Tuning Laptop
Hi,
I'm in need of a laptop for tuning. That's about all it'll do so it doesn't have to be anything fancy. The only thing I'm really looking for is a numpad(even then, I guess I can do without it) and battery life but I guess that won't matter if I buy an inverter for the car. Looking at spending $500-550 max.
So, what does everyone think of this laptop:
It's the cheapest full size laptop at jb hifi.
Should I spend a little more and get something a little better? These are the other options at jb hifi (with numpad) are:
Thanks!
I have had my toshiba L300 laptop for about 2 years, I brought it from toshiba as a factory refurbished unit and haven't had any problems with it. I use it to run nissan data scan all the time on my gtir, the only down side to my model is no numpad like the newer models.
-------------------Slanty Drifter-------------------
I just got a lenovo ideapad s10-3 from an Ebay seller in Sydney for $225 brand new delivered.
Intel atom 1.6ghz
250g hdd
1 gig ram
3x usb, ethernet, monitor connection, multi card slot, but no cd drive.
Its also got bluetooth and wireless net so its actually forgivable to not have a disc drive.
Its only a compact thing at 10 inch screen size, but it connects nice and fast to the Adaptronic, doesnt take long to boot and will standbay for 6 hours with no power source or will work for about 2.5 hours non stop before it dies. Its more convienient to have a compact unit in the car, any real data analysis I do at home with a fullsize monitor and keyboard.
I also find that if you invest in some big powerful laptop with a huge screen and the gruntiest chip and then expect it to be a truly functional mobile device you will be disappointed. Big screens and powerful chips suck down the power quickly more than something simple and more compact will. For example the girlfriends vista based laptop, fullsize, which I had been using previously lasted a maximum of 40 minutes before it conks out. It also takes forever to boot up, like I mean 5 minutes. I blame vista but also the size of the screen and the entire unit. The Lenovo mini Laptop has been on standby all night ans was used for an hour and a half at the track and still shows 3/4 charge.
Just another thing to consider.
As much as I didn't want a full size laptop, I felt the netbooks were a little too small. I wanted a 14" but they were all out of price range. I ended up with the one I was looking at in the first post (toshiba). It works fine for what I want, gets a good three hours if you keep the screen brightness down.
The big ones are too big to have in the car and hit the dash with the screen out at a comfortable angle. End of the day, it does what I need it to do. I get bored/shitty troubleshooting just around when the battery's about to go dead and I can have a rest from that project.
I'll probably get an inverter so it doesn't go dead on me while tuning.
I was a little worried about seeing the whole application on the screen, and it just fits, and I mean just, so yes any smaller than what i would have would be pretty shit, mine is just neat for the wari app.
You could get a good deal finding a used laptop that suits your needs.
The main things that commonly fail on laptops are the battery (make sure replacements aren't too expensive) and the hard drive.
If its only going to be used as a utility, I'd actually recommend replacing the hard drive with a small SSD anyway. They use way less power, and have a huge effect on laptop performance. They aren't stupidly expensive anymore either.
Watch graysonline for ex lease stuff... most of them the batteries are shot though, but that is overcome by a car charger etc...
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote