http://www.officemax.com/catalog/sku.jsp?skuId=22131989

$525 - $30 (fleabay coupon) + $35 (tax) - $50 (MIR) = $480 shipped

Seems like decent specs. I like the 13.3" (thats a must), 4GB of RAM, 7200RPM hard drive, HDMI and aluminum case/style (but not enough to fork out 1K+ for a Macbook Pro). Don't think I care about the processor much, and from reading online the big question is the touchpad; most people say it sucks supremely. I figure I should have at least a week to play with it in which time I can return it...can't find one locally to try out.

Anything else I should be looking at?

Quote :

"Features AMD Athlon Neo X2 Dual-Core Processor L335 (1.6GHz, 512KB L2 cache, up to 1600MT/s system bus) Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium (64-bit) 13.3" diagonal HD LED BrightView widescreen display (1366 x 768) 4096MB DDR2 system memory 320GB 7200rpm SATA hard drive 802.11a/b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth® Integrated webcam HP Modern Argento Imprint finish 6-cell Li-Ion battery 1-year limited warranty"

More specs: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834157044

11/17/2009 2:58:54 PM

as has been the case for a while,

intel >>>>>> AMD

though i know you said you don't think you'll care very much...what's wrong with the touchpad? honestly, i've not found a non-glass touchpad (read: apple) that didn't suck donkey balls, which is why if i can't get the laptop with a nipple, i use a bluetooth mouse and only use the touchpad if absolutely necessary

i know my HP is notorious for shorting out the touchpad...not sure how it happens, but it happens every 6 months or so, and i have to remove the battery, unplug the unit, and hold the power button for 10-15 second before plugging it up again (at which point the touchpad works like normal)

11/17/2009 3:05:16 PM

Yeah I'm aware about the intel>>>amd thing, but I don't think it'll impact my use (web browsing) that much. I'd be much more worried if it was a single core.

i guess the touchpad has a lot of friction, so it's not the easiest to glide your finger across. and it spazzes out something too...becomes non-responsive. i try not to worry about random online comments THAT much, so I'm willing to give it a try. I'll be using it on the couch most of the time so i'll pretty much never hook up a mouse to it.

11/17/2009 3:09:45 PM

^ my touchpad does that sometimes...personally, HP uses the worst pads in the business, but it only happens once every couple of weeks and usually only when i'm trying to do a bunch of things and move too fast for it to keep up...all that i do to clear it up is stop, tap the pad a couple of times to clear out the drag-lock thing, and it's back to acting normal

11/17/2009 3:18:51 PM

i hate HP laptops

so much gloss to collect fingerprints and extraordinarily awful touchpads


http://dealnews.com/Lenovo-coupons-Up-to-200-off-select-laptops-and-netbooks/329822.html

I also like the new Dell Latitude series a lot but they aren't as cheap

11/17/2009 4:11:29 PM

I bought one and kept it for less than a week before taking it back. The touchpad sucks HARD. It's 10x worse than the one on the Toshiba that I replaced it with (which also sucks but I'm coming from a Macbook).

My issues:

hotter than my old Macbook which is ridiculous.
Trackpad would lose all direction functionality after sleeping (clicks worked but you couldn't move it)
Sluggish during long video playback (at it's hottest, gpu overheating?)

The case was nice & the keyboard was one of the better pc keyboards that I've used but I took it back & exchanged it for a Toshiba T135-S1310 with a 1.3 Dual Core Pentium that blows the pants off the HP. Downside was that it was another $150 or so.

If you want to test the HP out, I found one at Walmart while I was waiting on mine to arrive that appears to be an identical unit other than BT the other day.

11/17/2009 8:34:08 PM

Aren't HPs the most likely to fail?


Saw a link about it on HardOCP today.


HP == do not want

[Edited on November 17, 2009 at 9:16 PM. Reason : I would only buy Toshibas, for the record]

11/17/2009 9:16:08 PM

i'm still using my first HP laptop and it'll be 3 years old in february...aside from the touchpad, i really don't have any complaints aside from the fact that when it comes out of standby, the CPU fan is loud for 3-4 minutes...i've never noticed it running especially hot, but most of the time it's on a notebook cooler on my lap (i don't actually run the fans...i just got it for my last laptop so it wouldn't sit directly on my lap in the first place)

that said, i was a toshiba guy before and i'll likely be a toshiba guy when i get rid of this unit...they are, by far, the best value for the money, hands down...they greatly improved their build quality 5 or 6 years ago and ever since have been great laptops (in my experience)

11/18/2009 8:26:21 AM

If size is your biggest priority, theres a cheap Gateway 12" for $400 shipped

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5020325&SRCCODE=LINKSHARE&cm_mmc_o=-ddCjC1bELltzywCjC-d2CjCdwwp&AffiliateID=NKa3hZyYoHA-JeEUzTtfB5RbeC8I13a3iw

11/18/2009 10:05:06 AM

From articles I've read, the AMD Athlon Neo X2 Dual-Core Processor L335 ...

