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Hey guys,

I’m purchasing a new laptop for web development. I run the standard Dreamweaver/Photoshop/FTP clients etc simultaneously. I want something that will run smoothly and will be good enough for design without going overboard.

My budget is approx $1000-$1200. Any good ideas? Suggestions? Experiences? I’m not opposed to any OS (except maybe Vista) and would not care between PC/MAC etc as long as it fit my needs.

Thanks!

Go for a Mac. It natively runs OS X, Linux, and Windows. 3 computers in one. A MacBook would probably suit you well, and the price is right.

http://www.apple.com/macbook/macbook.html

Coolfactor,

Those are great, but aren’t the only ones in my budget only 13” monitor? The 17”‘s seems to start from 1799.

depends where you are… in Canada.. futureshop has a ASUS laptop 469.00 with Vista.. throw the Vista out and install Linux.

I have a Panasonic Toughbook CF-W4 - it’s kind of old, but I love it. Extremely portable - without the battery it might way 2 pounds.

If I was going to buy a new laptop today I’d get a Sony VAIO TXN19P (for XP) or a Sony VAIO TXN29N (for Vista). My boss, the 14 AF Commander, has the 29N and it is so awesome - extremely lightweight, Bluetooth, WWAN, Wi-Fi. These are a bit out of your price range though :(

I’m in the USA (massachusetts).

The models I’m looking at currently:

MacBook (Pro?)
Dell Precision M4300
Compaq Presario V6000TX series

Anybody have any of these and/or recently purchased one for under $1,200?

I actually prefer the smaller Macbook over the Macbook Pros.  After using my Macbook on an airplane, in a car, on a tiny table at a coffee shop, etc., I’ll probably never have a 15 / 17” portable again.  As long as you are getting it for web development and not 3d gaming, there’s no shortage of muscle.

I gotta say I used to love/loath windows until I was forced to use a mac at a firm I worked for. Now I only own Macs and love them more and more every day. I currently use a MacBook and I appreciated that it boots in 3 seconds if I have to shut it down…. currently my uptime is 31 days as I just close the lid when I am not using it and it goes to sleep (Dont know if I like the sleeping/breathing light… makes my room glow at night).

All in all I love my MacBook, slim, durable, wicked battery life and best of all there is awesome development software available for it. Plus if you run MAMP you have a Dev server local wherever you go.

Go for the MacBook! You wont regret it!

-Lee

Just a note, that you don’t have to use MAMP.  There are binary installers for PHP and MySQL, and Apache is ready out of the box.  I compile Apache, PHP, and MySQL for my Mac for the greatest control.

(Dont know if I like the sleeping/breathing light… makes my room glow at night)

“Breathing light” - that is so perfect. It’s alive! ALIVE!! 😊

when I bought my macbook I invested $20 in one of these guys and when I’m “docked” I just plug in my big desktop monitor.  While I do find myself more productive on larger screens, working on the small macbook is still a pleasure, and pretty easy.

There is no way you should get a Mac if you are on a budget of $1200.  The specs on a $2500 MacBook Pro will price out to $1000-1200 for Win.  Everyone here is pumping Mac but they aren’t taking your budget into account.  Let’s get real… is the ability to run iGarage really worth $1300+ of your dollars?  No… with those extra $ you could pump your machine up to 4GB ram - buy an external drive - buy a nice monitor - still have cash to burn.

For $1200 you could get a nice HP or Toshiba.  I got an HP 8 months ago and I’m real happy. core 2 duo - 120GB - 2GB 667 ram - 15 wide glossy - 24xcd/8xdvd - built in webcam - wireless - nice speakers - remote - etc :: Cost = $1200.  The only problem I have had is a single dead pixel.  Not a big deal but I have slight OCD so it really bugs me.

I don’t run Vista and it is something to think about.  I have the Vista discs but plan on running XP for at least another 6 months.

Just note that if you buy Mac now you will have to get a Leopard upgrade in a few months.

because all the new notebooks are coming now with a mirrortype screen I decided to buy a used one from ebay - and I had good luck, it´s fast, has a good graphic processor (I am doing CAD also), and the accu works more than 3 hours, price was 460 Euro. and the best, it´s looking fast and sexy, my ASUS M6xxx

I second the two Dereks I’ve got a windows laptop and a macbook and the macbook is much more agile to use on the move or even at home on the sofa where I now do most of my work.  I’ve also got a linux PC but temd to use it as a server now.  The small screen is not a negative but a plus it was what I was worrying about the most b4 I purchased it but I just bought it (the lowest spec but maxed out on memory) its been the best laptop I’ve ever had and the last PC laptop I ever buy.

Using it on the move is great whether it be a hotel room or train, airport or plane small and portable with great power combined can’t be beaten plus you can run all other OS if you really require it.

Ok guys,

It’s narrowed down to 2 choices (although any great deals I’m still considering)

MacBook:

# 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
# 1GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x512
# 80GB Serial ATA @ 5400 rpm
# Combo Drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW)

*** $999 with Student Discount ***

OR

Dell Latitude D630

#Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7300 (2.00GHz) 4M L2 Cache, 800MHz Dual Core
#Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition, SP2, with media
#14.1 inch Wide Screen WXGA LCD Panel
#2.0GB, DDR2-667 SDRAM, 2 DIMMS
#80GB Hard Drive, 9.5MM, 5400RPM
#24X CD-RW/DVD w/ Cyberlink PowerDVD™
#128MB NVIDIA® Quadro NVS 135M™
#Dell Wireless™ 1390 802.11g Mini Card
#Touchpad with UPEK® Fingerprint Reader

*** $1,154 ***

What do you guys think?