Which laptop

[MasterD]

Hi all
I am in 2 minds about which laptop to buy please help

Fujitsu-Siemens Amilo M3438G WXH PM 770
2x100GB DVD1DL 17" 56k LAN 802.11g 54Mbps Wireless LAN 256MB nVidia GeForce GO 6800 Graphics 17" Widescreen Crystalview WXGA+ TFT Display 1GB DDR2 SDRAM Memory 533MHz (2x512MB 2GB Max) 2.1GHz Pentium M 770 Processor (2MB L2 Cache) 2x 100GB SATA Hard Disk Drives (5400RPM) 8x DVD+-RW/+-R Dual Layer Writer Drive Weight 4.1Kg Li-Ion Battery (8 Cell Up to 2h00m) 1 Year UK Warranty
http://www.microanvika.com/product.asp?TXT=INFO&PNO=FUJ14086

or

Acer TravelMate 8204WLMi
http://www.acernotebooks.co.uk/Acer_TravelMate_8204WLMi_Laptop_LX.TAX06.023/version.asp


Thanks in advance

[FunkyMunky]

I recently acquired an Amilo M3438G through an HCI scheme.

Well specced laptop, almost good enough for a desktop replacement and will run most new games impressively.

Both laptops you mention have their pros and cons. The Acer has a newer Dual-Core processor, theoretically providing higher performance in applications that support it. The Fujitsu offers a Pentium-M processor...both will perform similiarly in a core-core comparison, but the extra core in the Acer may be useful in the future.

The graphics card is what seals the deal for me - the Radeon X1600 is a "mid-range" card, and while it should run the latest games, the 6800 in the Fujitsu would perform better. The "Hypermemory" feature on the ATI card looks annoying as well - the card itself has 256MB of onboard memory, but will eat a further 256MB from your system RAM to make the "512MB" it claims. I would rather have the system memory than the extra graphics memory.

Based on the graphics cards, I would go for the Fujitsu machine. You should be warned however, it's a BIG machine. :) Personally I think they've got a cheek to call it a laptop, but I love it :ok:

If the Acer machine had a better graphics card I would take the smaller screen and dual core processor however.

[spannersatcx]

Have a search, been asked and answered a few times. Everyone has their own opinions on which laptop is best, at the end of the day you pay your money and takes your choice. I'm biased as I have an excellent Acer.

[noblues]

Both bricks!

Depends if you are going to carry it around (ie. nightstops etc) ...

I've just ordered a Sony Vaio SZ1XP dual core, very light 1.7Kg, very well spec'd and performance and battery life, but off course the price is a 13.3" screen ...

http://www.vnunet.com/personal-computer-world/hardware/2151105/sony-vgn-sz1xp

[MasterD]

Acer TravelMate 8204WLMi
Review
http://www.vnunet.com/personal-computer-world/hardware/2148122/acer-travelmate-8204wlmi