Notebook Recommendation required

I am going to buy a new notebook and would like some recommendations from all you knowledgeable folks. My requirements -
1. A 15.4" or 14.1" screen (i.e. 1280x800, 16:10). I find the now popular 15.6" and 14"(1366x768, 16:9) impossible to use. 14" is too small in height and 15.6" makes notebook chassis too wide. Every single PC maker is moving to these new resolutions, heaven knows why. Bless you Apple for sticking with 15.4", and damn you Apple for not making it affordable.

2. Either without preloaded OS, or with Windows 7, or atleast availability of proper 32/64 bit Windows 7 drivers.

3. I prefer ATI over NVIDIA. NVIDIAs generally run hotter.

4. The laptop should run cool. I just cannot stand a notebook that heats up quickly. Atleast the palmrest, keyboard edges and touchpad should remain cool all day long.

Any suggestions?

 

Hmm... To bad you need/want W7

Otherwise, I would recommend the newly updated MacBook pro's from Apple.

I would go for a 15" MBP with Core-i7 and the updated
Nvidia G-force GT 330M card.

http://store.apple.com/us/browse/ho...W-MACBOOKPRO-INDEX&cp=BUYNOW-MACBOOKPRO-INDEX

Not cheap but very very fast.

 

@SweX I wish it would have been that simple. Quoting from engadget's review of the new MacBook Pro -
http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/14/macbook-pro-core-i7-review/
"The other major problem we've had with previous generations of the unibody MacBook Pros is the use of the bottom plate as a secondary heat sink of sorts -- which turns our lap into a tertiary heat sink in the process. Happily we can say the situation has been much improved in the new version, at least in average use, though it's still possible to get the machine to uncomfortable temperatures with a little bit of effort. Sure, it's nice that there's hardly any fan noise ever, but at some point the laptop becomes hot on top as well, causing our left palm and wrist to sweat -- we'd say that's as good a time as any for the fan to kick into gear."

Thoughts?

 

I'd say (Do we really need to have our laptops in our lap?

Personally I would say No, and if it just get's really hot,
then lay a magazine or pillow or similar in your lap and the notebook on top of it.

 

Wide screen movies, and the demand to watch them.

That is actually why there is a push to use the term notebook, instead of laptop.

Then get a desktop. Notebooks by their very design are flawed when it comes to effective cooling. The tiny, compact cases marketing weenies love to brag about just do not lend themselves to support the necessary cooling the powerful hardware inside needs - so what does the notebook do? It toggles down performance. Also, and again in spite of what the marketing weenies would have us believe, notebooks do not make good gaming machines. Gaming is one of the most demanding task we can ask of our computers - but once again, notebooks cannot physically support the needed cooling.

Finally, notebooks, being proprietary, tiny, and NOT user friendly, are impossible for "normal" users to thoroughly clean - which, of course, means there will be a build up of heat trapping dust.

 

Wasn't that the reason we have HDMI ports for? And all this time I thought, laptops were primarily for reading and composing stuff. A 16:10 screen ensures less scrolling and more visibility of written content.

Come on guys, there should be at least a few models that run relatively cooler. I will make do with integrated graphics. Please, someone suggest something.

 

@ravi - you made the two biggest mistakes when asking for advice on new hardware. You failed to state your budget. And you failed to stated the intended primary purpose of this computer.

No!

Widescreen (or not) has nothing to do with HDMI. HDMI is simply a means for transmitting "digital" signals over wires. Widescreen is just a resolution - having nothing to do with whether the image is sent digitally, or via analog. MANY MANY widescreen monitors use D-Sub (analog) only.

HDMI is here because it migrated from the home theater world where it was developed to allow one-connection "digital" video AND 6-channel (5.1) digital audio interconnectivity between home theater components, such as between the DVD player and the HT receiver.

It is important to note that the digital video signal carried by HDMI is EXACTLY THE SAME as the digital video signal carried by DVI. But DVI carries no audio and is a big connector - compared to HDMI. So HDMI began migrating to computers when more and more "TV/Monitors" were being connected to computer systems - and more and more computers were being integrated into HT systems, as HTPCs.

