[noob4lyfe123]

I am going to start university soon, and im going to be needing a laptop. Well i know what your thinking, go to dell and take a look at those back to school deals. Well iv been there done that. Budget ahh tht always defines your needs mines kind of loose on this one im willing to spend Close to $1000-$1300. Well with this in mind, i was looking at one the cheapes alienware laptops; i came to a conclusion that they cost too much, and your not getting the raw features. Some may argue at this point, but simply its the brand that brings the price up. And i wanted the features that would spice up the laptop.

Features im looking for(dosent have to be exact, but close):
250gb hard drive space
1.8-2.3 ghz processor(min) dual core? i have no idea.. wishing you guys would help me out on this one
A fingerprint reader would be nice
2gb ram
15.4 lcd screen (easy on battery)
bluetooth(optional)
webcam
Light weight around 5 lbs
dolby sound/Better than average speakers(how would you dertimine this;optional)
mic...
p.s. try to avoid blue ray drive, they are expensive, and i dont think id be using it any time soon
you know the rest.

The options i named are not really $1200, i basically wanted the most out of my money. I was browsing around and i found this one, it kind of streches out my budget. But if you could find a lower end of this laptop without killing much that would be appreciated:

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16834220338

But it looks like you are getting every dollar your pay for. I would not stick to trying to find a better laptop than this, it was just an example of what is out there, and what im intrested in. i am intrested in little features such as light up keypad, and the finger print reader etc. so those features would be nice. As for laptops for that price, they are decent quality but i was wanting your opinion on anything intresting around that price. So in summary, the best bang for your bucks. Im planning to purchase this sometime in the next week or so.. i would really help if everyone pitched in and helped out with this one. It dosent have to be the best laptop, just a decent laptop keeping in mind that im going to be useing this for my university, and mabey some extra movies etc. i realise i could watch movies and work with a cheaper laptop, but having the price in mind let me know what you can find out there. i would also appreciate that you would list the pro's and con's, it would really help me out. Thanks a Bunch

Thanks in advance. Cheers

p.s. It has to ship to Canada

Edited by noob4lyfe123, 05 August 2008 - 09:55 PM.

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yeh that is a pretty good deal. Ive never had an asus laptop before. I looked at dell tho and you can build a similar xps m1530 but it will come out to more. also look at the battery life of that asus. Unless battery life isnt important to you.

[kfuchs]

yeh that is a pretty good deal. Ive never had an asus laptop before. I looked at dell tho and you can build a similar xps m1530 but it will come out to more. also look at the battery life of that asus. Unless battery life isnt important to you.

[noob4lyfe123]

I have never had my hands on an asus laptop either, but battery life is important for those late nights etc. But the laptop i pointed out is kind of streching my budget, but yes the xps does size up to the asus. But i wanted to kind of avoid the high branded market that mark up their prices due to their names. And if i were to take a look at the lower end of the xps, it dosent give me much to work with as compared to other laptops i have seen. But thanks for the input, i will consider your alternative.

[noob4lyfe123]

how do you delete a post?

Edited by noob4lyfe123, 06 August 2008 - 09:44 AM.

[kamille316]

If you're in canada, check out NCIX.com, they offer good customer support, they ship anywhere in Canada, you don't have to pay PST and you can pricematch from any competitor in Canada (assuming the competitor have the product in stock).

How about this Asus notebook?
It is cheaper than the one you posted so performance is a little lower than the Asus F8.
The processor is slightly slower than the Asus F8.
Same 4GB of RAM
Same 320GB of hard drive
Also offer fingerprint reader
It doesn't come with card reader
It comes with a webcam
No E-sata
Same 6-cell battery
15.4" screen

Since you're not gaming, I guess its a toss between 3650 and 9600m GS.

