Hi all,
I’m looking to purchase a new laptop for programming after some ahole stole my last one out of my van.
Minimum specs are pretty low for the program’s I use for the automation.
Pent 4 1Ghz
Ram 512
Pretty sure most new laptops crap all over those specs.
Not looking to spend heaps of cash but need something decent with a windows OS and a great battery life.
I’m thinking completely solid state.
Needs some USB ports and a bright screen for when I have to program outside.
If your required specs are really that low, have you considered something second-hand/ex-govt? Failing that, I’d look at something Atom-based.
Atom? I thought all computes were atom based?
My vote is with @riumplus ie: ex gov thinkpad from ebay. They have bright screens that are matte so are pretty good for working outdoors. My X220 is 3 years old and still going strong though battery life is only about 3-4 hours these days and that might not be enough for what you’re doing. You could pick up one like mine off ebay for $200-300 these days which is a steal.
http://cdn.msy.com.au/Parts/notebook.pdf
Why buy old when you can have something new for under $300
The only thing is what OS do you need. I had a problem and just Virtual box xp for the older programs. The tricky part is getting the com port to run but it can be done.
This what I need it for
http://www2.clipsal.com/cis/technical/downloads/piced
http://www2.clipsal.com/cis/technical/downloads/c-bus_toolkit
General web browsing and word processing.
That’s as special as it has to be.
Any recent laptop will do all those things, so consider if your looking for a cheap new laptop (things like the ASUS EeeBook X205TA or HP stream are less than $300 new and will do what you require) or if the bigger screen\keyboard of a used higher end model (with about the same specs overall) is worth the tradeoff of portability and battery life.
I’ve had my Asus N50v since new (>6years) and it falls into the later category, it still has the spec to do almost anything but game but I honestly don’t bother to haul it with me due to its sheer weight and size, not to mention the low battery life (3 hrs when brand new, so expect half that for most of the time you’ll own it) and long boot up times really prevents you using it on train or coffee shops like you’d do with a new 11-13" laptop. On the other hand similar used units cost less than $200 now and it still will keep up with a modern mobile I3, so even light video editing is perfectly usable provided you have something else to do instead of watch the progress bar for the final render.