Where do the tech savy buy laptops?

Dell, mac's?? Is this Hardforum?

Look at some of ASUS's laptops they are very good quality.

There should be some local computer shops that have decent displays for laptops.
 
Entilza said:
Dell, mac's?? Is this Hardforum?

Look at some of ASUS's laptops they are very good quality.

There should be some local computer shops that have decent displays for laptops.
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Good PC buyers don't let brand loyalty (or single tasks) serve as their sole guide!
 
I always use used enterprise laptops. HP Elitebooks in particular have always treated me well. Especially the tablet variants. Lenovo has some good stuff too although a lot of that is limited to their older stuff (golden years at least).
 
My macbook air (2013) was probably my second favorite laptop. The first one was last year's 15" Retina Mac Book Pro. I sold my macbook and am waiting for the new rMBP that will hopefully be announced next week.

I build my own PCs, and I've used Dell's, HP's Asus, and a few others (and I work on a lot of cheap laptops too.) I would suggest the macbook airs or the workstation line of Dells or HP Elite books.
 
I have to agree with the Macbook suggestions. Their trackpad and gestures make working on a laptop so much easier. MS and needs hurry the hell up and implement something similar.
 
Bought a medium range ASUS at Best Buy. Had the specs I wanted for my needs (programming) and it was in my range.
 
Ryleh said:
I always use used enterprise laptops.
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This. As a user of a Dell Latitude, I've always found enterprise laptops to have substantially better build quality than consumer-end ones. The keyboards on them tend to be better to. The caveat though is that most I've run into have terrible screens.
 
Tech savvy people buy laptops where every they can get them cheapest. Typically that is on the usual online places you might already buy your desktop components from.

Selecting a laptop is a whole different matter, its not like a desktop where you can just throw whatever you want in there. You have to pick one that fits you right for the right price. So you need to sort of select your component and feature wish list first then figure out which laptops hit that mark.


For instance when I went looking last time only 2 laptops had what I wanted, Alienware and Samsung. In the end I saved $700 and bought a Samsung of Amazon for about $150 less than most places sold the same laptop for.

Also no matter what people say laptops are disposable, I have bought some very nice laptops in my day and at the end I often said, I really like this I would like to keep it and just upgrade. Reality check, not going to happen. So its really better to just lean on being cheap and use the money you saved to upgrade faster you will be happier in the end rather than trying to blow it all on a really nice laptop and then forcing it to last longer.
 
if your looking for slim there are some ultra books that just as thin as your mac air etc. if i were to buy a new "laptop" for myself i'd get a surface pro II or the dell equivalent.
 
rudy said:
So its really better to just lean on being cheap and use the money you saved to upgrade faster you will be happier in the end rather than trying to blow it all on a really nice laptop and then forcing it to last longer.
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Quoted for truth. There is still a balance, however, between overbuying and future-proofing. The sweet spot is where you didn't spend too much, but you still don't end up feeling underpowered two years down the road.

It takes a while (usually a couple of laptops) to build that kind of intuition, and you'll still miss from time to time.
 
Three big things people look for in a laptop are 1: Price, 2: Battery Life & 3: Form Factor.

Unfortunately retaining the ability to upgrade a part inside a laptop negatively affects all 3 of those.

The ultra book (like the Mac Book Air) is probably the design qualities we will be moving towards. Everything will continue to move towards integration.
 
Phog said:
Yes, absolutely you get less horsepower for your buck when it comes to Mac. Something people don't understand though, and it has been mentioned before in this thread, the trackpad is generations more advanced than any other product. Before I started using my Air, I HATED not having a mouse with a laptop. Apple changes that, I could care less if I had a mouse or not, all because the trackpad and gestures are so flawlessly implemented.

