$899 Compaq laptop - Is this a hot deal?

[redmaple]

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?sku_id=0926INGFS10063265&catid=20354&logon=&langid=EN

http://www.bestbuy.ca/multimedia/products/large/10063265.jpg

I've been looking for a relatively cheap/portable laptop for school and came across this. Is this any good? Or should I wait and see if a better deal would come along with the 14 days of bestbuy deals?
I don't download movies or play games. I'll probably only use this for internet surfing, music and to take notes during lectures. But i don't want it to be super slow or anything either.
Is the processor any good?
Battery life - 2 hours (no good for 3 hour lectures then??)
Removable storage - no (does this mean no usb port??)

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Product Features


Mobile AMD Sempron 3000+ Processor with PowerNow Technology

14" WXGA High-Definition BrightView Widescreen Display with 1280 x 768 Resolution

60GB Hard Drive (4200 RPM)

512MB DDR memory for for multitasking power, expandable to 2048MB

CD-RW/DVD-ROM Combo Drive

Built-in 802.11g Wireless LAN with Speedbooster

Weighs only 2.45 kg and measures just 3.9 cm thin for easy portability.

128MB ATI Radeon Express 200M IGP Graphics

Pointing Device: Touchpad With On/Off Button & Dedicated Vertical Scroll Up/Down Pad; QuickPlay Music & DVD Buttons

I/O Ports: 2 x Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0; 1 x Headphone-Out; 1 x Microphone-In; 1 x VGA (15-Pin); 1 x TV-Out (S-video); 1 x RJ-11 (Modem); 1 x RJ -45 (LAN)

Software: Microsoft Works; Microsoft Money; MSN Encarta Plus; InterVideo WinDVD; Sonic RecordNow, Microsoft Office 2003 Student and Teacher Edition (60-Day Trial Version); Adobe PhotoShop Album STE; Apple iTunes and Apple iTunes Music Store(m); Adobe Acrobat Reader; Symantec Norton Internet Security 2005 (Including 60 Days Complimentary Live Update)

Staying power: Benefit from up to 2 hours of battery life with the standard 6-cell Lithium-Ion battery.

Archive and share: DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive allows you to back up your data files with CDs capturing up to 650MB of data.
Please Note: This product only contains English operating instructions and system software.


Product Details

Web Code: 10063265
Mfr. Part Number: EC180UA#ABL
Processor Type AMD Mobile Sempron 3000+
Screen Size 14.0"
RAM (Preloaded / Maximum) 512MB DDR RAM
Hard Drive 60GB 4200
Optical Drives 24X DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo Drive
Graphics ATI Radeon Xpress 200M IGP; w/128MB DDR
Average Battery Life 2 Hours
Product Weight 2.45 kg
Audio Type Altec Lansing
Battery Type 6-Cell Lithium-Ion
Cache 128KB L2
Fax/Modem High Speed 56K
I/O Ports See The Features Section
Included In Box Info Not Available
Network Card Integrated 10/100 BASE-T Ethernet LAN
Other Software See The Features Section
PC Card Slots 1 Type I/II 32-Bit Card Bus
Pointing Device Touchpad with On/Off Button
Preloaded Operating System Microsoft Win XP Home Ed.+ Serice Pack 2
Processor Speed 1.8GHz
Product Dimensions 23.1(W) x 3.9(H) x 33.4(D) cm
Removable Storage No
Screen Type 14.0" WXGA BrightView Widescreen
Speakers Altec Lansing Speakers
System Bus Info Not Available
Warranty 1 Year Limited Parts & Labour

[TinyTank]

not a bad deal. But compaq sux(yes i know HP bought them). I would rather get that dell notebook for $1100.

[carabunny]

2 hrs is.. not good.

i use my laptop mostly for notes as well, when its a 3 hr lecture + a 2 hr lecture... on lowest everything settings... it lasts so i don't have to bring the a/c adaptor and charge between classes or sit far away and charge it

but yeah 2 hrs is not enough for classes for myself. i need at least 3 b/c of the 3 hrs

i don't like compaq either so yeah...

[Badman]

Although the price is right i think u shud wait for something diffrent. The procceser is preety good but its more low end. I think all computers no matter what has a usb port. and one major turn down is the battery life. i have a laptop that last's 2hrs 30 min on average and even thats bad. plus i think that batery life doesn't include if u turn on the wireless. soo that will worsen the battery. maybe u shud wait for one of best buys 14 day deals or even look at dell computers for their sale thats going on.

[TheBlueShirt]

CompUSA used to carry the similar one for USD $499 after rebate, I think I will wait the next $750 off $1500 dell promo to get a 17" 9300 instead. :)

[weilyan]

2 hours isn't enough....usually it means 2 hrs when you're doing nothing....

