What Laptop should I buy?

Thanks Eddie. I have just been on the Dell outlet site. 5th Nov is a bit late for my next event on the 3rd Nov though. Hmmm. I am thinking more realistic about what I need a new laptop for. I know the Mac's are the best etc, but for me at the moment, I think a Dell or similar will have to do. Thanks.
 
teddyt72 said:
I have just ordered a new dell laptop. I have heard lots of good things about them. I got the following:-

Dell Inspiron 6400 with all standard stuff plus extra RAM (2024) it also has
160GB HDD
Inter Core2duo processor
15.4'' "truelife" widescreen


Eddie
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Eddie, what does truelife mean?
 
Gilly B said:
Thanks Eddie. I have just been on the Dell outlet site. 5th Nov is a bit late for my next event on the 3rd Nov though. Hmmm. I am thinking more realistic about what I need a new laptop for. I know the Mac's are the best etc, but for me at the moment, I think a Dell or similar will have to do. Thanks.
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Hey Gilly

I got my D820 from the Dell outlet site. Excellent service and delivery spot on too. I'd also try to look for a model that has 3 years on site warranty with it as well as htis is good guarantee and reassurance. I have used this once on my current Dell when the external display malfunctioned. I was at a client site and needing to do a presentation but the external monitor output wouldn't change resolution from the main laptop screen. I called Dell, they asked me to run a few checks, found an issue and sent an engineer the very next day when he fixed it with a new motherboard!

j
 
I've been following this for awhile as I am thinking of a lappy. The truelife are to my mind although very nice effects, I wonder if you show a client an image on that particular screen if you can emulate it on the fininshed product and if not, wont they be dissapointed? I would suggest a "normal screen" then when the image exceeds the one shown on a "duller" monitor they will be over the moon? :shrug:
BTW Gilly the screens are rather bright & rather saturated to my mind
 
Gilly B said:
Andy, what model do you have for me to look it up please?
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mine is a compaq presario c542ea (c500 series models change frequently)
i was asked opinions on a HP g5010/6010 today which looks almost identical (HP & Compaq are same company) and spec wise is very similar too priced at £399 i think it was
 
I would like to narrow it down to Dell but I am unable to wait until November for it. I was thinking of going somewhere in the next few days and buy one from a retail outlet. Problem is, I live in rural Mid Wales. An hour to Shrewsbury in one direction and an hour to Wrexham in another. Cardiff is 3 hours South of us. Apart from Currys, Comet and PC World, can you think of anywhere where I can pick up a decent laptop? or is it better to chance buying on line? I dunno anymore. Being full of cold isn't helping my brain function either.
 
Gilly

For online purchases I'd 100% trust Amazon, ebuyer, simply, and of course the Apple store!!!

Go on.... you know deep down you really want to go Mac... :) Just think... I can help you then, hehehehe
 
theMusicMan said:
Gilly

For online purchases I'd 100% trust Amazon, ebuyer, simply, and of course the Apple store!!!

Go on.... you know deep down you really want to go Mac... :) Just think... I can help you then, hehehehe
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Tsk! John, what are you like? Got to go, late for work:coat:
 
Okay, quick update. I was advised to go and check out a business that had opened up in the town for a chat with the guys there as they build desktops and laptops. So quite negatively, I went up in my lunch-hour today and was smitten with the laptop the guy produced after taking lots of notes as I was spitting out my wish list. The machine looks lovely and I have decided to go for it. It is the following:-

Acer (I know, I know) 9300 series with:-
Processor: AMD Turion 64x2 TL52 - 1.6Ghz
RAM: 2048MB DDR-533Mhz
Hard Drive: 160Gb
Screen: 17" Widescreen CrystalBrite TFT (1440x900 - 16:10)
Optical Drive: DVD + & - RW Super Multi Double Layer
Graphics: NVidia GeForce Go7300 128Mb
Wireless LAN: 802.11b/g
Weight: 3.7kg
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium
Gigabit Ethernet 10/100/1000
S-video Output
PCMCIA Type II Slot
Built-in 0.3 Megapixel Camera
5-in-1 Flash Memory Card Reader
Built in Stereo Speakers

£600.00 delivered. This includes warranty from Acer with all warranty work carried out locally - shop is 500 yds from my office. Lovely friendly guys too.
What do you think then?
 
No no no no no Gilly. Acer = bad news, very bad news.

