HP Laptops

[Jeff Rodriguez]

Originally Posted by Joe Matt

You don't need Norton, better free options such as Zone Alarm, AVG Free Anti-Virus, Spybot, and Ad-Aware.

Norton cames pre-installed on Compaq's/HPs.

The only thing I don't like about the specs you listed, Beth, is the Celeron processor. My mobile Pentium 3 runs smoother than many Celerons I've used.
With almost all major brand PCs you're going to get a lot of bloatware pre-installed on the computer. Spend some time taking it off. It's worth it.

One thing I wold also recommend is going to a store and playing with a similar laptop to this one. Type on the keyboard, see how the screen looks (detail and brightness), etc. Many people have different preferences with those things.

I personally like Thinkpads.
Then again, all notebooks come from almost the same place anyway.

[Greg Needel]

I will chime in and say i have no opinions on that specific laptop but if you are looking for an affordable power house compute i recommend www.averatec.com their notebooks are amazingly priced for what they are and i have had one for 2 years now and it is build solid. If you want them even cheaper you can get one of their factory referbs here. http://www.shopaveratec.com/searchre...sp?search_id=4


hope this helps.

[Conor Ryan]

I'm running a HP ZV6000 without the enter key, I got a great deal on it in September and through rebates I only payed about $350 for a fully loaded laptop with an AMD 64 3200+, 512 Ram, and a 80 Gig Harddrive as well as a few other features.

Looking at the specs for your computer, it's gonna have below average speed for new computers, and probably isn't "Vista-Ready" for Microsoft's next Operating System due out in January.
A Windows Vista Premium Ready PC includes at least:

• 1 GHz 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor.
• 1 GB of system memory.
• 128 MB of graphics memory.
• 40 GB of hard drive capacity with 15 GB free space.
• DVD-ROM Drive.
• Audio output capability.
• Internet access capability.

You'll be able to get away with 512 MB Ram on a Vista running PC, and without the Graphics card, however it's going to be deathly slow. There are a bunch of laptops out there with those specs, however they don't come below $700 new for now.

Here are a few sites that you may want to check out:

• Fujitsu A3040
• There are a Few Here
  
  

Outpost lists a few Refurbished computers, I've never bought a Refurbished notebook, but they do sound like pretty good deals. If you find a notebook that you like, sometimes its worth it to sit on it and see if prices come down, hopefully soon this will be affordable with an english keyboard.

[d.courtney]

I don't know specificly about the V2000, although I have had experiance with the V2000Z , as my girlfriend bought it back in the fall. It works well th weight is good, battery life was about 3 hours max at its max. I would recomend this over the V2000 if only for the AMD processor, but then again thats my personal preference... all in all for its price it is a very good computer.

[GlitterRave113]

We use that kind of laptop at school, and I admit, if youre planning on using it a lot, it does weigh quite a bit (like Joel said)...It also seems to take up quite a bit of (physical) room, but then yet again, thats probably just my opinion! The battery power definitly isnt all that long lasting, but if you must, just remember to keep charging all the time!

A lot of colleges sell Windows XP Pro for $10-$12 with the Microsoft education discount. That really isn't that big of a deal.

3 of my friends bought HP/Compaq laptops before they went to school last fall (Early/Mid August). All 3 of them were completely different models/designs. Around March, all 3 of their exhaust fans burnt out, within about a week of each other. One of them actually lost their processor fan shortly after too because it had to work harder to make up for the lack of an exhaust fan. Although the original manufacturers warranty covered the fan, HP/Compaq refused to let them replace the fans themselves, and they each had to mail their laptops back for about 10 days to 2 weeks while they replaced it and then shipped it back.

Even if the laptop is for general use and homework, I'd still avoid the celeron processor just because of the crummy battery life. It is definitely worth upgrading to a Mobile Pentium or Centrino (except I don't think Intel calls them that anymore...they were just a Mobile Pentium with a wireless card) to get that improved battery life. A friend of mine has an HP pavilion with a "centrino" processor and gets about 6-7 hrs off of a charge. I've never owned an AMD processor in a laptop, so I honestly wouldn't be able to give you any battery life information about that.

After the honor stories I witnessed my friends go through, I'm never buying an HP laptop (once I can get the money, a Mac Book sounds more like it). But don't let my bad opinion sway your decision.

[sciguy125]

My general recommendations about laptops:
- Don't get a Celeron, the extra ~$150 for a Pentium M is worth it. You'll get better performance and better battery life. The Pentium M has throttling, so it can slow itself down if it's under low load and subsequently use less power.
- Even if you don't think so now, size will be important to you. If you want, go to a store and check out the laptops they have to see what size you like.
- The screen is also important. I love widescreen. I can open up a bunch of windows and have plenty of room to work. Of course, your usage might be different from mine, so it might not be of much use to you. As for "truebright" (different manufacturers have different names for it), it's a preference. I'll admit that it makes the screen look better, but I don't like the reflections. Without it, however, you get general glare (like a haze) instead.
- You should also decide if performance or construction is more important to you. For computers in the same price range, you generally have a choice between better performance or better construction. IBM Thinkpads are rock solid. You can drop them and not have too much damage. Dell's on the other hand are garbage. I've had my Inspiron 630m for a little over two months and it's already suffered some cosmetic damage. I also opened it up earlier today to tighten some loose screws. Performance-wise, however, you just can't beat it.

[Beth Sweet]

Thanks for the advice everyone!

I went to CompUSA today and got a new laptop. I got the Pentium thing and pretty much everything else that was on the other list

I only got the 6 battery, but I'll probably go back and get the 12 once I get my refund (I get $50 just for buying a computer! yay!)

Thanks again!

[technoL]

I just got an HP Laptop today from CompUSA also...AWESOME sale. So far, it seems great, except for the fact that I still have to transfer about 40 gigs of stuff from my old emachines desktop (it was seriously about time for something new). I tried out the built-in webcam and it seems okay, not excellent, but it'll do. I'm loving the size also.