OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

A friend of mine was asking me earlier today what would be a good laptop to get her mother for work / business purposes. She's fairly heavily involved in a church group and does a lot of dealing with financial affairs and the like, from what I gathered. Also deals with some fairly high-up people from what I heard, and thus doesn't want anything too crappy. However, it shouldn't need to be awfully powerful or anything, since it (likely) won't be running any graphically intensive games or anything like that.

As such, I'm looking for suggestions on which brand names are good (and which are bad), cost, and possibly specific suggestions as to model, etc, if you feel like giving out such information http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

As always, feel free to include any suggestions or miscellaneous information that you may happen to possess, it might be very useful! Thanks in advance everyone!

Re: OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

I've been researching laptops lately, siince I plan to buy one in the new year. My requirements are somewhat different to your friend's though, since my priorities are Linux compatibility and raw power (even though I admit I barely need it beyond running compiz=-)

Anyway...
I quite like the look of the Dells. I know they had a period of bad build quality and poor service for a few years, but my understanding is that they've improved vastly on this front of late: Nice machines, decent prices, good (well, good for a laptop manufacturer anyway) green credentials and Linux friendliness. That's almost certainly what I'll be getting.

I would avoid Sony, I have one now. Too expensive for the spec you get, and not overly sturdy.

My experience with Toshibas has been positive, but the last one I had was a long time ago, so things may have changed since. Lenovos have a reputation for toughness. HPs look quite nice, one of my colleagues has one. To be honest, If you're not looking for top performance, I don't think you can really go wrong with any of the major brands, and most of the lesser brands will do you well enough. A lot of it comes down to what badge you want on the lid.

Have you looked at the ASUS EEE machines? They are cheap, low spec machines selling for about half the price of a regular laptop. Screens are a little small, otherwise I'd be getting one of these. Might be just right for your friend's mother though.

Re: OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

I recently bought a Dell laptop and have been happy with it so far. They offer a decent amount of customizable options through their website.

Re: OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

The consensus I've heard from just about everyone I know with a labtop is to spring the extra money for the better battery option almost every time.

Re: OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

It still amazes me that they sell 5-cell batteries for 15in+ laptops... for 14in and smaller, it makes sense to have an option that doesn't jut out the back. But for larger ones that have an "internal" bay for the battery...

"Green credentials?" Sweet zombie jesus... Planting a tree for each computer built is a great disservice to the public, and needs to stop. The only way to "offset" a computer is to put an equal amount of the resources used for its construction back in the ground (or use 100% recycled metals), and remove real amounts of gaseous waste from the atmosphere (far more than just CO2), which a tree cannot do. This whole "carbon offset" thing is just a big marketing scam, taking advantage of the huge amount of environmental misinformation propagated these days... There is no way to grow enough trees to even begin to approach "offsetting carbon" from industrial production. When they start building huge microbiotic scrubbers to remove actual pollutants from the air en masse (or even prevent them from going up in the first place), we can talk about "green credentials."

Re: OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

Dell Vostro computers are designed specifically for what it sounds like your friend's mom is looking for. Inexpensive for the specs (relatively) and comes with NO trial software!! That's a biggy. We are due for a major replacement of hardware in our office and it's looking more and more like we're going with Dell Vostro's for everything. Hard to beat those prices.

Re: OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

Awesome, thanks a ton for the suggestions guys! Looks like I'll be suggesting a DELL, as that appears to be the general consensus.

One more question; about what sort of pricing can I tell her to expect, for a mid-range Dell laptop?

Re: OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

Look at the models on Dell's web site to get a feeling for it. Generally, you want to avoid AMD processors; although they make for cheaper systems, they run hotter and sap more energy than Intel's Core 2 Duo architecture, leading to often significantly shorter battery run times. Also keep in mind that Dell periodically runs specials, typically posted on Thursdays, like 20% off such and such model lines, or free upgrades to the CPU and HDD, etc. Make sure to check both Dell Home and Dell Small Business, since they are separate divisions that run separate product lines and pricing structures/discounts.

These are some of the deals Dell Home is running at the moment, though I'm not sure if they apply to Canada too:

http://bensbargains.net/merchants/6/Dell_Home_Coupons/

And here is from Dell Small Business:

http://bensbargains.net/merchants/43...iness_Coupons/

Re: OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

get one with a new 45nm cpu... they are cooler, etc.

Re: OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

By "green credentials" I was actually talking about Dell's recycling policies, and their policies of steering away from polluting materials wherever possible.

Re: OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

http://www.xoticpc.com/

Look at the Sager Notebooks.

Re: OT: Laptop suggestions?
 

I found this at: http://www.bargainist.com/

Dell -$350 off Inspiron desktops, $300 off laptops coupon
inspiron-notebook.jpg
Posted 20 minutes ago

Dell is going a little easier on the wallet with a saving of $350 off Inspiron desktops priced over $999. Apply coupon code MGWST$K5DF$?CJ. If you'd rather have an Inspiron notebook, use coupon code ZDWPS9CZT37LLB to save $300 on those priced over $1199. Expires 12/13/2007.