Laptop Advice

[ajsnyder85]

I'm in the market for a new laptop because I need one for school. I'm sure that the program I'm doing won't require anything all that fancy, but I'm also thinking about the future.

How important is computing power in your line of work? At my job, we're using pretty antiquated machines. I just got a "brand new" desktop at work which is Core 2 Duo 2.93 Ghz and 3 GB of RAM. Most everyone else is operating on much worse laptops with only 1 GB RAM. We use SAS, but remotely through Citrix so I don't think our computing power matters. We do use large spreadsheets with complex procedures and macros as well as large databases.

Generally, I would say what we have is sufficient, but lets say I wanted to do more complex modeling in the future. What sort of specs should I be looking for? Intel i7 seems to be top-of-the-line and I suppose RAM is probably important as well. I don't suppose that graphics power is all that important, but maybe I'm wrong.

Any suggestions on good brands and/or models? Any good black friday deals? I think my budget is generally under 1000.

[ian grey]

If you're not worried about graphics power, you can get a great laptop with an i7 cpu for less than $1000. Check slickdeals.net every morning and let them find the deals for you (and read the comments).

[Aeitra]

Originally Posted by ian grey

If you're not worried about graphics power, you can get a great laptop with an i7 cpu for less than $1000. Check slickdeals.net every morning and let them find the deals for you (and read the comments).

I was unaware of this website, I love you.

[Ron Weasley]

For some actuaries, e-mail and Powerpoint are the most demanding applications they need to run. Others may need to run SAS and an SQL server local (okay, this is quite rare, and also quite demanding). Greater computational requirements are moved to a server (similar to the way you describe your current workplace).

So, thats a long winded way to say "Don't worry about a laptop suitable for future employment." You employer will provide the required tools.

For professional self study after graduation, the computing demands aren't that great. Many resources for advanced computational/statistical techniques use R or Octave which run quite well on a modest system (especially if you use a linux based OS). Other training methods make use of video, which any laptop should be able to handle well these days.

[ian grey]

Originally Posted by Aeitra

I was unaware of this website, I love you.

[Pseudolus]

That site looks really useful to me, too. Thanks!

What would the difference be, from a user's POV, between, say, a laptop running off of an

Intel Celeron P4600 (2.0GHz, Dual Core/2 Threads, 2MB L3 Cache)

vs. a

Intel Core i3-370M Processor (2.4GHz, Dual Core/4 Threads, 3MB L3 Cache)

?

More generally, if I were looking at other brands of laptops, is there a "key" to what numbers/specs I should pay attention to and what I shouldn't? (Last time I bought a computer was during the first GWB term, and things have changed a bit since then.)

[erosewater]

I would choose Core i3 over Celeron unless I really didn't care about specs, i.e. just a web/email machine. Core i3 should also use less power/generate less heat.

If I was buying a laptop today I'd get at a minimum, Core i3, 4GB RAM, and a SSD. Do the SSD yourself after the fact, will be way cheaper. Replacing a laptop hard drive is usually pretty easy, 4 screws, pop it out. If you'll be watching videos on it a discrete graphics card is nice to reduce CPU usage.

[Pseudolus]

This has my attention: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Asus+-+L...=1218437466214

Asus
Intel i5
4 Gb RAM
(does not appear to have dedicated graphics)
15.6" screen
$450

[Pseudolus]

I've heard various places before about folks doing the HD <-> SSD thing. (Or maybe just erose saying it multiple times.) Something to consider down the road. Primarily a speed-of-responsiveness thing?

[erosewater]

Originally Posted by Pseudolus

I've heard various places before about folks doing the HD <-> SSD thing. (Or maybe just erose saying it multiple times.) Something to consider down the road. Primarily a speed-of-responsiveness thing?

Speed, but many other reasons too. Hands down best upgrade you can make as far as general zippiness of the machine. But also quieter, cooler, uses less power, no moving parts so less prone to failure, etc. Will also shave a few ounces of weight.

Laptops generally have 5400 RPM drives, for the simple reason that a 7200 RPM drive (standard for desktop HDD) would be much hotter and use more power. So in a laptop a SSD is a huge improvement in performance.