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Laptop Suggestions

by AmandaT
20 replies
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Sitting at the hospital with my sister... she is fine, going home in the next few hours, but I'm going crazy. I took off as soon as I heard she was here and ever since have been full of anxiety. I keep thinking about all of those clients waiting for their work that is sitting on my PC at home. I'm sure you all understand, in IM your reputation is everything. I really need to get something portable so that I can still manage my work even when I need to leave the house.

My father keeps trying to push the idea of a netbook on me. It isn't that I'm against it, I just feel like something with more power would be worth the money. Currently, my earnings aren't high enough for something fancy. I would say my max budget is $500-600. Any suggestions? Would a netbook be a better idea for that price?

As for what programs and tasks I need it for, I mostly write so it is just my word processor. I use WordPress to make all of my websites and I outsource my graphics so I won't be using any special programs for that. I do plan on expanding into making videos of articles for marketing.

Suggestions?
  • Profile picture of the author Shounak Gupte
    go for an acer lappy. i have had mine for more than 5 years and its still going strong!
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  • Profile picture of the author AmandaT
    Currently I can get discounts at Walmart (from my husband) or Best Buy (my best friend). Walmart I believe I get 10% off anything not on sale, which I suppose is a little more than sales tax. I don't think the Best Buy discount is that great on laptops since it is based on the mark-up and they don't mark-up computers too much. More than likely I will go for one of those two places.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dubturbo
    I would get a nice mac from craigslist. You can get almost brand new laptops for super cheap if you shop around craigslist a little. Most people may not trust it, but you will find some gems! Trust me.
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  • Profile picture of the author Bradley J Anderson
    I do know that Walmart offers some excellent online deals that aren't available in stores, although I'm not sure if your husband would still qualify for the employee discount or not.

    Considering the price, I would definitely give this one a look:

    Acer Black 15.6" Laptop PC - Walmart.com

    If your budget allows, they have a few others that are even a bit nicer.

    BTW, they will ship items free to your local store, which helps the budget, as well.

    The only thing that may be an issue is video creation on a laptop. I'm not sure about the processor power required for that, and if a laptop is up to it. Hopefully someone else can answer that part for you.
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  • Profile picture of the author AmandaT
    I would assume the videos I'm making will not need much power. They are normally just a power point presentation with voice. That Acer does look great for the price. Looks just about the same as my desktop besides the hard drive space, which I barely use anyways.
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  • Profile picture of the author serena85
    If you have the money I will suggest a Dell computer it is reliable and a very friendly interface.
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  • Profile picture of the author SEOFriendlies
    whoa, hope your sister is fine now!

    I'll recommend Lenovo - they're reliable and tough. If you're looking for ultraportable laptops, try the newest Lenovo ThinkPad X120e - 11.6" goodness! You might have to upgrade its RAM to at least 2GB so that it runs smoothly on Windows 7, though.
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    • Profile picture of the author AmandaT
      Originally Posted by SEOFriendlies View Post

      whoa, hope your sister is fine now!

      I'll recommend Lenovo - they're reliable and tough. If you're looking for ultraportable laptops, try the newest Lenovo ThinkPad X120e - 11.6" goodness! You might have to upgrade its RAM to at least 2GB so that it runs smoothly on Windows 7, though.
      Thanks. They ended up keeping her overnight. Hopefully she will get to go home soon. It is a normal thing, she was born with a brain bleed and they put a shunt in years ago to drain the fluids, but now whenever she gets sick with a fever, headache, and vomiting we have to take her in because they are symptoms of shunt problems. Doesn't look like there is anything wrong but we should know soon.

      Thanks for the suggestions. Before when I wanted to buy a PC I would go into Best Buy and ask about them... but now one of my best friends works there in the PC section and I know their requirements for hiring people don't include knowledge about computers. >_<
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  • Profile picture of the author SEOFriendlies
    If you're going to edit videos, the X120e I recommended won't be enough. You will need something that's powerful enough - I'm not that well versed in that area, but the laptops for them won't come cheap. Check out cnet.com for reviews - I always do that.
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  • Profile picture of the author KimW
    Actually, I would suggest a netbook and bank the difference into a savings account to upgrade later or pay some bills.
    A netbook will do everything you require now (word processing) and IF and WHEN you do get into video making,as long as it is power point presentations with some voiceover,it should be able to handle that too. No, if you got into more complex videos though, it would not handle it,you would need more power.
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    • Profile picture of the author AmandaT
      Originally Posted by KimW View Post

