Whats The Best 12"notebook?

[Clipped]

looking to get another notebook for work, i have this humongous 17" monstrosity i have to lug around everyday...so i wuld like to get a lighter one since im going to be taking the bts from now on instead of driving to work.

any suggestions? a 12" monitor would be just about right, with the fastest graphics chip and processor available, wth lots of ram over 1gig....

ive been looking at the sonys, but hear they sometimes have hardrive failures?

[percy2]

looking to get another notebook for work, i have this humongous 17" monstrosity i have to lug around everyday...so i wuld like to get a lighter one since im going to be taking the bts from now on instead of driving to work.

any suggestions? a 12" monitor would be just about right, with the fastest graphics chip and processor available, wth lots of ram over 1gig....

ive been looking at the sonys, but hear they sometimes have hardrive failures?

Apple

[Sir Burr]

Toshibas may not be the thinnest, or lightest, but they are bullet-proof.

[hughden]

Apple

[cdnvic]

The Sony's are notorious for poor support.

Get a Mac, and run your Windows off Bootcamp or Parallels.

[skalp]

Apple MacBook for sure.... just instal parallels desktop if you're a Windows addict.... until you realize how better is OS X

[spot]

Macbook

Smack me....

[Deserted]

Dell have recently brought out several 12&14 inch laptops with Vista Ultimate operating systems. They're all in the 40-60,000 Baht price bracket but they're sleek and have great spec. One of my friend's recently sold his small Sony Vaio after having a whole range of problems with it. I used it for a while too and would suggest you proceed with caution if you are considering buying one. If gaming purposes is high on your list then I would definately try out the latest Dell's & Acers.

[phazey]

Posted from a macbook, recommending a macbook.

Acer do a nice 13" book if you're a cheap arse windows fanboy though.

[Sir Burr]

Know a few people who have had screen problems with their Acers.

[villagefarang]

Smack me too!!!

[Clipped]

###### mac users...lol

seriously i dont want a mac...i dont see the benefit

[sbk]

here you go clipped, a smiley just for you

Smack 'em with it

[sbk]

Also, just to add, CNET Asia has some pretty comprehensive reviews on their site from mobiles to notebooks to digital cameras. You might want to check there too.

[villagefarang]

###### mac users...lol

seriously i dont want a mac...i dont see the benefit

You would if you had one!!!!!

[SamuiJens]

With MacBook, you can't go wrong!

...smack me, too!

[Clipped]

ok ok ok what does a mac have over a good regular laptop? and what if it breaks?

just so you know, my current laptop will smoke a mac...

Edited July 18, 2007 by Clipped

[baabaabobo]

A Macbook - ouch!

Consider these facts:

1. You can change the icon of any file on a Mac simply by copying and pasting.

2. You can rename a Mac's hard drive by highlighting the name and typing in a new one.

3. You can transfer an application from one Mac to another simply by copying it.

4. To use a new mouse or trackball, you just unplug your old one and plug in the new one.

5. When you insert a disk into a Mac, its icon appears on the desktop. If you eject the disk and try to read from or save to it, the Mac will tell you to reinsert the disk.

6. Behavior across different applications is very consistent, with most menu items in the same place, no matter who wrote the program.

7. If you ever have a serious problem with a Mac, you can boot from a CD-ROM and figure it out on the fly.

8. You can perform a clean installation of the Mac OS without erasing any other contents of your hard drive.

9. Having to perform a low-level format (erasing all the data) on a Macintosh is EXTREMELY rare, and 99% of owners NEVER have to re-install their operating system.

Now, Mac users are saying, "So what? Those are obvious." But Windows users (if they've read this far!) are saying "Really?" And you know why?

Because none of those statements is true for Windows

[Firefoxx]

Ok, I don't want this to get into a PC vs Mac debate, but there are some really weird, weird things about this list.

1. Why would you want to change the icon of something?

2. XP does this too. Highlight, click again (just like a normal file).

3. Hmm, no copyright issues? Sounds nice, but I wonder if it applies to all applications.

4. Umm, isn't this called plug and play? Been around a long time.

5. Hmm, this too. Around a looong time.

7. Again, this too. It's only recently that programs have begun deviating, and only a few have. It's mainly to not look like a "cookie cutter" concept.

8. Actually, this too. You can install XP (or NT for that matter) without erasing the drive. You get a new folder, and the option to boot to either copy.

9. Low level formats went the way of the dodo bird waaaaaaay back, not long after IDE was introduced. Did someone do a poll to get this number of 99%? Hey, I could say 99.99% of windows users.

