Best Laptop for under $1000??

[Eleanor]

http://configure.dell.com/dellstore/...=N1420PDV_F_1E

I've got this one and it's been great to me so far. Once you figure out vista, it isn't bad. Just make sure you get upgraded RAM.

I've had first hand experience with Dell and as long as you've still got warranty, you're fine

[The Cosworth]

Originally posted by Unknown303


I just figure you'd base the price of a machine on the parts current inside of it. Not the parts moved through it and sold over the course of a few months. Just trying to say that you may have spent lots on a gaming rig over time. But net worth at any one time not including parts resold would not have been that large.

I agree, my bad, I cant say that my car has 250 hp because it USED to have an intake and exhaust on it, and at ONE point had a turbo.... BBBBUUUTTT not anymore. Never really looked at it that way.

Originally posted by Euro383

What do you guys think about this? I know it's more than $1000 but there is an exact version with a 1.6 ghz cpu, 160 vs 200 gb hd and only 1 gb ram for $900. I think it's worth it to spend the extra $300 for these items. Anyways, was thinking about picking this one up because it is light and portable. Only thing it really seems to lack on is the video card. But if you are only looking for surfing and light gaming, then I think this is a pretty good one. Any thoughts?

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/prodd...=&langid=EN

I personally would never buy from FS, BB, Laptop depot, I like to stay where the enthusiasts go, that usually means the product and price are the best. Most people you see buying form FS, BB, laptop dept are parents getting the wrong machine for their kids room for their birthday or xmas

Originally posted by Unknown303

I'd say best bang for your buck would probably be an Acer or Dell, both have very decent customer service, and are fairly competitive prices.

I agree, I had an acer and it was decent for the price (also MemX sells Acer so you can talk to them about bad ass notebooks.) Dell has REALLY improved over the last while. Those two would get my vote

[A790]

I'd buy a Dell again simply because the one and only issue I ever had with my Dell (video card overheating) they fixed by sending me a new video card. No bitching, no hassles.

[zoik]

my friend has had nothing but problems with her dell laptop, it arrived and was already screwed, called them and just ends up yelling at them cuz they don't know anything about the laptops. then her battery died and they keep sending her a new one and they don't work.

another thing to keep in mind. if you are planning on carrying this thing everywhere, a 14 inch screen is a lot lighter

[Euro838]

Originally posted by brendankharris

I personally would never buy from FS, BB, Laptop depot, I like to stay where the enthusiasts go, that usually means the product and price are the best. Most people you see buying form FS, BB, laptop dept are parents getting the wrong machine for their kids room for their birthday or xmas

Where would you buy a laptop from then? I'd understand for a desktop you can configure and customize but configurations are usually quite pricey when it comes to laptops. We are also talking about laptops under $1K too, not a $5K+ Alienware machine here. The only place I know of that you can configure your laptop a bit is Dell but usually adding or changing anything costs a lot. i.e. doubling ram, etc. Usually whatever they have as their best deal is going to give you the best value. A few upgrades later an you'll see that you're getting into a different price bracket quickly.

I was just thinking about FS and BB because I'd get it right away and I don't mind Sony laptops.

[Unknown303]

Memory Express here in Calgary has some pretty decent prices on laptops. I'm not sure now customizable they are but they have a variety from a few different companies.

Although I've also been sizing up a $1000 dollar laptop from FutureShop that seems pretty decent. Plus if you get the FutureShop warranty however expensive if the laptop fails you get a new one no questions asked.

Most place that sell, Dell, HP, Acer, Toshiba, etc are going to have similar pricing and of course theres always the manufacturers warranties. But Futureshop and Bestbuy offer there extended warranties that take away the hassle of having to send it away and get it fixed.

Memory express does have the IPR (Instant Product Replacement) so the second something doesn't work you take it in and they hand you a new one.

