It Was You

Hey guys...

I'm going to be purchasing a laptop over the summer for college and I was wondering if anyone could give me some good recomendations as far as models and makes go.

I have a Sony VAIO desktop and I love it to pieces. [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img] My dad also has a VIAO laptop and it seems to be a very good computer. However, as I'm on a budget, I was looking at Dell b/c they're relatively cheap and I've heard they're really good computers. Is this true? Can anyone give me some advice and maybe their experiences with different models? Pros-cons, that sort of thing. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img] Thanks!

Heidi

[ 04-02-2004: Message edited It Was You ]

Lyndsi

I have heard from my mom that the Dell Inspirion and Dell Latitude are the best Laptops and they are one of the cheapest ones....my mom works for a computer company as a programer and so she probly knows which ones are the best i just saw your post and thought i would post.... [img]smilies/glow.gif[/img] [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

amusic20

It depends on how much weight you're willing to carry; laptops like Gateways are quite heavy but some models come w/ extra features (like a DVD player), & others--like IMacs--are lighter but don't have those extra features.

Whimsical Fairy

Dells are pretty good, from what I've heard. I have a Toshiba and it wasn't that expensive, and it's been good so far. From experience, though, try to stay away from HPs. @_@ They always have something wrong that needs to be fixed, or at least that's what happened to me in two occasions already. :/

Hope that helped. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

coolove

I'm going to be buying a labtop too. I just went competitive shopping today. That is a must. Go around to the local computer stores to see what they have. Get printouts and compare prices and packages online. Ultimately, I'm getting mine from tigerdirect.com. Low prices. But you also need to know what the basics of what you want in terms of how much hard drive you need ect...

It Was You

Thanks guys. [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

Lyndsi..yeah. I think those are the ones that are fairly popular right now. I'm looking into those brands. And if your mom said they were good, then it sounds like she'd know what she's talking about, especially with what she does. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img] Thanks.

amusic20..I'm not all that concerned about weight...more about quality.

Roxy..yeah, thanks. I've also heard that about HP's..*shudders* That's one model I crossed off my list a long time ago. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img] But Toshiba, huh? I was looking at one of those at Best Buy the other day, but wasn't too sure b/c I haven't heard much about them, either way. Thanks for the opinion though. I'll keep that in mind. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

coolove..yup. That's pretty much what I've been doing. The problem though, is I feel like I'm working with stocks. lol! I don't want to buy while it's too high..and I keep hoping that prices will drop, but they all just keep changing every time I turn around! *sigh* Anyway..thank you for your comments.

Any other opinions/suggestions? [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

The Chickie

I have an old refurbished Dell (about 4 years old) and it's still works wonderfully but even the new ones rock as well [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

jessieka03

You need to figure out what you need for school (word processing obviously, but also if you want a DVD player, x amount of GB etc.) and then see how the prices differ. Because my friend got a Dell because they were cheap but mostly it's because they're advertised with barely anything on them and you have to customize them to what you want.

Also, just so you know, Dell's don't come with floppy disc drives anymore unless you special order it. Sometimes they come in handy for transfering work.

FYI: I have a Sony VAIO desktop and I'm so happy with it because even though it's got a tower, I have 120GB of hard drive space that you would never be able to fit in a laptop and I have a LCD screen so it saves desk space.

My advice is to go look around at different stores, I love Best Buy because the employees know what they're talking about and they're not on commission so they'll get you something you really will like. Plus, if you find the same thing somewhere else for a lower price, they'll take that difference and add 10% and take that off their price. They also have some great service plans. <--- Seems like I'm a walking ad for BB.

Nicole D

I'll have to second the Dell posts. They're a great company and their systems are rock solid. I build my own computers so i'm pretty proficient when it comes to systems. I just bought a Dell Inspiron 9100 laptop fully loaded. I'll get it in a couple weeks (I can't wait).

Specs -

Pentium 4 3.02 GHz
800 mhtz front side bus
15.4 WSXGA+ LCD screen
512MB ddr ram
60GB hard drive
128MB ATI Radeon 9700 vid card (just placed on the market)
DVD RW/CD RW 4x drive

Dell's got GREAT warranties. I purchased the 3 yr.

Right now I have a Toshiba Satellite that I want to throw off a really big bridge. It's given me nothing but problems from the moment I bought it. Sadly, before purchasing the laptop, I read a ton of reviews all which gave the system 4 stars. Me? I'd give the system .5 and that's even being nice. I'll never buy a Toshiba again.

How do I know Dell's are good? My brother has been a big Dell fan for years. He's got two laptops at home right now that he's had for about 4 years. He's never complained once.

Ultimately, you've got to step back and decide what you want the computer for. Me? I'm a graphic designer who needs something that rocks in the video card area. So, i'll want something with at LEAST a 64MB video card. I'd suggest nothing lower than a 64MB ATI Radeon 9600 or the Geforce equivalent. Don't get a 32MB card... they're obsolete.


Anyway, happy shopping! Hope you find something that's right for you.

n e r b l e

another thing to consider is technical support and warranty length.

if you're pretty computer savvy the tech support is not a big thing. but you need at least two years and to ask if the techs are in india or what. i work for a high speed internet company and lots and LOTS of people complain about how they can't understand the techs b/c of the language issue.

also, you need at least a 3 year warranty no matter what. the screens are really, really sensitive and if they break you basically throw away the laptop.