Thread: Laptops

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Try typing the name and model # into amazon search. See if there are any reviews on the model you are considering.

Definitely do this. Almost all laptop internals come from the same few ODMs (e.g. Compal or Clevo), and then the known-companies (e.g. Dell or Toshiba) put their shells on them and sell peripherals, upgrades, and a warranty.

Get a list of hardware requirements that you want, pool a few laptops that have those requirements and fit your budget, and then check the reviews on sales sites or forums.

Not sure about Toshiba. They don't really seem to catch on here in Europe much.

I've had Lenovo and DELL, good experiences with both.
In your case, I concurr with the tablet. It may be more suitable for what you're going to do with it.

TigerDirect often has high-end refurbs for about half price. They are also often have good ASUS laptops on sale.

Samsung tablets (anything with Android OS) are great because it's mostly open-source. That means almost everything is free to download, free to use, free-period! -unlike Apple where everything inlcuding the "rounded corners" is proprietary. Even the "free" apps they have are only free to use under their terms. In fact, just about every time you see an app advertised for iPad or iPhone on TV, you can almost always find a free version or another free app that does the same thing for Android OS.

Still, tablets are a bit overpriced IMO, so I run a refurb ASUS Republic of Gamers refurb laptop with dual 320GB hard disks that I got from TigerDirect for less than half price. In fact, my last four laptops are all refurbs or on sale from there.

I started compiling a small list based on your work related statement, size being the primary.

Then I realized that my portability requirements were/are probably not the same as yours.

Do you intend to leave this at your desk, in your work truck, would it be carried with you? Are you looking for some extended battery life or do you require top-notch performance? This is a great question if this is actually a field laptop and you're away from any real power source for longer periods of time. I had a great little Dell that was all spec'd out with bells and whistles and it wouldn't last two hours in the field (not a knock on the computer, I set it up that way, rookie mistake.)

Hope the search is going well!