Question:
Student... will live on this thing. Cant make a decision. Help please
Okay heres my deal... my brain is gettin hot trying to make this decision so would love some feedback on my issues to help me just do it already.
This will be my first laptop. I want something that will be a pleasure to use for 4 years. Im not up on technology these days so not sure whats coming out in the near future... If the core duos wont be running all the software in 3 years but quads will then I could get some $600 crap laptop now and use it for a year and then spend the 1500 to 2 grand then. I know a $600 laptop wont be able to play any current games well but I could last with solitaire and mindsweeper for a year but would love to mess with the new games a bit. Thats my biggest issue is future proofing... should i get something cheap now and wait or just get something nice now and enjoy. Also its not like I really have this money now but will be getting some financial aid money from school and will be able to pay off what I spend in around 8 months.
The compal hel80 seems the best bang for the buck out of what I have seen and people rave about the matte screen. Is there anything else I should be looking at. With a 3 year warranty the configuration I picked out from powernotebooks is about 1700$ Seems like every other model I found is around that price without the warranty.
Would also like something that I could finally start messing around with Linux on. I have read conflicting reviews on hel80 in that respect.
And then today I come across this link on here http://www.circuitcity.com/ccd/produ...&catOid=-12963 which is a decent acer for $800 and I know there are a bunch of great deals out there. Maybe should just get something a lot cheaper and wait a year or so before I get the one that will last me 4 to 5 years. Also black friday is coming up and all the holiday deals after that so I am thinking maybe I should just wait until around that time to get something but id be a lot more productive over the next month and a half if i had a laptop.
So any feedback on my concerns would be greatly appreciated. Below are the answers to those questions that everyone is supposed to post. Thanks for the help everyone.
Josh
General Questions
1) What is your budget?
$1800 max
2) What size notebook would you prefer?
b. Thin and Light; 13" - 14" screen
c. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen
Will be travelling and using on trains and subways to school and will be using in home a lot.
3) What tasks will you be performing with the notebook?
word, spreadsheets, etc. A lot of web applications coding, light to moderate gaming, watching movies, tv. I will be pretty much living on this thing and doing a bit of everything.
4) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places or leaving it on your desk?
Different places
5) Will you be playing games on it; if so, which games?
I have been barely gaming for years. Its not that I lost interest its that I find so much other things to do on the computer. Would like to find some great games and get back into it... I used to play fps and rts a lot. So I am looking for a computer that will play the games I want for the next 3 to 4 years. If it cant play them at max settings thats really okay unless it messes with gameplay. Its also a possibility that I will still end up barely playing games as coding and other things will take up all my time.
6) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
I like quality
7) How many hours of battery life do you need?
The more the better
8) Do you mind buying online without seeing the notebook in person?
dont mind
9) Please select your country's flag as a post icon and tell us what country are you buying this in?
USA
Screen Specifics
10) Would you prefer standard or widescreen?
Seems like widescreen is best these days. And I will be watching a lot of tv and movies on here i think.
11) From the choices below, what screen resolutions would you prefer?
Widescreen
d. WXGA or WXGA+ - 1280x768/800 or 1440x900; Wider viewing version of XGA, good for movie viewing or spreadsheets.
e. WSXGA+ - 1680x1050; Wider viewing version of SXGA, good for movie viewing or spreadsheets.
f. WUXGA - 1920x1200; Wider viewing version of UXGA, good for movie viewing or spreadsheets.
12) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non-glossy screen?
I have been looking at the compal hel80 and going through the posts on this site for a few weeks now. Of course glossy is nice but the glare might get to me if I knew I could have gotten it without the glare. Supposedly the matte ont he compal is beautiful and since I will be on this thing for hours every day the less strain on the eyes the better. I just dont know how good games, movies and tv will look on a matte screen.
Build Quality and Design
13) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
Speed, quality it being able to do everything I want are much more important.
14) When are you buying this laptop and how long do you want this laptop to last? Unless some new chips or graphix card or something is coming out in the next month or so then I want to get a laptop ASAP... as soon as I make the decision. The fact that I still dont have one now is retarded.
Notebook Components
15) How much hard drive space do you want; 40GB to 160GB?
The more the better but I want 7200 rpm
16) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a DVD-ROM, DVD-CD/RW or DVD-RW drive? RW