Poor build quality, poor components, poor laptop.

Simply spend £200 more and get a quality new Macbook delivered to your door within 2 days.
 
I've had a Vaio for the last 10 months, no faults with it so I can't comment on the after sales. The best thing about it is the X-black LCD screen, it's superb, when I get things printed e.g. photobox, the colour match is exact (and that's only with basic calibration). I can't remember how much I paid but it was close to £550 (laptopsdirect).
 
theMusicMan said:
No no no no no Gilly. Acer = bad news, very bad news.

Poor build quality, poor components, poor laptop.

Simply spend £200 more and get a quality new Macbook delivered to your door within 2 days.
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Aw! John, I knew you would be first to blast me out. If money were no object, don't you think I would have gone for a Mac Book Pro. I was looking for everything within my budget. The Guys in the shop assured me that they had sold 300 of these this year and not one has been returned. They are local and have also assured me of their advice and after sales service. I know I have taken a flyer on this, but your words were ringing in my ears when I was there.

John, it is so shiny and new and loverrly and I want it tomorrow. Gilly always gets what she wants - not! :woot:

Please don't say - don't come crying to us if its crap!!!:bat:
 
I've got a Compaq R4000 and love it. Got it from PC World (had no choice, it was the Computers from Home scheme)
 
Gilly B said:
Aw! John, I knew you would be first to blast me out. If money were no object, don't you think I would have gone for a Mac Book Pro. I was looking for everything within my budget. The Guys in the shop assured me that they had sold 300 of these this year and not one has been returned. They are local and have also assured me of their advice and after sales service. I know I have taken a flyer on this, but your words were ringing in my ears when I was there.

John, it is so shiny and new and loverrly and I want it tomorrow. Gilly always gets what she wants - not! :woot:

Please don't say - don't come crying to us if its crap!!!:bat:
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haha.... I wouldn't do that Gilly!!

Go on, go and get your shiny new Acer and have some fun... but... didn't you say you needed a machine for a job you have in a few weeks...? Just hope it's still working for you then... ;);):bonk:
 
Definately go for an Apple. If you cannot afford the Macbook pro the Macbook is certainly up to the job. I have a Mac pro but my wife and daughters have Macbooks and they are certainly up to running CS2. In fact Mac OS is so much more efficient than Vista/XP I can even run CS3 on my old 1.33GHz single core G4 iBook. Just make sure you have plenty or RAM.
 
I haven't read all o fthis thread but heres my 2p, aside from suggesting a mac-top, if you can spec out a good one Dells do last pretty well, my dad has had his for ages and it seems pretty sturdy. They've also redesigned a few so they're probably not half bad.
avoid vista if you can, its terrible as it eats resources up like no one's business!
higher screen res is preferable too 1600x1000 sort of range for a WS 17" is worth aiming for, not the 1400x900, you get more photo on the screen that way.

As a word of advice if you call Dell and order over the phone you get through to Dell India, get chatty with the person who answers, maybe ask where they're from, and that that part of the world sounds great, you'd love to visit etc. - my mate did this and got loads of extra stuff for free and a good deal on the original order too!...bit of flattery never harms ;)
 
cowasaki said:
Definately go for an Apple. If you cannot afford the Macbook pro the Macbook is certainly up to the job. I have a Mac pro but my wife and daughters have Macbooks and they are certainly up to running CS2. In fact Mac OS is so much more efficient than Vista/XP I can even run CS3 on my old 1.33GHz single core G4 iBook. Just make sure you have plenty or RAM.
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Thanks for your comments cowasaki. I don't need a Mac right now. This laptop is mainly for my assistant to use to upload RAW images into a slideshow at events. If I change my desktop, I may consider a Mac then.:)
 
shiato storm said:
I haven't read all o fthis thread but heres my 2p, aside from suggesting a mac-top, if you can spec out a good one Dells do last pretty well, my dad has had his for ages and it seems pretty sturdy. They've also redesigned a few so they're probably not half bad.
avoid vista if you can, its terrible as it eats resources up like no one's business!
higher screen res is preferable too 1600x1000 sort of range for a WS 17" is worth aiming for, not the 1400x900, you get more photo on the screen that way.

