Best Laptop

[Bella]

Which is better: Dell or HP?

I really want a coloured Dell, but not if it's no good.

[Grayscale]

apples and oranges... what are you looking to get out of a laptop, exactly?

[Bella]

I'm horribly technologically challenged. I don't really want it for something specific, just tired of using a work pc or someone else's laptop. Even if it's for basic stuff only, I do NOT want to buy junk. I'm willing to pay extra for something that won't give in after six months.

[YourLocalJesus]

Then don't buy dell. HP or Acer. Dell is useless shit, and they have crappy support.

[Bella]

Oh rly! Ahhh, I'm dissapointed, I don't think you get nice coloured HP or Acer's like Dell have. I have't checked though, might be wrong.

Thank you.

[Grayscale]

okay, so correct me if im wrong, youre looking for something that reliable and meets your needs. those purposes are very similar to what a lot of large businesses need for their employees... and what they have chosen have been vested through a lot of research.


this was my thinking, so i looked at what a lot of enterprises favor and went with an IBM lenova, it has been exactly what i expected. they have a reputation for being tough (they do also have magnesium frame bodies available) and reliable, even if they arent particularly flashy or "fun". the performance certainly isnt lacking either. :)

[Bella]

Goodness...I've never even heard of that, but thanks.

[Bella]

er...I'm not a large bussiness though...I'm just a girl who wants a pink laptop.

[Grayscale]

i know, but what i am saying is... why not take a hint from "the people who know better"? :)

businesses put a lot of thought into cost effectiveness, when it comes to technology a huge part of this is reliability and longevity. these decisions, at least with something like which laptop brand to use for employee laptops, are then vetted through hundreds if not thousands of trials. let's say 6% of HP laptops have a hard drive crash after 2 years, while only 4% of IBMs, that would be a difference of hundreds of units across a large business, something that the support department would definitely notice.


edit: sorry if im pounding your "just wanna pink laptop" into a pulp, but a few years from now id rather you be a girl with a pink laptop, rather than a girl with a pink laptop and 200 Gb of lost storage, or girl sending her pink laptop in for repair every few months. :) there is nothing cute about having your crap break after the warranty expires



edit2: i take my technology a bit too seriously :coffee:


edit3: all of this is in reference vs. consumer targeted models, by the way.

[VanillaCat]

I have an HP laptop. I've had it for about 10 months and it's working amazingly. Even when it stopped working last week, it repaired itself! (Only error it's ever had.) I was surprised. I was so scared that I would have to go to get it fixed, like with another one of my laptops which I couldn't fix myself. But I didn't.

I have the HP Pavillion dv6000. They probably have better models out now, but I love this laptop! It even has a remote control and now their laptops come in an environmentally friendly laptop carrier instead of cardboard and styrofoam packaging :D

I'm not sure about Dells, but we had those at school and they weren't anything special. They had errors a few time too.

[Bella]

Aha!........I get what you're saying, mister!

[Bella]

^ That was for Grayscale.

[YourLocalJesus]

Sony Vaio are also nice laptops, and I am pretty sure they come in various colors.

[Bella]

I have an HP laptop. I've had it for about 10 months and it's working amazingly. Even when it stopped working last week, it repaired itself! (Only error it's ever had.) I was surprised. I was so scared that I would have to go to get it fixed, like with another one of my laptops which I couldn't fix myself. But I didn't.

I have the HP Pavillion dv6000. They probably have better models out now, but I love this laptop! It even has a remote control and now their laptops come in an environmentally friendly laptop carrier instead of cardboard and styrofoam packaging :D

I'm not sure about Dells, but we had those at school and they weren't anything special. They had errors a few time too.

Okay, thank you. Do you get HP in green or pink?

[YourLocalJesus]

And they come in pink.

VAIO (http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&categoryId=16154)

[EffEmDoubleyou]

I say neither, get a Toshiba. I'm on my second one and I swear by them. I've had Toshibas for six years, and I've had to have a repair exactly once. They're also among the most reasonably priced brands, especially at Best Buy. Dell has terrible customer service and Sony is ridiculously overpriced. I have no direct experience with HP, but I know they merged with Compaq and Compaq was terrible.

[kyuuei]

I also own a Toshiba. It was an assumed piece of shit buy.. It was on sale for $400 (after rebates of course.. but I didn't have any trouble getting those back.. it was $900 before them all. I had the last rebate back within 4 months. Only complaint was there were like 6 of them lol.) at Office Depot when they were closing to re-open elsewhere. I bought two. One for myself, and one for my sister for college which we were assumed to be in by fall of 2005. (when we bought them.) I still have mine, and it works pretty well. After spending a year traveling all over the heat and dusty weather of Iraq, my lack of caring for technology enough to learn how to keep it in good conditions, and careless downloading and such when I first got it.. it's lasted pretty well. It's a bit slow now that I use it for desktop purposes but I have little complaints on it all.

My sister, however, got so many viruses on hers that the entire system had to be wiped clean. She has no trouble on it now, but it was such a hassle trying to heal it before we made the "fuckit" decision. So, that being the only laptop I've personally owned, I say Toshiba is a good brand.

