[TriLUG] Shopping for new laptop...

[OlsonE at aosa.army.mil]

1) No issue with Intel or AMD. Same with single or dual core. I won't
comment on the AMD vs. Intel bit.
2) SATA isn't an issue.
3) Graphics. Same here, ATI vs. Nvidia. I've had more successes with
Nvidia than I have ATI.
4) Wireless. Broadcom is your best bet, although preferred is anything
Atheros / Prisim based.
5) RAM. If you're considering running vista, than you WANT 2gb or more
of RAM. You'll thank me later. 

-----Original Message-----
From: trilug-bounces at trilug.org [mailto:trilug-bounces at trilug.org] On
Behalf Of Tom Eisenmenger
Sent: Wednesday, July 11, 2007 3:20 PM
To: Triangle Linux Users Group discussion list
Subject: [TriLUG] Shopping for new laptop...

I've been floored by recent price cuts on laptops and have decided it
might be time to retire my Dell Latitude C610 (256mb RAM, 40g HD, 1MHz
PIIIM).  One of the reasons for my upgrading is that I need to have a
machine capable of running Vista (no catcalls, please!) - my work as IT
instructor and occasional PC troubleshooter really require that I keep
up with the latest software;  sadly, my Dell won't even load Vista
unless I upgrade it, then there's the price of the OS itself - I might
as well buy new.

Since I run a Linux distro as the primary OS on my notebook (currently
running Mint along side XP and about to try eLive), I want to find a
Linux-friendly notebook but knowing how various distros balk at one
technology/chipset I want to buy smart as well as  
cheap.   With that in mind, here are a few comments/questions:

1) I'd prefer going AMD;  is there a problem or caveat if I go with one
of their 64-bit X2 chips?  Better to stick with single core?  32- bit?
Any reason why I should seriously consider Intel instead?

2) Storage:  I'm assuming SATA is a non-issue in Linux?

3) Graphics chipsets:  if I go AMD it'll probably have ATI (which is
what my Dell has now).  Is there a compelling reason to look for nVidia
instead?  Does Linus handle the newer widescreen monitors reasonably
well (1280 x 800)?

4) Wireless:  It  looks like most of today's offerings include Broadcom
wireless;  how's its Linux support?  Should I opt for something else if
it's out there?

5) Anything else I should consider?  I'm looking most closely at 15.4"
widescreen models as I actually do use mine as a laptop on occasion -
17" is more of a desktop replacement in my book...

FWIW, there are some great deals out there.  Of particular interest is
the Compaq Presario F572US (15.4" "Briteview" widescreen, Athlon
64 X2 TK-53, 1gig DDR2, 80g 5400RPM SATA (might have to upgrade that)
$479 at Staples after rebates.  Comparable Turions seem to up the price
by about $200.  Comments?

Thanks all,

Tom Eisenmenger
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