Okay, well I do have a beef. But not with Bandit. With HP. They insist on using desktop parts in a laptop computer. They get away with cheaper prices but they end up with a product with lots of caveats. As bandit mentioned, lately I've spared no effort to mention the shortcomings of the zd8000, and the reason why I don't respect HP for putting out a product like it.
But I also think that those who buy it will find that in 3 months there will be a cooler, lighter, 64-bit laptop at a similar price point (see I do care about money, heck I got my laptop for $899), maybe even from HP. And if it's HP that offers that computer, I will be very happy for HP and if it's a good product, I'll recommend it.
But as Bob has pointed out and I wholeheartedly agree with, those who buy a zd8000 now may have buyer's remorse in 3-4 months.
Am I talking trash about HP? Well, maybe. I just think they could have done so much better with this computer, and in fact with their whole lineup. There are features about it that I admire--the numeric keypad is unbelievable, and the multimedia features they've put on there are impressive. But the choice of core components and the thermal design is just disappointing.
I admit that when it comes to consumer features that go beyond the standard PC, HP has Dell beat. HP laptops are more multimedia-friendly (at least their high-end ones). They have loads more gadgets and trinkets. But they cheap out on the computer side of things. Which is . . . after all . . . what it is at the end of the day.
When it comes down to it, I don't think anyone should buy from HP until they update their lineup. Their offerings are behind the times and HP is working on new models, and hopefully will get the jump on Dell when it comes to 64-bit. At that point, HP will be a better choice than Dell.