Laptop Brands

[Mr.Teehehe]

My birthday is coming up right around the corner on November the 30th and while i'm sure that i won't be able to get a notebook on my birthday i'm hoping for one for the holiday season during Christmas because i have been wanting a laptop now since like 12th grade and it always gets pushed back so we'll see about this year hoping

All you computer experts out there that know there stuff 😉

What are some good notebook brands? (brands that can be trusted and are good quality brands) since this would be my first laptop ever

Because i was looking at thoses mini lightweight notebooks online a few days ago and looking up reviews and prices for them

I do know though that i want a web cam that's already built in unless buying a web cam separate is more safer and a better opinion

 

[kopfhorer1]

I'd give Apple's Macintosh laptops a look. Two thirds of the peopel I see have them. Also, I've fiddled a bit with Windows Vista, and I want no part of it!

 

[Mr.Teehehe]

I'd give Apple's Macintosh laptops a look. Two thirds of the peopel I see have them. Also, I've fiddled a bit with Windows Vista, and I want no part of it!

A little pricey for most of Apple's notebooks (but i know you get what you pay for that's the saying with most things)

But i do like the look of Apple's laptops and they are nearly virus free and spyware free which is also nice

 

[SilverleafLycan1]

If you're going to do a lot of graphic arts, go with a mac. If not, don't waste your money. The only difference between mac and other laptop brands is that the basic starter package for a mac is much more suited to graphic design.

That being said, dell is nice but overpriced. As is toshiba. Acer is a nice brand that has come out, but look at the specs carefully, they are known to leave ram a little lacking.

Lenovo used to be IBM, I believe they still make thinkpads (not sure though), if it will mostly be school work, this will serve you well with a very nice battery life and simple functionality.

HP (hewlett-packard) has served me very well these past 8 years. I've owned 2 of their towers and one laptop. They haven't given me trouble, they are fairly well priced. I've enjoyed my time using them.

A few things to remember. Viruses and spyware are simply taken care of with AVG and ad-aware (there are thousands of other programs, i like these 2). Also, be smart when you surf the net and you avoid many problems people have. Laptops have a life of about 4 years, there is not a lot you can do to save them, they are very limited to upgradability. If you want to game, get a desktop, a laptop will only leave you wanting.

 

[QueenBeeBeeMari]

If I were you I would get a Toshiba.It's not a notebook but it is a very good laptop brand

 

[alf1]

i also saw lately a black Toshiba and i think that it'll be my next computer ( now haviing the classic comp' with huge screen etc ), preice must go down a bit though 700€ by now, but as technology goes quick so the prices go down it'll be like 200 down by the beginning of 2009 😎

specs : model Satellite P300
processor Intel Core 2 duo / memory 3gb / HD 160 gb / graphic card ATI radeon 256-1024 memory
17" wide screen
3.2 kg

i just want to do internet, some old games, watch movies it's far enough 🙂

 

[Duke Diablo]

Well, I'd say you skip the brands and look at the core of the computer. Decide which one has best performances for given price. This changes with time. Also, it depends on what you'll use it for. I use mine for programming and college applications mainly, so I picked the one with best motherboard, most RAM and fast processor, while I let the graphic card fall behind, being how I don't use it. Also, since I don't put tons of movies on it, hard disk wasn't much of an issue. If you're planning to use it for graphics/gaming, then insist on good graphic card, etc.

The key is in market inspection. Find out what brand offers what, and decide on performance, not name.

 

[the_jimmy_james]

Know the caveats of Apple. Mac OS X is a good OS but it IS NOT the same as Windows. Apple hardware can run Windows now, but there's no point in that, since then you could have saved your money and just gotten a computer that runs Windows.

Next, to address what someone above said about Windows Vista. IGNORE THESE PEOPLE. There's actually nothing at all wrong with Vista, in fact there's everything right about it. I've already said everything I wanted to about Vista in a thread at this very forum.

Here's what you should look for in a full-size notebook...

No less than 2GB of RAM - Do NOT get any less.

ATI Video - I have no faith in NVidia's drivers at all and recommend that they be avoided at all costs.

64-bit version of Windows - 64-bit computing is the future. Don't get something that runs a 32-bit OS at this time.

