Whelp, it's that time again. My Thinkpad X201T is down to 50 minutes of battery life, it occasionally loses its wireless card, and it's been randomly thermally shutting down. Therefore, I need to pick a new laptop ASAP. I have some thoughts on my options:
1) I have always had convertible Tablet PCs with Wacom digitizers, and I'm rather fond of them. I tend to take a fair number of handwritten notes and sketch a fair number of sketches, although I have gradually been not doing that so much. If anyone can suggest a really good non-tablet PC, I would be very interested.
2) Long battery life would be a plus, especially for long trips
3) I like to do occasional gaming, but since my X201T can't really handle more than small UT2004 maps or Minecraft with a short rendering distance, I tend not to.
4) I tend to carry my laptop everywhere, and I have a massive-screened desktop, so I'm fine with a small, light (albeit high-res-screened) computer.
5) My budget is ideally <$1000, or if I must, up to about $1400.

I looked at the Lenovo Helix, the HP Elitebook Revolve, the Lenovo Twist, and the Dell XPS 12 Ultrabook flip. If I have a touchscreen, I want it to be a digitizer, not capacitative touch, and I was underwhelmed by the specs on many of those. Help!

Just keep in mind that if you buy a Lenovo, make sure to get a 3rd party warranty through a credit card and/or through the middleman. They have absolutely terrible customer service, and the only way you can get them to replace a faulty laptop is either by spending hours bugging them on the phone or by having them prove in a lab that the damage wasn't caused by you. That aside, they make nice laptops.

Samsung and Asus are very good producers, Samsung probably being the better of the two. Samsung generally seems to have a good build quality to the point that my old Samsung laptop has completely survived (multiple) 8 foot falls without more than outward scratches. My new Asus laptop is similar except the hard plastic exterior admits less damage. Haven't had to use Asus's customer support yet, but Samsung's is extremely helpful.

My Dell laptop broke within a week of getting it. I had tapped gently on the space next to the trackpad while waiting for something to load, and the hard drive broke. Dell had decent customer support though, so I got a that-day refund.

The trick to service is, you get what you pay for. Personally, I like business-grade machines for the most part (they come with better service and tend to have better build quality), but you do pay more for it. I also try to get on-site service with accidental damage protection whenever possible (but you REALLY pay for that).

I would recommend one of my employer's products (I work for Dell, supporting a major aerospace and defense company. I only see specific models, and never any tablets, so I'm not that familiar with the product line outside of the high-end OptiPlex minitowers, the 12 and 14" Latitudes, and the 15" and a couple desktop Precisions, though. And, #iwork4dell, just for 100% compliance with Dell's policies), but the choices are pretty suboptimal here, for a pen tablet. As far as I know...

There's the Latitude 10, but it's not a convertible, it's a slate, and it's got an Atom. Oh, and 1366x768.

And, there's the Latitude XT3, but it starts at over $2000 (and it's previous-generation hardware), so that's not in your budget. And, 1366x768 again.

Honestly, I'm kinda thinking you're going to have to relax your requirements SOMEWHERE (the gaming requirement is probably the first that needs to go, discrete graphics hasn't been a thing on tablets for quite a while). What about each machine doesn't meet your needs? (I'm guessing the XPS 12's problem is the lack of a pen. There are capacitive pens out there, for what it's worth, but I know that's not the same as a Wacom or N-Trig digitizer.)

In any case, check Fujitsu, they tend to have some more tablet models (looks like they've got a ton of dual digitizer configs, too): http://www.shopfujitsu.com/store/

Leaving these here for myself:
:: Dell XPS 12: Reasonable specs, battery life sounds less than exemplary and lack of digitizer saddens me. Love the 1080p 12.5" LCD
:: HP Revolve 810: Construction looks sleek, 8hr battery, digitizer, but I don't think I could ever game on it. 1366x768 seems sad.
:: Checked out the Surface after chatting with BenRyves. I think it's too weak to be a desktop-surrogate laptop.
:: This Fujitsu T732 (and its cheaper Clearance clone) seems quite capable. Love the dual touch, same graphics as the Dell, amazing battery life, but the same screen as the HP. Case doesn't look as sleek as the HP.

Edit: So the Fujitsu looks like the best of those three options, except for the Dell's lovely screen. But then what if I abandon the convertible form factor?

