Discussions

Now that I've gotten some pet peeves out of the way in a few of my previous posts, I thought it was about time to get in the WePC spirit and write about what I'd consider to be the ideal notebook. I've got some specifications and features in mind that I think will appeal to a broad range of users. Hopefully you'll all agree, the right people will see this, and I'll be able to buy the machine sometime in the not too distant future. I've got some stimulus money burning a hole in my pocket and have the itch to upgrade...

As someone who makes a living behind a keyboard, I've grown to appreciate the speed of a powerful PC, the massive desktop real estate of a large, high-resolution monitor, and the feel of quality input devices.  My ideal notebook, however, has to be relatively thin and light. And I don't want anything bulky since it'll constantly get carried around to various trade shows and industry events. With all of that in mind--and drawing on past experiences with numerous notebooks--I feel  a notebook with a 13.3" to 14.1" widescreen would be ideal. At that size, the screen could offer a high enough resolution--say something in the 1440x900 to 1680x1050 range--to be useful with multiple windows open, yet the machine would be small enough to easily fit in any carry-on luggage.  A notebook in this size range can also have a full sized keyboard with a standard layout, which is an absolute must. See my previous post titled "Enhancing The Notebook Computing Experience" for other keyboard requirements.

My ideal notebook also needs to offer high-performance and relatively long battery life. That means a fast, multi-core processor, at least 4GB of RAM running in a dual-channel configuration, discreet graphics with dedicated video memory, and an SSD for the operating system and important applications. A low-voltage, multi-core processor would be preferable to keep power consumption as low as possible. The GPU should also be relatively powerful, but gaming wouldn't be a primary use for the machine. I would like the GPU to offer full HD video offloading and acceleration for applications in the Adobe Creative Suite. The SSD for the OS would not require a high capacity, maybe something in the 64GB - 80GB range, because the notebook would also feature a secondary drive bay to house a standard, high capacity, 2.5" hard drive.  The hard drive, however, would be housed in a cartridge that's easily removable and the notebook would include a small hard drive dock that connects to my main office PC.  This would allow me to remove the hard drive from the notebook, plug it right into my desktop machine, and have access to pertinent files.

I guess I could go on and on about what I'd want in a notebook, but I think you get the gist. Small, powerful, and feature rich are the underlying themes. There's no reason a notebook can't be thin and light, and fast, if the right components are used throughout.