<p>Should I buy a PC Laptop now or is there a faster Pentium _ processorer schedule to come out soon?</p>
<p>Id advise you to wait for the AMD Opteron/Intel M (64-bit) processors for notebooks comes on the market, however the price is expected to start really high (my local retailer advised me dat in approx. 8 months the price will be expected to fall by nearly 50 %)</p>
<p>When is Intel-M going to come out?</p>
<p>So I ought to go through first and half of second semester without a laptop?</p>
<p>umm…no opteron laptops…</p>
<p>Pentium M is out now but I would wait until you hear more from your school to buy.</p>
<p>Buy it about a month before school so you have time to get used to it.</p>
<p>Hey ottothecow - the Opteron will be available 4 laptops in a very near future (or under another name but same architecture). </p>
<p>We’re trying to adapt the opteron for customed-built laptops in the firm am working for.</p>
<p>There is no such thing as an Opteron notebook computer, there never has and there never will be. I think what you are referring to is the Athlon 64 notebooks, which have already shipped and the Turion 64 based systems which will be shipping shortly.</p>
<p>The Opteron refers to AMD’s server line of processors.</p>
<p>Supposedly, Intel is suppose to come out with their dual core line of Pentium M processors, but that isn’t due out until 2006. You should buy it before you get to school and leave sometime to get used to your computer since you wouldn’t want to find out during your first week of school that something doesn’t work or you don’t know how to work it.</p>
<p>However, don’t buy any productivity software such as Microsoft Office 2003 or OneNote. You should try to buy those programs through your school’s bookstore, since many software vendors including Microsoft offer academic versions that are considerably cheaper than their retail counterparts.</p>
<p>I’m almost finished with my junior year of high school and i’m getting a laptop… are there any particular programs that I need to be sure to get? For those of you in college w/a computer: are there any changes I’ll need to make to my laptop b4 i get to college?</p>
<p>thanks for supporting me there, no opteron for laptops but there is currently athlon64 (same technology) and the turion is definately close to being readily available.</p>
<p>I will follow your lead and agree that you should never buy software like office. Use openoffice if you need something (or just use it forever) until you can get to college. Many schools can hand you a cd for $5 or $10 that will have office and a bunch of other stuff on it==much cheaper than the hundreds that the full suite costs.</p>
<p>yeah, I verified Iamtheevilest, i do apologise. It was the Anthlon64/Turion64. I thought Opteron was the brand name for all AMD 64 processors. Sorry. ;-(</p>
<p>I do also apologise ottothecow. Hope you won’t bear any grudge against me ;-)</p>
<p>If you are going to be a freshman in August, the time to buy is anytime between now and mid-July – usually the later the better to capture any new improvements or to get a lower price on existing models if a new model comes out. However, you are now at the point where a couple of months is not going to make much a difference. Before buying, you need to go to your college’s web-site and see (a) what it recommends, and (b) whether it has its own special deals with a computer seller. For example, the college may have a deal with Dell where you can buy Dell at lower than the retail prices you see on-line at Dell’s site. Another advantage of getting the type of computer that the college has a deal with is that there will also often be service representatives on-sight or nearby to perform warranty work.</p>
<p>As to college related software, you again have to check with your college. For example, you probably want to have Windows Office Pro that includes database, power point and spreadsheet programs that are commonly used but the college may sell it through its computer store at a price that is a huge discount off the price you would pay otherwise. Another example: some in math and science may use Mathematica which retails for over $1500 but many colleges sell the student version (which is no different except its pages are marked as student version) for around $100. In other words, don’t buy college related software without first determining what the college can provide and what you will actually need for your particular course program.One thing I would recommend upgrading to when you buy is getting Windows XP Pro rather than Windows XP Home edition. Pro has extra features that are designed for computers connected to a network like the college’s network system.</p>
<p>I palnned on waiting until the last minute to buy my notebook, but I ended up buying it last week. This was due to a couple of factors. 1) I figured if anything goes wrong, or anything breaks then it will most likely happen within the first few months, and I will have plenty of time to return it, or get a new one (last 2 computers I bought broke down in the first month I got them). 2) I had a limited budget, and dell had a great deal going on at the time. 3) I am not the type of person that has to have the newest technology or equipment. 4) I will have plenty of time to used to the computer and keyboard. 5) Again, Dell had a fantastic deal going on at the time :).
Just food for thought,
Kyle</p>
<p>I agree with drusba. We got our D’s laptop through her school’s program. Not only does it already have all the software on it that the school required, there is 24 hr. tech support and great people helping out with everything. She has had it for 2 years–a few problems with it, but all solved/fixed promptly by the campus tech support, and she is thrilled with how it has all been handled–and with her laptop. </p>
<p>We will be doing the same for our S at a different school. They provide the same kind of program–most of the schools are offering similar ones–with the tech support, etc. Highly recommend going through the school–many fewer hassles and we found it to be cheaper than get it on your own (especially cheaper when you factor in the servicing policies!!)</p>