[Cisco KId]

not a bad deal. But compaq sux(yes i know HP bought them). I would rather get that dell notebook for $1100.

Can you explain why Compaq sux? Did you have an issue which can happen to any brand or is that just you own personal opinion backed up by no data what so ever?

Personally imho and based on some reviews I could provide Compaq is decent and for the price on that unit you will not find much from Dell that can match.

I own a R3230 Compaq and it rox notan issue ever. Also with Compaq you can buy an extended warranty online 60 days prior to original warranty expiring.

I think the deal at 900 is decent, I would buy the Best Buy coupon off RFD, check the "buy sell area" someone has a 375 for 325 or 400 for 350, whatever way it is another 50 off

I would get near 3 hrs on my R3230, but I have never used the battery since I bought but friend has same notebook and he gets 3 reading text.

I would try for the Averatec if the uit is for school, lets hear the ridicule on that one, but I can tell you this it is reliable and great on battery life and very portable

[chestnut]

not a bad deal. But compaq sux(yes i know HP bought them). I would rather get that dell notebook for $1100.

You do know that whether it be Compaq, Dell, HP... there are pretty much just outsourced to either Quanta or Compal. So your argument that a Dell is better is moot.. they are made from the same place (depending on model), just with different specs.

If you do a search you will find some Compaq models are rebranded and sold to other countries since they just buy the "specs" from the manufacturers. They don't even need to do R&D now. It really has become a commodity.

btw. Quanta builds the iMacs.

[Tang Van]

I actually bought Compaq V2305 home and use it for a few days. Im my opinion it sucks!

1) The laptops get hot, i mean very hot even used for a short while (especially under the LCD screen).

2) The laptops is cheaply built. the plastic is soft, especially the LCD screen. When i was flipping it up and down, it seem like it will break and second.

3) Even though it's only 2.45 kg, it is still very bulky and thick. The picture is decieving, you got to go take a look for yourself.

Howver,despite those faults, the laptop's performance is not bad and the processor is quite fast.

[Menace]

Never being cheap when buying laptop.

[carabunny]

I actually bought Compaq V2305 home and use it for a few days. Im my opinion it sucks!

1) The laptops get hot, i mean very hot even used for a short while (especially under the LCD screen).

2) The laptops is cheaply built. the plastic is soft, especially the LCD screen. When i was flipping it up and down, it seem like it will break and second.

3) Even though it's only 2.45 kg, it is still very bulky and thick. The picture is decieving, you got to go take a look for yourself.

Howver,despite those faults, the laptop's performance is not bad and the processor is quite fast.


... are those faults not enough? haha +_+


and i agree with Menace. i do not regret spending over 1k on my ibm. worth every penny imo.

[Hugh]

Notebooks are about tradeoffs. You really have to decide what you want it for.

Notes in class? I assume that you have several classes in a day and therefore need much more than 2 hours of battery. Carrying a heavy notebook between classes is really burdensome -- remember all those textbooks that you are also carrying. Go for thin & light with a long battery life. It is very likely that the battery life will decrease as the notebook gets older, so be sure to get a battery with a lot of margin. Probably you should go for a Centrino / Pentium M (Turion *might* be OK -- are there good chipsets for it?). Perhaps a PDA with a decent keyboard would make even more sense.

If you don't need to carry it around much, you can accept a heavier notebook. Then you can get all sorts of improvements: cheaper, faster, bigger screen, more toys (DVD burner, floppy, flash reader, ...). I have such a notebook (HP Pavilion zv5000z with AMD 64); boy is it a a pain to carry but the display (1680x1050) is a joy.

The tradeoffs get nasty if you try to accomplish too many things with the notebook. Say: heavy-duty gaming AND batteries that last throughout a trans-pacific flight. That's why many people have both a desktop and a notebook.

[kunderam]

After getting it home for 3 days, this is my 2 cents.

Cons:
it gets quite warm (hot) - but I tested it for straight 8 hours and it did not freeze or reset.
the battery doesen't last more than 2.5 hours
shared video memory

Pros:
it is a fast processor
512 MB
the screen high-res
same case as V2310, and it looks cool

It is a reasonable deal for $900. Like always, the price of laptops in general will drop more. I check around and this is the best spec I can get at this point of time.

[Jusdem]

Honestly, I would buy this laptop if I didnt already get a Dell 700m. I am a college student, and this laptop is nice looking, and small. It is kinda heavy, and it may run hot. But for the price, and as a student... this isnt a bad piece of hardware. Compaq IS good, and the only things I think you should be thinking about here is...

