I just bought an expensive laptop - was it a $2500 mistake?

Edited: 5/19/2009 11:23:27 AM by Undiluted

Note that I have not yet booted up this laptop and I am not a gamer. The laptop is still unboxed, unwrapped, and sealed shut with the manufacturers wrapping tape. The base price for this laptop is $1300. I paid $2500 for it because I'm a speed freak. No, I don't need a drug intervention, but thanks anyway, Dr. Drew I customized my brand new laptop because of my need for speed.

I customized it for work and school projects....9 to 5 stuff. Between 9 to 5 I'm a psuedo warrior. Or maybe, thanks to genetics and coffee, I have a type A personality between 9 to 5. I'm all business between 9-5, The words "lighten up - take it easy" aren't in my vocabulary between 9-5.

All I know is that when I use the computer to work on a school or work project and I experience a slowdown or blockage, I get mad. I act like a racehorse who's stuck in quicksand. So that's why when I ordered this computer I told myself I should place an emphasis on speed, speed and more speed.

So I built it with 8 gigs of RAM and a quad core processor. The 8 gigs of RAM and the quad core processor is why it went from being a $1300 laptop to a $2500 laptop. (no desktop, thank you - I bought a laptop so I could get out of the house and work away from home 3 or 4 days a week).

So I ask any of the hardware savvy people out there: did I make a mistake in ramping up a $1300 laptop to the tune of $2500 in my all out quest balls to the wall need for speed?

Before you answer that, you need to know what I'll be using it for: I'm going to build websites with Wordpress and Dreamweaver. I might be using several programs at once. Programs like Photoshop, Dreamweaver and Flash. I might even have a web based video tutorial open when I'm using Photoshop or Dreamweaver. In a nutshell: I'll be using a lot of Adobe software.

I'll note that there's no need to point out that I could've gotten far more for my money by buying a desktop. That's a given. That goes without saying. I already have a high performance desktop for work and school. I bought the laptop because I need a portable computer that is easy to transport, a computer that I can place in the back seat of my car, or carry on my back when I ride a bicycle or chopper to work or school. A desktop was not an option.

So now that you know all there is to know, don't hold back with your answer. If I made a mistake just say so. Or maybe I bought the perfect laptop, one that has the type of speed that a busy body like me can utilize? A laptop that'll handle anything a worker bee can throw at it 5 years down the road?

Will I, or would anyone else, be able to appreciate the speed and power of 8 gigs of RAM along with the quad core processor when compared to a machine that has 4 gigs and a duo core processor? Either way, tell me what you think, because I want THE TRUTH, and unlike, Tom I can handle the truth.

 

 STATS:OS: Vista 64 bitHard drive: 7200rpmMemory: 8 gigs of RAMGPU: 1GB Nvidia GeForce GT 130MProcessor: Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor Q9000 (2.00Ghz)The Rig Itself: http://www.shopping.hp.com/series/category/notebooks/HDX18t_series/3/computer_store

 

 

Sounds like a beast of a system.  You would have spent much more for a MAC, with those guts, I'm sure...

LOL  I too am a nut when it comes to my work.  I got a Dell M2010 about 2 1/2 years ago.  4 gig ram, dual 120 gig hardrives, centrino duo  t7600 processor.  Still running XP professional.  I use it daily (almost 18 hours a day 5 to 6 days a week) using outlook, firefox, AutoCAD2008, 3DStudio Max 9, Photoshop CS2, and various other programs....all at once.  I have zero patience and expect shit to happen when I want it to.  $2500 is not bad at all.  I have almost $6,000 into mine.  That does not count all of the programs. Autodesk sure is proud.  And I have 3 versions of ACAD on it.  That is almost $15,000 right there. So are you crazy...nah.  Just know what you want and know what your time is worth.

Edited: 6/12/2009 3:12:33 AM by SunsetRanger

---------------------------------------------Originally posted by Zip_TydI always buy Mac's. If your gonna spend the money might as well do it right.--------------------------------------------- Why so you can pay twice the amount for the computer for half the performance. Not to mention that while there is decent amount of programs out there for a Mac it pales in comparison to the amount of programs that are for a PC.. Forgot one other thing.. If Mac's were so great why do most of the Mac's out there run Parallels?

---------------------------------------------Originally posted by Zip_Tyd---------------------------------------------Originally posted by SunsetRangerEdited: 6/12/2009 3:12:33 AM by SunsetRanger---------------------------------------------Originally posted by Zip_TydI always buy Mac's. If your gonna spend the money might as well do it right.--------------------------------------------- Why so you can pay twice the amount for the computer for half the performance. Not to mention that while there is decent amount of programs out there for a Mac it pales in comparison to the amount of programs that are for a PC.. Forgot one other thing.. If Mac's were so great why do most of the Mac's out there run Parallels?--------------------------------------------- I don't need to explain the way I spend my money, or my opinions to you...--------------------------------------------- Well you are the one saying might as well do it right.. So enlighten me why it is right? I'm trying to figure out why you would pay twice the amount of money for a OS.. Come on tell me puhlease.. Up until a few years ago Mac's were soooooooooooooooooooo superior cause they were using the Motorola 8088 chip right.. Ooooops guess that wasn't so superior now they are using Intel chips JUST like a "normal" PC. Damn Strike one! Wait their OS was sooooooooooooooooo superior to anything out there.. Now they backpeddled and are using a Unix based system.. Hmmm.. Just like a PC running verious flavors of Linux. Damn stike two!  Finally I can go out and install OSX on ANY PC!! I just did it on my AMD based HP laptop with a Nvidia processor. I only did it so I could test our software running on Parrallels because the company I work for has people that think I guess like you do. You pay $$$$$$$$ more for a laptop that has the same failure rate as any other company out there. The best part is if something does fail it isn't something that the average Joe can fix and still be economical. One of the guys in our office has a less than 2 year old Mac Pro laptop that that "logic board" went out.. That was a $1400 part..  So yeah I'll take my "inferior" PC because well in this day and age unless a Mac is going to give me a BJ everytime I crack it open well spending that much money to belong in the tree hugging crowd..  So I'll leave this one for ya..

---------------------------------------------Originally posted by Zip_TydEdited: 6/20/2009 9:02:49 PM by Zip_TydEdited: 6/20/2009 9:00:04 PM by Zip_TydCan't we all just get along? --------------------------------------------- Personally I have no problem with you.. Your the first one to bring up the "homo" smiley..  I just have a thing when people say that Mac's are the best thing since sliced bread. They are all PC's in the general sense of the word they are all Personal Computers. However for the money I don't see where the benefit is. Especially since I can do everything that a mac can do on a "PC". Yes there are risks of virus's however any intelligent person can surf te internet for years without picking one up. It's not that hard. 

I think it also depends on what you are doing.  With my programs I can ont use a mac....autodesk products and apple's don't play well together.  Now if I were doing movie editing or just web page building....I think a mac is a lot more efficient...this being said I have never done either of those or used a mac. Just from the people I meet in the profesional world is what I go by.