Question about Q35 versions

Hello everyone! I'm currently rather torn between the Asus U1F and the Samsung Q35. While researching the Q35, I've come up with a few questions I hope someone here would be able to answer:

1. Strangely enough, the older windows xp model (NP-Q35T002) is more expensive then the newer Vista model (NP-Q35C005), even though specs are identical as can be seen here: here. The windows xp model is also referred to in stores as the "Q35 Pro" edition. Does anyone know why the newer models are much cheaper? Could Samsung be using cheaper components for the new models (which also might be why newer models seem to have worse battery life as John Ratsey mentioned)? Which version do you recommend I go with?

2. Which models have a glossy finish? Is it only the new red version, or also the new silver version and maybe other older models?

3. Has anyone here purchased a Vista model Q35 yet and how is battery life on those?

Thanks!

 

1. Samsung seems to be selling the XP version for a premium price. I don't know whether they get any incentive from Microsoft for shifting models with Vista or maybe they think that only business users will buy the XP version and assume that they don't look at the price.

You seem to have too much choice in Austria. In UK we have only 3 versions to choose from:

A. Silver, T5200 + Vista + 100GB = £749.99 (version only sold by one major electronics chain)

B. Red, with T5600 + Vista + 160GB ~£825 (version sold by many retailers)

C. Silver, with T7200 + XP Pro + 160GB ~£980 (version sold by many retailers)

I do not believe that Samsung are using different materials. Worse battery life is probably explained by (i) the supplied battery was originally 4800mAH but is now 4400mAH and (i) the Core 2 CPUs tend to use more power.

2. Only the red Q35 has the glossy finish and this is only on the cover. The finish seems to be a hard lacquer. Although it will collect minor scratches, I expect it will look better after a year or two than the silver paint. It is unclear which Q35s have what colour keyboard. My Q35 has a black keyboard but I heard of newer and older Q35s having a silver keyboard. I think the black looks better and there is no silver paint to wear off.

3. Comments on a Vista Q35 are in this thread. I suspect there is potential to turn off Vista's power-hungry features and get battery life back up towards the XP value. I recently discovered that enabling FlashBlock in FireFox made a significant reduction in CPU activity when FF was open with some flash-enabled sites, even if off-line.

I would be very tempted by the Samsung Q35-T2250 Ceron (NP-Q35C006) if XP Home and 80GB is OK. This is probably the least power-hungry CPU and will still give very good performance. It is significantly less expensive than the cheapest of the UK Q35s and comes with 2 years warranty.

John

 

Thanks a lot for the info!

Maybe the difference in battery life might also be found in the types of disk drives used. Power draw can vary quite a bit between different HD models, especially comparing single versus multiple platter designs. Maybe the newer Q35 laptops with 100-160gb HD space utilize HDs that draw more power.
I wonder if there's any information available on the brands and models of HDs that the various different Q35 models use.

PS - I'm so gonna buy one of those Sandisk SSD's when they hit the streets

 

You can get an idea about HDD power consumption from the Tom's Hardware 2.5" HDD charts. 4200 PATA is the best for low power. SATA seems to use more power when idle. so much for progress.

Good capacity SSDs will cost big money because they need to have very fast flash memory. Normal flash memory as used in the USB flash drives is quite slow, particularly to write. Samsung's compromise solution, a HDD with 256MB of RAM, is imminent. Technical details are here, but nothing about pricing.

I previously omitted to comment on the Asus U1F. It is much smaller than the Q35 and it's nearest equivalent in the Samsung range is the Q40. This has a separate ODD, a lower power CPU and, in the UK, comes with both 3 cell and 6 cell batteries.

John

PS: I see the same site is listing the Q45. (Intel Core 2 Duo T7100 1,80GHz, 2GB RAM, 160GB HDD ~Euro 1500, but availability 4 to 6 weeks.

 

Newegg's selling the Samsung SSD now for 488 USD, which is very promising given the very strong Euro. I think I'll probably buy a 32 gb ssd as soon as it drops below 400 USD.

I'm not too sure about the Q45, I'm not convinced Santa Rosa will really offer that much of an improved battery life.

 

I would be pleasantly surprised if the Q45 gives better battery life than the Q35. Maybe if they clock down the whole FSB and get the CPU and chipset running at half speed.

Perhaps we will see the Q45 sitting alongside the Q35 and give the purchasers the choice of performance or battery life, but not both. I keep dropping hints that a lower voltage CPU would be a good upgrade for the Q35 and probably put another hour back on the battery life.

John

 

I totally agree! Add a Core Duo ULV U2500 or Core 2 Duo ULV U7600 and restore the original higher grade battery and this thing should be able to reach 7 hours at a pretty amazing pricepoint.

Samsung are you listening?

 

I would be happy to compromise on the power/ performance and have something like the L7400 (1.5GHz) which draws around half the power of the T series. That CPU has been listed by Intel for several months but is quite rare. Taking a couple of watts off the CPU power drain will put another hour on the battery time.

John