- Is battery life (2hrs) a concern? (you can plug it in, in your lecture classes)
- Is the temp too hot? (according to that 'other' guy it gets hot, are you placing on your lap often? i.e. travelling)
- And weight. I mean it is light compared to most, but it still is kinda heavy, not ultra light thats for sure.
- Are you a gamer? (no good for gaming, perfect for students work)

Other than that, I've seen this laptop. Very nice looking, thin compared to most systems. Widescreen is SWEET. And it DOES have USB ports. Not for gaming. And battery life sux, unless you dont need long life (use the plug!). I've been looking into buying a laptop for quite some time, and this one definately caught my eye, but I already got a Dell 700m (spent the little extra). Otherwise I would DEFINATELY buy this one. Best bang for your buck now (for spending $900).

Definately!

The CPU is good, RAM is good, and HDD is good. I would buy it, unless you want to pay like 2 or 300 more, for longer battery life, and cooler temps. Other than that, this is a good deal in my mind.

If you have any other questions, send me a PM.

[scoober140]

I went and looked at this at bestbuy and it's one nice looking machine.

I don't know too much about computers but i have a pentium 4, 2.4ghz laptop from dell already ... will this be a huge downgrade if i switched ???

I just want a lighter laptop that still does the job???

any help would be greatly appreciated

[blackblazer]

I just got this notebook,
it's pretty sweet.

I went to staples and they were selling it for $999 in stores,even though staples.ca sells it for $899. you PM it and it makes it $850.

[masterhapposai]

I just got this notebook,
it's pretty sweet.

I went to staples and they were selling it for $999 in stores,even though staples.ca sells it for $899. you PM it and it makes it $850.

can you apply the $30 off $200 coupon there?

[Cyber6]

For the ones who are looking for a centrino deal.. this is posted on the home page of RFD:


Dell Inspiron 2200 - $999
# Intel® Pentium® M Processor 725 (1.60 GHz/2MB Cache/400 MHz FSB)
# 15.0in XGA Display
# Upgrade to 512MB DDR SDRAM FREE
# 60GB Ultra ATA Hard Drive
# 24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive


C.

[cell567]

For the ones who are looking for a centrino deal.. this is posted on the home page of RFD:


Dell Inspiron 2200 - $999
# Intel® Pentium® M Processor 725 (1.60 GHz/2MB Cache/400 MHz FSB)
# 15.0in XGA Display
# Upgrade to 512MB DDR SDRAM FREE
# 60GB Ultra ATA Hard Drive
# 24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive


C.


I personally wouldn't buy a non wxga lappy, but thats just me. I think the compaq has a better and more solid construction aswell and looks way more appealing. :cheesygri

[mrken]

If you want to just take notes, why get a full laptop? A PDA with a keyboard like the Jornada or MobilePro should suffice. And it forces you not to play games. As for battery life, up to eight hours. :D

Tigerdirect used to sell these for under $200, but they are refurbished.

http://prt.fernuni-hagen.de/~bischoff/wince/my_jornada_680.jpg

[Cyber6]

I personally wouldn't buy a non wxga lappy, but thats just me. I think the compaq has a better and more solid construction aswell and looks way more appealing. :cheesygri


Well.. I did say "for the ones looking a centrino deal". I personally wouldn't buy a Dell either.

In fact.. if I was considering this compaq sempron... and/or wanted to spend less than 900$.. I would prefeer to go for a refurbished IBM thinkpad.

I got a Thinkpad P3 (900 MHz, 254 RAM and 20 Gigs) for my son (his main use is for school/internet/music.. he has a desktop to play games).. man the little machine really flies. This baby was not designed for wireless - shipped with Win98 - but upgraded to WinXP and added a $20 dollars wireless card.. in less than 5 min was flying on the internet... It rivals my 1.8 GHz centrino. ;)

C.

[cell567]

Yeah, its a nice deal if you're looking for something centrino based. I might consider the IBM T23 or T21 (ncix carries one of em) and they are usually are on sale for 600 ish. THis way I would have money to upgrade the ram if needed and get a nice back pack for it. IBM's truley are nice solid machines. :)

[felix]

I personally wouldn't buy a non wxga lappy, but thats just me. I think the compaq has a better and more solid construction aswell and looks way more appealing. :cheesygri
Why would you prefer a WXGA? Wouldn't you rather have one with standard resolution so all the wallpapers fit on your desktop?

[blackblazer]

can you apply the $30 off $200 coupon there?


I think you might be able too. I was looking for one of those coupons.. you mind telling where I can find it?

Thanks

[felix]

I think you might be able too. I was looking for one of those coupons.. you mind telling where I can find it?

Thanks
He's probably referring to these ones ...

http://www.redflagdeals.com/deals/main.php/coupons/coupons_all/

[cko64]

I have a Compaq Presario laptop. I love this laptop. Just count me in as another satisfied Compaq's customer.

