wow great stuff guys i really appreciate all this!! not knowing much about laptops in conjunction with all the stupid-ass sites like dell confusing me with offers is hell on picking. i had hell picking this PC and i know its going to be a bitch picking another computer.
Did anyone else notice how dell switches up the deals on a bi-weekly basis? and there are different deals on the same computer based on where you click? yeah... i had such a hard time finding a deal and then when i found one the next day it would be gone. that URL erased and all new "deals" setup. I.E. discounts or free upgrades that would morph by the day. IT'S SO STUPID!!! once i hit refresh and watched the deals change, that same day! its BS.
but anyway...here we go;
Ckanderson said:
Definitely sounds true. and i'm sure battery performance, like was said, will be improved with the tinier screen.
SupraDerk said:
My honest advice is don't get a laptop and don't take one to class. It just provides an extra distraction and limits your ability to write effective notes (especially if you're going an engineering route).
I used to have one, but I found myself surfing the interwebs too much and not paying attention to priority one. And when I tried to take notes in math/engineering based classes it became an INCREDIBLE pain in the ass. So I sold it and used that money to upgrade my desktop and just use pen and paper in class.
But that's just me
That's very interesting advice. It's hard to choose that when my parents say they'll buy me a laptop. and we have a "family" computer at home that we all share and it seemed like getting a laptop might work best. should i consider getting a PC? i'd probably be pretty tempted to get serious with upgrades if i did...but then i don't know how much free time i'll have for things like gaming. but i'd like to start messing around with CAD software to try my hand at designing things....i dont know how much a notebook can handle? your response complicates my decision. dont get me wrong though i'm glad you said that.
drunk_medic said:
Dual core processor, to help with multitasking. You don't need a powerhouse of a processor, but I absolutely recommend two cores.
More memory [RAM] than what most simple laptops come with. 1GB is good. 2 is better.
Built in wireless for the simple pleasures, like tapping into a friend's, neighbor's or even the local coffee shop's wireless internet to help you get some research done. Some college kids probably rely on this. 802.11A/B are slow. G is probably what you want. If speed isn't advertised - meh, you'll be fine.
As far as laptop size, a 15.4" screen is a good standard - enough to be viewable and not too bulky. It also should allow for a slightly better battery life than a 17".
I also recommend XP Pro as opposed to Vista. Your processor/RAM will like you more.
Laptop audio is usually kinda crappy, but for sound, I just saw this:
http://www.soundblaster.com/products/product.asp?category=1&subcategory=208&product=16642
Get that with a nice set of surround headsets or "buds" and it looks like a winner. It even looks to have a "breakout box" to hook up 5.1/7.1 audio systems.
Multifunction disc recorder - CD-RW/DVD-RW combo drive.
Hard drive capacity is your preference. You can determine your needs better than I can. If you want, you can always buy an external hard drive for big files that you keep and plug in at home, and have a regular capacity hard drive come with your laptop. This is more cost efficient than just buying a large capacity hard drive for a laptop [they cost more], and how much space are you really going to need when on-the-go?
You want a wall charger AND a car charger, definitely. An extra battery is your choice. I would recommend a flash drive of some sort to carry around with you for quick little data transfers between friends.
I'm definitely hoping for a dual core and dell has dealson 2GB ram with 160GB hard drive. but who knows about how long that will last and i havent even looked at other makers yet, Toshiba, Acer, Gateway (if they have notebooks) and others... in time i'll get through all of them. and you might read my reply to Keros because i mentioned why i liked your find on the sound card idea.
the reason i wanted a good laptop was also because i was going to devote most if not all of my computing time on my own computer wherever i feel rather than sharing our desktop with my dad, but it is pretty nice and i could get a new sound and grafix card and have a pretty slick powerhouse...i just dunno!!
NastyNate said:
toshiba makes one that you can spin the screen around and lay it flat. It also has a stylus so you can do that and write notes on the screen. it then transfers to a saveable file. Then you don't have to worry about losing paper notes, having pens, or a lot oxtra crap.
