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Notebook Computer Reviews for the True Road Warrior!

You're on the go all the time! And that is the perfect reason to buy a Notebook Computer! If you only need portability once in awhile there are tons of choices out there for you including USB hard drives, web enabled databases and applications and even the CD R/W "sneaker net" method of transferring and updating data. And if its pretty rare for you to be in the field and needing immediate computer access then a notebook is probably not the right choice for you. Editor's Price to Value Pick Editor's Screen Size Matters Pick Editor's Power Pick Editor's Overall Pick

However, most Real Estate professionals are always on the go and they need access to their email, contact manager database, reports and forms and other resources all the time! If this is you then this article is exactly what you need. There are several ways to shop for Notebooks, including by price, screen size, power or by brand. Brands include Hewlett Packard Notebooks, Gateway Notebooks, Toshiba Notebooks and more! We look at AMD vs. Intel on the inside and while these are notebook reviews for Real Estate agents you will likely find them to be excellent reviews for any Road Warrior! If you have a particular price maximum in mind, start here.

On the other hand, if bigger is better and you must have that 17" monitor, then shop by screen size here.

If you think you have a need for a more powerful computer than most, then take a look at the rankings by power.

Finally, if you already know the brand you want then shop by brand. Don't see your favorite brand? Suggest it here!

Notebook Computers by Price

It's easy to get overwhelmed by all the options out there. It is not our intent to provide a comprehensive list of every computer on the market! Instead we choose to inform you about what is (and is not) important in choosing a laptop that is designed for the very mobile client. With this in mind we break down each category into only a few top competitors, so you can make an intelligent choice. Unfortunately this article will not address reliability to any great degree. The days of keeping computers long enough to create a true reliability metric appear to be long behind us. Today it seems that most reviews look at the number of calls to tech support to address reliability. Since most calls to tech support are software and training related we think this is a horrible metric to determine reliability. In today's market, perhaps the best "quick read" on reliability is the manufacturer's suggestion of how long the computer will last before failing from a hardware standpoint; i.e. the parts and labor warranty. If a company does not provide an initial parts and labor warranty of at least a year then you won't see it rated by Data Choices LLC. Road Warriors need to also be aware of the type of wireless network they connect to at the office. Make sure the wireless options that are built into the Notebook will work with your company Wi-Fi, unless you have already made the decision to go with the Verizon Wireless option that is gaining popularity. For further info on why we dissed the wireless networking options, look here!

When Price is No Object!

$4700 HP HDX Custom

Clocking in at just over $4700 we have the Hewlett Packard HDX Customized Notebook. We think this notebook offers an insane amount of power - power that is very likely to go to waste unless you are an architect who likes to design buildings with the latest CAD software while playing Halo 3 in the background!

It starts with the 64 bit version of Windows Vista, even though most software programs available today are only 32 bit. It sports the Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Extreme Processor X7900 with a massive amount of L2 cache - 4MB! We are huge fans of L2 cache and AMD has been handing it to Intel for years in part because they put more L2 cache on their similarly priced chips. But that tide seems to be turning as AMD is now releasing more cost-concious chips with less L2 cache. For the Road Warrior the processor is probably one of the least important factors on the notebook. Email, basic spreadsheets, word processing, and even server side databases don't require a lot of processing power.

The display with this custom unit is the 20.1" Hi-Def Ultra Brightview widescreen - though 20.1" today is not the same 20.1" of the past. In fact, we are quite dismayed that it is darn near impossible to find a non-widescreen notebook computer anymore! Widescreen may bring the theatre experience home in terms of televisions, and might even make a tad more sense for a desktop computer where entertainment is important. But a true Road Warrior wants to work on the road, not play! As such a shortened vertical screen is the exact opposite of what a Road Warrior really wants. Nevertheless you are not likely to notice the missing space at 20.1"

4GB of DDR2 memory and the 256MB ATI(TM) Mobility Radeon(TM) HD 2600 XT are again designed for extreme entertainment and much of the power here is likely to go unused as well. We like the two 250GB hard drives as this allows the user to quickly and easily back up critical files and avoid disaster in the event of a hard drive failure. Nevertheless, given the portability of notebooks, another backup method would be preferred, and the wireless capabilities can provide that type of backup - though we suggest a Verizon wireless subscription as opposed to the hit and miss as well as unsecure nature of hot spot ad hoc networks. Here is the complete spec sheet on this Notebook from the HP website:

This is much more warrior than the Road Warrior needs in almost all instances. But isn't it great to pretend that price doesn't matter?

