want to spend $1,000 on a laptop, the smaller the better. any suggestions?

 

Look for referbed, from tigerdirect or dell

 

you want a true "small" laptop, you're gonna have a hard time spending less than 1K. I agree with the above poster, go with something refurbed.....contact dell, and you can also call toshiba (better than dell, IMHO)

 

Click here for a cool dell...

Click here for a cool alienware... <~~~ expensive...

alienware tends to come out with some cool notebooks... and they are small and light... and graphic oriented... for games and such... Dell tends to go more towards the office but they let you customize your notebook to your preferance... then again... that will cost you a bit more... not much though...

with Beelzebub tigerdirect or dell...

 

hmm...what if I went an entirely different route and got one with a 17" widescreen and media center?

any opinions on the inspiron 9300? this might be it...

 

if you're gonna go "big-time"....then get the 17" Apple powerbook, but wait until they're shipping with OS X "Tiger" (10.4)....the way to go....better than pretty much anything the intel cult could dream up.

 

but thats going to cost double what I want to spend right?

 

I can get the the inspiron 9300 for less than 1200 after 500 in rebates and coupons.

 

Generally:

13-14 inch screen - Sony will be the smallest - ranges from about 1K to 2K
14-15 (15.4) inch screen - About 1K to 1600 from celeron to centrino
17 inch screen - about 1K to 3K (the new Panasonics are the expensive ones)

Stay away from Celerons. Get at least 512K of memory. Get at least a 60 GB drive.

 

Sony Viao

 

Just went to best buy to look at the size of some computers, holy shit....17" widescreen is HUGE. No way in hell I want something that big, I dont know what I was thinking.

I want the smallest widescreen I can find. 13.4 I think. I know my price range limits my choices severely... but all this is for is taking notes and whatever when I go back to school and running a few small programs for work. This isn't a desktop replacement, I have good PC's already...this just needs to be small, light, and reliable. 20 GB hard drive would honestly be more than enough.

I liked the HP's at Best Buy. Any thoughts on those?

 

Tigerdirect or dell refurb. much better laptop without the problems of compaq.

 

dell inspiron 700m.

pentium m 1.6 ghz
1 gb ram
40mb hard drive
12.4" widescreen
integrated 802.11 a/b/g
photo printer

after $500 off coupon code, $1,049 shipped.

 

u sure u want dell?

 

if ur gonna be takin the laptop places all the time, defnitely get something light weight, thats the key...

 

Toshiba Portégé

 

I'm careful with my laptop...but it still gets beat up and banged around. I'd hate to be the guy that got my laptop, even refurbished.

My thinking is buy less, but new.

That's just my - I'm sure I'd lose an argument if someone wanted to challenge me on it.

 

but for a grand or so, nothing else can come close to what I can get in a Dell.

 

I agree. I'm not going to get a refurb.



What about an Apple iBook G4

 

done and done, got the dell 700m. pentium m 1.6, 512 mb ram, 60 gb hard drive, cd r/w + dvd, upgraded battery and a photo printer for $1,050 shipped.

Key Features
Wide Screen Traveler

Weighing in at 4.1 pounds3 and 1.5" thin, the stylish InspironTM 700m is the "go anywhere" notebook perfect for students and frequent travelers. Full-featured with a two spindle device design, a fast Intel Pentium M processor, and a 12.1" wide Crystal-Clear LCD screen, the Inspiron 700m offers a complete mobile, computing solution.

A Complete Solution in a Thin & Light, Stylish Package

Processor: Intel® Pentium® M processors with CentrinoTM Technology designed for those desiring a highly mobile, thin and light notebook PC with long lasting battery performance.

Operating System: Comes standard with Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition or upgradeable to Microsoft Windows XP Professional.

Display: 12.1" Wide Screen crystal clear display for ultra-brilliant colors in a wide screen format.

Height and Weight: Thin and light, starting at just 4.1lbs with DVD Drive4, and 1.5" thin or less.

Wireless Connectivity Solutions: Wireless connectivity with standard Intel ProWireless (802.11b), Intel ProWireless 2200 (802.11 b/g) or Optional Dell TrueMobileTM (802.11b/g)5 mini PCI wireless cards. Supports both 802.11a and 802.11b wireless connectivity with optional built-in dual band antennas.

Battery: Features a 32Whr (4-cell) primary battery. Extend your time with an optional Extended Life high-capacity 65Whr (8-cell) battery.

Graphics: Integrated Intel® Extreme graphics up to 64MB shared.6

 

The screen is really nice!