Mac, however, is not. My friend owned one and had to have it sent in for repair 3 times while in Iraq... deliveries taking to-and-fro 2 weeks each.

[Usehername]

I say neither, get a Toshiba. I'm on my second one and I swear by them. I've had Toshibas for six years, and I've had to have a repair exactly once. They're also among the most reasonably priced brands, especially at Best Buy. Dell has terrible customer service and Sony is ridiculously overpriced. I have no direct experience with HP, but I know they merged with Compaq and Compaq was terrible.

I also have owned a Toshiba laptop since 2004; it's still a very functional piece of equipment. My screen has blacked out 3 or 4 times (where you can hear the machine running perfectly but there's no monitor input) and I have heard this is the one potential major flaw common to this type of computer. It hasn't done this in a few months.

Yet, they've fixed it in their more recent versions, and if I were to be purchasing a laptop I'd go Toshiba again. Bang-for-buck it's fantastic. I really like my Toshiba, and though that no-monitor-input is a serious issue, it's nothing compared to what you're going to get with other brands, most notably, the money-pit investment of a Dell laptop.

Never. Ever. Buy a Dell in laptop version. This is why they sell them to student for dirt cheap--because they are made of crap that breaks. I have several friends who have not made it through their university degrees with their initial (supposedly money-saving) Dell laptop purchases. They die a quick death.

[kyuuei]

See?! Toshiba's Ftw.

[millerm277]

Pretty much all the major manufacturers make good laptops.

I would encourage you to try to test it out in person before you buy. There are sometimes small quirks in laptops, that are better to figure out before you are stuck with it. (Badly placed ports and such). Also, look at where the fan(s)/vents are located on the bottom of it, and see if that's going to present a problem. (If your knee sits right under the fan, the laptop will run a lot hotter.)

Really though, there are very few "lemons" out there. After you find something that looks good, go do a search or two on it, see what the battery life and such is like.

My sister, however, got so many viruses on hers that the entire system had to be wiped clean. She has no trouble on it now, but it was such a hassle trying to heal it before we made the "fuckit" decision. So, that being the only laptop I've personally owned, I say Toshiba is a good brand.

Heh, that has absolutely nothing to do with the model/brand.


Personally, I own an Acer Aspire One netbook. It weighs under 3lbs, cost me a bit under $400, gets 4-5 hours of battery life, and is fine for normal on the go tasks. (I've got a desktop for intensive stuff.) Great device, not recommended for those with eye strain/poor vision issues though...(8.9in screen)

[LostInNerSpace]

Which is better: Dell or HP?

I really want a coloured Dell, but not if it's no good.

Dell. XPS is looking awefully tempting right now. But I already have two laptops. I have two Lenovo Thinkpads. No more! IBM took the Thinkpad quality with them.

[Beat]

http://andersonshatch.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/3d_apple_logo_102.jpeg

[Jack Flak]

^I was gonna buy one of those emblems and stick it on my real computer.

[Beat]

That'd be cool!


No it wouldn't. :/

[Bella]

Thanks for the help!

[ajblaise]

I'd stear clear from HP... decent prices I guess but I had a laptop from them which gave me lots of problems and they have sub-par tech support. After that I got a XPS, the price was a little higher, but I've had zero major problems with it and I still use it a decent amount of time.

XPS might be too much for what you want though, it's really a gaming PC. For basic needs and price the Compaq Presario V5000Z might be better. The Sony VAIO is something else to maybe look at.

[Gish]

I recently bought a Macbook and it has been the best computer I have ever owned. At least I think I can safely say that now. I suppose if you're going to be playing a lot of intensive games than it isn't for you but other than that I think they are great.

[Beat]

I recently bought a Macbook and it has been the best computer I have ever owned. At least I think I can safely say that now. I suppose if you're going to be playing a lot of intensive games than it isn't for you but other than that I think they are great.

Word. If mine were a car it'd have 200k miles on it. It's a solid computer. I need a newer one someday...

[Noel]

Have you considered Asus as an option? I've heard pretty great things about their EEE laptops. The most expensive one will run you ~$500 American. It has an Intel Atom processor, SSD hardrive (depending on the model), decent battery life.

[millerm277]

Have you considered Asus as an option? I've heard pretty great things about their EEE laptops. The most expensive one will run you ~$500 American. It has an Intel Atom processor, SSD hardrive (depending on the model), decent battery life.

EEE keyboards suck. Buy an Acer Aspire One if you're going that route, I have it, and it's far better in pretty much all respects, only $350-$400. Also, the SSD, while durable, has absymal performance, a normal HD is still the way to go (Which is what I have in mine), unless you're planning on playing catch with your laptop while it's running.

[Noel]

EEE keyboards suck. Buy an Acer Aspire One if you're going that route, I have it, and it's far better in pretty much all respects, only $350-$400. Also, the SSD, while durable, has absymal performance, a normal HD is still the way to go (Which is what I have in mine), unless you're planning on playing catch with your laptop while it's running.

Interesting. I guess a lot of companies have jumped on the "cheap-compact notebook" bandwagon since the last time I've checked.

