A few T42 9ZU questions

[mtbiac]

I'm about 90% certain that I'm going to be getting a T42 9ZU. This model has 14" SXGA+, 80gb 5.4krpm,9600 64mb, 512mb, DVD-RW, 1.8ghz, wireless a/b/g, bluetooth, etc. Price is about $2065 + tax and ship with a school discount

are there any other models I should consider or any problems that are associated with the 9ZU? I havent seen tooo many posts about the 9ZU on here (been lurking, unregistered, for months now). It has all of the specs that I want, price is right, and its a great laptop. Its going to be lasting me through college (3-4yrs) so I dont mind paying alittle extra for something that will last me longer.

I just have a few questions before placing the order:

1. When does IBM actually charge your credit card? I ask because I won't have ALL of the money until next week, but I was hoping to place my order ASAP since I need to take delivery before I leave for school, around Aug 15th.

2. Will this config be able to play games such as UT2k4, Far Cry, C&C generals, etc? Granted, I wont be playing games often, but the occasional game is necessary to help me relax and have some fun

3. Is there any difference, performance wise, between the FireGL 128mb and the 9600 64mb, and would it be worth the extra $$ to upgrade to a T42p 14"?? I heard that they have the same RAM and core speed, just different drivers? the FireGL has the more stable drivers, but they are supposedly not compatible with more programs? is this true? I was hoping to install Linux (probably redhat) to test out, although this isnt a Huge concern.

4. I hear of people getting 4-5hrs of battery life which is one of the reasons I was drawn to the T42. However, does one get 4-5hrs only by turning down all the performance settings, screen brightness, etc? or can one get this mcuh battery life with the settings turned up somewhat, and during average computer usage??

Thanks very much for the help!!

-Mike

[mtbiac]

please, anyone?

[Leon]

1. They will charge when they ship.. BUT they will put a hold on the money within 24hr. of order. Call your cc company, and ask them if they will accept a hold for the amount of your laptop.

2. No prob.

3. For your application, no diff. Fire GL = more $$$ and about 1/2 hr. less battery life.

4. About 3-31/2 hrs.


Enjoy!!!

[gosha16]

about the cames, i dont think "no prob" is right. far cry has a hard time running on my 2.4 p4c @ 3ghz and 9700 pro with all stuff cranked...however, im not saying it wont play. just dont expect to play with all settings maxed out...

[Leon]

yeah, he said "wont be playing games often, but the occasional game"......, in any case, FireGL won't help......

[mtbiac]

about the cames, i dont think "no prob" is right. far cry has a hard time running on my 2.4 p4c @ 3ghz and 9700 pro with all stuff cranked...however, im not saying it wont play. just dont expect to play with all settings maxed out...

yeah if It can run with standard settings at like 1024x768 or 1280xwhatever then i'd be very pleased

thanks for the quick replies too

one more thing - what is this RAMBO drive I keep hearing about on the IBM website? is this just another name for the DVD-RW drive?

Oh and does IBM only offer 1 multiburner/DVD-RW drive? I ask because in TABOOK it says DVD-RW for the 9ZU, but on the IBM website the 1line title description of the 9ZU says DVD/CDRW (wtf?) and when you click on the link it then says DVD-R, not DVD-RW, ahhhhhh!! which one is correct? I'm assuming the TABOOK DVD-RW, right??

THANKS

[Leon]

RAMBO just another namr foe same drive....TABOOK is corect...