Laptop Recommendations

[trickblue]

There isn't much difference between personal and business class other than the warranty. The personal warranties are crap. If you have a problem and call tech support you might get someone who speaks decent English. The business class support is supposed to be all USA.

The Dell rep told me the difference is that they are constantly renewing the consumer class (Inspiron) series so that a pc you buy today may not be compatible with the exact same model just a few months down the road...

The business class uses a standard architecture so that the parts are always ready and replace and easy to get...

 

[Yeagermeister]

The Dell rep told me the difference is that they are constantly renewing the consumer class (Inspiron) series so that a pc you buy today may not be compatible with the exact same model just a few months down the road...

The business class uses a standard architecture so that the parts are always ready and replace and easy to get...

Reps are salesmen so take what they say with a grain of salt.

 

[Doomsday]

I purchase a lot of computers for my clients and I always recommend Dell. One of my clients is a missionary and take them to some pretty rough climates in places like Africa and swear by their Dell's. I get feedback all the time the Dell's have been much more durable then the Toshibas and HPs they use to purchase.

Ive ordered at least 40 Inspiron and XPS laptops, over 30 Dimension desktops and about 12 servers in the last 2 years. Ive only had problems with 2 of those machines. Ive also had gotten nothing but good service on older machines that were under warranty, I always get the parts the next day. The desktops are so inexpensive and have ran so well we havent even bothered to purchase extended warranties on them.

 

[Mavs Man]

One thing I did forget, Sony is currently running a program where if you send them a working competitor's notebook they will rebate you $200. If you send in a working Sony notebook they will rebate you $400.

My loaded out Sony notebook was $999 BEFORE the rebate, so you can save considerable coin...

Are you serious?! That's awesome.

I'm definitely hitting that when the time comes to upgrade.

 

[Wimbo]

Asking an IT guy if Dell or HP or Lenovo makes the best laptop is like asking a redneck if Ford, Chevy, or Dodge make the best pickup truck. Pointless.

They all buy the same screens, hard drives, processors, memory, etc. The differences come in to play when you consider the amount of support and R&D used to develop the products. HP and Lenovo invest heavily in R&D - especially HP. Dell does not. Perhaps that is why Dell recently recalled 4.1 million batteries in 2006, because they had the nasty habit of catching on fire. Lenovo had this problem to a lesser extent. HP did not have the problem... even though HP bought batteries from the same manufacturer (HP spec'd out their batteries differently, and did not experience the problem).

Your best bet is to identify your needs & what is important to you (more mobile or more powerful? Bigger screen or lighter weight? WWAN integrated? etc). Then compare the models from each manufacturer that meet those requirements. For example: All manufacturers classify their business units into 4 categories... Ultra mobility (thin & light, 12.1" screen, ULV processors that lend themselves to incredible battery life, but sacrifice top end horse power); Standard/Mainstream (14" or 15" screens, big range of processor choices); Workstation class (big screens, awesome graphics capabilities, heavier but loaded; or Desktop replacement (may as well be a desktop, but it has every bell & whistle).

Once you identify the class of laptop you want, it narrows the field somewhat.

Oh, and whatever you buy will end up being the brand you recommend to everyone else as being the best.

And for all of you still reading who wish to know which pickup is the best: Nissan.

 

[Yeagermeister]

Asking an IT guy if Dell or HP or Lenovo makes the best laptop is like asking a redneck if Ford, Chevy, or Dodge make the best pickup truck. Pointless.

They all buy the same screens, hard drives, processors, memory, etc. The differences come in to play when you consider the amount of support and R&D used to develop the products. HP and Lenovo invest heavily in R&D - especially HP. Dell does not. Perhaps that is why Dell recently recalled 4.1 million batteries in 2006, because they had the nasty habit of catching on fire. Lenovo had this problem to a lesser extent. HP did not have the problem... even though HP bought batteries from the same manufacturer (HP spec'd out their batteries differently, and did not experience the problem).