I should say, I didn't buy it for the "ease of use" or CPU inside, I bought it because it is a fantastic mobile computer.
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In general, this. For laptops, never buy on spec's alone - an i5 vs an i3 or 8GB vs 6GB RAM won't make a difference in 95% of use cases, but that mushy keyboard, that low-resolution screen, or that creaky plastic case that's falling apart definitely will. While I'm a PC guy that leans towards Thinkpads/Dell Latitudes, the Macbook Pros are very well built and get the user-facing parts (trackpad, keyboard, etc.) down very well.
 
Entilza said:
Dell, mac's?? Is this Hardforum?

Look at some of ASUS's laptops they are very good quality.

There should be some local computer shops that have decent displays for laptops.
Click to expand...

I hope you're joking , the G73H's screen , keyboard and trackpad drivers were horrible. Have fun finding drivers if your laptop isn't listed on the ROG forum. Want 2 finger scrolling on an Asus trackpad? goodluck
 
Macbooks are real nice hardware wise. I bought one for my wife three years ago. Both she and I were convinced it was the right laptop for her and my daughter.

Flash forward three years later - it wasn't worth the $.

OSX does some strange things fairly often, and even my computer illiterate wife and kids swear at it (and all they do is surf the net and write papers on it). I boot camped that bad boy and threw a copy of windows 7 on it. They are totally happy with that, and now spend all their time in windows. So as much as I like that trackpad - everything else just screams overpriced windows laptop now.

+1 on the "laptops are throw away items" Find one you like about $150 higher than your price range (bonus points if you can touch it at a big box store), then go buy it on Amazon/newegg/whatever for cheaper.

Now, all that said - the one thing I will give Apple is their service IF you buy the applecare. I dropped my iphone and busted it up. Guy at the store was like "Oh, I see you have 2 iphones, an ipad, and a macbook pro. What'd you say happened? It just "came loose"? /wink wink. Me: ugh ya... walked out with a brand new replacement. Then came the day where my stupid a$$ cat knocked my wife's coffee over onto the keyboard - completely frying the laptop. Not covered - cost to fix - minimum $1300... Then the guy was like "we'll give you this "exception" thing. You'll be without it for a couple of weeks, but it'll get fixed up and done for free. Don't drop it again - I can only do this once" So as much as I hate the pretentiousness of the Apple store - they've treated me like a highly valued customer.
 
I've had experience with most of the OEM notebooks out there, and I can say this about the following...

ASUS - Great price points for the hardware, but most of their notebooks run hotter than others. If you're looking for a greatly-designed chassis, then they're worth considering.

MSI - Much like ASUS, their chassis design is geared towards gamers (on most, depending on the model) but their support can be flighty. At times, they can be a pleasure to work with, while others it can be difficult. Price point is similar to ASUS.

Clevo - Offers the best notebook cooling between the three, but aesthetics leaves a lot to be desired, and most end-users don't enjoy their never-changing keyboard design. They do provide a great value, compared to other models, so they are usually a brand I recommend if you're more concerned for the value, and performance, over chassis design and keyboard comfort.
 
Pretty much anything you buy today will be a substantial upgrade. However, have you considered installing a lightweight OS on to the current Pentium 4 laptop before replacing it?

Crunchbang Linux is free and works really well on old computers.

If you decide to get a replacement I would recommend getting a used laptop. I've been buying used Lenovo Thinkpads for the past 6 years and they have all treated me well.
 
Sixthsense said:
I hope you're joking , the G73H's screen , keyboard and trackpad drivers were horrible. Have fun finding drivers if your laptop isn't listed on the ROG forum. Want 2 finger scrolling on an Asus trackpad? goodluck
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I'm using 2 finger scrolling right now on an ASUS laptop... For gaming, the ROG cooling system is second to none in my experience. Having a dedicate heatsink and fan for the GPU and CPU is pretty crucial.

Anyway, like others have said it really just comes down to price. Best Buy really isn't that bad as long as you know ballpark prices for various different kinds of laptops so you know if you're getting ripped off or not. Sometimes vendors will have special deals with places like Best Buy for certain laptops. Laptops have also branched out into different types depending on portability, battery life, size, and power. First get a sense of what exactly your wife wants, then set a budget, and lastly simply find the best laptop within your budget to fit exactly what your wife wants. If she has no idea what she wants, it's a good idea to at least visit a place like BB to get a feel for each laptop. Maybe she just wants some aesthetics in the end.
 
