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laptop choices

narlus

narlus

Eastcoast Softcore
Staff member
Nov 7, 2001
24,658
65
behind the viewfinder
here's the deal.

my kids are using an ancient HP laptop that is ready for the glue farm. my wife uses a laptop i bought a couple of years ago for basic browsing, email, etc. no heavy lifting. it's an Asus, and works fine, but i HATE the keyboard layout. i guess that's' the danger of buying mail order.

i was gonna donate the working laptop to the kids, so they have something to use, but the question is what do i do as a replacement? is a iPad/ or similar tablet a decent solution? or should i go w/ another laptop (windows, please).

i'd rather not spend all that much.
 
woodsguy

woodsguy

gets infinity MPG
Mar 18, 2007
1,083
1
Sutton, MA
If cost is an issue then the ipad is out. You can get a laptop or netbook for cheaper. Here's a good place to start.

I've got my eye on the Nook Color or Nook Tablet.
 
dante

dante

Unabomber
Feb 13, 2004
8,807
9
looking for classic NE singletrack
If you hate the (mostly traditional) keyboard layout on the Asus, are you going to be happy with *no* separate keyboard on the tablet? If all you were doing was surfing the web/watching movies, then I'd say check out a tablet, but I would have to imagine that a tablet would naturally have a worse keyboard than the crappiest laptop?

I usually check out slickdeals.net and laptop deals come up relatively frequently. Here's a 15.6" i3 Lenovo for $349:

http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3714510

(Office Depot, use a Staples coupon since they accept competitor's coupons, etc)
i3 processor
750gb HD
4gb 4200 RAM
etc.

Shrug. It just seems like so many of the retailers are slashing prices there's almost certainly something you can find for ~$400 (or less) if you keep your eyes open.
 
narlus

narlus

Eastcoast Softcore
Staff member
Nov 7, 2001
24,658
65
behind the viewfinder
the problem w/ the Asus is that the non-letter keys are in weird spots...stuff like Fn, Ctrl, page up and down, home, end...maybe i'm just so used to using my work laptop.

also, the touch screen is super sensitive and it seems like occasionally i tend to brush it w/ my hands while typing and it will send the cursor to a location i don't want.


the real use will be predominantly web browsing and email. i used it for photo editing in a pinch, but it was pretty slow at that. i don't need a high powered machine.
 
syadasti

syadasti

i heart mac
Apr 15, 2002
12,690
290
VT
dante said:
If you hate the (mostly traditional) keyboard layout on the Asus, are you going to be happy with *no* separate keyboard on the tablet? If all you were doing was surfing the web/watching movies, then I'd say check out a tablet, but I would have to imagine that a tablet would naturally have a worse keyboard than the crappiest laptop?
Click to expand...
Third party BT keyboards will work with tablets. Newest one:

http://www.engadget.com/2011/12/15/microsoft-debuts-bluetooth-mobile-keyboard-5000-aims-to-make-bu/

A laptop will obviously have more capabilities than a tablet but run time won't be quite as good and its not quite as small (ultrabooks come close though).

I have Dell Outlet Home and Business coupons if you want, why not get a Latitude e6320 (13"), e6420(14"), or e6520 (15") if you want to save some cash.
 
syadasti

syadasti

i heart mac
Apr 15, 2002
12,690
290
VT
narlus said:
also, the touch screen is super sensitive and it seems like occasionally i tend to brush it w/ my hands while typing and it will send the cursor to a location i don't want.
Click to expand...
If you check the touchpad driver (make sure you are using the latest version) often there is an option to disable the touchpad while typing.
 
narlus

narlus

Eastcoast Softcore
Staff member
Nov 7, 2001
24,658
65
behind the viewfinder
syadasti said:
Third party BT keyboards will work with tablets. Newest one:

http://www.engadget.com/2011/12/15/microsoft-debuts-bluetooth-mobile-keyboard-5000-aims-to-make-bu/

A laptop will obviously have more capabilities than a tablet but run time won't be quite as good and its not quite as small (ultrabooks come close though).