Your best bet is to identify your needs & what is important to you (more mobile or more powerful? Bigger screen or lighter weight? WWAN integrated? etc). Then compare the models from each manufacturer that meet those requirements. For example: All manufacturers classify their business units into 4 categories... Ultra mobility (thin & light, 12.1" screen, ULV processors that lend themselves to incredible battery life, but sacrifice top end horse power); Standard/Mainstream (14" or 15" screens, big range of processor choices); Workstation class (big screens, awesome graphics capabilities, heavier but loaded; or Desktop replacement (may as well be a desktop, but it has every bell & whistle).

Once you identify the class of laptop you want, it narrows the field somewhat.

Oh, and whatever you buy will end up being the brand you recommend to everyone else as being the best.

And for all of you still reading who wish to know which pickup is the best: Nissan.

Dell wasn't at fault for those batteries. They bought them from Sony.

 

[Dallas]

Folks may not know this but all the new Dell laptops come w/ widescreens.

Dell hands down. I hate giving props to just one company but Dell is by far the best out there atm.

Some may laugh but the e-machine laptops (AMD) are incredible. Don't ask me why but they have awesome reviews. Check them out if you don't believe me.

E Desktops suck but the Laptops they put our are incredible.

 

[CowboyJeff]

We use Dells exclusively at work. I prefer them because the parts are typically easier to replace than on Sonys, IBMs, etc. I had a Sony once that needed a hard drive replaced. You had to completely remove the keyboard and part of the touchpad to get to the hard drive. On the Dells, they simply slide out the side. If you go with Dell (or any other brand) I highly recommend getting the 4 year Gold onsite warranty. Parts typically begin to break down around the 3 year mark. If you have memory or an LCD screen go bad after year 3 but before year 4, the cost of the warranty just paid for itself.

 

[tomson75]

After owning three Dell laptops, I finally got my head out of my arse and bought a Powerbook. Nothing against Dell, it's a fine pc, but its just that...a pc.

Once you go Mac you never go back.

 

[Yeagermeister]

After owning three Dell laptops, I finally got my head out of my arse and bought a Powerbook. Nothing against Dell, it's a fine pc, but its just that...a pc.

Once you go Mac you never go back.

Isn't a labotamy (sp?) required when buying anything from Apple?

 

[tomson75]

Isn't a labotamy (sp?) required when buying anything from Apple?

Nope. Just a walletectomy.

 

[superpunk]

After owning three Dell laptops, I finally got my head out of my arse and bought a Powerbook. Nothing against Dell, it's a fine pc, but its just that...a pc.

Once you go Mac you never go back.

Word on this. I tired of replacing fried hard drives and my quarterly blue screen of death "It's time to reformat" screen.

*** PCs...

 

[Yeagermeister]

Word on this. I tired of replacing fried hard drives and my quarterly blue screen of death "It's time to reformat" screen.

*** PCs...

stop downloading pron

 

[superpunk]

stop downloading pron

I never even got a virus of any sort.

They just die. And yet I kept fixing the Dell. Forget that. Hopefully the Mac works out better.

 

[Yeagermeister]

I never even got a virus of any sort.

They just die. And yet I kept fixing the Dell. Forget that. Hopefully the Mac works out better.

I really have nothing against a mac other than the games I play don't run on a mac and if they did they'd be much more expensive.

PC's have their pro's and cons just like macs. I just prefer pc's.

 

[burmafrd]

Have had a HP for 2 years and have used it all over the country in all types of conditions and it has been solid.

 

[Wimbo]

Dell wasn't at fault for those batteries. They bought them from Sony.

HP bought their batteries from Sony, too... however, HP didn't have the same issues. And when Dell had to replace 4.1 Million batteries, it took them months to replace batteries in many cases, which left laptop users tethered to the wall outlet. With some R&D instead of the "legos" mentality utilized by Dell, they would not have been in such a bad spot.

Dell is a marketing company with a retail mentality. They have done an exceptional job of creating a very efficient production model which utilizes materials that they get the best deals on. The result is a low-cost product made from average materials. They revolutionized the go to market strategy of major PC manufacturers with their Direct model, forcing IBM and HP to follow suit - eventually eliminating the local reseller market (hey, they are kind of like Wal-Mart in that respect).

