Techie Advice - Poker Laptop

[JayCo]

So I'm ready to splurge on a laptop that will be 100% dedicated to poker, wireless surfing, and watching DVDs.

Any thoughts, recommendations on specs & brands I should look into would be greatly appreciated. I'd love a mac, but posts on SoftPC leave me thinking my $ is better spent in PC land.

I'd spend as little as $1,000 (if it would do the job ) or over $2,000-$3,000 if the extra goodies seem worth the investment. (I usually play 3 tables on Party, and some kind folks there were kind enough to finance this little extravagance for me.)

Thanks,
J

[tiltboy]

I have a Dell Inspiron at work and it is the best laptop I've ever owned. As a comparison, I've previously owned them by Compaq, HP, and Gateway and I wouldn't buy any of those again based on my previous experience with them.

[Miah]

Just make sure to get a screen that doest at least 1280x1024, preferrably much more. This will enable you to play many screens at once, hopefully without any overlapping.

Monitor slickdeals.net, techbargains.com, and techdeals.net for good laptop deals.

[slavic]

Remeber 1600x1200 on the display. That likely means a 15" or better panel. This is important because you want to see all the action at one time on party.

[Lost Wages]

slavic,

When you get a 1600x1200 display is that the only resolution that will look decent? In other words, can you switch to say 1024x768 when you are using another application so it is readable?

Thanks,
Lost Wages

[slavic]

It looks a little funny. Most of the newer laptops have a software feature that allows you to run at 1600/1200 and then scale fonts to the size you want. This works pretty well on well written apps but some (i.e. Party Poker) don't handle it well. Unfortunatly there is no perfect solution here.

[mosch]

My advice, first and foremost buy the "business-class" machine for whatever manufacturer you're looking at. The lower end machines aren't as well supported, and have fewer production controls, which can lead to an aggravating experience. Secondly, look for a nice big screen. All the displays on major manufacturer laptops are adaquate in terms of brightness, so you really just need to look at physical size and resolution. Lastly, if you want nice long battery life (and a laptop that doesn't double as an easy-bake oven) look for a centrino model.

IBM ThinkPads are the best laptops on the market at the moment. They're extraordinarily reliable and can be had in nearly any configuration you'd like. They cost a little more than other laptops, but they're worth it.

Dell Latitudes and Precisions are good quality laptops, Inspirons are very hit or miss, as they're built with significantly lower quality parts. I have a grudge against Dell because they screw resellers like myself, but I'll admit that Latitudes and Precisions are good machines, though not as sturdy as ThinkPads.

Compaq EVO series laptops are solid, but I don't think they have any higher-res displays available. I could be wrong on that, though.

Personally, my pet peeve is that there are no semi-reasonably priced laptops with transflective displays (allows the display to be seen clearly in direct sunlight, as well as indoors), but so you know, if you're planning on pokering from your back yard, you'll need a shaded area.

[slavic]

[ QUOTE ]
I have a grudge against Dell because they screw resellers like myself

[/ QUOTE ]

How so?

[mosch]

Let's say Dell has a desktop that's selling for $1000. They'll only give me about a 5% discount on these lower-end machines, so I'm getting it for $950. Now let's say I quote it to the customer as a $960 machine, giving me a whopping $10 of profit on that item, seems like a pretty good deal.

The customer can then fax my quote to Dell, WITH my letterhead, and they'll beat the price substantially, actually offering the customer a lower price than they'll offer me.

On the other hand Compaq is the epitome of the friendly supplier. If anybody undercuts my price on a Compaq, I can then fill out some paperwork to get special pricing, below my normal rates, so that I can, at worst, match that price.

This is why resellers don't like Dell. They don't even give us the option of taking a zero-profit sale, they force us to either lose the business, or lose money on the business. Very raw deal.

[slavic]

You obviously haven't worked big accounts with Hpaq. Even in some cases IBM, just having them underbid you is being nice. Dell is up front an honest about their direct model.

Why not let Dell have the hardware and do the service side? I guarantee your getting the better end of that deal.