Searching for a Developer Laptop

Thanks, for the comments. Actually, I was speaking more about the lag in rendering the video from AVI files etc. I like your example, but I guess I'm thinking that I would need better hardware to run Visual Studio, Oracle and such. Guess I'm overestimating my needs?

We run MySQL and our "Collector" application on a simple 1.8GHz Athlon 64 Compaq R3000 set to battery save mode or 800MHz. It has 512MB RAM, XP Pro and not any sign of being overworked.

Any current laptop usually has dual core CPUs, 6 to 8 times the RAM so where could be see an issue with overtaxing such a system?

As to AVI rendering, even the most powerful desktop I've seen rarely can transcode an AVI without lag. So let's set that work aside for background work or when we are not working on our applications.

Now I do run into developers that want the latest shiny highest clock rate, 3D chipset and more and use such "requirements" to get the laptop they want. But in reality I'm doing great with your average laptop and if it dies or not I can replace it for not much every few years. Why this matters is the developer that max'd out today will have to live with it far longer than my average laptop. And in 2 years you can imagine what we get then is HOW MANY TIMES better?
Bob
Bob

Thanks for your feedback.

I'm surprised you didn't mention HP in this thread. I get the impression that I should be going for an HP in terms of value for hardware performance. There is no doubt that Lenovo is tops in terms of quality and the price is up there as well. But it seems that HP is cheaper for the same hardware specs for Lenovo and is also the same price as Dell when delivery is accounted for. Am I missing something here?

Hello Frank,

I currently own an HP 6910P.
I use Visual Studio, VBA, SQL Server 2005 Dev edition and I administer a proprietary software product. I understand exactly what you are looking for as it is so hard to determine a good machine based on reviews.
I use VMWARE to test my developed applications in multiple environments. Video works relatively well on my machine. My OS is Vista Business 64Bit and I jump continuously between environments using aero. I just purchased a new laptop because I wanted a fresh machine that would add a bit more fun, but my HP is really sturdy and I drag it around with me all the time. I have an extra battery that adds to the battery I already have and gives me roughly 6 hours or power. The great thing about vista is the really nifty gadgets which add some entertainment while working.
My recommendation is as follows:
1) at least 4Gigs (also I would stick with the business machines for either IBM or HP) and must be upgradable to 8gigs. You will thank me when you are able to create multiple OS environments using VMWARE Workstation and emulate server/client interaction on your local machine. Also stick with VMWARE it makes better use of your video card and you can use aero while on your virtual box in full screen mode.
2) Processor should be Pentium Core 2 Duo >= '2.20Ghz'
> '2.20Ghz' is gravy.
3) You will need a discrete video card that works as a Hybrid. So when you are on the road it will either utilize the discrete memory or the onboard mem to save battery power.
4) HD space is important so that you can partition your virtual HD space to your virtual enviornments.
I just purchased a Lenovo Y550 because I was looking to have a little fun and I want that 8gig flexibility.
Unfortunately I have no specific machine to recommend as you will need to assess based on the look and feel for you. I am a key pounder and need a sturdy ,machine I also tend to lug my machine with me, so I have a Booq Bag back pack and one of their sleeves as well.
I did consider getting a Mac, but the price seemed to be for those that wanted the service, Mac OS and the actual laptop design, and I do not develop using any of the Unix/Linux systems so the investment was not good for me, but who knows it may work for you. However, those are the most important things you will need to look for and funny when you start looking with those specs you will notice how limited your choices will become and see how much they vary in design and price.
Good Luck,

the graphics isn't the same as my real environment. I haven't tried to actually install the graphic driver within the virtual pc to see if that works. Every OS i've install in Sun's or MS virtual pc have lower resolution then my primary OS.

Yes, that is true but VMWARE doesn't have that problem. I used Microsoft Virtual Desktop 8Mb only
I bought Parallel 8 Mb only I bought VMWARE and it has much better hardware support and works much better than the two I just mentioned. The video card reflects exactly what my hardware video card is 256. The driver of course is VMWARE's but it works much, much better.
In vista I can use VMWARE in full screen and still use the Vista Business Aero while in that desktop, you can not do that with the others I mentioned unless they are minimized.

I must say VMWARE is the reason I took Virtualization more seriously it works much better than the other two and I had the same thing with the video.
I strongly suggest you try out the trial at vmware's website you will not regret it.

I needed to get a bigger laptop (I currently own a 14"r and wanted a 15"). My options were, IBM Lenovo, HP or MAC. The Lenovo ideapads were very noce looking and had the size I was looking for, but it failed in 1) Although the hardware supported virtualization, it was not selectable in the Bios, which meant that if VMWARE couldn't turn it on I would have issues.
2) The question of a bios upgrade was addressed directly to them in the tech support blog but they failed to even acknowledge the request. Deal breaker 2
There was an HP that was just AWESOME "HP NV032UA HDX 16-1370US ". The machine was beautiful. However, I just did not want another HP. I will say though, HP was the only machine (even the Sony's didn't have VT enabling)that had the ability to enable VT hardware. I must say that, that machine is BEAUTIFUL. It also has the power to do whatever you need to do.