Which should I keep using?

[Deja Q]

A)
Dell P4 1.8GHz laptop; 1GB RAM; 209GB HD, CD-ROM, it overheats all the time

B)
Toshiba P3 850MHz laptop; 256MB RAM (would cost $200 to upgrade to 512MB); 20GB HD, DVD-ROM.


I use the laptop for webpage work, and starting to study programming and Visual Studio is slightly an oinker)

Thanks!

[Nite Owl]

1. I got a Targus Chill Mat

for Christmas and tried it on the laptop. Amazing difference. I think they are about $25 at Best Buy, maybe it's worth a try before spending the money on the Toshiba. If it doesn't work it can probably be returned too.

[mainegreen]

2. Had to vote A, even though Dells suck dude! The specs on B are terrible.

Especially if you intent to use VS.NET

[lpbk2713]

3. Think you can open up the case on (A)?

It might just need a good dusting out. A coat of dust acts just like a sheet of insulation and will cause components to overheat.

Don't try opening it up if it is under warranty or if it may be too difficult.

[hobbit709]

4. $200 for a memory upgrade

is about $125 too much.

[Deja Q]

9. I agree... And the prices in the stores and online freaked me out:

Because there isn't much of a demand, prices are high for PC100 SODIMMs. :eyes:

I thought only high demand meant high prices...

[hobbit709]

10. Here in Austin

There's at least 2 stores that sell used memory 256Meg PC-100 SODIMM for about $60 bucks. I've been buying used computer parts from them for years. I checked on Ebay and there's quite a bit of memory for sale.

[WhollyHeretic]

5. A. You could check the CMOS in that one and see if you can underclock it

[mainegreen]

6. Underclock? Bwahaha! I love it! Not something you hear every day!

:rofl:

[tkmorris]

7. Yeah, that struck me too

Underclocking = sacrilege. But it could work :)

[qnr]

8. A viable option. Me, I used to have powerful ones that overheated

often when I lived in Nevada or Oklahoma - My solution was to remove the cover, take a regular 6" clip on fan and clip it on to the case. Worked wonders (I did have to clean the machine more often, but OTHO, it was much easier to get to).