From: Bragging, Personal, Technology By Bevans on Friday, July 13, 2007

I'm really excited. I just ordered a new laptop.

"But Bevans," you may say, "you're broke as fuck. How can you afford a $2,600 laptop?" The answer: student loans. No, really. Now that I'll be attending Brown College (starting next week) I need a laptop, because they require them there. So everything works out: I fulfill a requirement AND get a kick-ass laptop.

I got the best one that I could find for $2,600. I chose Dell, because they seem to make great laptops, and also because they seem to be the only ones selling laptops powerful enough for my needs (besides people like Alienware and Voodoo, who happen to sell them for crazy prices).

I'm really glad I'm in a Graphic Design program, because that means that I can satisfy both my professional and leisure needs with one machine without having to give one or the other precedence. It'll process large graphics and high-res video AND make my games look amazing with high framerates.

So here are the stats. They're not the best that Dell had to offer, but for $2,600, they're pretty good.

• Model: XPS M1710 (Black)
• Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T7400 (2.16GHz/667MHz/4MB)
• Memory: 2GB DDR2 SDRAM 677MHZ
• Video Card: 256MB NVIDIA GeForce Go 7900
• Screen: 17 inch UltraSharp TrueLife Wide-screen WUXGA
• Hard Drive: 80GB 7200RPM SATA (I know this is kinda small, but I intend to upgrade it later)
• Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium Edition
• Other: 8X DVD+/-RW, Built-in Bluetooth, Wireless ethernet, etc.

Now, the hardest part will be waiting for it. It isn't set to arrive until about the 30th.

UPDATE: Now it's looking like it'll be here by the 25th. Woot.