Need laptop with good build quality, reliable, and longevity.

dpatel

dpatel

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Budget: < $1000
Size: 12" - 15" Screen
Battery Life: 2hrs+

Mostly used for internet and programming (am currently a computer science undergrad). Will occasionally watch movies, listen to music, play older computer games (starcraft, AOE, diablo type of games), photoshop. Ideally want to dual boot Win Xp and Linux (Ubuntu). Will probably upgrade to 7 within the next year or so, so it'll eventually be used for Win 7/Ubuntu.

I'm curious to know if it is cheaper/possible to get a laptop without an OS? I have access to Win 7 through my school for free.

I'm also curious about Mac, but I see little reason to make the switch. The price is a little out of my range, and I'm way more comfortable with windows. Unless there is a major advantage for me to switch, I can't really justify the extra cost. I'd really like to have XP as a primary OS and emulate Mac OS, to get a feel for Mac OS while still having XP. I realize I can do the opposite on Macs, but I don't think it'll be wise to emulate the OS that I will most likely be using most of the time.

Most important thing for me is something reliable and long lasting. I've heard Toshibas are fairly well built, but I'd like to hear CAGs advice.
 
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As far as I know near impossible to get a laptop without an OS and even if you can really I don't see it saving much money. It is specialized hardware that need specific drivers written in most cases to get it all to work together...

Personally I know stay away from HP (Use them at work and they suck majorly). Personally I'm a big fan of Mac...but since you want Windows I would recommend a Lenovo/IBM thinkpad. I have a T60 from a couple years back that is still working great and I actually had ubuntu on it at one time.

But yeah, Lenovo stuff IMHO is good quality and I'm sure they have something in your price range.
 
[quote name='cdrober']Personally I'm a big fan of Mac...but since you want Windows I would recommend a Lenovo/IBM thinkpad. I have a T60 from a couple years back that is still working great and I actually had ubuntu on it at one time.

But yeah, Lenovo stuff IMHO is good quality and I'm sure they have something in your price range.[/QUOTE]

Sweet. I posted this same request on other forums and am getting a lot of recommendations to get a Lenovo, so I'll most likely get something from there that fits my needs. Btw, any experience with the refurbished thinkpads?
 
You could always buy a dell and customize it the way you need it
In my experience, dell makes reputable computers
If you do go the dell route, make sure to check the price consistently as the price can fluctuate considering the different coupons they sometimes offer

I also agree that toshibas are good quality computers

Whatever you do, do not buy acer though
 
What's wrong with Acer? It comes with a bunch of junk, but you can uninstall it all or reformat your hard drive.

Lenovo laptops are nice and used among a lot of my CS friends. I guess because a lot of them work for IBM and get discounts on laptops or they're just using their work laptop.

Brands I would recommend (not in any particular order):

Lenovo/IBM
Asus
Compal
Sager
HP
Toshiba

You can get a laptop without an OS.

How do these specs sound to you?

$944

15.6'' 16:9 widescreen (1366x768)
P8700 Core 2 Duo 2.53GHz
ATI HD4650 512MB DDR3
2GB x 2 DDR3 1066MHZ
250GB 7200RPM 16MB cache
3-4 hour battery life

The cost can go as low as $769 if you opt in for a slower cpu, 2gb memory, and slower hdd (5400rpm).

EDIT: Could get the price for those specs listed above for even cheaper $859. All you sacrifice is branding. Same laptop, just different brand label.
 
I only say don't buy acer because my experience with them has been shitty. I bought an acer laptop not to long ago and it finally dumped on me. Shit started falling off of it due to the poor glue used to keep it together. Overall it was just a bad laptop and didn't work very well.
 
[quote name='sticnap']I only say don't buy acer because my experience with them has been shitty. I bought an acer laptop not to long ago and it finally dumped on me. Shit started falling off of it due to the poor glue used to keep it together. Overall it was just a bad laptop and didn't work very well.[/QUOTE]

I see what you mean, but I'd say that there are many laptops out there that are built rather poorly. I bought my parents an Acer laptop just a few months ago, never had problems with it. If I had more money, I would have gone with a laptop with a better build quality.
 