 

 

for 1K and lightweight your best bet would be the dell 700M. you can get that for under a grand. its 4.1lbs so its relatively light compared to most laptops. i don't know why people are bashing dell, they are probably one of the better companies out there for consumer pc's. thinkpads are great and they are lightweight but you will not find one for under a grand(plus IBM's pc division has been sold to the china based company levino so its future is still unknown as far as support is conerned). HP/Compaq has some good products but again for under a grand you are not going to find something comparable to the 700M. for me personally i stay away from apple, i think their products are alittle over priced and you are paying a premium for cosmetics. also software support for the work i do is limited on an apple. i have heard good things about alien notebooks but they target the gaming user and their notebooks are usually pretty heavy. whatever the case shop around and you are bound to find a good deal.

 

HP at BB are awesome: 1,110 got a 17 inch wide screen with dvd, cd burners

 

look at my post 22 minutes before yours

 

sweet, the reviews said its a good screen, just gets dirty easily.

 

I've have a similar type of screen on my vaio (XBRITE).

Once you start using it you'll never go back to the regular LCDs.

 

COMPUSA

Toshiba Satellite M35X-S114 Notebook Intel Celeron M Processor 350, 1.3GHz, 256MB RAM, 40GB Hard Drive, 15-inch XGA TFT Display, 8X DVD / 24X4X24 CD-RW Combo Drive, Windows XP Home Edition $599.99AR - $60 rebate on Logitech Z3i, Keyboard/mouse, webcam

 

thanks, but already bought the dell...anyway the dell is pentium m, 1.6 ghz, 512 mb ram, 60 gb HD, 12.1 inch widescreen, 4.1 lbs, 5 hour extended battery and a photo printer... I think its worth the 400 over the toshiba.

 

hahahha i dunno why i didn't see the post. good choice on the notebook. i bought the 600M because i wanted a reglar screen and not the wide screen as i mostly use programming IDE's and wideness is not helpful. the battery life is very good as i get just about 3 hours out of the laptop. since you got the upgraded battery you should be able to run longer than that.

 

if you have to pay to get an upgrade for Windows XP Professional i say don't do it, it's not really worth it IMO. I have Home Edition on my laptop and i use Professional at school... Pro. is nice for networking and security and all but if you don't think you'll be doing much of that i don't think its worth the money... only you know what you need so i say try it out before you buy it.

 

for small get a sony vaio...
from a personal experiance i paid 1500 for it 5 years ago (p3 500) w/ 192mb ram
for a Z505


later thought it would be a good idea to upgrade bought a toshiba, used it for a week... and desided to sell it. i dont think i would ever sell or trade my z505. perfect size light as hell and it does what it needs to do.

also to this day those z505s still run for 400-500$ theres a market for them.

 

^^^ come on people - he already bought the dell....

 

I have the same machine with 1gb ram. Its done very well for me. No problems in the first 6 months! One thing you need to buy is the extended battery. The 4 cell battery sucks for run time. Its worth the extra cash.

 

Sweet. I did get the extended battery. I only got a 512 (well 2 256) of ram, it was something like +$250 to go from 512 to 1gb.

Hows the screen? I heard its a great looking screen but problems with dust and reflection. Have you noticed that?

 

Good Luck with Dell; Statistically i've seen too many issues with Dell laptops. Althought they will fix it, just prepare to wait 30 min+ on the phone if something goes wrong.

Hopefully that will never happen.

 

I'd be happy with 30 minutes. Dell customer service is absolutely the worst I've ever experienced. I've waited on hold for an hour only to be hung up on when they try to transfer me after misdirecting my call in the first place.

I'm actually buying this Dell to replace my other Inspiron notebook that just started crapping out on me. It did last 3 years with no problems though, and I beat the hell out of it. Like you said, hopefully this one is trouble free.


Nothing to do with reliability, but cnet gave this an 8.1. They have yet to let me down.

 

Welcome to Dell !

jeez dude, that has happened to be many times in the last 3 weeks. Although their PCs are the best, customer support is the worst. And I am screwed cause if I buy HP or Compaq to my clients, they might have issues sooner or later (I had bad experiences with HP)

 

The screen does look great. I love it. And yes, reflection can be a problem from time to time, but personally, I got used to it real quick. It only took a few days for me to get used to, even sitting under flouresent lights at school isn't bad anymore.

As far as RAM goes, you can find deals at newegg or via techbargains and you can get 2x512 pc3200 for alot cheaper than $250. I think I bought my ram for like $160 total for 2 dimms. I'm sure you'll like the 700m. Its deff not a gaming machine graphics wise, but performs well for a portable companion.

 

I don't play PC games, plus this is just my portable computer, not a desktop replacement. Its just for basic office programs and a DVD every once in a while.


Thanks for all the info guys, I appreciate it.