|  |  | 
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| LapTops..
Hey guys !
well i want to buy my lap top. I am still saving, but i am willing to save up for a while.
I want a small one... preferably a notebook.
I was looking at some in my area and well.. i really liked the Toshiba NB300. Its really small and well.. it comes in colors 
any brands or models i should stay away from? This is gonna be my first lap top. So i would like it to be a memorable one haha.
Thanks everyone! | 
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| I LOVE HP computers, I've never had any problems with mine.
I'm on my HP notebook as I type, lol | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Moderator
| Find a particular brand and model that you think looks like it has the right build for you, and then check it out online. Go to places like BestBuy.com and read reviews on it.
Two computers with nearly identical specs may be very different in quality. A computer may sacrifice cooling in order to cram larger (and thus, cheaper) RAM into the housing. This could lead to breakdowns. It might be built with parts from a wide range of producers, and these parts may not always jive with each other.
Checking out reviews will go a long way toward figuring this stuff out. If a computer looks good, but only has an average of three out of five stars in a hundred reviews, it's likely not a very good machine. | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| I agree. When we bought our first lap top, it was an HP DV6000. Worst computer i've ever used. The video chip got burnt due to the placement of the fan.
Anyway, I would like it if it was small. Due to lack of room in my room haha. I was just reading about the NB 300. It doesnt have a DVD player. I need it to have one, so maybe it isnt the right one for me.
I'll keep looking. Thanks for the advise guys. Any other reccomendations? | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Helper
| newegg.com is your friend for pricing out laptops. That or buy direct from the companies themselves (aka Dell.com) This works best when they offer a 'sale' on the computer you want.
I work for the IS Helpdesk at my college fixing computers, and have noticed the Dell Latitude E6400's we have have been nice. They're a bit pricey and are 14"s. As for small laptops (netbooks, if that's what you mean), be careful what you wish for. They have tiny screens and are hard to type for any length of time on (at least when it comes to my big hands).
Good luck in your search! | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| Thanks. I was looking on this one store called fry's electronics. I just typed notebooks.. but netbooks make sence since... well... you can only surf the net in them. I guess i will look into larger laptops then. I just checked the latitude and its really nice! | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| I personally have had nothing but grief from Dells. Had 2 & they both crashed multiple times My dad has a Dell laptop now, he's had to go back to factory settings at least 3 times now. Lost everything on the computer each time. | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| Oh wow. Ok well i have to keep looking. What about acers? Ive seen them, and well i dont know if they are worth it... | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| Acer EEE is what I use. It's really inexpensive, and works really well for surfing the web, getting on FL, even playing games online. It is very small, and has plenty of storage. There is no built in CD or DVD drive, however, so if you need that, then maybe this isn't for you. Also, the keyboard is comfortable for me, but my husband (with giant hands and fingers) finds it to be too small. | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| thanks meenu! I was looking into small lap tops. I really would like it. I would mind if it didnt have the dvd or cd feature. My question is this though:
how does one install antivirus and programs? I have a Norton 360 on cd and i dont think i would download another one. What do you do? What about programs such as office? I also have this on cd (i purchased it) would i have to download it too?
thanks | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| I think if you need a CD or DVD drive, then your best bet is to purchase a portable drive. | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| Yeah... But how did you go about installing programs into yours? | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Mentor
| I have a Dell Mini and its great | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| Quote:
Originally Posted by Tony G.  Yeah... But how did you go about installing programs into yours? | I didn't. 
With a portable drive, you'll be able to install programs. And I am not sure, maybe Acer makes a model with a drive in it?  | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| I wish I could help you out with laptop advice but I don't know much. I love the linux version of the EEE PC but would definitely have a desktop or external hard-drive to save files if I was going to use it as my main computer. Right now I have a re-furbished Gateway laptop and it's been great but it does tend to run hot.
HP's have a great reputation but what I was told was that when HP's die, they die spectacularly, and typically can't be revived.
My advice though would be to pick up an external hard-drive for your laptop to save space on it.
Best of luck and keep researching  | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Bum
| If you can afford it, I'd recommend getting a macbook, even a refurbished one. I've noticed most laptops last approximately a year before they start to develop problems. However, I've had a macbook for 3 years that's still going strong. You can get standard stuff like Word & Excel on a mac now, & you'll never, ever have to install an antivirus at all!
Just my 2c... Once I tried using a mac, I never went back! | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| Quote:
Originally Posted by Red1313 I wish I could help you out with laptop advice but I don't know much. I love the linux version of the EEE PC but would definitely have a desktop or external hard-drive to save files if I was going to use it as my main computer. Right now I have a re-furbished Gateway laptop and it's been great but it does tend to run hot.
