What kind to get?

[jsr244]

I am in the market for a laptop. I read the reviews at epinions, which say that IBM has the best keypad, which among the other factors, has now limited my search to IBM. I am a business lawyer in a small town; I deal with documents. Our office is networked, and it is my intention to have a "docking station" and use the laptop as my computer. I travel some, and my home computer is shared by four daughters who interminably have Jack's Attic or the Sims going, so I need my own private, you-can't-play-with-it device.

At home and the office we have broadband, so I listen to music via Windows or Real Player radio when I'm working. I do limited graphics work, but if I travel, I'd probably take a DVD or CD to play. (Is it possible to play Sony playstation games?). I don't think I need a wireless connection.

Much of my work is word processing with Word Perfect and MS Word, but I also use Excel and various other programs on occasion (like Red Ace Squadron). Importantly, I have a goofy-looking Kyocera 7135 cell phone with the Palm datebook and address list that I would want to synchronize on the computer (and via the network, with the office master calendar).

Weight and size are not critical, but let's be reasonable. I will usually be near a power source, so 3-4 hours of battery life is sufficient. Money isn't really a problem either, but I do work for it, and don't need to show off.

Our office computer vendor has limited their thinking to HP, and they can't even get Word Perfect 12 to run without crashing, so I am NOT consulting them anymore. Can anyone help?

[JHEM]

Any plain vanilla T4X machine will more than meet your needs. Runs for up to 7 hours on battery and weighs under 5 lbs. with an internal CD/DVD.

Don't negate WiFi until you've tried it. The ability to connect wirelessly at home from anywhere inside or outside the home is a Godsend when the house is hormonally enhanced.

I'm sitting down by my lake as I type this because my home has been invaded by my wife's garden club!

More and more hotels provide free broadband access via WiFi, something to consider when you're on the road.

Regards,

James

[mattfromomaha]

Couldn't agree more with JHEM. I'd just go for a T42 or T43 machine. You can actually get awesome deals on a T42 right now, as I just did on the machine I purchased for our office manager.

You mentioned having a docking station at work as well - your timing is perfect because IBM is throwing in a free port replicator with the purchase of a T-series notebook right now. That would allow you to have your network, (second) AC adapter, printer, keyboard, mouse, Palm, etc all plugged in to that and then when you get to work you just "drop" your ThinkPad onto it and everything's immediately connected.

Here's what I'd recommend trying: I buy a lot of my stuff through cdw.com. Good, reputable guys. If you go there, you can search for any ThinkPad T42 or T4 that would work for you.

Based on what you said you need a laptop for, I'd say you'd probably be perfectly happy with the model we just purchased:
http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/defaul ... EDC=699586
IBM lists it for $1,399 right now, and cdw for $1,430. So, if you e-mail cdw about IBM's price and the deal on the port replicator, they'll match it. And, if you don't live in Illinois, there's no sales tax, another bonus.

We also added the warranty upgrade that gives three years of onsite support (meaning they come to you rather than you sending your computer to them) and accidental damage protection (covering repair/replacement if the computer is inadvertantly dropped, spilled on, etc.) for an additional $270.

My account rep. is Tommy Coleman, his e-mail is tommcol (at) cdw.com. I'd actually e-mail him personally if I were you, let him know you were referred by one of his customers, tell him about the listed price at IBM's website and port replicator deal, and ask for a quote matching it (with any other accessories you may need).

Also, I'd be happy to e-mail you the exact model/part numbers of the items we ordered as well as the documentation from IBM's website that we had to send Tommy to get the price matched with the free port replicator. Feel free to send me a private message with your e-mail address if you'd like that.

Best of luck!

[bhtooefr]

Thirding the T series here.

Also, you can play PlayStation (1, not 2) games with an emulator like ePSXe. There's a whole lot of crap that you have to download, and you'll want a USB gamepad that has the same buttons as a PlayStation controller, but it will work.

[doppelfish]

Don't negate WiFi until you've tried it.

But do secure it once you're using it. You don't want your competitors or your clients' adversaries (or just the adventurous boy down the street) read the documents you're crafting. And by securing it, I don't mean WEP, which has been broken in three minutes. While WPA might not be perfect, it is certainly a slightly better solution. Check out the section on passwords, and before taking the effort to sue me for giving crappy advice, rather use OpenVPN or an IPSec-based solution, ok?

cheers,
-- fish

[tehsoul]

additionally, turn the mac filter on!