Looking for the best laptop under $550...any hot tips?

[HFWR]

I have a laptop - Compaq 2103US - with an Athlon XP-M 2800+ cpu. Runs pretty hot; will last about 2 hours on a charge, but I use it as a small footprint desktop most of the time. Also have a Compaq 2163WM desktop, with a P4 3.0MHz cpu (I think...).

I usually keep computers until they die a horrible death, or new software/hardware comes out that the old computer can't handle. Last desktop was a Celeron 500...

[ERD50]

Originally Posted by cute fuzzy bunny

Wouldnt it be nice if your applications were making better use of those 2 or 4 processing cores in your new computer? ... So while we've all paid a little less for our computers and they're bloody fast, the s/w isnt using half of its capabilities most of the time. Not a very good value.

It will be interesting to see how this pans out - due for release by this time next year:

Apple - Mac OS X Leopard - Snow Leopard

Multicore

“Grand Central,” a new set of technologies built into Snow Leopard, brings unrivaled support for multicore systems to Mac OS X. More cores, not faster clock speeds, drive performance increases in today’s processors. Grand Central takes full advantage by making all of Mac OS X multicore aware and optimizing it for allocating tasks across multiple cores and processors. Grand Central also makes it much easier for developers to create programs that squeeze every last drop of power from multicore systems.

Might just be Steve's RDF marketing hype. Still requires developers to make changes, a re-compile at minimum. We will see.

-ERD50

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Originally Posted by HFWR

I have a laptop - Compaq 2103US - with an Athlon XP-M 2800+ cpu. Runs pretty hot; will last about 2 hours on a charge

There ya go. My core 2 duo 17" laptop runs almost 3 hours on a charge and its no warmer than ambient room temp right now. Thats pretty impressive for a big screen with the brightness turned way up.

Last desktop was a Celeron 500...

Ah yes, a nice part actually. No cache and you could clock it up to around 1.2GHz before it started getting wiggy.

When they first came around and asked me about the base marketing program for the celeron, which was first targeted towards AMD's lower cost entries, my first response was "Lets just tell people: we understand that some of you want to pay less in exchange for a second rate part. Since we think a lot of people in that segment would like something with better quality and actual thermal protection, we offer you THIS piece of crap. If you'd like to spend $50 more, we have a GOOD processor".

I did of course suggest they make it sound a bit better.

This was shortly after I suggested the program where we'd equate penis size with processor speed, so perhaps thats why I wasnt taken more seriously.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Originally Posted by ERD50

Might just be Steve's RDF marketing hype. Still requires developers to make changes, a re-compile at minimum.

Yeah, a recompile generally doesnt make an application free threaded. Generally requires some serious architectural changes and is more work than many programmers want to bother with.

Intel does have some new developer tools that'll do 75% of the work for the developer. Smart of them, making it easy for coders to use the multiple cores.

But most operating systems have been pretty smart about handing the dual/quad core situation...so this is just a lot of marketing fluff around OSX handling multiple cores better.

[Puzzley]

CFB, thanks for the ecomstation tip.... I googled it, and am looking into it. Interesting....

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Like catching a coelacanth, eh?