Grr, had a post written and my browser crashed.

I'll note that everything you mention there has the same GPU, the Intel HD Graphics 4000. The ones with 1366x768 screens will be better performers in gaming by default, due to not pushing as many pixels (although you can always turn down the resolution on a 1080p machine).

So, ditching the convertible tablets (and the pen digitizer that comes with them) opens up a lot more possibilities.

If I were in your shoes, with the constraints you've set, I'd probably configure a Latitude E6430 with the base Core i3, the 1600x900 LCD (despite my strong preference for ultra-high-res displays), and the base Nvidia GPU, and get a good warranty upgrade (nice thing is, base, they come with a 3 year warranty). I work with those machines every day, they seem pretty solid and well-built. Downside is, that's a 14" machine, at 4.4 lbs minimum.

But, I'm not in your shoes. So...

Might look at the Asus Zenbook UX32VD. Thin and light, has a 13.3" 1080p IPS screen, and a GeForce GT 620M. Downside is, it's Asus, and they're not exactly known for anything resembling support. And, I don't know how the quality is on that model.

You want a gaming-capable laptop for <$1000? Quite honestly, I recommend a used MacBook Pro. Find the last 15" model with latch-access to HD/battery/RAM and throw in 8GB of RAM and an SSD. Dual boot Ubuntu + Windows 7 if you don't want to run OS X.

Last time I checked on eBay, my late-2008 model is down to around $800, and I suspect an early 2009 model wouldn't be much more than that. Not sure how much longer they continued the latch-access to the battery compartment, but I'm sure Google could tell you.


Intel graphics cards are utter crap for gaming. I expect that even a 4-year old discrete Nvidia card (for example, the 9600m GT I have) will blow that out of the water.

I've had really good experiences with Toshiba laptops, maybe they have something that conforms to your requirements?

Jack Schofield of the Guardian's technology section may have some useful suggestions and recommendations for you.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/askjack/2012/dec/21/basic-windows-laptop-17in-screen

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/askjack/2012/oct/04/ask-jack-windows-7-portable

Of the various contenders you guys have been very helpfully suggesting, the frontrunners are:

:: Asus Zenbook US32VD - for a non-tablet, this has a beautiful screen and some very decent specs. It seems to have a long battery life, be (relatively) thin-and-light, and have that gorgeous IPS screen.
:: This Fujitsu T732 - (and its cheaper Clearance clone) seems quite capable. Love the dual touch, same graphics as the Dell, amazing battery life, but the same screen as the HP. Case doesn't look as sleek as the HP.
:: From the Sonys that Flinty's Guardian reviewer recommends, this one seems very solid for a 13" laptop.

It's occurring to me that I could sink a little money into trying to fix up my current Thinkpad as a backup computer and tablet when I really need that sketching and note-taking capability. Any opinions on the three above?

The Sony and Asus machines you linked to don't list the graphics card under specs which is never a good sign. The Fujitsu has an Intel card, which means it's also a poor choice if you have any inclination towards gaming.

Seriously, I know you're Apple-averse, but I think something like this will serve you better. iFixit still gives it a relatively high user-serviceability score.

The Asus has a toggleable Nvidia GeForce GT 620M and Intel HD4000. Here's a nice review of the machine with specs. I haven't researched the Sony as well, because it's not really my primary choice.

Edit: And I'd rather get a top-of-the-line serviceable new non-Apple than an older Apple any day of the week.

Fair enough, though I think the Apple machine I linked to has comparable (and in some places better) specs than the Asus, and the bidding is currently cheaper. Quad-core 2.0GHz i7 vs dual-core 1.7GHz. Similar RAM + HD, probably slightly weaker but still respectable graphics.

don't discount intel graphics just yet. assuming you're willing to use a smaller display, like bhtooefr mentioned above, HD 4000 actually gives respectable results (for how i use my laptop, at any rate). with a 1366*768 monitor, it runs minecraft at fullscreen-far rendering distance just fine while multiple other things are open (browser, music player, editor, etc), and i was able to get this game running smoothly as well.
the machine in question was this one here, with:

●15.6" 720p High Definition LED Backlit Display ( 1366 x 768 )
●Intel HD Graphics 4000
●3rd Generation Intel Core i7-3610QM Processor ( 2.30GHz 6MB L3 Cache - 4 Cores plus Hyperthreading )
●8 GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1600MHz - 2 X 4GB
●750 GB 7200 RPM SATA II
●8X DVD±R/RW/4X +DL Super-Multi Drive
●Intel Centrino 1030 - 802.11 b/g/n Wireless LAN + Bluetooth Combo Module
●1 Yr. Ltd. Warranty and 1 Yr. Technical Support

for a sum total of $915. i've had to send it in once thus far to get a bad part swapped, and the process was fairly painless. the only complaint i've had in a year of using it thus far is the size, and they have another model that's basically the same thing but smaller and without a numpad.

