<p>I need to buy a laptop for use in College. Maybe you can give me good advice.
A lot of people were convincing me to get a MAC, but for financial and other reasons I wanna stick with Windows.
I wanna waste around 1400 dollars on it. I would go from 1400 up to, lets say, 1600, only if it was really necessary and an excellent investment.
I was thinking bout getting a DELL or IBM from a college store, but lately a lot of people are tellin me the Sony VAIO laptops are the best fot the price range Im aiming for. So Im planning to get the VAIO FS or FE series (online).</p>
<ol>
<li> I've gotten in trouble for this before, but it's "Mac," not "MAC."<br></li>
<li> And it's "Dell," not "DELL."</li>
</ol>
<p>Mac is short for "Macintosh." "Dell" is Michael Dell's name. They're not acronyms.</p>
<p>Anyway, the FS and FE series are great, but make sure that you do a few things:</p>
<ol>
<li> Whatever system you buy, make sure to buy 1GB of RAM on ONE DIMM (leaving a slot open for more later.) Make sure that it's dual channel, as well.</li>
<li> Try to get a computer with at least a 5400 RPM (preferably 7200 RPM) hard drive. Anything slower is just silly. (Oh, and nerds, they do still put slower drives in some systems!)</li>
<li> Keep in mind that while those big beautiful widescreen laptops are nice for movies, they're not nice on your back. Anything over about 4 kilos (8.8 pounds) is just going to sit on your desk. That sorta defeats the purpose, methinks.</li>
<li> Whatever you buy, read multiple reviews from as many sources as you can. Check up on consumer satisfaction. </li>
<li> Do not go "discount." The difference in build quality from say $1200 to $2000 is huge. Don't be afraid to spend a bit more for a better computer. It will return the favor in the long term. Trust me.</li>
</ol>
<p>Oh, and IBM/Lenovos are excellent computers. Out of any Windows-based system, they're certainly at the top of the heap for overall quality.</p>
<p>This laptop is a fantastic deal... Dealmein.net and slickdeals.com and some of the other ones have great prices for dells... Do NOT buy directly from their site without a coupon!!!</p>
<p>ASUS sells the best laptops in that range. For like 1500 bucks, I was able to get a lappy with a core duo 2.0 GHz 667 MHz system bus, a 15.4" wsxga+ screen, a radeon x1600 w/256 mb dedicated ram, 2GB system ram in dual channel, an 80GB 7200 RPM HDD (Much faster than a 5400 rpm drive, which is what is usually in a notebook), a dvd burner, and a 3 year warranty to back it up. The website I went with was powernotebooks.com (Look them up on resellerratings.com and you'll see that they have perfect customer service) and I ordered an ASUS z96J. My laptop benches 4500 in 3dmark05. Don't know what that means? Run that app on your machine and see if you break a 1000, if your rig can run it at all... If you are looking for a sweet laptop, look no further.</p>
<p>Oh, and one more thing. It is physically impossible to get dual channel from one memory module. Dual channel operation requires two identical DIMMs. Although I agree with the rest of your recommendations.</p>
<p>I'm well aware of how dual channel works. I just don't think you should buy the second DIMM from the computer manufacturer. You can get great prices on good Samsung and Kingston DIMMs off of Pricewatch.</p>
<p>So you get dual channel AND save money. Win-win.</p>
<p>just don't buy toshiba. they were thrown out of the BBB.</p>
<p>HP at one time was awesome. personally, the thinkpad by lenovo (formerly IBM) is a solid machine. a sony vaio is great.</p>
<p>a mac is overpriced.</p>
<p>you know, people say microsoft tries to control the world... but people need to get real: apple tries to control the hardware AND software. it's overpriced. save $700 and get a PC. 90% of all software runs on windows.</p>
<p>Who says that 90% of software is worth running, though?</p>
<p>If you look at the price of the MacBook and compare it to comparable machines, the premium is by no means $700. Plus, you get a nice cohesive package. But, I'm sure you'll now go into ZOMG-UBER PC mode and tell me I'm just a dumbass brainwashed Mac user (which I'm not.)</p>
<p>Sorry, UCLAri, I misunderstood what you meant. However, dual-channel operation requires two DIMMs that are identical. Ideally, that would mean manufacturer as well. It saves a lot of hassle (especially if the new RAM does not work) if you just order everything included. That said, my laptop is better equipped than a macbook pro, and did not cost $2500, which is the price of the model to which I comparing it.</p>
<p>Y'know, I've heard both ways when it comes to dual channel. The Wintel box I last built had one DIMM that was from Samsung, and the other was from Kingston. I had a chance to switch out the Kingston for another Samsung of the same model, and my scores were exactly the same.</p>
<p>Oh, and remember that when you get a Mac, it's not just about the hardware. It's about the integration of the system. After building numerous Wintel boxes, it's nice to sit down to a very well integrated non-Windows based system and just have it...work.</p>
<p>Plus, I do honestly believe that I'm more efficient on the Mac when it comes to daily activities. So, I keep a Wintel box handy for games, and the Macbook for pretty much everything else. Of course, I have the finances to do so. But if I didn't game, I wouldn't see the reason to go with another Wintel. And keep in mind that I was a very passionate holdout up until a few months ago. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, I don't think a lot of people really "get" the idea that pure hardware performance isn't the only factor involved with a computer. I'm sure you do, but I do get a lot of flames to the contrary.</p>
<p>Macs represent a generally liberal/rebel image. Also, Macintosh is overpriced.</p>
<p>Windows XP is plug and play. The drivers are automatically installed.</p>
<p>The iPod is a very overpriced system with less features than competitors. People pay $100 more than for a creative MP3 player. Now, that is "best of breed" when people buy an iPod.</p>
<p>Again, there is more to a computer than just pure horsepower in terms of hardware. There is the quality of integration between components, the available software, and the OS experience.</p>
<p>Mac OS offers a very different experience from Windows. </p>
<p>Moreover, the iPod perhaps lacks features under the hood (like say a radio), but it makes up for it in ergonomics and user friendliness. I personally have found that I don't like the "feel" of the Creative players. I don't find menus, the bundled software, and the overall "feel" of the hardware itself as appealing as the iPod. </p>
<p>And to be perfectly honest, I never listen to the radio anyway, so I don't feel like I'm "losing" much by not having it. </p>
<p>Again, people seem to ignore the fact that there's more to computers/electronics than just pure raw horsepower.</p>
<p>Only copy-protected WMA files cannot be played on the iPod.</p>
<p>Moreover, the screen in the ZEN Vision:M and the iPod both are QVGA, displaying around 240,000 colors. As far as the "crispness" of the screens go, I found that the ZEN indeed does have a nicer screen.</p>
<p>Oh, and the video playback batter life is closer to 1.5 hours shorter.</p>
<p>Again, I suspect that people are missing out on a key point here:</p>
<p>PURE HORSEPOWER is great sometimes. However, other times, ergonomics, quality of usage, and overall experience can be just as important. I don't care how long the battery lasts on something if I don't feel that it's easy and comfortable to use. The integration between iTunes and the iPod are very important to me as far as my experience with my MP3 player goes.</p>
<p>well, it depends on what ur needs are. i have an IBM/Lenovo X41, and i got it for a deal at around that price. its a tablet PC and i absolutely love it. take notes in all my classes, its light as hell for easy carrying around, and the battery is good. (cuz its a tablet, i can take handwritten notes, which is helpful in, say, math classes, or whenever you need to diagram something.) however, if you're planning to play games heavily in college (which I hope you're not, cuz you wont have very many friends), you wouldnt want my computer. it has only basic graphic capabilities.</p>