Help me choose a laptop please

SE-Mark · 01-05-2012, 09:22 AM

I’m looking for a general purpose laptop, but I’m so far removed from them that I don’t know what I’m looking at. Basically, I want something for general use: surfing the web, Word/Excel (perhaps OpenOffice), movie playback, digital scrapbooking / image editing. 15” screen, full comfortable keyboard, windows 7, HDMI out. General around the house use, trying to find a more versatile solution than an iPad for about the same money.
Budget is about $500-$600.
I’m in no panic to get it, and am willing to buy online from reputable sellers.
What I’ve found is a Lenovo IdeaPad Z575 from memory express, reg. $650 currently on sale for $550.
http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX38719

Is this a good buy? Can you recommend something better?
Thanks,
Mark

edmonton daily photo · 01-05-2012, 09:24 AM

Dell has some really good prices too!

sundance · 01-05-2012, 09:45 AM

Best Buy has a HP AMD quad core laptop for $499 on sale this week and a Toshiba Intel Core i3 for $499.

mnugent · 01-05-2012, 10:19 AM

I know you're on a budget but I've found that a laptop is something worth investing in. You pay a bit more once and it will last longer.

edmonton daily photo · 01-05-2012, 10:54 AM

Inspiron 15R specs
2nd generation Intel® Core™ i3-2350M processor (2.30GHz)
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64-Bit, English
6GB2 Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz
500GB 5400 RPM SATA Hard Drive

on sale for 499

Rocket252 · 01-05-2012, 12:21 PM

A lot have similiar specs so I look for two things - weight and battery life.

a 15 inch will be heavy and use a lot of juice

SE-Mark · 01-05-2012, 12:59 PM

I think I'm going to just go in to some stores and see what I like. It seems to come down to a weight / look / feel decision. Specs are all close, although I like that the AMDs tend to lend themselves towards video playback and a bit better at gaming. I won't use it as a hard core gaming machine, but I can see myself grabbing an old game from a bargain bin to play.
I think I'll use a Core i3 as a baseline, and an AMD A6 on the other side.
Options are almost endless.

JBear · 01-05-2012, 02:57 PM

Maybe look for some features that can be overlooked easily such as USB 3.0, a decent video card and oodles of RAM.

Dialog · 01-05-2012, 04:35 PM

The keyboard and trackpad are important. Whichever model you want to buy, you should be able to try it 'loose' (not attached to the shelf via security cable) to see how both these cruical elements of your future computer work.

moahunter · 02-05-2012, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mnugent

I know you're on a budget but I've found that a laptop is something worth investing in. You pay a bit more once and it will last longer.

I agree a bit as for a little more can get something very cool now. A friend recently got an ultra book, a Dell XPS13, its quite amazing. Later this year when Ivy Bridge and Windows 8 arrive, ultra books are projected to drop in price (and maybe bridge the gap to tablets, on touch screen models). The solid state drive makes it a lot faster to boot up.

Dialog · 02-05-2012, 03:31 PM

SSDs are fast, but also rugged. Friends of mine had their MacBook Pro's hard drive mysteriously crash—hard. They questioned their seven year old daughter, who steadfastly denied any involvement. A replacement drive later, they noticed her handling the lappy in a manner that would have certainly damaged the drive.

Going with the biggest (maybe not fastest) SSD you can afford should be a consideration for families and anyone who travels a lot, constantly moving the notebook around.

Cal76 · 02-05-2012, 08:06 PM

VAIO or Dell would be my choice. I find Macs to be waaaayyyy overpriced and over-hyped.

Frank Wilson · 02-05-2012, 10:19 PM

VAIO running Ubuntu OS; blazingly fast.

howyadoin' · 03-05-2012, 12:30 AM

I second that.. I got my 15 inch VAIO with all the required specs @ Sony Store for $600 approx...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cal76

VAIO or Dell would be my choice. I find Macs to be waaaayyyy overpriced and over-hyped.

FlyFlyAway · 03-05-2012, 10:07 AM

VAIO seems like overkill for basic usage listed by OP...but if $600 all-in that's a pretty good deal IMHO. Good quality, multimedia-oriented. Worth a look at that price.

SE-Mark · 04-05-2012, 07:55 AM

Best buy has a Samsung NP305E5A-S04CA new and on sale this week. I'm planning to pick one up today.

AMD A6-3420M
2GB dedicated graphics card
6GB RAM
640GB HDD
15.6" matte screen

Includes office Home and Student.

$550

FlyFlyAway · 04-05-2012, 08:26 AM

^Congrats! Let us know what you think in a few weeks...especially battery life.

(Waiting impatiently for Ivy Bridge/Core 3xxx series.)

RichardS · 04-05-2012, 09:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cal76

VAIO or Dell would be my choice. I find Macs to be waaaayyyy overpriced and over-hyped.

X2.

Toshiba's top line also is rugged.

