<p>This is probably not the best place to ask this question. (You'd only be worse off if, say, you went to a computer store).</p>
<p>As the daughter of a computer engineer, I prefer Dell for laptops. It's acknowledged worldwide as one of the best out there, and it can easily be repaired no matter where you are in the world.</p>
<p>However...you are so very lucky that this isn't a computer thread mainly populated by us geeks...there'd be a major war going on in here.</p>
<p>Asus's are awesome IMO.</p>
<p>i def agree with Anoel, Asus is the best IMO, they make most of the motherboards in dells, HPs. Since its their own platform, they tend to have much better configs, and much less compatibility issues. Asus is more expensive, but for the quality you get, i think its def worth it! btw customer service is excellent!</p>
<p>The Thinkpad downgrade in quality is a load of BS lol.The division is still run by the same people not to mention many review sites showed that the new Thinkpads have same if not better quality. One gripe people have is that Lenovo changed the keyboard coloring a bit...like many people really care about that. When I did my research on laptops Iv seen much more horror stories on MacBookPro than on Thinkpads.</p>
<p>Anyway Asus is awesome if you want stylish and great performing laptops. I was going to get a V6V until i found a great bargain on a Dell ultraportable. In the end i got a Dell X1 which is made by Samsung (it is nearly identical to the Samsung Q30 which cost like 1k more lol). $1200 for maxed out specs and a 3 year warranty and it is extremely small and light.</p>
<p>p.s. for Dell just buy through Education or Small Business. Support is better and Latitudes are better built than Inspirons. Anyone really tight on can go to the Dell outlet. The quality is same as new. Most of the units sold there are significant discounts are returned but never opened items.</p>
<p>im thinking HP Pavillion 8000, or Toshiba A650....neone have any advice..specifically towards the 8000 Pavil?</p>
<p>If you can, wait until July. Intel drops it's core duo prices in may and everything will be MUCH cheaper then.</p>
<p>If you want the best now, get the Apple Macbook Pro and a Win. XP disk. You get best of both worlds:
Virtually virus-free landscape and ease-of-use of OSX (compared to Windows, at least), and compatabilty bonus of XP.
Oh, and it's awesome for gaming. Battlfield 2 runs like a charm with everything turned on. :)</p>
<p>robotFOOD: If all you don't play games or play older games, you can get a thinkpad for around 1500.</p>
<p>hotctyplaya is right. Meroms are planning to launch near August meaning Dell wil l have many discounts on the Core Duos. right now, Dell is giving old P4 and P-D desktops have massive discounts as Conroe is set to release.</p>
<p>I just bought a Dell XPS M140. It's the little brother/sister/whatever of the M170. The is M170 definately for gamers. Seeing that I am not a gamer, (I am more of a music/media type of person), the M140 seems perfect for me. It's designed for those who want full functionality, music galore, but don't really care for graphics-heavy programs. Even though some people are very anti-dell, I was lucky enough to get a free 1G RAM upgrade so that i can run as many applications as I please and not worry about losing my english paper :)
Dell has alot of deals, you just have to catch the best one for you.
Mine could have easily cost under $800/$900 (not including tax, shipping was free) but I felt that the options I chose (faster processing speed, more RAM, more space, and the DVD-RW/CD-RW drive) were worthwhile investments and may prolong the life of my computer.
That being said, i plan on taking better care of my computers because I also have a desktop whose monitor is gone and a laptop that refuses to turn on. ;) How hard people are on their computers may contribute to their perceptions of the quality of brand.</p>
<p>If you will throw down $2000+ I think the macbooks are perfect for college... I also saw a few sonys that were pretty nice</p>
<p>jspsh: yes meroms are going to be release near Aug, but it would be mid Sept before we get to see any laptop with Meroms processors and it would take 2 more months to get dell to discount Duo core.
lets look at duo core: release in Jan, See first duo core laptop at around late Feb to march. See few more around march to april.</p>
<p>whatever you do don't go with Acer.....bleh. </p>
<p>I would say Apple, Dell, Toshiba, Sony, perhaps Fujitsu, maybe Gateway.....would stay away from HP and Compaq, Alienware is also good. Sager is also good for those not worried about super name brand status.</p>
<p>Alienware laptops have quality problems, buy Sager instead. Right now the best gaming laptop is probably the Dell XPS M1710 with the 7900GTX. HP is better than Gateway and Dell. Dell quality isnt good unless you buy their Latitude line of business laptops.</p>
<p>just got a hp pavillion 8325nr....so far so good at 1500 bucks too...not bad?</p>
<p>Here's an interesting link from Yahoo for anyone comparing laptops. <a href="http://tech.yahoo.com/ru/laptops-the-pros-love/166423%5B/url%5D">http://tech.yahoo.com/ru/laptops-the-pros-love/166423</a></p>
<p>I know nothing about computers, but this laptop is extremely portable and cheap: <a href="http://www.buy.com/prod/Averatec_1020ED1_CELERON_M_373_CPU_60GB_512MB_CD_RW_DVD_XPH/q/loc/101/202074148.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.buy.com/prod/Averatec_1020ED1_CELERON_M_373_CPU_60GB_512MB_CD_RW_DVD_XPH/q/loc/101/202074148.html</a>
Is it worthwhile? I really only use my laptop for basic stuff- note taking, papers, uploading pics once in a while, etc.</p>
<p>For the price, you can't beat Dell.</p>
<p>My system that I bought during the December sale:</p>
<p>Dell Inspiron 6000 15.4" (Could've got the smaller one or 17" as well)
UltraSharp WUXGA LCD Panel 1920X1200
1GB Ram
128MB ATI Mobility x300
8x CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW)
ntel® PRO 2915 and Dell 350 Bluetooth Internal Wireless Cards
9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery (80 WHr)
3Yr Ltd Warr,At-Home Service,and Tech Support plus Nights and Weekends
Add CompleteCare Accidental Damage Service to 3Yr Lim Warranty
Free Printer</p>
<p>All for only $1,100.</p>
<p>I don't game, but I have played FIFA2006. It ran solid enough for me, but this from a non-gamer perspective. </p>
<p>The battery life is also excellent. I usually get between 3-5 hours depending on the brightness and what I'm doing.</p>
<p>And a couple years from now, I'm just going to drop, and send it back for a new one, heh.</p>
<p>But if money is dispensable, I'd definitely go with a Thinkpad.</p>
<p>Toshiba's own...thats what I have</p>
<p>What are your views on tablet vs. regular ?</p>