[The Cosworth]

Originally posted by Euro838


Where would you buy a laptop from then? I'd understand for a desktop you can configure and customize but configurations are usually quite pricey when it comes to laptops. We are also talking about laptops under $1K too, not a $5K+ Alienware machine here. The only place I know of that you can configure your laptop a bit is Dell but usually adding or changing anything costs a lot. i.e. doubling ram, etc. Usually whatever they have as their best deal is going to give you the best value. A few upgrades later an you'll see that you're getting into a different price bracket quickly.

I was just thinking about FS and BB because I'd get it right away and I don't mind Sony laptops.

http://www.memoryexpress.com/Product...)/Default.aspx

the thing even with MemX is that you can tell them what you want, and they will either upgrade it for you right there, or can give you the machine that works.



FS and BB usually have some decent componentes in them (things that the normal person knows to look for, processor, ram, hard drive space). but most of the time they save money by puting cheap other stuff, like the HD speed (there are 4800's which are slow, the fastest right now besides solid state are 10'000) that means they spin at 10,000 rpm, which helps boot time, write time, and overall performance. Another thing they can do is have onboard graphics (which REALLY can hurt performance, especially if you don't have a really stout processor) and onboard sound (which is pretty normal in Laptops I think). Also they will use generic mother boards which can really hurt the performance of some machines, regardless of how good your other stuff is.


The problem with computer performance is that it is one big chain, if you have a bunch of good stuff and one crappy thing then it will only work as fast as that crappy thing. That is why I spent so much coin on one rig, figuring that exact principle out.



Now not ALL of BB and FS's machine are crap, but if you go to MemX they will tell you what is wrong with it UP FRONT instead of trying to sell you anything you look at. Notice that a FS/BB guy will never say that you SHOULDN'T get anything, they usually say this is a good machine but that is better (higher price usually)

[Unknown303]

Originally posted by brendankharris

FS and BB usually have some decent componentes in them (things that the normal person knows to look for, processor, ram, hard drive space). but most of the time they save money by puting cheap other stuff, like the HD speed (there are 4800's which are slow, the fastest right now besides solid state are 10'000) that means they spin at 10,000 rpm, which helps boot time, write time, and overall performance. Another thing they can do is have onboard graphics (which REALLY can hurt performance, especially if you don't have a really stout processor) and onboard sound (which is pretty normal in Laptops I think). Also they will use generic mother boards which can really hurt the performance of some machines, regardless of how good your other stuff is.

Solid state drives do not spin. They in fact are somewhat solid. But never the less they are fast as hell, somewhere in the range of 250x faster than the average hard drive.

[The Cosworth]

Originally posted by Unknown303

Solid state drives do not spin. They in fact are somewhat solid. But never the less they are fast as hell, somewhere in the range of 250x faster than the average hard drive.

Originally posted by brendankharris

there are 4800's which are slow, the fastest right now, besides solid state, are 10'000

I missed to commas... jeez!

haha

Poor english skills + internet = FAIL!

I ment to say that the crappiest hard drives are 4800's, the best conventionals are the Raptor 10,000's, and the obviously solid state is faster than both of those but that doesn't really apply here.


To be honest I would think the OP would be best with a 5400/7200 drive, not super expensive but not sluggish as all hell

[SpoonEK9@STRD]

Its hard to find a laptop with rpms more than 7,200.

Originally posted by Euro838


Where would you buy a laptop from then? I'd understand for a desktop you can configure and customize but configurations are usually quite pricey when it comes to laptops. We are also talking about laptops under $1K too, not a $5K+ Alienware machine here. The only place I know of that you can configure your laptop a bit is Dell but usually adding or changing anything costs a lot. i.e. doubling ram, etc. Usually whatever they have as their best deal is going to give you the best value. A few upgrades later an you'll see that you're getting into a different price bracket quickly.

I was just thinking about FS and BB because I'd get it right away and I don't mind Sony laptops.

voodoopc.com / alienware / dell / and toshiba usa has some nice machines you can custom but for us residents only.