... is weak sauce. AMD has been quoted that they'll never move into the netbook realm, so they came out with the Neo X2 processors to compensate. It barely beats the Atom N280 in terms of real world performance. And if battery life is of any concern, don't get your hopes up on this processor. So, if you don't mind slightly above netbook performance, and sub netbook battery life, then go for it.

[Edited on November 18, 2009 at 10:17 AM. Reason : more info]

11/18/2009 10:16:58 AM

^ that's the point, though:

Quote :

"Neo chips are designed for thin and light laptops that can deliver full functionality at affordable prices, AMD says. AMD fits Neo chips into a category of consumer PCs it calls "ultrathin" laptops, which falls between netbooks and expensive ultraportable laptops like Apple's MacBook Air. AMD contends that netbooks, though cheap, provide limited functionality, while ultraportables are too expensive, with prices above US$1,500."

http://www.mis-asia.com/news/articles/amd-challenges-intel-with-dual-core-neo-chip

11/18/2009 10:21:33 AM

^ Well, Intel has already answered back with their CULV processors. So, AMD just got snuffed again. I feel sorry for them, they just can't keep ahead of the curve.

11/18/2009 10:39:04 AM

honestly, the CPU game is beginning to confuse me...the general trend is that, clock for clock, the intel CPUs perform better than the AMD equivalents (though AMD is usually cheaper for the same specs)

i'd like to see some benchmarks between the neo and SU-line of processors...i can't even find any good comparisons i don't really see them in the same price/performance bracket...the intels are more expensive than the AMD neos, and as such, it's kind of unfair to compare them

11/18/2009 10:56:01 AM

There's no way to do perfect comparisons. The best we can do is compare granny smiths to red delicious'. Take price, performance, & efficiency into account and I think it's perfectly fair to compare CULV to AMD Neo.

11/18/2009 11:09:13 AM

Quote :

"I think it's perfectly fair to compare CULV to AMD Neo."

would you mind posting some specs, benchmarks, and prices? because i'm having a hard time finding two that are even a decently fair comparison

11/18/2009 11:57:10 AM

Purely anecdotal but the 1.3 SU4100 in my Toshiba definitely outperforms the Neo. Whether that's a result of a defective HP or just because it's dual core, I don't know. Load times for office and PhotoShop are much better now though I wouldn't call either of them powerhouses

11/18/2009 2:00:46 PM

Getting into soap box arena... but sure, see below...

Sources:
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_list.php - Passmark results for thousands of processors
http://www.cpu-world.com/ - Lists out processor specs and "MSRP" price
http://wikipedia.org - A search for CULV lists specs and price, not many listings for AMD Neo X2

Prices and Benchmark results:
Not Sold Individually - AMD Athlon Neo X2 L325 1.6GHz (409 PassMark rating)
Not Sold Individually - AMD Turion Neo X2 L625 1.6GHz (834 PassMark rating)

$134 MSRP - Intel U2300 1.2GHz (888 PassMark rating)
$289 MSRP - Intel U7300 1.30GHz (1023 PassMark rating)
$289 MSRP - Intel Core 2 Duo SU9600 1.6GHz (No PassMark rating)


Since price isn't listed for AMD, let's configure two very similar systems with both Intel and AMD and see what the price difference is. I chose the L625 vs U7300. You can do a different comparison if you'd like.

From HP's website:
Customize an HP dm3z w/ AMD Neo X2 L625 -> $599.99
Customize an HP dm3t w/ Intel U7300 -> $699.99

A $100.00 price difference for the Intel machine. Not that it's exact, but it gives us a general idea of the price difference. Now, let's weigh in:


Performance: Intel U7300 Wins (by 189 PassMark points)
Price: AMD L625 Wins (by $100)
Battery Life: Intel U7300 Wins (http://www.notebooks.com/2009/10/26/hp-pavilion-dm3t-boasts-9-hours-of-battery-life-with-wifi/)
Graphics: AMD L625 Wins (It's coupled with discrete Radeon Mobility HD 3200 graphics)

It's a Tie!

