DVD and burn CD. The P14,000.00 difference from a notebook of similar specs but with DVD writer does not justify the add-on feature. Heck, I can buy an external DVD writer for 3,000++.
Infrared… Now that’s also another must have for me. Nevermind the 4-in-1 card reader. I can still access the data in my memory card via the digicam which can be connected to my PC or notebook via USB port. But to get the pictures from my celfone, IR is the only way (of course the is the old reliable data cable, but I still need to buy that and that costs over 1,000 bucks).
Hhhmmmm…. What else??? built-in LAN and modem slot… USB ports… 6-pack (or is it 4) Li battery… All standard features…
All-in-all, I would say that my notebook, at P39,300.00 (with free printer) is definitely a satisfactory deal. Nevermind that the graphic card is not acceptable for RPG players. I’m already happy playing with Minesweeper, Pinball, and some occasional Yahoo games.
So, the end point is, don’t go wasting money buying those hi-tech notebooks, with features that you may not be able to take advantage at all. What is important really is that you identify the features that you really need and those which are plain extras. Once you have done that, its easy to find a notebook that complies your requirements on specs and budget. Of course do not forget to check the warranty. Second-hand notebooks may be cheaper, but personal warranty may not be a good trade-off over a more expensive brand new unit with full 1-3 years warranty on parts and labor.
Thanks to my friends for giving me all the technical support in my quest to buy my notebook.
November 28th, 2005 at 11:40 pm
Our office seems to be in a laptop buying spree these past few weeks and surprisingly, some of my officemates seems to be very interested in acquiring a notebook similar to mine. One of my techie friends suggested that I write down my personal “review” of Viper VTC24 so that others would have an idea of how its look and feel. So, here goes…
Start-up package is very user-friendly. You don’t need to go looking for drivers anywhere because they are all given to you in one CD which starts up with a menu of all the devices built in to your notebook.
For someone who is not really very particular with CPU power, I am quite satisfied with my Intel Celeron 1.3Ghz on an 852 chipset. Basically, my requirement when I bought my notebook was to be able to setup it up dual boot so I can do research on different server-based applications. So far I am quite satisfied with performance. For the past 3 weeks I have run Adobe Acrobat Reader, Adobe Photoshop, MS Office applications, Yahoo LaunchCast, while browsing at 6 sites at the most and downloading 3 big files from Oracle on my Windows XP all at the same time, but I never experienced any hang-ups or anything similarly devastating. I’m not sure though if the 1GB RAM is compensating for the CPU latency, or the CPU power is just enough to perform all the tasks at hand. Although, I am still to put my notebook on yet another test. I’m going to install VMWare on my server mode and run 3 Windows2003 virtual machines. I’ll let you know what happens (if it happens).
My data files are all saved in my external HDD connected via USB so files being downloaded, opened, and saved are all directed to that external drive. So far, all the recently saved files are OK (no corrupted files).
I have not encountered any unusual heating up on any parts of the notebook. Does it help that I only use my notebook in air-conditioned areas?
I have not really tested the battery that much, but the last time I used it on battery mode for a long time, I think it took nearly an hour to reduce battery life to 40%, but then again, the battery was not fully charged at that time, so I guess at full charge, reducing it to 40% would take longer than 1 hour.
Built-in speakers sounds a bit mono, but you can connect surround speakers if you really want that theater feel when watching DVD movies. Screen is large at 14″, but its not widescreen. I haven’t watched a movie using my notebook so I cannot say how is the movie experience.
I am not a gamer so I don’t think I would be able to test the video performance on RPGs, but picture quality is very much OK. Images seems to look better on the 1024×768 resolution of my notebook than on the 1024×768 resolution of my desktop.
There are 3 USB ports (2 on the side, and one in front). I thought at first that that is enough for me. But now, I was thinking of buying a USB hub so I can use external keyboard and mouse whenever I like.
Keyboard is OK, although sometimes I feel a bit constricted. I’m used to regular desktop keyboard so it takes a while to adjust to the constricted and not so usual keys layout especially for special keys. I’m also used to using the numeric keypad so I might consider buying one. Spacebar is a bit unresponsive if you press it at the end so I’m practicing on hitting it near the middle to make sure space is there when I need it.
Touchpad is sensitive, but then again, I’m really not used to it (and I don’t plan to get used to it) so aside from the fast double-click response, I cannot say anything more. I really a need mouse to do all the cursor functions. Anyway, there are still 2 USB ports to spare (one is already taken up by my external HDD).
IR is also OK. So far, I was able to detect and access 3 nokia phones with ease. It can detect IR transmission as far as 2 feet within the line of sight.
I haven’t tested the Wi-fi yet coz’ I haven’t the opportunity to do so (actually I really do not know how to use it yet). Maybe I’ll invite my friends to starbucks (my treat) so we can test the wi-fi performance.
The unit is also a bit rugged. I commute going to office and I bring along my notebook everyday. No problem so far, although I would not dare try to drop it just to test how rugged it is. When it happens, I’ll let you know of the result.
So… That’s how my notebook is to me so far. I’m still satisfied… My demands are still met (although I’m really not that demanding hardware wise). I would say that for a standard user, it’s a good-enough off-the-shelf laptop coz with its current configuration, you can easily set everything up so you’ll have a working unit in a matter of 2 hours.
November 29th, 2005 at 4:18 am
The Celeron M in point which is clocked at 1.3GHz (Celeron M 350 model) is at par with P4 systems at 2ghz this is mainly because of the fairly large L2 cache of the Dothan Core (1mb) it’s as powerful as those 1st generation Pentium Ms (using the banias core) though the Celron M does away with SpeedStep thus it really takes a toll on the battry life.
but for performance alone, the celeron m can cut it through and as you have said system ram is 1gb; its a good system