Help! I Need Info on Buying a Laptop

I would avoid EMachines or HP computers at all costs. I've had an eMachines and my husband has had a HP and both died beyond repair within a year of purchase.

My laptop is a Dell and I think I overpaid. It cost me about $1400....but I bought a lot of bells and whistles because I was using it for business at the time.

I would suggest going to your local computer repair shops. They usually sell really good working refurbished computers really cheap. You can usually get one that's in great shape, has been repaired, and sometimes even comes with a warranty for usually less than $500 or so. That way, you won't get stuck with Windows Vista which has had TONS of problems. Good luck

Monica, I would say ask my grandson, as he is the expert, but he just bought a laptop that cost over 1600.00, it is an IBM because he wanted a professional notepad. It is with windows of course, but he has it formated to also use Linex which he thinks is better, lol, I could kill him, he took my word processor off mine to give me faster time and now I have something else. I have a compact presario desk top probably much like yours and I love it and I bought a compact laptop also that was Billy's but gave to my daughter-in-law who is in a nursing home when Billy got his desktop. But it is a great one. It cost me almost 1200. about three years ago but they have come down a lot since then. I don't know about gateway, my son-in-law and my son both have them and they breakdown a lot, so I would look around. I don't know why I am writing this, I always go for cheapest myself. but I think you need a good power supply, a good life battery, for on the go, and a decent screen. The compact laptop was great in that area, and one thing I can tell you, just while it was under waranty, he did a couple things to it, and I just sent it to them and they sent it back in a very short time, three or four days I think and all I had to pay was for shipping it to them, all else was their expense. I didn't pay for an extra insurance thing either. so their support was great and also if you needed to talk to someone I had good service. I think this is important on any computer lap or desk top. I am tired, it is late, I don't know why I am writing all this lol, but I wish you well, and you asked, so good luck Monica.
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Well, I started typing before Jill went up, but I agree try not to get Windows Vista. Maybe you can get a break also, you can go on the internet and get great deals at some of the places on there, much better than the stores. If I could just remember the name of one of the ones he uses, I will ask him tomorrow, and let you have it and you could just explore. The best part of them is you don't usually have to pay the sales tax, and that saves a bunch and a lot of them right now have free shipping. Also, look at Circuit city.com, they have sales right now on lap tops. anyway good luck again. Getting something with out the vista, thing should be cheaper as they are considered "out of date" but nobody wants it so as Jill says try and get one without it.

I love my MacBook! Got Office on it at the student/teacher price--and you will be a student and qualify.

I also like HP products; have had good eperiences with HP printers for nerly 20 years, so I totally didsagree with the naysayer.

We have a Compaq desktop. It was a little pricey. We have a dell that is junk. I let the kids play games on it. We have an HP laptop that has never given us any problem. We bought it 3 years ago at...and I am ashamed to admit it...Walmart. Cost about $600 my biggest complaint with that is it didnt come with the windows office pro package so we dont have word on it. For the complete windows package it is about $120. I have heard Gateway isnt the best one to buy because of their recent money problems it is very hard to get any type of repair work done so it pretty much makes warranty worthless.

I loved Macs when I was in college, and have considered going back - no viruses is a good reason for that, but so many programs are windows based.

With the new Macs, you can partition them to run Mac and Windows programs separately. I am a diehard Mac fan, and would not even consider anything else.

I love my Toshiba - bought it on clearance at Staples - added Office afterwards (usually much cheaper through school as someone said) .... oh, and a handy dandy car converter - not specific to the laptop; I can plug anything into it and I love it!

Hope we'll see you at Back to School for Grownups

Meant to mention the main reason I love my Toshiba ...their customer service was AMAZING.... lost my power cord and they had a new on to me about 12 hours after I called them, even though I live in a little tiny town in cottage country Ontario... I have never heard of such a thing as one day service for anything up here!

Monica, I'm interested in a laptop as well. Don't have any info to offer, just hanging around reading your comments!

Monica, listen carefully, MAC!

It won't break, it won't crash and it's so much easier to use and add new stuff etc. 75% of web designers use Macs.

There are no important applications I've run across you can't get on the Mac {same application/Mac version or same function in another application.}

I have an iMac on my desk [a large screen and that's it! Computer innards part of the screen] and an iBook for traveling. Love them both.
OK, I'll stop before I start foaming at the mouth.

