New laptop suggestions

[BBQ101]

Go to the Dell outlet and buy a refurbished laptop. You can get a good deal and they still have a one year warranty. The specs on the laptop above are pretty out dated. 5400 RPM hard drive and a P6200 which is not nearly as good as an i5 or i7 processor. I think you can get more bang for the bug out of a Dell.

I second this recommendation. If you are not in a real hurry, you can wait until they have a coupon sale. I was able to get a laptop with slightly better spec than yours (except it was a 15" widescreen) for $458 shipped to my door about 6 months ago. This was when they were running an outlet sale for 20% off a laptop.

This is the second computer I have bought from the outlet (first was a nice desktop) and I have been satisfied with both. Actually more than satisfied. The desktop I bought is an outstanding machine, and their is not way I could have self-built the same thing for the price I got.

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[theogt]

The Inspiron line is crap

They only have inspirons at that price level it seems.

I found this:

http://outlet.us.dell.com/ARBOnline...px?rn=6424&SC=lowToHigh&c=us&cs=22&l=en&s=dfh

What do people think about these specs at $529?

Processor: Intel Core i3-370M Processor (3M cache, 2.40 GHz)
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium
Inspiron 17R - N7010 Laptop
640 GB SATA II Hard Drive (5400 RPM)
6 GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHZ
8X DVD +/- RW Drive
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator HD

 

[BBQ101]

Stay away from the Inspiron line. The Latitude line is a much better machine. I have only seen one physical outlet store. In was in Austin but it's not there anymore.

The Inspiron line is crap

Both of my purchases from Dell outlet have been inspirons (a desktop and laptop), and I have been very please with each purchase. I have not had any problems with them either. For what he is wanting to do, I think and inspiron laptop would be just fine.


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[BBQ101]

They only have inspirons at that price level it seems.

I found this:

http://outlet.us.dell.com/ARBOnline...px?rn=6424&SC=lowToHigh&c=us&cs=22&l=en&s=dfh

What do people think about these specs at $529?

Processor: Intel Core i3-370M Processor (3M cache, 2.40 GHz)
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium
Inspiron 17R - N7010 Laptop
640 GB SATA II Hard Drive (5400 RPM)
6 GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHZ
8X DVD +/- RW Drive
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator HD

For what you want to do, I think you will be very pleased with that machine. It will be better than the Acer you listed as the cpu is better, and it has more ram.

Also, if you use this coupon code, you will get $50 off: S2FB34RMCX6XWS

Alternatevely, if you find a machine that is $599 you can use F48TQ0K$64$K41 to get $100 off.

See this link: http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?sduid=0&t=2921931

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[theogt]

For what you want to do, I think you will be very pleased with that machine. It will be better than the Acer you listed as the cpu is better, and it has more ram.

Also, if you use this coupon code, you will get $50 off: S2FB34RMCX6XWS

Alternatevely, if you find a machine that is $599 you can use F48TQ0K$64$K41 to get $100 off.

See this link: http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?sduid=0&t=2921931

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You are the shiznit.

 

[Wimbo]

HP is the worlds best selling computers - both USA & worldwide - for a good reason. Acer has been declining in marketshare lately.

Here is a suggestion:

http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/s...oks/All_laptop_&_tablet_PC_series/dv7t_series

 

[theogt]

I think I'm going with this one for $539 (after the $50 coupon):

Inspiron 17R - N7010
Processor: Intel Core i5-450M Processor (3M cache, 2.40 GHz)
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium
Inspiron 17R - N7010 Laptop
640 GB SATA II Hard Drive (5400 RPM)
6 GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHZ
8X DVD +/- RW Drive
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator HD

 

[Doomsday]

I think I'm going with this one for $539 (after the $50 coupon):

Inspiron 17R - N7010
Processor: Intel Core i5-450M Processor (3M cache, 2.40 GHz)
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium
Inspiron 17R - N7010 Laptop
640 GB SATA II Hard Drive (5400 RPM)
6 GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHZ
8X DVD +/- RW Drive
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator HD

That looks like a pretty good deal for those specs in my opinion.

 

[theogt]

That looks like a pretty good deal for those specs in my opinion.

I never play games, but if I had any inclination what's the possibility of playing decent games at low settings?

 

[jterrell]

So last night my personal laptop went kaput. It was about 5 years old, so it was about time for a new one anyway. I need some advice....

All I do is surf the net, edit photos occasionally, download music, and work from home (mostly word processing). For this last reason, I prefer as large a screen as I can get. But I'm only willing to spend $500-600 on a laptop.

With those things in mind, I'm thinking this is the route to go:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...02_077_Aspire_AS7741Z_4839_17_3_Notebook.html

Any other suggestions? Thanks for any input!

I'd avoid Acer.
I have two Acers at my house and they perform very poorly.
They were purchased for my kids so basically just the things you note minus actually working, lol. My wife took one when my oldest daughter complained bitterly about how bad it was. Now I need to buy my wife a new laptop, LOL.

I'd get a Dell Laptop. Much better quality imho. I am using an E6400 right now as a work laptop and I love it. I bought my oldest daughter a new Dell for her birthday and she loves it.
Acer would be my last choice. After overpriced Apple.

Get 4Gb of RAM no matter what. Get Win 7 no matter what(unless you want to use linux). Those are non-negotiable imho.

 

[theogt]

I went with this for $580 total after tax and shipping. I think it's a pretty good deal.

Processor Processor: Intel Core i5-480M (2.66GHz / upto SC 2.93GHZ, 3M)
Operating System Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium
Base Inspiron 17R - N7010 Laptop
Hard Disk Drive 640 GB SATA II Hard Drive (5400 RPM)
Memory 6 GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHZ
Media Bay 8X DVD +/- RW Drive
Video Intel Graphics Media Accelerator HD
System Color Mars Black
Laptop Screen 17.3 inch HD+ WLED
Laptop Battery 6 Cell Primary Battery, 48W
Network Interface Card Intel Centrino Wireless-N 1000
Web Camera Integrated 1.3MP Web Camera and Digital Microphone
Keyboard Keyboard
Hardware Upgrade 65W AC Adapter
125V Power Cord
Software Upgrade 64BIT Operating System
Office Software Microsoft Office Starter

 

[jterrell]

I never play games, but if I had any inclination what's the possibility of playing decent games at low settings?

wow, i was behind in this thread
you'd be fine on anything but big FPS games.

that is basically what my daughter has and she can play any web based games easily. it would play world of warcraft at medium settings.

that laptop looks very good imho.

 

[Meat-O-Rama]

I'm a big ThinkPad fan as long as you don't really intend playing intensive graphical games on it. (limited video cards) Just load them up with memory. As for a big screen, well the minimal budget pretty much limits your choices of large screen size to practically none.

For the money, that Acer looks like the way to go. Though I don't know the status of Acer products today, but they used to be horrid. Amazon has eight ratings on it and most are 5 Stars and they also have it for $20 cheaper. ($539.99) My only recommendation would be to upgrade the OS to Professional or even better Ultimate. The Home version suck.

As for bbgun's comment. A Mac would be a good choice too, but $500 isn't going to get you a Mac. I think they start at $999 and that is with only a 13" screen.

Gotta agree on the Thinkpad. I really thought they would take a dive when IBM sold them to Lenovo, but they have actually gotten stronger.

 

[LeonDixson]

Never owned a Toshiba laptop but I've read some good things. Here's a 17" model in your price range:

http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Satellite-L675-S7108-17-3-Inch-Laptop/dp/B004G8QQ2I

Toshiiba's used to be among the most rugged laptops out there. Don't know if they still are or not.