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    jakewade's Avatar
    jakewade Posts: 1, Reputation: 1
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    #1

    Jul 28, 2005, 08:23 AM
    which notebook?
    hi,

    need some guidance. Daughter's going to college and is buying an entry level notebook, narrowed down to two- 1) toshiba a85- s107 and 2) compac presario m2105 us.

    compac-

    With a 15" display, wireless capabilities and combo drive, the Compaq Presario M2105US notebook gives you the tools to work and play effectively, at home or on the road, at a very affordable price.
    It starts with an AMD Sempron processor 2800+ with PowerNow™ technology and operating at 1.6GHz, with a 256KB L2 cache and frontside bus speed of up to 1600MHz. Add to that 256MB PC2700 DDR memory (upgradeable to 1.0GB) and a 40GB 4200-rpm hard drive. A DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive lets you play DVDs and burn and play CDs and DVDs. The 15" BrightView™ LCD screen with XGA (1024 x 768) native resolution combines with ATI Radeon XPress 200M IGP graphics and up to 128MB of shared memory for great images, while Altec Lansing audio is available through stereo speakers or a headphone jack.

    A full range of networking comes standard. Connect wirelessly at mobile hotspots at speeds up to 54Mbps with the 802.11b/g WLAN with 125HSM/SpeedBooster™ and BroadRange™ support. Easily connect to high-speed cable or DSL Internet service or office LAN with the 10/100 wired Ethernet connection. A 56K V.92 modem provides dial-up access. And you can connect to printers, PDAs, MP3 players, digital cameras and other peripherals through 2 USB 2.0 ports.

    Microsoft® Windows® XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2 comes preinstalled. Other included software: Microsoft Works, Microsoft Money, Microsoft MSN Encarta Plus, Adobe Photoshop Album, Muvee autoProducer DVD Edition with Burning, Sonic Digital Media Studio, InterVideo WinDVD Player, Microsoft Windows Movie Maker, Microsoft Windows Media Player, Microsoft Zones.com, Apple iTunes, Adobe Acrobat Reader, Recovery DVD and Norton Internet Security 2005 (with 60 days of free updates).

    The Presario M2105US is backed by the manufacturer's 1-year limited warranty with toll-free hardware support.

    Item # 938024
    Manufacturer #
    processor type AMD Sempron 2800+
    processor speed 1.6 GHz
    brand name Compaq
    manufacturer Compaq
    model name Presario M2105US
    Wi-Fi capability included (Wi-Fi ready) yes
    hard drive capacity 40 GB
    memory 256 MB
    memory speed PC2700
    memory type DDR SDRAM
    maximum memory upgrade 1.0 GB
    included integrated drives DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo
    diagonal screen size 15 inches
    notebook computer weight 6.5 lb
    screen type BrightView TFT active matrix LCD
    operating system Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2
    screen resolution 1024 x 768
    software included yes
    warranty 1-year limited
    number of USB 2.0 ports 2
    number of USB 1.1 ports 0
    modem standard 56K V.92
    average battery life 2 hours
    audio hardware Altec Lansing
    frontside bus 1600 MHz
    integrated speaker yes
    integrated memory card reader no
    mouse pointer type touchpad
    number of VGA video ports 1
    video hardware ATI Radeon Xpress 200M IGP
    video memory 128MB shared
    thickness 1 25/32 inches
    width 13 5/32 inches
    depth 10 4/5 inches
    Ethernet port yes
    number of parallel ports 0
    number of PS/2 ports 0
    number of S-video out ports 1
    number of serial ports 0
    infrared port no
    computer battery type lithium-ion
    number of FireWire ports 0

    toshiba -

    The Satellite A85-S107 brings you solid mobility features at an entry-level price. With built-in WiFi, USB ports for your MP3 player or digital camera, a DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive and a mobile processor optimized for longer battery life, this notebook is designed for on-the-go convenience.

