Which laptop PCs are the best value?

[Richard Hole]

Hello

I am interested in a laptop computer to play videos I recorded on the hard drive through a TV tuner card. I use VLC media player to play the videos that are sometimes about 4GB per hour of recording. It seems to take a fair bit of processing power or RAM because on my current computer it sometimes stalls and has a buffer underrun. It often stalls when I open another program. Sometimes I also play back the videos at double normal speed to save time. You can do this with VLC and still understand what is being said. However, there is more chance of it stalling then. I mainly intend to play videos on the laptop computer as my current computer has a duel tuner card. However, I am still thinking of connecting a TV tuner card to the laptop to record some programs.

I saw some new laptop computers that appear to be good value for money. I am wondering what you think and if you know of any better deals.

I have briefly summarized each machine below if you do not get time to view the link. If you do not see the link until after the listing has ended, you can still view the details of the item by scrolling down the page. If any of the links do not work, go to http://www.ebay.com.au/ and paste the item number into the search box at the top of the page.

Some of them are listed as Core2DUO and i3. I am not sure if that has much of an advantage for me?

Acer Intel DualCore, Core2 DUO, with 2.2GHz, 4Gb RAM, 320Gb hard drive, Win 7, 512MB nVIDIA G105M GAMING GRAPHICS and a 15.6" screen for $600.
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170517186443
Item number: 170517186443

ASUS CORE 2 DUO with 2.2GHz, 4Gb RAM, 320Gb BLU-RAY hard drive, 15.6" screen and ATi GAMING for $700.
Genuine Windows Vista™ Business, with XP Pro Downgrade.
Windows 7 Professional upgrade disc & licence add $29
This is the only one listed with a 2 year warranty.
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170517664020
Item number: 170517664020

The Acer Aspire 5740 Core i3 has 2.13GHz, 2Gb RAM, 500Gb hard drive, i3, 64 bit processor, Win 7 and 15.6" screen for $678.00. See http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170518230229
Item number: 170518230229

I thought that it may be better if they had Windows XP because it may run better and may be easier for me to adjust to because I have XP on my other computers. I am not sure if regularly switching between computers with Win XP and Win 7 could take time to adjust to. Could that be a problem? The only one I saw with Win XP installed is the one below. I heard that it is best to use a computer with the operating system that you want already installed on it and that there may be bit involved to change from Win 7 to Win XP and that changing may cause complications with drivers etc. Is this correct?

HP Compaq CORE 2 DUO 2.0GHz 4GB 320GB hard drive 15.6" screen for $700
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170517406735
Item number: 170517406735

Some people suggest that Toshiba is a better brand.

TOSHIBA Satellite Core2 DUO, 2.2GHz,. 4G RAM, 320G hard drive, 15" screen for $650
Microsoft Windows Vista Business Preload, Also XP Professional Disc is included.
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160459105793
Item number: 160459105793


Which one do you think is the best to get if any or do you know of any others that are better value for money which would be good for playing videos?

PS. On another matter, do you know anyone that could help me make up some electronic projects that could greatly benefit the community. There is more information at http://www.advantagein.com/electronics/

Your help is appreciated
Regards Richard.

 

[1shado1]

No help in picking a specific laptop, but help in picking a brand:
Avoid HP/Compaq, Gateway, and Acer. They have had the worst record
for reliability for the last 2+ years. Asus, Toshiba, and Sony Vaio
have been the best. See below:
http://lifehacker.com/5524704/laptop+reliability-study-highlights-

 

[airlift123]

Laptops

I would avoid the Acer. Toshiba is a pretty reliable laptop. I own two Toshiba's and a Dell and there all within 2 years old. I use the Toshiba everyday for hours and never have any trouble. You also can find them reasonably priced when different store have sales. The one i'am on now has 2 GB and 160 RAM. The units 14 months old and I payed $369.00. However get what you like and the perks you prefer.

 

[Richard Hole]

Hi

Thanks for the letters. I notice that the Toshiba I listed has Win Vista and I prefer Win XP or maybe Win 7. I have not installed Windows before on a PC. Would changing from Win Vista to XP be easy for me to do without any complications of Drivers etc? There probably would not be many drivers etc installed on the computer when it is new and I would not have to back up anything.

Alternatively, I could get one with a Dual Core with Win 7 already installed. However, I heard that they are not as good. Is a Dual Core much of a disadvantage over a Core2Duo or i3 for my purpose? I see a Dual Core Toshiba Satellite L500 Pentium T4400 4GB 320GB 15" WIN7 for $585 at http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Toshiba-Sate...iewItem&pt=AU_comp_laptop&hash=item335df8696f
Item number: 220619893103
Do you think it could work for my purpose or would there be more chance that the one I listed before (also below) would do the job?

Core2Duo at http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160459105793
Item number: 160459105793

I3 in a Torsheba is much more expensive. However, I am not sure if i3 would be needed or much of an advantage for my purpose of playing videos and recording on a tuner card at the same time. Would it?

Your help is appreciated
Regards Richard.

 

[BurningSkyline]

No help in picking a specific laptop, but help in picking a brand:
Avoid HP/Compaq, Gateway, and Acer. They have had the worst record
for reliability for the last 2+ years. Asus, Toshiba, and Sony Vaio
have been the best. See below:
http://lifehacker.com/5524704/laptop+reliability-study-highlights-

What about Lenovo? I see they have high malfunction rates but still. Mine is a few years old and runs like a charm still.

 

[1shado1]

What about Lenovo? I see they have high malfunction rates but still. Mine is a few years old and runs like a charm still.

Sigh. Well, obviously not everyone's laptop takes a crap. Did you read the percentages?

I am glad you've had great luck with your Lenovo. I happen to like the Thinkpad line very much. But I think a study encompassing over 30,000 laptops is still a more accurate representative sample than anyone's experiences with 1 or 2.