Whoever made this list is very clueless about the actual operation of a computer, so I don't think it's valid. Most points are simply not true (assuming that it's saying that oh-so-inferior Windows can't do these things). It's made clear by the way that he says that low-level formating is erasing all the data. Right. There are things that OSX does better, but these aren't it. Next, please!

A notebook is the "best" only for the person whose needs it addresses. Different people have different needs. A Macbook may be the answer for some, but not for all (and not for me, I didn't like them when I had them). I think the smaller Acers aren't good because they lack an optical drive, but again it might not be a requirement. Sonys can be hit and miss, depends on the person, but I personally think they're too hard to maintain. Fujitsu's are nice and light, but may be even more expensive than Sonys. Keep in mind that the smaller screen notebooks will be geared towards portability, which means slower CPUs (because the battery is small, and needs to conserve power), bad graphics (same reason), small keyboard (of course), limited ports (again), slower harddrives (again, power), etc.

[SamuiJens]

Firefoxx, when was the last time you had one? A mac that is?

[DirkGently]

I have always liked Compaq. That was until i fancied a tech treat so I went out and bought a Mac after using a friends.

Its great.

[skalp]

my macs are online 24/7 since years and years without any anti virus.... never had any virus...

i can use all mac os and windows softwares

i bought hundreds of dell and other pc brands for my company

Vista is a poor copy of OS X wich is from far the best OS on the market (i worked a lot on Windows 95.98.XP and Linux to be able to say that)

My MacBook is sexy

these are some reasons why i'll never switch back to Window$

[nikster]

jeez, please he doesn't want a mac... even though I doubt his 17" monster would hold a candle to my brilliant new MacBook Pro 2.2/4GB/200GB@7200 ... just got it, back from about 5 years of PC wasteland... I can use win XP, in fact, I fix everyone's machines in a 5 km radius. but OS X, I _want_ to use.

macs have great service and of course OS X and the best design by a very far margin but if you want to mainly use windows - for example if you use your laptop for gaming - then getting a mac makes no sense.

but back to a 12" PC lappie - I hear the X series thinkpad is 12"... thinkpads are great for quality.

sony you should avoid at all cost. they are pretty, but when they break you are on your own. and laptops break. acer is so-so and i don't think they have any nice 12" ones, forget about the Ferraris b/c they use AMD processors which are really a lot worse for laptops these days.

Asus also has a pretty good rep.. Asus ppl are always happy with their machines. don't know about their 12" lineup though.

Fujitsu LifeBook should be good too...

Edited July 18, 2007 by nikster

[cdnvic]

I didn't suggest a Macbook because I think OSX is superior to Windows (I don't), but because I think as far as hardware goes, Apple is far better than Sony or the other small notebooks.

As for Windows vs Mac, use what you like and don't take your choice (or anyone else's) too seriously.

[autonomous_unit]

My wife has been happy with her thinkpad X40 for the past few years. My only warning is that hers used a 1.8" hard drive instead of the usual 2.5" laptop drives. One failed and had to be replaced in the first 12 months. I don't know if that is still true of the latest X-series models. When I used an X22, it used a regular 2.5" drive I think.

As mentioned above, they are slower... I definitely notice the difference between her X40 and my T41. I used an X22 extensively in a previous job with lots of travel, but eventually switched to the T-series because I found I wanted more screen pixels for all the document writing I was doing while on the road. I just feel too cramped on XGA screens when doing more than some email or casual web browsing.

The original poster might find it difficult switching from a 17" to a 12" laptop just from the loss of screen pixels. I'd give it a try, maybe operating the current laptop at reduced resolution for a week to see what it's like. (And if you do, turn off the "screen scaling" so you get a smaller XGA-sized screen in the middle of your huge LCD, so you better approximate a real 12" laptop.)

[Clipped]

ive been thinking of the thinkpads too...

i still havent seen any clear benefits for a mac...my current pc is a 2ghz core duo2, 2 gigs ram, 200gig hd, 512mb video, and best of all 4mb cache....but the hd is 4800rpm..which i havent found to make much difference, other than extended battery life.

its sweet, but too big...i want something i can lock up in a hotel safe.

baabaabobo....you can do almost all of those with a regular computer, i think im starting to understand now, mac users have been using macs for so long, they arent aware that other technology has evolved.

thanks for the tips, and a smack for the rest of you lol

[canuckamuck]

I have a new Macbook, a pc notebook, and a pc desktop.

Of these three the only one I despise is the Macbook.

What you are really comparing are operating systems anyways. The inside part are virtually identical now anyways.

Macs are made for people who don’t understand computers and need them to do everything automatically. Pc’s at least let you have some control over what’s going on.