$2793 Gateway NX860XL

Another contender in the price is irrelevant category is the Gateway NX860XL.($2793 as configured) Using the Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7400 (2.16GHz, 667MHz FSB, 4MB L2 Cache) and 4MB of DDR2 SDRAM and a 17.1" TFT Active Matrix display, this unit qualifies for an honorable mention. It only has one 160GB hard drive and no option to add another, however we did like the three year anti-theft protection offered for $89. Here are the stats on this unit:

$2110 HP DV2500t

Well that was fun. But now let's jump down into the reasonable arena. At $2110 we have the HP dv2500t with the following configuration:

64 bit Vista

Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Duo processor T7250 (2.00 GHz, 2 MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB)

14.1" WXGA High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1280 x 800) (too small for our tastes, but you won't really know whether it works for you or not until you see it in a store)

2GB DDR2

64MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS

HP Imprint (Radiance) + Fingerprint Reader + Webcam + Microphone

HP Broadband Wireless with 802.11a/b/g/n (draft 802.11n) WLAN and Bluetooth

160GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive

LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support

Though this is still a pricey unit it offers more processing power than you are likely to need. The fingerprint reader helps keep the unit secure and the DVD RW will not only allow you to make easy backups of data but also provide you with entertainment when bored. The only item we don't like about this unit at this price is the small screen. However smaller size can equate to better portability if you are often away from the car and must carry the unit everywhere you go.

$1740 DV2500t custom

Here is the same model, but scaled down in price. In our opinion most Road Warriors would notice little difference in performance over the above listed system when using typical Road Warrior software applications. You save almost $400 with this setup. $1740 price as shown below.

Editor's Second Place Price:Value Award! See the #1 Pick Here

HP DV9500z - $1740

Coming in at the same price as the smaller screen 2500t above ($1740 after rebate) this unit sports the AMD Turion TL-64 dual core processor, a seventeen inch Ultra Brightview display, 2GB DDR2, a fingerprint reader for added security, two 160GB hard drives, Microsoft Office Basic 2007, recovery CD ROMs and anti-virus protection. HP will add a Verizon PCMCIA card for $189, but you may wish to consider the USB version currently selling at stores like Best Buy for only $80 and providing you wireless connectivity from the Notebooks USB port and the added flexibility of plugging the same device into a home computer to provide high speed connectivity there as well. Some users, however, will not like the placement of the USB device on their laptop and will find the PCMCIA card to fit more unobtrusively into the laptop. Current Verizon connectivity fees are about $60/month. Here are the complete specs:

Under $1000 HP DV2500t

And now one for the sub-one thousand price range:

This is a dv2500t coming in at $988 currently, but lacks some basic features such as the Microsoft Office software and sports only 1GB of DDR2 memory. Most Road Warriors can make do with this configuration, but it is far from top end.

Notebook Computers by Screen Size

Because we want our Road Warriors to be mobile we did not consider screen sizes over seventeen inches. In fact, because we consider screen sizes below seventeen inches to be too small, we only considered the seventeen inchers. Users reviewing this category should understand that our picks are based on best value, with a seventeen inch screen size being the dominant factor.

The Gateway NX860X prices at $2188 as configured. It uses the Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T5300 (1.73GHz, 533MHz FSB, 2MB L2 Cache) and we particularly liked the option of going with a 2GB DDR single chip. We think 2GB is all that is required, but insisting on a single chip (instead of two 1GB chips) allows room for expansion in the future. Again we don't like the option of only a single hard drive.

Editor's Choice Award! This is our pick for Price:Value, Screen Size and our Overall Pick! See the Power Pick here

$1740 HP DV9500t TOP DOG EDITOR's PICK!

With the Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Duo processor T7250 (2.00 GHz, 2 MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB), 2GB DDR2, a 17" Ultra Brightview Widescreen display, 128MB NVIDIA graphics card, fingerprint reader for security and dual 120GB hard drives, this is a great performing computer at a reasonable price! At this price you also get Office Basic 2007, Antivirus and Firewall protection and a recovery DVD. This unit beats out the 9500z on processor performance which will will help the true Road Warrior multi-task! We believe it is unlikely that very many people would notice a performance difference between this unit and the one with the AMD chip, but given that they are the same price our Top Editor's Pick goes here!

The primary differences between this Top Pick and the AMD unit (listed again below for reference) boils down to the processor and the graphics card on the upside. It sports dual 120GB hard drives while the AMD unit has dual 160's at the same price. Still, unless you plan to add the TV Tuner and save shows directly on the hard drive the 120GB drives should satisfy most people. The built in wireless connectivity is touted as next generation wireless, but there are a couple of reasons why that aspect is less important to us than other factors. Most of the units we considered sport wireless connectivity for major networking technologies that are in play today. Ultimately, however, the purchaser of the laptop needs to ask their IT department if the unit will work with the existing network. So it was easier to effectively ignore this issue than continually comment on the wireless capabilities. Secondly the added security of the Intel PRO/Wireless option is only a factor if the network being connected to is configured with the additional security protocols. While this could be the case when the agent is in the office, it certainly won't be the case if the agent is jumping from hotspot to hotspot (the Starbucks connectivity model)

