Laptop/Notebook Help

[44INAROW]

I need some advise guys and gals..... I am thinking about getting a Laptop/Notebook for my son for Christmas - He'll need one for college and I figure this would be a good time to get him one. I will need one that uses a Wireless Card so we can both be online at the same time (we use SBC (AT&T) Global) What do I look for and what should I stay away from? How many MB or KG or whatever you call it is necessary? We do alot of pictures etc.... but think I'll try to "clean up" my desktop and continue to load the majority of the pics on my desktop so I won't clog up the laptop with pics. Seriously - for someone that mainly gets online to chat on MSN, type school papers, do a project or two - what is really a good deal and necessary? What will he most likely need for college? I don't know much about computers....
He doesn't know it, but he'll be downloading from ITunes after Christmas as well.... so we'll need something compatable for that. I did some looking around and have seen some "good deals" but I didn't recognize the name of the computers..... Are the "no name/off brand's just as good as the name brands? Is INTEL the best processor? I have had 3 Compaq's over the last 10 years and I think I want to go with another brand this time. I have a Dell at work and like it (desktop) Just looking for some input - likes/dislikes in what you guys/gals have. Also, tech support - any feedback on how certain manufacturers treated you? Also - Is XP the best Windows to go with? We have XP at home and at the office and I am familiar with how it works.... thanks :)

[Bull's-eye]

Something to watch out for is how long will the laptop operate on battery power. My daughter has a Dell and it can go about 5-6 hours on a fully charged battery. I have a Toshiba that only gets about 1-1/2 hours. I mainly use mine at home, so this is not a problem. Most college students go to public places with free internet, so they need the extra battery life.

Most laptops have the built in wireless connection. They can be used at most Starbucks, hotels or any public place offering internet. We use a wireless router at home, so everybody can access the net.

[mwynn05]

Originally posted by Bull's-eye
Something to watch out for is how long will the laptop operate on battery power. My daughter has a Dell and it can go about 5-6 hours on a fully charged battery. I have a Toshiba that only gets about 1-1/2 hours. I mainly use mine at home, so this is not a problem. Most college students go to public places with free internet, so they need the extra battery life.

Most laptops have the built in wireless connection. They can be used at most Starbucks, hotels or any public place offering internet. We use a wireless router at home, so everybody can access the net. and in class :cool:

[ASUFrisbeeStud]

Originally posted by Bull's-eye
Something to watch out for is how long will the laptop operate on battery power. My daughter has a Dell and it can go about 5-6 hours on a fully charged battery. I have a Toshiba that only gets about 1-1/2 hours. I mainly use mine at home, so this is not a problem. Most college students go to public places with free internet, so they need the extra battery life.

Most laptops have the built in wireless connection. They can be used at most Starbucks, hotels or any public place offering internet. We use a wireless router at home, so everybody can access the net.

Yeah battery life is huge. I got a Dell when I graduated high school 5 years ago, and it was pretty plain but a good solid laptop and I still use it. It's been through alot, getting banged up and dropped and taken everywhere and is still holding up just fine. But I have limited experience because it's the only laptop I've had. My friend has a toshiba with a touch screen and it's really fancy but I don't know how durable it is.

[Bull's-eye]

Hey mwynn05, are you a student at U.N.T.? My daughter just graduated from there and she will start grad school in January.

[Boosty_Hondo]

I have a Toshiba and the only thing about it i dont like it the battery life... but u can always buy a better battery for it... but i have dropped it and nothing has messed up except a little scratch and that is about it... but its fast and pretty reliable most of the time.... my roommate has a HP and i love it i would trade him any day but Toshiba is still a good brand i have a 80 GB hard drive with 3000+ songs on it and it still runs like the hard drive is empty on it so ya that is always a plus but like i said the battery life sucks on it i am going to buy a new battery here pretty soon so it will quit dying in the middle of my classes:mad:

[mwynn05]

Originally posted by Bull's-eye
Hey mwynn05, are you a student at U.N.T.? My daughter just graduated from there and she will start grad school in January. yeah i am

[mwynn05]

Originally posted by Boosty_Hondo
I have a Toshiba and the only thing about it i dont like it the battery life... but u can always buy a better battery for it... but i have dropped it and nothing has messed up except a little scratch and that is about it... but its fast and pretty reliable most of the time.... my roommate has a HP and i love it i would trade him any day but Toshiba is still a good brand i have a 80 GB hard drive with 3000+ songs on it and it still runs like the hard drive is empty on it so ya that is always a plus but like i said the battery life sucks on it i am going to buy a new battery here pretty soon so it will quit dying in the middle of my classes:mad: bring your charger try and sit close to a wall and use it plugged in.

[un b weavable]

Originally posted by 44INAROW
I need some advise guys and gals..... I am thinking about getting a Laptop/Notebook for my son for Christmas - He'll need one for college and I figure this would be a good time to get him one. I will need one that uses a Wireless Card so we can both be online at the same time (we use SBC (AT&T) Global) What do I look for and what should I stay away from? How many MB or KG or whatever you call it is necessary? We do alot of pictures etc.... but think I'll try to "clean up" my desktop and continue to load the majority of the pics on my desktop so I won't clog up the laptop with pics. Seriously - for someone that mainly gets online to chat on MSN, type school papers, do a project or two - what is really a good deal and necessary? What will he most likely need for college? I don't know much about computers....
He doesn't know it, but he'll be downloading from ITunes after Christmas as well.... so we'll need something compatable for that. I did some looking around and have seen some "good deals" but I didn't recognize the name of the computers..... Are the "no name/off brand's just as good as the name brands? Is INTEL the best processor? I have had 3 Compaq's over the last 10 years and I think I want to go with another brand this time. I have a Dell at work and like it (desktop) Just looking for some input - likes/dislikes in what you guys/gals have. Also, tech support - any feedback on how certain manufacturers treated you? Also - Is XP the best Windows to go with? We have XP at home and at the office and I am familiar with how it works.... thanks :)

I have a Dell and i like it a lot. It took me a while to figure out how to connect to our SBC yahoo wireless router (it was actually really easy) but once i did it worked great. Anyways, i really like my Dell and would definitely recommend one.

