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A laptop for the wife...
Freejack
Jake the Not-so-Wise
in Zocalo v2.0
Well, due to an upcoming project that I am undertaking, unrelated to work, I am looking for a new computer that will be used primarily by my wife...
We are thinking about a laptop since it gives her more flexibility around the house, especially when she watching the baby, and since we are planning to [i]finally[/i] get high-speed, it makes the laptop that much more useful.
Anyway, the best deal we've found is a Dell 1505 [URL=http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=us&l=en&cs=19&kc=6M017&oc=D80412M](Linky)[/URL] for $799. My work laptop is a Dell (one of their "fleet" models) and I have been relatively happy with it, especially the battery life, when compared to the Compaq I had previously.
I just wanted to see if anyone else had any suggestions.
I'd really like a Mac, but we just cannot justify the extra 4-500 we'd need to spend to get one.
Thanks
Jake
We are thinking about a laptop since it gives her more flexibility around the house, especially when she watching the baby, and since we are planning to [i]finally[/i] get high-speed, it makes the laptop that much more useful.
Anyway, the best deal we've found is a Dell 1505 [URL=http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=us&l=en&cs=19&kc=6M017&oc=D80412M](Linky)[/URL] for $799. My work laptop is a Dell (one of their "fleet" models) and I have been relatively happy with it, especially the battery life, when compared to the Compaq I had previously.
I just wanted to see if anyone else had any suggestions.
I'd really like a Mac, but we just cannot justify the extra 4-500 we'd need to spend to get one.
Thanks
Jake
Comments
I see the one you're looking at has a 15.4 XGA display which is the same as the one I have. Indeed, most of the specs are the same, aside from the newer processor. It is also about $800 cheaper than the one I bought which makes me jealous. ;)
Bottom line: I think your wife will be very happy with it.
Toshiba has got a line of entry-model laptops out now that isn't too bad, and Toshiba is a good, reliable brand.
Biggles, I do like the look of the Toshiba (and I've heard they're fairly durable) but[URL=http://www.toshibadirect.com/td/b2c/pdet.to?poid=321565&coid=-30602&cartAction=Add&tab=&WarrCheck=standard&seg=HHO]this [/URL] is the best deal I see on their site. Its comparably priced to the 1505 but with a Solo processer and half the memory.
If you know of an outlet that has them cheaper, I'd be interested.
Jake
I have to say, even though HP gutted their printer division, their laptops are still nice.
The 12-cell battery last about 6 hours for word processing and web surfing, and about three hours for DVDs.
Don't upgrade the screen - it just makes it a reflective nightmare :)
SVideo out sends out 1024x768 and works with most TVs: build in DVD player for your TV :)
The AMD Turion 64 1.6GHz processor renders four frames for every frame my desktop's AMD Athlon XP 3000+ does. However, the video card hurts: Blender (uses OpenGL) is sluggish when setting up a render. I have to set everything up on my desktop, then be very patient moving the camera on my laptop between angles.
The video card is the ATI 200 Express (or whatever it's called). It's their low end cheap card, but the only one the Turion came with (any brand) when I got my laptop.
Oh, and definately look into laptops that use the Turion processors. They tend to be about 2/3rds the price of intel processors, and are equal to or faster than the equivilent intel mobile chip. A laptop with the same specs and speed as mine using an intel chip ran about $2000, $800 more than the one I got.
--RC
easy to fix even. I got one with a dead LCD and swapped it out easily.
Jake
[B]Toshiba rocks
easy to fix even. I got one with a dead LCD and swapped it out easily. [/B][/QUOTE]
Wow, SB and I agree on something. Yeah, Toshiba laptops are amazingly modular - I cracked the LCD mask on my tablet and tried to order another from a parts website. Low and behold, I'd actually ordered the [i]back[/i] of the LCD and not the front, ie, the lid of the notebook. Well, my lid was pretty scratched up, so I decided to keep it. Fifteen to twenty minutes later, I'd remounted the LCD, backlight, wireless antennas, and switches on the new lid. Still waiting for the LCD mask though.
I should *NEVER* have to remove 55 screws just to see the hard drive.
My picturebook is wonderful. Six screws for the bottom cover, three for the top, and six more inside.
[url]http://www.usedlaptops.com/[/url] is good if you just keep them for a few years.
Of course they are used but it all depends what you want.
They have Laptops with SLI 7900GTX's that are going for 3000 or something like that, Who needs that in a laptop.
[B]The business Dell laptops are generally not bad for the price. The cheap ones are another story, though. They're usually very poor construction, in my experience.
Toshiba has got a line of entry-model laptops out now that isn't too bad, and Toshiba is a good, reliable brand. [/B][/QUOTE]
I would tend to agree. I've hardly ever seen a lower end Dell that doesn't eventually break. They always seem to have the screen break off at the pivots.
I'm a pretty big fan of Thinkpads. They have a reputation for being one of the best built laptops around. They used to be standard issue at the place were I worked a few years ago and not a single user ever managed to destroy one in the three years I was there. Surprising considering the level of care the average moron user gives these machines. The T series has some of the best weight /size/performance ratio's of any laptop I've ever used. I absolutely love my T42.
I second IBM-turned-Lenovo Thinkpads. They're simply the best. But often, they'll carry the price tag to go with it. Not a Sony premium, but it's more than most. You get what you pay for.
Also, for the more budget concious among us, the Fujitsu Lifebooks are a great deal. I've always heard nothing but praise for them, and while they're often slightly bigger of heavier than a similarly equipped model from IBM, they're still quite light. Also, they're reliable and somewhat cheaper.
We'll see. :)
[B]
I second IBM-turned-Lenovo Thinkpads. They're simply the best. But often, they'll carry the price tag to go with it. Not a Sony premium, but it's more than most. You get what you pay for.
[/B][/QUOTE]
Yeah they're not the cheapest but its definately a you get what you pay for deal. Thinkpads have typically been more business oriented machines hence features like encryption chips which everyone else is copycating now. Its very comforting to know that if my thinkpad is stolen it will be utterly useless to anyone without the security chip passwords :D Pretty much the entire machine will have to be gutted except for the ram and casing to get it to work. Lenovo anounced some time ago that they'll be selling some models for way cheaper than when they carried the IBM name. Thats great news assuming they don't go down on the build quality to achieve those prices.
[B]The business Dell laptops are generally not bad for the price. The cheap ones are another story, though. They're usually very poor construction, in my experience.[/B][/QUOTE]
I get a significant discount on Dell PCs thanks to my place of employment, but I still won't buy one. That's probably a pretty good indicator of my opinion on Dell computers. Bleh.
[B]I think it may be possible to purchase a low-end macBook (formerly iBook) for about the same price as a Thinkpad. Apple is expected to announce pricing and availability of Intel-based macBooks some time this month. [/B][/QUOTE]
Tomorrow, most likely.
[url]http://www.apple.com/macbook/[/url]