Laptop help....

[Toke]

I'm in need of a new laptop. I don't have a ton of money, so I'm not looking for top of the line models. I own a Dell, but through experience and word of mouth, I don't want a Dell. I'm told they don't last very long. I'm not looking for something that will never break down, but I want something that will structurally last longer (Dell's are known to overheat).

Any suggestions on something reliable??
No sales pitches, just suggestions from actual users.
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[oldnwrinkled]

If you can wait till Oct...then get a Toshiba with Windows 7.

I hear complaints about Vista. Can you upgrade Vista to Win7?

 

[WoodPeckr]

Laptops are dropping in price. Stay with the big names HP, Toshiba, Gateway, whoever gives the best deal.

I have a 16 month old Toshiba dual core laptop than hasn't given me a bit of trouble. I like Toshiba for its rep and because they still give you Vista OS install discs. That said I would wait a couple weeks since Best Buy announced at the end of this June they will start selling PCs with Windows 7 installed......Vista is done and new Win 7 is considered the better OS.

 

[PDSAjax]

Depends what you want to do with it... from my experience of over 10 years in the IT field...

Toshiba - very good laptops, for many years they only made laptops and it shows. Downside is it shows in the price as well
Acer - I have had several Acer laptops and netbooks.... whilst well specified for the price, I have found a massive variation in build quality, if you get a good one you have a rock solid machine that will last for a long time, if not you have an absolute dog you will hate for ever.
IBM / Lenovo - I have never actually paid for one of these with my own $, but have had them forced on me by employers. On the whole, not bad machines, fairly well specified with reasonable battery life. No real complaints.
Dell - again, never paid for one myself, but had them forced on me by clents... I dont like them.
HP/Compaq - get the right deal and you have a well specified machine for a good price, alternatively you could pick up an overpriced hunk of crap.

Other makes - having not really had any exposure, I cant in any honesty offer a valid opinion.

If it were my $ I would be looking towards the best Toshiba I could afford from the Tecra or Satellite Pro line.

Please feel free to PM me for more advice if you like.

 

[nihilism]

I think the key is sticking to the corporate lines of various manufacturers. Dell - stick with the Lattitudes, Toshiba - Tecra, Lenovo - ThinkPad T Series.
Personally, I have used Lenovo for myself and my corporate clients for several years. Overall, they are my brand of choice, as long a you stick with the ThinkPad T series, or X series.

 

[Toke]

I'm looking at an IBM. I'm student, who occasionally does other foolishness with it (i.e. gaming; but no crazy ram requiring games).

 

[nihilism]

I'm looking at an IBM. I'm student, who occasionally does other foolishness with it (i.e. gaming; but no crazy ram requiring games).

what is your budget?

 

[Toke]

what is your budget?

Cheap.

 

[WoodPeckr]

Cheap.

IBM / Lenovo are a good solid line but not cheap, you pay a little more.

 

[enyaw]

Does it matter if it's brand new? If not, go with what the others have suggested and do some homework on your specs. I'm talking about the older models/manufact. of course. That could save you about 1/3 to 40% of the cost. Might have to up the ram though and no warranty of course.

 

[theduke]

If you are looking for a new DELL laptop, PM me. I can get one brand new in box for $620, here are the details.

Brand New in box Dell Studio 1537 laptops. 1 year Limited Warranty.

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T6400 (2.0GHz/800Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
15.6” High Definition (720p) LED Display with TrueLife™ and Camera
4GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 800MHz
250GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
8X Slot Load Super Multi (DL DVD+/-R Drive + RAM support
Windows Vista Home Premium
More info available at Dell.ca website.


Over 100 units available.

Price for 1 unit - $620
Price for 10 units - $580
Price for 50 units - $560

The prices are firm and not negotiable.
Serious inquiries only.

 

[nmohan_101]

Dells are usually good laptops. They usally tend to be better then any other brand. You really cant be biased and say that all dell laptops over heat. When buying any product you get what you pay for... if you spend the money you will get a good machine.

 

[Fullback_69]

I have a Dell studio, worth EVERY penny.. even with Vista..

other then that i would go Toshiba or Acer. Although you will hear complaints about them all, money talks.

Cheers and good luck

 

[mainoffender]

I think the key is sticking to the corporate lines of various manufacturers. Dell - stick with the Lattitudes, Toshiba - Tecra, Lenovo - ThinkPad T Series.
Personally, I have used Lenovo for myself and my corporate clients for several years. Overall, they are my brand of choice, as long a you stick with the ThinkPad T series, or X series.

Just received a Lenovo SL500 last week and and while it may not have the build quality of the X or T series it's still rock solid IMO. Took forever to ship (4 weeks which is a downside with ordering from Lenovo) but worth waiting for. Very pleased so far. They start at about $580.00 but with upgrades mine came for just under a grand.

 

[nihilism]

Just received a Lenovo SL500 last week and and while it may not have the build quality of the X or T series it's still rock solid IMO. Took forever to ship (4 weeks which is a downside with ordering from Lenovo) but worth waiting for. Very pleased so far. They start at about $580.00 but with upgrades mine came for just under a grand.

Glad you are pleased. My experience with the SL's is limited, but I have heard generally positive comments.

 

[capt_avatar]

I'm a big Lenovo user. While I'm not crazy about the SL series, it's pretty solid. If you pony up a few more bucks, some buys can be had on the R series. If you don't want to buy direct from Lenovo, try a reseller like Insight Canada. You can find that there are "corporate" models, Topsellers that are available in the channel. Got my brother an R61 for $799 and it came with the 3 year warranty instead of the one. You can get a complete listing of models available from Lenovo's website. I discourage anyone from purchasing a laptop from a big box store. Corporate models tend to have a lot better support and a lot less crap loaded on them out of the box.
Just my $0.02

 

[The Bandit]

If you are looking for a new DELL laptop, PM me. I can get one brand new in box for $620, here are the details.

Brand New in box Dell Studio 1537 laptops. 1 year Limited Warranty.

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T6400 (2.0GHz/800Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
15.6” High Definition (720p) LED Display with TrueLife™ and Camera
4GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 800MHz
250GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
8X Slot Load Super Multi (DL DVD+/-R Drive + RAM support
Windows Vista Home Premium
More info available at Dell.ca website.


Over 100 units available.

Price for 1 unit - $620
Price for 10 units - $580
Price for 50 units - $560

The prices are firm and not negotiable.
Serious inquiries only.

Is that $620 taxes in?

Full Warranty, receipt?

PM me.