Nothing wrong with any of those things... but none of them lend to producing the best product. It is the "Dominos Pizza" model: Best ingredients? No. Best Pizza? No. Cheap & easy to get? Yes.

 

[Yeagermeister]

HP bought their batteries from Sony, too... however, HP didn't have the same issues. And when Dell had to replace 4.1 Million batteries, it took them months to replace batteries in many cases, which left laptop users tethered to the wall outlet. With some R&D instead of the "legos" mentality utilized by Dell, they would not have been in such a bad spot.

Dell is a marketing company with a retail mentality. They have done an exceptional job of creating a very efficient production model which utilizes materials that they get the best deals on. The result is a low-cost product made from average materials. They revolutionized the go to market strategy of major PC manufacturers with their Direct model, forcing IBM and HP to follow suit - eventually eliminating the local reseller market (hey, they are kind of like Wal-Mart in that respect).

Nothing wrong with any of those things... but none of them lend to producing the best product. It is the "Dominos Pizza" model: Best ingredients? No. Best Pizza? No. Cheap & easy to get? Yes.

Sony also had the problem. it wasn't just a Dell problem.

 

[GlitzCowboy]

If you wanna go cheap...go Dell.

If you wanna go quality...go Apple MacBook. Aside from all the obvious betterness of an Apple, I've had mine for 18 months now and still haven't installed any form of Anti-Virus or Firewall and not had one problem. That alone is worth the extra money you will pay. Also in that time, a time in which I would have had to reinstall the OS in a PC about 2-3x, I'm still on my first copy of Mac OS X and it still feels as fresh as the day I bought it. Another shining point, if you do so wish to reinstall the Mac OS, you don't have to keep buying licenses for it like you do with Windows, you can just keep using that same copy over and over as many times as you so wish.

All parts are Apple made, so you don't have to wonder what's really under the hood...or I should say, which knock-off brand has so and so pushed on you just to drive the price lower like Dell, Gateway and every other PC manufacturer out there does.

Installing most applications simply requires a drag of an item to the applications folder. No extended installation process that you have to follow. Double-clik it, it mounts, you drag...the end.

All the software endorsed by apple actually works well and feels like they take pride in the product they release.

Support is second to none.

And in the end if you actually want to or have to use Windows for whatnot, you can with the new Intel-Based Apple MacBooks. Dual boot windows with Mac. Run Windows entirely alone, scrapping Mac OS x all together . Or even run Windows within Mac OS X itself.

Looks better.

Plays better.

Is better.

I was PC-PC-PC-PC because I could never afford better before- but since that's change once, I'll never go back to PC. PC is crap, period.

Vista compared to the new Mac Leopard....laughable. Vista, truly just another upgrade to Windows...Leopard, a new stage in Operating Systems all together.

PC = Commies

Mac = Free Thinkers

If you want more.. Just go to apple and find all the PC VS MAC commercials and have a look.

Truly, if you are looking for a personal laptop and not a business one where you need specific applications that are Windows-exclusives, then there really is no question about which way a person should go. And if you do it you'll never look back. And if that day does come and you do need to use a PC for whatever reason...you'll growl. Because going back to PC from Mac is the most distressful thing you will ever do in your life were technology is concerned.

Though if "ignorance is bliss" for you, I would just suggest sticking with your one in a million PCs and not thinking too hard. Ironic though, the "thinking too hard" is exactly what stops having to happen once you just think hard on the matter just once. For once you go Apple, you will not go back...ever.

 

[Doomsday]

Lenovo has a battery recall as well, must be something in the air. I will say the Lenovos are built extremely well, there is just something about them I just dont like. Had a customer of mine spill a full cup of coffee on her brand new Lenovo, it was dripping coffee 3 hours later. Let it sit with a fan blowing on it overnight and started it up the next morning with no issues. Amazingly she has been using it trouble free for about 2 months now.