Preserved Topic: Building a Laptop (Page 1 of 1)

I need a new laptop, but I don't want to buy a pre-packaged one. I want to build it from scratch so I can be super-precise on what I'm getting..

Thing is, I've no idea where to buy laptop parts- I don't think that there is any place *to* buy them here in Puerto Rico, so I look to the 'net..

I plan to make a compile/graphic design box (running RedHat), with some video-editting capabilities and a good amount of hard drive space (I go thru it like water). Ironically, I want it small enough to be uber-portable, but large enough to have a good size screen...

I also want to throw an AMD Athlon processor in there and good batery life..

You know anyplace on the net (or in Puerto Rico) where I can buy good laptop ingredients cheaply?

Any advice on what to get?


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well, as far as I'm aware 'laptopt-from-parts' is just not available for end-consumers.

What you might be able to get is a bare-bones system. that's mostly a case, a board (maybe cpu),battery and a display. the board might or might not have ram on board, it will have all the usual laptop stuff (ie. vga, audio, usb, power).
You then buy the rest (hd, cdrom, more ram, eventually cpu), and voila. complete notebook. Don't ask me where to get them though.

And make sure to get a 'mobile' processor. The desktop ones suck much more power (less time running on battery) and develop more heat (always a problem in laptops.)

So long,

Tyberius Prime

wow, youll need a lot of money. cause laptop parts are kinda expensive when bought "solo".

I'd suggest you go to Dell.com and choose the configuration of your ideal laptop.

It'll probably end up costing a few thousand if you keep selecting the highest denominator when it comes to components, but that'll still be a heap cheaper than building your own (which no one does by the way - it takes a lot for the manufacturers to squeeze what they do into the space...)

Pete

Whatever you do, get waterproof parts this time.

I agree with sonicsnail. A lot of thought and time goes into placing everything "just right" in a laptop. A friend of mine built a Laptop "from scratch" and said that its a lot of "guess and check" as far as placing all the parts go, and letting air flow through it!

If your going for a mid-sized one though, you could probably buy all the parts off the internet with minimal searching, although, if you can, try to stick a desktop processer in there! I know it sounds absurd at first, but it makes a REAL diffrence (well...from someone elses experience, i guess). Alienware puts a desktop processer in their laptops.

I think that your best bet would be to start with a bare-bones system, as buying everything individually is a hell'a'lot of money.

Well, consumer support for this kind of thing is really sketchy right now becuase of the difficulties inherent in building a laptop. All laptop mainboards are usualy engineered specifically for the intended market by the respective manufacturers.

Also, there is no set standard for laptop chassis or components. For PC, the ATX form factor is the standard.

Now, you may be able to find a chassis/mainboard configuration for sale, however, it's gonna be very hard. You'll have to check carefully the mainboard specs as well as supported hardware.

Oh, and I'm betting the most expensive parts will be the chassis, the mainboard, and the screen.