Buying a laptop..

[Ben]

So... I have to buy a laptop. I'm going to college this fall and if my computer isn't cool enough I won't ever learn anything.

Problem is, I don't really know how much computer I need. I know I should get something with wi-fi capability, so that I can access the Internet anywhere on campus.. Other than that, I have no idea what I'm doing. I've never actually bought a laptop before, so I thought I'd ask around for some advice.

So far, the best I've come up with is THIS, a Toshiba Satellite A70. I was thinking I'd customize it, adding a P4 2.8 GHZ cpu and a bigger hard drive to the base system..

There are still some things I don't quite understand, though:
1. How can I tell the speed of a wireless connection?
2. How reliable are Toshiba laptops concerning battery life and durability?
3. What other brands should I look at? Have I overlooked any good values?
4. Is a Pentium M processor faster than a P4?
5. Should I get a laptop Centrino mobile technology? What IS Centrino mobile technology?

If I sound like I don't know what I'm talking about, it's because I really don't. Please help me, before I do something stupid.

[Moox]

The speed of the wifi is based on the letter, 802.11g is faster then b.

Dells always a reliable choice, I have never used a toshiba so I cant comment on that.

Centrino is more durable as it has airbags

[_T3_ [returned from oblivion]]

I believe 802.11g ideally runs at 54Mbps, and 802.11b ideally runs at 11Mbps... of course, this is from only a couple yards away from the transmitter.. there's also 'Extreme G' which some companies support that reaches over 100Mbps. 802.11a was short-lived - a broader band version of b, reaching 54Mbps - the T1 of wireless networks, as it were.

I've always fancied Sony laptops for their feature sets, but they're expensive, too, so i don't really know... Toshiba, in the way of laptops, is relatively reliable.

Pentium M is in most cases slower (sometimes much slower) than P4, but it is being hyped because its lower clock speed and redesigned core make battery life stretch much farther.Ã,  The tradeoff is performance for length away from a wall.

No one really knows what Centrino is, it's a mystery to mankind, like venus, or an automatic transmission.

Heh, I kid.Ã,  Centrino is a chipset that integrates various wireless capabilities.Ã,  It supposedly is also intended to improve battery life, which I translate as not having to run the PCMCIA bus to host an external wireless card.Ã,  But I could be wrong.Ã,  The only laptop I have, after all, is a Dell from 1992... you can guess what that's like.

[Sylpher]

Just a little thought to keep in mind while shopping. Laptops are very limited when it comes to upgrading as compared to a desktop. Get a really good and detailed idea/list/whatever of exactly what you need to do (need and then want) and from there figure out which laptop will work.

Because what you get is about 80% gonna stay exactly the same without expensive add-ons or heavy modification.

(I know it is gonna be for school so a 10 year old laptop would really do anything school could demand, unless it was a high tech/art school.) but what else are you gonna use it for? Figure that out and you are that much closer to rocking.

[LGM]

I would go with a Toshiba with a Wireless slot (most laptops have that now).. 2.8 mhz is plenty for school work, and about 40-80 GB HD is more than enough.. Unless you plan on storing ripped DVDs (a laptop isn't ideal for that, btw)

If you plan on playing games, you might want one that comes with a good gfx card.. preferably one that's 64MB or above and ISN't a Riva TNT2.. lol GeForce 3 or 4.. Or an ATI 9300 or above....

Centrino is good if you plan on doing alot of Wireless and mobility work, like TipTop said.

Other than that, I'd say don't skimp out on RAM and get at LEAST 256 MB DDR... You'll regret if you get any less. You'll want this to last for a good 5 years, right?

That's my two pennies

[Jayel]

Careful with Sony Vaio.
Some Vaios seem to overheat.  a lot.

[shbaz]

My Satellite has an internal slot for a wireless card, I'm sure todays Satellites do too.

The key indicator for speed of a wireless connection isn't usually the card - todays cards are very fast and usually don't actually reach their potential. The speed is going to depend on:

a. How close you are to the transmitter
b. How many people are on the network
c. The bandwidth that the school allocates to the wireless network

My battery lasts 2-3 hours depending on what setting you have it on (there are high, medium, and "long life" settings that I programmed into it, "long life" was already there but I changed it). You can buy longer lasting batteries, as well as extra packs. When I'm at school I usually have my power supply in my case and find a plug-in to hang out by so it isn't an issue (you do need a laptop case, btw, factor that cost in). Consider getting peripherals because I personally hate the touchpad mouse, you may too. Same with the keyboard - I like it now, but it took some major getting accustomed to.

