Solved! Waffling over a few laptops. Could use some input

[ZombieX]

Hi Folks,

I am going to pull the trigger on a new laptop in just a few days. There is no doubt I need/want ultrathin/ultraportable. I will not be gaming on this unit, simply surfing the web, email, reading/typing papers, and occasionally writing some code. My top two choices are

Dell Vostro V13 or Toshiba portege r705. I am also considering the Lenovo Ideapad u460 and the Acer Timelinex 3820T.

What do you all think?

Thanks in advance.

 

[buwish]

Could you post the specs of each, i.e. general stuff like CPU, GPU, etc...? Specs aside though and just looking at reliability (in my view), I'd count the Acer out to start with. At the top of the list I'd have Lenovo and then Toshiba and finally, Dell. Not to say that anything is wrong with Dell, as I have personally had great success with them over the years, but I've found Toshiba's (what I own now) and Lenovo's to have a superior build quality.

 

[ZombieX]

Thanks for the quick reply, I thought about specs after i posted. Anyway here are the specs for the machines I am considering.

Lenovo Ideapad U460:
Intel® Core™ i3-370M Processor ( 2.40GHz 1066MHz 3MB )
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator HM55 HD
4 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1066MHz
14.0" HD LED Glare 1366x768
Industry Standard Touchpad
500GB 5400
8 Cell Lithium-Ion
Intel Wireless Wi-Fi Link 1000
Bluetooth Version 2.1 + EDR

Toshiba r705:
Intel® Core™ i3-370M Processor
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
4GB DDR3 1066MHz memory
13.3" widescreen
HD TruBrite® LED Backlit display with Intel® Wireless Display Technology
Supports 720p content, 1366x768 (HD), 16:9 aspect ratio
Display Size*Display Size*Mobile Intel® HD Graphics
64MB-1696MB dynamically allocated shared graphics memory
500GB HDD (5400rpm)
DVD-SuperMulti drive (+/-R double layer) supporting up to 11 fomats
10/100/1000 Ethernet LAN
65W (19V 3.42A) Auto-sensing, 100-240V / 50-60Hz input
Li-Ion (66Wh, 6-Cell)

Dell Vostro V13:
Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor ULV SU7300 (3M Cache, 1.30 GHz, 800 MHz FSB)
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, with Media, 32-bit, English
4.0GB, DDR3-1066MHz SDRAM, 1 DIMM 4GB1D
320GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
13.3 inch Wide Display HD (1366 x 768) with Anti-glare LED
6-cell 30WHr internal battery
Intel Pro/Wireless 5100 802.11b/g/n WF5100
Mobile Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
Dell Wireless 365 Bluetooth Module

I was originally attracted to the Vostro V13 simply because of its .65" thinness and 3.5lb wieght factor. I do however question the durability of such a wafer thin laptop over the next several years. The portege is lighter yet at only 3.2lbs and is maxed out at 1.00" at the rear. Also, there is no sacrifice of optical drive for such a thin form but you pay for it. I considered the Lenovo heavily since it got some good reviews but I am hesitant on the brand because it is not one that stands out to me.

Finally yes, I also had the same thoughts about Acer I just wanted to check my skepticism. Let me know what you think now that I posted the specs.

 

[christiangordon]

I like the Lenovo a bit more then the toshiba mainly because it has a 8cell compared to the 6cell battery. What are the sizes and weights of those two? I would not get that Dell. I am not a big fan of that CPU

 

[ZombieX]

The portege weighs in at 3.2lb and is 1.01" at its thickest point, .78" at its thinnest.

The lenovo is roughly 1.02~1.02" at the thickest point, .9" at the thinnest.

 

[raza715]

Acer timeline or ASUS U series. Both will give around 5 to 6 hours of usage with echo settings