Choosing a new laptop

[Darryl Okahata]

"Greg 'groggy' Lehey" <grog at freebsd.org> wrote:

> > I hear the T series has pretty good battery life.
> 
> I had a T22 until about a year ago.  The battery life was terrible,
> much worse than my Inspiron 7500.

     My previous laptop was an Inspiron 7500, and my current one is an
IBM A31 (also w/1400x1050 LCD).  The battery life for both of these felt
comparable (~1.5-2 hrs, with my usage habits), but I haven't done any
hard measurements.  The IBM might have a tad longer life, but I'm not
sure.

[ The IBM A31 has the advantage of being able to accept a second,
  additional battery, without having to sacrifice the CDRW/DVD drive.  ]

> > but I've got good power (1.2Ghz PIII), 1600x1200, and an excellent
> > keyboard. I got mine used for $1,350 on ebay.
> 
> I don't like the keyboard.  As I say below,=20

     The keyboard and mouse are a matter of personal taste.  Some people
hate 'em, some people love 'em.  Personally, I'd rate the IBM A31's
keyboard feel as being slightly better than that of the Inspiron 7500.
The keyboard layout, on the other hand, is slightly better on the 7500;
on the A31, the Esc key is directly above F1, which drives me batty.
I've forgotten where Esc is on the 7500, but I don't think it was in
such an annoying location (for me).  The IBM's Fn key has never bothered
me, as I very, very rarely use it (I just swap Caps Lock and left Ctrl).

     Having used both touchpad and eraserhead mice, they both have
pros and cons, and it's probably a matter of personal choice which one
people like.  Before I got my Inspiron 7500, I had some Toshiba laptop
w/eraserhead.  When I switched to the 7500, the touchpad drove me
crazy until I got used to it.  With the A31, I'm back to an eraserhead,
which bothered me at first.  The point is that, if you're used to one,
switching to the other may take some time.

-- 
	Darryl Okahata
	darrylo at soco.agilent.com

DISCLAIMER: this message is the author's personal opinion and does not
constitute the support, opinion, or policy of Agilent Technologies, or
of the little green men that have been following him all day.