Ive had dells,then alienwares,Asus and others.
do what I finally decided to keep doing-Build it yourself.
I wouldn't let someone else build me a desktop so why the hell should i pay someone to assemble a laptop for me.
Get the body and sharpshoot your own parts (cpu,ram,storage).
Good place to start looking http://www.rjtech.com

On a Clevo W230 right now and sold my former build a Clevo w110er to another forum member.
Not for everyone but check it out.
 
I have looked into barebons, its just not worth it. Are you actually saving any money darkking?
 
Well i guess it depends on the user and how you get the parts.
---laptop $650,
---4700mq off ebay(another techie had upgraded his m18x) $180
---killer nic $30
---msata 256 plextor $150
---16g ddr (had sitting around but had orig paid i think $100)
---win 8 (off my technet)
-- Start 8 (without it on Win8 I would poke a pencil in my eyes):eek:

So thats about $1100 and a custom builder for the same config is like $1400.
But for Me even had it cost me the same as they would of charged me that would of been fine.Im a builder. Ill always build rather then buy unless the deal is so amazing i cant pass it up (and then I strip it to make it my own anyways) :D
 
wrugoin said:
Grumble, grumble, grumble. We talked about it last night and MacBook did come up. Apparently a few women she works with have macs and have been talking them up. It definitely has sparked my wife's interest. She's with me in the fact that they're very very expensive and we can get something just as usable for half the cost... but yes, her eyes lit up at the idea of a shiny macbook.




She's going to be starting a graduate program next spring so this was going to be a Christmas present.


  • Word Processing
    Spread-sheeting
    Presentations
    Internet Research
    Online classes
    Classroom Video Streaming

    Entertainment stuff
    Video, YouTube, Netflix
    Music, iTunes, Pandora
    Facebook, Flash Games
    maybe.... MAYBE Minecraft (I'm working on that one. She likes to watch me play)

Nothing is needed for gaming. She doesn't play the Sims or Wow or anything like that. If I get her to play a little minecraft with me, I'm sure the Intel HD built into Haswell would work for any fleeting interest she may develop.

Budget will be around $600-$1000.
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that budget amd apu get an a6 or a8 or a10 based laptop they should be in that range the gpu is very good for a laptop and as for where to buy I bought mine direct from Toshiba I picked the cheapest options that I could upgrade myself cheaper ram and hard drive. You can look in a sore at a baseline model and to check the durability look at the hinge design if it looks weak it is and will break on you.
 
Best Buy
Apple Store
Walmart
TigerD
Newegg
Amazon
Pretty much all the big box retailers depending on the deals theyre dishing out.

Few point to note:

Student who dont Game need a working laptop. Student who game need a gaming laptop. Simple

If your significant other's graduate school has a local Apple Store nearby, Apple would be a serious contender. Just because, if things get awry, your other can just walk in and get some help, unlike other competitors who only offer next day onsite support, or even worse phone support. Its good to have a actual person troubleshoot immediately then later, especially in school.

Basic Specs from what you mention (shes not a gamer):
CPU: I5 haswell for middle ground on battery life and performance
Ram: 6-8 is the going norm these days
HDD: Hybrid unit with SSD (fast boot) and HDD (easy storage)
Battery: Some laptops come with a bigger battery for more hours
Screen: 1600x900 and up
Backlit keyboard

Add some accidental coverage to cop with coffee and water spills (number 1 way to ruin laptops in school) and you have a winner.

Also BRING YOU S.O. to the store. To visually see what she is getting, get some extended usage time. If your buying Apple check out not only the store, but all Bestbuy or any other retailers that have floor demos of the Macs. The Apple store is great, but the decor is setup so YOU kinda are coerced into buying. So remove that and test them outside the store in BB or Target or etc.

