Up until a couple of months ago, I’ve been coding at home either on my company laptop or my own PC. The problem is that neither are decent enough to do any kind of serious Development. I was constantly fighting the machines and grew increasingly frustrated with using sub-standard equipment. So I eventually decided enough is enough and broke the bank to buy myself a brand new Dev machine. To narrow down my search I did set the following criteria which the new system would have to meet: quad core with at least 6GB of RAM capable of running Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit and video editing applications. But to make my quest even more challenging, my main requirement is that it had to be a laptop! While a desktop usually represents a better option with more bang for your dollar, I am - for some reason - a lot more comfortable developing on a laptop. So after weeks of hunting down that elusive piece of equipment, I finally found the Holy Grail at Overclockers UK.

Here is the spec:

• Processor: Intel Quad Core i7
• Screen: 17” WSXGA 1920x1200 TFT
• Memory: 6GB DDR3 1066MHz Triple Channel RAM
• Primary Hard Drive: 2x Kingston SSDNow V Series 64GB in RAID 0 Configuration
• Secondary Hard Drive: 500GB 7200RPM
• Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 280M 1024MB
• Wireless LAN: 802.11a, 802.11b & 802.11g
• Ethernet LAN: 10/100
• Sound Controller: High Definition Audio
• Speakers: Stereo
• Expansion: 54mm ExpressCard Slot
• Camera: 2.0 Megapixel
• Connections: 4x USB 2.0, 1x HDMI, 1x DVI, 1x RJ-45, Microphone & Headphones
• Battery: 12-Cell Lithium-Ion
• Dimensions: 397mm x 298mm x 60mm
• Weight: Approx. 5.4kg

…and I haven’t looked back since. I can now happily focus on what I really love doing, that is programming software, without worrying any longer about whether my machine can cope or not. It can!!!