Yay for things!

So, basically, the 'rents are embarking on a crusade against HP, at my behest and I get to price out replacements for my trouble-ridden HP laptop! Yay!

So ever since freshman year I regretted my choice to buy a big, hard-hitting laptop, as opposed to a smaller, more portable laptop paired with a custom-built desktop. At the time I guess I underestimated what an awesome value custom-built desktops are. When I researched replacements for my Dell, I found the nc8430 and thought I had found a portable, powerful laptop that we well-built and backed by excellent support. The first two are definitely true, the third is iffy and the last one's a blatant lie. However, I was still working on the somewhat flawed concept of having a powerful laptop as my primary and only real computer.

So now, I'm finally going to rectify that mistake.

Desktop:

• Case/PSU: Shuttle SD37P2


• CPU: Intel C2D E6400 (perhaps the E6600, the next notch up, I'm not sure)


• RAM: 2GB Kingston DDR 667 PC5300


• System Drive: Seagate 120GB SATAII (Perpendicular!)


• Graphics: Sapphire ATI X850 (Free and available at home due to snafu while building Nick's desktop)

I'll pick up a copy of Windows from the CMU computer store (XP Pro, not Vista) and likely will dual-boot with some flavor of Linux, just for kicks, since I now have the HDD space to give Linux a decent partition.
I can use my new 400GB SATA drive (currently in external enclosure) as a data/media drive, and then still have another HDD bay open.

It'll be sweet.

Laptop:
I still haven't nailed down exactly what I'll be ordering but the following have been under consideration:

• Lenovo Thinkpad R60 (14.1") (Top Choice)


• Lenovo Thinkpad T60 (14.1")

The CMU computer store is just about to refresh their lineup of Thinkpad's to include C2D models of the T60 and Z61, as I've been lead to believe. Unless they have a particularly compelling pre-configured T60 model, I'll likely order a customized R60 through them. Likely equipped with a T5500 CPU, and a x1300 or x1400 GPU and 512MB of RAM that I will promptly append with the 1GB upgrade module I bought for the soon-to-be returned HP.


• Dell D620

I've read good things about this model, but it just doesn't have the reputation for build or reliability of the T/R series Thinkpads. I also saw it available for some great deals in the Dell outlet.


• Lenovo 3000 V100

Cheaper and smaller than the above models, as well as being equipped with a card reader, but apparently has poor battery life, integrated graphics and a terrible touchpad. The price and size were appealing.


• Asus V1j/p

Had this one been out when I was shopping for the nc8430 I would have tried really hard to get one. It has the next notch up in GPU (really just a later revision), better RAM setup, 'spillproof keyboard' and integrated DVI, cardreader etc that set it above the nc8430, on paper. It's keyboard might not be as nice (One of the nc8430's biggest saving graces) and it would run almost $400 more including docking station but sans the questionable utility of a 4 year HP warranty. At this point it's too pricey, and more powerful than I need, if I'm going to also build a desktop.

Working on the assumption I'm going to get one of the first two laptop options, my roommate and I (well, one of my roommates and I) will have nearly matching computer setups: He as a T43(?) Thinkpad and the same desktop case, just with an AMD motherboard instead of the Intel one I'm choosing.