New Laptop - help needed.
 

I am thinking of getting my OH a laptop for Xmas. He will use it mainly for work related stuff - database (eventually), document writing, invoicing, accounts system.

Any suggestions of which laptop is a good laptop?

Thanks in advance.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

From what you say his requirements are, it sounds as if he is self-employed. If so, is it a good idea to buy him a laptop as a gift? Wouldn't it be better if it were a business expense for tax purposes?

That said, I've always used Dell for work and leisure purposes. Their site gives you a lot of options and range of prices.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

I have a couple of Asus machines at the moment and have had others previously. I've never had a problem in the many years that I have used them. I'll stick to that brand when I need another. Not the cheapest line though.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

No he isn't self-employed at the moment - in the future yes - now no.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

If you love him get him a Mac. ;) Otherwise have a look at www.tigerdirect.ca any old plain vanilla PC will do the things you describe... no bells and whistles needed. You shouldn't have to pay more than about $500.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

I'd never even heard of Asus until i got this one in July - excellent laptop - better than the dells I have been using for the last 10 years :thumbup:

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Pfft = if I get him a Mac there won't be any money left in the pot for a present for me!

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Definitely an Asus. I bought an Acer thinking it was an Asus because I never heard of them but I knew there was a company that started with an A that had a good reputation, I just chose the wrong one.

Don't buy a computer on a hangover.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Mac +1 - this is the perfect way to get a sneaky gift for yourself, by saying you bought it for him. :sneaky:

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

I plan on him getting me an ipad for Xmas...:thumbup:

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Why not get yourself an ipad and let him get himself a laptop? :rofl:

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

I have a Dell Inspiron 15R I think it's called. I have Microsoft Office 2010 on it. Get one with a decent processor and a good memory size and it will do the trick, not to $$$ either.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Because it is Christmas of course....really...:rofl:

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

iPad..if you like paying for every single app, then yes. Now are we talking v.1, 2 or the soon to be released 3? Note: iPad is not the best tablet out there, ask yourself does it provide ease of use when it comes to inputs, playing all movies, book and audio formats

Don't be swept away by the fad

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

I asked myself and myself said - I have no idea. ;)

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

I wouldn't, as you know, have read ultrarunner's post if you hadn't quoted it. But he has a point, I very nearly bought the OH an ipad 2 for her birthday last month, but a bit of research taught me that the .3 is due in the spring and is rumoured to be a significant improvement.

She got a kindle instead for the meantime.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Always useful. Doesn't take much to look at timelines....

http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Yes, that's one of the sites I consulted last month.

As it says, the new one's supposed to have 4X the screen resolution.

Edit: And given what David Hockney's been doing with ipad2,

http://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat...w-on-ipad.html

That'll be quite impressive.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

I love my Asus, it's never let me down :starsmile:

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

There is always the Dell ruggedised XFR ;)

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Some idea of budget would help (did I miss it?). My HP core i7 Elite book works well for basically what you describe, and hasnt had any issues, plus 3D CAD and a bunch of other things, but thankfully work paid for it.Its rated 5.6 on the vista "Windows Experience Index", which is pretty high, limited by the hard drive speed. It handles huge spread sheets and databases without any perceptible strain and multi-tasks without bother. Its not the smallest bit of kit on the block, but has a number pad on the keyboard which is a positive for me. the keyboard feel is excellent, and unlike some Ive seen the trackpad is very good too. Our IT folks have lost faith in Dell after some issues, and HP is working well for them so far.

Id go for the best processor you can for any serious number crunching or data apps, not really a Mac strength for those paying with their own money IMO.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Depending on budget, Mac would be best. I personally would skip Dell, their after sales service is rubbish. After Mac I would suggest Sony Vaio range (thats what I have, its my best friend :o).

