Factors Affecting Battery Life / Laptop Selection Advice

[Koto]

I'm looking for a new laptop for school/work, and so far I think the Vostro V13 seems good. What do you think?

http://www.dell.com/us/en/business/notebooks/vostro-v13/pd.aspx?refid=vostro-v13&s=bsd&cs=04

Anyway, my only concern is that it only has four hours of battery life. However, it does come with a 7200 RPM hard drive, which seems like that would eat a lot of battery life compared to a 5400 RPM hard drive or an SSD. Well, I have an extra 80 GB SSD in my old laptop, so my questions are...

How much (if any) battery life do you think I would gain by replacing the 7200 RPM hard drive with the SSD?

Also... Would you recommend the Vostro V13, or is there another laptop that you would recommend for school?

My XPS M1530 is a beast, but it's starting to get worn out and it just isn't convenient enough to bring to classes all day. Netbooks are too small for my hands (and eyes!). I really do prefer big screens, but I suppose I must compromise for the sake of mobility/convenience, so hopefully I'll be able to get used to the 13.3" screen.

Thanks!

[Koto]

Come on guys, it's my birthday, and I really need to hurry up and order a laptop for school/work. ^^

[Argote]

Chill dude, I suppose around $700 is your budget limit, 4 hours is actually rather nice IMO, the V13 should be able to run most programs used for school. SSD's really give only slightly better battery life than current drives so if anything try to see if there's a 9 cell battery available.

[philcruicks]

If you usage is going to be at school don't get a laptop, get a netbook, I get 6/7 hours from my Samsung N510, and there are some out there with 12 hours now.

Of cause if your getting a netbook you'd really need a desktop at home for gaming and general use, they're just not fast enough or big enough screens for most people at home (ok u can have an external but still...), but for just internet, MS Work and e-mail etc... at school they're fantastic.

If you don't like the smaller screens on netbooks then look for the 11.6 and 12" models, mines an 11.6 and I don't have a problem, you can always increase the DPI if you need to as well. but a laptop now adays will never give you the potability and battery life compared with a netbook.

Phil.

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

OK, turn off:

Bluetooth

Wifi

Mute sound

Pull brightness down (still very much visible)

Disable Aero

Run fewer apps at once

Rip the hard drive out of your XPS and swap over if suitable - it WILL make a difference.

I have a Vostro17, and it's a really nice laptop to use. I also have a 10" Dell Mini and you get used to whatever screen side really.

:)

[Koto]

Thanks for the advice!

Although this will also be used for work. So the problem with a netbook is that the screen won't be big enough to comfortably handle huge spreadsheets or SPSS (statistics software).

I just found Lenovo has a similar model (ThinkPad Edge), with 8 hours of battery life, but not as thin or sexy.

http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/web/LenovoPortal/en_US/catalog.workflow:category.details?current-catalog-id=12F0696583E04D86B9B79B0FEC01C087&current-category-id=1442DF3BCAA742629DF4F894C34180DE

So right now the Vostro V13 (with 4 GB upgrade) will be about $70 more expensive, and half the battery life, but is so much damn sexier and thin.

What do you guys think... Vostro V13 or ThinkPad Edge? Or other suggestions?

Thanks!

[robert03]

Lenovo did a pretty nice job with the Edge. It does not look as good as the V13 indeed but given the fact that it is a Lenovo (known for its performance and for its conservatory design) I'd say that it's a nice evolution of the lineup. You need to decide by yourself if looks matter more than performance.

The Dell looks great but it also could be too flashy for a course room; the Lenovo won't stand out but it will get the job done in a pleasing manner. My 2 cents. :)

Check the below review if you haven't already.

http://www.geek.com/articles/chips/review-lenovo-thinkpad-edge-13-2010022/

[Roger H. Veteran]

I don't think the Thinkpad Edge will be good for your needs in that it's a Netbook type of device. It doesn't run a Core 2 Duo CPU (or the likes from AMD) but a AMD Neo processor which is sorta like the Intel Atom. It comes with Windows 7 and browses the web and all that but the screen resolution will limit you as well.

It's 16:9 (1366 x 768) and it's a glossy screen which is a pain in the but in brightly lit offices.

[zhangm Supervisor]

What is your budget? You might be able to get away with a Latitude E6400 with better battery options and a three-year warranty. The new slim form-factor Vostros and Latitudes just weren't made to accomodate larger capacity batteries, but yes, they do look nice.

Hard drives aren't the biggest battery guzzlers by far. Processors and screen, followed by dedicated video cards will be the main consumers that you can't do anything about after purchasing the machine. Minor hardware such as BT, wireless, keyboard backlight, etc, can be adjusted on the fly, but don't expect to get more than half an hour more of life even with those adjustments.

You might be able to get an Acer Timeline: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834115653&cm_re=timeline-_-34-115-653-_-Product

[Argote]

OK, turn off:

Bluetooth

Wifi

Mute sound

Pull brightness down (still very much visible)

Disable Aero

Run fewer apps at once

Rip the hard drive out of your XPS and swap over if suitable - it WILL make a difference.

I think that will give you a slight increase in battery life in exchange for a big decrease in functionality.. not really worth it.

[i_was_here]

I don't think the Thinkpad Edge will be good for your needs in that it's a Netbook type of device. It doesn't run a Core 2 Duo CPU (or the likes from AMD) but a AMD Neo processor which is sorta like the Intel Atom. It comes with Windows 7 and browses the web and all that but the screen resolution will limit you as well.

It's 16:9 (1366 x 768) and it's a glossy screen which is a pain in the but in brightly lit offices.

The ThinkPad Edge does come in an Intel version with a Core 2 Duo U7300.

Also the resolution is at least better than the 1024x600 found on many netbooks.

[Argote]

The Sony VAIO Z series comes with a 1600x900 13" LED screen, around 9 hours of battery life and high-end components. It does cost over 2K though.