Attention hardware guru: I just bought an expensive laptop - was it a $2500 mistake?

[House]

I should state upfront that I have not yet booted up this laptop and I am not a gamer. The laptop is still boxed up, wrapped tight, and still sealed with the manufacturers wrapping tape.

The base price for this laptop is $1300. I paid $2500 for it because I'm a speed freak. No, I don't need a drug intervention, but thanks anyway, Dr. Drew. More on that: I customized my brand new laptop because of my need for speed. I customized it primarily for work and school projects....9 to 5 stuff. Between 9 to 5 I'm a workhorse. I'm all business between 9-5.

All I know is that when I use the computer to work on a school or work project and I experience a slowdown or blockage, I get mad. I act like a racehorse who's stuck in quicksand. I have a little meltdown is what I'm saying. So that's why when I got ready to order a laptop I told myself I must place a priority - a high priority - on speed.

So I built it with 8 gigs of RAM and a quad core processor. The 8 gigs of RAM and the quad core processor is why it went from being a $1300 laptop to a $2500 laptop. (no desktop, thank you! I bought a laptop so I could get out of the house and work away from home 3 or 4 days a week).

My question is for the hardware savvy person out there: did I make a mistake in ramping up a $1300 laptop to the tune of $2500 in my all out quest/balls to the wall need for speed? Is the money that went towards the quad core gonna be worth it when everything is said and done?

Before you answer that, you need to know what I'll be using it for: I'm going to build websites with Wordpress and Dreamweaver. I might be using several programs at once. Programs like Photoshop, Dreamweaver and Flash. I might even have a web based video tutorial open when I'm using Photoshop or Dreamweaver. In a nutshell: I'll be using a lot of Adobe software.

I'll note that there's no need to point out that I could've gotten far more for my money by buying a desktop. That's a given. That goes without saying. I already have a high performance desktop for work and school. I bought the laptop because I need a portable computer that is easy to transport, a computer that I can place in the back seat of my car, or carry on my back when I ride a bicycle or chopper to work or school. A desktop was not an option.

So now that you know all there is to know, don't hold back with your answer. If I made a mistake just say so. Or maybe I bought the perfect laptop, one that has the type of speed that a busy body like me can utilize? A laptop that'll handle anything a worker bee can throw at it 5 years down the road?

Most of all, would I or anyone else be able to appreciate and fully utilize the speed and power of 8 gigs of RAM along with a quad core processor when compared to a machine that has 4 gigs and a duo core processor? Either way, tell me what you think, because I want THE TRUTH and unlike Tom...I can handle the truth

OS: Vista 64 bit
Hard drive: 7200rpm
Memory: 8 gigs of RAM
GPU: 1GB Nvidia GeForce GT 130M
Processor: Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor Q9000 (2.00Ghz)
The Rig Itself: http://www.shopping.hp.com/series/category/notebooks/HDX18t_series/3/computer_store

 

[SNGX1275]

Its not a mistake if you need the speed. You certainly could have gotten something with a higher performance/dollar ratio, but if you absolutely need the speed then that doesn't matter.

 

[Rage_3K_Moiz]

Wow, great post! :grinthumb

And yes, the laptop will be able to handle anything you throw at it with ease. Just make sure to get a good AV program (preferably a paid one like NOD32 or Kaspersky) to make sure it stays free of malware that may bog it down. Also, HP may possibly offer you to upgrade the OS to Windows 7 in the near future. If they do, take that opportunity to get yourself a nice, speedy OS.

To answer your main question, yes, you did overpay. You could have gone with this system for slightly less than $2500. All you needed to do was to opt for the 320GB 7200RPM HDD and you would still have paid lesser than for the HP system for a far superior machine. You would have even gotten one or two games free with it.

The HP laptop is not a bad choice at all, but certainly not the best your money can buy.

 

[hellokitty[hk]]

Simply yes, but most parts are decent for what you have in mind.

Most of all, would I or anyone else be able to appreciate and fully utilize the speed and power of 8 gigs of RAM along with a quad core processor when compared to a machine that has 4 gigs and a duo core processor? Either way, tell me what you think, because I want THE TRUTH and unlike Tom...I can handle the truth

I don't think so, not you anyway. 4gb is a good amount.

Hard drive: 7200rpm

That is probably the biggest slowdown, but not too much you could do about that without overpaying a lot.

 

[antil0ck]

House, I would say that you laptop is more of a workhorse than what you really need. At some point you need to weigh in the performance to dollar ratio and ask yourself if you will really ever need all of that speed and power. If you are just building websites, photoshop, dreamweaver and some video, you definetly jumped the gun with this workhorse. Some people may argue this comment but, you question was did you spend too much for this laptop, My answer would be yes. I would have saved on the quad core CPU and would have invested in some really nice dual 24" monitors instead. Hell, my old Dell Demension 2400 can handle the jobs of photoshop and website building. Unless you are going to be rendering a crap load of HD video then I would have invested the money much differently.

Cheers,
Anitl0ck