Best laptop to use for chasing?
- Thread starter Rocky Rascovich
- Start date
Adam Adkins
EF3
I guess I'm one of the very few who use a Macbook Pro laptop. As far as processing and RAM it is more than efficient for chasing - and working the photos and videos afterwards. I've got 3GB of RAM and a 2.33GHz processor in my machine. Plus I think Macs are far more reliable and that can REALLY come in handy...
Ben Holcomb
EF5
I bought a higher-end Acer laptop and have been very happy with it.
Augie Rall
I too like toshiba laptops, I use a Toshiba M400 for chasing.
If all you will be using this laptop for is internet, grlevel3, and gps then you will not need the lastest and greatest laptop, these are not the most graphic and cpu intensive programs. I like the 12 inch screen, not too big not too small. I think the newer laptops all went to the 13" widescreen displays. A ten inch screen just seems too small, but that is just personal preference. Last year I ran the programs you are talking about with a 1.83 Ghz processor and 1 GB of RAM and all ran just fine, although a minimum of 2GB of RAM is usually suggested. As far as ease of use, it doesn't matter which brand you go with, they will all be about the same. You may like the touchpad or keyboard better from one laptop to the next.
If all you will be using this laptop for is internet, grlevel3, and gps then you will not need the lastest and greatest laptop, these are not the most graphic and cpu intensive programs. I like the 12 inch screen, not too big not too small. I think the newer laptops all went to the 13" widescreen displays. A ten inch screen just seems too small, but that is just personal preference. Last year I ran the programs you are talking about with a 1.83 Ghz processor and 1 GB of RAM and all ran just fine, although a minimum of 2GB of RAM is usually suggested. As far as ease of use, it doesn't matter which brand you go with, they will all be about the same. You may like the touchpad or keyboard better from one laptop to the next.
Bill Hark
EF5
This thread has got me considering a new laptop. I am currently happy with my Sony S series VAIO. It has a 13 inch diameter screen, 12 inch width, firewire and two USB inputs and DVD burner. I have noticed that in some of the newer computers especially the smaller laptops, they are leaving off the firewire port. For now, I still use firewire to input video.
Bill Hark
Bill Hark
Zach Borst
EF0
I have Lenovo think pad, one with dedicated video memory and the magnesium chassis. Works great and I have never had an issue with it but this is my school computer. I use a Itronix Gobook III for fire/emergency management stuff. It's like a toughbook but better. It's not smoking fast but it's nice to know you can kick the crap out of it without having to worry. I also have a custom desktop I built. I am a huge tech geek have been through a lot of computer, my current compliment of machines is perfect for me.
Kory Hartman
EF2
Get whatever laptop doesn't have a "glossy" screen. Beware, you won't find them at Best Buy. They all shine like a mirror. Doesn't work well in the sun while chasing 
Skip Talbot
EF5
I would just add that you should probably stick with a 32-bit version of Windows. There have been so many complaints about hardware compatibility that's its really not worth running 64-bit. The 64-bit operating is needed when you run more than 4GB of memory, and to be honest, that's still overkill for a chasing setup. 2-4GB should be plenty.
Steve Polley
EF2
Get whatever laptop doesn't have a "glossy" screen. Beware, you won't find them at Best Buy. They all shine like a mirror. Doesn't work well in the sun while chasing
Totally agree with you Kory. I use a Dell E6400. This is a business class computer and is comparable to the Lenovo units. They are not all plastic like most consumer grade laptops and seem to hold up well in a mobile environment. It has a backlit keyboard and matte finish LCD which I love in the daylight. These also have an LED backlit screen which cuts way down on the battery usage. Most still have the CCFL bulbs which draw alot from the battery. Good deals found on them also at outlet.dell.com I got mine for under $700.
Adam Cartwright
I have the opposite opinion. While I know many people have had difficulties with 64-bit operating systems, I have had great success with my Win7 x64 laptop. The few problems I've had I've been able to easily overcome by configuring the application for Windows Vista SP2 compatibility. I am also running WinXP mode in case I have something that must run with older compatibility, but I haven't run into anything yet. More and more applications are taking x64 into consideration, and I don't want to be stuck in the past one-two years from now.
The thing I like about x64 is the added stability I am finding in the OS. I have a Dell e4300, which is a great mobile laptop. 13.3" screen, 4GB ram, 2.5GHz dual core processor, and a firewire port to connect to my video camera, and I'm set. I'm very pleased with this laptop.
I agree with many of the comments that it all depends on what apps you need to support. I wanted something small, powerful, and solid, and so far am very pleased with this Dell e4300.
Adam Cartwright
Get whatever laptop doesn't have a "glossy" screen. Beware, you won't find them at Best Buy. They all shine like a mirror. Doesn't work well in the sun while chasing
If you're stick with a glossy screen, there are several filters you can put on that will help cut the glare. I use a 3M Privacy Filter since my laptop is also what I use for business, and find that it does a great job cutting down the glare.
Skip Talbot
EF5
My argument here is why take the chance when you're not going to really benefit from the 64 bit platform, especially if the user is not tech savvy enough to be messing around with different drivers and compatibility modes. There is no large performance gain like we saw in the jump from 16 bit processors to 32 bit processors.
I'm not sure the 64 bit architecture increases stability. I too have noticed a marked increase in stability when upgrading to Windows 7 64x, but I upgraded from Vista 64x. i think the stability increases reside in the Windows 7 architecture more than the 64x platform. The majority of programs are still running in a 32 bit compatibility mode too, including all of the main chasing apps like Grlevel3, Street Atlas, and Spotter Network, so they wouldn't even be taking advantage of the 64x platform.
Brett Roberts
EF5
I couldn't agree more.Get whatever laptop doesn't have a "glossy" screen. Beware, you won't find them at Best Buy. They all shine like a mirror. Doesn't work well in the sun while chasing
For this very reason, I would focus on business-oriented models like the Dell Latitude or Lenovo Thinkpad lineups. In addition to offering matte screens (which are practically non-existent on consumer laptops these days), their build quality is substantially better, often including metal hinges for the screen. As an added bonus, they don't come loaded with crapware are 500 different "free trials" of software you don't want or need.
Adam Cartwright
One thing I'd add is that if you're looking at a Netbook for chasing, consider the Asus Eee line. These little netbooks take 12v dc power input. This means you can ditch the inverter if you'd like, and opens up a lot of possibilities.
I have Anderson PowerPoles run in my Jeep, with a rigrunner, etc. and so it would be pretty easy to just plug one of those netbooks directly into that, and not have to mess with the inverter, AC adapter, and other headaches.
Just a thought.
I have Anderson PowerPoles run in my Jeep, with a rigrunner, etc. and so it would be pretty easy to just plug one of those netbooks directly into that, and not have to mess with the inverter, AC adapter, and other headaches.
Just a thought.
John Erwin
EF5
I'd have to strongly caution against doing this. The power system in a vehicle is not 12 volts, it's commonly 13.8 volts (and often higher). In addition the regulation of the voltage is often quite poor compared to what is provided to a laptop in a home via it's AC adaptor. Connecting that 12v laptop in such a scenario might reduce it's life expectancy dramatically.
You can of course still avoid the use of inverters by using a DC-DC adapter; these are little harder to find but there are some designed for mobile computing purposes that have multi-voltage and tip output designs that can be powered in a car (and some will also work as an AC adapter too).
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