Laptop Help...

[Phaddie]

Hey guys,
I currently have a Dell M1210 Laptop. It is starting to really lag and make some very loud fan noises. I have done my best to keep it clean and running well, but it seems to not just be up to snuff any more. It was a great unit and I was able to use it for almost 6 years. I am now wanting a new laptop but the market seems so confusing!

The unit is mostly for school, which entails, matlab programming, processing data, storing large files. I am thinking I want to give priority to processing power and storage. Graphics are less in demand for me, I rarely watch video on the unit. I was hoping to spend around 1000-1200 Can$. No bigger than 13-14 inches, and a long battery life would be good. I never use the unit outside so a screen that is capable of that is not needed.

I was checking out Dell, Sony, Lenovo, but it seems that when you increase storage and CPU, you alos have to pay for increase in video.

Does anyone have any suggestions, I am getting very confused.

Phad

[Chris]

I had a Dell Inspiron 4150. It worked for about 6 yrs. Had trouble with it, e.g. power brick cable broke, lcd edge leak. Had those replaced while in warranty. I now have Sony Vaio for myself, my wife and my daughter. Never had any problem. Lenovo is supposed to be good, but I have no personal experience. I suggest you go to this site and read reviews for each of their models.
Sony Laptop Forums - Sony Notebook Computer Discussions

[ADay2Long]

I have a Lenovo ThinkPad X220 using second generation i5. Got 8GB of RAM and it was running 2 Windows Server 2008 with 2 Exchange 2010 services at the same type without any problems in VMware. That new Intel chip is very impressive. Runs 1080p movies no hitch also and can handle little games no problem (ie: SuperMeat Boy, Limbo).

This has to be the laptop I've liked the most so far.

[Phaddie]

Thanx guys, from what I have been reading Lenovo seems to be the way I am going.

Phad