? about laptops

H

hookem2102

250+ Posts
I'm in the market for a laptop and was looking for any advice y'all can provide.
Prolly need a pc, been looking at dells but I am open to others.

My limit is about $2,000 and I want about a 16-17 in screen.

thanks in advance

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go to consumer reports.

and then go to any number of the bargain-hunting tech websites (pcbargains, e.g.).

if you can afford that much, i'd go with a thinkpad.
 
Sony Vaio has huge screened laptops. Just remember the bigger the screen the less battery life you will get before needing recharge.

For Dell Deals this site seems to always have a different special on laptops: The Link
 
I have a pretty new Dell laptop (about 4 months old). I hate it. I've used Dells and Thinkpads at past jobs, and would definitely recommend a Thinkpad if you can afford it.

If you're a TexasEx (or current student), I'd check with UT to see if they'll let you take advantage of the deals they have (I know they have a deal with Dell).
 
What do you hate about it? I've been using this machine I am typing now on, a cheapo dell inspiron 1100 for 8 months now without issue. The only complaint is it doesn't have a serial port and I had to buy a usb to serial adapter.(to console to switches) computers are pretty much a commodity nowadays.

I prefer the touchpad with the features turned off to the ibm nipple thingy. Vaio have the biggest screens I've seen on a laptop though.
 
I really liked the Vaio's from just browsing the internet today, but the website is a lot harder to decifer than say Dell or Copmaq. Consumer Reports didn't seem to reccomend the thinkpads too highly.

Keep the suggestions coming right now I'm thinking;

1.Vaio
2.Dell
3.thinkpad
 
not considering apple? highly intuitive, great and accessible warranty, easily integrates with PCs.

and it's pretty.
 
I hate my Dell because pieces keep falling off (I'm not the only one; many people in my graduate program have had the same problem).

Also, I actually have 2 dell laptops; one is a Latitude CPx from about 5 years ago, and the one I'm on now is a Latitude D600. Both of them have had keyboard issues - the CPx has this thing where the column with "I" in it doesn't work (I got that machine from a company I used to work for - several of us had that same row of keys go bad, but I was too lazy to fix mine before the warranty ran out). On the new one, the "L" key occasionally goes out; I've got the 3 year service plan, so I'll get this fixed eventually.

So really, I only hate the Dells because of inconveniences which I never had with my IBM. I had the T40, I think, which was really nice - the only plus of that job. It had the red nipple thing which I prefer to Dell's blue nipple thing, though both work fine for me.
 
I had a DELL that was a piece of junk. It rarely left the house yet pieces started falling off.

Meanwhile I take a Thinkpad on the road constantly and it has held up well. Thinkpad's end up being so much cheaper.
 
just remember the laptop carrying cases are for carrying, not protection. Set it down carefully always if possible and any laptop should last you for years. It only takes a few drops to screw up any laptop.

I've used Dells on the road too. My current job has had me traveling all over the Dallas area daily to multiple stops where my Dell computer is my main tool. I treat them like fragile technology equipment and they last.
 
The Sony A270 is nice. My brother has the A190 (now the A290) with the 17" widescreen and also comes with Sony's entertainment dock. It is awesome, but I think I would go with the 15.4" Vaio model just because the 17" is an awkward size.
As far as Dell's, I personally would look at buying the D600, D800, or XPS if you have the money. The few Inspirons that I have worked on just aren't at the level of their Latitude laptops in my opinion.
 
i am on the brink of buying a dell 700m... they have smaller screens but are incredibly lightweight, very nice laptops. as someone else mentioned, battery life will be a concern with a larger scren, not to mention a 17" screen latop would be pretty damned big.
 
700m's are very nice. I've been using one as my main computer for 9 months and haven't had any problems. It was an annoyance moving from a 21 in CRT at the beginning, but after a while, you just don't mind the small screen anymore. Just get the 8 cell battery. The 4 cell has abysmal battery life.

Only problem is if you have fat fingers. The cutdown keyboard really plays havoc those people.

Dell's new OEM, the company that make their laptops, is a lot better the old one. They did the work for all the new model computers, including the 600m, 6000, 9300, and XPS gen 2. No real build issues, and everything is pretty solid. Only build issue is that the keys on the touchpad rattle a little and aren't as solid as I would like.
 
Midrange Dells = pretty solid buy
High End Dells = pretty good buy
Low end Dells = I don't recommend

Toshibas low mid and high = all are good computers, all are going to cost you more

eMachines = total pieces of ****, do not buy

Apple powerbooks = more expensive than comparable PC's, but actually very good machines that are easy to maintain

Don't look at just Consumer reports. Look at CNET reviews too, they do consumer electronics all the time. They will have some more and some better information and comparisons. The only problem with CNET is that they are a higher class of user and may recommend things based on expectations that are a little higher than your average consumer.

Decide what type of user you are and buy the best computer for that. Don't buy **** you don't need, but do plan on something that will have the power to do what you want for a few years.
 
i wouldnt take any laptop anywhere over mine...g4 powerbook 17" with 1gb of ram and 100gb storage and 1.67 ghz processor...
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a friend of mine has the 700m. he likes it but i hate the keyboard. i don't even have fat fingers and it is hard to type on. he does have a desktop that he also uses.

i had a compaq 2100 series laptop. it was fast, 1.86GHz amd. i got a great deal on it. but it was a bit too heavy and battery life was bad. i sold it on ebay before it got too slow.

i just bought a gateway M320X. i upgraded to 80 gig HD and the dvd burner. it is awesome. battery life is amazing. it is 5.5 pounds and 15" screen. it has a 1.7GHz intel celeron and flys. definitely loving it.

i only bought/considered a gateway b/c a friend of mine got one in the summer and it worked great and i liked the way it looked and felt.


Texas97
 
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