I'm pretty sure I'm going to be getting a new job that requires me to fly alot. So now I'm looking into getting a laptop but I know nothing about them. I'm willing to spend around $3k and it will primiarly be for games, internet, and email. I want one with dvd/cdr and probably a 15" screen. Other people just tell me to get a dell or gateway because of their warrenty and phone support. Which I will probably be needing the phone support because I have always used Macs. And I would love to get the new powerbook g4 but I want to be able to go in a wal-mart and get a new game for it, not having to order everything from a catalog.

 

Funny you should ask. I am using my brand new (3 days old) Dell 8100 notebook. It has a PIII 1.13 Chip, 256 Meg Ram, 30 gig HD, 64 meg ATI Mobility M7 Video card, internal NIC / 56K modem and a 15" UXGA screen. In reviews, it got the best rating for gaming of any notebook.

It is an outstanding computer. It has a built-in DVD CD ROM and a modular bay that has a floppy and I bought a 2nd battery to put there on long flights. You can also purchase a CDRW and a 250 zip drive for that bay.

I purchased a docking station for it also and got it all for 2,900 including tax and free shipping.

It's my second Dell.

Good Luck

 

well if ur going to travel alot, i would get something small and light. I got a new dell C400, really nice and small and light. I had a 3800 before and at first i was like oh its only 6-7lbs, thats nothing, but once u start walking around the building with that thing open and trying to hold it open with one hand and type on the other, it just doesnt work. Those 7 lbs get quite heavy after a while. But if u have to get a 15" then as HiJincs said, the 8100 is a really good machine. And if u put both batterys in, it last about 8 hours.

 

I am getting the same one in a few days.

BTW, did you check out any other laptop before you purchase the dell? I did and the dell still came out on top in my book.

 

Don't get a Micron. I've have had mine for a little over a year and Micron has had to replace it three times. My office uses Microns and Dells. The Dells seem to have fewer problems and their support is outstanding. My next laptop will be a Dell.

 

Dell Lattitude. NOthing else. If your not gonna get a dell don't get one at all.

This is after supporting every other major brand.( all top of the line $3000+ laptops)

 

My brother ordered a Dell 8100 series notebook. He got 15 inch, 30 gig, 16 meg Nvidia card for about 1460. He got DVD instead of the CDRW.

 

I've had my Inspiron 8100 for about a month. Great machine. I got the P3/866, 128MB (replaced with 512MB from Crucial), 20GB, DVD/CDRW combo, 56k modem, 10/100 NIC, 15" LCD w/no dead or stuck pixels, 16MB nVidia video, XP Pro, 2nd battery, 3yr warranty. The total was $1881 including shipping for everything but the extra RAM. That also included a free digital camera which I eBay'ed for $125.

I work on a lot of different PCs and Dell is the only brand name I will allow in my house. The rest are shit for one reason or another whether it be cheap components or construction, terrible service, overly proprietary design, or impossible to obtain drivers.

 

I have two sony VAIOs and they have never really given my any problems. They are really cute too, I have a small silver one and a regular sized metallicish purple/gray notebook. The small one I find is great for traveling, and you can play dvds and other things on it also. The size is just right for those small airline tray tables that you will probably be putting it on. I just came back from college and was sitting next to someone with this huge laptop that looked really cramped, I was glad that my laptop is so compact. Good luck on your search though!

 

I spent way too much time researching this and Dell won hands down. I also got it with XP Pro and it's pretty nice. It took about 2 days to get used to the changes.

Good luck and let us know what you end up getting.\

BTW- if you need more than the standard 256 RAM, compare prices between Dell and Crucial. I have used Crucial for all my RAM upgrades and never had a problem and thier prices usually are way better.

 

Dell rips you off on memory. In my case, 128 MB (on two 64MB SODIMMS) was the standard config. They wanted an extra $50 just to replace them with a single SODIMM so that I'd have one open for expansion. Higher amounts, like 256MB, were hundreds more. For $100, I bought 512MB at Crucial and replaced Dells 64's.

 

Dell is by far my biggest competitor. I wish I could say something bad about their product. They make great computers at good prices. The only thing to think about is, right now they are buying their market share with low prices. Companies can't survive like that forever...