It's a toss-up depending on your needs/desires/wants/cravings. I am by no means an Intel fanboy (my desktop gaming rig is AMD equipped), but I gotta give it to them. They're way ahead of AMD in mobile computing. You might even venture to say they're ahead in desktop computing as well, but I digress.

[Edited on November 18, 2009 at 2:32 PM. Reason : wrong link]

11/18/2009 2:29:09 PM

^ interesting...i'll take that as being a pretty fair assessment

i'm not fan of either in particular, really...i just like to know the advantages and disadvantages of each and i'm really falling behind in new tech, so...

11/18/2009 2:52:41 PM

checked out the trackpad last night at wal-mart, seems smooth, not much friction...and i don't ever put computers to sleep so I was thinking I would give it a try...then I saw this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834115672

8-10 hours of battery life

11/19/2009 9:41:01 AM

^

I'm considering buying it. I have not found any reviews.

11/19/2009 12:21:24 PM

Here's a professional review: http://computershopper.com/laptops/reviews/acer-aspire-timeline-as3810t-6415

11/19/2009 1:05:12 PM

http://www.laptopmag.com/review/laptops/acer-timeline-as3810t-6415.aspx

11/19/2009 1:13:50 PM

http://blog.laptopmag.com/acer-recalls-some-timeline-and-culv-notebooks

11/19/2009 5:11:52 PM

It hit slickdeals...so there's a good amount of discussion here: http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1679438

Sounds like some others to consider are the 11.6" 1810T Timeline with a better (SU7300) processor and their UL line, 12.1" also with the SU7300. Both have the same resolution, just a smaller screen. http://www.amazon.com/UL20A-A1-Light-12-1-Inch-Silver-Laptop/dp/B002PAQXAE

Not sure how much I want the larger 13.3" screen, or how the smaller screen would impact keyboard size. yay research!

11/20/2009 9:08:56 AM

anything smaller than the common 10.1" netbooks is too small for me, both in keyboard size and screen...obviously, different people have different comfort levels over the sizes, but i simply couldn't do smaller

and for me, actually, any keyboard 10.1" and larger felt pretty much the same...i didn't have any trouble on the smallest in that range, but then i don't have freakishly long fingers, either

11.6-12.1" seem to be the sweet spot...i really think my next laptop will be this size since even my 14.1" seems huge now

11/20/2009 9:17:13 AM

So I played around with a Toshiba T135 that has the same SU4100 processor as the Acer on Slickdeals, and when I played non-HD videos iexplore.exe was eating ~50% CPU! Is this to be expected with any SU4100 based system?

I then tried the same thing with a SU7300 based Asus next to it and iexplore.exe ate 0% CPU. What gives? Do some laptops ship that stuff off to the Video Card, and some don't?

11/20/2009 6:32:47 PM

^ I sold my Toshiba 135 so I could get another MBP (missed the quality feel & touchpad too much for the price diff.) so I can't test it now but I don't recall any 50% usage on videos. I don't know if that's an IE thing or not since I used Chrome for videos and Firefox for general browsing but...

Synapse, you don't ever shut the lid on a laptop instead of turning it off? With OSX & Win7, I rarely shut down a computer anymore.

11/21/2009 1:23:05 PM

i can tell you on my X61 watching a regular youtube video puts the processor at about 20%

11/21/2009 1:52:34 PM

Quote :

"Synapse, you don't ever shut the lid on a laptop instead of turning it off? "

Naw the only time my computer is off is when I lose power I shut the lid, but I have it set to just turn the lcd off.

11/21/2009 1:55:42 PM

So I picked up the Acer 4810TZ-4120 14" Timeline at Costco for $630+tax, appears to be the 14" version of the 13.3" one on Newegg above (with the SU4100 dual core). They've got the 90 day return policy for any reason so I figure I have some insurance...but I expect I'll keep it. I initially wanted a 13.3, but I figured the 14" was a good trade for the optical drive http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2354956,00.asp looks to be similar to this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834115673

Feature wise the only thing it's missing for me is a Blu-Ray drive and (non-function key) button for volume control. If I can find a 13.3-15.6" thin/light in the same price range with those features I'll probably consider it...but I'm thinking I'll need to wait some time for prices to come down. If anyone sees anything interesting post it in here

11/23/2009 6:36:54 PM

HP is running a sale right now with the Pavilion dm3t, free upgrade to 4 gigs of RAM and 320 gig hard drive, $150 instant rebate, and free shipping. Only reason I know is I just ordered one for my Christmas present

11/24/2009 6:10:45 PM