[htb]

MacBook Pr -- oh.

Hewlett-Packard.

[Ivy]

Lenovos are supposed to be the sturdiest. This is according to my network engineer husband who tried to talk me into buying one, but I bought a Dell instead. It has been fine, but it's less than a year old. The CD/DVD burner/whatever drive crapped out in a matter of weeks, too, so I guess it hasn't been that fine--but they replaced it quickly and no questions asked.

Also, if you want a pink one, consider buying based on quality (Toshiba/Lenovo/Vaio or whatever), and then get an adhesive skin to decorate the cover. I have this one:

http://www.schtickers.com/catalog/images/LSVan_Gogh_Almond_Blossom-250x200.jpg

but you can get pretty much anything you want. They have suede-like pink ones.

Laptop Skins by Schtickers - Shop, Create, Participate (http://www.schtickers.com/)

[Bella]

Oh yeah, the skins are nice. That er....leopard print one is pushing it a bit.
Thank you.

[Ivy]

I got the skin because I wanted a green Dell but they had a special on blue ones when I went to buy and I couldn't abide spending an extra 200 bucks for the green one. Heh. Then I found the skins and kinda fell in love with the Van Gogh one. I do kind of wish it was on a Lenovo though. My Dell is okay but I feel kind of dumb now for buying it so hastily and "against medical advice" if you will.

[Bella]

I think it's between Lenovo and Sony Vaio now.
As long as it's piiiiiink.

(and I never used to like pink)

[Mercurial]

Then don't buy dell. HP or Acer. Dell is useless shit, and they have crappy support.

Apparently the Dell notebook I'm typing this on and have had over a year doesn't work well, then.

The one time I needed support, the call went fast and wasn't a big deal (my wireless router was the source of evil).

Dell got better after about five years pissing off a lot of customers and making the necessary changes to dig themselves out of that hole.

[Bella]

I'm actually more confused than ever.
Contradicting opinions on just about every brand.
The only laptop that seems to get consistently good reviews is the Lenovo T61, but it's so ugly, it breaks my heart.

[Mercurial]

I'm actually more confused than ever.
Contradicting opinions on just about every brand.
The only laptop that seems to get consistently good reviews is the Lenovo T61, but it's so ugly, it breaks my heart.

One person's ugly is a computer geek's :nice:.

[Lukepd]

Get a mac and be done with it ;)

if you want to game there is xbox and playstation etc

[Grayscale]

I'm actually more confused than ever.
Contradicting opinions on just about every brand.
The only laptop that seems to get consistently good reviews is the Lenovo T61, but it's so ugly, it breaks my heart.

that is because consumer technology falls prey largely to opinion, which is going to be based on personal experience (that is, only one person's experience with the product), advertising, etc. "this is better than that one cause i saw the commercial and bought it, and hey, it's not complete shit, it must be the brand to get."

you're supposed to look at the monitor... anyways, as Ivy said, you could get a case skin. :yes:

Lenovos are supposed to be the sturdiest. This is according to my network engineer husband who tried to talk me into buying one, but I bought a Dell instead.

that makes two industry professionals (plus the handful i know who dont post here!) who agree. :D

even if it is ugly as sin, you can make up for that in street cred. this is useful if you ever encounter a roving gang of IT employees... "hey, who's this girl on our turf? who does she think she is?!" "guys, it's cool, she's got an IBM, put away the staplers"

[ygolo]

okay, so correct me if im wrong, youre looking for something that reliable and meets your needs. those purposes are very similar to what a lot of large businesses need for their employees... and what they have chosen have been vested through a lot of research.


this was my thinking, so i looked at what a lot of enterprises favor and went with an IBM lenova, it has been exactly what i expected. they have a reputation for being tough (they do also have magnesium frame bodies available) and reliable, even if they arent particularly flashy or "fun". the performance certainly isnt lacking either. :)

Are you referring to the Thinkpad series (used to be IBM, now Lenovo)?

I can vouch for these. I've used the T series for a while T20, T40, then T61. They are durable, light-weight and have long battery life. They also have a feature I have a hard time finding anywhere else--the little red button-mouse that I love, and other people seem to dislike (vastly easier to use than the touch pad, in my opinion).

My corporation and others have started moving to HPs and Macs for many engineering users, lately, however. I think they have wider screens in general.

[mlittrell]

ibm makes great laptops, very very well made...er lenovo. im running ubuntu on it and i love it. i can run any mac application and any windows application with little effort.

EDIT:

i have the Z60M

[Grayscale]

Are you referring to the Thinkpad series (used to be IBM, now Lenovo)?

I can vouch for these. I've used the T series for a while T20, T40, then T61. They are durable, light-weight and have long battery life. They also have a feature I have a hard time finding anywhere else--the little red button-mouse that I love, and other people seem to dislike (vastly easier to use than the touch pad, in my opinion).

a keyboard clit? :D

by IBM, I do mean lenovo

[Ivy]

Yes, IBM/Lenovo is what was recommended to me.

[ygolo]

i have the Z60M

The Z60m has a nice wide screen too. :)

a keyboard clit? :D


Yes. :D