Computer Help

jsc7002 · **Posted:** Mon Oct 13, 2008 11:41 pm

I cant remember who but I do remember that a couple of people on here are really good with computers and work with them and I was wondering if they could tell me what they think of these computers

Im looking to get a laptop for school and I was wondering what are some good laptops, I am kind fond to Dell and HP bc I have always had good luck with them, but I was looking at the Dell XPS and the HP Pavilion well actually the HP bc it is a little bit cheaper and bc I am dork and i like the remote I can get with it

http://cgi.ebay.com/HP-DV9700T-C2D-2GHz ... 286.c0.m14

http://cgi.ebay.com/HP-PAVILION-DV9700Z ... 286.c0.m14

http://cgi.ebay.com/DeLL-XPS-M1530-2-1G ... 286.c0.m14

Diggerfreek · **Posted:** Mon Oct 13, 2008 11:48 pm

I have a DV9628 with the 17" screen and i love it. ever since my dell laptop, i have purchased 5 hps( 3 desk tops and 2 laptops) and 4 are still going strong. the one that dies was a desk top that was on every day for over 4 years.. also i would spend the extra money and get it at best buy as their warranty will more than pay for it self if you bust your laptop.

dirtykj · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 2:21 am

Stay away from Nvidia-based laptops for now until they get to the bottom of the manufacturing defects with the current generations of mobile chipsets. The evidence is too compelling to ignore.

I just got a new laptop (company's, not my own) -- Lenovo W500. This model is about $1800 or so, Core2 Duo, 2GB RAM, 160GB HD, 1920x1200 panel with dual chips (Radeon 3650 and the built-in IGP, switchable on the fly under Vista), and has one Expresscard slot (hot-pluggable pci-express), and one cardbus slot + dvdrw/cdrw multiwriter, displayport (external monitor, digital, up to 2650x1600), firewire, integrated SD/SDIO slot, bluetooth, and integrated webcam. You can find cheaper build or the T61p that this model replaced, and if you looked around you can find a 1280x800 model for around $800. Works great with XP, Vista, and Linux (all hardware works with current 2.6.27 kernel + gentoo that I use). Battery (extended) lasts around 4.5 hours with agressive battery stretch (brightness way down, audio off, power down the Radeon chip, etc.)

I tolerate Thinkpads ... they usually last a long time and IBM puts out reasonable updates, and don't pre-load too many bullpoop software. Their custom software is understated ... not garish like, e.g., Asus'.

Their 3-year extended service plan is nice, and the techs that come to replace stuff generally work fast and my repairs have been perfect. No problems with scheduling work order either ... Dell is also good in this respect, but maybe that's because we fall in the Enterprise category. Don't know about home user support, that's still handled in India I think.

For HP, the only thing I'll tell you is this: try to type on their keyboard first. The laptops I have worked with from HP have the most dreadful keyboards ever known to man. I use the keyboard pretty much all day and I find I make all kinds of mistakes on the HP keyboards ... something about their key placement is a little "off". Oh I remember now, it's the feedback on the keypresses that are awful. I can't ever tell if I'm completing the stroke or not. Horrible horrible keyboards.

Don't get me started about the Apple's home-row key dimples in the wrong place. Whoever came up with that brillian idea ...

Inc · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 2:27 am

buy a mac.

dirtykj · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 10:30 am

http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&o ... ip+problem

Apple: NVIDIA chips to blame for MacBook Pro video problems

IGM: Apple [finally] admits to nVidia chip issues

Apple Says MacBooks May Have Bad Nvidia Chips - News and Analysis ...

NewsFactor Network | Apple Will Fix MacBook Pros with Faulty ...

Apple Admits Nvidia GPU Defect in MacBook Pros - HotHardware

pokefan · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 10:42 am

incubusmike wrote:

buy a mac.

x2, new line should be unveiled today. look for it.

dirtykj · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 11:29 am

"I'm a PC, and I've been stereotyped"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkZdkHylJ3w

:-)

You mac fanboys ...

pokefan · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 11:46 am

dirtykj wrote:

"I'm a PC, and I've been stereotyped"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkZdkHylJ3w

:-)

You mac fanboys ...

lol, that was funny actually... I think it's dumb they feel the need to try and win people like that but oh well.

I actually work on both platforms, I'm a graphic artist and work is all PC based but I prefer Mac at home. I honestly have nothing against PC's when they're taken care of and maintained properly then they're great tools. I just prefer the ease and work flow of a Mac. I can get my way around either proficiently so I don't really think one is better then the other.

Honestly though Macs are becoming cheaper and you can get more out of a Mac these days then you can a PC so why not go with the value?

Inc · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 11:53 am

^^^^^^What he said^^^^^^

Edvalencia · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 12:38 pm

The Dell is probably the best of the three, but as DirtyKJ said, the issues with the nvidia chipset is real and directly affects the XPS line of PC's. The fix that nvidia came up with is $#!~. Running the cooling fans all the time not the way to solve this problem.

As far as I know, this problem only affects Geforce 8 & 9 chipsets, so the DV9700Z is probably in the clear.

I've had good luck with Thinkpads/Lenovo and Toshiba Toughbooks. One of my clients left a toughbook on the roof of her car and drove off. The laptop fell as she was pulling out of the driveway and while the case was scratched up, nothing happened to it.

The Mac OS is cool, but I've had several issues with the hardware. I'm not sure how the new Macs fare, but the older ones had issues with the backlight going out on the monitor and the cooling fans went bad pretty fast. Changing the backlight on a Mac is next to impossible. Did it once for the heck of it, but they are not really designed to be replaced. I have another G4 sitting in my office waiting for a new back light.

Edit: Stay away from Acer, they are garbage.

jeepkj02 · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 1:23 pm

If you want something portable get a 14" widescreen laptop. I think the 15.4 and 17" are gigantic!! I have a Dell Inspiron 1420. Intel Core2Duo with 2GB of ram and 240GB hd. Great laptop for a great price.

zzack92 · **Joined:** Mon Jul 28, 2008 6:50 pm **Posts:** 371

jsc7002 · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 6:41 pm

Im not a big fan of Mac or Apple computers, I guess Ill look some more into the Dell laptops

how can you tell if its Nvidia-based?

Edvalencia · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 7:43 pm

jsc7002 wrote:

Im not a big fan of Mac or Apple computers, I guess Ill look some more into the Dell laptops

how can you tell if its Nvidia-based?

Look at the graphics info.
You want to avoid anything that has Nvidia Geforce 8X or 9X chipsets (ie Nvidia Geforce 8600GT)

2006 KJ · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 7:49 pm

just please buy a mac.. you'll wonder why you suffered though windows for so long... i've never known someone who has a mac and doesnt love it.

(just bought a black mac book myself after having windows for the last 8 years

)

Inc · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 7:50 pm

<<<<<<<<what he said<<<<<<<<<

CrossBones · **Posted:** Tue Oct 14, 2008 8:57 pm

I could care less what anyone else uses, all I know is if you prefer a Windows PC... Better you than me.

We (the wife & I) have three newer Mac's all less than 1 year old. We share a 24" iMac (latest version - maxed to capacity), the wife carries a new MacBook Air, and I use a 17" MacBook Pro on a daily basis. My point being, we wouldn't go back to Windows to save our friggin' lives.

Btw; the newest uni-body MacBook laptops are out now. Oh and for the record, with a Mac, any (Intel) Mac, you can run OS X with XP or Vista side-by-side. Of course with Windows installed, your machine is just as vulnerable to all those issues Windows user's fear.

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