zio
Member
I was reading some review of the new AMD mobile chip, comparing a few AMD equipped systems w/ similar Intel Centrino M machines. The author stated getting about 2 hours w/ the AMD versus 2.5 with the Intel. I'm going from memory, so I could be off, but not by much.
I've had my computer on since about 9pm, it's now 12;30am, and my battery indicator says I have 1 hour, 44 minutes left. I've been surfing and listening to music for the last hour and a half. This is average for us when surfing. It's a Gateway M320 we bought back in November for around $1000.
I didn't know much about laptops before buying this one. My sister has an older Dell P4 laptop that we've borrowed previously, but otherwise we've only ever had regular pc's. I shopped Dells, HPs, Fujis, Toshibas, Gateways, etc. I liked the features of a particular Gateway, then called them to place an order. The salesperson was so helpful.... she convinced me to spend a few bucks LESS and get a similarly equipped Centrino versus the P4 based on what I told her we'd be using it for. We also splurged an extra $50 or so for the larger battery. I don't care if they have some secret pricing scam that nets them more profit on the Centrinos or whatever.... this lady spent an hour with me on the phone & was truly helpful. I asked a lot of questions and she was patient & kind the whole time.
Anyway, after reading the article, I was a little shocked. I really average 4 hrs or so before having to plug in. Last weekend, the kids watched a 2 hr DVD and it still had plenty of juice left when we got home. Plus, unlike my sister's Dell, I rarely notice any heat while using it on my lap. Nice.
The built in speakers can hardly play loud enough to watch a movie in the car, and the headphone jacks don't work well either. That's my only (complaint). This thing is paper thin & light, and made me a laptop believer.
I've had my computer on since about 9pm, it's now 12;30am, and my battery indicator says I have 1 hour, 44 minutes left. I've been surfing and listening to music for the last hour and a half. This is average for us when surfing. It's a Gateway M320 we bought back in November for around $1000.
I didn't know much about laptops before buying this one. My sister has an older Dell P4 laptop that we've borrowed previously, but otherwise we've only ever had regular pc's. I shopped Dells, HPs, Fujis, Toshibas, Gateways, etc. I liked the features of a particular Gateway, then called them to place an order. The salesperson was so helpful.... she convinced me to spend a few bucks LESS and get a similarly equipped Centrino versus the P4 based on what I told her we'd be using it for. We also splurged an extra $50 or so for the larger battery. I don't care if they have some secret pricing scam that nets them more profit on the Centrinos or whatever.... this lady spent an hour with me on the phone & was truly helpful. I asked a lot of questions and she was patient & kind the whole time.
Anyway, after reading the article, I was a little shocked. I really average 4 hrs or so before having to plug in. Last weekend, the kids watched a 2 hr DVD and it still had plenty of juice left when we got home. Plus, unlike my sister's Dell, I rarely notice any heat while using it on my lap. Nice.
The built in speakers can hardly play loud enough to watch a movie in the car, and the headphone jacks don't work well either. That's my only (complaint). This thing is paper thin & light, and made me a laptop believer.
