<p>Right now I am deciding between the Dell Performance, Professional, and Ultraportable.</p>
<p>There does not seem to be much of a difference between these 3 except that the portable one is smaller and has only 2 GB of storage instead of 4 GB. Does anyone know which computer most students have or which one is the "best?" Do most students take their laptops to class/ are they ever needed IN class? If this is the case, would the portable one be the best option?</p>
<p>You’ll almost never need it in class. I only had one class where it was virtually required. That said, plenty of people bring laptops to class to keep from getting bored.</p>
<p>I’d say buy as much as you possibly can afford. If you buy a nicer model, there’s a good chance it’ll last you 4 years comfortably. Watch out for ultraportables - while it is nice to have a small laptop that’s easy to carry around, their keyboards and screens can be unbearably small.</p>
<p>Ok inspite of the fact that they suggest a Dell, I would suggest you buy a lenovo (they were recommending lenovo last year for wharton) and take the t400 - lenovo performance notebook. Its a great laptop and at an ok price, if you are tech savvy then you can probably configure a similar laptop at a lesser price using some discounts through the lenovo website.</p>
<p>Trust me on this one.</p>
<p>^I second the lenovo</p>
<p>Thanks but since the Lenovo’s aren’t recommended this year, is there something that is missing on them that one would need for Wharton? Also, won’t the little red mouse thingy get annoying?</p>
<p>You can get by in Wharton with a $500 computer. So long as you have XP and can run Excel you should be fine.</p>
<p>Lenovo’s have a trackpad. The little red thing is an extra mouse. I like to use it when scrolling up and down a page.</p>
<p>the little red mouse nipple thing has been a hallmark of thinkpad design since forever</p>
<p>my ancient thinkpad laptop from the early 90s (no color screen! no sound card!) has one</p>
<p>if it’s not comfortable to use for you, just don’t bother with it; you have the touchpad</p>
<p>also, there’s nothing a dell can do that a lenovo can’t do in terms of productivity</p>
<p>You wont get anything in Dell that you wont get in Lenovo. I don’t know how they decide which one to recommend and I am pretty knowledgeable when it comes to computers. What Venkat89 said is also completely true. As far as the red thing is considered, the above posters are correct. For controlling the mouse pointer you can use either, it doesn’t make a difference what so ever.</p>
<p>I know someone posted an article about a burglary in one of the dorms, but how safe would it be to keep a desktop computer in the dorm?</p>
<p>very safe given you’re not an idiot and don’t leave your room unlocked over break =)</p>
<p>Anyway, computer geniuses, please link me to a comparable, cheaper alternative to</p>
<p>Dell Latitude E5400 - 2.0GHz T7250 Core 2 Duo, Vista Business 32-Bit, 2GB memory, 160GB 5400RPM hard drive, 14" WXGA display, integrated Intel GMA 4500MHD graphics card, CD burner and DVD player, 5.5 lbs (2.49kg), 3 year On-Site Warranty with Accidental Damage Coverage – $899.00 </p>
<p>Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>i just configured a thinkpad sl400 (you don’t need vista business, home premium is good enough) for $947; it’s also 5.5 pounds</p>
<pre><code>Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor T6570 (2.1GHz 800MHz 2MBL2)
Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium
14.1" WXGA LED VibrantView
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
2 GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz SODIMM Memory (2 DIMM)
UltraNav without fingerprint reader
160 GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm
CD-RW/DVD-ROM Combo 24X/24X/24X/8X Max
ThinkPad 11b/g Wireless LAN Mini PCI Express Adapter III
6 cell Li-Ion Battery ( 2.4 Ah )
3 Year On Site Upgrade with 3 Year ThinkPad Protection
</code></pre>
<p>so you may want to weigh dell quality and customer service vs. lenovo quality and customer service</p>
<p>probably won’t be able to beat dell on price, though, unless you have a lenovo discount somehow (those are sweet)</p>
