Here's $1500. Your laptop of choice?

Discussion in 'Computers and Technology' started by Phee, Jan 14, 2010.

  1. Phee

    Phee Moderator
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    I'm going to college next year and I'll be buying a laptop; I want to buy it probably April-ish when they're supposedly cheapest, so says Lifehacker. So I want to just do a bit of looking around now.

    Suggestions? I know everyone's always asking what do you want to do with it, etc. etc. but basically:

    -internet (duh)
    -programming
    -some light gaming
    -standard fare college papers, notes, etc.
    -torrents (all legal ones, of course :D)
    -Skype, webcam, etc.
    -DVD + CD burning
    -mayyyybe Adobe Photoshop
    -Avast'll be running 24/7

    That's about it. I can buy an external hard drive to keep the majority of my files on so space-wise isn't really a huge concern. I want it to run fast and last me four years.

    Does anyone have anything to add to my list of things-to-think-about? Or laptop suggestions?
     
  2. Will

    Will Level IV

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    Phee, I was going to say Sony VAIO P, but it will bite you in the ass on the last three - especially the final one, considering it has no fan.

    But 8" in perfect for lectures and whatnot, and sexy for everything else. Get rid of Vista and use Linux, and it'll run everything in lightning speed :D

    My next suggestion would be a Lenovo Thinkpad (probably X200)
     
  3. daFalco

    daFalco Level III

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    In my opinion, since you have identified that you want to buy a laptop so early and you have such a large time-frame with which to buy it, you already have a huge head start in terms of being able to pick your time with which to buy a laptop. This is particularly advantageous because you are able to keep on a lookout for price, and maybe you'll get lucky and bump into a price error or two.

    Me being especially stingy with money, I personally like looking at sites that list out some good deals. As I live in Canada (more particularly the GTA), I go on www.redflagdeals.com/forums often and if you live in Canada I'd advise looking at that site and just be on the lookout for a good deal. If you do live in Canada, I could always just toss you a link to a particularly good deal since I regularly visit the forums. If you live in the US, perhaps find a site that is similar to redflagdeals?

    Or if you don't care about price that much you can ignore my above two paragraphs.

    Anyways, as for the features itself, the ones that you listed aren't really that intensive and $1500 should be way more than enough.
    Some additional features to be on the lookout will likely be portability (size) - although there is somewhat of a portability-performance trade-off. You need to think about whether or not you want it to be lighter/smaller, and give up something like a smaller screen for gaming/watching movies, etc, and vice-versa.

    In addition:
    -looks (do you care how it looks)
    -warranty length/quality of customer service/warranty service of particular company (since you mentioned you'd like it to last 4 years, it'd be nice to have a company that is good with warranties)
    -there's probably more but that's all I can think of off the top of my head.
     
  4. Phee

    Phee Moderator
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    I'm not too stingy in the sense that I'd give up anything necessary for a cheaper price, but of course I want to get one the cheapest I can.

    Unfortunately I live in the US bu there's forums like that for us too, slickdeals? Or something like that. I'll look it up.

    Screen size- I want a decent screen, like...well I have no idea lol. Not too big, scree size isn't really that important, but no smaller than what the standard is, if there is one. Lighter and smaller is good but not that important. Looks matter some but aren't the deciding factor by any means. Warranty/customer service is definitely pretty important since I'll be using it for four years, and I've seen what condition my sister's is in after four year lol.

    In general I'm pretty flexible.

    btw Will no fan??? Gack. I could always buy one.
     
  5. Will

    Will Level IV

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    .. WHAT.

    You have fast internet, no download limit, and guns.

    Oh wait, you have crap beer.

    1up for Australia :D


    It's not that bad - especially on a cold day. Warms up your thighs :D

    I left it on for 10 hours, using it with all four workstations on Fedora being used the other day, and I didn't notice any difference in performance or heat.. So it's not that large an issue. :$
     
  6. interhacker

    interhacker Level IV

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  7. Phee

    Phee Moderator
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    Sweet, that handle's unique.

    So looks like the Sony Vaio P's a definite contender? I love using a warm laptop on cold days too. Not going to explicitly state it but 'nads + laptops = lowered sperm count!

    ...actually that was pretty straightforward anyways. Meh.

    Oh, and anyone who even THINKS of suggesting a mac *cough*billy*cough* will die.
     
  8. Rise and Fall

    Rise and Fall Level IV

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    i like my labtop :)

    standard dell xps 1330, reg $999, upgraded the graphics card, and added an LED screen so it came to like $1300

    ive never had problems with it, just had windsows 7 put in
     
  9. lolcow

    lolcow Level III

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    t400s. much sexier than regular t400

    actually, t410s will probably be out by then. get one :>
     
  10. trey

    trey Level I

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    Because I am a sucker for apple, and the white macbook has the unibody, i'd get the suped up version of the white macbook :)
    it's specs are the same as the entry level macbook pro 13", but 200 dollars less... I think. Buuut 1500 would get you the standard macbook, no?
    It comes with great software for doing all the things you like, and because apple make the software as well as the computer, it all just works!
     
  11. synthetic

    synthetic Level III

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    Location:
    canada
    13 inch macbook pro

    Intel Core 2 Duo
    2GB Memory
    160GB hard drive
    SD card slot
    Built-in 7-hour battery
    NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
     
  12. Will

    Will Level IV

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    Those are among the worst specs I have seen for a $1500 laptop.

    And it's a Mac.
     
  13. synthetic

    synthetic Level III

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    it will last doulbe probably triple the time any other laptop would
    and I just copied and pasted from site, theres most likely some more stuff
     
  14. Phee

    Phee Moderator
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    Come on guys. Not that you should be spamming or posting only for points anyways, but I'm actually sincerely looking for advice here. If you're going to post at least mean it, don't just copy and paste crap. Give me some info I'd actually find useful.
     
  15. trey

    trey Level I

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    Heh I will always lose out for suggesting a mac, but i've been grown up on PCs only to change to mac... and sincerely prefer a macintosh because i've had no problems with it yet :) I use photoshop, illustrator and indesign and they work smoothly for me. If you do some research into whether or not you pay more for a mac, you will be pleasantly surprised... however, if you'd like a less attractive machine (come on seriously) then go with a suped up pc notebook. Windows runs on a mac, so there's a win-win situation right there!

    Also, I have forgotten to mention that I am a student too XD Torrents work fine with Transmission, infact super fast with a no fuss interface! Sykpe works great with macbooks inbuilt iSight camera so... yeah XD The mac version of MSN is outdated and rotten, however Adium is a sweet multiservice chat program. All bases covered I guess x3
     
  16. daFalco

    daFalco Level III

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    Adium is sooooo weak. Trust, have they even added groups functionality yet?
     
  17. trey

    trey Level I

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    Im not sure, what are good alternatives to Adium?
     
  18. daFalco

    daFalco Level III

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    There are none AFAIK- therein lies the problem.
     
  19. Charlie

    Charlie Level IV

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    yuu can has my laptop for 1500 its a 4 year old POS.. lol really i'd search newegg they have the best prices.
     
  20. Phee

    Phee Moderator
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    But but but....I LIKE RIGHT CLICKING

    Ha. In all reality though a mac isn't really feasible because I'm planning on going to b-school and majoring a finance. A mac might have some software compatibility issues, plus Apple isn't very serious and business-y like. Similarly I don't know if I'll be able to use Linux?