I would recommend either Dell or HP although i have nothing against Toshiba, Sony, Acer or other brands but its just that Dell and HP are the ones fit in every ones bill pretty well. It is priced well, durability on long term. If you are looking for normal usage laptop go for Dell Inspiron 14 or 15, which comes with core 2 duo processor with at least 2.0 Ghz speed, 300 gb hard drive, 3 gb ram and all other multimedia accessories.
 
I just got a DELL Studio 15 and I must say that I'm really happy with it. It was only 699.00 + Tax direct from DELL. I am

Here are the specs:

Qty Part # Description
--- -------- ---------------------------------------------
1 224-3652 Studio 15 Notebook (Studio 1555)
1 317-1542 Intel Pentium Dual Core T4300 2.1GHz, 800Mhz, 1M L2 Cache
1 311-8624 4GB, DDR2, 800MHz 2 Dimm
1 330-2937 Standard Keyboard
1 320-7721 15.6 inch High Definition (720p) LED Display with TrueLife and Camera
1 421-1009 Dell Webcam Software 1.4 Application Kit
1 320-7722 Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
1 330-1753 65 Watt Spare AC Adaptor 3 WIRE
1 341-8425 320G 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
1 313-7331 Midnight Blue
1 310-8628 You have chosen a Windows Vista Premium System
1 420-6436 PC-Restore, Dim/Insp
1 463-2282 Dell Owners Manual installed on your system,click on icon after system set-up to access
1 420-9100 Dell Dock Consumer
1 421-0323 Windows Live Search,Multiple User Interface
1 420-9319 Microsoft Windows Vista with SP1 Home Premium Edition 64-bit Edition English
1 330-2934 DELL RESOURCE DVD,BACK-UP 1555
1 421-1193 Download Store Links
1 421-0187 Dell Support Center Software 64 Bit 2.0
1 410-1883 ADOBE READER 9.0 MULTI- LANGUAGE
1 313-7352 8X Slot Load DVD+/-RW (Dual Layer DVD+/-R Drive + RAM support)
1 421-0540 Cyberlink Power DVD 8.3 Playback
1 420-8183 Roxio Creator DE 10
1 421-2000 Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi MB
1 430-2929 Dell Wireless 1397 802.11g Half Mini Card
1 410-2186 McAfee Sapphire MUI, 24-Month
1 312-0694 56 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
1 421-0304 Microsoft Works 9.0, English For Inspiron
1 993-5777 Dell Limited Hardware Warranty Plus At-Home Service, Initial Year
1 992-6700 Banctec Next Business Day In-Home Service after Remote Diagnosis , Initial Year
1 990-8029 1 Year Limited Warranty and Next Business Day,Desktop
1 950-9797 No Warranty, Year 2 and 3
1 960-2780 Dell Limited Hardware Warranty 7X24 Technical Support, Initial Year
 
I'm also in need of a new laptop. I'd prefer to spend $500-$600. The only problem I'm having is finding one with a firewire connection. I need it for my camcorder. I'd love to talk my wife into a new camcorder using SD cards, but that isn't going to happen.
 
You know we have a compaq and I am guessing most people will slam them or whatever. I know when i did my research I was really leaning towards a Toshiba, as they have good quality (some complain about the keyboard). IBM has always been good. Dell, I am not a fan of and ACER, well I have no idea on their laptops but their PC'S used to suck badly.

Before you jump take a look at the dark side and visit Slickdeals and Fatwallet. There are some crazy deals to be had at Staples and other places on laptops with rebates, etc.

Our Compaq is 3 years old and I dropped in some more ram, it runs great. It gets used daily and we have taken it on trips. I have had two air cards burn out from use (heat) and the laptop is still going strong.

Ours came with vista but I searched around and there was a guy that had found all the drivers for it with XP. So I dropped those drivers and my copy of XP on, used Macrium to backup and image the drive and its good to go.
 
www.xoticpc.com
www.powernotebooks.com
www.notebookreview.com

First 2 sites are where I would normally buy a laptop from. They both carry Asus, Compal, and Sager. Sager laptops are normally rebadged Compal laptops so if you want a Sager, but don't want to pay the premium then go with Compal. The specs I provided in my earlier post is from a Sager/Compal laptop.

