Help me choose a laptop :)

NYSpeed Automotive NYSpeed Off Topic
1

So i filed my taxes and realized it’s a good time to get a new computer. My current desktop is dying slowly and i’m not overly interested in building or upgrading it at the moment.

I’m thinking i’d prefer the mobility of a laptop. I know very little about manufacturers quality, etc.

I’ve found this one on newegg:

it seems within the specs for what i want, but the opinions of laptop-savvy nyspeeders would be appreciated.

Must-haves:

  • dvd burner
  • able to do “mild-moderate” gaming. nothing crazy. if it could play COD 4 at a decent framerate, that’s fine.
  • NOT a mac.
  • decent battery life
  • integrated wireless (i dont even think they make them without this anymore…i dunno)
  • built in camera

No more expensive than the one i posted. I don’t want to sacrifice quality for cost, but i’m well aware that many names sell for more simply based on their name. I also don’t want it to be seriously outdated in a year, so if there’s room left to upgrade ram that’d be good.

ok go.

2

no price range?

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4

yeah, there’s 20% off all refurbs.

5

800 or less, per the link to newegg. i should have just specified

6

I have one of these for sale if your interested, bought 10/28/08, hasn’t been used for more than an hour.

7

how much would you be asking for that… i’m assuming probably not sub-$800 range

8

jesus, 18.4" screen? thats gotta weigh like 15 lbs

9

is the 20% off already reflected in the displayed price?

and jesus… these things move fast.

any suggestions to narrow my search results so i can find something more tuned for my needs in the OP? Which models are good for? The studios?

10

lol. 8.8 according to the specs

11

Pretty nice pricing on the Dell M1330 with their 4 hour sale. Starts at $799

http://www.dell.com/content/products/features.aspx/4-hour-sale?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&dgc=EM&cid=40713&lid=1051728&acd=O76PJH-PNO0L-1TUP4W-IK9F9-9D306-v1

12

I was in the same situation as you, ended up spending a little more and bought http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834147916 and so far I couldn’t be happier

13

that looks like quite the beast. i’m gonna have to check it out some more…

14

Almost the same laptop as me just bigger hard drive and 1gb more ram. I ordered my straight from HP so I could customize it a little more. I’m really liking it so far.

If you do go the direct HP route make sure you check techbargins.com. Saved me $140 with a coupon.

15

I compared this with all the other laptops in it’s price range and this came out on top. I compared it to the deals I found on dells/toshibas and even customized hp’s and this was the best deal at the time when it came to band for buck.

16

the 20% off dell outlet is a seperate coupon. It takes it off the listed prices. You can buy them on ejunkie for $4. You’re not gonna touch those prices for the specs you get on anything else.

17

cool i just located that coupon. you’re right… with the already lowered prices PLUS 20% on the refurbs (they even come with a 1 year warranty), nothing will really come close to beating the specs for the cost.

are there any other offers i could use to stack on top of that?

18

nah thats about it, i think if you found anything else dell would just be sending it to you for free, maybe with a check for you :lol:

19

lol true. I’ve got a few days before i purchase… I’ve been looking moreso at the XPS systems, then i realized they aren’t covered by that coupon… but there are many other offers out there…

lol. this is hard.

20

What about a stacked studio 1537? all the xps’s really have going for them is video card, and the studios have like the same one.