17 inch laptop -- when?

Question

I've had good luck with Dell products; It's time to replace my old IBM laptop. I'm wondering if Dell is going to offer a notebook with a 17 inch screen anytime soon?

CSmith06 · Answer

Why?! They're so huge. I hope they go back to the old 15 in. screens over these 15.4 in. ones. I wouldn't have a problem if Dell made a 17 in. notebook for multimedia use or the like as long as it isn't considered their 'top-of-the-line' laptop (the flagship).

.Gore · Answer

I would also love to get my hands on a 17' notebook. If I dont see anything from dell within next month. I might consider Toshiba or Fujitsu or  recetly intoduced Acer Aspire 1710 (weighing at 16lbs)

kormath · Answer

17 in laptop is too big.  Unless your a gamer the 17 in. wide display is useless since all the websites are set up at a 4:3 ratio  where the widescreens are 16:9.

.Gore · Answer

I'm a Software engineer and an avid gamer too. Ability to view multiple applications is very crucial. I dont believe 17' inch would be too much of concern in terms of the size.

5fc5e52801914a6 · Answer

Don't hold your breath on this one.  Dell is not going to sell a 17 inch anytime soon or  ever. Just my thoughts.  Go ahead and buy from someone that does.

godim · Answer

Acer Aspire 1710 (weighing at 16lbs). You call that portable?

I don't think dell is going to produce these notebooks as they still have a too small market share. At these sizes and weights they start to compete with mini PC's who are far more powefull, configurable and almost in the same weight class .

Also, if they were interested in doing so they should have introduced it in the XPS/9100 (which is allready big enough as it is).

Also protecting such a large screen will require a very strong, reinforced display or even the slightest force applied on top of the laptop when closed may break it. Quite some chalenges to overome...

For those who can' wait. As these things are not portable anyway and will only be used on a desk. Get a powerfull laptop or mini pc and a 17" LCD-dipslay seperately :-)

voipdude · Answer

The 17' laptops are way too big. We have a few of the new 15.4' laptops and I would definately prefer a 15'. Actually, when on the road, I prefer a 14'. Why would a gamer or a serious user be tinkering on a slow laptop when they can get a much faster desktop for same/less money anyways? Just my thoughts! Scott

RandyB · Answer

The Toshiba Sat P20 17' weighs in about the same as the new XPS/9100 15.4' - HT, 800MHZ, DVD writer, etc.  It would seem that every manufacturer except Dell has a 17' notebook available.

.Gore · Answer

You are right, Randy. Even Gateway has a better one. Gateway's M675XL boosts 17.1' WXGA+, 3.2Ghz, 1Gb Ram, DVD Writer, 80Gb 5400rpm and more just under 9lbs (which is even lighter than Inspiron XPS, 9100 series)  very tempting

godim · Answer

A 17 inch screen with only a poor XGA resolution (which is 1024 x 768 or little wider in widescreen). That must give a very poor quality and huge pixels! . One would expect such a large screen would enable WSXGA or even WUXGA resolutions without the fonts getting too small.

RandyB · Answer

A higher resolution would be nice; although, the new XGA widescreens aren't that bad. I've seen them and they're fairly crisp with wide viewing angles. Games and DVDs look really good. These screens are actually ideal for people with 'not so good' eyesight. I expect that higher resolution screens aren't that far off. I have an acer 17' LCD that I bought for playing games with my desktop system (14ms response time). It has a 1280X1024 res and since I wear reading glasses anyway (mostly), I've decreased the font size and the screen is VERY nice indeed!

.Gore · Answer

Gateway's notebook answers the questions raised here about the weight. I believe it is possible to achieve higher resolution without affecting the weight.

The resolution has to do with pixel density per sq inch and refresh time is important for flicker free viewing. XGA resolution sounds decent enough. I'm a professional developer and I rarely go above 1024x 768. ( that may be also due to the fact that I'm not growing younger )

indera · Answer

hello gore,

like you i really want a 17 inch and looked at the gateway. i forgot to check to see what the resolution was set to, but every was smaller than the 1024x768 that i have mine set to. i was wondering which LCD you were leaning towards buying.

thanks
indera

@.Gore wrote:

Gateway's notebook answers the questions raised here about the weight. I believe it is possible to achieve higher resolution without affecting the weight.

The resolution has to do with pixel density per sq inch and refresh time is important for flicker free viewing. XGA resolution sounds decent enough. I'm a professional developer and I rarely go above 1024x 768. ( that may be also due to the fact that I'm not growing younger )

.Gore · Answer

Indera,

I have been doing a lot of research latelly on LCDs and various options available. Though I would like a 17" display, I dont see an UXGA quality display coming any time soon from Dell or anyone else. Dell is already having lots of issues with existing 15.4" displays(read dell - inspiron-video forum or those at www.talknotebooks.com ) . And until they resolve those, I dont see Dell introducing any new ones.

Other impressive displays were XBrite from Sony on their GRT series or CrystalView from Fujitsu on N5000 Series. But Sony is too expensive and carries lower speed hard drive/memory. Fujitsu does not have much customization options available. Overall, I am still thinking about what road to take.

Ideally, I would like Sony GRT series Xbrite Display with Acer Aspire 1710 configuration backed by Dell Support at Sager price while still weighing under 10lbs. tough customer, eh?

indera · Answer

Gore,

You know much more about LCD panels than I do, or probably want to know (smile).
Besides Dell, the only other companies that I would consider is Gateway and IBM (but they don't have a 17 inch). I checked Gateway's 17 inch specs and all I could find out is that it's 1440x900. I don't think that is UXGA.

I have quirks about brands that I buy. I like to buy certain items from companies that are known for being in that line of business. So, companies like Sony and Fujitsu don't meet that requirement for me. It's like going to Walmart for to buy diamonds. Yes, they sell them, but . . . I hope this makes sense.

I will check out the web site you listed.

Thank you
Indera

.Gore wrote:

Indera,

I have been doing a lot of research latelly on LCDs and various options available. Though I would like a 17" display, I dont see an UXGA quality display coming any time soon from Dell or anyone else. Dell is already having lots of issues with existing 15.4" displays(read dell - inspiron-video forum or those at www.talknotebooks.com ) . And until they resolve those, I dont see Dell introducing any new ones.

Other impressive displays were XBrite from Sony on their GRT series or CrystalView from Fujitsu on N5000 Series. But Sony is too expensive and carries lower speed hard drive/memory. Fujitsu does not have much customization options available. Overall, I am still thinking about what road to take.

Ideally, I would like Sony GRT series Xbrite Display with Acer Aspire 1710 configuration backed by Dell Support at Sager price while still weighing under 10lbs. tough customer, eh?

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17 inch laptop -- when?

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