which laptop should I get?

Question

my laptop that I had for 3 years broke the other day and since I have to replace the motherboard I've told that I should just get a new laptop

I will be using my laptop mostly for school(college and beyond) and entertainment. I want a small screen, light weight ones so that i can take it to school.
My buget is $1000.
any recomendation?

thanks in advance

Answer 1

Yeah, you're pretty much looking for things that are almost mutually exclusive. Once you start getting smaller than the 15" (15.4" for widescreen) range, price generally goes up, often quite drastically, until you'd be paying twice your budget or more.

You also picked a somewhat nebulous time to buy a new computer, as Vista has just been released, they haven't had a chance to work out any major bugs that slipped through the beta testing phase, and all major computer manufacturers are going to be bundling it with their latest models instead of XP.

Anyways, things you'll want to avoid are Apple (overpriced, underpowered, the only program that they run to an advantage over comparable PCs is Adobe Photoshop, and have loads of fun trying to find drivers for odd accessories or Mac-friendly versions of software that you might want to purchase), Compaq (good business hardware, but really bad home-use hardware), and Dell (they're the most popular manufacturer, but they do a lousy job of making full use of the hardware that they expect you to pay for anyways). Boutique manufacturers like Alienware are out as well, since $1000 won't even begin to cover the baseline laptops that they offer.

Companies that you'll want to look for are Gateway and HP for solid hardware design, or Sony for somewhat longer battery life (mostly at the cost of processing power, but if you use it to take notes in class this might be a selling point for you). I don't have any experience with Acer, but it sounds like it might be quality hardware on a similar level with Gateway and HP. I'd advise shooting for something with an AMD Turion 64 Mobile processor, but if you feel that you need to buy something with an Intel chip make sure it's one of the new Core or Core Duo designs (they pretty much ripped off AMD's superior architecture for their latest offerings, though not in time for the first wave of Intel-based Macs to see any benefit).

If you want to stay below $1k total, and still have something ultra-portable, I'd suggest buying both the laptop computer listed under Sources, and some sort of PDA to sync with it (at $600 before tax, you should be able to find a decent array of PDAs to choose between).

Answer 2

Laptop

Answer 3

I'd say the best laptop for under $1000 are one of the three the Lenovo Thinkpad R50e 1842 it is 6.6 lbs, 14 inch screen has Intel Celeron M, 1.4 GHZ, 256 MB ram and 40GB HD if you want another alternative is the Dell XPS M140 more for entertainment it is 5.9 lbs 14 inch screen it has Intel Pentium M, 1.86 GHz, 512 MB RAM and 80 GB (might be a little more $) or you can always get an Apple MacBook which does not have Windows Operating System it weighs 5.3 lbs and is 13 inches it has Intel Core Duo, 2.0 GHZ, 512 MB ram and 60GB hard drive

Answer 4

Of course weall know Sony and Panasonic, toshiba and Acer are all top makes.

However, my advice (because of my own costly experience) is to buy whatever rop brand your nearest local dealer can supply you wirh. The reason : If you ever (as I did) require repairs or upgrade to your laptop your local dealer will handle it for you.

If you buy online, you will have to send it UPS both ways at a cost of $50 or more as I did. I was very satisfied with the job but HATED to pay all that shopping cost.

I looked up the best ads, chose the one I wanted and then took it to my dealer across the street, asked him if he could matct that price. He did and I walked out with the laptop under my arm.

I chose an Acer 14", dual core 80 Gig HD and 1.62 Mhz speed and Basic Premium Vista at $699.

Answer 5

FIRST IS---
Apple MacBook 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Laptop
2.0G Hz Intel Core 2 Duo
1 GB memory
80GB
Hard drive
Double-layer SuperDrive
Rating:
Found at 9 stores
Lowest Price: $1294.00

SECOND IS----
Apple MacBook 2.0 GHz Intel Core Duo Laptop
Mac OS X v10.4 Tiger
60 GB Hard Drive
512 MB RAM
DVD±RW Drive
13.3 in Screen
5.21 lbs
Rating:
Found at 5 stores
Lowest Price: $999.00

Answer 6

HP. All the way. I have one, its a monster 17 inch screen, maxed out RAM and everything, came for twice your budget, but it was top of the line material from several months ago. Go to www.hp.com and you can fiddle with the hardware and software and get prices. Not sure how to get IBM, but IBM is your next bet for laptops. In either case, the most economical place to buy the things is on www.costco.com.

