Laptop For 1 Year Of Travel. Searching For A Strong All-Rounder.

[fastjetjockey]

Ahoy,

I'm travelling to Canada in 7 weeks, for 1 year, and am after a laptop to take with me. I've ruled out getting a Mac, and am pretty much searching for an all-rounder PC lappy that's good at everything with a budget of around $1500. It will just be a desktop replacement that I can take with me with ease when I move. I will be using it for photo/video processing and editing, gaming, surfing and all the rest of it...

I found a Samsung on ebay with the following stats for $1499 from a reputable seller...

• i7-3610QM Processor 2.3Ghz (Turbo 3.3G)
  
• 15.6" Thin Bezel LED LCD HD (1366 x 768) 16:9, Anti-Reflective Display
  
• 16GB (DDR3)
  
• 256GB Solid State Drive
  
• Switchable 2GB nVIDIA GeForce GT650M (Optimus) + Intel® HD Graphics 4000
  
• 2x USB 3.0, 2 x USB 2.0
  
• DVD Drive
  
• 1yr international warranty
  
• Windees 7 HP 64
  

I've been looking around and that's pretty much the best-suited rig for what I'll be using it for. I've had a brief look on some build-your-own aussie website - Horace laptops or something? They're pretty comparable. But the thing that puts me off them is simply the styling of the chassis and lack of a big-brand reputation.... Same internals, I know. The only thing that I'm put off by is the res of the screen - I'd really dig a full HD one.

Anyway, my question would be do you know of any other rigs out there that you think I would be interested in, or do you know of any other tech that's coming out in the near future that I should hold off for?

[FrangaR33]

256GB is no where near enough hard drive space for video editing. Raw HD footage takes up a huge amount of space, modern games taking roughly 8GB + each and high quality photo's can be upwards of 5MB each. With all the photo's and video from travel I'd imagine that little 256GB drive would be full in no time at all.

If its just going to be a desktop replacement as you move around I would reccomend steering clear of a SSD, considering everything you have is going to be on that laptop your going to need a lot more hard drive space unless you plan on having it all on an external hard drive. Personally I would go for a 1.5TB internal standard hard drive, partion it as you wish and you have enough space for everything.

Also as far as laptops go I cant recommend Toshiba more, I've worked on HP, Acer, Compaq and Toshiba by far has the best reliability. Also in my experience the best place for reasonably priced laptops is Jb Hi Fi, by far the best prices and its always good to feel the quality of a laptop if its going to be your lifeline while your overseas. It is especially good at JB when they have one of their 10-15% of laptop sales, you can pick up a real bargain if you keep an eye out.

[*LOACH*]

I have been living overseas for a few years now and have done a fair bit of train and bus travel. I have found a netbook to be much more portable and even the cheapest ones do all almost everything I want. If you really want to be able to play recent games and edit video have a look at the Alienware 11" model or other brands equivalents. A laptop is so much heavier and so much larger it is almost impossible to use in a bus whereas a netbook is just fine. Long bus trips can be extremely boring unless you have some entertainment. A 1TB 2.5" external will hold all your stuff and by the time you fill it then hopefully technology will have moved on and you can get something bigger.

Edited August 1, 2012 by *LOACH*

[SoFreshSoClean]

A 15 inch laptop is going to be a massive pain in the arse to lug around whilst traveling.

If I was you I'd be looking at an ultrabook, maybe even a tablet (not ideal for video, I know)

[fastjetjockey]

Thanks for the replies guys.

I was not put off by the SSD as it would be used to load a select few programs, the bulk of my data (music, video and RAW stills) would be stored on external drives. The laptop would be set up on a desk for 4-6 months at a time, so it's not like I'd be carting it in a satchel every day. Just throwing it in the car when I move.

I was seriously considering a netbook; Very sleek and stylish whilst still being a PC. But integrated graphics aren't really up to the task I think.

I've been trawling JB's every fortnight or so, looking for new models/stock. They've got a good range but nothing that compares to this eBay one I've found, for the price anyway. Shame it doesn't have an FHD screen. Think I'll buy it this weekend...

[*LOACH*]

Thanks for the replies guys.

I was not put off by the SSD as it would be used to load a select few programs, the bulk of my data (music, video and RAW stills) would be stored on external drives. The laptop would be set up on a desk for 4-6 months at a time, so it's not like I'd be carting it in a satchel every day. Just throwing it in the car when I move.

I was seriously considering a netbook; Very sleek and stylish whilst still being a PC. But integrated graphics aren't really up to the task I think.

I've been trawling JB's every fortnight or so, looking for new models/stock. They've got a good range but nothing that compares to this eBay one I've found, for the price anyway. Shame it doesn't have an FHD screen. Think I'll buy it this weekend...

Alienware and many other netbooks have dedicated graphics cards. The Alienware 11x has a dedicated card and an integrated card and switches between the 2 depending on demand. It also does this with processor speed, switching between a sub 2ghz and over 2ghz setting. Both of these features maximise the battery life when you don't need full performance. The high performance netbooks are also a fair bit cheaper than the $1500 you are willing to spend. Have a look here:

http://www.jbhifionl...ry-scoop/665539

http://www.jbhifionl...ry-scoop/665540

http://www.cyberpowe...egory/notebook/

http://www.logicalbl...able-clevo.html

Out of interest why buy it in Australia? Why not wait till you are in Canada and buy it there? Saves you having to transport it and it is going to be easier to sort out any problems should you have them.

Edited August 2, 2012 by *LOACH*