It makes NO marketing sense for monitor and graphics card makers to use both DVI and HDMI connectors when HDMI does everything DVI does, and more. And it does it better because it take up less space and HDMI is an "intelligent" connection (at least in HT systems that support full HDMI 1.3 features). Even though most computer systems do not route audio through the graphics card (but more and more cards are supporting that too), HDMI will soon be the dominant connection.

So bottom line, HDMI is here because the computing world saw that the home theater world had a better thing going. It is also here because computer monitors are made by TV makers and TV makers don't want to support two digital video cable/connection systems when one will do. That's better for consumers too.

 

@Bill_Bright, very nice of you to explain the intricacies of HDMI. But what I meant was different. I meant that if I want to watch movies, I can make use of a dedicated screen for that using HDMI tech. Why to resize the notebook screens to something that horribly ruins the usability for a task that is performed like 10-15% of the time. 16:9 screens result in unnecessary scrolling and poor notebook dimensions.
Yes you are right, I didn't mention the budget and primary purpose. The former would be something like 1000-1200$. And about purpose - well would it suffice to say I am not into gaming, atleast on a notebook. I read a lot - PDFs & web pages. I watch movies - which I am very comfortable with on a 16:10 screen.
I purchased a 14" Acer and sold it within 3 months just because I found the 16:9 screen completely unusable.
So finally, any suggestions?

 

I would say, "unnecessary scrolling OR poor notebook dimensions. Sadly, the notebook is being marketed and used for purposes other than what it was created for, or is suited for. The notebook was created for the road warrior - the business traveler who needed his or her computer for Office documents and presentations, email on the road. But marketing weenies saw that some users were using their notebooks as desktop replacements - for they have NEVER been, or done well at pretending to be.

Well, that's definitely a different deal then - but then you don't have to have HDMI for that either - you can get the exact same digital image with DVI.

Well you can buy a lot of notebook for that kind of money. But not sure if you can find many you like in 4:3 (non WS) format. That where a "17 WS notebook is nice - at least the height is usable. But if you have to lug it around airports and such, it is a pain. If you are not doing any gaming, and you want a relatively small screen (for today) I think $1000 will buy you more notebook than you need.

On a 14" monitor, I imaging so.

I recently bought a Toshiba A505-6009 and really like it, but it has a 17"WS and weighs a good 6.5lbs. It's a 16:9 and for the little I use the notebook monitor for movies, I have no complaints with the display while watching DVDs, or working with Word.

I would just suggest you look around, and when you see one you are interested in, use Google and enter the model number, and the word "review". Look for the professional review sites and read them carefully. Pay less attention to individual user reviews. They usually have little experience with the product or like products for comparison. And users don't normally write about what is good. The only time I really pay attention to user reviews is if many of the reviews say the same thing.

 

I don't know about you guys I've just purchased one with HDMI and Blue-Ray the LED LCD Panel is much deeper and very sharp looking. Even put in B-R of the old Steve McQueen Bullet and found it funny that Windows 7 doesn't have B-R player. You have to use Power DVD 8 or (10 supports 3D LED LCD). Looks wonderful. I got 15.6 and got the wife a 17.3 which is so huge though. I don't need that on my desktop. Both have HDMI and a bunch of USB ports. Both have the same processor. Hers have Dolby Theater Sound. Sounds like a huge system but it's not. STill for the money it was a good deal. I also picked up two netbooks. They're okay. Even my old laptop from 2005 has widescreen on 14" So pretty much everything today is dual or quad, HDMI, blue-ray or not and LED LCD panels to save on the battery and card read/write. I've also picked up 3x Quad Core desktops and they run W7U64, the two laptops run W7HPM64 and netbooks now run W7U32. If you're going to get a laptop make sure you get the screen size you need. Though 15.6 almost 16" is pretty large with wide screen features. 17.3 is huge though.

 

The LEDs should be better on battery life too.

 

LED LCD is and you can adjust the black light on it.