Laptop computers - Advice wanted

[HouseToy]

'nuther IT guy

I (for work) have 16 Dell's, 8 Toshiba's, 4 IBM Thinkpad's & 4 HP laptops.

• Dell... they have great support.. which is a good thing, the D505's have not been very reliable... 510 & 810 models have worked great. I use an 810.
• Toshiba's.. Generally ok but the ones I have must have gotten the lemon hard drives. thankfully... they are easy to replace.
• IBM... not cheap, not always the fastest or lightest... but they work like a hose. Very reliable.
• HP.. not real impressed, we won't be getting any more.

Anyway... if you don't have a friend that enjoys working on computers.. I'd buy one with support.. either locally from microcenter, fry's or whatever, or from one of the mail/web order places (dell, etc.). I like the refurbished sections... you get a decent price on last months technology and a full warrenty.

Think about what you want?

• Wireless - If you plan to work on stuff from your couch/bed.. wireless is nice.
• Keyboard - Even when at my desk.. I use my laptop keyboard. I got one large enough that I can comfortably type on. My hands are a little over 8" from base of palm to tip of finger.. so that is saying something.
• Pointer - I simply cannot use the eraser mouse. I can use a trackpad.. and that's what I use on mine. I used to have a laptop with a trackball below the spacebar..that was best.. .but a thing of the past now. Play with them at a store.
• CD/DVD - Laptops are great portable DVD players, if you travel, that is a handy feature. CD writers are handy.
• Screen - Play with them at the store.. figure out what gives you enough real estate to write without constantly scrolling.
• Weight - Not an issue for me... for some it is the primary thing. ymmv
• Battery life - Sometimes I take out my DVD player and put in another battery... very long battery life that way. The mobile processors are less battery hungry too.
• Processor - If you aren't playing games or manipulating video or large graphics with complex filters you can get by with the slowest processor currently produced. (or close to it)
• expandability - Often this comes along with siae and weight. Probably for your first one you don't need to worry so much about this.

http://outlet.us.dell.com ~$1,000
Inspiron 600m, Pentium-M 1400, XP Home, 14.1" screen, 60gb Hard drive, 512 MB Ram, Wireless G, CD/RW, modem

 

[Liar]

Not very mobile, is it?

It's unpluggable.

 

[dr_mabeuse]

I bought the cheapest Dell notebook they had. Works okay for word processing. Got it with a wireless card and had their tech support help me set up the home network. They fell all over themselves trying to help, even called me up a few days later to make sure I was satisfied. I like that.

Had it a year and no complaints.

 

[gauchecritic]

Computer fairs. If you know a bit about what your doing (well quite a lot really) then you can pick a laptop up for £100.

Otherwise Currys, Dixons etc generally have some sort of 'Managers Special' for about 399.

If they insist on selling you a warranty you will often find that if you are looking for say... a toaster or iron they will throw that in for nothing as long as you buy the warranty.

Look in the magazines, or online at zdnet.co.uk

Acer seem to be pretty ok.

 

[Guest]

I've been thinking about getting myself a laptop to make my writing habits a little more flexible. I don't know if the funds will run to a new one, but there seem to be plenty available used. I don't see the need for the latest specification just to do word processing, so a used model might suit me fine.

Does anyone have any recommendations on -

1. Makes/Models to look for?

2. Makes/Models to avoid?

Thanks in anticipation. I've developed a great respect for the collected wisdom here.

Alex

I've been using Dell Lappies for around 7 years now, very reliable, VERY versatile. One of mine bounces around in my work truck all day being my navigation system takes a beating and just keeps hummin' along.

I would definately avoid Sony. Not because they're built poorly but more because they are designed poorly and take "Proprietary" to all new levels. They program their bios with the OS and if you change the OS it won't accept drivers for any of the hardware. Rendering your laptop useless.

I would also avoid getting any of the cheap unknown brands. You might save a couple hundred bucks on them but what you'll end up with is a machine that will perform poorly for a year or so and then crap out on you with no warranty and no support. If you need to save a few bucks get an older Dell off ebay. I just bought a 1.2 Ghz Dell for $300, runs just fine.

 

[The_Fool]

Word has it that Dell Laptops are OEMed Acer computers.

Don't buy a Sony.

I've had Compaq, HP, Dell, IBM and Toshiba laptops. Never really had significant trouble with any of them. In my company there has been a lot of Hard Drive failures with Compaqs in the last two years. Current Hardware of choice is the Dell Latitude D610.

You may already know this, but it is a lot harder to type for a long time on a laptop than on a desktop. Consider getting a port replicator or docking station. Or at least get an external mouse and Keyboard for when you want to sit down in one place and type.

 

[yui]

Ah, my plan is working.