250GB or larger SATA hard drive - Don't settle for less.

DVD-burning capability - Huge hard drives need huge backups.

WiFi, Bluetooth, et cetera.

Non-glossy screen - It's hard to find matte-finish screens these days but TRUST ME. Your eyes will thank you. You'll be fooled at first, in the store, thinking that the glossy one is better. It looks "richer". Sit in a room where there's any sunlight at all, and you'll be reminded of why CRTs are so annoying. Glare city.

Media card slots - CF, SD, Micro-SD, XD are a must. If there's more, great.

These are what you want if you get one of those little mini-notebooks like the ASUS Eee PC or MSI Wind...

1GB of RAM

16GB Solid State drive OR

80GB Hard drive

Intel Atom processor

The rest of the specs on these things vary so little, that it's kinda pointless to mention it. Mini-notebooks, called Netbooks are limited in comparison to a traditional notebook as far as storage and capability. Remember that.

Also, there's some important things to do... the moment you get your computer, go here...

http://pcdecrapifier.com/

Use this software. Get rid of ANYTHING Norton or McAfee (I prefer the name McAfail). Windows Vista comes with Windows Defender for anti-spyware. Back this up with one of the other spyware things, or run Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome as your browser and be next to immune to spyware.

Use AVG Free or Avast! Free as your anti-virus. They won't clog your computer up or start asking for credit card numbers after a month.

Finally, enjoy your computer! Get yourself one of those notebook cooling pads. This is not an option!! It will extend the life of your computer by preventing you from doing something ignorant like laying it down on fabric which will kill the computer and start a deadly housefire.

Oh yeah, one last thing. Let me remind you...

IGNORE THE WINDOWS VISTA NAYSAYERS.

Thank you.

 

[Lulu1]

I bought a MacBook last week. For me the decision revolved around the best brands for art students (I'm a Visual Communications Design major). This was $1099, built-in webcam and a built-in wifi chip (although I've heard most of them are starting to have that feature), and the Mac reputation... It's really nice.

Now, originally I went into Best Buy perfectly set on buying a Lenovo ThinkPad. They were also recommended on my department's website. Obviously that didn't happen, but only because I went with my mother and she marched us straight to the Mac display. xD

I don't really think I offered much help, just my personal laptop experience... If I helped, fantastic, if not, still fantastic, and I wish you luck! :'D

 

[the_jimmy_james]

As a former Apple owner, I'll say that the Intel-powered portables are far better than they were for the last several years. At least they don't die after a year or two the way both of my G3 iBooks did.

Apple portables are overpriced, there's no two ways about it. The MacBook lacks dedicated video. It relies on Intel GMA950 vampire video which sucks up around 256MB of your system memory. It also has one of those gawd-awful glossy screens.

I also hate the look of current Apple hardware. My old PowerBook G3 and my still-running Power Mac G4? I love them.

I just can't recommend Apple to a first-time buyer. If you want an Apple product that you can feel good about though, go get an iPod touch.

 

[kopfhorer1]

Also, there's some important things to do... the moment you get your computer, go here...

http://pcdecrapifier.com/

Use this software. Get rid of ANYTHING Norton or McAfee (I prefer the name McAfail).

WORD! Every computer I’ve seen with McAfee on it runs funny, runs slowly, and crashes more often than should be tolerated by any serious user.

As for Norton, it used to be good (their defrag utility was a lifesaver), but got bloaty, slow and Microsoft Internet Explorer-dependent. It wouldn’t install on a new machine because I’d previously installed it (unsuccessfully) on a machine which had long since died. I called “customer support” and got a non-English-speaking script-reader (I have nothing against India or its people, I have everything against muhfuggin' outsourcing!!! It shows how little companies care anymore about our satisfaction). She asked me “May I take control of your computer?” I said um, no thanks, trashed the Norton CD and got Avast Professional instead. Works great, hardly know it’s there.

Oh yeah, one last thing. Let me remind you...

IGNORE THE WINDOWS VISTA NAYSAYERS.

Thank you.

Windows Vista sucks! Most annoying user interface ever! Its DRM functions can mung up original content! Up yours, Bill Gates!