SE-Mark · 09-05-2012, 08:59 AM

Update:
Loving the laptop. This is our first laptop so learning the limits of the battery is something new.
Battery life seems a little short, but with nothing to compare it against, it is probably just normal. It's probably about 2 to 3 hours of screen time. Usually by the evening we're plugging it in.

moahunter · 09-05-2012, 09:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RichardS

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cal76

VAIO or Dell would be my choice. I find Macs to be waaaayyyy overpriced and over-hyped.

X2.

Toshiba's top line also is rugged.

I had a bad experience one of their "cheaper" models (I think around $700), motherboard failed twice (at least warranty was good). Also, it had a weird, not quite full size keyboard, which was annoying (some keys compressed closer together).

FlyFlyAway · 09-05-2012, 10:38 AM

2-3 hours of battery life, if you're not playing media/using the DVD drive, is very low for 2012. 3-4 hours is average; 4-5 hours is the benchmark (usually w/o a discreet graphics chip). If battery life is important (and it is to me) I'd return the unit. If you like everything else about the laptop, consider a second battery.

Unit is rated at 4 hours; so there might be a couple of things to check first. In the BIOS, your battery charge may be limited to extend the life of the battery. Unlock the setting to get another 20%??? of battery life, although you might have to replace the battery at some point in your laptop's life if you do so (depends on how often you use it on battery). Second, check your power settings and look at setting up a productivity profile (throttle CPU & GPU, shut down unused ports, reduce power to wifi, etc.) for when you're not gaming. Set the laptop to hibernate instead of sleep if you're leaving it unattended for a few hours, and don't mind the extra seconds to wake it up. The power settings will have a significant impact on battery life - lots of opportunity to improve off of 2+ hours.

Glad to hear you're enjoying the new rig!

SE-Mark · 09-05-2012, 10:48 AM

2-3 hours really is a gross estimate. It may be a lot more. The laptop is turned on at 8 am, looked at for 15 minutes, put to sleep for 30, turned back on for 10, put to sleep for an hour, turned back on for 30 minutes, etc. until at 9 pm it needs to be plugged in. I haven't used it in a single continuous stretch from full charge to get an accurate time.

It's a 4400 mAh battery. 15.6" LED backlit screen is going to eat power, even though it's LED.

I'm considering a second battery, but realistically plugging it in should not be a problem. Changing batteries and recharging the dead one would be more of an issue I think.

Paul1988 · 19-07-2012, 10:47 PM

VAIO or Dell would be my choice.VAIO running Ubuntu OS; blazingly fast.

01-05-2012, 09:22 AM	#1
SE-Mark First One is Always Free Join Date: Feb 2011	Help me choose a laptop please I’m looking for a general purpose laptop, but I’m so far removed from them that I don’t know what I’m looking at. Basically, I want something for general use: surfing the web, Word/Excel (perhaps OpenOffice), movie playback, digital scrapbooking / image editing. 15” screen, full comfortable keyboard, windows 7, HDMI out. General around the house use, trying to find a more versatile solution than an iPad for about the same money. Budget is about $500-$600. I’m in no panic to get it, and am willing to buy online from reputable sellers. What I’ve found is a Lenovo IdeaPad Z575 from memory express, reg. $650 currently on sale for $550. http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX38719 Is this a good buy? Can you recommend something better? Thanks, Mark

01-05-2012, 09:24 AM	#2
edmonton daily photo Addicted to C2E Join Date: May 2008	Dell has some really good prices too! __________________ "Do you give people who already use transit a better service, or do you build it where they don't use it in the hopes they might start to use it?" Nenshi

01-05-2012, 10:54 AM	#5
edmonton daily photo Addicted to C2E Join Date: May 2008	Inspiron 15R specs 2nd generation Intel® Core™ i3-2350M processor (2.30GHz) Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64-Bit, English 6GB2 Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz 500GB 5400 RPM SATA Hard Drive on sale for 499 __________________ "Do you give people who already use transit a better service, or do you build it where they don't use it in the hopes they might start to use it?" Nenshi

01-05-2012, 04:35 PM	#9
Dialog Addicted to C2E Join Date: Apr 2010	The keyboard and trackpad are important. Whichever model you want to buy, you should be able to try it 'loose' (not attached to the shelf via security cable) to see how both these cruical elements of your future computer work. __________________ ‘I am nervous about ideologies, whether it’s the ideology of business or the ideology of Bolshevism. I get nervous in the presence of absolute certainty’ —Milton Glaser

02-05-2012, 03:31 PM	#11
Dialog Addicted to C2E Join Date: Apr 2010	SSDs are fast, but also rugged. Friends of mine had their MacBook Pro's hard drive mysteriously crash—hard. They questioned their seven year old daughter, who steadfastly denied any involvement. A replacement drive later, they noticed her handling the lappy in a manner that would have certainly damaged the drive. Going with the biggest (maybe not fastest) SSD you can afford should be a consideration for families and anyone who travels a lot, constantly moving the notebook around. __________________ ‘I am nervous about ideologies, whether it’s the ideology of business or the ideology of Bolshevism. I get nervous in the presence of absolute certainty’ —Milton Glaser

01-05-2012, 09:45 AM	#3
sundance Addicted to C2E Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: City of Champions	Best Buy has a HP AMD quad core laptop for $499 on sale this week and a Toshiba Intel Core i3 for $499.

