My first laptop

E

Ezteh

2[H]4U
Joined
Mar 27, 2002
Messages
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I've recently been in the market for my first laptop and have been searching the internet for about a month now configuring and what not various brands and spec.
this will mostly be used for school modrate gaming and watching movies on bus rides to skills-usa competions
here is what I've come up with as what I plan on getting:
Dell Inspiron 5150
Intel Pentium 4 3.06ghz
15" UXGA
XP home(i'm going to wipe the drive once i get it and install pro)
256mb 333hmz 1 dimm(dell charges too much for a 512 upgrade so i will get some from newegg later on)
24x CD-RW/DVD-rom
40gb 4.2k rpm (might upgrade via newegg later)
64mb DDR NVIDIA Geforce FX Go5200
No wireless( again upgradeable later by pcmcia or minipci)
intergrated 10/100 and 56k
no floppy(don't need it)
96 whr li-ion battery
at a total of 1378 but with the -$150 discount till the 18th it's 1228 or around 34 a month.

also i don't care if dell has crappy customer service I've nevered used it or needed to.
the only concerns i have are the weight, around 8 lbs i hear.
my question is, is this a decent system?
I know it's not bleeding edge but i don't need bleeding edge.
feel free to comment.
 
you'd do better with the famed athlon 64 emachine.
only a few hundred more, probably more battery life than a monster P4.
 
that emachine is too expensive.
Plus i don't hear much good about the emachines, never liked them and never will sorry.
 
1300 after rebate?
emachine's isnt what it use to be, much like ATI's ascention, get over it, accept it as a good quality laptop :p
 
i'm sorry i just don't like them I can't help it and if i did get it i would feel regret
 
Originally posted by Ezteh
i'm sorry i just don't like them I can't help it and if i did get it i would feel regret
Click to expand...
Well you're cheating yourself out of the best price/performance deal going right now!

As the saying goes, "These aren't your parents' eMachines!"

When you eventually do spend some time with one, you will regret NOT getting a m6805/7.

Only a few minor quibbles, but far less than the Dell boxes. No notebook is yet perfect; however, this one is the closest at this time (and it doesn't cost $2500+ configured properly) IMHO. ;)

I really looked at the Dell 8600/5150 and the Gateway 505/675 machines, but the eMachines m6805 was considerably better for me. (Gamer, web-surfer, programmer, movie watcher)

Just my 2 bits worth.
 
bus rides to skills-usa competions
Click to expand...

Where are you from, and what competition do you do?

I did Computer Maintenenance last year, but got 2nd, so I didn't get to go to nationals, and this year I'm doing 3D Visualization and Animation

Fun club :)
 
well last year was my first year this year will be my last as I'm a senoir this year regianiols is on the 27

i'm in the wisconsin chapter from marshfield
I did CO2 car but got disqualified because my axle was a mm to long.

This year for regionals i'm doing internetworking not sure of what i'm doing for state yet. If we both get to nationals i hope to see ya
 
If i were to buy a new laptop, what your getting is what I would probably choose. As far as not needing support, trust me, with a laptop you will, and you will want good support. Until this week I would not recomend a Dell to anyone as I have had no luck whatsoever in having my Inspiron 8200 repaired. Have sent it in twice for minor repairs and both times it was returned unfixed with nothing done to it other than a BIOS flash to an old version and other things messed up.

I finally decided to call during the day instead of late at night (at night you get tossed to India, and they DO NOT LISTEN). My 8200 is basicly being rebuilt from the ground up. The tech has sent me just about every part to build another laptop and got authorization to have a tech come and assemble the thing for me. My faith in Dell has been restored...but...when you call in for support, and you probably will....do not talk to them unless they are in Austin...if they sound like they are from India or some other country and have an American name...just hang up...you will get nowhere with them.

In order to save money when I purchased mine, I only got a one year warranty...and will be extending it in a month just before it expires. And unless you are wanting to use linux, the wireless g minipci card that dell has for the system is great. Oh, and you will be able to purchase a better videocard later on for the system if you wish.

And emachines....their taste is still foul in my mouth....I still would never purchase one after having to do support on them for a couple of years.
 