HP's have a great reputation but what I was told was that when HP's die, they die spectacularly, and typically can't be revived.
My advice though would be to pick up an external hard-drive for your laptop to save space on it.
Best of luck and keep researching | Agree about the HPs. My HPs have lasted a while, but when they die, that's it - time for a new computer. I usually buy HPs. This Acer was given to us by my mother in law, so she could skype with the kids. | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Mentor
| Hps are good
My desktop computer is 6 years old, its hp Never had any faults with it | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Helper
| For anti-virus, go with AVG free or Avast!. Both are excellent free programs that will do what you need them to. Also grab Spybot to eliminate the spyware.
As for computers (aka software) crashing a lot, I find it's not too often the hardware companies fault. There can be exceptions (bad drivers), but it's not exceedingly common.
Acer is a decent company, so is Asus and Lenovo | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Moderator
| Quote:
Originally Posted by Amanda I personally have had nothing but grief from Dells. Had 2 & they both crashed multiple times My dad has a Dell laptop now, he's had to go back to factory settings at least 3 times now. Lost everything on the computer each time. | Wow, we've got 2 dell desk tops and 2 laptops.
We're pretty happy with them. Quote:
Originally Posted by Shock For anti-virus, go with AVG free or Avast!. Both are excellent free programs that will do what you need them to. Also grab Spybot to eliminate the spyware. | I use those....love the freebies! I also use Ad-Aware and SpyBlaster, both free. | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Mentor
| I have an HP laptop with the big screen....love it but it is heavey. Get free virus software from comcast McAfee...very happy with my setup. 3 years old and they fixed it in 2 days!!!. (it failed just before end of warranty) hummmm | |
| | |
January 15th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| ok! thanks guys! So freebies it is.
Im not sure i can afford a macbook, but if i could i totally would
I think im gonna look into acers. They seem to be right for me. | |
| | |
January 16th, 2010
|
| | Fish Addict
| My son has a Mac book that needs to be worked on now.. His is less then a year old and the fan is going out. We will send it back and get it repaired hopefully it wont cost us anything. He loves the Mac Book.. I, how ever, am disappointed. We spent like 1300 on the thing and i believe it should last longer then it has. I am currently using a toshiba laptop. Good computer but bulky. The netbooks are great as far as size goes but to my knowledge none come with a built in cdrom. | |
| | |
January 16th, 2010
|
| | Fish Keeper
| I recommend against Apple products for a few reasons. The main thing is that they're not a very good value. You have to have the latest version of Apple OS to run the newest programs...and apple charges you for these updates. (Microsoft's updates are still free.) It might not be a huge deal to you, but say you want to get Photoshop in the future, but then you ALSO need to buy a new OS version just to run your new software...lame.
Plus, you do pay a lot for the brand. The hardware is the same as that in every other PC, so there's no justification for such a premium.
Acer America is probably the best machine you could buy. They're a great value, top quality at a low price. They do this because Acer treats the employee's right and runs a tight business (no ridiculous executive holiday weekends...)
I would recommend you try to shoot for a laptop using an Intel Core 2 or an AMD Phenom II (any speed.) The cheaper ones have old technology (Intel Celeron/Pentium and AMD Sempron/Athlon/Turion) that won't serve you well into the future.
That will put you into the $600 range, but you'll get a very nice machine out of it. You can do some price sniping on www.newegg.com and usually snag a nice Acer laptop at a $150 discount. Just be patient and one should go on sale.
Last edited by Tavel; January 16th, 2010 at 03:13 PM.
| |
| | |
January 16th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| thanks tavel. | |
| | |
January 16th, 2010
|
| | Fish Master
| Tony, I have a HP Pavilion Laptop and I love it. It is heavy, but it is also VERY durable. I accidentally left it on the roof of my car and drove away. It flew off into the street when I was going 45mph. I freaked out! Well the thing survived and almost 2 years later it still works flawlessly. I'm typing on it right now | |
| | |
January 22nd, 2010
|
| | Fish Bum
| Quote:
Originally Posted by Tavel You have to have the latest version of Apple OS to run the newest programs...and apple charges you for these updates. (Microsoft's updates are still free.) It might not be a huge deal to you, but say you want to get Photoshop in the future, but then you ALSO need to buy a new OS version just to run your new software...lame. | What...? I've never had to pay for Apple software updates. Since my OS is Tiger, I would have to pay for Leopard if I wanted it, just like if I had XP, I'd have to pay for Vista. However, all the regular software updates are just as free as Microsoft updates! (I also have Photoshop, MS Office, etc. for Tiger, and I didn't have to buy Leopard.)
PS - I hear Apple support is fantastic: quick response time, no cost to the consumer, etc. | |
| | | |
