Laptop?

[lukevanoort]

Originally Posted by tagger

My advice would be to not buy a dell, dell is the company for people who don't know much about computers =\. I'd look at computer sites too, like newegg or something, they usually have some nice deals. If you can customize your own to what you need, you can definitely save some money if you know you won't need a lot of hard drive space or something like that.

I disagree with that statement. I like to think that I know a decent amount about computers; I am industry certified in networking and work as a PHP programmer/web developer. I happen to find Dells to be very acceptable. Someone who really knows what they are doing know exactly what he/she needs and gets it at the best price, and I have yet to see a laptop that beats the Dell Vostros for bang to the buck. Newegg and other component sites (yes, I know Newegg sells whole computers too) are sometimes great for building desktops, but they aren't the be-all and end-all.

In my experience the best way to get the ideal laptop is to buy one of the middle-of-the-road or business models with a good processor and graphics card (if you buy the stuff targeted at gamers and high-end non-business users [like Alienware] you often end up paying for the case, not what's in it); then, you perform a large RAM upgrade, and possibly hard drive upgrade (to a 7200rpm drive, if applicable) from components purchased from one of the component places. Laptop manufacturers seem to love to overprice the ram for some reason...

EDIT: HPs annoy the heck out of me, but they are nowhere near as bad as Compaq... I would not purchase a Compaq even at a 50% off sale. I have had no experience with Toshiba. I have heard good things about Lenovos from people I know who own them, and Apples some of the nicest laptops I have used (overpriced though...).

[vivek16]

Originally Posted by JohnBoucher

We just bought 2 Dell Vostros 1500 for CAD.

Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, 2.2GGz 800Mhz FSB, L2 Cache
2 GB Ram
256 NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GT
XP PRO

Runs both Inventor and Solid Works great.

hmm...

I just bought a dell vostro 1500 for CAD and in general use.


Intel Core 2 Duo 1.66GGz 800Mhz FSB, L2 Cache
2 GB Ram
128NVIDIA GeForce 8400
xp home

Runs Inventor. Which is more than I can say about the other two computers that my family owns .

It works like a charm and was a steal at 800 dollars.

-vivek

p.s. Would definitely recommend!

[Adama]

i have a Toshiba Tecra and it has been pretty solid, but if you want to game, make sure you have name brand graphics card. I bought Dawn of war and found that my laptop didn't have the name graphics and wouldn't run it even though it was "good enough"

[Cory]

I would disagree with the Dell and HP bashing.

We have a 4 year old HP Desktop, and have owned 5 Dell PC's (2 laptop, 3 desktop) over the last 9 years or so.

We have 3-5 HP laptops between team members, and all of them are mostly happy with them (I'd say the only ones that arent are because of Vista)

Who of the mainstream brands does anyone think is better than Dell? (Apple not withstanding). Every brand has it's pros and cons. For the most part, none of these companies are making their own laptops anyways. Theyre all coming from third party companies, and then being rebranded by the mainstream brands.

I know a good deal about computers, and I've had nothing but good experiences with Dell. Yes, they occasionally sell lemons, but anyone doing such a volume of business is bound to. They have, in my experience, exceptional customer service. We received one machine that was DOA. Within 48 hours, we had a brand new machine on our doorstep. We had a problem with the graphics card of one machine, and had a tech and a brand new, upgraded card at our house the next day. Any problems have been taken care of swiftly and professionally.

I hate when people make blanket statements like "So and so company is terrible. Never buy from them". If this was the case, they wouldn't still be in business. For every person who has had a bad experience with Dell or HP, another has had a fantastic experience. However, if only the bad experiences are voiced, there is no perspective. If you do your research (beyond asking a bunch of probably biased people on CD [myself included]), you should be able to make a good, informed decision.

[Bharat Nain]

I have become very fond of Dell mainly because of their customer service. When something breaks, they will fix it fast depending on your service plan. If you get a vostros, you can possibly get it through Dell Business which offers even better customer service. The reason why customer service is a big deal to me is because we are all in robotics and something is bound to happen if we carry it around too much. I cannot say the same for HP because I have not had too much experience with them.

[EricH]

Originally Posted by Cory

I know a good deal about computers, and I've had nothing but good experiences with Dell. Yes, they occasionally sell lemons, but anyone doing such a volume of business is bound to. They have, in my experience, exceptional customer service. We received one machine that was DOA. Within 48 hours, we had a brand new machine on our doorstep. We had a problem with the graphics card of one machine, and had a tech and a brand new, upgraded card at our house the next day. Any problems have been taken care of swiftly and professionally.

My dad's first laptop had a motherboard die within a couple months of purchase. Dell was happy to repair it...we just had to send the computer back and they replaced it. It was back within a week or two.

Our other Dell, a desktop, recently started being too slow. Memory problem, as far as we can tell. And there's an extra memory slot...

[Molten]

As far as I have read, there have been many positive comments on a Vostro and no negative comments. Anyone have a bad experience with one of these?

[Joe Matt]

Get a MacBook Pro and install Windows XP on a separate partition on it... there I said it... now lets move on.