Finally Price shop. Dont take the store price as the final price. You can always price match and etc.

Good luck
 
I made the step of buying system76, a gazelle. It's window-free Linux laptops that run FreeBSD well. Was sick of paying microsoft tax when I don't even use it. Nice laptop, little short on keyboard action. Ubuntu is a bit braindead but can be replaced.
 
figure out required specs. Decide what compromises can be made. Price-matching.

There are quite a few deals that I see on Slickdeals... get 1080p ultrabook for $600, or watch the Lenovo Outlet for some scratch and dent/refurb.

You can find cheap laptops with powerful processors, and otherwise poor specs. Plug them into 1080p monitors when you get home, whatever.

I would not buy Mac unless money no longer mattered to me.
 
^Im still iffy about the Lenovo Scratch or Dents/Refurb. SDers swear by it, but the deals that are to be had are usually gone within seconds and that piece of mind that comes by buying new boxed items is always a plus.

Mac is not a bad investment. Especially for students.
 
Chimay said:
Take her to the big shops and then price out the one she likes online. I'm not sure if Costco still does this but at one point they double the manufacture warranty. I know they're fairly competitive on TV pricing but no idea on laptops. Have her try the macbook as well. I'm not sure I'd go the macbook air though since it just seems way to overpriced. You can pick up a 13" macbook and its still small and light enough and save 1K.

www.delloutlet.com also has some nice deals at times. They're referb laptops but usually they come with a 3 year warranty included. We've picked up several here at work and 97% of them have been fine. The others came with next day onsite service and got repaired fairly quick.
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How would getting a 13" pro save any money over the air? they be the same price these days matey.
 
samm said:
^Im still iffy about the Lenovo Scratch or Dents/Refurb. SDers swear by it, but the deals that are to be had are usually gone within seconds and that piece of mind that comes by buying new boxed items is always a plus.

Mac is not a bad investment. Especially for students.
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Feel the same way about refurb usually. Good thing about Lenovo outlet is you can also get new in box for steep discounts. Got a helluva a deal on a new x230t that way.
 
darkking said:
Well i guess it depends on the user and how you get the parts.
---laptop $650,
---4700mq off ebay(another techie had upgraded his m18x) $180
---killer nic $30
---msata 256 plextor $150
---16g ddr (had sitting around but had orig paid i think $100)
---win 8 (off my technet)
-- Start 8 (without it on Win8 I would poke a pencil in my eyes):eek:

So thats about $1100 and a custom builder for the same config is like $1400.
But for Me even had it cost me the same as they would of charged me that would of been fine.Im a builder. Ill always build rather then buy unless the deal is so amazing i cant pass it up (and then I strip it to make it my own anyways) :D
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Let's be honest, we're just plugging stuff into things. If you really want to be a "builder" you might want to get a degree or two in computer engineering. Then you could really make it your own.
 
I would have went 13" Air for the 12-15 hour battery life if she is going to be in graduate school. Would be the perfect match. Other then that I'm sure there is a Lenovo out there with good battery life as well :).

I realize this is after X-mas but I wanted to chime in anyways.
 
FordFanboy said:
Let's be honest, we're just plugging stuff into things. If you really want to be a "builder" you might want to get a degree or two in computer engineering. Then you could really make it your own.
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Truth.
 
Hey WRugoin, did you end up getting a laptop yet?

How about one of the Lenovo Y510p models? You'll need an external OD for this model line-up, but the specs are downright nasty awesome for the money.
 
Robstar said:
+++. I like biz class laptops that are 1-3 gens old.
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I still use my Thinkpad x60t for basic mobility work; I just maxed the RAM and put in an SSD.

It's a tank and works great (not that I wouldn't take an upgrade for free... this unit works for all my mobile needs right now)
 
Do your local stores not price match online retailers? That would be the best option, because you would get the best price and not pay any shipping costs. Instant gratification too!
 
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