Macs economic strategy is to continue to upgrade applications and the OS to massive proportions so that a Mac user is forced to upgrade to a new computer every couple of years. I have five friends that bought Macs last year 4 of them ended up needing repairs; one guy abandoned his Macbook and went back to his two year notebook. All of them now are looking at the new Final Cut the Mac only video software (only 10 DVDs to install) and they are realizing their computers are already too small. 1 year!!

But Mac customers are known to love to pay more for less, especially less availability of software.

To the OP, checkout the Toughbook by Panasonic They might have 12” version If not a Sony will likely be the choice. If you want cutting edge and don’t care about price check out Voodoo PC for a custom unit. They make gaming systems for celebs and elite gamers, but they also make sweet notebooks. www.voodoopc.com

[cdnvic]

What you are really comparing are operating systems anyways. The inside part are virtually identical now anyways.

Absolutely false. You can run Windows on a Mac but not OSx on a PC. The Macs have consistent quality hardware.

Macs are made for people who don’t understand computers and need them to do everything automatically.

That must be why most industry professionals I know use them.

Macs economic strategy is to continue to upgrade applications and the OS to massive proportions so that a Mac user is forced to upgrade to a new computer every couple of years.

Windows tries to do this too, but their releases keep being delayed.

Edited July 19, 2007 by cdnvic

[Veazer]

Firefoxx, when was the last time you had one? A mac that is?

I think asking bababooboo when he last had a pc is more relevant, as Firefoxx pointed out his statements about pcs are not accurate.

I think OSX is a nice OS, but a company that tells me I must purchase their PC to use their OS won't get my business. OSX runs great on my laptop, but I can't do so legally so I stopped. Seems like a shame to me that the only obstacle (for my hardware setup) is Apple's attitude and legal stance. I'd consider being an Apple customer when they're ready to take my money, for the OS only, even if it mean limited support from Apple. I've got a laptop already thank you very much.

As for 12" PCs, I think the Dell m1210 is a nice machine for the size. Comparing the Dell specs HERE to the 13" macbook specs HERE,

-The Dell can hold 4GB memory vs. 2GB for the 13" Macbook

-The Dell can be purchased with a slightly faster processor (2.33 GHz vs 2.16 GHz Core 2 Duo)

-The Dell can be fitted with a 256MB nVIDIA GeForce Go 7400 and the Mac uses the onboard Intel GMA 950.

The Apple is likely going to be less espensive however. Feel free to note any errors, I'm just going straight from the manufacturer's specs. I don't think the Macs are bad, they are good quality machines. I just specs were a little better and had some flexibility/choice of components.

What you are really comparing are operating systems anyways. The inside part are virtually identical now anyways.

Absolutely false. You can run Windows on a Mac but not OSx on a PC. The Macs have consistent quality hardware.

I agree with canuckamuck's point, Macs and PCS are much more similar these days. OSx runs fine on many PCs. OTOH there are still some piece of sh*t pcs on the market with unreliable components and buying a mac would avoid this...

Macs economic strategy is to continue to upgrade applications and the OS to massive proportions so that a Mac user is forced to upgrade to a new computer every couple of years.

Windows tries to do this too, but their releases keep being delayed.

No doubt! At least Apple's reasons for required upgrades tend to be based on reality. (ie the massive change to a GNU based OS) whereas microsoft's upgrades tend to be their desperate efforts to force users onto the new OS.

[Firefoxx]

As I feared, it's become a PC vs Mac debate, even when the OP said NOT to recommend macs. Man, how a-r can people be about their systems? Absolutely FALSE statements are also being thrown around, just like previous mac vs PC debates.

Cdnvic, I work exclusively in the networking/computer industry. So far, it's been extremely (to the EXTREME) rare for me to find industry professionals who use Macs. I've been to several very large multinational companies where there was only one or two Macs in the whole company. Macs just aren't practical for these places. Of course, if a company is aimed specifically at graphics/art design, then there's probably more Macs to be found. But, it's YMMV. If you work with Macs most of the time, you're bound to meet people with Macs. The fact of the matter is that for Thailand, the PC is the de facto standard, and industry professionals (at least in the computer industry) are much more likely to use PCs than Macs.

Come on people, you KNOW full well that what you're saying just isn't true, or you're leaving out points just to make your product look better. THIS GOES FOR BOTH CAMPS. Stop the idiocy, for frankly, it's quite STUPID for you to knowingly pick a fight just to support your system. Both Bill Gate and Steve Jobs aren't the next Messiah, and their systems aren't a blessing for the damned. YOU DON'T NEED TO WORSHIP THEM and smite down the infidels. Get it?