Replies to post #42824 on Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD)

[DARBES]

The 3700+ models have strained sillycone 130 nm parts.

[mmoy]

what negatives have you come across after having used them for a while?

The disks could be quieter and faster though most notebook
vendors give you a 4200 RPM model by default. But you can always
replace the drive yourself.

Other than that it's very hard to find fault with this machine.
It's fast, reliable, a few of us have multiple operating systems,
the display is great and it runs cool.

I think that this machine was and still is an absolute bargain.

I think that it does help to be technically able if you're
going to try some of the stuff that some of the folks here have
with their mods.

[CombJelly]

"what negatives have you come across after having used them for a while?"

I, like some of the others, have a Compaq R3000z, which is Compaqs version of the zv5000z.

As mmoy notes, the drives could be better. I swapped mine for a 5400 rpm Toshiba, that solved my problem. Other than that, the power connector comes unplugged pretty easily. Linux installed pretty easily, but there is a lot of modifying several config files to get everything operational. The touchpad can be a little dodgy, I use an USB mouse. When gaming, sometimes a key "sticks". That can be exciting when playing a shooter. That seems to be a keyboard thing, it happens under both XP and Linux. And yes, I have StickyKeys turned off...

I got my unit pretty stripped down, I splurged on the A64 3000+, GeForce 440, 802.11 and the 12 cell battery. With 256 meg. of additional RAM, the hard drive and a 2.5" IDE to USB converter so I can use the original drive as an external, I paid right at $1100 total. I certainly recommend it...