need laptop help!

[jojoa55]

Hey guys-

I'm looking at getting a new laptop for my fiance for Christmas and I have no idea what to buy. I'm not tech savvy at all and have no idea what I'm looking for in a good laptop.

Specifications/usage:

-The only thing she really requested was a 14" screen. She has a 15.4" now and wants to go a little smaller (yes, I realize this sentence sounds dirty )

- She only uses her current laptop for word documents (microsoft word) and internet browsing. She isn't a gamer. She is working on her master's in nursing and it has lots of papers and projects, so maybe would need a decent harddrive storage.

-She absolutely does not want an HP. That is what she has now and it's crashed on her 4 times in 5 years.

I have no idea what brands are good and which are to be avoided, how much ram she would need, what processor, etc. I have a toshiba and it's been fine.

My budget is around $500. I can go as high as $700 but I'd really like to stay around $500 if possible. If you guys with tech experience can chime in, it would be much appreciated!

 

[Benny]

Toshiba Satellites are great laptops and well within your price range.

 

[Double T]

I'm a nurse. Best thing is a voice recorder for lectures and a desktop at home...flash drive for documents.

However, I had a laptop and screwed around on it 90% of the time (chem/organic bio....easy as pie)

Anyways, I really don't think laptops DON'T crash. Regardless, do not buy a Dell. I have experience with 3 different models and ALL use substandard parts and QA.

One fan didn't work at all...causing overheating issues and eventual mobo death.

The second had a battery overheat and fry a hard drive (inspiron e1505) very flawed ac adapter...they actually recalled it...but MY data was gone (now I back up)

Third one had driver issues and the wireless card was not connected from factory.

Check Cnrt and other tech savvy forums before pulling the trigger.

 

[3point5]

look for an intel i5....i7 if you want to spend some extra money. 4g ram would be fine for what she is going to do. i prefer to have 8 though.

 

[slackerisme]

Toshiba Satellites are great laptops and well within your price range.

+1 and I'll toss Dell into the mix.

 

[slackerisme]

I'm a nurse. Best thing is a voice recorder for lectures and a desktop at home...flash drive for documents.

However, I had a laptop and screwed around on it 90% of the time (chem/organic bio....easy as pie)

Anyways, I really don't think laptops DON'T crash. Regardless, do not buy a Dell. I have experience with 3 different models and ALL use substandard parts and QA.

One fan didn't work at all...causing overheating issues and eventual mobo death.

The second had a battery overheat and fry a hard drive (inspiron e1505) very flawed ac adapter...they actually recalled it...but MY data was gone (now I back up)

Third one had driver issues and the wireless card was not connected from factory.

Check Cnrt and other tech savvy forums before pulling the trigger.

I have been repairing computers as a side job for 7 years now. As a whole, I can say that Dell's do not experience any more issues than any other brand out there. Their customer service used to suck hind teet. But as of late, I have not had any issues whatsoever. YMM(and apparently has)V

 

[jojoa55]

can someone explain the i processors? Would she need i3, i5, or i7? I was looking at these two at best buy so far.

Dell - Inspiron Laptop / Intel® Core™ i3 Processor / 14" Display / 4GB Memory / 500GB Hard Drive - Peacock Blue - I14RN4110-7616PBL

Toshiba - Satellite Laptop / Intel® Core™ i3 Processor / 14" Display / 4GB Memory / 640GB Hard Drive - Blue - L745-S4210

 

[slackerisme]

i7 is the fastest, i5 second most, then i3. I have an i3 and find it plenty fast for what I do (geeky stuff). I just bought my MIL an i3 and she is happy. However, these will bog down if she multi-tasks, as in research and paper writing. You can get away with a smaller processor (the i3, 5, 7) if you add memory. For my money, I would get an i5 and at least 4GB of RAM.

 

[slackerisme]

can someone explain the i processors? Would she need i3, i5, or i7? I was looking at these two at best buy so far.

Dell - Inspiron Laptop / Intel® Core™ i3 Processor / 14" Display / 4GB Memory / 500GB Hard Drive - Peacock Blue - I14RN4110-7616PBL

Toshiba - Satellite Laptop / Intel® Core™ i3 Processor / 14" Display / 4GB Memory / 640GB Hard Drive - Blue - L745-S4210

Either of these look great, the Toshiba would be my choice. I was an authorized Toshiba repair rep, they are well built machines. I have had a rash of them in here lately, all with the same problem. All of them are the 17 or 19" variety though and the problem is a cheap easy fix.

 

[Mgderf]

Once you figure out what you want, look here for a deal before you buy,

www.newegg.com

I got a really nice Asus A53U dual-core laptop, 3GB memory, AMD processor for $349 shipped!

 

[jojoa55]

thanks for the help. I have a toshiba satellite thats going on 6 years now and it's been great. The only thing wrong with it is the battery, which is my fault d/t leaving it plugged in all the time. Maybe i should go with a toshiba again.

 

[Caleb]

Can I have your old laptop batteries?

 

[dsells13]

Toshiba is an excellent brand when it comes to laptops. I own an Asus and an Acer, and both are i5 processors, one is 2gb RAM and the other is 4gb RAM, and I would suggest the extra jump to 4gb.