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

I'm up in the air about what to buy.
I'm typing this on my HP Pavilion desktop and I don't think I will go the HP route again since my CD drive packed up when it was almost new and HP wouldn't give any service or they will at a price. On top of that there is the news that they may get out of the hardware side of the computer business. Pity because they were the top of their game 20 years ago.
So I don't know whether I want a Kindle Fire, an Acer notebook or should I hold out to the spring when there is speculation that Apple will drop their price or come out with a competitively priced model.
I need something to use around the house to connect to the modem (highwire) especially when I'm upstairs. I'm currently using my iPhone but it is too small a screen. Also it would be nice to have a small compact notebook for the occasional trip. I talked to someone, actually a few people, and they love their Acer's. I love their price at around $200 or a little less.
Someone just mentioned on here that they may buy a Amazon Kindle Fire Pad to tide them over until Apple's new iPad in the spring. I like that idea so I may follow suit.

http://beta.msnbc.msn.com/streams/te...ntries/8803787

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

+1

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

I got an ipad 2 for MY birthday, last month - I'd have sooner had a Kindle! I have bought myself the new little Kindle for Christmas, plus the wrapping paper and the OH will wrap it up. I like the ipad, it's a fun 'toy' but I just can't be faffed with poking at the letters to send an e-mail. My laptop is practically steam driven, but I love it's big clunky keyboard - size matters!

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

I use a Dell Inspiron mini. We have one, in addition to our desktops, and I'm about to get another, so we both have one when travelling. We both need a keyboard, so tablets would not be useful.

However, I accept what people on this thread say about poor service from Dell. I don't like Windows. I load all our computers with Ubuntu, a Linux OS. That gets round the service problems with Dell. Hardware problems with Dell computers are rare, because they are built well. For software problems with Ubuntu, we use the support forums.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

I agree with this post in so many ways. :)

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Ordered the Kindle Fire for meself too after playing with one...I like the petitness of it, the functionality, and price. I just wish it had a camera, but that was not a deal breaker

Found an online coupon that gave me 15% off the amazon price

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Hi - I've worked in IT and particularly for outsourcers/resellers for over 15 years. Here's my experience:

Dell = mass produced kit using the cheapest parts at the time of build hence what appears to be a good deal. We have received shipments of the same laptop model and several of them had different components i.e same model but different manufacturer on motherboards, memory etc.

Acer / HP / Toshiba = Pretty much same as above. I actually worked for an Acer/HP reseller for several years. They arent any better or worse than the others mainstream brands.

Asus = Very good. Can take a lot of heat if your doing video work. Dont hear many complaints.

Lenovo = Old IBM designs i.e thinkpads but basically does what it says on the tin. They are now part of General Atlantic and not IBM as people seem to think.

Apple = Expensive for a PC in a white box, they even get malware/viruses these days.

Sony = Excellent but expensive. We used to sell these to the British Olympic Association and various other companies. The only time they came back was when they had been dropped.

The newer contender the laptop marker is 'Samsung' though I'm not sure if they ship to Canada yet. Speaking to my ex-colleagues in the UK they are very highly rated.

Hope this helps...

PS. Shop around - Best Buy & Future Shop are the same shop (think Dixons & Curry's), Canada Computers are good and so are Costco & Sear's when the right offers are available. Avoid MDG at all costs.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

Lenovo makes a hell of a business laptop in the Thinkpad. Great keypad and rugged as hell.

Re: New Laptop - help needed.
 

If planning on a Mac, have a look at the official refurbished section of the Apple store website. Yes they are "used" but they still have the full 1 year Apple Care warranty. I got my iMac from there and I'm was very impressed with the savings that can be had.

As for viruses on the Mac, depends on how you classify a virus. If you're talking about; plug mac into your internet connection and within a very short space of time (30 seconds) and it will be infected with something, then no, that's not the case. If we are talking about downloading an app, running it, entering your password and it then installing various things which can log key presses, and do other things, yes, that is possible (typically called Trojan's) and there are a few, and Apple actually did create some protection system for one of them recently.
To be honest, if you're downloading stuff and entering your local password without thinking about what you are opening yourself up to then you're asking for trouble.

If I had to run AV software it'd probably be clamxav (think that's the name). I would not run something like Norton / Sophos. Had bad experiences with them in the past (clogging up the system, being too protective). They only really exist to prevent you from forwarding on viruses to windows based users, which could include your mac if you happen to have a Windows OS installed in some form on the Mac (dual boot / VM).

Bottom line, the choice of machine really depends on what you're going to do, macs are nice from a design viewpoint but they are just your normal intel based PC in a fancy white dress with a different OS on them. You can of course buy a mac and run windows and *nix on it if you like.