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General discussion

Is there a "best" manufacturer? (and other ?s)

Feb 10, 2005 11:17PM PST

Hi - I'm still considering building my own HPzt 3000, but, should I wait for these new Sonomas to come out on the market.

I'm sort of looking for the "catch-all" - I want to be able to use it as a desktop replacement - use wireless networking or the DSL connection we have now, YET, be able to take it with me for web surfing, gaming and MS Office applications.

However, I'm sort of stuck between an Apple lover at work and an HP lover at church....what should I do?

What are the pros and cons of each? Here are the specs I decided on late last year for my zt3000:
HP Pavilion ZT3000

Operating System------ Microsoft Windows XP Home
Edition with SP2
Processor----------------Intel Pentium M Processor 725
(1.6 GHz)
Display------------------ 15.4" WXGA BrightView
Widescreen (1280x800)
Graphics Card---------- 64MB ATI Mobility Radeon? 9200
Memory----------------- 256MB DDR SDRAM (1x256MB)
Hard Drive---------------60 GB 5400 RPM Hard Drive
Primary CD/DVD Drive-DVD/CD-RW Combo Drive
Networking-------------- Intel

Discussion is locked

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wait for sonoma
Feb 10, 2005 11:30PM PST

If your not in a rush to get a laptop, then I would reccommend waiting for the new Sonoma boards. I think it will be worth it.

As for that configuration you have there, you should bump up that ram to 512mb. Nowadays I would not take anything less than 512mb of ram.

And what kind of gaming do you plan on doing on this machine? If it is games like Unreal Tournament 2k4 or other high quality graphics, then you should bump up the video card too if you really want the best experience.

Hope that helps
Jordan

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Yes!!!
Feb 10, 2005 11:33PM PST

And it's not this maker.

You didn't define "best", but the longest (too long?) life laptops have been for the office the Panasonic Toughbooks. We give those to people who kill whatever else we gave them.

However I'm in the mindset that it's 64-bit or bust, but I'm programming applications...

Bob

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Thanks!
Feb 11, 2005 3:56AM PST

I am going to wait ... I'm definitely in the market for a Sonoma - going to see what all the fuss is about, but I am also going the check out the "toughbooks"

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Pansonic Toughbook
Feb 11, 2005 5:56AM PST

Does anyone know of any Toughbooks coming out with the Sonoma Platform?

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Just what I've seen.
Feb 11, 2005 7:41AM PST

The Toughbook market is a little slower paced. They are not chasing the usual customer so they tend to release new models at a relaxed pace. Try every 6 months you may see an update...

Bob