Laptop Suggestions

Hedgetrimmer

Hedgetrimmer

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I've been having considerable problems with my HP laptop for several months now. The screen keeps blacking out, and my search online has revealed that this is a recurring problems with HPs. Apparently one of the chips overheats and the soldering comes loose, making the contact unreliable. Or something like that.

Anyway, I can hook up an external monitor and everything runs fine. I'll probably do so for a while, but I know down the line I'll want to get another laptop. I'm definitely not buying another HP anything.

I've been looking at Dell. Any experience with this brand or any others you guys can share? Or maybe I should simply scrimp and save a little longer and switch to MACs.
 

Xvee

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I'm using a Dell Latitude. The disk drive is kinda weak and won't read discs on cheap media or if they're burned at too great a speed. A couple of the printed letters on the keyboard started rubbing off after 2 years.

But it's a Pentium 3 that has lasted me more than 10 years and still going. So despite the flaws it's kinda impressive.
 

Margarita Skies

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I am very happy with my Toshiba Satellite L305D. :) It's my second Toshiba. I'd had the other one for two years. I just bought this one because I needed more RAM, more hard drive space and a better operating system without having to spend a lot of money doing those upgrades on my first laptop. Besides my other laptop, the hardware was only compatible with Windows Vista anyway. Gave it to a good friend and she's enjoying it and now I have this one. Pretty cool. Love Toshibas.
 
Smish

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I use a Dell Latitude at work and have had no problems, but for personal use, I have a Dell Inspiron.

The one I'm using now is less than a month old. However, my previous laptop, also a Dell Inspiron, lasted over six years, and is still working. The battery is dead, so it has to be plugged in at all times now. I pounded the heck out of it, as a law student, lawyer, and writer. I took it everywhere and used it constantly, with no problems. I couldn't have asked for more, so when it was time to get a new computer, I went with another Dell.

I'm a PC. :rolleyes:
 
Hedgetrimmer

Hedgetrimmer

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Smish, I was just on Dell's site looking at the Inspirons. They're priced nicely and seem to offer everything I need.

Magali, I hear Toshibas are very dependable. I'll include them on my list of choices.

Xvee, thanks for weighing in.
 

Deleted member 42

Go to a store and check out the screens; they really do vary, and try a couple of keyboards on the laptops you're thinking about.
 

Lhun

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If you're willing to save a littme more money before buying, buy an Alienware instead of an Apple. Unless you really want to fork over the 50% more just to have the fruit logo on your computer.
For a normal pricerange i can also recommend Dells as pretty reliable. I have a really old lying around i very rarely use, but more so because it really is too slow nowadays. The keyboard is somewhat broken, but everything else still works, and it's almost ten years old.
 

Deleted member 42

Hedgetrimmer said:
er HP anything.

I've been looking at Dell. Any experience with this brand or any others you guys can share? Or maybe I should simply scrimp and save a little longer and switch to MACs.
Click to expand...

The real expense in switching would be having to buy all new software, even if it's just the Office Suite, though there are some decent deals.

If you're primarily interested in word processing and browsing, look at the refurbished Mac Books on Apple's site. They have the same warranty coverage, and there are some deals. Don't pay Apple for extra RAM; it's easy to install yourself, and you can get Apple approved RAM for much less from a reputable company like Crucial. I would get the extended warranty, AppleCare. It's well worth the extra money; I'd probably buy it from Amazon or Best Buy rather than from Apple--it's still AppleCare, but the price can be $40. 00 less.
 

Deleted member 42

I have to say, I like the Toshiba screens a lot, and always have. I note that aside from the way they look, the connectors from the motherboard to the panel are always better made than on the average laptop; they've got this extra reinforcement for protection. I noticed years ago that the screen cable wasn't warm to the touch when you cracked a Toshiba that had been running just before powering off and opening the case.
 
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