 

[hooky]

Once you figure out what you want, look here for a deal before you buy,

www.newegg.com

I got a really nice Asus A53U dual-core laptop, 3GB memory, AMD processor for $349 shipped!

^^This^^

I've had good luck with newegg

 

[braz007]

I am an Electrical Engineer at a Defense Contractor and the IT / Computer "tech" guy at the Local Fire Department (not by choice, but I love being a firefighter so this just kinda fits in there). I am asked this exact question pretty much daily either at my job or at my hobby, just with changing specifications.

*---Information you really probably care about starts here---*

Here is what you asked for (pretty much exactly $519.00 best bang for your buck 14" screen class, windows box):
Newegg.com - HP ProBook 4430s (XU012UT#ABA) Notebook Intel Core i3 2310M(2.10GHz) 14" 4GB Memory DDR3 1333 320GB HDD 7200rpm DVD Super Multi Intel HD Graphics 3000

Newegg is probably the best place to buy computer supplies from *anywhere.*

*---Information you really probably care about ends here---*

If you want to spend some more and looks are important (I got mine open box, otherwise I would have gone with the above machine) here is an option (a $900+ option that is 11 inches with a great battery life):
Alienware M11x Gaming Laptop Details | Dell

or in the 14" version for ~$1100+
Alienware M14x Gamer Laptop Details | Dell

I was shopping for a netbook and came across an m11x open box for $500 and couldn't turn it down. Otherwise I would not have gotten one.

 

[jojoa55]

I am an Electrical Engineer at a Defense Contractor and the IT / Computer "tech" guy at the Local Fire Department (not by choice, but I love being a firefighter so this just kinda fits in there). I am asked this exact question pretty much daily either at my job or at my hobby, just with changing specifications.

*---Information you really probably care about starts here---*

Here is what you asked for (pretty much exactly $519.00 best bang for your buck 14" screen class, windows box):
Newegg.com - HP ProBook 4430s (XU012UT#ABA) Notebook Intel Core i3 2310M(2.10GHz) 14" 4GB Memory DDR3 1333 320GB HDD 7200rpm DVD Super Multi Intel HD Graphics 3000

Newegg is probably the best place to buy computer supplies from *anywhere.*

*---Information you really probably care about ends here---*

If you want to spend some more and looks are important (I got mine open box, otherwise I would have gone with the above machine) here is an option (a $900+ option that is 11 inches with a great battery life):
Alienware M11x Gaming Laptop Details | Dell

or in the 14" version for ~$1100+
Alienware M14x Gamer Laptop Details | Dell

I was shopping for a netbook and came across an m11x open box for $500 and couldn't turn it down. Otherwise I would not have gotten one.

I appreciate the options, however she does not want an HP. thats what she has now and hates it. We have had terrible luck with hers over the four or five years she has had it.

I doubt she would use the alienware stuff. She isn't a gamer and I would think it might be overkill for what she needs it for.

Here is another option I'm seriously considering. Its about $200 more but has 6gb ram and 640gb hdd. and the i5 processor instead of i3. and it will play blu rays, which we are building our collection since we bought a blu ray player last year what do you guys say? Worth the extra money?
Toshiba - Satellite Laptop / Intel® Core™ i5 Processor / 14" Display / 6GB Memory / 640GB Hard Drive - Platinum - P745-S4217

 

[Taylorz71]

Once you figure out what you want, look here for a deal before you buy,

www.newegg.com

I got a really nice Asus A53U dual-core laptop, 3GB memory, AMD processor for $349 shipped!

Great advice there. I buy most of my IT gear from newegg for my side work and personal stuff anyway.

 

[braz007]

I appreciate the options, however she does not want an HP. thats what she has now and hates it. We have had terrible luck with hers over the four or five years she has had it.

I doubt she would use the alienware stuff. She isn't a gamer and I would think it might be overkill for what she needs it for.

Here is another option I'm seriously considering. Its about $200 more but has 6gb ram and 640gb hdd. and the i5 processor instead of i3. and it will play blu rays, which we are building our collection since we bought a blu ray player last year what do you guys say? Worth the extra money?
Toshiba - Satellite Laptop / Intel® Core™ i5 Processor / 14" Display / 6GB Memory / 640GB Hard Drive - Platinum - P745-S4217

Sounds like a nice machine, Blu-Ray would be nice!

 

[Caleb]

Sounds like a nice machine, Blu-Ray would be nice!

I have bluray on my ancient dell xps....very nice feature, however keep in mind that the bluray industry is picky about playing movies on your laptop. What I mean is, my xps has a bluray drive, however the software no longer functions...I have a theory that the software companies take advantage of the encryption and unknowingly force people to occasionally buy a new bluray player(software), or that's my case. My original software no longer functions, so in order for me to keep watching blurays, I have to buy the latest and greatest software to keep playing my blurays.

 

[3point5]

I recommend against Dell and Gateway. I personally use HP, Asus makes good machines, not Acer, Sony, Samsung, and several others make decent machines...I personally dont care for toshiba. some people swear by them.