Another thing to do is find a computer that is easily upgradeable. Don't buy the fastest, biggest hard drive crap. If you have an ounce of mechanical skill you can buy that stuff, install it yourself and save a ton of cash.
Very intriguing, i've liked the concept but i've never actually SEEN one of those, and i havent heard anything about their actual usability. sure it can do it, but is it seamless and easy as paper? like SupraDurk said pen and paper is seemingly a good way to go... but if i could get a stylus unit that did that it would rock. the only MAJOR problem is a rather low-featured one at newegg is 1400 dollars! and for that i can get twice the memory and twice the HD at Dell...without the swivel of couse. unless i find a nice one for 1k or less i cant get it. i get to fund the extra cost of basically anything over 650ish.
and i have good memory sticks
if i can find them :cry: :3d_frown:
are you sure you can upgrade laptop internals yourself? i'm thinking something at least 160GB or around there is good enough and i can backup my HD and/or have an external for the photos, and movies if i even have time for them.
Keros said:
I strongly suggest Toshiba. Infact, I wouldn't recommend anything else. I have had personal experience with a "gaming" style toshiba, and for the shit I put that thing through, it was amazing. My mom has a satillite that's approaching 8 years old and still chugging strong. I know numerous other people who run Toshibas, and no one ever says anything beyond the normal heat issues that laptops suffer. I've heard plenty of ciscero, sony, acer horror stories though.
Laptops are about compromise, decide what you want to use it for and go for it. The less horsepower under the bonnet, the long the battery will last. The smaller the screen, the lighter (generally) the overall package will be. Less powerful laptops run cooler and last longer than high performance "gaming" systems.
Size does matter... smaller laptops designed for portability are probably what you'll want if you plan to lug it around all day. That alone is likely enough to steer you in that direction.
Sound quality... laptop... generally don't go together. Drunk Medic has prime advice in terms of an external sound card. He's also correct on wireless, memory, ect. I agree completely. Anything "built-in" in a laptop system is going to sacrifice everything for size, weight, and power consumption... so the speakers are going to leave much to be desired. Get a good set of headphones and an awesome external sound card, or it will always suck no matter what laptop you get, lol.
Generally speaking, you cannot easily upgrade a laptop, so for most intents and purposes what you buy is what you'll be stuck with until you buy another unit. Keep in mind that XP is going to be getting phased out slowly by Vista. I'd recommend going Vista off the hop. The difference is minimal.
Toshiba seems nice from what i've heard here.. what have you heard bad about those other brands? you can PM me that info or here i dont care but i'd love to hear specifics.
I totally didnt think about the possibility of an external sound card. that one that was linked for me has sound sampling rate that's the highest in Amplitube's preferences so i'm guessing it's really up there and should work great. they said in a review you could plug a guitar or a mic right in - thats exactly what i wanted! and i could not use it if i wanted to. the only thing a review mentioned was something to do with the soundblaster not liking vista...maybe something to do with memory like was said. it guess it eats it up a bit.
so if i got that i'd probably be fine with integrated sound rather than buying one with a sound card and then getting the external too right?
BorHor said:
You are probably not looking for a mac.. but MacBooks are cool.
I am looking at Macs actually. at this point everything is an option. and while i've heard some weirdness about the longevity of apples from one friend of mine, how apple designs things to only outlast the warranty.. but i'm listening!! :naughty: :naughty: i've had two female friends of mine break their macbooks, more than once in fact...so its discouraging. but they aren't very careful with their electronics in general...it still comes to mind, but if i'm convinced otherwise...the look nice.
well that's it for now.
i'm also kinda not sure where i should go about buying a laptop. anyone reccomend a site online?
i should probably try out the feel of any laptops i think about purchasing, right?
THANK YOU SO MUCH for all your help everybody!!
