Best laptop I've ever used

Author's Rating:

Pros: fast, stable, affordable

Cons: needs some upgrades after you buy it

Author's Review
The university I attend gave each person in my freshmen class one of these babies. I've never been more satisfied with any computer I've ever used.
Configuration
Ok, when i got it I wasn't too sure- Complaq loaded it up with a lot of their own pre-installed software, such as hardware management and security software, that made bootup very slow. Also, this model comes with a choice between Windows 98 and Windows NT/2000. PLEASE go with Windows 2000... Windows 98 seemed to run very poorly on it, and the first thing i did was upgrade. The result? 2 system freezes/crashes in 1 month of daily use. Very stable, no problems/hardware conflicts at all. They are completely Windows 2000 supported by Compaq, and it is easy to find the updated drivers you want/need on their site. Not all of their startup software is necessary, some is. The Intel Speedstep support, for example does an excellent job of automatically conserving battery power by lowering processor usage when the computer is on battery power. The time I get out of the battery is usually about 4 hours, and that is with constant use, playing music and running lots of graphics, etc. Another option I highly recommend is a RAM upgrade. For some reason, these high performance computers ship with only 64 MB of RAM, minimal by todays standards. Crucial.com seems to have the best price, i got another 64MB from them for $85 including shipping. This was a huge perfermance increase.
Portability
A lot of pro reviews of laptops focus in on weight as one of their main factors. I have not carried very many laptops around, but this is lighter than any of my textbooks. No problem at all carrying it around in y backpack. Battery life is pretty good, the 4 hours i get can probably be extended by not playing music and running Photoshop.
Performance
The E500 is pretty damn fast by any standards. The one i have has the Intel PIII 650, I think they now come with the PIII 700. Damn fast. 3D rendering, photo editing, multitasking, all no problem at all. Pre-installed was a DVD player and AGP 2X graphics with 8MB of video ram, enough for smooth DVD playback and video editing requirements. It will run some pretty serious apps without any signs of instability or slowing down. Performance is about the same as a desktop with the same specs.
Price
Very competitive. Just compare it to the competing models from dell and Sony.

All in all, I think it is the best buy as a mid-high range laptop for heavy home or business use.