Camera Labs

When it comes to making choices it takes me forever but I have been hung up on this choice for way to long... I'm still looking for a small notebook/laptop which is very portable. It will be used exclusively for photography on trips and multiday outings to give a quick look at the pics taken that day in the hotel/tent or where ever. Of course it will also be used for some web brousing while on the road and lastly as something I can take with me to show friends/family and others my pics. And also as a 4rth backup for all my pics. I dont foresee doing heavy photo editing on it.

I'm really at a loss for what size/make as I do want it to be portable and also somewhat rugged with the best screen quality available. I just dont know if something with a 10.1" screen will be big enough or if I should go with something in the 13" range.... just looking for opinions from others on this as I'm at my witts end with this decissions.

Lastly I'm not worried about the cost but would prefer it to be under $1000.00. That being said if there is a great one out there for more I would definately look at it.

Thanks for any suggestions you may have

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

If you want to load the software that came with your camera, stay clear of netbooks. The software that came with my 450D refused to load on my Toshiba NB100. It has an 8.9" screen.

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Cheers,
Henry (onlinedrifter)

Cameras: Canon EOS 450D with Battery Grip | Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ10
Lenses: EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS | EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS | EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM
Flash: Canon Speedlite 580EX II

The only stupid question is the question that is not asked.

I'm actually looking at 2 right now...

Acer

Alienwear

I'm leaning towards the Acer seeing the processers are the same and it's a few hundred dollars cheaper than the alienwear.

I'm pretty computer illiterate though so no idea if there is a big diffference between the 2 in others ways that I'm not aware of.

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

There's quite a big difference actually. The alienware's made for gaming, which means it has a fast processor, and a fast graphics card. It also means it will suck through it's battery pretty quickly.

The other one has an SU processor running at 1.3 GHZ. That's not too fast to begin with, and it being an ultralow voltage model means it will be slower.

I've taken a look at Dell's offerings (I like Dell, I bought my laptop from them), and a good option for you would be the 11z model.

I configured it for your needs and got a 514$ pricing. I tried to export the options I chose as a PDF, but the whole thing crashed.

From memory, the options I changed were:

Battery (take the 58Wh one)
Processor (take the one with 2 MB cache)
Operating system (take the Windows 7 Home Premium)
Harddrive: I selected the 250 GB, which should be more than enough for your RAW photos.

That should enable you to do some nice photo viewing, and actually some on-the-spot editing, whilst still lasting long. Beware that you need a Wifi hotspot to be able to use the internet (or a wireless accespoint at home). If you need internet everywhere, you may want to look into the AT&T deals (you can also select those when configuring the laptop).

The screen on the 11z is also very nice. reasonable res, nice aspect ratio, and LED backlit (won't wear out as fast and more energy-efficient).

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I take pictures so quickly, my highschool was "Continuous High".

thanks Citruspers!

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

My first laptop was an Acer and I gotta say I was quite happy with it.
Put alot of miles/hrs on it before it died,certainly got my moneys worth out of it.

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Pentax K-5
Pentax 18-55mm,Pentax 50-200mm,Sigma 17-70mm,Sigma 70-300mm, Sigma 50-500mm

thanks for the input kpr.. I really wanna get something before I go on my whale outing in 4 weeks.

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

Actually the Alienware has a very weak processor, all your money is going into the GPU which is a standout feature in it's class but I think Alienware sacrificed CPU power for price and battery concerns. Unless you're going to game as well, I don't think there's much point in getting one cos it also uses the SU processors.

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Graham
Flickr

Multiday outings, backup and photo preview.

This translates to high battery capacity, reliable hard drive and a good screen.

I would recommend you buy a 500Gb Lacie rugged external hard drive for backup:



About 150$ 250 Grams

For power I recommend a Brunton Solar charger. This will power your camera, laptop, phone, mp3, etc. out in the wild:



Brunton Solaris 26 is about 280$ 955 Grams

Finally, the laptop which has to be lightweight and have a good screen.

What makes a good screen?
-Large view angle.
-Large contrast ratio.
-Preferably LED backlight so you don't need to wait for screen warmup.
-More resolution is better.
-Not reflective.

I think the SAMSUNG N150 is pretty good. It claims that it's screen is non reflective even when light is directly infront of it, it's LED backlit, it's lightweight and claims a 8.5 hours battery life.


Cons: 1024x600 10.1inch screen isin't exactly big and it's keyboard is pretty cramped.

It's about 420$ 1.24 Kg

Total Cost: About 850$.
Total Weight: 2.485Kg/5.48lbs

In my opinion this setup will give you the best weight, battery life and storage you'll be able to find. The only thing lacking here is the screen resolution but for checking focus and displaying pics it should be fine.

This is a netbook so don't expect loading photoshop on it and doing photo editing.
They are other laptops i've found that have a much better screen for under 999$ and can run photoshop but their battery life is mediocre and they weigh a lot more. For example the vaio F series and the lenovo Thinkpad T series.
I recommend you have a look at them just in case you fall in love.

Current (CCFL and LED) screens don't have warmups, that's only the big CRT screens (you know, those old, heavy ones).
The external harddrive isn't really neccesary, unless you're scared your laptop will be stolen and you lose your pictures.

IF you were to get an external harddrive, the lacie rugged is a good choice. Pro photog Chase Jarvis uses them.

Viewing angle isn't of much importance, unless you show the pictures to others at the same time. I'd presume the 11z has the same screen as my dell Inspiron, which has a pretty good viewing angle.
It's a glossy screen, which I like, because photos look more vidid on it. If you don't do color proofing, I see no need for a pro-grade matte screen (and especially not on a laptop).

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I take pictures so quickly, my highschool was "Continuous High".

Well LED screens are superior anyways as they don't dim over time.

thanks guys.. heading out this afternoon to check some of these out... Agun.. I already have the lacie and the solar panel so 2/3s of the way there.

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

well I got to look at the dell, Acer, samsung and a sony today side by side... to be honest I couldnt see a big difference with them at all which I was told was to be expected... one of the reps did bring along a HP Envy 13.1" Intel Core 2 Duo SL9400 1.86GHz which blew my mind as far as IQ is concerned but I just cant justify $2100.00 for what I will be using it for...

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

You should have a look at some lenovos. I heard some of them have some pretty nice screens.

we dont have a local supplier that I can find Agun.

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr