[Jay@Dub-00]

I'm about to move on to a laptop, I've never used one before and don't understand what makes a laptop as quick as a desktop although the specs seem lower i.e. processor speed, I currently use an eMachines e4216, 3.0 Ghz Pentium D, 2.0 Ghz RAM. what laptop specs would give me equal performance, I do a lot of downloading, and burning CD's.
Also, would I still be able to connect my camcorder via Firewire and how.
can I expect much for below £400, The Toshiba L300-13s looks OK .
and I would really prefer XP, but I could install that myself.
Any advice welcome. - Thanks, John.

[etaf]

and I would really prefer XP, but I could install that myself.

be careful, make sure you can get XP drivers fro all the hardware on the laptop, a few people have had issues going back to XP

would I still be able to connect my camcorder via Firewire and how.

Make sure the laptop has firewire, a lot do not - also known/shown as 1394

if you stay with vists - get at least 2MB - a lot of deals are around at the moment with 3GB - I purchased 3 toshiba laptops from amazon recently on a good deal, £425, but comet appear (not researched fully yet) to have a good deal in a toshiba L300-19Y

i'll have a look at the L300-13s

the 13s does not seem to have firewire
and although the comet site says the 19Y has firewire, its not listed on the toshiba website

[JohnWill]

FWIW, unless you spend a ton of money, you'll still have better performance with a desktop machine. The tradeoff's in most laptops to minimize power consumption also minimize performance.

[Jay@Dub-00]

Thank you both for that, I don't really have the room for a desktop anymore at least I won't very soon.
I simply fitted a firewire pci card before so can I do that with the laptop?

[etaf]

yes - you have a slot called an ExpressCard slot on the 13s, but when you look at the laptop, check to see if it has firewire
on the demo model
got to device manager
and look at the
network devices

[Jay@Dub-00]

Excellent, Looks good up to now, so why don't I hear any complaints about the lack of performance from all the "lappy" users out there especially those with Vista, as laptops seem so popular now.

[etaf]

I do hear a lot, when people buy a cheap machine and then want to manipulate video and play games etc

but for general use they are fine....

have a read through the games forum here

[Jay@Dub-00]

I don't do games but upload and burn from a DV cam (not often tho')
I mostly download and the missus does her myspace/facebook stuff
I appreciate all your info btw.

[JohnWill]

If you're not a game player or do extensive CAD work, the laptop will probably do the trick. Video processing will take more time on most laptops, but that's just a patience issue, you have to walk away for a longer period.

[Jay@Dub-00]

I think I could live with that... Does anyone know how long I can expect from the battery on something in the £350 price bracket and is there a certain type/spec battery I should look for?

[DoubleHelix]

Don't expect more than 2 hours of battery life unless you purchase (and the laptop can handle) a high-capacity battery.

[Jay@Dub-00]

Two hours would be ok, I'll probably be mostly using it from the mains, I'm now a lot clearer as to what I'm looking for - Thanks to everyone for their advice,

[etaf]

some toshiba's I have had the battery is just over an hour, so dont rely on the spec to much