[Unknown303]

Yeah almost all Laptop drives are the slow 5400 from what i understand and now some are offering the solid states which have actually been coming down in prices lately.

[SpoonEK9@STRD]

Don't have any time to research, which laptop companies offer solid state HD's?

[Unknown303]

I remember reading a while back that dell was selling laptops with solid state drives.

[badseed]

I picked up an HP pavilion from FS yesterday for $800.

This is the one:

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pro...6CDABEAAC880DA

I priced out a Dell Inspiron 1420 with similar specs and it worked out to be considerably more expensive so I went with the HP.

Anyone own this Model?

HP DV2622CA

[Kavy]

The reason the dell was more money was because of the Processor,the better graphics and chipset and the magnesium body.

Side note for the people talking about hard drive speeds. Most new chipsets have turbo memory, and if your running vista you can use ready boost. Google it, tonnes of people have tested that the 5400 drives with turbo memory actually run faster then the 7200 drives for read time (7200s no turbo memory options for most makers) and that ready boost can speed up a 5400 drive with no turbo memory to the speed of a 7200 rpm for the price of a $15 USB stick.

And yes dell does offer a solid state drive, for about 2k last time I checked

Alienware used to make the best laptops out there, however they have fallen behind the times drastically, now a $5000 Area 51 laptop scores the same as a $1700 Dell Vostro 1720 on benchmarks

What I suggest honestly is check out http://www.notebookreview.com/ they BY FAR do the most extensive research on laptops and actually base all reviews on a minimum of 5 Moderator tested machines, so no fan boys.

[msommers]

I was considering Memory Express to custom build a decent laptop for gaming, which ended up costing my twice what I paid for mine, which does exactly what I want it to.

Only complaint I have with HP so far is my video card. Sometimes I'll be using it quite heavily (max res on games for a long period of time) and need to elevate the back of it to keep the airflow going when it's against my desk. I've even had the blue screen because it's gotten too hot even while elevated. Only way I think I can cure this is to buy one of those cold pad things.

[Euro838]

Originally posted by msommers
I was considering Memory Express to custom build a decent laptop for gaming, which ended up costing my twice what I paid for mine, which does exactly what I want it to.

Only complaint I have with HP so far is my video card. Sometimes I'll be using it quite heavily (max res on games for a long period of time) and need to elevate the back of it to keep the airflow going when it's against my desk. I've even had the blue screen because it's gotten too hot even while elevated. Only way I think I can cure this is to buy one of those cold pad things.

Which HP did you get? I ended up spending a little bit more so my laptop would have a video card with dedicated memory. I bought this laptop. Couldn't pass up 4 gb of memory. I know it's not important to some but this one does come with Windows Vista ULTIMATE even though it says home premium in the specs on the page.

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/prodde...gon=&langid=EN

[badseed]

^^ I picked up the DV2622CA, half the RAM but the rest of the specs are close. Can't beat $799.

[Euro838]

Originally posted by badseed
^^ I picked up the DV2622CA, half the RAM but the rest of the specs are close. Can't beat $799.

Yeah, that's a good buy for the price. I was looking for a little more so I could replace my desktop. It's a good weight too. How does the battery last for you? It says it's a 12-cell.

[Potato]

^^Yeah its a 12 Cell, Batt life is very good.

However I have had numerous problems with this model so far and am returning it in the near future.

-Webcam was not working, brought it back to future shop and tech guy got it functioning after apparantly re-booting it although I did the same thing 3 times and no dice.

-Faulty Network card, brought'r back again and exchanged for new one.

-Have had this one for 1 day, Webcam is not functioning and I'm also having the same problem connecting to a Netrork. Have tested 2 other laptops and they function fine eliminating any of chance of incorrect network set up.

DO NOT BUY AN HP DV2622 from FS

2 Lemons in a row!!!

Returning for full refund very soon.