 

But they're sitting on a huge pile of cash. Its trench warfare to them. Their strategy is to run others like Gateway out of business before they run out of cash. And its working. IBM is out of retail and only runs stupid commercials on TV. Gateway is closing stores and their CEO takes advice from a cow in the middle of the night. HP and Compaq, two retarded companies that couldn't make a decent consumer PC to save their companies, are merging for survival. If every big brand but Dell disappeared tomorrow, my life would be a lot easier.

 

Well I know that everybody said go with dell but I ended up getting a gateway. I wanted to actually see the computer before I bought it and didnt want to drop $3k on something I just read about. So let me know if I got totally jacked because I have grown up using Macs and have no clue if I got a good deal or not. I got the gateway 9550 xl with 1yr accidental damage protection ($99 upgrade) for $2608.78 plus tax

 

The company I work for uses Dell... we've had bad experiences with Gateway, and Micron. The one Sony Viao we have is just crap. Unstable (even for Win98se), the screen isn't any good, and the drives are proprietary. HP and Compaq are crap too. AMD might have its uses in desktop PCs, but not in portables. So, all in all, I would have to suggest Dell Inpsirons. Thats what we're supplying our salesman with, and those guys are fussy. Just a suggestion. :P

 

Don't forget one of these:



Combined with Sprint PCS service and you'll have access to the Internet just about every place you go (i.e. wherever there is Sprint PCS coverage).

Hey I use it just to keep up with ACL. Slow, but it works.

 

Hey Ken, do those cards require an account of their own like a 2nd cell phone or do they just pool with your existing phone? I got a cable to connect my Startac to my laptop's serial port. Verizon acts as the ISP using Windows DUN/RAS and they only charge me regular airtime minutes. Slow, but useful in a pinch.

 

For Sprint PCS, that would be the same thing. Except with the Sierra Wireless AirCard, they will give you another PCS phone number separate from your regular phone. A separate account, pooled with your existing account.

While the accounts are combined, using the same minutes, your phone is free to use while you surf. Plus you don't drain your phone's battery. I believe there is an add-a-card fee.

Today, you might want to try Bluekite compression to speed up that connection (56k like speeds) but in the future, there will be high-speed data that could go much higher (for both the phone connection and the data cards).

 

mdaniel,

You continue to bash HP even though their products are almost always ranked a best buy or best product. I have had a number of HP laptops and I think they are awesome. I have also had Sony, Toshiba, and IBM and I still like my Omnibooks the best. Take a look at PC Magazine sometime and you'll see what I mean. http://www.pcmag.com/article/0,2997,...53D9620,00.asp

Anyways, of course I am biased but probably the average consumer will be happy with a new Pavillion. 3 of my friends have purchased them in the past 2 months and they all love their laptops. I'm sorry you feel like they are crap.

-Ash

 

Don't you work for HP?

I form my opinions of PCs based on how difficult I feel the designers make my life. HP, Compaq, Sony, IBM, etc all do goofy shit. Thinks like oddly shaped power supplies with extra wires that you won't find off the shelf. Parts that look cool, but are impossible to obtain when they break. Or simple design issues like having to disassemble half the computer to install a memory module. A clone built with quality parts is the gold standard to someone who has to service PCs. Dell gets pretty close.

As far as winning best buy awards, POS domestic cars win awards all the time. 'Nuf said.

 

I personally like the IBM Thinkpads. Go for the new T series laptops. Great service and support.

 

Thinkpads are nice. They feel very well built. Too bad IBM refuses to even offer the option of a touchpad. I can't stand the eraser head. So I'll never buy an IBM.

 

well I was looking over my gateway invoice and friend's invoice who got the same computer but the upgraded warranty, plus extra $100 battery and I ended up paying the same price. So I called up gateway HQ and nobody could explain why and nobody wanted to fix the problem so I canceled my gateway order and ordered the dell 8100 1.0ghz.
I upgraded the video from 32mb ram to 64mb ram, from a super screen to an ultra screen, plus 3yr drop protection warranty for $284 cheaper than the gateway. I always just run out and buy something without doing any research including my car. I never even test drove anything else, after just a 15min drive around the block and I was ready to buy buy buy.