X60(s) Buying Thoughts
Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2006 10:51 am
I've done some research and am upgrading to a new Core 2 Duo X60(s).
Here are some thoughts on future protection:
1. Santa Rosa Chipset due Q1-Q2 2007 will not only have faster FSB for memory access but also a new higher performance graphics processor and 802.11n (the 802.11n offerred by IBM now is an Atheros chipset), so you might want to wait for faster graphics.
2. Purchasing now gives free upgrade to Vista.
3. You can get 802.11n now.
4. EVDO Rev A is the newest standard with much faster upload speeds, somewhat faster download speeds and much lower latency for VOIP if you want it. Sprint is reportedly going to have laptops with built-in EVDO in November (they already offer PCMCIA cards for Rev A but Verizon does not yet). Thus, I expect that soon IBM will be offering EVDO Rev A mini-PCI for Verizon, but who knows. It doesn't make much sense to get the built-in with Rev 0 unless you want to pay the $200 - $250 upgrade to get the Rev A card when it comes out.
5. Part of the usefulness of EVDO is that it is accessible anywhere but the signal is not always so good, so it might be better to get the PCMCIA card with an external antenna port and getting a special booster like this LINK TRIMMED DOWN BY MODERATOR
By buying the unit without the built-in EVDO you also get more flexibility in terms of model types.
6. CPU: Generally CPU won't make too much of difference. Just remember that the 2.0 GHz and above come with 4 MB cache on the Core 2 Duo whereas the lower clock rates only have 2 MB cache so perfomance increase to 2.0 GHz will be greater than what you would expect with the additional clock increase.
Sales said that in the next two weeks, more models will be listed on the web site than are currently in the tabook so best to wait a couple of weeks before purchasing. Another reason to wait is that the 802.11n is not out yet but should be available in the two weeks.
MOD EDIT: Trim links to eliminate side to side scrolling.
Here are some thoughts on future protection:
1. Santa Rosa Chipset due Q1-Q2 2007 will not only have faster FSB for memory access but also a new higher performance graphics processor and 802.11n (the 802.11n offerred by IBM now is an Atheros chipset), so you might want to wait for faster graphics.
2. Purchasing now gives free upgrade to Vista.
3. You can get 802.11n now.
4. EVDO Rev A is the newest standard with much faster upload speeds, somewhat faster download speeds and much lower latency for VOIP if you want it. Sprint is reportedly going to have laptops with built-in EVDO in November (they already offer PCMCIA cards for Rev A but Verizon does not yet). Thus, I expect that soon IBM will be offering EVDO Rev A mini-PCI for Verizon, but who knows. It doesn't make much sense to get the built-in with Rev 0 unless you want to pay the $200 - $250 upgrade to get the Rev A card when it comes out.
5. Part of the usefulness of EVDO is that it is accessible anywhere but the signal is not always so good, so it might be better to get the PCMCIA card with an external antenna port and getting a special booster like this LINK TRIMMED DOWN BY MODERATOR
By buying the unit without the built-in EVDO you also get more flexibility in terms of model types.
6. CPU: Generally CPU won't make too much of difference. Just remember that the 2.0 GHz and above come with 4 MB cache on the Core 2 Duo whereas the lower clock rates only have 2 MB cache so perfomance increase to 2.0 GHz will be greater than what you would expect with the additional clock increase.
Sales said that in the next two weeks, more models will be listed on the web site than are currently in the tabook so best to wait a couple of weeks before purchasing. Another reason to wait is that the 802.11n is not out yet but should be available in the two weeks.
MOD EDIT: Trim links to eliminate side to side scrolling.
