Small Laptops

[Greetings]

Sorry for spamming the forum with another "what laptop" question but this time it's a bit different.

I need a laptop, been looking at the Acer TravelMate series with a 12" screen. Went to have a look at one live today but they must not have treated me seriously since they didn't want to switch it on so I could have a look. The cheapest ones with a Core 2 Duo processor are about 600 pounds but I thought of spending an extra 300 which would allow me to get one more powerful than my desktop pc. Then I could replace my desktop with a laptop and just connect the keyboard, mouse and monitors to it.

So, I'm sure some of you will have come across a very small laptop like that. Are there any downsides of it's size, like it being difficult to write documents on, make presentations or use graphic and video applications? (screen res is 1200x800) Also, is the performance of a laptop lower than that of a desktop computer with the same spec? And finally, what are the graphics cards on these things like? The laptop I'd probably be getting has an Intel X3100 card which takes memory from RAM if it is needed. Will that be ok for games like NFS Carbon, C&C Tiberium Wars? Don't really play games but it would be nice if they worked, could come in handy during long journeys.

Also, how does one sync data between a laptop and desktop PC? Can it be done through USB or does one have to use LAN? Are there any sync programs for laptops?

here's the exact model in case any of you have worked on one and can give an opinion on them

Any help would be appreciated

[Tomm]

Have a look at the Asus eeePC - it's exceedingly small, looks cool, and it's dirt cheap (<£200). Obviously it's not a desktop replacement, but it does make a nice toy.

I really like my 12" Powerbook - maybe have a look for a second hand one? Should be <£400 really.

As for syncing, I use Microsoft Synctoy. Use it over the network, or whatever. You can't just share via USB, but you can with Firewire, obviously only if both computers have it.

Also, is the performance of a laptop lower than that of a desktop computer with the same spec?

Yes. Not massively, but notebook hard drives are slower, and a few other reasons which escape me.

[Greetings]

Nah, been using a PDA so far but it's just not practical. Putting aside doing projects and writing documents on it, I need a laptop that will easily cope with editing HDV which is why it needs to have at least 2gb of RAM and a very powerful cpu. Not really looking for a gadget.

A mac would be good, but I've never had one and don't want one. I can see it being more of a problem for an unexperienced user than a beneficial choice.

[Tomm]

I wouldn't want to edit HDV on mine but no problems here whatsoever. Only retards can't use a mac (P.S. Before anyone thinks about quoting & editing that, don't, I already thought about it).

It is a pretty big ask to get a computer that is small and light but can still cope with HDV editing.

[poopipe]

you'll really get hit by the disk speeds on the laptop with video editing. I'd spend the money on making your desktop faster if you want to do that sort of thing more than once a year

[Greetings]

you'll really get hit by the disk speeds on the laptop with video editing. I'd spend the money on making your desktop faster if you want to do that sort of thing more than once a year

As bad as that? 30MB/s is more than enough, surely that's not a lot by todays standards?

[ZeroMatt]

There is no way you gonna get c&c tiberium wars to run on that, will just about run wow and thats a bit of a joke graphically.