Thank you for your posts liveterces and Tekara. I have decided on the one i list above just waiting for refund check now.

thanks for your help
 
Originally posted by Ezteh
i'm sorry i just don't like them I can't help it and if i did get it i would feel regret
Click to expand...
Regret?!:confused:
Dude is a Dell (vomit)
I'd take an E-machine well before I give any money to Dell.
 
don't you people listen i said no emachines, i don't care if they are reformed get it out of your heads, i don't care if they have a64! I don't like them. can a mod please lock this thread I'm sick of these people who don't even take the time to read the thread and just post whatever falls out of their asses. god i thought i could rely on the [H] for an unbiased answer but no.:mad:
 
Originally posted by Ezteh
don't you people listen i said no emachines, i don't care if they are reformed get it out of your heads, i don't care if they have a64! I don't like them. can a mod please lock this thread I'm sick of these people who don't even take the time to read the thread and just post whatever falls out of their asses. god i thought i could rely on the [H] for an unbiased answer but no.:mad:
Click to expand...
You tell us to be unbiased?
Sir please read your eariler posts.
 
ok I'm going explain this one more time.
I don't want an emachine because I don't like them, and becuase they are too expensive.
??too expensive you say but they are around 1300 after rebate.
well but guess what that price is after rebate and I would have to shell out around $1550 before rebate and guess what I don't have that amount.
Does that make sence to you?
I only have around around $1250 to spend so the emachine is out of the question including the lowerend one that is around $1000.
I still have a week or so to decide so who knows i might get something besides the dell but I will NOT get a emachine because of the cost.
 
By God, the man said about 4 times that he wasn't interested in the eMachines, let it go! He said he doesn't have enough money, and you people STILL keep telling him to buy something he cant afford. And even if he had enough money, not feeling satisfied with a purchase really sucks, even if it is a good product. So for god sakes,


QUIT TELLING THE MAN TO BUY SOMETHING HE DOESNT WANT!!!
 
thank you very much kleath. your wise beyond your register date
and just to peev you emachines people off I'll let you know that I just place my order for my dell.
 
Originally posted by liveterces


And emachines....their taste is still foul in my mouth....I still would never purchase one after having to do support on them for a couple of years.
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'
eMachines has really changed. I owned an Inspiron 8200 before this one, and I wouldn't go back for anything... Build quality is so superior that it isn't even funny. I have a friend who just got a 5150, and while it's decent, even he regrets not getting the eMachine...
 
Originally posted by kleath
By God, the man said about 4 times that he wasn't interested in the eMachines, let it go! He said he doesn't have enough money, and you people STILL keep telling him to buy something he cant afford. And even if he had enough money, not feeling satisfied with a purchase really sucks, even if it is a good product. So for god sakes,


QUIT TELLING THE MAN TO BUY SOMETHING HE DOESNT WANT!!!
Click to expand...

We're telling him that for the same amount, financed with NO interest through Best Buy, he can get something FAR superior to what he's thinking about getting.

Brand loyalty / hatred is stupid. Period. Companies change, products come and go, and some times things get much nicer. Simply put, right now, the eMachines is the best bang for the buck in the middle and upper-middle price range. And, with the financing, it's not too hard to afford, and he could. But, he has decided NOT to listen to some well thought arguments, and avoid a machine because of a brand rebadging that means NOTHING (btw, Dell has bought laptops from Arima, just as eMachines does now. THEY ARE THE SAME THING). It's stupid, and we are hoping that he will wake up and realize that he is making a decision that probably isn't the best. I hated eMachines too. It's a different picture now. Quality changes, and right now I wouldn't buy a dell OTHER than the 600m. Period.

Given that, if you are so stuck in the mud that you won't open your eyes, I certainly would NOT get the 5150/5100.

Look at the 600m with the student discout, or the Gateway M:505, or a used Sager... but NOT the 5150.
 
Originally posted by lopoetve
We're telling him that for the same amount, financed with NO interest through Best Buy, he can get something FAR superior to what he's thinking about getting.

Brand loyalty / hatred is stupid. Period. Companies change, products come and go, and some times things get much nicer. Simply put, right now, the eMachines is the best bang for the buck in the middle and upper-middle price range. And, with the financing, it's not too hard to afford, and he could. But, he has decided NOT to listen to some well thought arguments, and avoid a machine because of a brand rebadging that means NOTHING (btw, Dell has bought laptops from Arima, just as eMachines does now. THEY ARE THE SAME THING). It's stupid, and we are hoping that he will wake up and realize that he is making a decision that probably isn't the best. I hated eMachines too. It's a different picture now. Quality changes, and right now I wouldn't buy a dell OTHER than the 600m. Period.

Given that, if you are so stuck in the mud that you won't open your eyes, I certainly would NOT get the 5150/5100.

Look at the 600m with the student discout, or the Gateway M:505, or a used Sager... but NOT the 5150.
Click to expand...

