Suggestions for a new laptop to replace HP 2730p

singemagique

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Feb 13, 2009
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Hi everyone,

I currently have an HP 2730p and would like to upgrade to something a bit faster with longer battery life while retaining the tablet (ie. stylus compatible screen) functionality if possible. Any suggestions?

Budget: $2000

Size of the notebook considering: 10-14 inches, as light as possible

What screen resolution do you want?: Doesn't matter

Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?: Portable, for use while traveling and at conferences.

How much battery life do you need?: As much as possible, preferably > 5 hr.

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)? : I don't intend to play games on this machine.

What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.): I do a lot of photo editing (GIMP, PS), DNA/RNA and proteomics analysis (qBase, PDQuest, BLAST, etc.), statistics (R, SPSS), and general office applications (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Access). I also like to stream netflix and watch the occasional DVD.

How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?: At least 120GB, I prefer SSD.

If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links: Site doesn't matter

How long do you want to keep your laptop?: 3-5 years

What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?: At least a DVD writer, although Bluray might be interesting.

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.: No brand preference, but I do not want a Mac (had a MBP in the past and did not enjoy it).

What country do you live in?: USA

Please tell us any additional information if needed: Looking to buy within the next 3 months.

 
Solution
Hello SingeMagique;
Some pretty big changes showing up within the next 3 months.
Asus Prepares Ivy Bridge Notebooks with Nvidia Kepler Graphics for April 2012
And some of the most interesting models ditch the integrated optical drive for weight and size savings. You can get most entertainment media (movies) downloaded without the optical drive and a USB flash drive (32GB or larger) can handle the data backup duties.

The current Dell Latitude 6320/6420, HP ProBookElite...
Hello SingeMagique;
Some pretty big changes showing up within the next 3 months.
Asus Prepares Ivy Bridge Notebooks with Nvidia Kepler Graphics for April 2012
And some of the most interesting models ditch the integrated optical drive for weight and size savings. You can get most entertainment media (movies) downloaded without the optical drive and a USB flash drive (32GB or larger) can handle the data backup duties.

The current Dell Latitude 6320/6420, HP ProBookElite 8460p and Lenovo Thinkpad T420 models can meet all your requirements and are the traditional favorites for road warriors.

The ultra-mobile 12.5 (no optical drives) Latitude 6220, ProBookElite 2560p, and Lenovo X220 are options that meet your core requirements.
 
Solution