Best Laptop in the $500 - $700 Range

[Team Obi Juan]

In the market for a new laptop.


Wants:

Windows 7
Faster than a C2D
4GB RAM
NOT desktop replacement, and NOT ultra portable. A good in-between size.
Not really a PC Gamer, but it would be sweet to be able to play the newest Colonization remake, which I don't think takes much graphics horsepower.
$500 - $700



I like my current Vostro 1500 and think I may go with a Dell Studio or whatever it's called. I like that they're based in TX plus have had good luck with them. Other suggestions are greatly appreciated!

 

[illuminate]

Check out some of the Asus laptops or even Samsung. Both have i3's 4gb ram for ~$500ish

 

[Team Obi Juan]

Check out some of the Asus laptops or even Samsung. Both have i3's 4gb ram for ~$500ish

Went to Asus's website... they have like 30 models? How complicated is that? Plus, I can't tell how to buy one.

 

[illuminate]

Look here.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...&N=100006740 4021&IsNodeId=1&name=$500 - $750

That's all laptops between $500-$750

Here is one Asus that caught my eye
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220711

 

[SpeedyVV]

If you can go to $800 then this Asus with Optimus would be really nice:

ASUS K52 Series K52JC-X2 NoteBook Intel Core i5 450M(2.40GHz) 15.6" 4GB Memory DDR3 1066 500GB HDD 5400rpm DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 310M

 

[meyerkev]

If you can go to $800 then this Asus with Optimus would be really nice:

ASUS K52 Series K52JC-X2 NoteBook Intel Core i5 450M(2.40GHz) 15.6" 4GB Memory DDR3 1066 500GB HDD 5400rpm DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 310M

Yeah, get this. (Seriously, this is only $800?)

The problem that you're going to have is that even cheapo full-size (ie non-netbook) laptops start at about $500, and Arrandale ('core i') computers are even more expensive, so $500-$700 isn't going to get you very far, and you'll have to make a lot of compromises. An extra $200 (so $700-$900) will get you much more complete, futureproof computers especially if you go with ASUS who are surprisingly cheap (even if I do agree their website is garbage). How set is your budget??

/and yes, the 1366 x 768 screen sucks. At less than $1000, most screens suck

 

[Pylon]

If you're willing to go refurbished Dell Outlet has some really good deals on refurb E6410s with i5 520Ms. Some are under $650.

 

[naminem]

If you can go to $800 then this Asus with Optimus would be really nice:

ASUS K52 Series K52JC-X2 NoteBook Intel Core i5 450M(2.40GHz) 15.6" 4GB Memory DDR3 1066 500GB HDD 5400rpm DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 310M

This is a hell of a deal

 

[dara]

If you're willing to go refurbished Dell Outlet has some really good deals on refurb E6410s with i5 520Ms. Some are under $650.

This. Just got the following for $650.

-- Latitude E6410 Laptop
-- 14.1 inch Wide Screen WXGA+ Laptop Screen
-- Processor: Intel Core i5-520M Processor (2.4GHz, 4 Threads,3M cache, turbo Boost up to 2.93GHz)
-- 4 GB DDR3 SDRAM 1066MHz (2 DIMMs)
-- 512MB NVIDIA NVS 3100M
-- 250 GB SATA Hard Drive (7200 RPM)
-- 8X DVD +/- RW Drive

 

[Timonthy]

The new pavilion dm4 is awesome IMO. Great design, size, build and decent power for everyday use.

 

[Abula]

Aspire TimelineX AS4820TG $799 is what i would go for, i3 350m + 5650 switchable. Down the road if you need a better cpu, you can always upgrade it like for example Core I5-520M Cpu $220, probably you can find it cheaper in ebay.