Hi guys. I am looking at laptops for Work/School. I want something with a 17" monitor, at least 120 GB HD, 2 GB Ram, and 2.0 GHZ Processor speed. I will be running Solidworks, AutoCAD, 3D Inventor, along with the basics - Microsoft word, excel, etc. I dont want to spend more than $2000. I have been considering both HP and Gateway, but I am looking for some reccomendations for engineering use. Thanks!

 

Well, I got a Dell Inspiron e1705 with:

120G 7200 RPM SATA HD
2G RAM
Core 2 Duo 2.0 Ghz
NVIDIA Go 7900 GS 256 Mb Video Card
Internal Bluetooth
ABG Wireless
17" WUXGA "True Life" display

For $1230 shipped to Alaska

I did alot of research, and used coupons I found in my junk mail/ and found online. You have to take your time if you are interested in a Dell... the deals change all the time... I had my coupons, and waited about 5 days, checking the site twice a day, before I found the deal I wanted.

 

I have a gateway MX6450. It runs an AMD Turion64 1.6 that is overclocked from the factory to 2.0. 1GB ram. I have autoCAD and Sigmanest both on it and they run fine. Photoshop CS2 is much more graphics intensive and it runs pretty damn good on it as well. This model is onlt a 15.4" wide screen though. I run dual monitor with a CRT for more screen room. I bought one for my wife as well as one for my wife. For the price of a little over $1200 each, they were the most bang for the buck that I could find back in March.

 

I happened to check the specs for AutoCAD 2007. The requirements for 3D say 3.0GHZ Processor and at least 2 GB of Ram. Do you reall think I need that powerful of a computer? The laptop I was planning on buying only has 2 GB of ram and a 2.0GHZ processor speed. Do you think this will suffice?

 

Well, the part about requiring 3.0 Gig processor leaves some questions... The new dual core processors make the traditional speed requirements obsolete. I believe that the core duo 2.0 GHz is comparable in speed to a 3.4GHz Prescott processor (Pentium 4). So, was Autocad taking that into account when listing minimums? Since a 3.0 GHz dual core is pretty freaking fast, I doubt it. For autocad, I think a good dual core, at least a 2.0Ghz (I'm making a somewhat educated guess here, but not 100%), and a somewhat high end discrete (not integrated) (can I say that again... NO INTEGRATED GRAPHICS CARD with "shared memory"...) graphics card with at least 2 Gig ram would work for you.

Again, look for the deals/coupons (that price they show on the website is just a starting price), but I think that the dell M90 would work with the right specs.

http://www.dell.com/content/products...=04&l=en&s=bsd

 

As far as the Core 2 Duo, it is by far better than the P4 or PD. I had a Pentium D 3.6ghz and replaced it with a Core 2 Duo 2.66ghz. On the tests I did with encoding video and some other stuff, the Core 2 Duo is 30% faster than the 3.6gz. And runs a lot cooler.
Not sure what is available in laptops, but they are definitely worth a look.

 

Well, if you're buying a laptop so you can run AutoCAD 3D you might as well just stop there. About thirty minutes ago our new copy of AutoCAD 2007 was set on my desk. The 3D will NEVER get used. Inventor is a poor CAD option in my opinion, but miles ahead of AutoCAD. AutoCAD is a good 2D package, but do yourself a favor and don't even think about using it for 3D. That is unless they've made some MAJOR changes...

BTW, 3GHz sounds rather excessive for such a program. I run Wildfire 2 off a 2.6GHz, 1G machine with no problems... I'll probably be bumping up to W3 shortly though, and if I remember correctly it should run fine under the same setup... Generally with most 3D programs its more about your video card than anything else...

EDIT: We've been looking at getting one (or two) of these here at work: http://www.dell.com/content/products..._m65?c=us&l=en
http://search.dell.com/results.aspx?...k=M90&cat=prod
I haven't looked too much into them myself, but that's what was recommended by our PTC rep...

 

Well, the computer I was looking at was the Gateway MP8708. It runs dual 2.0GHZ Processors. So I think it will suffice. I have not yet used the new AutoCAD but am farmiliar with the older 2D version. I will defenetly be using solidworks and inventor, they are the main programs my company uses. The best part about this laptop is it is on sale at Best Buy for $1250.
Thanks guys.

P.S. I could use some imput on this computer if anyone is running it. A friend has a newer Gateway laptop, a $500 one, but it seems to run quite well.

 

Well, first off I am no computer expert, but I have owned 2 Dells (still have them for surfing the web), 1 Gateway (has since went to a better place) and now an HP.

Personally, I think the HP was by far the most reliable . I did not have autocad or anything like that, but never had any problems that I have had with both Dells.

The Gateway worked fairly well, not many problems...until I dropped it and the screen detached itself...

Just my .02 cents...

 

That one has integrated graphics. You can get whatever you want, but I think that you are going to be disappointed with it's performance for a graphics intensive program like Autocad. Autodesk says that it is not even supported for 3D, if that is what you want to use. Intel's 950 is good for watching movies, surfing the web, but very little else.

 

I bought the dell e1705 mine was like 1750 delivered. so far I like it only had it for a month.

had an HP before, worked well for 6 years, just wanted a new one.