New Laptop....

[SoCalSportsFan]

Ok, the time has finally come for me to buy my 1st laptop.

 

I've managed to make do without one for the past 17 years of being on the net.

 

I need one because I was invited as "Press" to https://collisionconf.com/ 4 weeks from now in Vegas, and I WILL need a laptop to "make it so".

 

Most of what I will use it for will be to access my websites which are on hosted servers, social media, and some minor MS Office stuff, but Google Docs works fine with me instead of MS Word, it's photo manager that I do use somewhat.

 

Not looking to spend a fortune, but need a reliable semi quick portable computer.

 

What is out there laptop wise these days?

 

What are your recommendations?

Edited April 4, 2015 by SoCalSportsFan

[Thomas]

Acceptable cost?

Size?

[Thomas]

Though in a generic sense I would recommend Lenova. 

[HaloMagic]

IBM makes some good ones.

[SoCalSportsFan]

Acceptable cost?

Size?

 

I would like hopefully a 15 inch screen, any thing smaller is a "tease" imho.

 

I'd like to keep it under $500.

I do work at Amazon so I can/will use my employee discount to drop the price down 10%, plus I have Prime so I can get it QUICK once I order it.

[mrwicked]

I wouldn't spend $$ on any laptop not made by Apple.

They are by far the best.

But that's just my opinion (and the opinion of pretty much all of silicon valley tech nerds like myself).

You can get a MB Air for like $629 right now.

 

For sub-$500 I agree with Lenovo.

 

Dude get your work to buy you one!

Edited April 4, 2015 by mrwicked

[Brandon]

Just broke and got a new Apple MB Air. Dropped a grand on it and generally despise their software, but all my friends and family greatly surpassed me with longevity....the hardware is just top notch.

 

If you can grab one for what Wicked mentioned, I'd jump all over it. It's perfect for what you need and are looking to do. It's light (perfect for travel), sleek, and easy to use....and lucky for you because you haven't used one in 17 years, you won't have a bad learning curve. It's just great for simple application.

[mrwicked]

^ agreed.

The $629 for 11" MB Air deal looks to be dead now, was a BB thing just a couple days ago I heard about randomly.

Now back to $799 for the base model 11" (but you can hunt around and look for a deal).

 

My fiancee has the 13" Air and she also loves it.

I mostly use my Pro w/ the fancy pants screen. 

Edited April 4, 2015 by mrwicked

[Brandon]

Yeah, mine was using a Pro from 2006 (!?!?) that finally bit the dust. As much as I despise Apple, I can't knock a laptop that lasts almost 10 years.

 

Because the price was close we started to look at the Pro's, but wanted to keep it light for business travel....this thing feels like a file folder. I went with the 13", I'm surprised with how happy and content I am with a smaller screen than usual....it was very easy to adjust.

 

OP, you can easily look through private party, as well. We initially looked at a used one, but I felt more comfortable with a new one and the extended warranty. We got our iMac this way and it's been fantastic.

[nate]

I will never understand why people despise apple. What an absurd thing.

The laptops are great if you can deal with the limitations of the OS.

For 500 it will be hard to find one from to toshiba or Lenovo which are the best windows laptops.

[Brandon]

Nate with another dumbass matter of fact statement.

 

I have an issue with their business practices, proprietary products/ecosystem, as well as customer service.

 

Because you haven't had a bad experience doesn't make someone elses experience or opinion absurd, you dunce.

[Tank]

Apple has reconditioned laptops available. You can find them on their website.

My Macs have lasted a long time. Very pleased with them.

[SoCalSportsFan]

I wouldn't spend $$ on any laptop not made by Apple.

They are by far the best.

But that's just my opinion (and the opinion of pretty much all of silicon valley tech nerds like myself).

You can get a MB Air for like $629 right now.

 

For sub-$500 I agree with Lenovo.

 

Dude get your work to buy you one!

My work is "me", so at least it's a writeoff against my freelance income but I still need to factor in the amount of work I need to do for the fundage to get the gadgets I need!

[SoCalSportsFan]

I have a lot of friends who do graphic design who swear by apple.

 

I'm mainly doing content revisioning, and social media efforts now, so having the graphics capabilities that apple offers is nice but not a must have.

 

After using a 21 inch and 23.5 inch monitors for the past 3 years, dropping my screen size to 50% of what I'm used to will be something that will take some time getting used to.

 

I leave in 30 days for the conference, so I'm going to finish my research in the next 10 days, then order it so I can have it 2 weeks before I go. Don't want to show up at a very important conference having a brand new computer that I haven't "broken in" yet nor setup the files etc the way I like things!

[Blarg]

Apple has reconditioned laptops available. You can find them on their website.

My Macs have lasted a long time. Very pleased with them.

 

Uh... your Macs don't seem to last very long at all. Unless you have some information about their current owner you haven't mentioned to the police. 

[SoCalSportsFan]

Amazon has this laptop for $355 out the door including tax:

 

Lenovo G50 15.6-Inch Laptop (Core i3, 6 GB, 500 GB)

[Blarg]

I always think it is funny how in every computer thread someone sets the price barrier at around $500 and the Macheads all chime in how they should buy a $1,500 iBook. 

 

Lenovo has some $500 deals on it's website with screens as large as 17"

 

http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/lenovo/g-series/g70/?&cid=%20us:sem%7Cse%7Cgoogle%7Cshopping%7C13510

[JAHV76]

Macs are good for graphic arts uses and web browsing due to their better support for the different web browsers.. Windows devices are better for use for business use applications: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, And Outlook.

[Brandon]

Eh, nowadays you can use either or for whatever application. The whole Macs for art and PC for business doesn't apply anymore.

[Tank]

Uh... your Macs don't seem to last very long at all. Unless you have some information about their current owner you haven't mentioned to the police.

My last Mac was around for only seven months because Adam is very untrustworthy.

The current Mac is working great.

[NrM]

I've owned a Lenovo for 2+ years and am pretty satisfied with the purchase, but have had a few annoying issues.

 

 

I'd be a little wary of Lenovo right now though.

Are Lenovo and Superfish Evil or Incompetent?

http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/bitwise/2015/02/lenovo_superfish_scandal_the_result_of_evil_or_incompetence.html

Edited April 5, 2015 by Poozy

[gotbeer]

Since it's strictly for travel.  Something small.  Probably a i3 processor.  Don't need more than a 14" screen.  If possible, I'd get a SSD over a regular hard drive.  probably around 8 gb of ram.  

 

I have never tried this site.  But this may give you an idea of what to get.

 

http://blog.laptopmag.com/laptop-finder?curquestion=6&answer1=3&answer2=2&answer3=2&answer4=3&answer5=1

 

Personally I like Dells.  But i know many on here are against them.  I definitely do not like HP's.  ASUS's I have heard good things about.  

[RallyMo]

The new Dell XPS looks amazing, but I dunno.

The Surface Pro 3 is at the top of my list now.

[Blarg]

Neither are in $500 range so I guess it isn't just Macheads that can't resist torturing ants with their microscopes.

[2112]

Since you work at Amazon, there is a Toshiba Sattelite listed at $259. That would be good for what you need. I've had one of their laptops for years.