Andreas Posted August 30, 2005 Share Posted August 30, 2005 Morning For various reasons I fear I may have to bite the bullet after all and get a PC (again). I would like a laptop, and I like the looks of Sony's Vaio range (edit - following Redwolf's advice I now consider a Toshiba). Which one is recommended (office apps and gaming rig - should be able to run IL2 - Shturmovik), or would anyone with knowledge of these machines recommend not to get them? Cheers Andreas [ September 01, 2005, 01:42 AM: Message edited by: Andreas ] 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schrullenhaft Posted August 30, 2005 Share Posted August 30, 2005 Among the Sony VAIO Laptops, the entire T-series utilizes the Intel 855GME integrated video (64MB of shared system memory for video). While this configuration is great for extended battery life it will work only OK-to-mediocre with the current CM series and be inadequate for IL-2 and CMx2 (no higher end shaders, etc.). The entire Sony FS-series (widescreen ?) utilizes the Intel 915GM integrated video (128MB of shared system memory). Again this configuration helps a bit with battery life (integrated video), but it still isn't as speedy as a dedicated video solution. The speed of this system will be a little bit better than the 855GME and it should run all three games (CM, IL-2, CMx2), though not very fast. Depending on how picky you are regarding video performance, this series may or may not be sufficient. The Sony VAIO S460/B & S460P/B offer the Nvidia 6200 Turbo Cache. These videocards are a cross between integrated video and dedicated video. They often have a small "kernel" of video memory and then depend on system memory for many functions. I can't tell how the Sony's have these configured, but it's possible that all of the memory is coming from system memory (128MB shared). These will probably be a bit (or significantly) faster than the Intel 915G's. The other S-series laptops utilize the Intel 915G. The Sony VAIO A60091 & A790 utilize a dedicated video chip, the ATI Radeon X600 with 256MB of dedicated memory. This video setup should work fine for all three games (CM, IL-2, CMx2), with the major tradeoffs being battery life, weight and cost (it's basically a "desktop replacement"). Of course you'll lack fog in the current CM series and I'm not sure what driver short comings may exist for the IL-2 series. Beyond these video specifications, I'm not familiar with the Sony VAIO series and their reliability and performance in comparison to other models. Another model (among dozens) to consider is the Dell Inspiron 9300, which comes with the Radeon X300 64MB and can be upgraded to an Nvidia GeForce 6800 Go 256MB or a Radeon X300 with 128MB. I'm not sure what your impression of Dell is since many people either like them or hate them. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redwolf Posted August 30, 2005 Share Posted August 30, 2005 I recommend against any kind of Sony laptop. Sony is very ruthless of cramping the most fancy devices, and lots of them, into too small and nice packages. The result are overheating laptops and almost always very high noise levels. The reliablity is usually horrible and their service supposed to be bad. In addition, Sony is the chief of those companies who infect computers with DRM software to prevent you from messing with media. In particular you will most likely not be able to play region 1 and 2 DVDs no matter what you do unless you use Linux, plus whatever else they put into the Windows installation. With Sony it is questionable whether you can freely use normal Windows versions and non-Sony drivers for the built-in devices. Last but not least Sony also uses a lot of nonstandard parts. Apart from the obvious case of using the memory stick into of CF or SD you may find yourself unable to use standard RAM or third-party power supplies. And yes my company notebook is a Sony vaio which sounds like the flight deck of an aircraft carrier and eats up one battery (dead) every six months. And you will find the same opinion voiced on many hardware forums. If you want a nice and flashy laptop, but with excellent build quality, check out Asus models (or Asustek). If you can live with an ugly piece check out Thinkpads although you would have to live with ATI video then. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andreas Posted August 31, 2005 Author Share Posted August 31, 2005 Thanks to both of you. I have heard exactly what Schrullenhaft said about Dells. Some love them, some hate them. I'll check out the IBM and Asus models. All the best Andreas 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andreas Posted August 31, 2005 Author Share Posted August 31, 2005 Anybody got any views on Toshibas? Redwolf - what tech forums are you talking about? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redwolf Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 For computer hardware I like anandtech.com and hardforums. Also check arstechnica and techreport for notebooks. The is also notebookforums.com but that one isn't good for comparing brands. They are so big they have one subforum per brand, and each subforum is occupied by fans of that brand, and a few bashers. They are great after you chose, but not so great for choosing. Notebookreview.com seems obvious but I don't go there. I don't know anything about new Toshibas except they are good looking 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andreas Posted September 1, 2005 Author Share Posted September 1, 2005 Thanks a lot Redwolf. What does this Toshiba look like to those in the know? I will use it as desktop replacement for my G4/400, and keep the iBook I currently own for portable use. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redwolf Posted September 1, 2005 Share Posted September 1, 2005 That Toshiba is *way* overpriced. What I like about it is that it has a screen with normal DPIs. I really hate it when they cramp too many pixels into notebook screens. Maginifying fonts is both and pain and also not entirely practical, there are too many places in Windows and other operating systems that do not allow you to switch fonts. Not to mention CM which certaily don't. But that price for a 1.8GHz P-M and a 5700 is a complete joke. The 5700 is also not necccessarily fast enough to run even CMx2. It really isn't that fast a card, never has been. The CPU is fast enough, it is just for this price that you would expect more. If you like something a little slower check out the Asus Z71v which has a 6600 graphics board and can be configured with a CPU of your liking. If you want the same thing as this Toshiba (17" screen) check out a Dell Inspiron 9300 which has GeForce 6800 graphics. I don't know the current build quality of Toshiba. The Dell 9300 seems to be fine. Heck, for the price of that Toshiba you can even get an Inspiron XPS2 which is beating up most desktops with a 6800Ultra graphics chip. At the very least you need to check that Toshiba for noise. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andreas Posted September 1, 2005 Author Share Posted September 1, 2005 Thanks a lot Redwolf. I am used to Mac prices, so it did not seem that excessive to me. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pzman Posted September 1, 2005 Share Posted September 1, 2005 Since the top of the line G4 Powerbook (17") costs about the same price, there is no chance that the Toshiba is worth that much. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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