Help me decide on laptops! Revamp my old one? Shiny new one? Bootcamp??

johnnypark

johnnypark

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Alright, here's the deal. I'm taking some graduate classes this Fall and I really like having my laptop in class to take notes (haven't taken classes in 4 years).

My aging Dell XPS M1330 is running better than ever since I trashed Vista and replaced it with Windows 7. The only problem is that the battery is all but shot and doesn't really hold a charge, making it less portable or practical for class use - I don't want to have to hunt down an outlet every time I go to lecture.

Plus, the M1330 weighs a little under 4lbs. I'll be carrying it all day to my full time job so that I can have it in class in the evening (I don't drive to work so no option to leave it in a car, etc). I'd really like to get a fancy, new, super-thin computer, ideally one that weighs less than 3lbs and has a good enough battery that I don't need to worry about charging it during the day. So here's what I'm trying to decide between:

Cheapest option:
-Buy a new battery for my M1330 and deal with the extra weight. If I go this route, does anyone know a good site to buy after-market batteries? They're either super cheap and look like they'll fail in 3 months, or Dell wants $150 for a new one. Neither sounds terribly appealing. If I can find one for cheap enough, I might consider upgrading to a SSD to get more performance & battery life out of my current laptop.

Ultrabook option:
-I'm really intrigued by all the PC Ultrabooks that have come out. The Asus Zenbook had my attention until I heard how shitty the keyboard is. I'm going to be using whatever computer I get to write research papers, work on my manuscript, etc - a good keyboard is beyond essential. The Dell XPS 13 seems to have the most favorable reviews for what I'm looking for. The downside to this is Dell only sells it through their website so there isn't any competitive pricing or sales through retailers.

Does anyone have any experience using the Asus, Acer, or Dell Ultrabooks? I'd love to find something for under $1k, and then sell my M1330 to help offset the cost.

The other thing is, all the reviews for the PC Ultrabooks keep comparing them to the Macbook Air. Which brings me to...

Bootcamp Mac option:
-Some may think this is a terrible idea, and I don't want this to turn into a discussion about OSX vs Windows. Suffice to say I don't like OSX, and furthermore I already have Office 2010 for Windows and would like to be able to use it on whatever I buy.

Macbook Airs definitely seem to be the sexiest hardware-wse. The 13" with the 128GB SSD supposedly runs Windows 7 great, Apple apparently did a good job with the driver support in the current Bootcamp. Obviously some things don't work as well - all the fancy stuff with the touch pad is software-dependent, but I'm okay with that.

I've seen quite a few MBAs on Craigslist going for decent prices, a lot cheaper than a brand-new Ultrabook or Macbook.

My only real reservation about Ultrabooks in general is the keyboard style. Those chiclet keyboards are a pain in the ass to type on - I like keyboards with more depth. I'm sure I could adjust, but I've tried typing on my roommate's Mac and have found it difficult to make the switch. My M1330 has a great keyboard... one more reason I'm considering trying to get some more life out of it.

Thoughts? Suggestions?
 
If you decide on one, but the keyboard is the only thing holding you back, you can get a decent USB keyboard for 20 bucks or less to use at home.... if you can handle taking notes on a sub-par keyboard.
 
Nah, like I said, it won't just be for notes, but for papers, blogging, essays, and a manuscript. I do most of my writing at coffee shops anyway so an add-on keyboard wouldn't work for me.
 
My friend got recently got a laptop from lenovo after looking at mac book airs. It was only slightly thicker, had a better cpu, more ram, more ports, bigger screen, has a spot to install a sata ssd or msata ssd(I don't remember which, maybe both) in addition to the normal hardrive, and of course was much cheaper.

I had luck getting 3rd party batteries from amazon.

Is there any reason you can't just use a net book? It doesn't sound like you need the computer to do anything that intense and you can always just replace the hard drive with an ssd. It would probably be the cheapest, lightest and smallest option for a new comp.
 
I actually have a netbook which I'm pretty fond of, particularly for traveling because of how easy it is to pack up. But since I reformatted my bigger laptop, I definitely prefer the bigger keyboard for big projects. I'm working on a 30 page paper as we speak, and it would be a nightmare to do all the research and typing on that small screen/keyboard.

The netbook might prove a good option for taking to class, but ideally I'd like a single machine to use for everything that meets all my requirements. Idealistic, I know, but that's why I'm posting here for opinions =)
 
Well if the weight is negotiable then there is a sale for Lenovo Ideapad Z580-2151-28U 15.6" Laptop, Intel® Core™ i5-3210M, 8GB,750 GB HD, for $399.99 + Tax AC and Student MIR @ Staples. You can find the details about the deal on a different deal site.

Weight and size are something I tend not to care about in a laptop, So I don't think I'll be of much help.

There is not much of a PC community at cag, I think you would have better luck asking on a different deal site.

It also seems that any computer would meet the requirements as long as it was thin(I think they may make bigger net books). It seems like if you went to a computer site and put in the requirements for size and weight some options should come up for under $1000.
 
Macbook airs have very small ssd and its non upgradeable. Might as well get a macbook pro, you can get a mbp 2011 from amazom for 800-900. 950 for one thats in perfect condition.
 
The non-ultrabook 13" lenovo laptops look pretty nice, and can be had right now on lenovo's website for $600.

13"-14" is pretty much the sweet spot in terms of portability and usability. I have a 14" alienware that is fairly easy to type on, although it's way too heavy for what you need.

The forums at http://forum.notebookreview.com/ can be very helpful and they have quite a few knowledgeable people over there that are more than willing to help.
 
Macbook Airs are apparently some of the most cost-effective options out there, ultrabook-wise. I don't have Boot Camp'd Windows running on mine, but I do on my desktop Mac, and it runs smooth as butter; it would probably be fine on an Air. Don't know if you plan on any gaming, but I wouldn't do so on an Air (played Toki Tori on mine via Steam late last year and it made the CPU run hot and drained the battery quickly); it's good for everyday stuff, though.
 
[quote name='Lawyers Guns N Money']13"-14" is pretty much the sweet spot in terms of portability and usability. I have a 14" alienware that is fairly easy to type on, although it's way too heavy for what you need.[/QUOTE]

+1.

I used a 14.1" in grad school, and it fits in my bag just fine, and was not too heavy, or too small.
 
Thanks for the responses!

I'm pretty committed to the 3lbs rangr, 3.5lbs max, baser on my current laptop weighing 4lbs and giving me back pain by the end of the day. Otherwise, there are definitely cheaper options.

Everything above a 13" screen seems to weigh 4lb minimum and often closer to 5lbs or higher. Portability is a must, without sacrificing comfort or screen size.

There are some Airs on Craigslist that look like good deals, but the XPS 13 still has my attention...
 
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