Costco.com saved me several hundred dollars because they shave a few bucks off of everything. Trust me, I did a lot of research to get my current model.

Anyways, my suggestion for YOU would be to go to http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/store_access.do?template_type=landing&landing=notebooks&aoid=1027&jumpid=re_R602_prodexp/hpcom/psg/notebooks to see them ALL, and specifically I'd recommend... For you.. .Small screen, light weight.... Here, perfect:

http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/computer_can_series.do?storeName=computer_store&category=notebooks&a1=Usage&v1=Travel%2Fmobility&series_name=dv2000t_series

I'd strongly suggest spending the extra few bucks for Vista Home Premium. The rest of the hardware and software is up to you, but here are my professional suggestions.

DO:

Spend some extra money to upgrade the processor, this is what does the "thinking" for your computer, the more the cost, the faster you'll go, and the less lag you'll have for videos and such. Sad fact of life. I'd recommend, for your budget, getting the 1.6 or maybe the 1.73 GHz model for what I've shown you. :))

Upgrade that video card for the extra forty bucks! I highly recommend NVIDIA and for the few dollars, you might as well extend the power and performance of your entertainment you want!

Get at least 1 gig, preferably 2 gig, 1 gig is RECOMENDED MINIMUM for Vista, 2 gig is RECOMMENDED and, I have it, trust me, its worth it. If you don't want to, RAM is pretty much the only thing you can change after you buy a laptop. I did it just the other day to my borther's computer, actually. :)

Upgrade the wireless card to the one with bluetooth!!! Its the future, and its a better card. For $25 you can't go wrong.

GET A COPY OF THE OPERATING SYSTEM FOR THE 20 DOLLARS!!!

These will bring you about.. 10 dollars over your budget, but they are the best choice. Last thing to note: you'll end up with only one sixty gigabite hard drive, but bear in mind that this is very valuable space, so indulging on more space is a good idea. You can also use external hard drives for storage of files you don't need with you 24/7. I keep my music on one, and just leave it on and plugged in when home, but I don't listen to music often on the go, so I save several gigabites that way!!

you might also want to indulge on a warranty plan for an extra 100 dollars, trust me, its best to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it.
:)
DONT

Buy Norton Antivirus, get Mcafee Security Suite instead later on, trust me, Norton can destroy your system, and Mcafee is simply a better system- make sure you have a firewall too (If you get the suite you should be good, check the box)

Bother with any of the extra software or keyboards or cases or things- unless you need them that is!


The reason I recommend HP is because they're simple and easy computers, and have good warranties- for a pretty penny, but they're worth the price for peace of mind if nothing else- and their excellent customer support that comes with this. HP and IBM also have the best histories, IBM even had its own operating system back in the day... Before Microsoft pulled some illegal moves to rub that part out... Anyways, good luck and happy hunting!

;)

Answer 7

Dell or HP/Compaq are reliable, HQ. Mine is P4, 40 GB, 256MB
and with Window server 2005, Studio .Net, SQL server
plus Photoshop and still have plenty room for movie, satelite TV
Try auctions w/o sale fee to get bargain if you like.

Answer 8

Dear think for second hand. +points of it- your chois/ in comfortable rates/Os charges/no taxes/after using 2 year throw in dustbin dont think for repair.
P4 1.5/256/14"/40GB HARD DRIVE / IBM - you may get in around $500. It fits in your requirment.

Answer 9

Here is an interesting article on what to look for in a laptop for a student...

http://www.direct-laptops-guide.com/best-college-student-laptop.html

Answer 10

Sony has a nice range of "Vaio" laptops which are slim and light weight.