As a word of advice if you call Dell and order over the phone you get through to Dell India, get chatty with the person who answers, maybe ask where they're from, and that that part of the world sounds great, you'd love to visit etc. - my mate did this and got loads of extra stuff for free and a good deal on the original order too!...bit of flattery never harms ;)
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I was originally looking to buy a Dell, even up until this morning. I spent ages trying to get through to someone of the phone and after about 40 minutes I gave up. Thinking if this is their service, then I am not interested.

With regard to the screen resolution, I wrongly though that 1440 x 900 was good.:shrug: Am I buying a load of Sh*t then? Tell me now before I handover my money tomorrow. :(
 
Gilly B said:
I was originally looking to buy a Dell, even up until this morning. I spent ages trying to get through to someone of the phone and after about 40 minutes I gave up. Thinking if this is their service, then I am not interested.

With regard to the screen resolution, I wrongly though that 1440 x 900 was good.:shrug: Am I buying a load of Sh*t then? Tell me now before I handover my money tomorrow. :(
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Hi Gilly

It's OK Gilly, just remember that 1440x900 is a widescreen format resolution so just check that the lappy is a widescreen model. I am sure it will be as most are nowadays.

What resolution are you used to using? what was on your previous model? do a comparison to that and you'll get some idea as to what to expect. You can always ask to see the screen and have them boot a demo machine up with that resolution.

Another thing... you will almost certainly have an external VGA port on the laptop, which you could connect to a monitor probably up to 1920x1200 resolution, maybe more.
 
Thanks for that John. Yes it is a wide screen. I will ask them to fire one up today to check resolution. How do I check what resolution my current monitors and laptop screen is please? Remember, I'm no techi :shrug:
 
Are those new laptop really shiny screens any good for editing? They sure LOOK good but dont you get lots and lots of reflections in them?
 
Oooh, now you're asking me - I am on my Macbook and haven't done this on a PC for ages. I think if you right click on the desktop, then select settings from the tabs, you should see the current resolution of the monitor.

What time are you off out to work / purchase the Laptop...?
 
To check the resolution, goto
Start>Control Panel>Display>Settings.

If you move the slider on the settings page, you will see what range of resolutions you will be able to use with the computer you're using. There will normally be a 'native' resolution with LCD screens that looks the sharpest.

Hope you see this in time, ;) and good luck.
 
Geez thanks guys. I googled "what is the screen resolution of my computer" and a window came up and told me. Clever thing!

Janice, Redhed17 & John the MM, - too late! been and done it. Bought it and will arrive on Monday. The guys will unpack it and set it all up for me so I should be able to go home and plug it in and go! Janice, the screen is very glossy but just like any screen I have used, I just tilted it and it was fine. Following W.Smith's comment on Resolution, I rang ahead and asked for someone to switch the laptop on for when I arrive. They did and it is lovely and sharp.

I will let you know on Monday evening how I get on with it.
 
Big Ben said:
I've had my Sony Vaio for two years now and never had any bother with it, bit pricey when it was new, but have seen the newer models quite cheap now.
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Me to. Sony has been Ace and has travelled world over with me without a hiccup, touch wood as its going to Cambodia with me at the end of the month, some great deals at the moment on the Vaio. :thumbs:
 
I had an Advent laptop, which was a problem from the start and broke after a year.
My mate is a computer programmer and he says that DELL stands for "Dont' Ever Last Long", though I have never owned one.
£500 is ample for a good laptop though not for a state othe art one, you would probably need about £1500 for that.
 
Hey Gilly,

Have U considered Macs as they will nicely go with what U may be looking for.

Also what ever U may decide to bu do keep checking on www.hotukdeals.com as many laptops are advertised there everyday with quidco and voucher codes so U may end up saving a buck or 2.................
 
So Gilly - did your Acer arrive this morning...? c'mon... tel us :)
 
Laptop too expensive?

Get its desktop twin bro.
Same specs, half the price.
 
theMusicMan said:
So Gilly - did your Acer arrive this morning...? c'mon... tel us :)
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Yipeeeeee! :woot::woot: Company rang me this morning to say it was waiting for me. Unfortunately, I was travelling in the opposite direction to Aberystwyth for a meeting. Got to pick it up at 4.30pm.

S-h-i-n-y! it is a lovely looking laptop. Sturdy, Shiny, great resolution, shiny, very quiet and very shiny - oh! and did I mention how shiny it is?

Loaded the Canon software on and then loaded PS CS2 fine. Thanks to all you guys for your suggestions. :)
 
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