What laptop should I buy to handle skinning and Customization?

from WinCustomize Forums
I'm in the market to buy a new laptop. I presently have a Dell Inspiron 8100 that I bought two years ago. It's got a P3 1.2Gig processor with 512 ram. My holdup seems to come more from the low-end 32meg video card that it has. I don't really want to buy a desktop seeing that I use my laptop both at home and the office and like to keep all my windows customization on one machine.
I'm planning on buying a new one in the next few months. What machine should I go with (taking for granted that the purchase price isn't a determining factor)?



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Reply #1 from WinCustomize Forums Top

The one you have right now is good enough.

Up until a couple of months ago, I was still running a Celeron 366 with an old 8 Megs video card.

Reply #2 from WinCustomize Forums Top
like paxx, I'm using a laptop with a much lower spec than your current one without any real problems (though a 1600x1200 display would be nice). The only time this machine struggles with (as you suggest) because of the low end 8Mb graphics card....particularly when per pixel alpha blending is really needed as the video doesn't support that. So, animations in WindowFX are a no-no, and ObjectDoc isn't as smooth as it could be...but for WindowBlinds and most other things it's perfectly acceptable.

So for really demanding skinning, look for something with fast per pixel alpha blending and a nice hi-res screen...though, if you really have money to burn, look for a system with a replaceable video subsystem (though the idea of "future proof" is only good for marketing hype)....
Elemental: Reforged
Reply #3 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Get a laptop that has anything but Intel: you will not regret it.

as said above, your present setup is fine...

Reply #4 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Get a laptop that has anything but Intel: you will not regret it.


Gee kona, what ya got against Intel?

Is it the price, or someting else?
Reply #5 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Add some ram to your existing LT and maybe a larger hard drive...

But as much ram as you can afford and you should be fine, plenty of desktops still runing 16, 32 abd 62 negs out there which do more than fine painting the GUI and various other skinnables....

if your bound and determined to get a new one, check whom you bought the one you have now and see if they have an upgrade deal, or if money isn't an issue and your into the thought of high end toys, Ti 17, i-Go, Sharp 3D (yes it is true 3D without the glasses or other head gear), IBM if you also use it for work....

Others will come up with and might even bitch about one, a couple or all of those I have mentioned, but so what.

Personally, I have IBM laptops and they work fantastic both with doing graphics and under their alter egos of Administrative systems and tech systems...

i-Go is the toy I am leaning towards in the future..
Reply #6 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Price and Performance.

For the price of a 3.20 ghz P4 I can get a 64 bit FX 51 AMD chip.

As for performance everyone knows AMD can hold it's own and sometimes out perform a P4.

(Funny thing is I type this message on a Pentium 3 machine)

Lets not start a Processor flame war as it really is a personal choice. As soon as I get the funds, a new AMD chip and MSI mobo in and the P3 becomes a target practice chip.
[Message Edited]
Reply #7 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Lets not start a Processor flame war as it really is a personal choice.

That really WOULD be nice......

Perhaps  a Dictionary to interpret 'irony' would be apt....

Reply #8 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Perhaps a Dictionary to interpret 'irony' would be apt....



Reply #9 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Maybe just a dictionary?

You could throw it