[riskit]

well even after the bad reviews I manged to pick one up at BB in Montreal, for their grand open sale and at 699.99 which I do think is a great price.

[deactivated1245]

I went and looked at this at bestbuy and it's one nice looking machine.

I don't know too much about computers but i have a pentium 4, 2.4ghz laptop from dell already ... will this be a huge downgrade if i switched ???

I just want a lighter laptop that still does the job???

any help would be greatly appreciated

Personally I don't think you'd even notice the difference in CPU speeds. Laptops generally step down the processor speeds to conserve power anyway, and unless you're doing a lot of graphic design and/or gaming, I bet you wouldn't notice. I've actually used a similar Compaq (4010), with the same dedicated video card, and I was very surprised how well it ran Half-Life 2, which I'd say is a pretty good benchmark for both the cpu and gpu (video card).

[Bordello]

well even after the bad reviews I manged to pick one up a BB in Montreal, for their grand open sale and at 699.99 which I do think is a great price.
For $699, it's a good price, but for $899, it's average.

[sdzbwxp]

I bought the 2105CA for $699 two monthes ago, and i am extremely happy about it. This one's setup looks similar, but with 256M more ram and 20G more HD space, but little smaller screen. You need to add at least another 256M ram for the system to ran smoothly. $899 is not a bad price, but i wont' call it hot.

one thing i would like to comment on is the 200m Video card. With 128M Ram set up, it can run a lot of games in low settings. It is by far the best integrated v-card. If you are not a hard core gamer, but like play few game once a while, this is perfect....

[Bob123]

I also bought the M2105 for 699 but was not pleased as I found that it ran too hot (really hot) and seemed a bit fragile. I ended up purchasing a T42 from IBM/Lenovo on clearance. (I do not mean down talk Compaq, I am writing this for the people that consider spending more than 699 or 899)

I got this T42 (1.7M, 512(1 sim), 40GB, Wireless, Bluetooth, 1400x1050 screen, Radeon 9600 with 64 mb, DVD/CD-RW, wireless, 3 yr warrenty) for 1350 cnd. I know this is this almost double the price but there is no comparison. It is under 5lbs, has a 3.5 hours battery and some of the most functional software I have ever seen.

The computer allows you to create network profiles and when it detects a new network it automatically switches local settings of the computer to accommodate (runs software (sync software when I am home), changes default prints, changes default web pages). Normally I am not a fan of integrated "add on" software but this software seems to be developed with stability in mind. It actually switches networks quicker than windows seems to. I am not sure why this is but it is great.

Another great feature is the computers orientation and acceleration sensors. I know that this does not seem like much but it is actually very useful. I have ruined hard drives by moving laptops. This brilliant little machine actually senses the movement and locks the drive. If the machine detects it is in free fall it also locks the drive. Your notebook might be toast but your hard drive should be fine.

The heat dissipation design is very well thought out. There is only one fan (on the side, it is soo stupid to put fans on the bottom). The fan seems to only come on when I max the CPU out. The laptop always seems to be cool to the touch.

Lastly the computer is very upgradeable. For example the high capacity battery lasts approximately 6.5 hours (an extra you have to buy). Most of the bays in the laptop are modular. I can upgrade my dvd drive any time. I also have the option to pop my dvd drive out and put a second battery in its place. I have read that I can get an extra 2.5 hours of battery life with this.

I know that many other notebooks are good too but I just wanted to say that if you think you might want to spend a bit more $; this is an awesome notebook.

[Badger]

I bought the 2105CA for $699 two monthes ago, and i am extremely happy about it. This one's setup looks similar, but with 256M more ram and 20G more HD space, but little smaller screen. You need to add at least another 256M ram for the system to ran smoothly. $899 is not a bad price, but i wont' call it hot.

one thing i would like to comment on is the 200m Video card. With 128M Ram set up, it can run a lot of games in low settings. It is by far the best integrated v-card. If you are not a hard core gamer, but like play few game once a while, this is perfect....

It's a pretty nice laptop. Not every ram would work on this Compaq laptop. I bought a Simpletech SODIMM ram from ebay, and it doesn't work on this laptop, but it works on my other laptop. Compaq laptops are really picky on their memory.

I really like the wireless button too.

[t_ginuwine]

how hot does the 700m get , anyone know?

I know it's hard finding averatec products in Canada, any stores that carry them? I'm looking for model 1000

[Badger]

how hot does the 700m get , anyone know?

I know it's hard finding averatec products in Canada, any stores that carry them? I'm looking for model 1000

Not sure about that model, but I've seen Averatec in Futureshop and Staples.

[treasureseeker]

This Compaq laptop has been available for $899 at FS, BB, or Staples for months now

So $899 is an average price for it. I'd definitely get it for $699 but those sales are location and time sensitive