At the airport, I'll be the Japanese chick in pink mukluks, navy blue ski parka, purple jester knit cap, and a furrowed brow because of the useless Sony laptop. Please bring a survival blanket if it's snowing. es

Well den, I'm afraid you are in for one of the allegedly bad Sony-experiences: Expensive repairs.

Yui,
First, determine if the problem is hardware or software.
When you first turn your laptop on, do you get a splash screen as it goes through its Power On Self Test (POST to us geeks)?

Sometimes, the splash screen is disabled in settings. If it is, then when you turn on the laptop, keep hitting the F8 key. It will give you a text screen (NOT a window) with various boot up options. If you don't get that, you have a hardware problem. If you DO get the text menu, select SAFE MODE. The screen will be all screwed up, poor colors, big icons. Just click Start/Shutdown/Restart. Odds are, it'll make everything okay.

If all that doesn't work, about all you can do is to plug the monitor from your desktop into the back of it. Or, if you're as bad as me, one of the six old monitors that I have to step over to get to one of my few working PCs.


Let me know how things go.

Jenny

Hi Jenny,

Thank you for the pointers! I did as you said and the problem appears to be hardware, not software. The screen is lit, but no graphics, or anything, appear. I suppose I'm going to have to break down and take it to be repaired. First though, per your suggestion, I'm going to plug it into my desktop monitor just to be sure (and remove any incriminating evidence).

Thanks again for your help! You rawk!

Peace,

Yui

 

[Alex De Kok]

Thanks, everyone, for the replies and advice. I have a friend who works as a technician in computer support for a local university. I'm seeing him after the holidays, so our conversation will have at least one definite route to follow!

Thanks again,

Alex

 

[Lisa Denton]

My 3 cents.

Alex, I don't have a laptop because I like big honking desktops with big cases. I have 3 with 2 hardwired networked running most of the time. With the big cases everything is interchangeable and upgradeable. I can go on pages and lookie at pictures of how to chage things and stuff while I am playing with one. When I get a new DVD burner or something I just do it myself, he, he.

Dell computers was about to be obsolete, and most peoples who owned one was going to grow up and buy a real computer. I have helped peoples with some and they were designed by techies doin some heavy duty hallucinogenics. Its like going to get a hamburger and finding out the meat is fish and the mayo is tartar sauce, who the heck wants a fish hamburger? Since that time they managed to make a few good laptops and may float around a while longer before going bankrupt.

I have helped peoples who were getting laptops though, yes, get back on the subject.

Now, you need the big screen. Unless you are going to be carryin it around all the time and want a little lightwieght one. Even for just writing you need to be able to see the screen easy and make fonts big and still see lots of what you are writing at once. Also you will prolly need to bring up some naked pictures once in a while to keep the creative juices flowing, so to speak.

And a big keyboard **THIS IS IMPORTANT** because lots of peoples get a laptop and never use it because the screen and keyboard is too small. A friend was tryin to sell one, I looked at it and tried it and said no thank you. She finally admitted that she wanted a bigger one because it seemed like a little toy, so to speak, and she couldn't get used to the little keyboard and tiny screen where she couldn't see nothing, but it was lightwieght and easy to carry.

I would advise you to ask friends to let you type a page on thiers. while they watch of course, so you can feel what I am talking about. The bigger the better, unless you are going to carry it everywhere. Lightwieght and small is great while you are walking and not using it, stop and open it and you need a big one. If you are just going to use it around the house and out in the yard and stuff, a big screen and the bigger keyboard is very important.

As for what brand, everyone makes lemons, and good ones, even Dell.

Google is your friend, try (Laptops), then search within results (size versus weight) or sumpthin like that.

 

[HLD]

As people have mentioned, Dell makes a good laptop.

You might also consider getting a Sony or Fujitsu.

Whatever laptop you get, make sure that you can add accidental damage coverage to your warranty. That will cover drops and liquid spills in addition to normal wear and tear.

I used to work for Dell, and you would not believe how many people call in and say that their kid dropped a milkshake/soda/beer on their keyboard and now the thing won't start, or that an airport security screener dropped their notebook and the screen cracked, and please, please please would Dell fix it for them . . .

If you don't have accidental damage coverage, forget it. In many cases it's almost less expensive to buy a new laptop than have it fixed out of warranty.

 

[JRaven]

Hi Jenny,

Thank you for the pointers! I did as you said and the problem appears to be hardware, not software. The screen is lit, but no graphics, or anything, appear. I suppose I'm going to have to break down and take it to be repaired. First though, per your suggestion, I'm going to plug it into my desktop monitor just to be sure (and remove any incriminating evidence).

Thanks again for your help! You rawk!

Peace,

Yui

No problem, girl! Happy to help out.

And actually, I hadn't thought about the "incriminating evidence". If the monitor plugged into the back works, you should be able to back up anything you need.

Be sure to empty the Recycle Bin after deleting the evidence.

Jenny