I have Dell Outlet Home and Business coupons if you want, why not get a Latitude e6320 (13"), e6420(14"), or e6520 (15") if you want to save some cash.
Click to expand...

those Dells are pricy...def don't want to spend $900 or more.
 
syadasti

syadasti

i heart mac
Apr 15, 2002
12,690
290
VT
narlus said:
those Dells are pricy...def don't want to spend $900 or more.
Click to expand...
Did you search the delloutlet site?

Dell Latitude e6420 with core processors and 4GB ram start at $530 with free shipping.

I have a coupon for 15% off any e6420.

Decent one I saw in their inventory - $559 before coupon:

Processor: Intel Core i5-2520M Dual Core Processor (2.50GHz, 3M L2 Cache)
Genuine Windows 7 Professional
Latitude E6420 Laptop
320 GB SATA II Hard Drive (7200 RPM)
4 GB DDR3 ECC SDRAM 1333MHz (2 DIMMs)
8X DVD +/- RW Drive
Intel HD Graphics 3000
14.0 Inch HD(1366x768) Anti-Glare LED-backlit
Intel WiFi Link 6205 (802.11a/g/n 2X2) 1/2 MiniCard
NO FPR OR SMARTCARD READER
No Modem
90W AC Adapter
INTEL VPRO TECHNOLOGY ADV MGMT FEATURES
Optical Drive Bezel
125V Power Cord
LCD screen cover
Thermal Heat Sink
Genuine Windows 7 Professional 32-Bit Operating System DVD
Integrated Webcam with digital microphone
Trend Micro 16.6 PC-cillin 30 Day
6 Cell Primary Battery
Click to expand...
 
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H8R

H8R

Cranky Pants
Nov 10, 2004
13,959
35
I've been very happy with my MSI laptop. i3 proc. I've actually moved it to the new studio as a demo recording rig. It was $499 about a year ago, since then it's had a $50 upgrade to 8GB of ram.

It'll run most graphics apps. I used it as the screen printing shop computer, opening and editing Corel Draw, Photoshop and GIMP files.

Look for a newer generation i3 or i5. Don't worry about the stock ram, it's dirt cheap to max it out these days. (like I said, $50 for 8gb from Crucial) Much cheaper in fact than what they charge you to upgrade at time of purchase.

Look for specials at Office Depot or Staples. (bonus: you can actually type on the damn things IN PERSON first)


Side note: I returned 3 desktop machines to the Dell outlet before I got one that worked 100%. Just sayin.
 
H8R

H8R

Cranky Pants
Nov 10, 2004
13,959
35
Oh and I'd avoid anything smaller than a 15" screen if you hated the layout on your old one. Smaller screens = cramped up layouts = want to stab computer with pen.
 
syadasti

syadasti

i heart mac
Apr 15, 2002
12,690
290
VT
H8R said:
Side note: I returned 3 desktop machines to the Dell outlet before I got one that worked 100%. Just sayin.
Click to expand...
I've only had to return 1 desktop (no laptops) in 5 years and have ordered dozens of desktops and laptops for corporate and end-users.
 
Kent Magnuson

Kent Magnuson

Chimp
Oct 27, 2011
4
0
Personally, I would rather use a laptop for email/internet. I have an iPad, 3 in fact, used for different things. They do have advantages in portability, but a laptop is preferred for primary needs. A $200 netbook is a good option.
 
HardtailHack

HardtailHack

used an iron once
Jan 20, 2009
7,722
7,073
Z

zxc1104

Chimp
Mar 6, 2012
5
0
let me know if you are still looking for a laptop... i have some dell coupons and stuff that might help! :)
 
H8R

H8R

Cranky Pants
Nov 10, 2004
13,959
35
You have 6 posts total on RM and in 2 of them you mention Dell coupons. Random member name consisting of letters and numbers. No posts about mountain bikes or any type of introduction. Most of the posts in the Computer forum.


Yeah, I guess you couldn't possibly be a spammer.
 
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