01-05-2012, 10:19 AM	#4
mnugent Partially Addicted to C2E Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Edmonton	I know you're on a budget but I've found that a laptop is something worth investing in. You pay a bit more once and it will last longer.

01-05-2012, 12:21 PM	#6
Rocket252 Addicted to C2E Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Edmonton, Alberta	A lot have similiar specs so I look for two things - weight and battery life. a 15 inch will be heavy and use a lot of juice

01-05-2012, 12:59 PM	#7
SE-Mark First One is Always Free Join Date: Feb 2011	I think I'm going to just go in to some stores and see what I like. It seems to come down to a weight / look / feel decision. Specs are all close, although I like that the AMDs tend to lend themselves towards video playback and a bit better at gaming. I won't use it as a hard core gaming machine, but I can see myself grabbing an old game from a bargain bin to play. I think I'll use a Core i3 as a baseline, and an AMD A6 on the other side. Options are almost endless.

01-05-2012, 02:57 PM	#8
JBear Addicted to C2E Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Back in E-Town!	Maybe look for some features that can be overlooked easily such as USB 3.0, a decent video card and oodles of RAM.

02-05-2012, 08:06 PM	#12
Cal76 Addicted to C2E Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Edmonton	VAIO or Dell would be my choice. I find Macs to be waaaayyyy overpriced and over-hyped.

02-05-2012, 10:19 PM	#13
Frank Wilson Partially Addicted to C2E Join Date: Aug 2010	VAIO running Ubuntu OS; blazingly fast.

03-05-2012, 10:07 AM	#15
FlyFlyAway Partially Addicted to C2E Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Edmonton	VAIO seems like overkill for basic usage listed by OP...but if $600 all-in that's a pretty good deal IMHO. Good quality, multimedia-oriented. Worth a look at that price.

04-05-2012, 07:55 AM	#16
SE-Mark First One is Always Free Join Date: Feb 2011	Best buy has a Samsung NP305E5A-S04CA new and on sale this week. I'm planning to pick one up today. AMD A6-3420M 2GB dedicated graphics card 6GB RAM 640GB HDD 15.6" matte screen Includes office Home and Student. $550

04-05-2012, 08:26 AM	#17
FlyFlyAway Partially Addicted to C2E Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Edmonton	^Congrats! Let us know what you think in a few weeks...especially battery life. (Waiting impatiently for Ivy Bridge/Core 3xxx series.)

09-05-2012, 08:59 AM	#19
SE-Mark First One is Always Free Join Date: Feb 2011	Update: Loving the laptop. This is our first laptop so learning the limits of the battery is something new. Battery life seems a little short, but with nothing to compare it against, it is probably just normal. It's probably about 2 to 3 hours of screen time. Usually by the evening we're plugging it in.

09-05-2012, 10:38 AM	#21
FlyFlyAway Partially Addicted to C2E Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Edmonton	2-3 hours of battery life, if you're not playing media/using the DVD drive, is very low for 2012. 3-4 hours is average; 4-5 hours is the benchmark (usually w/o a discreet graphics chip). If battery life is important (and it is to me) I'd return the unit. If you like everything else about the laptop, consider a second battery. Unit is rated at 4 hours; so there might be a couple of things to check first. In the BIOS, your battery charge may be limited to extend the life of the battery. Unlock the setting to get another 20%??? of battery life, although you might have to replace the battery at some point in your laptop's life if you do so (depends on how often you use it on battery). Second, check your power settings and look at setting up a productivity profile (throttle CPU & GPU, shut down unused ports, reduce power to wifi, etc.) for when you're not gaming. Set the laptop to hibernate instead of sleep if you're leaving it unattended for a few hours, and don't mind the extra seconds to wake it up. The power settings will have a significant impact on battery life - lots of opportunity to improve off of 2+ hours. Glad to hear you're enjoying the new rig!

09-05-2012, 10:48 AM	#22
SE-Mark First One is Always Free Join Date: Feb 2011	2-3 hours really is a gross estimate. It may be a lot more. The laptop is turned on at 8 am, looked at for 15 minutes, put to sleep for 30, turned back on for 10, put to sleep for an hour, turned back on for 30 minutes, etc. until at 9 pm it needs to be plugged in. I haven't used it in a single continuous stretch from full charge to get an accurate time. It's a 4400 mAh battery. 15.6" LED backlit screen is going to eat power, even though it's LED. I'm considering a second battery, but realistically plugging it in should not be a problem. Changing batteries and recharging the dead one would be more of an issue I think.

19-07-2012, 10:47 PM	#23
Paul1988 First One is Always Free Join Date: Jul 2012	VAIO or Dell would be my choice.VAIO running Ubuntu OS; blazingly fast.