Author: Kolss
Date: 09:13:31 05/05/05
Go up one level in this thread
On May 05, 2005 at 11:54:05, stuart taylor wrote:
>On May 05, 2005 at 10:37:40, Kolss wrote:
>
>>On May 05, 2005 at 09:37:53, stuart taylor wrote:
>>
>>
>>Hi again,
>>
>>>On May 05, 2005 at 08:54:25, Kolss wrote:
>>>
>>>>On May 05, 2005 at 08:35:01, stuart taylor wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>Is this too much money? Other features are also quite good but I don't out of
>>>>>the ordinary. No bluetooth, and not the same expensive screen card as another
>>>>>one which costs closer to $3000.
>>>>>15" screen.
>>>>>
>>>>>When bringing a computer into Israel, I heard it is 20% tax. Still, I'm not sure
>>>>>if prices are in any way compatible to internet or outside Israel in general.
>>>>>
>>>>>They told me that here I will get a gurantee, which is not what I get (atleast
>>>>>not a workable one) if I order from internet outside Israel.
>>>>>Is this so important? Or does it just save a risk of extra hassle?
>>>>>
>>>>>S.Taylor
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>Hi,
>>>>
>>>>in my experience, if you pay much more than 1000$ for such a machine, you are
>>>>wasting money. Of course it depends a bit on the remaining features (like RAM,
>>>>hard disk, DVD drive, etc.), but 2000$ is definitely completely outside the
>>>>acceptable range...
>>>>
>>>>Best regards - Munjong.
>>>
>>>Also screen card?
>>
>>Eh, what exactly is a screen card? What do you need it for?
>>
>>>this one for almost $2000, has above minimum things, like 60 GB hard drive, and
>>>double cd/dvd burner, and "more memory" (that's what he said over the phone),
>>>and, it's the 1.7 one, and not the 1.6 or 1.5. And..Israel taxes at 20% (I think
>>>that's apart from VAT), and, it's with a local gurantee, and it has 2 ways of
>>>internet connection (maybe the 56 modem is a third way. But not bluetooth).
>>> But I think that might make it about $1,200-300, besides the 20% tax, and that
>>>if I got it elsewhere it might cost me $400 less even with paying tax in Israel.
>>>Also, Is IBM good?
>>
>>For the equipment: there are Dothan 2.1 GHz processors available for some while.
>>I bought a Dothan 2.0 almost exactly half a year ago, 768 MB RAM, 1280*1024
>>screen resolution, LAN, WLAN, modem, firewire, USB, and all the other usual
>>standard stuff, three years warranty; no DVD-writer though. Anyway, cost me 1400
>>euros, which is roughly 1700$; half a year ago. Now you can find Dothan 2.0
>>laptops for 1100 euros via internet. What is - I guess - not controversial is
>>that 2000$ is way too much for any 1.6 GHz centrino system, even including some
>>additional 20% tax.
>
>I thought that Centrino 1.6 Ghz (one I'm talking about is 1._7_) was MUCH faster
>than a normal intel laptop of 2.1 Ghz.
Hi,
Sorry for the confusion: I meant 1.7, of course. To remove some of the
confusion:
1. There are "normal" intel pentium processors ("P4"). They go up to at least
3.7 GHz, but are crap for chess.
2. There are the "old" centrinos (usually called something like "Pentium M"),
which go up to 1.6 or 1.7 GHz (don't know exactly) and have 1 MB 2nd level
cache. They are very good for chess, e.g. 1.6 GHz corresponds very roughly to a
"2400+" (i.e. are comparable in speed with a P4-2.4GHz or an Athlon XP "2400+")
processor or maybe even a bit more.
3. There are the "new" centrinos using better technology than the old ones (e.g.
smaller transistors, 9 nm instead of 13 nm) and equipped with 2 MB 2nd level
cache. These processors are called "Dothan", they only start at 1.6 or 1.7 GHz,
and it is these that your potential vendor is talking about. It is also the one
I bought, so my Centrino 2.0 GHz roughly has the same speed as a P4 with 3.8 GHz
or an Athlon XP "3800+". Needless to say that they are currently the best
available for chess in terms of calculating speed : tact frequency ratio (for
desktop PC there are of course Athlon 64 systems, or opterons, etc.). They also
have some nice power save features, so they generally consume less energy than
other processors (also through the 9 nm technology).
Of course, it is entirely up to you what you want to buy. Just as you asked for
opinions here, I can only repeat that I would not advise you to pay 2000$ for a
(Dothan) Centrino with 1.7 GHz, regardless of what else comes along with it...
Best regards - Munjong.
>S.Taylor
>>
>>As for IBM, I guess it is OK (have never had one myself), as are most brands; I
>>personally would highly recommend steering clear of Gerricom. Be sure you know
>>what you want the thing for. If you are going to travel regularly, take care
>>that you don't buy a "drag'n'drop" thingy which weighs more than three kg (eh,
>>six pounds?!) - that is not much fun to carry around! If you are going to use it
>>as a desktop replacement, this is not so much of an issue.
>>
>>OK, I hope this helps!
>>
>>Best regards - Munjong.
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