Best 13 inch laptop of 2010

McAgnel

Disciple
Hello!!!

I've been using my Sony Vaio (2005) for 5 long years :ashamed: The Vaio Queen runs really smooth on ubuntu even now.

But, time has come to get a new laptop.

1. 13 inch laptop
2. Normal use. Basically programming and running eclipse/IDE, with music and 12-13 open tabs in a firefox browser. I won't be playing games on it.
3. Should NOT be heavy.
4. Any latest and stable processor would do, but I'm not looking for a THE ULTIMATE processor. Intel is my preference.
5. Keypad needs to be soft.
6. I stay in the US for a while, so price range is about $600 - $800

I'd be running Windows7 and Ubuntu on it. I'm not bothered about storage, but would appreciate a good display on it. I need it to be easy on the eyes.

I had gone thru some spec and found the thinkpad edge to be good.

But, I'd be glad to take the views of the experts here.

Thanks in Advance :D
 
try getting the sony vaio 13.3 incher its available here for 80k. comes with a core i5 cpu and 512 mb nvidia 310 gpu and a 500gb harddrive with windows 7 professional and 4gb of ram.
 
Thanks for the replies guys!

I appreciate you'll talking time to research and reply :)

I'm not planning on buy another laptop for 3-4 years. So wondering if MBP would be a good idea for this. :)
 
McAgnel said:
Thanks for the replies guys!

I appreciate you'll talking time to research and reply :)

I'm not planning on buy another laptop for 3-4 years. So wondering if MBP would be a good idea for this. :)

mb & mbp are still based on core 2 duo so better avoid in my opinion
in your budget better plan i3 or i5 based laptops
 
No dont go for MBP now.

Apples lineup is outdated,overpriced and its hightime they refreshed their lineup(ESpecially if you want an"ULTIMATE" processor.

Try other brands like Dell,Toshiba etc.

Just my 2 cents
 
The Thinkpad Edge 13" is certainly a fine choice given its nice build quality and good price-performance ratio but:

  • It doesn't have an optical drive.
  • Sports a CULV processor that runs at 1.3 ghz.
  • Thick bezel around screen that looks ugly.
  • Crappy Intel 4500HD graphics.
  • Other minor caveats i won't get into.

Engadget did is pretty good review on it. You should go through it.

Now i know your preference is Windows 7/Ubuntu but i'd still suggest you to consider the 13" MacBook because its one of the best 13" notebooks you'll ever find, period. Micro Center is selling it for $799, that's $200 lower than the retail price which makes it a superb deal and what you get is:

  • Industry leading build quality and design that makes it sturdy, lightweight and extremely portable.
  • 7 hour Battery life.
  • NVIDIA 9400m graphics chip which is vastly superior to any Intel Integrated crap.
  • Superb LED backlit higher gamut widescreen display.
  • Chicklet styled keys which are a pleasure to type on.
  • A muti-touch glass trackpad that's extremely intuitive and fun to use, arguably better than the trackpad on any other PC notebooks.
  • Great software for your Audio/Video/Photo/Backup etc. needs built right in as opposed to trial-ware/crap-ware that comes built in with PC notebooks.
  • Mac OS X Snow Leopard.
  • Ability to run any OS including windows 7 either virtualized or natively.

I'm not planning on buy another laptop for 3-4 years. So wondering if MBP would be a good idea for this.

If you can shell out some more dough a MBP is definitely what you should get because the benefits just dwarf any PC notebooks out there. They're built to last and you get a much nicer resale price than a PC notebook when you decide to sell it even after years of usage.

CPU isn't everything when you buy a notebook. A mobile i5 processor might be 15-20% faster than its c2d counterpart according to some benchmarks but again, benchmarks are useless when it comes to real world usage scenarios. Considering your usage pattern there won't be any noticeable difference at all unless you plan to do heavy video editing or something, tasks including browsing, other normal usage and programming etc. will be mostly the same regardless of what processor you choose to have in your notebook.

Also, Mac OS X runs amazingly well on current notebooks and the superb integration of hardware and software is what makes MBP worth a buy.

That said, if you still think you want to have the latest arrandale processor equipped MacBook Pro just wait a while because a refresh is pretty much imminent.​
 
^peace man, i read what he wrote.

i wrote "ultimate" in the context that any i-series proccessor can beat the crap out of the old c2d's.also they are better at multitasking-which is one of op's requirements
 
Thank you folks! I really appreciate your replies.

I did a bit of reading on Apple coming out with i5/i7 processors this April. Even a lot of online deals sites have stopped shipping MB or MBP for the same reason. But I doubt if the price would go down. With i5 the price is surely going to go high and Apple is doing a good job in still selling MBP and MB like hot cakes even with C2D.

I've used my bro's apple MB and a black MB which belongs to my friend. I must admit, they are stunning and the performance is outstanding. Not to forget, we do pay $200 - $300 extra to get a better overall product. But I guess in 3-4 years that extra dough is well spent.