Hope that helps.
Kamille

[noob4lyfe123]

Couple of questions

1. What is E-sata, and does it make a difference
2. yes, gaming would kind of be out of the question. But does it have the same input/output ports as the f8

I am a Radeon fan, but i could sacrifice the differences to satisfy the budget. The processor makes almost no difference in this case, 2.0 ghz+ is decent, and more than what i need for my type of work. How is a 6-cell Battery, i know once you set vista on higher settings it drains your battery much quicker. But is this standard? or are there any alternatives i should look for. But this indeed is a candidate, and thanks for the link. I will check out the laptops on NCIX, thanks again.

[kfuchs]

I ordered a xps m1330 for my girl friend today. I got it straight from the dell website and it was pretty cheap because of a coupon code i found online. 1400 in total with tax at the specs i made it. Thats also with a 3yr on site warranty. Its a 13.3" comp tho which is why its more expensive


0$?X8RJ0$G3XLB << thats the copoun code it gave me 25% off.

25% off XPS M1330/M1530 Laptops over $1499 coupon 0$?X8RJ0$G3XLB << thats the details on the offer

there is also 20% off XPS M1330/M1530 Laptops over $1249, coupon K54SDRK72$L6W3

heres the site i got it from. http://www.cheapstingybargains.com/

just google dell coupon codes. good luck.

[rikki_uw]

I wouldn't recommend a Dell, they are extremely poor quality. I've had several, this one is dying at about 2.5 years, MB, video card, wireless are all dying. Also Sony and HP have a reputation for extreme bloatware. Try the Acer TM5720, pretty sure their round $1100, I used one at work, it has respectable performance, should meet most of your requirements (maybe not sound).

If not I've heard www.xoticpc.com is really good, looking to get a laptop from there myself, you might have more trouble with the budget, but they should be superior quality.

On the other hand, if you plan to replace it in 2-3 years anyway then Dell would be cheapest.

--Rikki

Edited by rikki_uw, 06 August 2008 - 07:13 PM.

[noob4lyfe123]

wow, ok going back to kfuchs thanks for the links, but i kind of wanted to avoid dell. and as rikki mentioned yes they tend to die after2-3 years. My cousin formated it, at it just sits their to burn videos etc. But the coupons are a big help if im looking into buying a dell Which makes it worth it in that sence.

And I agree with rikki again, My dad owns an acer(im actually using an acer laptop right now lol) its an Aspire 5002wlmi. They are decent, but i have yet to see the upper models that acer offers. I will certianly take a look at the TM5720, which sounds interesting. And dont stress to much on the speakers, it was just a basic guildline.

The only fault i found in the asus kamille recommended was it lacks a memorycard reader. Well it might not be nessessary, but i have a digital cam. And i travel ALOT, so it would make it convinent to have one of those in there for the price im willing to spend.

But thanks for all the input, im just waiting for everyone to help me out on this one, before i make my purchase. Cheers

[kfuchs]

I never heard that dell is that bad in terms of how long it will last you. I always get a warrnty with each laptop i get anyway at least a 3yr if not more.

those copouns are really good i was surpirsed when i saw them myself 25% off is a huge discount.

Most companys have copoun codes also not just dell you just have to google it and open a few sites.
just google (storename) coupon codes.

I had an acer also and its lasted me for a while in fact i still have it. Back when we got it, it was supposed to be the family laptop but no one ever really used it so it didnt get much use which is probably why its still around. Now it just sits in the office.

[noob4lyfe123]

Yes those coupons are really something, that was one of the only reasons i was looking into getting an XPS series. But i also wanted to stick around to see what is out there. I dont have much time, so im trying to get a little list readdy for all the candidates. Once i got that down it will simplify my search a little and show you guys what im looking at. If someone could just list some models, it would be greatly appreciated. THanks in advance

[noob4lyfe123]

i just found this, and i was thinking of sharing this with you guys. As i mentioned earlier, that the type of laptop i was looking for dosnent have to size up to the top of the line, knowing im not going to be doing any sore of extreme gaming, and i came across this

http://www.notebookr...asp?newsID=4541

its an acer, i dident really want an acer, but this is amaging for a price of $899 but can be found at around $699 which is great, but it lacks some options. Such as a lower end graphics card, the processor is satisfactory no hdmi port etc. but all the little features is great, and the way this lights up. I wanted to look at a slighly higher model of this one, but this looks like a winner so far, but it is kind of heavy weighing at 7.3lbs. i dont know if im going to want to carry that on my back just for a laptop. But im still looking..