[vivek16]

Originally Posted by Molten

As far as I have read, there have been many positive comments on a Vostro and no negative comments. Anyone have a bad experience with one of these?

actually, the vostro seems to be a very popular model. Our mentor has one and the only thing he was unhappy about was that the battery stuck out a little. I got an extended life one on mine and it only sticks out an inch or so. Worth it, I think.

-vivek

p.s. I would strongly recommend going to that link I gave earlier and customizing your own and seeing how the prices compare to other models and deals out there.

[JohnBoucher]

Originally Posted by Molten

As far as I have read, there have been many positive comments on a Vostro and no negative comments. Anyone have a bad experience with one of these?

It's Dell's first machine that they built without the "extra bonus software". I believe that the preinstalled software, especially antivirus srews with the machine. Do you thing that Norton could sell antivirus if it was not preinstalled on machines? Would you buy it to put on a machine?

[tagger]

Originally Posted by lukevanoort

I disagree with that statement.

Well judging from other responses maybe I've been just unlucky =\. I know I'm never choosing dell again, had nothing but trouble from mine ><, but again maybe I was just unlucky.

Newegg and other component sites (yes, I know Newegg sells whole computers too) are sometimes great for building desktops, but they aren't the be-all and end-all.

They do add to your choices though, doesn't mean thats your only source =D.

[Jeff Waegelin]

I've had a Dell Latitude D610 laptop for about 3 years now. I've had to make 2 service calls - one to replace a broken keyboard (spilled water on it - oops!) and one to replace the power switch (the button broke, and I couldn't turn it on without docking first). Both times I was very satisfied with the speed and efficiency of support. The broken keyboard was fixed with a self-install kit, sent 2nd day air at no charge to me. The power switch had to be fixed by mailing the whole laptop. They sent a DHL truck to pick it up the next day, and I had the laptop back and repaired within a week, all under warranty.

So, yeah, Dells can occasionally have some problems, but the customer service is usually pretty responsive. Get the extra warranty, though - it's nice to be covered for all the little pieces and parts that may break down, and getting free express shipping is a nice benefit.

[RyanN]

I've had my Dell laptop for over 2 years now (getting close to 3). I've had a few problems with it, but I would buy from Dell again, because they have fixed it every time. Here is what has broken.

After one month, I noticed my CD/DVD-RW drive was making grinding noises when a CD was in. I called Dell, and a new one was here within 2 days.

My LCD screen started to develop some bad spots, like dust stuck between the LCD and backlight. Sent it off to Dell, came back in 2 weeks, but the new screen's backlight was DOA, so I sent it off again, came back within a week.

My IEE1394 port broke while inserting the cable for my camcorder. Dell sent a technician to replace the motherboard. The technician did not fully reseat the CPU and I had trouble turning the machine on. I called Dell, told them I was comfortable in reseating it myself, they led me through the steps, and I'm here today with a good laptop.

My most recent problem was a key broke off of my keyboard, Dell sent me a new keyboard within 2 days and also sent me some new rubber feet as mine were beginning to wear down.

I also UPGRADED to Vista last year when it came out... I'm pretty happy. I had Windows XP MCE before, and it was slow, even after a fresh install. Vista actually ended up being faster and I've had very few incompatibility problems. The only piece of software that I have that did not work was Solidworks 2007. AutoCad 2006 said that there were compatibility problems, but it runs fine. All the games I have work fine... I have Aero, Vista is very responsive, I'm happy. I was part of the beta tester programs for Vista, so I knew what I was buying before I purchased it.

Here are my system specs for anybody curious to how good of a laptop I have for Vista Home Premium:

Dell Inspiron E1505
Windows Vista Home Premium
Core Duo (Not Core 2 Duo) 1.66Ghz
1GB RAM
Mobility Radeon X1300 (64 Dedicated, 254 shared... weird... I know...)
80GB 5400RPM hard drive
CD/DVD-RW
Glossy Screen (one of my favorite options I had on my laptop )

I'd buy Dell again, but when I go to college, I plan on getting a 15" MacBook Pro and installing Vista on a second partition using BootCamp.

[Andy A.]

On the discrete vs integrated video processor-

So long as the video chipset can handle openGL, you'll probably never see a bottle neck related to video. For a laptop the most noticeable slow areas will be harddrive speed (saving large assemblies, accessing content center stuff etc.) and running out of RAM. You really start to notice things taking forever to update in assemblies, parts to open and the like.

In fact its kind of a compounding problem. The typically lower amount of RAM in laptops encourages Inventor to rely on the page file more. The slower hard drives give even worse page file performance then a desktop. If it's a choice between a discrete video processor or more RAM I wouldn't hesitate to go for more or faster RAM. Same goes for a faster hard drive.

Inventor at least can not yet utilize multicore processors. While it's just about impossible to get a single core chip these days, just keep in mind that the second core isn't getting you much in CAD.

The reality is that any laptop bought today is going to be perfectly adequate for FIRST level design. I wouldn't want to make a living working on a laptop exclusively, but it can be done.

-Andy A.

[kanza624]

DON'T BUY HP. EVER.
my brother got an HP laptop last month and it is screwed over completely. the stupid monitor refuses to respond to the machine sometimes and the system just dies randomly sometimes. it's infuriating!

buy a sony vaio. i have two and they haven't failed me yet, even though they run on vista.
and they're pretty too! lol