    The Satellite A85-S107 features:
    15"-diagonal XGA (1024 x 768) TruBrite™ TFT screen
    Intel Celeron M Processor 360J operating at 1.40GHz
    1MB L2 cache
    400MHz frontside bus
    256MB PC2700 DDR SDRAM, upgradeable to 1280MB
    40GB 5400-rpm EIDE hard drive
    DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive (8x/24x24x24x maximum speeds)
    Atheros® 802.11b/g wireless LAN
    10/100 Ethernet port
    56K V.92 modem
    3 USB 2.0 ports
    ATI Mobility™ Radeon® 9000 IGP graphics with 64MB shared memory, user adjustable to 128MB
    Realtek ALC250 16-bit stereo sound with built-in stereo speakers
    Dimensions: 1 7/16"H x 13 3/10"W x 11"D
    Microsoft® Windows® XP Home Edition comes preinstalled. Other software included:

    Microsoft Works™
    Microsoft Office™ OneNote™
    Software Decoder: Intervideo (WinDVD™ 5)
    Sonic® Solutions Drive Letter Access (DLA)
    Sonic® Solutions RecordNow! Basic
    McAfee® VirusScan™ (30-day trial)
    Adobe® Acrobat®
    Arcsoft® Showbiz™
    Computer Associates eTrust EZ Firewall™
    Windows Media Player 10 with Napster plug-in
    Intuit® Quicken® 2005
    Toshiba ConfigFree™
    Toshiba Custom Utilities
    Toshiba Notebook Maximizer
    The Satellite A85-S107 is backed by the manufacturer's 1-year limited warranty.


    Item # 807896
    Manufacturer #
    processor type Intel Celeron M 360J
    processor speed 1.40 GHz
    brand name Toshiba
    manufacturer Toshiba
    model name Satellite A85-S107
    Wi-Fi capability included (Wi-Fi ready) yes
    hard drive capacity 40 GB
    memory 256 MB
    memory speed PC2700
    memory type DDR SDRAM
    maximum memory upgrade 1280 MB
    included integrated drives DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo
    diagonal screen size 15 inches
    notebook computer weight 6.5 lb
    screen type TruBrite TFT active matrix LCD
    operating system Windows XP Home Edition
    screen resolution 1024 x 768
    software included yes
    warranty 1-year
    number of USB 2.0 ports 3
    number of USB 1.1 ports 0
    modem standard 56K V.92
    average battery life 1.5 hours
    audio hardware Realtec ALC250
    frontside bus 400 MHz
    integrated speaker yes
    integrated memory card reader no
    mouse pointer type touchpad
    number of VGA video ports 1
    video hardware ATI Mobility Radeon 9000 IGP
    video memory 64-128 MB
    thickness 1 7/16 inches
    width 13 3/10" inches
    depth 11 inches
    Ethernet port yes
    number of parallel ports 0
    number of PS/2 ports 0
    number of S-video out ports 1
    number of serial ports 0
    infrared port no
    computer battery type lithium-ion
    number of FireWire ports 0


    features are pretty close, both have their proprietary "enhance" technology -

    processors about the same , mobile technology, etc., bright screen technology, wifi the same

    how important is the "front bus" difference and...

    cannot figure out which video card is better.

    test drove both units thinking that the toshiba would be the better unit but gut feeling says that the compac is.

    any help out there?

    thanks,

    jake
    anorexorcist's Avatar
    anorexorcist Posts: 1, Reputation: 1
    New Member
     
    #2

    Aug 18, 2005, 08:25 AM
    http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Compa...oductDetail.do

    Compaq Presario Notebook PC (V2312US)
    CPQ V2312US • AMD Turion™ 64 ML-28
    • 14.0" WXGA display
    • 512MB of DDR memory • 60GB hard drive
    • Dual-layer DVD+/-R/RW
    • Enhanced 802.11g wireless



    TURION 64... 2x faster than 32 bit 1.6
    LTheobald's Avatar
    LTheobald Posts: 1,051, Reputation: 127
    Ultra Member
     
    #3

    Aug 18, 2005, 08:41 AM
    I'd go with the Compaq. The battery life is a little longer (only by 30 minutes though). Also the way it says that the video card on the Toshiba is "user-definible" to 128MB makes me think it'll just be a little bit of hassle - what's the point? I also feel that the software bundle with the Compaq will suit a student better.
    NeedKarma's Avatar
    NeedKarma Posts: 10,635, Reputation: 1706
    Uber Member
     
    #4

    Aug 18, 2005, 11:38 AM
    Quote Originally Posted by anorexorcist


    TURION 64.... 2x faster than 32 bit 1.6
    Actually it isn't. The 64-bit computing speed increase only happens with applications written to access a 64-bit data bus of which there are very few at the moment and not many expected for the casual user.

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