[noob4lyfe123]

Ok, iv been working on a list for countless hours. And im almost readdy, from this you can pick your fav. and let me know what you like and what you dont. The list will be posted shortly for everyone to see, dont worry u can count on me for having my favourite selected alreaddy . But i wanted your opinion on this, so my vote dosent count. Ok i will post it, it is near completion.

[noob4lyfe123]

Ok the long intisipated wait is over, i have come out with a list of laptops that are all sorts of brands. Let me know your fav, what you like and dont to make the search easier. Ok without a further wait here it is:


Toshiba Satellite M305-S4826 ($950)(REMOVED, I Heard its bad on battery unless anyone wants otherwise)
http://www.notebookr...asp?newsID=4408

Toshiba Satellite U405-S2830 ($1150)
http://www.notebookr...asp?newsID=4372

Sony VAIO VGN-CR520E/L ($1150)
http://www.amazon.co...B...e=UTF8&s=pc

Sony VAIO VGN-FW139E/H ($1050)
http://www.bestbuy.c...de=19-7339572-2


Sony VAIO VGN-FW190EDH also in white VGN-FW145E/W $1200(at the bottem of the link)
http://www.sonystyle...tegoryId=16154#

Sony VAIO CR590EBP ($1170)
http://www.sonystyle...552921665401571


HP - Pavilion dv5-1017nr ( $1,249.99)
http://www.bestbuy.c...d=1213046785694

HP - Pavilion dv5-1015nr ($1,149.99)
http://www.bestbuy.c...d=1212192622543

The only differece is the 1017 has aj eSATA/USB combo port, and the 1015 has
one more usb port. Which is listed for a difference of 100 dollars.Is eSATA important,
what is eSATA/usb combo port?

ASUS M50Sv X2 ($1,349.99)
http://www.bestbuy.c...2#productdetail

Toshiba Satellite A305D and Toshiba Satellite A305($1000-$1150)
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16834114457

The differece for $150 is the A305 uses an Intel core 2 duo p 8400(2.26 ghz) and the A305D usus a AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-64(2.20 ghz). The A305 has an extra Gb of ram. A305 uses ddr2 800 as to the A305D uses 667.And the A305D usus Radeon X1250 IGP and the A305 usus Mobility Radeon HD 3470. Everything else is the same(correct me if im wrong). So this is basically a dual between the Intel or AMD processor. But for 150 i think i can manage, so if anyone wants me to remove the A305D from the list then i will. Thanks

Edited by noob4lyfe123, 08 August 2008 - 10:08 AM.

[HikariLan]

I'm posting here since you asked for my help. I'm just another college student, really, I've bought many laptops, and I've never quite used them up to FULL POWER even though I'm a power user, I'd find something in the range of my budget with the highest processor, ram, and hd speed. You're not going to power-use the rest of the features so I don't think it's such a worrying matter to have this or that, fingerprint readers won't work in Firefox 3 and it might have some other compatibility issues, you might want to look into that.

Also, remember laptops get their price from the OS, if you don't plan on using Windows Vista (which, you probably won't) you should look into an XP rig, those are always cheaper, albeit harder to get. That would drop the price and you could get more accesories.

I've never catalog-shopped for a laptop before...so I dunno.

I will say this, VAIO and HP's are not my way to go. Most of them trade fair pricing for style. You're really just buying a sexy shell when purchasing a VAIO. Well, I mean, not all of them, but most of them.

I personally don't like HP. But that's just a crazy hunch.

Just my 2 cents.

I, myself, got that satellite from Toshiba.

Read with care

Happy life.