Heavy open source multitasking + high speed internet = ???

[SHORTshifters]

Hello,

Searching the internet for the best suitable laptop for quit some time now and still haven't figured it out... Please help, I'm clueless when it comes to the more advanced tech stuff, but I do have a clear vision on what I'm looking for!

1- high speed/quality (wireless) internet connection >>> +/- 10 windows open at the same time for research, blogging, website building, cloud computing, mail, social media, ...

2- high speed/qualtiy multitasking >>> at least 5 programs should be able to run simultaneously without slowing down too much >>> ALL open source, NO heavy software, for ex. google chrome + picasa + winamp/vlc + openoffice, adobe reader/pdf creator, +/- daily virus scan, ...

3- HIGH reliability & resilience, LOW vulnerability & overheating, BEST warranty & service >>> used +/- 12h/day, 7d/week + I travel a lot (the lighter the better) so as shockproof as possible & suitable for different climates + I see this as a longterm investment of +/- 4 years

4- looks/design/brand don’t really matter BUT >>> min. 15 inch + anti-glare/matte screen + as light & compact as possible without affecting high performance/internet

5- optimal battery life without affecting performance or making the laptop too heavy or expensive

6- normal audio/video/graphic performance >>> lots of music, NO GAMES, just the occasional (online) movie + HDMI + VGA + webcam with microphone

7- other stuff like bluetooth + USB 3.0 + DVD RW + security lock + SD card reader


In a nutshell:
BIG on multi-tasking, internet & resilience - NO games or high quality video


All tips, tricks, suggestions more than welcome, thanks!

 

[WR2]

Budget?

 

[WR2]

Look over the FAQs in this sticky topic and let us know if there's anything you left out.
Laptop Buyers FAQ

Saves us a bunch of time running around looking for stuff that might not be what you actually want/need.

 

[SHORTshifters]

I looked at the sticky topic before posting this thread so everything I left out isn't that important for me or I didn't know. For instance, screen resolution or budget - don't know/don't care, as long as the laptop does best what I need it for, as described in my thread...

As I said before, I'm clueless on tech specs, I can only describe as detailed as possible what I want to use it for and how.

Sorry for the inconvenience, hope you guys can still help me out, though...

 

[WR2]

The budget is pretty important for us...... even if you just ball-park it.

 

[WR2]

5- optimal battery life without affecting performance or making the laptop too heavy or expensive

How much battery life do you need doing the " high speed/qualtiy multitasking at least 5 programs should be able to run simultaneously without slowing down too much" type activity?

 

[WR2]

To give you an idea for a decent starting place - something like the HP ProBook 4530s (Review)
With options for a Core i7 quad core CPU and extra RAM it seems to be well positioned to meet your needs as I understand them.

The battery life rating shows lite duty web surfing with WiFi - your results should be less.

 

[SHORTshifters]

budget = max. €900
battery life = normal, I realize I need to plug it in for optimal performance

do you have a suggestion about CPU & RAM?
is it correct to say an i7 quad core is only usefull for top gaming and an i5 dual core is better for multitasking?

 

[WR2]

It's clear the i7 CPU would be preferred for multi-tasking workloads.
That's not to say the i5 wouldn't be very good. It's just that when 2 cores/4 threads goes up against 4 cores / 8 threads it's going to come off 2nd best. i5 is probably the lowest CPU you'd want.

Do you have a preferred outlet for laptops? Maybe a couple webstores for me to browse?
Will be looking for HP ProBook/ProBook Elite, Dell Vostro/Latitude and Lenovo Thinkpad options

 

[WR2]

For instance, screen resolution or budget - don't know/don't care

Are you using a laptop now and if so, what's the resolution of the screen?

My biggest personal pet peeve about notebooks is the standard 1366x768 resolution isn't what serious multi-taskers like to use. If you're only working 1 open window, or sharing the screen with 2 windows - it's not terrible.
Anything more than that - you want as much resolution (working space) as you can get. I won't settle for less than 1600x900. And 1920x1080 would be worth paying a premium price IMO.

My 2nd biggest gripe is glossy screens and your anti-glare matte screen request is something I really recommend.
And the business class notebooks do have a big higher durability, ruggedness and reliability factor for consumer notebooks.

 

[SHORTshifters]

Some forum threads say that most software isn't developped to run on an i7 quad core, only high-end games are... They even state that an i5 + 2,5GHz + 8GB RAM is better suited for multitasking with normal software than an i7 + 2,3GHz + 8GB RAM. Are they wrong?

I live in Belgium so the webstores I'm looking at or in Dutch... but an english webstore works fine to, if I have some laptop suggestions I can take a closer look at...

As the resollution is concerned, I'll follow your advice for multitasking 'cause my previous laptop wasn't really designed for that.

I will definitely checkout all your brand/type suggestions, thanks!

With all the tips I've got so far, I came a cross a new, pretty cheap & what seems to be powerfull MEDION laptop. http/www.medion.com/gb/electronics/prod/MEDION%C2%AE+AKOYA%C2%AE+P6633+15.6%22+Laptop+%28MD97958%29/30013731A1?category=search_P6633
Something you would recommend?

 

[WR2]

Some forum threads say that most software isn't developped to run on an i7 quad core, only high-end games are... They even state that an i5 + 2,5GHz + 8GB RAM is better suited for multitasking with normal software than an i7 + 2,3GHz + 8GB RAM. Are they wrong?

They are wrong.
i5-2450 2.5Ghz (Turbo 2.8GHz 2 cores active 3.1Ghz 1 core active)
Level 1 Cache 128 KB / Level 2 Cache 512 KB / Level 3 Cache 3072 KB

Core i7-2670QM 2.2Ghz (Turbo 2.?GHz 2 cores active 3.1Ghz 1 core active)
Level 1 Cache 256 KB / Level 2 Cache 1024 KB / Level 3 Cache 6144 KB
I can't find a source for the 2 core turbo speed of 2670QM but it should be the same.

 

[WR2]

Some forum threads say that most software isn't developped to run on an i7 quad core, only high-end games are...

This is partially true. There are programs that don't make use of multiple cores. But if you're running multiple programs (even single thread programs) while multi-tasking the extra cores make a difference as the workload is spread out among 4 cores.