Advise on purcasing a new lap top?

Question

I'm a student, and have been planning to purchase a new lap top. And that's where the problem pops-up:)

I've never bought a lap top before, and have no idea which brand should I take. As for the OS, it's probably going to be Windows, though I've never worked on Mac, or Linux.

I don't care much if the brand is well known or not, but I have a couple of conditions, such as:

1. speed of processor(not less then 1.6 GHz), and as for processors themselves, I'm not that familiar with that which one is better, so you might help me here too.

2. Pretty good graphics;

3. HDD(not less then 60GB), Ram(>512MB),

4. This would be pretty important, and that's the internet (speed)

Mostly, I would be using it for working on and storing a looot of my photos, videos, a lot of music, and games.At least 3 usb ports, and since I'm a student, should use it for some school tasks too.
Bigger speed of burning CD-s and DVD-s...

Thanks for any suggestions:))))

Answer 1

well, it depends on your price range...if your way up in the thousands the best thing would be a Sony VAIO, it comes with Intel - Pentium M - 1.6 GHz Processor - Intel Centrino - 512 MB Memory - 80 GB Hard Drive - 15.4 in Display - 6.17 lbs..pretty sweet, and its the laptop i have. its only like $1,600. durable, it has awesome graphics, and well, i love it!

a Toshiba Satellite R15-S822 Laptop is pretty awesome too. it comes with Intel - Pentium M - 1.6 GHz Processor - Intel Centrino - 512 MB Memory - 60 GB Hard Drive - 14.1 in Display - .57 lbs and it ranges from $700 to $1,000...toshiba is pretty good at laptops and it has plenty of memory...cant go wrong!

now if your really short on cash, you can get a Dell Inspiron B130 Laptop Computer. this has - Intel - Celeron - 1.60 GHz Processor - 512 MB Memory - 40 GB Hard Drive and its like for 400 or 500 dollars...its inexpensive and perfect for someone who just plainly needs a laptop...

or how about check out this site: http://shopping.yahoo.com/s:Laptops

this is where i go whenever i need info on laptops

Answer 2

Whatever you do, please avoid Dell Inspiron laptops. I used to support them, and I am not kidding you or being 'a disgruntled employee' when I tell you that they will fall apart in a year, maybe two if you're lucky - in such a way that you'd need to replace a motherboard or send it off to Dell and get a repair for twice the asking price. Just look up internet forums on the infamous Dell Inspiron 5150, for example - models have not increased much in quality since then. That said, the business laptops they sell are better, and the X1 is probably the sweetest sexiest laptop you'd ever come across. Apart from Dell Inspiron, avoid cheap brands promising you great specifications for sellout prices - you usually get the quality you pay for and there are enormous differences. My preferred brands are Lenovo Thinkpad, HP/Compaq and the rarer Fujitsu lifebooks. If you can't afford them new, buying a decent secondhand is still better than buying an Acer Aspire.

As you say you've never had a laptop before, now is a good moment to buy an Apple iBook. They are expensive, quite an investment if you set it off against the cheaper Windows beasties, but an excellent buy. Nowadays you can do anything with an Apple, especially the sparkly new ones that have an Intel processor in their mids. You can install Windows XP on them even, the other way around such is impossible. Apple gives you a stable system, that can handle severe graphics and not crash, less risk for viruses and better applications to get you started. No Internet Explorer and Outlook Express, much much better stuff. Check out iLife on their site. If you want fast browsing on the internet, all you need is a decent laptop - your requirements of 1.6+ Ghz and 512 RAM are decent - and a broadband connection at home. Don't be fooled into buying a laptop with lots of USB ports - be sure you have 1 powered USB2 port, and just use a cheap 'hub' or docking station to widen that one ports functionality. Laptops are all about minimalism - cramming as much as you can in the smalles possible space and have something better than a desktop.

Well, those were my two cents on the matter. You'll need a few more cents to buy what you want though :o)

Answer 3

If you go by the most popular brands which Corporates buy for their employees - and they should be most interested that they want to get the maximum performance with minimum breakdowns, they names are

DELL
IBM
VAIO

Prsonally I am very happy with Toshiba and IBM which I own (privately). My Company has given an IBM Thinkpad (now Levono).

2.0 GHz and above Pentium (no Celeron please) coupled with a 1GB Ram (for Graphics) and Wi-Fi + Bluetooth + Infrared is a must for FAST DOWNLOADINGS in this era of High Speed Internet Connections.

The 60GB is fine - but parition it into 2 or 3.

DVD Writer/Reader is a must for a Student.

Only thing is that with these features you have to look beyond the $1000 range - can you afford this as a Student while you can get Celerons at half the price?

The decision is not easy - I know!

Answer 4

do not believe everione who said anything involving with Windows!
Please consider a Apple Macintosh most apple new laptops are over 5X faster than many PC laptops. DO NOT BUY A PC PLEASE
U WILL GET A LOT OF VIRUSES even with the best protection, u WILL NOT ON A MAC. I know 2 some people is harder but u'll get used 2 it. just look at their appearence macs dont just look better, but are : Faster, more reliable, more durable, and many more reasons. if u dont wanna waste ur money buy a mac! :)

Recommednation: Apple MacBook Pro (if buying online, go to http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore/
and say that u are in college, they will give u discount)

Answer 5

dvd/cd burning is standered now..the cheapest and best laptops come from compaq.com..just make you have a hardrive at least 100gigs 512 mb of ram and a processor speed of 2.0 ghz or better

Answer 6

My experience with Dell has been fantastic, so I can only recommend the new one Dell has that has an extra wide screen, great graphics and ready for any video or software program you can imagine. I only wish I could justify the expense so I could have one, but it wouldn't make sense for me to buy one since I'm now retired and I have this excellent Dell desktop. Good luck. God Bless you.

Answer 7

Dell is good. I have an HP and a Dell.

Dell has great customer service but I totally love my HP.

Browse the Sunday sales ads to get an idea on pricing. Go with something that has a rebate if you can.

Answer 8

I just bought a new Dell Inspiron 9400 for college. So far, it's great. It also has a huge 17" widescreen and was reasonably priced.
Graphics are good. ATI card
Processor is 1.8
HD is 100GB
DVD writer and CD writer
Ram = 1GB

Answer 9

Personaly I would go for IBM due to build quality, it all depends on your budget though as IBM Thinkpads are expensive.

One thing i will advise you on is makesure you get a good warranty. onsite warrenty if you can afford it, you will be pleased you did if anything ever goes wrong.

Answer 10

dont get a dell because there momory is low for a high price
get a gateway pennium 4 intel proccessor