Third link is a great site for laptop questions and reviews.

I hope you find what you're looking for.
 
I didn't read much of this thread, but let me tell you one thing OP, if you're looking for longevity, NOTHING is better than a Mac. I have a friend with a 7 year old Macbook that is still running. I'd like someone to show me one 7 year old PC laptop that still works. Trust me, the new aluminum Macbook Pro will outlast ANY other laptop, guaranteed. Aluminum body, tempered glass screen, keyboard and mouse built like a tank, etc.

Also, you don't have to emulate XP on a Macbook. XP runs natively through Boot Camp. (Other versions of Windows work too.) You'll get the best of both worlds. Also, if you think you'll use Windows more than Mac, you obviously haven't tried Snow Leopard yet. ;)
 
[quote name='Access_Denied']I didn't read much of this thread, but let me tell you one thing OP, if you're looking for longevity, NOTHING is better than a Mac. I have a friend with a 7 year old Macbook that is still running. I'd like someone to show me one 7 year old PC laptop that still works. Trust me, the new aluminum Macbook Pro will outlast ANY other laptop, guaranteed. Aluminum body, tempered glass screen, keyboard and mouse built like a tank, etc.

Also, you don't have to emulate XP on a Macbook. XP runs natively through Boot Camp. (Other versions of Windows work too.) You'll get the best of both worlds. Also, if you think you'll use Windows more than Mac, you obviously haven't tried Snow Leopard yet. ;)[/QUOTE]

How many do you want to see? I love how mac users lose all intelligence when they hit the internet. If you take care of it any laptop will last 7+ years unless something mechanical like the hard drive goes which can easily happen on any computer.
 
[quote name='n25philly']How many do you want to see? I love how mac users lose all intelligence when they hit the internet. If you take care of it any laptop will last 7+ years unless something mechanical like the hard drive goes which can easily happen on any computer.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, but even if it lasts the 7 years, it won't be usable. It'll have what, 512MB of RAM and a 20GB hard drive? Trying running Vista on that. On the other hand, her 7 year old Macbook runs Leopard just fine. I used to stand by PCs too, but it comes down to the facts: Macbooks are built better. They use more expensive parts so they last longer and are usable longer. Yeah, there are PCs out there that do the same thing, but not many. If you want a good, reliable laptop that will last you a while, and still be usable for something more than Solitaire, get a Macbook.

Oh, and a Macbook is one of the few lines of laptops whose battery doesn't crap out after a few years.
 
What "better part" do Mac laptops have that allow them to last longer? I don't think Intel or Seagate are making proprietary CPUs or hard drives just for Macs, and they are still just plastic. Macs are a total ripoff any way you slice it. If you like the OS so much just buy a Windows laptop and install a Mac OS on it and save $1000. You can even get them with the white plastic casing since that seems to matter to a lot of people.

By the way I'm also in the market for decent laptop sub-$600 so I'll be keeping an eye on this thread. I'm fully satisfied with the desktop I built but might need something mobile for rotations.
 
Well, the 'better parts' are for one, the body. Solid aluminum body. It isn't going to start falling apart on me, or start warping or anything. Also, the screen. The back of the screen is protected by aluminum, not plastic, and the LCD is protected with a tempered glass window, rather than just some silly plastic cover, or like some laptops, no cover at all. (My HP laptop had NO cover over the LCD.) Also, the keyboard is built 100x better than any other keyboard I've seen. It's not fancy, but the mechanism that holds the keys on is way better than other laptops, and you're not going to suddenly start having keys fall off. And if they do fall off, they can be put back on easily.

Yes, the internals like HDD and RAM aren't made by Apple, but they do pick good brands. They don't put any AMD processors or cheap RAM or shitty hard drives in their computers.

Any way you slice it, Macs are WELL worth the money. I've only had my first Mac for a few months, but I LOVE it. It's been great to me. Not only the hardware, but I haven't had any software issues either. Say what you want, but in the time I go through 1 Macbook, another computer user similar to me will go through 2 or 3 PC laptops.

