I’m thinking about buying a laptop but have no idea which one to get. It’s been over 4 years since the last time I bought a computer and I don’t know what processor, memory, HD, etc I should look at. It will be for personal/school use only. Let’s say between $1,500 and $2,000. Any recommendations?

 

There are a number good Dell systems available. And if you're using it for personal/school use, I (dare I say this) would even recommend getting a PowerBook G4.

 

Dell is a good way to go. Check with your school, sometimes they have programs with companies like Dell with discount programs.

 

You might want to look into something that has a Centrino processor, it is worth close to twice it's speed when you compare it to a regular Pentium processor, and it really gives you a good efficiency in energy. A Centrino 1.5 GHz should last about 4-5 hour on a healthy Li-ion battery.

I have a Vaio PCG-K25, and a Toshiba Satellite 1800 with upgrades, and my Toshiba is actually quicker than my stock Vaio. But not up to par with the software.

 

For PC notebooks, I think Toshiba is about the best value for money out there. IBM's are great too, but spendy. I'll also second the recommendation for a Mac if it suits you - their notebooks are some of the best. We have an iBook and a Powerbook at home, they are excellent computers.

 

if you're not very technical and expect reliable service or a bit hand-holding - ThinkPad

 

you just missed a huge deal at dell-- $750 off any laptop $1500 or more. Check www.slickdeals.net often as deals like may happen again soon.

 

I was thinking of creating a similiar thread a few days ago. My laptop is so old, it gives me error messages in old english: 'Ye olde laptop cannoth handle thy windows 3.1'

Anyways, I'm looking for something smaller/lighter than the 7.5lb good for nothing paper weight that I am using now. I really like the Sony Viao S260 (formally S150) and the HP dv1040. These are about 4-5lbs each and have widescreen monitors (the s260 is 13.3", dv1040 is 14"). I may even consider an Apple G4... but they are expensive.

IBM thinkpads are like the laptop version of BMWs... they are expensive and may not have as much speed, but are solid, have very build good quality, and good cust. service.

Dells are OK, I never liked thier LCD screens, weird yellowish hue. But if you get one I hope you can speak Hindi, your service calls will be answered by someone in India.

Sonys have the best LCDs IMO, but have horrible cust service. They are the most stylish, by far. I am biased towards Sony products... I even have the Sony card. If Sony made sliced bread, I'd buy that too.

Right now I own a Sager (www.sagernotebook.com). Its OK, lasted me 4+ years, but the battery life is less than 5 minutes. They are by far cheaper than any major brand.

So basically if you want style, go for Sony. Quality, IBM. Value, Dell. Something cheap, Sager. If you want to declare Windows-independence, Apple.

I want style, a small package, and good battery life. Thats why the Sony S260 is probably what I will get.

 

I bought a Dell Inspirion 8600 about 2 months ago. I upgraded to a 1.6 M processor, 60 gig HDD, and Win XP Pro. They gave me a free color printer and a Kodak 2.0 megapixel digital camera and also free shipping. I also got a $100 rebate. It came with a 15.4 XVGA screen which I think is a really nice size for a laptop. It will last about 4 hrs on battery power doing basic word processing, and surfing the net. The M processor keeps the same if not close to AC power processor speed when on battery power which is nice.

 

I got the wifey a Dell Inspiron 600m. She loves it.

 

What software do they come with? Do any of them have MS Office or is it extra?... Like I said, it's been a long time since I bought a computer and don't know what's standard now. My ex got me into using Linux and that's what I was running maybe 4, 5 years ago but we separated and I switched back to MS.

Thanks for your responses. I will check out all notebooks mentioned.

 

Don't pay M$ nothing ! (M$ didn't get one penny from me since like 95)
M$ Office is always extra AFAIK.
go to any small PC service shop and tell them you want *cheap* M$ Office.
Heck if you can't find it, pm me i'll send it to ya.

 

my laptop came bundled with Office Professional. (Word, Excel, etc)

 

My Vaio came with a 90-day trial version of Xp Office 2003 Standard I believe.

Didn't really matter to me, I already have a license for it, so I didn't need the trial. Just had to re-install and download all the updates with SP3

 

Just an FYI for anyone that's shopping, it's a common misconception that Centrino is a processor. It's not. It's bundling of Intel technologies that includes a Pentium M processor, one of the mobile 855 chipsets and Intel's 802.11a/b/g wireless networking. If a machine meets those specifications, then it can be labeled with the "Centrino Mobile Technology" sticker.

 

You better hope that no lawyer reads this thread and reports this to Microsoft...

 

If you're looking in the PC World, don't buy anything without Centrino - almost all the new laptops coming out have them now anyways. As Billiam pointed out, Centrino gives you the Pentium M processor and wireless networking built-in. It doesn't make sense to get anything less if you want it to last for two years, let alone four. I'd say get at least 256MB RAM and 20GB hard drive - upgrade those if you can afford it. Thinkpads are great, but for your price range I think a Toshiba or Dell is a better buy. Not sure about how different companies bundle software, so you'd have to shop around and see where the best deals are.

 

Our company went almost exclusively with Dell Latitude laptops for a couple of years - of the 400 or so installed base, we had about a 25% hardware failure rate; by far the highest we'd ever seen. Problems ranged from LCD display connection problems to hard drives failing due to inadequate cooling design. We've since switched over to the HP NC-series, and they've been relatively trouble-free.

My dream Wintel notebook? http://catalog2.panasonic.com/webapp...l=Toughbook-Y2

And it might be just within your price range too. (edit: oops, sorry, it was the previous gen CF-W2 that's just over USD2k, Y2's are closer to 2500)

 

When you say personal use, does that mean you will be playing games on it?

If you plan on playing games I would look at a Dell just because they have better options for video cards then most laptops without making you spend the big bucks to go to a 'gaming' laptop.

If your extent of playing games on the computer is bejewled and freecell then get a thinkpad.

 

If you don't plan on playing games on it, I would recommend that you get the smallest one possible. These seem to be hard to find actually, my local stores (BestBuy, FutureShop) only seem to stock the big ones. Some of them are just huge, I have no idea why anyone would want to buy one instead of a dekstop.