My computer has been very reliable as have my 4 friends who had them (satellites). Of my 3 friends who had HP's and Dells, 1 failed irreversably (partially due to negligence) and one had serious issues with speed, I think it had a bad hard drive. The other had no issues at all, but was stolen.  :o I don't know why they wanted it. Buy those at your own risk.

Speaking of negligence.. turn that thing off or hibernate/standby when you're not using it. You can program it to turn off after a certain amount of time that you don't use it if you want to leave it on for virus scanning or whatever - just don't leave it on a lot. Heat is a serious issue with laptops, and you should always leave the bottom mostly exposed or on a flat surface. Do not EVER leave it in extreme temperatures - this will mess up your LCD screen (among other potential things) and is as expensive to fix as it is to buy a new laptop.

[Ben]

Okay, some good advice here. Thanks.

I'm probably going with at least 512 MB of ram. My parents' computer only has 128 MB, and although it works fine for most things, there's definitely a lag when I play games with detailed textures, or edit audio.. I don't really care too much about the graphics card, though. I'm not exactly a hardcore gamer, and I probably won't play Doom 3 until I can get it for $5 in the bargain bin.. Are the ATI Radeon 9000 or 7000 any good? What about Intel integrated video?

I think the school's network is very good. I visited this summer, and it seemed pretty fast to me, and the signal is supposed to be strong throughout the campus. I don't think any of the new Sattelites need wireless cards-- they all have integrated wi-fi.

Am I forgetting anything? I already know I'll need a mouse, and I think I can get a case for fairly cheap when I buy the computer. I can also get a printer (albiet a very shitty one) for free.

Thanks again for the advice.

[shbaz]

I think the school's network is very good. I visited this summer, and it seemed pretty fast to me, and the signal is supposed to be strong throughout the campus. I don't think any of the new Sattelites need wireless cards-- they all have integrated wi-fi.

You're not forgetting anything, it's pretty straightforward.

It doesn't matter how good the network is if it is bogged down by too many students, for example, at Oklahoma State you could rent a laptop from the library with wireless access. I think there were about 300. When they were all checked out there was a noticable lag in the connection, despite a strong server. Nevertheless, it still worked at about 20-40kbs even during high traffic (in the library). Most universities have very good networks, you probably don't have anything to worry about.

All satellites don't have integrated wi-fi cards, they just have the internal slot and it is optional (or at least it was last year when I got mine).

[Ben]

Well, all the sattelites I looked at have wi-fi as a standard thing. I think these models a fairly new though (my school's computer store doesn't even stock them yet).

Almost forgot: Is it possible to get a replacement fan for a laptop, or somehow improve the cooling system?

And if I don't get a case, is it safe to just carry the computer in a backpack? I mean, it won't explode or anything..

[shbaz]

Almost forgot: Is it possible to get a replacement fan for a laptop, or somehow improve the cooling system?

No - so far as I know. You could replace the fan, but it probably wouldn't be any more powerful. To conserve power the computer only cools when the temperature rises to a set level.

And if I don't get a case, is it safe to just carry the computer in a backpack? I mean, it won't explode or anything..

No, because laptops are fragile and the investment in a padded case is well worth the price in comparison to the risk of someone hitting you in the back, you falling, forgetting the laptop and dropping the backpack too hard, etc. Just buy a case, you should find some decent ones in the $40-$80 range.

[_T3_ [returned from oblivion]]

In the way of a Radeon 9000...

I've got a desktop model, I can't rightly tell you how the notebook ones fare, but it may be pretty close... Quality is good, framerate is fair, but they have a little trouble with smoke effects sometimes... games such as Unreal Tournament 2004 work almost flawlessly, Far Cry-level games run noticeably a little slower than normal, Doom 3 beta runs only a few frames per second... but it's still a nice card, as long as you don't have to have the best of the best performance.

[Meowster]

Advice from an Honest Computer Salesgirl

- Toshiba is everyone's favourite.

- Don't be fooled by the screens on Sony Laptops. Everybody thinks it's because they're higher resolution that the colours seem so much more vibrant; look closer. There's a reflective tape on the screen. In fairness to Sony, it does the job well. The screens look awesome. On the other hand, you're paying upwards of $400 extra for a piece of reflective tape. You can buy reflective/protective covers for your screen that do the very same job for about $20.