Of course, I'm not saying that ALL PC laptops are terrible, but a lot of them are. 90% of the laptops out there are made of cheap parts and fall apart and start failing within a year or 2. There are some laptops, like the IBM Thinkpad, that can make it to hell and back, but you're going to pay a pretty penny for them, just like a Macbook. (A little less than a Macbook, but not by much.)

Like I said, if you want a long lasting laptop, a Macbook won't do you wrong. A Toughbook or a Thinkpad won't do you wrong either, but I'd still go with a Mac.
 
I like macs as much as the next guy, but you're going a little overboard here. They're nice looking and the OS is a breeze to use, but they are pricey for what you get. I think the op was looking for less then 1000, so that pretty much rules out any of the aluminum unibodies anyway. Just for the record, I had a gateway that I traded away that was about six years old, thing was still running great. I do think it's more about how you treat your laptop then anything that determines longevity.
 
[quote name='docvinh']I like macs as much as the next guy, but you're going a little overboard here. They're nice looking and the OS is a breeze to use, but they are pricey for what you get. I think the op was looking for less then 1000, so that pretty much rules out any of the aluminum unibodies anyway. Just for the record, I had a gateway that I traded away that was about six years old, thing was still running great. I do think it's more about how you treat your laptop then anything that determines longevity.[/QUOTE]

I definitely agree that a well taken care of laptop will last a long time. But the thing is, laptops are almost impossible to handle well. If you take it with you everywhere, like me, it's going to get beat up. That's why people like me can't settle for a normal HP laptop, it'll never last. People who take their laptop with them have to go with an aluminum body Mac or a Toughbook or a Thinkpad, or the laptop is going to break within months.

The reason laptops last so long for some people, is that they don't use them for portability, like they were meant to. My room mate has a kind of a cheap laptop. (You can tell just by looking at it.) But it's in perfect condition, because it NEVER leaves the room. OP, you don't have to buy a Mac, but if you're going to be moving your laptop around, I suggest a tough laptop that can survive a few bumps, scrapes and drops.

I'm not pretending to be an expert on laptops, but I've dealt with my fair share of them. I've worked on dozens of laptops over the years, and I've owned at least 11 of them. And in my experience, here's the toughest laptops I've ever seen.

Macbook
IBM Thinkpad
Toughbook (Never used one, but read a lot about them)
Alienware (The old Alienware, not the shitty Dell versions)
OLD Compaqs (I mean the old, beastly, throw-out-your back-heavy ones)

And HP and Dells are definitely the crappiest laptops out there. And no, it doesn't depend on price. My cousin's family has bought 2 brand new Dell laptops in the past year, both cost more than $1200, and both have had hard drive failures and other issues within the past year. And HP laptops fall apart at every nook at cranny. The batteries are carp. The screens and the screen protectors are crap. The case comes apart at the seams. The mouse buttons break easily.

I'm not advertising Macs, even though it sounds like I am. I'm just saying, there's very few well built laptops out there, so make sure you do your research. Google is extremely helpful. :)
 
[quote name='Access_Denied']Yeah, but even if it lasts the 7 years, it won't be usable. It'll have what, 512MB of RAM and a 20GB hard drive? Trying running Vista on that. On the other hand, her 7 year old Macbook runs Leopard just fine. I used to stand by PCs too, but it comes down to the facts: Macbooks are built better. They use more expensive parts so they last longer and are usable longer. Yeah, there are PCs out there that do the same thing, but not many. If you want a good, reliable laptop that will last you a while, and still be usable for something more than Solitaire, get a Macbook.

Oh, and a Macbook is one of the few lines of laptops whose battery doesn't crap out after a few years.[/QUOTE]

god I hope you are smarter than you make yourself sound, or you must fall down a lot and hear a loud wistling sound whenever their is a breeze.

ram and hard drive? Yes, because what matters is the easiest components to upgrade. Windows 7 runs beautifully on older and lower spec hardware. Win 7 pro runs almost as smooth on my netbook as it does on my 13" macbook pro. Besides, while you're 7 year macbook may run leopard fine (which I doubt) it won't run snow leopard or anything that comes out later since they dropped support for the old hardware.