      Actually, I would suggest a netbook and bank the difference into a savings account to upgrade later or pay some bills.
      A netbook will do everything you require now (word processing) and IF and WHEN you do get into video making,as long as it is power point presentations with some voiceover,it should be able to handle that too. No, if you got into more complex videos though, it would not handle it,you would need more power.
      Ya, that was kind of what I was thinking. I figured videos that simple shouldn't require too much power and I honestly need a car before I buy an expensive computer. I'm seeing a lot of netbooks for $300 but I am also seeing a lot of $400 laptops that are just as powerful as my current desktop so I was thinking about going for something like that and letting my brother use my desktop.
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  • Profile picture of the author KimW
    If you belong to BJs or Costco, I have seen the Acer 10" netbook for as low as $250 in just the past week or so.
    Good Luck.
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  • Profile picture of the author William Prawira
    Originally Posted by KimW View Post

    Actually, I would suggest a netbook and bank the difference into a savings account to upgrade later or pay some bills.
    A netbook will do everything you require now (word processing) and IF and WHEN you do get into video making,as long as it is power point presentations with some voiceover,it should be able to handle that too. .
    I agree with what Kim said.

    the netbook nowadays are far more advance than the older one. If you're only doing word processor and videos, then, you would want to go for netbook. I can even play games like warcraft on my netbook, so I guess It will do just fine on video.

    I have one that I always carry around with me. I feel that netbook is good, but it doesn't a DVD-ROM. And you should buy one with at least 6 cells battery. Mine is an old version of netbook that only has 3 cells battery. It's annoying when you are doing some important things, but suddenly your battery power is too low to do anything.

    You can find good one ranging from $300-$350.

    Hope your sister get better soon.
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    Thanks,

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  • Profile picture of the author Lloyd Buchinski
    The Google Chromebook goes on sale June 15. Here is info about 3 versions all under $500.

    Google unveils Chromebook laptop, launches June 15 - USATODAY.com

    It has amazing battery life, up to 8 hours. It looks like I might need another computer soon and I will be looking at that carefully. I have already signed up for the notice when it is released, at

    Chromebook
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  • Profile picture of the author anderson24
    I'm using Hp Pavilion dm4-1160us Entertainment notebook, Intel i5 processor, 2.4 Ghz. 6 hrs of battery back up, very compact. Take a look!
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  • Profile picture of the author aems
    BlackBerry PlayBook (32GB),
    Toshiba Satellite A665-S5176X,
    Apple iPad 2 (32GB, WiFi, black),
    Motorola Xoom,
    well hit a google search on these laptops...
    you will find what you need!!
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  • Profile picture of the author kettysimpson
    If your budget is low than you have to go through Acer or Asus. They are good laptops in the lower price. You will find good configuration but there will some problem with your battery backup after couple of months in this laptops. So choice is yours. And if budget is not the matter than you can go for Dell, HP, Compaq, Sony etc.
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  • Profile picture of the author Doran Peck
    Spend 400 on a Toshiba....they are superior to everything....everything......I repeat again...they are superior to everything.

    EVERYTHING

    You buy anything else and your going to regret it down the road.

    I've owned 21 laptops in my day...everything from HP, Acer, Gateway, Dells and finally Toshiba. I now only buy Toshiba...I will never....ever never ever never buy any other brand...ever. Want to know why?

    Because Toshiba's are superior to everything else. period.

    I am very mobile with my laptops...and eventually all that movement...and bumping would eventually cause a problem with every other brand I owned...never with My Toshiba's ....They are just built better and run smoother.

    ...to your speedy recovery

    <climbs off soapbox>
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    • Profile picture of the author LarryC
      << Spend 400 on a Toshiba....they are superior to everything....everything......I repeat again...they are superior to everything. >>

      I hope you're right, because I just ordered one. I ordered one of their cheapest models, though -a 10.1" netbook for $250. I'm basically a Mac person and do most of my work on my iMac desktop, but wanted something more portable. The Toshiba netbook looks good and most of the reviews I read were very positive.

      Since I only want a notebook for basic things like web surfing and writing, I didn't see the point in spending any more. I also like having an ultra portable device that still has a full sized keyboard.
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      • Profile picture of the author michael rozy
        Originally Posted by LarryC View Post

        << Spend 400 on a Toshiba....they are superior to everything....everything......I repeat again...they are superior to everything. >>

        I hope you're right, because I just ordered one. I ordered one of their cheapest models, though -a 10.1" netbook for $250. I'm basically a Mac person and do most of my work on my iMac desktop, but wanted something more portable. The Toshiba netbook looks good and most of the reviews I read were very positive.

        Since I only want a notebook for basic things like web surfing and writing, I didn't see the point in spending any more. I also like having an ultra portable device that still has a full sized keyboard.
        hi
        Always buy IBM laptop .
        i use from 5 year . it is fine .
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