- When the marked price on a product is lower than the actual price, they're obliged to sell it at the marked price. It happens surprisingly often. So, just in case it happens to you, know that they're obliged to sell it to you at the marked price.

- If you're buying software, printers, cables, etc., ask for a discount. They might give it to you.

- When they tell you it's the last one of a particular model they have in stock, they're not lying. It sounds like a corny sales line, but it's true. They're not lying. Also, the last one is stock is actually the display model. Ask for a discount if there's any imperfections on the display model, if you're buying it.

- If you're buying a Laptop on Credit, be aware of how much extra you'll be paying. Think about the Interest Free Option instead.

- Don't buy Computer Insurance, no matter how much they tell you you'll need it, unless you really really think you're going to break your laptop at some point. Or unless somebody else is paying for it. To give you an idea of how the price of insurance goes, you'd be paying $500 for three year cover on a laptop between $1100 and $1300. When they're trying to sell you the insurance they'll either call it an 'extended warranty' or 'cover plan'. The profit margin for computer companies on extended warranty is massive, so they'll try anything to get you to take it, including offering you discounts on your other purchases. Don't fall for it. Would they deliberately lose money in order to lose more money by offering you this fantastic insurance offer? No. Then again, don't take it out on the salesperson; he's just doing his damn job.

- Don't buy Fujitsu-Siemens.



2. How reliable are Toshiba laptops concerning battery life and durability?

Very, very good. I've never had any complaints about Toshiba. They're very well built and generally, they're the first model people ask to see when they're buying a laptop. The least amount of returns we get are Toshiba's.

3. What other brands should I look at? Have I overlooked any good values?

Sony are reliable and well built but expensive. Compaq seems to have a bad name, but I find them pretty good.

If you check in computer stores regularly, there are generally special offers on Laptops every week. They're not reduced because they're damaged or crap or low spec; today we sold Toshiba laptops for $1299, previously somewhere around the $1600 mark, just because we were getting in a different Toshiba model. They had 512 ram, 2.8Ghz (I think), integrated Wifi and Bluetooth and I think it was a GEforce graphics card. Oh, and a 60GB harddrive. Lots of people seem to think that because the price is reduced, the laptop isn't as good as the $2500 models. Well, they are.


5. Should I get a laptop Centrino mobile technology? What IS Centrino mobile technology?

Uh... as far as I know, it basically means you have wireless internet capabilities, but I'm not sure how. Some salesgirl I am, huh?

[Ben]

If you check in computer stores regularly, there are generally special offers on Laptops every week. They're not reduced because they're damaged or crap or low spec; today we sold Toshiba laptops for $1299, previously somewhere around the $1600 mark, just because we were getting in a different Toshiba model. They had 512 ram, 2.8Ghz (I think), integrated Wifi and Bluetooth and I think it was a GEforce graphics card. Oh, and a 60GB harddrive. Lots of people seem to think that because the price is reduced, the laptop isn't as good as the $2500 models. Well, they are.

That's a good idea. I noticed that a few places were carrying older models at a discount, but I didn't really spend much time looking at them. I think Sony has a clearance section on their website where they show computers they're trying to get rid of. Maybe I'll check that out..

I'm still thinking about the A70 on Toshiba's website though. Is it a good idea to order directly from them?

[LGM]

If you have the money, go with the Toshiba. Even search Ebay for an older Toshiba model, lol.

[Meowster]

Actually, I came down a little harsh on Cover Plan/Insurance lol. Just make sure you read the leaflet lol. Know what you're buying lol. You can always break your Laptop at the end of the three year extended warranty and get a new one lol.

The reason I say this is that PC world Cover Plan has actually recently gone down by quite a bit, making it pretty reasonable for a laptop lol.

But make up your own mind on it lol. Don't let a salesperson try to talk you into it lol.

[panda]

shit, this reminds me. I still owe C and LGM laptops

[shbaz]

shit, this reminds me. I still owe C and LGM laptops

Haha, wasn't that more than a month ago??

[PANDA]

sorta. I went to canada for a while, the the Post Office sucked and sent me back both laptops, then I had to get more parts...
Small Bussiness man I ain't. its hard to ship computers out of this stupid town