[chia-pet]

i wasn't sure where to post this, but this seems as good a place as any (admins move my thread if you feel this is inappropriate).

my gf is looking for a laptop. are there any brands that are particularly renowned in quality/price? averatec, fujitsu, and dell are brands that we find popular amongst engineering students at UW. the more compact and portable, the better (but not TOO small). performance is a plus!

what are your opinions and experiences with laptops, especially averatec, fujitsu, or dell? and by the way, her current laptop randomly shuts off. anyone know why or perhaps have a possible solution? THX!

 

[KenW]

Sometimes the school has a source for ordering laptops which are configured to their specs so that you get zero issues jumping on the school network. We purchased my son's Dell through the school. Nice thing about that was that we got on-site support and believe me, the way viruses run through a school, it's a very nice bit of insurance. In addition, if the hardware goes down or he drop kicks it on the way to class, it's covered for replacement. Very recently, his HD went down and like the bright, educated kid that he is, he didn't have a backup(btw, he does now...dad saw to that!). Well, they were able to extract the vital work that he could not afford to lose and that was a lifesaver. In the event that your school doesn't have such a program, I'm a fan of Dell(stockholder too) so that's my choice. My office network, home laptops and home desktop are all Dell. Very pleased with the service each and everytime I've needed it.

As for your girlfriends pc shutting off randomly, I'd say its going into standby or hibernation as a power saving feature. Go through control panel-power options to tweak that or inactivate it and that will likely solve that issue. OTOH, if it really is powering down randomly, that's very odd and you should get things checked out.

 

[chia-pet]

thanks for your reply KenW.

my personal stance is that dell puts out an awesome product. however, maintaining and troubleshooting a computer is nothing we will need to worry about--and most laptops come ready for school networks as they are. thanks for your testimonial on the quality of dell.

the problem isn't the computer going into hybernation or standby, it shuts off completely without any warning. it occurs most often during CPU intense applications (music, movies, graphics rendering, and so on). it's comparable to the powercord getting pulled from a desktop.

any other takers? any testimonials or have any good deals on laptops? we are basically looking for the smallest (within reason, 4lbs, 1inch+), cheapest, and powerful laptop we can find.

 

[skitlets]

The crashing is a sign of instability. Maybe temperatures are getting too hot? Try to get it checked out if it's still under warranty. If not, troubleshoot it yourself.

 

[perplex]

make sure you get a pentium-M (or Centrino based) for longest battery life. places like Dell only do Centrino laptops.

 

[450]

Not to trash KenW's preference but I have never had good times with Dell (Desktop or Laptop).

Anyway...My personal favourite is IBM. Their laptops seem to be the most rugged. I've never had any real problems with them.

 

[psychogentoo]

Intel based laptops are concerned, I like IBM the best. Sony lappys aren't too shabby either. Not sure if the University Bookstore gives discounts on those brands though.

If running Windows applications aren't a priority then may I suggest an iBook or a 12" Powerbook? I got a great deal on a 17" PB from UBS (they basically ended up giving me an iPod for free).

also with the laptop shutting down during CPU intensive tasks, how is the laptop situated? Is on a desk with plenty of ventilatiton? Or maybe its time for a passive cooling device like the "coolerpad".

 

[stefan]

Dell are OK -- the prices are good but I've had reliability problems with them when using them in rugged situations - but if it is mainly for home/office use they should be OK. I've also had problems with Fujitsu-Siemens and Sony VAIO. They were nice and compact, but a bit "plastiky". But again, for home/office use should be OK.

For solidity, the IBM thinkpads are EXCELLENT. They have very good after-sales service too. A bit more pricey, but worth it in my view if you want something built to stand abuse.

 

[some1x]

I like Apple PowerBooks best.

Among Wintel notebooks, I like IBM.

 

[stevesurf]

I would recommend:

CF-W2

CF-Y2

X40

All of these models have Centrino >1GHz, 7hr battery life, are ultra thin (about an inch) and 2.8 ~ 3.4 lbs

 

[SDA]

I'd guess your stability problem has to do with heat, but that's just a guess. Most notebooks are equipped with some sort of thermal trip mechanism that causes them to shut down when the CPU gets too hot. Thing is, most of them clock throttle before they shut down... what laptop does she have?

IBM ThinkPads are typically rather expensive and have less powerful graphics solutions than competing notebooks, but they're (IMO and IME) exceptionally sturdy and well-made. They hold up to repeated abuse better than most notebooks, especially in the long term.. I have a used-and-abused ThinkPad 701C (the 75MHz model) around here somewhere, and the only part of it that isn't in perfect functional condition is the battery. The X series is nice, but if you plan on using it for serious graphics rendering you should look for something with a graphics solution that doesn't suck.

Dell's Inspirons are OK, pretty good for the price if you find a coupon, but usually a little plasticky and big. Dell's Latitudes are quite nice (Quantas!), but if you're paying that much you really might as well get a ThinkPad (unless, of course, you get a really good coupon).

iBooks confuse me. I've seen iBooks that are in perfect functional condition after years of abuse and damage, and I've seen ones that fall apart with a half year's light use. PBs are different, but I can't say I've enough experience with them to say anything useful on reliability. You'll also have the switching-to-Intel thing to worry about with PowerPC hardware, but Apple say that they'll try to maintain backwards compatibility. Besides, all laptops get obsolete fast.

What exactly are you after in a laptop, spec-wise? If you're not entirely sure yet, well, what kind of things will she use it for, and how much of the more stressful things does she plan to do? You always have to make a few compromises with portable notebooks, knowing where to make the compromises could well save you a couple hundred dollars and/or a headache.

 

[tgunner]

I agree that Dell laptops seem plasticky, and sort of hollow, and in my experience, Gateway has always seemed to have great laptops. Compaq and HP usually have good deals on well built laptops, and Toshiba is also another Value solution. What will it be used for, and what is your price range??

 

[gsferrari]

If you wanna game - Get a Sager!!!

www.pctorque.com
www.notebookforums.com


I am gsferrari over there as well

 

[eastein]

IBM Thinkpads are hard to beat for running windows, powerbooks are also great if you can run a non windows machine.

 

[jerb]

You said not too small but im a big fan of the Dell Inspiron 700m. its a cheapie with good battery life and a great form factor. they are tiny but so light (they're not too fragil though) other than that id have to recomend a dell lattitude. ive had my CXi for years now and its still kicking and works with most of the accessorys the release (new battery's and drives still work in it, just not DVD drives)

and if your GF's comp is shutting off it may be overheating, make sure the fan is spinning up when it gets hot.