Looking for some help & advice regarding Laptop purchase.

[deadhook]

I really don't know much at all about laptops and computers, but I do know I need a new laptop. I've currently got a Toshiba that I've had nothing but trouble with.

So, what is a good laptop for about $1,000 (up to $1350 if necessary).

I don't need the best, but I don't want crap.
The faster and the more memory the better, obviously.
Like to have something off the shelf from Best Buy or somewhere like that.
Don't need a wide monitor, standard size is fine.
I'm not a gamer, I use it for my website, web surfing and watching/streaming music and movies.
Hard Drive size of 80GB or larger would be ideal .

So, I was REALLY hoping some people could answer some questions for me.

* I know the Core Two Duo is the best production processor, but what would you say is comparable or the next best?
* What brands are pretty reputable and would you recommend? Which should I stay away from?
* Based on what I described above as far as my needs go, what processor and specs would you say I need?
* Do you know of any good sites that give good/basic info for dummies like me and does a good job of laying out the different options and differences?
* Lastly, I'd love a brand that offers good customer support should anything go wrong.

THANKS A TON FOR YOUR HELP!!!!!!!!!

 

[kgordon]

buy a dell. I have one and love it, they have good customer support and their website allows you to compare different lap tops. Also they sell refurbished ones to if you wanted to go cheap.

 

[Ben]

* I know the Core Two Duo is the best production processor, but what would you say is comparable or the next best?

Comparable, and next best? Nothing right now, except maybe a really expensive AMD. Intel is pretty much kicking butt out on the market right now.

* What brands are pretty reputable and would you recommend? Which should I stay away from?

Acer, HP, Asus, and Sony are my top favorites. They're all good company's. The ones you should stay away from? Well there's not too many of those. Except for the off brands, like Lenovo, Fujitsu, Sharp, Samsung. I would never buy a laptop from any of them, but that's just me. I just don't trust them enough. Even Samsung, they make good TV's, but I really haven't seen great stuff from their laptops.

* Based on what I described above as far as my needs go, what processor and specs would you say I need?

If you have money like that to spend, you might as well go Core 2 Duo. That way, you don't have to upgrade for a bit. Other specs? 1GB of RAM, 80GB HD, Decent graphics. Something that can more then handle your needs.

* Do you know of any good sites that give good/basic info for dummies like me and does a good job of laying out the different options and differences?

Not that I can think of right now.

* Lastly, I'd love a brand that offers good customer support should anything go wrong.

Acer, Asus And HP. I've had no problems with them at all. They've fixed everything I've needed for free. Sony's service is "ok". Not the best, but not the worst. Dell is pretty good too. But I'd say Acer, Asus and HP go much further.

And here are some links for you to ponder over. I wasn't too sure whether you wanted XP or Vista, so I just put them both in.

Laptop 1 with XP

Laptop 2 with Vista

Laptop 3 with XP

 

[macnoob]

buy a dell. I have one and love it, they have good customer support and their website allows you to compare different lap tops. Also they sell refurbished ones to if you wanted to go cheap.

honeslt he said he wasnt looking for something that was crap, and he asked what to stay away from and i think dell qualifs under both. dells break. dells dont have very good phone people or help hotline uff, dell usually isnt the hghest quality patrs. its cheap so you get what you pay for. he is spending around 1000 the quality of a dell at that price comapred to a HP is insane.

 

[swimrr]

I just got one of these and it runs great. you could probably find something a little cheaper if you drop the HD space or vid card a bit, bit vista works great on this setup and the 3D graphics are nice. great screen also. i shopped around for about 3 weeks before i settled on this deal, one of the beast i found. i've had some dells in the past and the seem to be pre-programmed to breakdown at 2 years from the purchase date and unless you buy their top-of the-line warranty their customer service isn't so hot. it's rather cold actually. hp seems to have better CS in the event anything goes wrong, which doesn't seem to happen very often.

http://www.compusa.com/products/product_info.asp?product_code=344090&pfp=BROWSE

 

[macnoob]

I just got one of these and it runs great. you could probably find something a little cheaper if you drop the HD space or vid card a bit, bit vista works great on this setup and the 3D graphics are nice. great screen also. i shopped around for about 3 weeks before i settled on this deal, one of the beast i found. i've had some dells in the past and the seem to be pre-programmed to breakdown at 2 years from the purchase date and unless you buy their top-of the-line warranty their customer service isn't so hot. it's rather cold actually. hp seems to have better CS in the event anything goes wrong, which doesn't seem to happen very often.

http://www.compusa.com/products/product_info.asp?product_code=344090&pfp=BROWSE

yey hp owns its not the best, but its probably what he wants right? man you nailed his price range. so what do you need the graphics for? do you run anything more than regular word processingg on it? im asking suc im lloking into hp right now and am seeing what you can do with it

 

[kgordon]

honeslt he said he wasnt looking for something that was crap, and he asked what to stay away from and i think dell qualifs under both. dells break. dells dont have very good phone people or help hotline uff, dell usually isnt the hghest quality patrs. its cheap so you get what you pay for. he is spending around 1000 the quality of a dell at that price comapred to a HP is insane.

All i have ever owned is dell. 2 desktops and my current laptop. I have never ever had a problem with a single dell, and i guess have never had to get customer support to comment on that. However they are not built like crap, they are built quite well and i dont know what you have against them but it was probably something you did.

 

[deadhook]

Thank you all very much.

That's good info.

I think I'm looking at the HP's. Looking to spend b/w $1000 and up to $1250.

The HP dv9000z pretty good?

I'm looking at that and the 9220 and 6275

Someone posted the 9220 and it looked even better, just a few hundred more.

I need a new laptop and think I like the dv9000z, but wanted to make sure it was okay. I don't know much about the different processors and how much ram is sufficient. Is this a laptop most people would recommend or that is pretty well rated and reliable?

Just use it for internet, watching movies, graphics work..no gaming. I do run several programs at a time and would love to not have lagtime when doing so.

Is the dv9000z a good buy for my needs? Which Processesor should I make sure it has?

Is there another HP for similar price that you'd recommend?

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[[Dumpkinhead]

bought a dell for less than $1500. came with a 3 year warranty and 3 year accident warranty with in home service. heres the spec:

Inspiron E1505, Intel Core 2 Duo processor T5600 (2MB/1.83GHz/667MHz)
15.4 Inch TrueLife Wide-screenWXGA, for Inspiron 6400/E1505
2GB, DDR2, 667MHz 2 Dimm for Inspiron 6400/E1505
Intel Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator 950 GM
120GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive for Inspiron 6400/E1505
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Edition, English
8X DVD+/-RW Drive for Inspiron 6400/E1505
53 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery, for Inspiron 6400/E1505
Dell Wireless 355 Bluetooth Module (2.0+EDR), Vista, for Inspiron 9400/E1705,6400/E1505XPS M1710
and 3 year LoJack subscription(which recovers stolen labtops)

dell offers discounts on certain bundles, pretty sure u can get a good price just look around. but dont settle on one brand, look through all the sites.