[Txbroadcaster]

I have two..a toshiba and then a monster HP for my broadcasting..I love both though the Toshiba rocks cause it is dual core while my HP is a year old and not as fast

[SintonFan_inAustin]

i have a Dell laptop for personal use and a Toshiba laptop from work. i have had the dell for 4 years now and still working great after alot of abuse its taken on vacation trips. Now for the Toshiba, lol i am on my third one and its gone beserk yesterday after i got off the internet and lost all my wirelss network connection data. so that is going to the shop, glad its from work. i work for Toshiba, but i have problems with mine constantly and its been 3 different computers. go with a Dell or HP

[44INAROW]

thanks everyone...... I appreciate the advice :)

[3afan]

I got a Gateway at BestBuy about 14 months ago - have not had any trouble .... battery life is 2.5-3 hours, not great but fine for me

[Adidas410s]

I've had Compaq...and Dell...and Toshiba...and am now on my 2nd HP (first notebook). All things considered, I think I'm going to be buying an apple the next time around. I do spend a lot of time on the internet and the fact that there is very little spam and/or viruses written for the OS-X operating system is a big plus for me. The amount of anti-virus software needed to keep a Windows-based computer clean would cost more than the computer itself. That, combined with the fact that I plan to soon purchase photoshop, and I know I will be making the switch to a MacBook Pro in the near future. Reliability...durability...user friendly...that pretty much sums up why I would buy a Mac.

One thing to consider...what type of degree program is your son interested in? We had looked into an Apple for RMAC for college...but the CAD programs that he would be running in his architectual classes are better supported by a Windows-based O/S. Granted, you can now add Windows into a Mac...but is not yet able to run all of the programs that a regular Windows-based computer can. If your son's main concerns are browsing the internet, using msn/aim/yahoo chat, writing papers, and using iTunes...then I would strongly recommend a Mac.

That being said...anybody have a charger and battery that they want to sell for an HP notebook??? Mine is about 2 years old and I'm in need of a new one.

[rangerjoe33]

Just some quick advice about battery power consumption....

Some may know this others may not. If you lower the display (monitor) brightness your battery life is extended a great deal. Usually on a Dell it is the Fn (Function key) and the down arrow. I use this a lot on planes due to lack of A/C adapter under my seat on certain aircraft models. Also when a wireless network is not in range you can disable the wireless network connection so it is not drawing power while scanning for networks.

[jason]

Originally posted by Adidas410s
The amount of anti-virus software needed to keep a Windows-based computer clean would cost more than the computer itself. thats not true AT ALL.....plenty of FREE anti-virus/spyware programs that work just as well as norton/symantec/mcafee....


i wouldnt mind having a macbook pro though...i would of course run both osx and vista though :D

[Adidas410s]

Originally posted by jason
thats not true AT ALL.....plenty of FREE anti-virus/spyware programs that work just as well as norton/symantec/mcafee....


i wouldnt mind having a macbook pro though...i would of course run both osx and vista though :D

I've had all 3 of the $$$ programs and numerous free ones...I've made sure to keep them updated...I would continuously run the searches on my computer to keep them "clean"...I don't download random toolbars and media players...I ran on secure, encrypted networks...yet somehow I still had two computers that all but crashed (one of them did crash temporarily) because of spyware and adware. :thinking:

[BIG BLUE DEFENSIVE END]

I have a Dell Inspiron E1705. It has a 17" monitor, Intel Dual Core Duo processor, and a battery life of 3 hours. It's a really nice piece of technology, and it was actually very affordable. It can double as a DVD player and all that, and you can even get one that will broadcast television, which would be a great space saver if your son will be living in a dorm like I am. Overall, it is the nicest computer that I have. Dell has always been reliable, as we have a desktop that is 6 years old and has no problems on it. If not a Dell, I would say that a Sony Vaio or a Mac would be your next best buy. Macs are very small, lightweight, and powerful, but cost a lot more when you add on Microsoft Windows. The layout is a lot different and confusing intially, at least it was for me.

[44INAROW]

wow - you'll have given me lots of good info.. thanks :)

[mwynn05]

Originally posted by Adidas410s
I've had Compaq...and Dell...and Toshiba...and am now on my 2nd HP (first notebook). All things considered, I think I'm going to be buying an apple the next time around. I do spend a lot of time on the internet and the fact that there is very little spam and/or viruses written for the OS-X operating system is a big plus for me. The amount of anti-virus software needed to keep a Windows-based computer clean would cost more than the computer itself. That, combined with the fact that I plan to soon purchase photoshop, and I know I will be making the switch to a MacBook Pro in the near future. Reliability...durability...user friendly...that pretty much sums up why I would buy a Mac.

One thing to consider...what type of degree program is your son interested in? We had looked into an Apple for RMAC for college...but the CAD programs that he would be running in his architectual classes are better supported by a Windows-based O/S. Granted, you can now add Windows into a Mac...but is not yet able to run all of the programs that a regular Windows-based computer can. If your son's main concerns are browsing the internet, using msn/aim/yahoo chat, writing papers, and using iTunes...then I would strongly recommend a Mac.

That being said...anybody have a charger and battery that they want to sell for an HP notebook??? Mine is about 2 years old and I'm in need of a new one. I have a friend in that program at tech too