I've seen some serious concerns with Dell and HP. Half of my techie friends asked me to avoid Dell and the other half asks me to avoid HP :rofl:.

Now my only concern about MBP is that it would be better if I get it with the i5 processor. Not that I need THE ULTIMATE processor, but something that would be considered the norm in another 3 years time. But anyway, the tradeoff has to be somewhere ;) since I wont be buying another laptop so soon :lol:

Peace ! :)

Thanks again! Appreciate your efforts and time.
 
If u need, you can go a 3yrs complete cover for dell.(peace of mind)

i don't think u can get a Mac book in that budget.($600-$800)
 
DarkAngel said:
If u need, you can go a 3yrs complete cover for dell.(peace of mind)
i don't think u can get a Mac book in that budget.($600-$800)

................

Styx said:
Now i know your preference is Windows 7/Ubuntu but i'd still suggest you to consider the 13" MacBook because its one of the best 13" notebooks you'll ever find, period. Micro Center is selling it for $799, that's $200 lower than the retail price which makes it a superb deal and what you get is:
McAgnel said:
With i5 the price is surely going to go high

Apple usually doesn't increase prices with a refresh, specifically not unless its a major design change and the current unibody design is here to stay for atleast 3-4 years so i doubt an arrandale refresh would result in inflated prices. Apple actually reduced the price of the base MBP by $100 in the previous refresh.:)
 
McAgnel said:
I've used my bro's apple MB and a black MB which belongs to my friend. I must admit, they are stunning and the performance is outstanding. Not to forget, we do pay $200 - $300 extra to get a better overall product. But I guess in 3-4 years that extra dough is well spent.
OT: Since u have used a Macbook before, could u tell me if it gets hot at any point of time?I asking this in relation to hot weather of India..specially Indian summers...
 
DA, sorry mate.

Now that I'm looking at not buying a laptop for 3-4 years, I guess extra $300-400 over a period of 3-4 years would be money spent well. :) I wasn't thinking about that when I created the thread.

Harish,

I haven't used that much to know how hot it gets. But my friend used to have a lap pillow to ward off the heat. It was quite hot. I think it should be good in Indian conditions too.

Btw, there is a different between MacBook and MacBookPro. MBP is made out of unibody aluminium. And that makes it one super sturdy laptop.

@Styx,

Agreed mate! Even with the iPhone 3gs, though there was hardware upgrade, the price remained the same. That is why I'm waiting until April to see if they'd release with the i5. I'm told i7 is insanely powerful, so they might have to push the limit on the $ 1200 one.
 
harish_21_10 said:
I have kinda decided to get a Macbook for myself but would be great if Apple comes up with i3/i5 processors by April...

If you have thought of getting the MB then there is no looking behind. The best part is you can have best of both world's with OSX and Windows (If you do actually need it). I wasn't actually keen on getting an Apple MB nor was I an Apple fanboy but I'm totally loving it now. :hap2:

My 2 cents ^^ (Not a technical review but just my personal experience with the product)
 
beanstalk_230 said:
If you have thought of getting the MB then there is no looking behind. The best part is you can have best of both world's with OSX and Windows (If you do actually need it). I wasn't actually keen on getting an Apple MB nor was I an Apple fanboy but I'm totally loving it now. :hap2:
Heard that Macbook is very much prone to scratches...is it?
And could u tell me if the MB gets hot during prolonged usage?Temperature wise:bleh:
 
^^^ As far as i have seen i have used many laptops and macbooks are the ones running coolest by far.
My macbook(new unibody) runs 24/7 no problems by far.

Scratches depend upon the handling i use a incase sleeve and im fine, if your handling is rough anything would get scratches, but yes if your concerned about scratches and know you cant take care of it well a aluminum macbook pro would be better as its less prone.
@OP
everyone saying that apple will come out with i3/i5 versions, yes they will and that will happen not in the Macbook range but the Macbook pro range and that to not for the 13" but for 15" and 17", and they will surely overshoot your budget so decide now if you want something in that price range buy the new macbook or the macbook pro now.

pheww lots of typing hope that clears some things for you :hap2:
 
fockerunleashed said:
everyone saying that apple will come out with i3/i5 versions, yes they will and that will happen not in the Macbook range but the Macbook pro range and that to not for the 13" but for 15" and 17", and they will surely overshoot your budget so decide now if you want something in that price range buy the new macbook or the macbook pro now.

pheww lots of typing hope that clears some things for you :hap2:

There hasn't been any recent rumors/reports that only 15" and 17" Pro notebooks are going to get the arrandale upgrade.
The references, MacBookPro 6,1/6,2 were only seen way back in some initial seeds of 10.6.2.

Still, even if they decide to leave out the 13", i'm sure it'll atleast get a minor spec bump in terms of faster C2D processor, more RAM and perhaps a larger hard-drive. An IPS panel would be nice too.:D
 
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