I tiptoe in here gently because I don't know if this has been asked before (didn't see anything on search)

Pretty much anything on the market now can handle internet and basic office suites. Looking for something lightweight, long battery life, and built-in wireless. Price is a factor.

Story:
My uncle has MD. He's almost 60, living with his parents, and in general not in good health although he's in as good of spirits as can be expected for someone who's in his situation. Up until recently he had a computer - a desktop - and he spent a lot of time surfing, playing games, reading news, etc. However now he is confined to a hospital bed which is somewhat larger than his previous bed and there was not room for the desktop to be where he can reach it. He is not easily mobile - so a simple task like getting off the bed and to a chair 2 feet away is actually not possible. Being that his only source of entertainment for most of the day and his only contact with the world is the internet, we (the family) are pitching in together to buy him a laptop for Christmas. He'll probably get it as an early gift but that's irrelevant. He needs something light so he can lift it to move it. Wireless would be good so we can avoid another retraint on where he can set it. If we have to get a card then fine but built-in is preferable.


I did google this and I saw some articles about a new Dell machine, but not looking to spend that much.

10/3/2006 10:39:14 PM

Inspiron 1405. 5.5 lbs, 14.1" screen.

Starts about $649 with Intel dual-core, 512 MB ram, built-in wireless, 60 GB hard drive, cd-r/dvd-rom combo and MS Works.

10/4/2006 12:25:38 AM

I would suggest looking for sales. I got my laptop on sale recently from Best Buy for $579 (regular price is over $700). It is a Gateway MX6214. It's got 512 MB RAM, built-in wireless, and 80GB hard drive, 15.4" widescreen, CD-ROM Drive, DVD RW, and has been great for me so far. There is also a smaller model of the same laptop at Best Buy (I'm not sure what model it is, but it has a smaller monitor and is about $150 cheaper, with no DVD RW). I'm sure it's not the lightest laptop, but it's really not heavy. I don't think he would have a problem lifting it. It's also rather thin and has a good battery life. I know the smaller model of the laptop I had was lighter, so you could look at that one if screen size isn't important.

10/4/2006 1:18:33 AM

Quote :

"Looking for something lightweight, long battery life"

Unfortunately, the battery IS the heaviest part of the laptop. The longer the battery lasts, the heavier the laptop will be. I've seen same model laptops jump 4-5 lbs b/c one had the lowest battery options possible and the other the maximum possible.

Dell Latitude X1 starts at 2.5 lbs. Expensive
Dell Latitude D420 starts at 3.0lbs. Mid-Range.

I dunno. You can get some nice laptops that weigh 5-6lbs for reasonable prices and buy some peripherals to extend battery life / functionality. I'd also be more focused on the laptop setup (where is the power cord going to plug in, need a cooler underneath?, TV-tray thing available?) more than the weight of it.

10/4/2006 7:21:05 AM

if you go just over a thousand you can get the 3 pounders

[Edited on October 4, 2006 at 10:05 AM. Reason : mine was 1300 a year ago, came with 2 batteries (2hr/4hr) and weighs 3.3]

10/4/2006 10:05:17 AM

reading replies gave me an idea: I've never tried it and don't want to blow mine up but can a laptop run on power cord alone, no battery?? If so that'd help. Unfortunately 5 lbs is actually too much - he has trouble with some other items in his room that weigh in the 5-10 range. Not that any of these laying on him would hurt him, but I can imaging it would be very frustrating if he wanted to move it and couldn't.

We'll probably get one of those hospital tables to go over the bed since he's in a hospital bed. Peripherals really don't matter -- a new machine today model can handle thumb drives so anything he might want to move to another computer can go on that. I doubt that'll be an issue though. dvd-rom would be nice so he can watch movies, but not necessary as he does have a TV.

10/4/2006 10:11:03 AM

Quote :

" can a laptop run on power cord alone, no battery??"

yes, and this would be the best thing to do for your uncle, since the laptop will be in the same room all the time.

10/4/2006 10:17:41 AM

IBM x60 is the bomb at 2.7lbs. But, it's not cheap and the screen is very small. It's probably not what I'd recommend for an older person due to the screen size.

10/4/2006 11:21:39 AM

got a nice gateway laptop recently...very light with the normal battery

10/4/2006 11:33:12 AM

Yes any laptop can run with just the powercord and no battery, but if that is your plan, you may want to go to some computer stores and play around with various models without the battery, sometimes it throws the balance of the computer off to not have a battery in it.

One other thing to consider is where he's using this. You said he's confined to a hospital bed. Doea he have a tray attached to the bed that he could use this on, or will it need to sit on his lap? If the latter, you may want to pay attention to the heat that the laptop is generating (smaller+more powerful = more heat) and how it's being vented. There's a lot of laptops out there that still vent out the bottom.

10/4/2006 12:03:26 PM

he had a 17" CRT before, so I would think a high resolution 15" laptop would work ... ^^ glad to hear it it means we can look at cheaper stuff because the battery can be removed to compensate for weight.

10/4/2006 12:03:39 PM

yeah lucky on the battery thing, cuz i doubt many 15" screened laptops are overly light.

10/4/2006 2:27:05 PM

ibm x30 or x20

10/4/2006 4:02:13 PM

my x31 is pwnage

10/5/2006 9:07:27 AM

Quote :

"Inspiron 1405. 5.5 lbs, 14.1" screen. Starts about $649 with Intel dual-core, 512 MB ram, built-in wireless, 60 GB hard drive, cd-r/dvd-rom combo and MS Works."

I just bought a Gateway MX6448 at BestBuy for only $699. For that extra $50 you get a 15.4" screen dual core Turion with double that RAM (1024MB), built in wireless, double the hard drive (120GB HDD), dual layer DVD burner, and a built in ATI graphics chip with 128MB video ram.

However it is 6.3 lbs, so if that extra .8 lb isn't going to work for your grandpa, it might not be worth it dispite being a better computer for about the same price (sorry about your grandpa btw ).

10/5/2006 12:48:39 PM