First off, the BB is $1550, then AR is $1300, he's getting his Dell for $1100+, how is that the same amount?

Don't get me wrong, at the same price I would wholeheartedly recommend the eMachines over the Dell, they've made a HUGE turnaround and the specs you get are incredible for that price. However, he doesn't have enough for the eMachines. But besides that, he politely said several times he didn't want an eMachines and asked for ppl to give opinions on the dell, but ppl kept saying "Get eMachines!", w/o actually answering the Dell question. If you said what you thought of the Inspiron 5100, that would be answering his question.
 
well if you don't agree with me then don't post. I don't need anymore opinions. I told you what i wanted and 3 people answered my request out of 2 pages well I thank them the rest of you can go enjoy your crappy emachines and I will be happy that I didn't buy one of there peices of crap.
yes some companies change but again some don't and I beleive that emachines hasn't so stop telling me to get one, allright.

now will a mod please close this topic.
 
If the Dell sold a rebadged ARIMA M6805 you be all over it like a kid on icecream.
 
cut pasted from cnets user reviews:

"It looks good - in the specs only"
pcr on 27-Aug-2003 01:13:18 AM
Pros: The specs are great: the fastest mobile processor, great and fast memory, fast video card, built-in DVD writer, great LCD resolution

Cons: Dell machines only look good on specs. For example, the LCD specs are great, until you try to read in such a hi-resolution for a small screen. This is also a really heavy machine. Unlike most other machines, you can not even try this one in person anywhere. This is what is called "direct". It should be called virtually direct. If all this was not enough, Dell notebooks are becoming more and more unreliable. My LCD is getting dimmer and dimmer with time, battery is down to 10 minutes (really!), the built quality is truly poor, the keyboard is becoming less tactile. Dell notebooks wear out quickly with time. Their customer service, once award-winning, is standing poor in any serious review or poll. You'd be much better off with a beautiful, high-quality and small notebook like the Sony VAIO TR1A plus a large LCD screen (the don't cost much nowadays) and an external keyboard for work on a desk. Sure, you will pay a little more, but then down the road when you Dell notebook quickly starts to wear out, you will find out which one was really much more expensive. I would highly recommend a Dell notebook to a masochist: a heavy, unreliable notebook with a Soviet-era style (blue-gray big box) and bad design that have great specs that will soon prove themselve worthless.
Click to expand...


link read thru the reviews, there are some VERY bad horror stories about this laptop, and DELL.
 
Originally posted by Ezteh
don't you people listen i said no emachines, i don't care if they are reformed get it out of your heads, i don't care if they have a64! I don't like them. can a mod please lock this thread I'm sick of these people who don't even take the time to read the thread and just post whatever falls out of their asses. god i thought i could rely on the [H] for an unbiased answer but no.:mad:
Click to expand...

I do read the threads!!! I thought that I was dealing with someone who was serious about wanting help; not just stroking his ego!

You asked for feedback, and I gave it to you.

I said that I had looked at the Dell 8600 and 5150; but when I evaluated all the notebooks with an unbiased, open mind, the eMachines was the best. I have never owned an eMachines notebook before this one. I have had several good and bad experiences (both direct and indirect) with eMachines desktops. However, after doing over 5 months of considerable, unbiased research online and at the various stores and kiosks, I chose the eMachines m6805. My recommendation to you was not biased and did not fall out of my ass.

So, don't knock [H]! You did get an unbiased answer.

You are right; the moderators should close this thread because your thread is bogus since you don't want an honest answer. You just want someone to make you feel more secure by telling you that you have made the most wonderful, wise decision to buy the greatest notebook ever. Grow up; it's not going to happen.
 
Originally posted by kleath
... He said he doesn't have enough money, and you people STILL keep telling him to buy something he cant afford. ...
Click to expand...

Kleath,

In his original post he stated, 'at a total of 1378 but with the -$150 discount till the 18th it's 1228 or around 34 a month.'

This to me says that he has around 1378 cash to spend (the Dell rebates are usually mail-in rebates) and may even be looking at financing the purchase.

So, don't knock the ones who point out items within these parameters.

As for recommending something that he does not want, he asked for feedback. I gave him feedback on his choice and tried to share what I had learned in my search for a notebook. It's quite clear now that this guy is quite irrational (he's even knocking [H] in his tirades) and only wants his ego and confidence boosted.

He should not post a question asking for help on an issue and soliciting feedback only to thrash about because he is close-minded and doesn't like the answers that he gets.
 
Originally posted by Curly_in_FL
Kleath,

In his original post he stated, 'at a total of 1378 but with the -$150 discount till the 18th it's 1228 or around 34 a month.'

