Be careful getting a laptop with a fast processor that is not built on the
Centrino technology. I have been reading lately that many new laptops with
processors over 1.0 GHz get extremely hot. There have even been several
reports of fires caused by overheating processors. My laptop has a 1.0 GHz
processor in it and it usually gets too hot to sit on my lap after a couple
of hours of being on. It has to fans to vent the heat, but they just cannot
keep up with the heat. You also want to check on how loud the vent fans are
on any notebook you look at. There's nothing like sitting around trying to
work in silence with a screaming fan in front of you.
As far as digital cameras go, I am on my second Kodak digital and have had
no problems with either. I have several friends that are also very
satisfied with their Kodak cameras. As Bill states, the optical zoom and
resolution are what you want to focus on. Several cameras promote special
features that you'll never use. Another item that you want to look into is
the type of media the photos are saved on. Compact Flash seems to be the
least expensive right now and is very dependable. IMHO, stay away from Sony
products that use Memory Stik media. These Memory Stiks are only compatible
with Sony devices. All of my electronic devices take compact flash cards,
so I can swap them across units easily. Once you decide on a model, shop
around. Ebay is a good place to look for digital cameras. Just make sure
that the camera has a US warranty. Alot of camera shops out of NY that sell
dirt cheap cameras are selling imports that are not warranted.
-Brian
-----Original Message-----
From:
az-geocaching-admin@listserv.azgeocaching.com
[
mailto:az-geocaching-admin@listserv.azgeocaching.com]On Behalf Of Bill
Sent: Wednesday, August 20, 2003 8:41 AM
To:
listserv@azgeocaching.com
Subject: Re: [Az-Geocaching] Gasoline in Prescott; recommendations for
laptop computers and digital cameras
With notebook computers, get the fastest P4 processor you can afford, 512
megs RAM, and a CDRW/DVD. Bigger is better in hard drives, so look for 40
gig minimum. Keep in mind that most of the wireless Internet companies will
start charging you a per minute charge as soon as you roam to analog, so
check the plan carefully.
With digital cameras, the two main factors are megapixals and the lens.
The more megapixals the better the pictures will be and the more you can
blow them up. I would suggest at least 4 megapixals. Camera salesmen will
talk about optical zoom and digital zoom. Forget digital zoom, because you
can do the same thing later on the computer. Look at optical zoom only.
Also, in my experience, the camera companies do better lenses than the
electronic companies now looking for a piece of the digital camera market.
Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Minolta, and some others have been making cameras for
a long time. You won't go wrong if you stick with them. By the way, I
teach digital photography (and computer science) at the college here, so I
have experience with a lot of different cameras. I also teach astronomy, so
if you decide you want to hook up your digital camera to a telescope, let me
know.
Bill in Willcox
----- Original Message -----
From: Ken Akerman
I need a new home computer, and I am thinking of getting a laptop with
wireless Internet access. Therefore, I can bring this computer with me
while traveling, look for caches in the places where I visit, and enter my
cache findings and travel bug movements a lot faster. I would also like to
use my computer for downloading digital photos. Does anyone have any
recommendations about the best laptop computer to buy? What requirements,
such as memory, processor speed, and hard drive space, should I get?
Also, I am also considering replacing my digital camera. The one I have
is not working well, and I never liked it much in the first place. I am
thinking of upgrading to something better, but I don't want to spend a lot
of money. Does anyone have a recommendation for a high-quality, affordable
digital camera?
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