Notebook Purchasing Guide:
Recommendations for Second Quarter 2011-2012

Recognizing that there are a variety of notebooks which meet different needs, this Information Systems & Computing (ISC) purchasing guide presents three alternative configurations.

Mid-Weight Notebook

These notebooks are generally used as a primary system or desktop replacement, with a need to have most drives on board. They tend to weigh between four and seven pounds and have medium-sized (14.0-inch to 15.6-inch) screens. In performance and capability, they tend to be relatively close to last year's desktop recommendations. Examples of such notebooks are the Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch, the Dell Latitude E6420, the Dell Latitude E6520, the Lenovo ThinkPad T420, the Lenovo ThinkPad T420s, and the Lenovo ThinkPad T520.

These notebooks represent the center of the portable market and are designed to be a good match for most user's needs. They have good connectivity, speed, and mobility, but are not the best in any of these areas.

Notes: this specification does not apply to extremely large portable systems sometimes called desknotes. Desknotes generally are not useable as notebooks - they are too large and have too little battery life. ISC has developed a separate set of desknote recommendations.

Lightweight Notebook

These notebooks, sometimes called sub-notebooks, tend to weigh two to five pounds and have small (11.6-inch to 13.3-inch) screens. In performance, they tend to be relatively close to last year's desktop recommendations, but contain fewer features. Examples of such notebooks are the Apple MacBook Air, Apple MacBook Pro 13-inch, the Dell Latitude E6220, the Dell Latitude E6320, the Lenovo ThinkPad X220, and the Toshiba Portégé R830.

Notes: some lightweight notebooks are Tablet PCs - in other words, they support the pen-based supersets of Windows 7 and Windows Vista. ISC sees Tablet PCs as a technology suited for niche markets. Please see ISC's Tablet Purchasing Guide for more information.

Peripheral notes: media slices and port replicators are not included in this pricing - they can be expected to increase the estimated price by these amounts:

• Media slices: $100 - $200
• Port replicators: $150 - $200

Value Notebook

This specification is intended as a complement to the recommendations for desktop systems in ISC's Value Desktop Purchasing Guide. These notebooks tend to weigh three to six pounds and have small to medium sized (11.6-inch to 14.1-inch) screens. In performance, they tend to lag behind last year's desktop recommendations and contain fewer features. Examples of such notebooks are the Apple MacBook, the Apple MacBook Air 11.6-inch (in its lower priced versions), the Dell Latitude E6320 (in its lower priced versions), the Dell Latitude E5420, the Dell Latitude E6420 (in its lower priced versions), and the Lenovo ThinkPad T420 (in its lower priced versions).

Low Cost Notebooks – Not Recommended for Most Users

Price reductions resulting from market competition and continued technical innovation make the definition of "Low Cost Notebooks" a moving target. It is generally true, however, that notebooks priced in the bottom 30% of the current range (currently ranging from $500 to $900) compromise some combination of performance, reliability, compatibility, or expandability to achieve the lowest possible costs. Compatibility with recommended network products is a particularly important consideration at Penn, as is a three year warranty.

Bearing in mind that you get what you pay for, and that the costs associated with supporting these systems significantly outweigh the actual purchase price, ISC recommends that low cost notebooks not be purchased for general use. Users with modest needs may choose to investigate netbooks, but should be mindful of their significant limitations.

General Notebook Observations

Estimated prices for these notebooks include three year service plans from the manufacturers, which ISC strongly recommends. Note that the three year warranty is an extra cost for some notebooks (including those from Apple) and that this cost is reflected in the estimated price.

Pricing is generated using the online configurators available from Dell, Apple, and Lenovo and is for general reference only. Support providers will often be able to generate more competitive pricing using various means, such as purchasing components (RAM, etc.) separately and taking advantage of vendor bundles and rebates.

These specifications are sometimes revised in mid-quarter when major changes in configurations from Apple, Dell, and Lenovo generally become available. When this happens, the relevant notebook category has the revision date highlighted in red and both operating system categories are repriced.

Other than some differences in peripherals, support for notebook systems is generally similar to support for desktop systems.

ISC has had good experiences with enterprise class systems from notebook manufacturers such as Apple, Dell, Lenovo, and Toshiba.

Operating Systems

Windows 7 (32-bit and 64-bit Professional, Ultimate, and Enterprise editions) is supported and recommended for new systems. ISC does not recommend, but will support the 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows 7 Home Premium. Home Premium lacks important networking, security, and compatibility features, such as domain-based authentication, that are essential to many Schools and Centers in the University. Note that, unlike Windows Vista's Business edition, Windows 7 Professional includes all the multimedia features present in Windows 7 Home Premium, and is therefore recommended as an alternative to Home Premium. ISC does not recommend and will not support any version of Windows 7 Starter or Windows 7 Home Basic. Starter and Home Basic lack many important networking, maintenance, and security features that are critical to many Schools and Centers at the University.

Windows Vista Service Pack 2 (Business, Enterprise, and Ultimate editions) is supported for new systems. ISC does not recommend, but will support Windows Vista Home Premium. Windows Vista Home Premium is missing important networking and security features, such as domain-based authentication, that are essential to many Schools and Centers in the University. ISC will not support Windows Vista Home Basic or Windows Vista Starter. Windows Vista Home Basic and Windows Vista Starter are missing many important networking, maintenance, and security features that are critical to many Schools and Centers at the University.

Mac OS 10.7.x is the only supported and recommended choice for new Macintosh systems, as Apple's newly released systems always require the latest version of Mac OS.

Apple's Boot Camp technology offers added flexibility for users who need to occasionally use Windows 7 or Windows Vista Service Pack 2. It should not be used to turn a Macintosh into a full time Windows system. Boot Camp also requires that both the Windows and the Mac OS operating systems be patched and maintained.

Other Resources

If your school or center is considering a notebook purchase, ISC strongly recommends a consultation to weigh pros and cons in today's rapidly changing environment (contact John Mulhern III in ISC, mulhernj@isc.upenn.edu; 573-3567).

Notebook computer change history

Desktop Recommendations