Okay - I am thinking more aboutthe macs now -- my big question is, since my desktop is a PC, will I have issues going back and forth from laptop to desktop? I have a lot of things on my PC (my novel is in Word, for example) and I will want them on my laptop as well. I currently have a Compaq Presario 2.7 GHz Intel Celeron Processor with Windows XP.

I agree with M.M. you can get a Mac that you can partition to run Mac and Windows programs at the same time [you can have both operating systems "live" so any file you click on opens and what system's it's on is invisible to you.]
Don't know what that does re: your virus concern having windows open. I've been on Macs for 20 years and never had a virus.
Actually, for your novel, the compatibility issue isn't the operating systems/platforms, it's WORD. While it's got the same name, WORD for Mac and Word for Windows are different applications that, in the past didn't always transfer easily. Think that may have been resolved. That's an important question to ask - - better yet, get a friend with a Mac and try opening your current word files on it.

Okay - who is my friend with a mac that will be willing to accept an e-mail from me with one of my word files to test this theory out?

I actually bought an HP several months ago and it has Vista...I absolutely love it. Vista has caused me no problems, other than I can't load in old software...it is no longer compatible. As for the HP brand, my desktop is 4 years old and it is HP-I've had no problems.

I have a Macbook Pro. Love it but it may be more than you need (price and bells and whistles).

I don't know about you, Monica, but I am thoroughly confused by now after reading all that advice. Good luck!

Monica, you already have my email addy, so feel free to send something to me.

I've been using a Mac at home and a PC at work for YEARS. It's gotten easier, and now the two platforms work nearly identically with Microsoft Office files.

Plus, as others have mentioned, the new Macs have Dual Core Pentium processors. You can buy a package that allows you to run a copy of Windows on your Mac. That way, if you have a WinTel only program that you can't live without, you don't lose it. And, you get the benefit of using the Mac for everything else.

Superior hardware. Bottom line.

Hi Monica, I work for a "computer networking & security" company. Last year I wanted a laptop for my birthday so I asked our "technology specialist" which ones are the best and all three of them told me to get a Dell. I have been using it for a year and havent had any problems. The best thing about them is that even if you drop them in the street and a car runs over it, they will replace it. They are known for having the best warranty.

Hi Monica, I would recommend a Dell, you can find special deals advertised on sites like MSN.com, and search Dell's site for their specials. Dell has the biggest market share, and are used in big corporations for their mobile workforce. IBM Thinkpad's are no longer IBM but are Lenovo's and their quality has gone down since the change. Toshiba has a problem with bad batches in production so it's the luck of the draw, I have had two Toshiba's that were bad from day one. Macs are good, but the program compatibility are always an issue, as well as they have their own service technicians, so local repair may be an issue. Word of advice, if you are going back to school, check out Microsoft's Office student editions. (which are a lot cheaper than regular office) I have a Dell Inspiron 6400, and it is great! (big screen, comfortable keyboard layout.) Also, check with your accountant, you may be able to write the laptop off, so a little extra cash out front may not be so bad come tax time. Get a thumbnail drive, and back up your data often, so even worst case scenario, you won't loose. Vista isn't so bad, but the older program compatibilty is an issue. Good luck with whatever you choose, and with school!

Have you checked with the school you're going to regarding specifications? Sometimes they give recommendations, although they are generally low end.

My advice is to avoid Windows Vista at this time, particularly if you're taking any online courses. Most of the platforms for online don't yet support Vista. I recently bought to Dell laptops for my son and I, and I'm very happy with them. You can get a stripped down laptop for under $1000 if you want. I paid a bit more because I wanted a better graphics card on it, but if you're just going for a work horse and aren't looking to do any advanced gaming applications, a basic Dell will be a good bet for you. If you decide to go with the Dell, I can give you the name of the guy who helped get me the best deal possible on the laptops I ended up with.

Also, be cautious when buying the home/student version of Office (if you don't go with the version you already have). It is altered from the professional version enough that I have a great deal of difficulty maneuvering through it. As soon as I have the money, I intend to upgrade to the small busines version of Office.

My biggest advice is that you get something with an Intel microprocessor. I bought a couple desktops a while back that had the AMD processors and I've just not been as happy with them as with the Intel professors.

Good luck!

Have you gotten a lap top at yet? I just got a new Dell and they are reasonable and it seems to be a good machine. Let me know what you think about Dell or have you used one yet?

I am just now really shopping for one since I now have the finances saved. I am not sure what I will get but will probably get one of my techy friends to help me. I will post if I buy one.

i would avoid acer also. fujitsu's r supposed 2 b good