<p>if you have a dell outlet near you, might want to try the computers out, try the keyboards - the newer dell keyboards and lenovo keyboards do feel somewhat different</p>
<p>or… from hp, a dv4t for $969, but with better features</p>
<p>Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (32-bit)
Intel(R) Pentium(R) Processor T4200 (2.0 GHz, 1MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB)
3GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
320GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
Intel(R) Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD - For Pentium Processors
14.1" diagonal WXGA High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1280 x 800)
LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support
Webcam
Wireless-G Card
High Capacity 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
3-year HP Accidental Damage Protection with Pick Up and Return</p>
<p>comes with hdmi out, too, and 5.08 pounds</p>
<p>Necro that looks like a rip-off.</p>
<p>Try this site - newegg.com - theres some good deals on there, from cheap to powerful computers.</p>
<p>This link below is a laptop for $799, 100 bucks less than the one you’re looking at, with much, much better specs. I think this is the one I’m going to buy; it’s a really good deal.</p>
<p>[Newegg.com</a> - MSI GX620-001US NoteBook Intel Core 2 Duo P8400(2.26GHz) 15.4" Wide XGA 4GB Memory 320GB HDD DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT - Laptops / Notebooks](<a href=“Not Found: 404 Error”>Not Found: 404 Error)</p>
<p>I wouldn’t buy anything from the CampusExpress site… those laptops looked overpriced.</p>
<p>adamwest, newegg / msi don’t provide on-site accidental coverage warranty support</p>
<p>that’s what jacks up the price on the dell, lenovo, and hp options; without warranty they start at like 499</p>
<p>yeah I was just about to say…
And it seems all the alternative are comparably priced. Except for the extra $30 or so…</p>
<p>So campus express seems to be the best deal in this case. Anything cheaper will come with considerable tradeoffs. Thanks guys! (although keep looking you tech savvy people, the cheapasses on this site depend on you!)</p>
<p>It has a 3-year limited warranty, just no accidental coverage. If you’re really that scared you’ll drop it and it will explode, you can buy laptop insurance. A safeware.com quote for an $800 laptop is under $70/year, and this also covers theft.</p>
<p>That laptop has a 7200rpm hard drive, larger screen, 5x better graphics card, better processor (2.26ghz, 1066MHz FSB, 3MB L2 cache), turbo button to push the processor to 2.7ghz, works with bluetooth, and comes with a webcam and backpack. 5.6 lbs. If you’re not looking to play games or do a lot of multi-tasking, you could probably do without most of that, but just saying, you get a lot more bang for your buck there.</p>
<p>right but msi doesn’t have on-site warranty, just so you know; if it breaks, you’re going to have to send your entire laptop to them in california, which can be a pain</p>
<p>i have a msi wind and the touchpad broke; i don’t want to send it in for service and am getting by fine without the touchpad (and will probably attempt to fix it myself)</p>
<p>Lenovo g450
System components</p>
<pre><code>Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor T6400 ( 2GHz 800MHz 2MB )
Genuine Windows XP Professional
Intel Integrated Graphics X4500
3 GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz
15.4 " WXGA TFT with integrated camera LCD Glossy 1280x800
Industry Standard Touchpad
250GB 5400
DVD Recordable (Dual Layer)
6 Cell Lithium-Ion
Intel Wireless Wi-Fi Link 510
3Yr ADP + 3Yr Onsite Upgrad
</code></pre>
<p>$763 without any discount</p>
<p>System components</p>
<pre><code>Intel® Core 2 Duo processor T6400 ( 2GHz 800MHz 2MB )
Genuine Windows XP Professional
Intel Integrated Graphics X4500
3 GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz
15.4 " WXGA TFT with integrated camera LCD Glossy 1280x800
Industry Standard Touchpad
250GB 5400
DVD Recordable (Dual Layer)
6 Cell Lithium-Ion
Intel Wireless Wi-Fi Link 510
3Yr ADP + 3Yr Onsite Upgrad
</code></pre>
<p>$763 without any discount</p>