Need a lightweight laptop - any recommendations?

[diddyman]

I need an ultra lightweight laptop to take on me travels.

Something that weighs less than 2kg, a minimum of 512megs of RAM, preferably >60 gigs of HDD, and a fast processor (not entirely fussed whether it is an Intel or an AMD!)

It is for storing digital images and editing them.

Acer seem to do some good ones, but I only know them for their screens, TBH.

Anyone got any recommendations?

Cheers in advance.
Jim

[agent006]

Dell.

Latitude C400 if you're OK with second hand, or the new Latitude X1 if it's got to be new.

I've just got a C400 off the ever useful ebay for £330. 1.2g PIII, 512RAM, 20GB harddisk. Could easily be brought up to your specs.

http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/latit_x1?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&s=bsd

Looks like the Lat D410 is under 2kg too.

>> Edited by agent006 on Tuesday 10th May 13:33

[agent006]

And dell make fantastic docking stations if you're deskbound for any length of time.

[padgett]

and dell's customer service is terrible, and they take ages to deliver

[Kinky]

You really need a ThinkPad X Series.

1.2 kilos and 7.5 hours+ battery life, etc, etc ....

K

[diddyman]

Thanks for that ALec. I am not a fan of Dell, TBH. Had a desktop of there's once which was always going wrong. Sort of put me off since then. And I don't think they are very good value for moeny. Acer do a model called the Travelmate 382TMi with an 80gig drive and it only weighs 1.6kg. I know the CD/DVD drive is an external unit, but it is very compact and has all the bells and whistles on it.

Decisions decisions!

[diddyman]

Kinky said:

You really need a ThinkPad X Series. 1.2 kilos and 7.5 hours+ battery life, etc, etc .... K

And £300-£400 more than the competition for a similar or worse spec...!

[jeremyc]

Samsung 'X' series: I have the X10 (which I doubt they make anymore) so they're probably up to X20, X25 or X35 by now.

Very small & light, good performance, built-in everything. Only downside is that the standard battery pack life isn't great (about an hour), but a larger pack is optionally available.

And no, they're not waterproof to 10m.

>> Edited by jeremyc on Tuesday 10th May 13:51

[Plotloss]

Kinky said:

You really need a ThinkPad X Series. 1.2 kilos and 7.5 hours+ battery life, etc, etc .... K

I've recently bought an admittedly old X21 off ebay for £158

Its a cracking bit of kit...

[padgett]

Thinkpads are good.

Sonys are also pretty cool, but expensive

[Kinky]

diddyman said:

Kinky said: You really need a ThinkPad X Series. 1.2 kilos and 7.5 hours+ battery life, etc, etc .... K And £300-£400 more than the competition for a similar or worse spec...!

Dropped you a PM .....

K

[cirks]

>and dell's customer service is terrible, and they take ages to deliver

Um, my Inspiron 9200 from their Outlet arrived quickly (about 4 days), I was kept informed by email and I'm very happy with the machine and their service.
I've just received by Dimension 8400 from their outlet and recieved 3 phone calls in a week about the status of the order and eventually ended up with a 20" Ultrasharp monitor for approx £220 (same price as the 19" due to a minor delay. I don't think that is exactly my definition of 'terrible customer service'. Oh well, like every company, people have good and bad experiences.......

Sorry the above is a bit OTT as the Inspiron definately can't meet your requirements for a light weight laptop

[brumster]

Another IBM user here, X31.

If lightweight is your thing, then so is the X31. Just under a grand when I bought it (well, my company did) and worth every penny.

Forget side-by-side paper comparisons; you're paying for some quality kit, even if it's a bit quirky looking. It's solidly built, light, battery life is brilliant (will do a whole working day), has all the features you'd need and it's incredibly portable. Compared to my previous Sony - which was a laugh in terms of portability (battery life of 40 mins if you were lucky, plus it was heeeaaavvyyy).

The lack of a CD/DVD rom drive sounds like a put-off to most people but, seriously, you don't miss it (particularly with a USB pen drive, which is pretty de rigeur these days). I've got an external USB DVD/CDRW which I have for the odd time I use it - which is very rare.

Dell aren't bad, don't get me wrong, but not the lightest and the last Latitude I saw didn't put across a very solid "feel" to me...

[-DeaDLocK-]

I'm gonna be flogging a Sony T1XP/L (ultra-portable but full-featured unit) that I bought new only about a month ago with spare original battery and original velour case. I'm selling because I only bought it to take with me on a long holiday - now that I'm back I don't need it anymore.

Let me know if you're interested.

7 hours per battery, bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Centrino 733, dual-format writer, 512MB, 40GB (only 40GB cos the unit uses a 1.8" form factor drive, and those are only available at 40gb currently), an absolutely FANTASTIC screen etc etc.

[agent006]

diddyman said:

Thanks for that ALec. I am not a fan of Dell, TBH. Had a desktop of there's once which was always going wrong. Sort of put me off since then. And I don't think they are very good value for moeny. Acer do a model called the Travelmate 382TMi with an 80gig drive and it only weighs 1.6kg. I know the CD/DVD drive is an external unit, but it is very compact and has all the bells and whistles on it. Decisions decisions!

The point is that you shouldn't need dell customer support. I've never had to call out an engineer for a Latitude (even when looking after 200 of them at work), and the only time i've needed them for a desktop was when i've done something stupid and broken mine. I have a feeling that Latitudes qualify for business support, which is still in ireland and is the best i've used. Although all the rubber feet have just fallen off my C400, but i suspect that's my cackhandedness and lack of a proper laptop bag that's at fault.

Unless acer have suddenly improved by several 1000% then they will (still) be utterly dire.

Thinkpads are more expensive for a reason. Think Kia vs BMW. Compaq are well worth a look too.

[diddyman]

Thanks for all your suggestions guys. Maybe the Acer will be given a wide berth then.

I have never used an IBM, and having had poor results with Dell before (and heard plenty of others in the same boat) I would prefer to avoid them if poss..

Deadolck - YHM

[malman]

Toshiba - Tecra or Portege range might fit the bill

[[k]ar|]

I can only echo the above comments about IBM laptops. Sheer quality. I recently treated myself to a top-spec ThinkPad T42P with all the fruit, and it's without doubt the best laptop I've ever used. I would check out their range for something suitable for your needs. It will cost a little more, but when you use it, you'll know where the extra cash went!

HTH

[k]