Hmm, looking things up, the HD4000 doesn't actually seem that bad, and specs-wise, the CPU in the Fujitsu actually looks more powerful than the one in the Asus. I'm getting quite tempted to get the Fujitsu, if it has the touch that I like, a ridiculous battery life, and isn't that much less capable than the Asus. The only thing is the lower LCD resolution, but I'll live. I have my massive desktop, after all.

You're very, very wrong about that. The HD 4000 destroys the 9600m GT, it's not even close.

I know you're a hardcore Apple fanboy, but those MBPs you linked to are way too expensive and are terrible buys unless you desperately want OSX.

I have the Zenbook Prime UX31A, and it's a fantastic laptop with a gorgeous screen. However the battery life is not what you are asking for (~3 hours seems to be about it)

I have a Lenovo X230 with the extended battery as well, that thing is a tank with a battery that lasts forever and ever. Quite fast, but the screen and touchpad are weaker points (the screen only because it's 1366x768 - the quality itself is very good, IPS panel and all that). Touchpad itself is mostly fine, it's just too small. It's also considerably thicker than the Zenbook, but the battery lasts 3x longer with a faster CPU - compromises and all that jazz.

Huh, could have sworn my girlfriend's laptop had an HD 4000 and that she had to play SC2 on low, while 9600m GT does pretty well on medium, but I guess I'll double check that.


The ones I was linking to on eBay seemed to be bidding a couple hundred dollars cheaper than the laptops KermM was linking to, and had better processors and comparable specs in most other departments.

SC2 is but one game, and without saying the resolution that doesn't mean anything. The HD 4000 will do high quality at 1366x768 in SC2, though.



Better processor? Not really. 1.9ghz vs. 2.0ghz is not remotely significant, but what IS significant is Ivy Bridge (what Kerm linked to) vs. Sandy bridge (what you linked to). What's also significant is the weight difference, with the MBP weighing 2 lbs more than the stuff Kerm was linking. And that 5400 RPM spinning disk in the MBP is going to suck big time. What good is a faster CPU when you'll be disk I/O bound the entire time?

Not to mention if you are going to buy used, buying a used PC is a bajillion times better. As you've pointed out before, Mac's hold their value. That means that they not only start out overpriced when new, they get even *more* overpriced as they become used.

You'd have to be a complete idiot to buy a laptop with worse specs, is 2 years old, and is only a $100-200 less. Seriously, that's just stupid.

1440x900 (mine) vs 1280x800 (hers), but maybe it isn't an HD 4000.


The *big* difference between the two machines was quad core (what I linked to) vs dual core (what Kerm linked to). Yes the weight is significant, but as far as I'm concerned, aluminum is a benefit over plastic. One dents, one shatters. The spinning disk sucks, but it's easily upgradeable to an SSD (which is why I linked to iFixit in the first place).

You misspelled "cracks". Plastic does not shatter, and plastic is *way* more durable than the flimsy, fragile aluminum unibody as far as drop protection goes. The aluminum is also sharp and uncomfortable on the wrists. Aluminum is not a strong material, and dents are *much* worse than cracks - as the thing it's denting into certainly does not tolerate dents.



Yes, in which case you are a dumbass for spending the exact same amount of money for a 2 year old used computer with at best similar specs.

Also don't forget the new battery to replace the now significantly degraded one.

Whelp, after debating the processors and graphics and what my desktop can do, I finally decided to go for the Fujitsu tablet. It has a plenty capable i5, the same Intel HD4000 as the Asus (when the Asus's not-top-of-the-line dedicated GPU is turned off), and ridiculously good battery life. I'll just be missing out on that 1080p IPS display, but ah well.