This to me says that he has around 1378 cash to spend (the Dell rebates are usually mail-in rebates) and may even be looking at financing the purchase.

So, don't knock the ones who point out items within these parameters.

As for recommending something that he does not want, he asked for feedback. I gave him feedback on his choice and tried to share what I had learned in my search for a notebook. It's quite clear now that this guy is quite irrational (he's even knocking [H] in his tirades) and only wants his ego and confidence boosted.

He should not post a question asking for help on an issue and soliciting feedback only to thrash about because he is close-minded and doesn't like the answers that he gets.
Click to expand...

Actually the rebate he is talking about IS instant. I was surprised also, and if it weren't for the fairly big price diff(when your poor your poor) I might be advocating the M6000 also.
 
Originally posted by Threader
If the Dell sold a rebadged ARIMA M6805 you be all over it like a kid on icecream.
Click to expand...

Yeah, but it would have a totally different chassis than what they use right now.
 
Originally posted by kleath
First off, the BB is $1550, then AR is $1300, he's getting his Dell for $1100+, how is that the same amount?

Don't get me wrong, at the same price I would wholeheartedly recommend the eMachines over the Dell, they've made a HUGE turnaround and the specs you get are incredible for that price. However, he doesn't have enough for the eMachines. But besides that, he politely said several times he didn't want an eMachines and asked for ppl to give opinions on the dell, but ppl kept saying "Get eMachines!", w/o actually answering the Dell question. If you said what you thought of the Inspiron 5100, that would be answering his question.
Click to expand...

If he had asked: I want this laptop, how is it? He would have gotten our response: It's a POS... NOT for taking to school and back, ever... And, I did point that out in my answer.

Oh, and I'm sure that ANYONE can make $200 in 12 months, which is what the financing time is on the eMachines through best buy.

We're just making a suggestion of the best thing to get at the moment at that price range.
 
Originally posted by Curly_in_FL

You are right; the moderators should close this thread because your thread is bogus since you don't want an honest answer. You just want someone to make you feel more secure by telling you that you have made the most wonderful, wise decision to buy the greatest notebook ever. Grow up; it's not going to happen.
Click to expand...

Amen...
 
ooh oooh me too.


Emachines M680(x) :D


I was looking at the 8600, the IBM T41P (far superior to the Dell's), Sagers, etc.

I saw the M6805 listed here, asked what the hell people were thinking reccomending an Emachine.

I decided to go look at it at Best Buy, and ended up buying it. (I had issues with dead pixels, had to go through 2 laptops before i found one w/o dead pixels)

I went out and bought one, I was either -THE- or -ONE OF THE- first people on the [H] to buy one.

I've been running my laptop for 4 weeks as of tomorrow.

It walks all over my dad's Inspriron 1100 (sister model to the 5100 & 5150) as far as build quality goes. his LCD feels "loose" compared to my old IBM Thinkpad X30 and my new Emachines M6805. (Performance is a given; his is a P4-m 2.4m w/ intel onboard video)

unbiased opinion? I'm as biased against Emachines as they came, and I bought one.

Unless you're wanting battery life more than performance, it's the best deal out there in the $1500 price range. and, that's with a 3 year warranty too. (the $250 in MIRs will offset the $200 I spent for a 3 year warranty on it).

Enjoy your Dell, but popular, EDUCATED, [H] opinion says that you made a mistake.

If I were you, I'd certainly have saved up some $$ for a few weeks until I could afford the M6805

As far as support goes, I've called Emachines abot a half dozen times to deal with quirks & questions.
I got a foreign person 1 time out of those 6. Of the dozen or so calls I've made to Dell, I only got 1 non-foreign person(also one of the best techs I got a hold of, although he was more impressed with the fact that I knew more than he did...and was just calling about a proprietary driver for the Dell Dimension 8100's Dell Support E-button)
I was on hold from anywhere from 12 seconds to 1 minute.
Dell has me on hold from 5-20 minutes.
Every time I asked Emachines a hardware question (or any other question), they helped me, and provided a correct response. The closest they came to making a mistake was thinking I was asking about overclocking when I asked about CPU speed management.
Dell, on the other hand, refused to support my dad's Inspiron 1100 when we asked for an NDIS driver for the broadcomm network card so we cold run Ghost over the network. They blamed Ghost. I told them that Ghost doesn't provide hardware drivers, that the hardware manufacturer (in this case, Dell) provided drivers. We argued for about 20 minutes, and caused me to cancel an almost $3000 order for a Latitude D800.