Ultimately we support the Verizon wireless option. This prevents the agent from being forced to find hot spots as Verizon's coverage is quite extensive. The security for the Verizon wireless option is minimal, but at least stronger than that provided by the Starbucks connectivity model! As is usually the case the agent needs to make other accommodations for security if he is in need of secure transmissions from the field. For more information on the Verizon wireless option, click here. Note that the Verizon contract does not allow for music downloads, webcasts, VOIP or other high bandwidth uses. Keep this in mind if you are thinking of using your wireless connection in that manner! There are several notebooks, including the HP 6910p that come preconfigured to work with Verizon wireless. Unfortunately these "off the shelf" PC's have strange configurations that prevent us from recommending them. For instance, the 6910p mentioned above has 4MB of L2 cache (that's a lot!) but only 1GB of memory (that's not enough!) And then of course there is the small screen size problem. Given the low cost and availability of either the PCMCIA version or USB version of the Verizon card, purchasing a unit that is preconfigured to work with Verizon should not be an overriding factor in determining which notebook is right for you.

$1740 - HP DV9500z

For AMD fans, this is a seventeen inch solution costing about the same as the Intel version. Were it not for the lowered 512K L2 cache this unit would have beaten out the Intel! (This is the same unit illustrated above in the price category)

HP DV9500z. $1740 after rebate. This unit sports the AMD Turion TL-64 dual core processor, a seventeen inch Ultra Brightview display, 2GB DDR2, a fingerprint reader for added security, two 160GB hard drives, Microsoft Office Basic 2007, recovery CD ROMs and anti-virus protection. HP will add a Verizon PCMCIA card for $189, but you may wish to consider the USB version currently selling at Best Buy for only $80 and providing you wireless connectivity from the Notebooks USB port and the added flexibility of plugging the same device into a home computer to provide high speed connectivity there as well. Some users, however, will not like the placement of the USB device on their laptop and will find the PCMCIA card to fit more unobtrusively into the laptop. Current Verizon connectivity fees are about $60/month. Here are the complete specs:

$2350 - Sony VAIO VGN-AR570

Definitely on the pricey side, but perhaps the most aesthetically pleasing of the bunch. The Sony VAIO VGN-AR570 is a beautiful looking notebook with a beautiful looking 17" screen. Configure with the Intel Core2 Duo Processor T7300 (2 GHz), 2GB of memory and dual 100GB hard drives, and you have a nicely performing unit - though you certainly do pay for its flashy look as HP provides more room and power for less money. But if you are out to impress your clients there are few (if any) notebooks that look as sleek, sexy and downright expensive!

$1572

Below sixteen hundred we also like the Toshiba Satellite P200-ST2061. With the Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor T7100 (1.8GHz, 2MB L2 cache, 800MHz FSB), 2GB of DDR2 and a 17" display the unit is set to perform well! As configured it has dual 120GB hard drives as well. We don't particularly like the current aesthetics of the Toshiba line. This may or may not be of concern, depending upon whether you want the people around you to be impressed by the look of your notebook. And since there is no accounting for taste, everyone else may well disagree with us and find it to be the handsomest unit on the market! Here are the stats on the Toshiba:

Notebook Computers by Price:Power Ratio

$2176 - HP DV6500t First Place Power Pick!

Although the price tag is a bit more than we like, the power to price ratio makes this HP our number one power pick - despite the respectable but less than 17" monitor. Even though we think it is currently overkill, most power users keep their PCs a long time. As such we have outfitted this unit with the Vista 64bit operating system. The Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Duo processor T7250 (2.00 GHz, 2 MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB) and 4GB of DDR2, along with the 128MB NVIDIA card will keep this unit screaming along, even with multiple applications running!

For $189 more HP will supply a Verizon wireless card for this unit. We did not price that in as we prefer the USB option.

This is our only pick in the power category. The Sony unit listed above is a nice unit, but with Vista 64 and 4GB of memory the unit prices near $4000 which would put it in the price is no option category!

Whenever possible we configured all units with Microsoft Office Basic 2007 and at least a year of antivirus/firewall software - true necessities for any Road Warrior. The ability to configure units from companies like Hewlett Packard, Gateway and others is a huge help to getting the right computer into your hands! As such we took advantage of the ability to easily configure and price units from the company websites. Prices vary by store and over time. Additionally we conducted hands on testing on similar units but not units configured exactly as listed here. For that reason we did no in-depth performance analysis. We were satisfied with the response times for typical applications such as email, word processing and spreadsheets on the store models, which were configured lighter than the units mentioned here.

It should come as no surprise that our top pick sports a 17" screen. We think that Road Warriors need to be able to see the information on their notebooks from a distance and an angle.

By Brand Links

Hewlett Packard Toshiba Sony Gateway