Laptops?

[RedMile04]

You guys seem to be the guru's of all that is knowledge so I thought I would throw this out there. Im going to be getting a laptop in the next week for school and Ive narrowed it down to 3 choices, all around 1200 bucks and about a 14'' screen:


HP DV6110CA 15.4"
http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/prodde...90&catid=20354


Compaq Presario V6030 15.4"
http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/prodde...64&catid=20354


Apple MacBook Intel Core Duo 13.3"
http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/prodde...4&catid=22156#

No I havent just checked best buy, but these 3 are available there. Which would you guys pick? Whats your thoughts on mac? Or is there some other laptop you guys think would be a better choice? One last choice was a cheaper Acer laptop that future shop has for 799 but I have never heard of them, any thoughts?

Thanks guys

[DustyMauve]

Re: Laptops?

The mac's are great if you do alot of video editing and stuff like that.. otherwise i think they're a pain. Difficult to opreate (might be because I rarely use a mac) and you have to make sure your software and equipment is mac compatible.

[beetle.babe]

Re: Laptops?

Hey. I have a MacBook, and I love it!

Before I bought this one, I hadn't used a Mac in years, and I missed it so much! My best friend even one bought one a week after I did because he loved mine so much. I suggest you definitely consider the MacBook.

[Khyron]

Re: Laptops?

Do you have any Mac friends? Otherwise software and help will be a bit of a pain. But they are the prettiest and if you want reliable word processing and surfing internet they do the job well - a bit expensive for what you get though.

Also if you're going to be hauling it around, consider weight. I had a widescreen laptop and hated it because it was too heavy. Now I have one of the smallest Dells you can get and it's great (but I want lighter still!). Planes, the bus, trips - I value smaller over bigger screens.

For brands, Toshiba is good as there are many Toshiba certified warranty repair places in Calgary. HP/Compaq usually need to be shipped out east and that just sucks. I like Dell laptops as well. If you don't plan on playing video games on it, you can get them cheaper than 1200.

Khyron

[veedublub]

Re: Laptops?

If you are using it for school most likely a PC laptop will work out easier for you.

[nismodrifter]

Re: Laptops?

I've got a Dell Inspiron 6400 (15.4" screen, cost me like $1200, 2ghz dual core, 1gig ram, 256mb video card) and I like it. I use it for everything basically (graphics, school work, gaming, movies) and I love it so far.

Next time though I'm definately getting the smallest/lightest laptop I can get. 15" widescreen is just too heavy to carry to class everyday. 14" is perfect IMO.

[RobTheGob]

Re: Laptops?

Macs are great unless you want to play games. With the new Intel based machines - you can run Windoze apps at full speed...

[James]

Re: Laptops?

I've got a macbook, love it for the most part, i find the 13.3 is the perfect size. As said above, its only got the onboard shared gpu so its not great for games, but the macbook pro's have 256mb ati cards in em..might even be 512? But those will run you a pretty penny

For 1400 bucks, id probably go with a toshiba or similar, you gotta pay to play in the mac's cause once you start bumping up the base macbook you're lookin at ~2g's

[seanfournier]

Re: Laptops?

I have a Macbook Pro, and since my business and personal life operate totally on Apple hardware, I've never been happier. Make the switch. All your PC apps and games can work on the Intel stuff of course, in fact, Company of Heroes runs amazing on my Mac.

[Tromping_Maniac]

Re: Laptops?

I've got a Dell Inspiron 9100 and wouldn't buy another Dell again. I have replaced the motherboard, keyboard and one of the fans just as it fell out've warranty. Dell service has also sucked, they would just keep passing the buck to another department.

STAY AWAY FROM DELL, Just my $0.02

[RedMile04]

Re: Laptops?

Wow thanks for all the response guys. I do have a few friends with mac's so I dont think the switch will be to tough, and as far as games, no I really never plan to use this for gaming. The screen is only 13.3'' and weight is just over 5 pounds, so I doubt I can get much better than that.
Does this seem like more computer than I truly need though? It really is strictly school work, but at the same time Im sure Ill be using this for many years to come. Im lucky enough that scolarships are basically covering the costs to so 1200 bucks seems like a fine price.
Sorry for along one again, but Im hoping to get this right!

[RedMile04]

Re: Laptops?

Bump for anymore opinions, think Ill be picking something up tomorrow

[Hardy_Boy]

Re: Laptops?

i'm happy with my mac notebook. if you are contemplating getting a mac. buy one from the website and use an education discount! every little bit helps, right?

i use my mac for everything! Tim if you do end up buying a mac i have a cd witih a bunch of programs including MS office applications.

[Billip]

Re: Laptops?

+1 for the Mac. I have a brand new Mac Pro and it is incredible. I've been working with Mac's for the past 12 years. Software is easy to "find" online, just as easy as PC software. And now that the new Core 2 Duo MacBook's are out, you are getting a little extra!

I would also suggest buying on the Apple store online, but make sure to use the Educational store. You should get about $100 off the MacBook price using the education store.

[Jester B]

Re: Laptops?

Another vote for the Mac. NO Viruses (ok, maybe one trojan horse), rock-solid UNIX core (you may get a rare application crash, but the entire system will NEVER go down), and as was already mentioned, BootCamp will let you boot into XP (provided you have a copy of XP to install) if there are apps that run on only Windows.

I've got a 12" screen on my Powerbook and thought it would be small, but it's functional....13.3 should be fine.