Help choosing core i7 laptop with RAID1

[olympic]

I am looking to upgrade my laptop. I am a web designer/developer but prefer to work in the windows world instead of mac given the large investment I already have in windows based software.

My budget is up to $2500. I use my laptop as a desktop replacement....this is so that I can take it with me when meeting with clients and giving presentations.

Because this is mission critical and I've suffered through multiple hard drive failures, I'm only considering laptops with 7200 RPM drives in a RAID1 configuration...or perhaps one with SSD.

I need a minimum of 250GB of usable storage space.

I need a minimum of a 17" display.

I'm not worried about bulkiness as I don't travel that often with it.

For RAM, I'm envisioning 4GB of DDR3 as the minimum.

Looking for windows 7 professional 64 bit (so that I can run apps in XP mode if needed).

My requirement of core i7 + RAID 1 (or SSD) seems to really be limiting my search. I am looking seriously at the Sager NP8760.

I am looking for other laptops that meet the specs and pricing that I should be considering to make sure I'm not missing some that should be considered.

Thanks!

 

[olympic]

here's my answers to the standard format questionnaire:

1_What is your budget?
up to $2500

2_What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
17" minimum display size

3_What screen resolution do you want?
1440x900 minimum

4_Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
desktop replacement

5_How much battery life do you need?
2 hrs+ preferred (1.5 minimum)

6_Do you want to play games with your laptop? If so then please list the games that you want to with the settings that you want for these games. (Low,Medium or High)?
no

7_What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo / Video editing,watching movies, Etc.)
web design (adobe photoshop, illustrator, dreamweaver)

8_How much storage (H.D.D Capacity) do you need?
250 GB of usable space minimum

9_If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post the links to them.
http/www.xoticpc.com/sager-np8760-built-clevo-w870cu-custom-gaming-laptop-p-2660.html

10_How long do you want to keep your laptop?
2-3 years


11_What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
DVD R/W

12_Please tell us about the brands that you prefer to buy from them and the brands that you don't like and explain the reasons.
flexible

13_What country do you live in?
USA

14_Please tell us any additional information if needed.
RAID1 (would consider SSD instead)
4 GB DDR3 minimum
Windows 7 professional 64 bit

 

[Maziar]

SAGER NP8760 is a good option but not need to get it since you don't want to game.
HP Pavilion dv8t Quad and dv7 are good options:
DV8:
http/www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/computer_can_series.do?storeName=computer_store&category=notebooks&a1=Category&v1=High+performance&series_name=dv8tqe_series&jumpid=in_R329_prodexp/hhoslp/psg/notebooks/High_performance/dv8tqe_series
DV7:
http/www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/computer_can_series.do?storeName=computer_store&category=notebooks&a1=Category&v1=High+performance&series_name=dv7tqe_series&jumpid=in_R329_prodexp/hhoslp/psg/notebooks/High_performance/dv7tqe_series

 

[varduefr]

Hi,
I wanted to buy an HP dv6t Quad laptop but I've read some post about HP problems and bad technical support and service.
What I've seen is that expending the same amount of money u can get the new Asus N61JQ. The price is exactly the same as the HP dv6t Quad Series and I guess is much better.
Anyone agree or disagree on that?

 

[varduefr]

The only thing is that HP dv6t Quad (i7 Core) comes with a 7200 RPM drive (500Gb) and the Asus comes with a 5400 RPM drive (640Gb) but a better Graphic Card.

 

[olympic]

SAGER NP8760 is a good option but not need to get it since you don't want to game.
HP Pavilion dv8t Quad and dv7 are good options:
DV8:
http/www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/computer_can_series.do?storeName=computer_store&category=notebooks&a1=Category&v1=High+performance&series_name=dv8tqe_series&jumpid=in_R329_prodexp/hhoslp/psg/notebooks/High_performance/dv8tqe_series
DV7:
http/www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/computer_can_series.do?storeName=computer_store&category=notebooks&a1=Category&v1=High+performance&series_name=dv7tqe_series&jumpid=in_R329_prodexp/hhoslp/psg/notebooks/High_performance/dv7tqe_series

I thought the DV8 looked interesting for the price. At issue though is I really want either a 256GB SSD drive, or RAID 1. I use mozy for online backup, but with this new laptop purchase would like to take some added steps for data redundancy and I'm thinking SSD drives have less moving parts so should last longer. However, they are still pretty expensive. RAID 1 seems to be a happy medium if using 7200 rpm drives.

The DV8 is advertised as having available as an option two hard drives:
640GB 7200RPM SATA Dual Hard Drive (320GB x 2) with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection

I don't see any mention of RAID1 being available with it though. Does anyone know anything about whether it's available on those?

I agree, that by not being a gamer I probably don't need the sager, but I've not found other core i7 laptops with RAID1 at a better price.

I'm open to suggestions.

Thanks!

 

[Guest]

Thinkpad w700 provides RAID 0 or 1 options on the web.
HP elitebook claims supporting RAID.