I'm about to get a new laptop, and I'm not sure which one to choose. I run Ubuntu Linux as my everyday OS, so the only thing that really matters is the hardware and form factor of the laptop. The Macbook Pro seems to have everything down extremely well, but I never liked that it has no number pad or dedicated Home and End buttons.
The Dell Inpsiron I have now is okay, but the hardware feels a bit cheap and the touchpad is not very good.
I'm looking for a laptop that has a similar form factor to the Macbook Pro, with a similar style touchpad, a number pad, and sleek design. I will be getting a 15 inch so it will still fit in my backpack. If all else fails and I can't find something good enough, I will end up just getting the Macbook Pro and doing without the extra keys. The touch pad and the rest of the hardware is more important, but if I can find something that fits all of my picky needs, I'll get that.
Any advice? Or does Apple still hold the throne for this one?
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Are there any laptops with hardware that compares to the Macbook Pro?
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manveru's pick
Sony SA is an option I guess if you're more focused on features and portability than the uniform style of the Apple. Keyboard wise you'll be similarly inconvenienced but it's no worse. What you get is almost a 15" Pro in way less than the weight of a 13-inch. The $1500 prebuilt SA will get you the same i7 as the top-spec 13" Pro, a 1600 x 900 screen, a 6630M with 1Gb. I guess you could call it a hybrid of the Air, 13" and 15" Pro's in terns of utility, power and portability. The screen is roughly equivalent in terms of 'quality' to the Air's - i.e. it will not look as superficially good at first glance compared to the 'lipstick on a pig' glossy Pro displays.
The Samsung Series 7 notebooks are an option if you want a numpad and presumably decent build quality along with a slightly weaker overall spec but at a very competitive price. The NP700Z5B-S01UB packs the same CPU as the 15" MBP, a 1600 x 900 antiglare screen, a 6490M running at 512Gb (i.e. the same as the early 2011 MBP's, but probably faster) and quite a bit lighter - both in terms of mass and in terms of wallet damage.
The Samsung Series 7 notebooks are an option if you want a numpad and presumably decent build quality along with a slightly weaker overall spec but at a very competitive price. The NP700Z5B-S01UB packs the same CPU as the 15" MBP, a 1600 x 900 antiglare screen, a 6490M running at 512Gb (i.e. the same as the early 2011 MBP's, but probably faster) and quite a bit lighter - both in terms of mass and in terms of wallet damage.
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It sounds like form factor is the most important feature for you, in which case I would agree that the MacBook Pro would get the nod.
I don't think there are too many 15 inch lap tops that have number pads, but I could be mistaken. Here is a Sony one: www.engadget.com/2011/08/31/sony-vaio-s-series-rev...
I don't think there are too many 15 inch lap tops that have number pads, but I could be mistaken. Here is a Sony one: www.engadget.com/2011/08/31/sony-vaio-s-series-rev...
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