Macbooks do not use more expensive parts, they just charge more for them. Unless you are talking about lower spec laptops which come with a much lower price, you are once again talking out of your ass. As for build quality, anyone in the know is aware that apple skimps a lot. The only advantage they have on builds is that they give you next to zero choice on hardware, and it's easy to make things look reliable if they are all exactly the same. If apple ever opened up OSX to an open market it would be a disaster trying to support all of the hardware out of there.

I almost fell out of my chair laughing at your post about not being able to take care of a laptop. Just because you're an idiot doesn't mean the rest of world is. My 5 year old gateway tablet still works as good as the day I bought it, and up until around 1 to 1.5 years ago I carried it everywhere I went. Take care of it and don't be an idiot and any laptop will hold up no problem.
 
[quote name='n25philly']god I hope you are smarter than you make yourself sound, or you must fall down a lot and hear a loud wistling sound whenever their is a breeze.

ram and hard drive? Yes, because what matters is the easiest components to upgrade. Windows 7 runs beautifully on older and lower spec hardware. Win 7 pro runs almost as smooth on my netbook as it does on my 13" macbook pro. Besides, while you're 7 year macbook may run leopard fine (which I doubt) it won't run snow leopard or anything that comes out later since they dropped support for the old hardware.

Macbooks do not use more expensive parts, they just charge more for them. Unless you are talking about lower spec laptops which come with a much lower price, you are once again talking out of your ass. As for build quality, anyone in the know is aware that apple skimps a lot. The only advantage they have on builds is that they give you next to zero choice on hardware, and it's easy to make things look reliable if they are all exactly the same. If apple ever opened up OSX to an open market it would be a disaster trying to support all of the hardware out of there.

I almost fell out of my chair laughing at your post about not being able to take care of a laptop. Just because you're an idiot doesn't mean the rest of world is. My 5 year old gateway tablet still works as good as the day I bought it, and up until around 1 to 1.5 years ago I carried it everywhere I went. Take care of it and don't be an idiot and any laptop will hold up no problem.[/QUOTE]

Just because you disagree with me, doesn't mean you have to be an ass about it. It just makes you sound like you don't know what you're talking about. Also, please learn English, that way when you type out your insults, you at least look like you know how to do it correctly.

Also, Windows 7 REQUIRES at least 1GB of RAM. And I know for a fact that it doesn't run that great on that little RAM, as I've used it on brand new computers with 2GB of RAM, and it still lags if you have 2 or 3 applications open at the same time. Also, most 7 year old laptops would NOT have 1GB of RAM, so a 7 year old PC is no more likely to run Windows 7 than a 7 year old Macbook is to run Snow Leopard.

Also, how can you say that Macbooks don't come with more expensive parts? Yes, the RAM and Hard Drive are easily replaceable, but Apple still only uses the top brand, while not all other laptop manufacturers do. Also, what about the body? I know that's more expensive. Or the glass screen? Or the backlit keyboard. Even the build in camera is high quality. Also, don't ignore the power supply. It's half the size and runs at a third of the heat as most laptop power supplies. And one of the most important things, the battery. The battery actually does last 6 or 7 hours with normal use, whereas other laptops, like my old HP that advertised 7 hours, only got about 4.5 hours.

Also, how can you seriously tell me that a plastic laptop is no more likely to break than a metal one? Yes, I realize that not all laptops are crap, and a lot of them will hold up, but many of them won't, especially in comparison to an Macbook with an aluminum body. A aluminum body simply isn't capable of some of the defects that plastic bodies can suffer. And yes, everybody is careful with their laptops, but shit happens. I accidentally dropped my HP in my book bag from about 3 feet up and broke the screen. You know how many times I've had the same drop with my macbook? You can argue with me all you want, but if you really want to know, go and take an aluminum body Macbook and a plastic body laptop, and throw them around a little bit. I'd bet my ass that the Macbook would last a lot longer than the other laptop would.

Like I said, I don't have an extreme amount of experience, but I have a decent amount, and through my experience, Macbooks are more reliable laptops. You may have different experiences, and that's fine. It doesn't make me wrong or stupid, it just means that I have different experiences than you.
 
My advice, stay away from HP. Go for Lenovo, that will be my next notebook when I get a new one, unless they go to shit by than.
 
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