Laptops.

[Sartori]

Thinking about picking up a laptop for a while. I'd love some advice on the information I'm about to give you.

At first I was checking this out,

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...t&productCategoryId=cat01174&id=1109938020723

I wanted a lower end priced notebook, smoething I could process on and not so much play games, but play games would be a bonus.

Then I decided, hey, why not pump up the price a bit and do it all? With this :
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...t&productCategoryId=cat01174&id=1109937811956

For a few hundred dollars more, I could get thsi with a dedicated graphics card, and definitely handle the games I'd like to. Then I ran in to a problem: battery life. This wouldn't get much over an hour, if that. I'd like to get at least 2, maybe 3 would be nice.

So then I started looking at this :
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...t&productCategoryId=cat01174&id=1099391007079

For 1000 (with 100 rebate), I could get this with a nice amount of storage (80 gig), a DVDR (Which is a major turn on, 100 value right there - not to mention it's portable..), decent processor, 4.4/5 pounds(!), small, light, and of course I'd upgrade ram to the gig, not the 512 standard.

I don't need to play many games more than older stuff. I mostly play stuff from the 90s , like old adventure titles, Diablo, Daggerfall, Jedi Knight, etc... maybe at latest Asheron'S Call, which is still 99. So I think the lack of a graphics card won't hinder me - I can even still play UT just fine without one. In other words, I think it'll do for all my gaming needs, and everything else I use it for is pretty much a given.

What I'm wondering is - this a good value? For the cash, about 899, will I be getting an okay deal for this machine? Brand okay? etc? Stats? Battery Life? Anyone give me a quick assessment?

Thanks and mucho mucho appreciated.

 

[epobirs]

How is your credit rating? Best Buy frequently has great interest free financing offers, going as long as 24 months. This give you a lot more freedom to get the features you want without going into outrageous debt getting more than you could afford with a cash purchase.

Averatec is generally a bargain basement brand. A lot of people have an aversion to their stuff but I'd check reviews for that or similar models for any specific complaints. If you can take advantage of the interest free financing you'd probably be better served by a better brand.

another thing to consider is those features that are permanent vs. those that can be fixed later. When I bought my most recent laptop built-in wireless was still out of my price range. The two models I narrowed it down to had one irrevocable difference. One had only a single PC Card slot while the other had two in the Type III stacked configuration. The former had better specs for RAM and hard drive space but also had no equivalent of a scroll wheel on the touchpad, something I really prefer to have without plugging in an external mouse. The Sony had their jog wheel and the two PC Card slots, so I ended up getting it instead. Adding more RAM was pretty cheap within a year and there are plenty of storage options if that ever becomes an issue. Having both PC Card slots allows for more options in storage as well as other things while allowing a wireless card to stay in place.

So that is something to think about.

 

[Sartori]

Money over-time isn't an issue - I will be taking part in 12 month no finance, but I would prefer to stick to a particular range - it's a matter of what I want to spend on this effort.

I'm not so much concerned about a scroll dedication on teh touch pad, as 90% of hte time I will be using an external mouse due to personal preferences.

Credit's good, I'm in good shape as far as extending the length of this purchase goes.