The only thing I can fault with the Emachines is the quirky power management...but clockgen has taken care of this issue. I wanted a manual way to set it anyway, as I enjoyed that capability in my X30.
 
Also, let's take a look at this.

Taken from your Sig:
Dell i5150|P4m 3.06ghz|256mb pc2700 DDR sodimm ram|64mb Nvidia Geforce FX GO5200|40gb HDD|24xCD-RW/DVD

That was 1100 after rebates...with 1 year warranty, right?

Ok...here's the M6805 for comparison. $1300 AR w/ 1 year warranty.
M6805|Athlon-64 3000+|512mb PC2700 DDR sodimm ram|64mb ATI Radeon 9600|60gb HDD|24xCD-RW/DVD

Let's compare these.
1. HyperThreading wins vs. 64bit support, as far as I'm concerned. but...battery life on the M6805 can squeek past 3.5 hours. what will yours do? And, there's the unknown factor of how 64-bit XP will help in the future. At this moment, I'll give the Dell the win on this due to my experiences with HT...but with the caveat that it may be eating through the battery more quickly than the Athlon.
2. 256mb PC2700. Ok. We get 512 stock. Both support 2gb, although it's more difficult to do it on the Emachine. I'm declaring the M6805 a winner here for more stock RAM.
3. 64mb GF-FX 5200 vs. ATI Mobility Radeon 9600. Don't make me laugh. Clear winner here is the 9600. (nevermind the fact that many of us can OC the core from 300 to 400mhz)
4. 40gb hdd 4200rpm hdd for you. 60gb 5400rpm or 4200rpm for us. We get an extra 20gb, and some of us even get an extra 1200RPM. M6805 the clear winner.
5. the DVD/CD-RWs on both are the same.






now, let's also look at what wasn't mentioned, shall we?
** indicates winner of the category

Dell Inspiron 5150:
no wireless natively
Synaptics touchpad w/ 2 mouse buttons
at your price, you're looking at 15" SXGA LCD. that's what, 1280x1024?
1 PCMCIA slot
non-swappable DVD/CD-RW drive
Headphone & Mic jacks
56k modem + 10/100 NIC
firewire
VGA
Svideo
2 USB ports


Emachines M6805
integrated 802.11g wireless with internal antennea **
Synaptics touchpad w/ 2 mouse buttons + Scroll area**
15.4" 1280x800 widescreen. ya know what, I'm calling this a toss-up.
1 PCMCIA slot
non-swappable DVD/CD-RW drive
Headphone & Mic jacks
56k modem + 10/100 NIC
firewire
VGA
Svideo
4 USB ports**
Compact Flash, Secure Digital flash card reader**



So, what does that $200 get you? let's see..
integrated 802.11g wireless
20gb more harddrive space (and maybe a faster drive too)
256mb more RAM
more powerful videocard (one that can play HL2 reasonably well)
2 more USB 2.0 ports
support for compact flash & SD cards
widescreen LCD(if that's what you like)
a better touchpad

What benefit do your Dell have?
about 1lb weight savings
more compaitiblity with shoulder laptop bags (I use a Targus backpack, my universal notebook pack from Targus wouldn't fit)
slightly better CPU performance...that will be hampered in games by videocard performance.


I don't know about you, but the M6805 on paper looks to be the better buy.

Through the experience of many people here and abroad, the M6805 is a better buy than the Dell in real life as well.

I don't think you'll get a much better unbiased opinion than what you've just been given.
 
Originally posted by lopoetve
Yeah, but it would have a totally different chassis than what they use right now.
Click to expand...

Not to mention that Dell would MSRP for 1999.99 then offer rebates and get it to you for 1699.99. Still ending up $350 more.
 
Hello,

I think the choice for the Dell is a good one. I have owned Dell desktops and the service has always ENDED in a positive note. Sometimes it takes a few tries, but in the end I was satisfied with the resolutions I got. I have had both 1 year and 3 year warranties, I have spoken and e-mailed with both Indian and Americans alike, in the end it's all the same: Dell fixes whatever is wrong.

Have you looked at any of the Gateway systems? They seem to have similar systems around $1200 or so. But I think your choice for a Dell in that price range is good.

Don't worry about the eMachines fanatics, they have just had a very good experience with the company and want to recommend it. It's just proof that eMachines is doing well by its customers.;)
 
NecessaryEvil, how you getting 3+ hrs on the battery? :)

I'm getting about 2.5, with max savings mode. You using the latest speedswitch? Clockgen?
 
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