<p>I'll be going to UCSB for freshman year in the fall and I have no idea what kind of laptop I should get. I was debating over getting an Apple, but I want my games and vids as much as the next person, and I heart PC's to the fullest. So that narrows it down a bit. </p>
<p>As far as PC's go for laptops, which ones are the best right about now and go for $1500 or less? I heard Dell and Gateway are on the lower side of the quality see-saw so let's eliminate those. Sony is my dream but anything else you would recommend? </p>
<p>My son's friend is a big gamer, and is quite happy with his Dell XP. I think that the Dell 9300 is similar but a little less expensive. My son has a Dell 6000 with many upgrades is likes it very much. He does some gaming, but has not really used his laptop for that purpose yet.</p>
<p>I have heard that IBM offers very good quality. Keep in mind this is just hearsay. Dell has some very good deals for the price also although their quality seems to be questionable at times.</p>
<p>IBM is known for their sturdy, quality machines, but keep in mind that most of them come at a price. Your budget, though, is enough to buy a pretty decent IBM computer with most of the necessary upgrades.<br>
Be sure to check out HP computers as well, they have some fall sales, and their build quality is generally better, I think, than Dell.</p>
<p>IBM's are excellent, but if you're going to go with a Dell, get one from their Latitude line. I have a Fujitsu which I like very very much. I can't speak to the quality of their customer service, however, since i've never had to call them :).</p>
<p>IBM is the best. I have an IBM T42. Last semester I was in the computer lab and plugged the wrong cable into my laptop and smoke started coming out of my computer (i am an idiot). I contacted IBM and they sent me a postage paid box to pack my laptop in and shipped it back to them. THEY FIXED MY LAPTOP IN ONE DAY! I sent mailed it in on a monday and they mailed it back to me on that wednesday!!!</p>
<p>IBM is the most reliable/sturdy/functional. T42 or T43 is your best bet</p>
<p>I'm so ehh about Sony because mine broke in a week. While a lot of people are happy with theirs, MANY people have had fatal hardware problems. And I hear their customer service is quite bad.</p>
<p>Gotta be more specific on the games issue. What games? That makes or breaks a laptop configuration. An IBM T42 or T43 is great, but you have to make sure to get one with an actual video card and not the Intel GMA900 if you want to play games with good performance.</p>
<p>I would highly recommend not getting Sony because they don't really offer anything that other companies don't, except they are more expensive and have average build quality (while IBM has top-notch build quality). You can pick up a T42 or T43 for under $1500, and that's what I would recommend unless you are into gaming (again, be more specific about that issue).</p>
<p>Well, I am at UCSB right now and I can tell you that most of the people here have a Dell of some sort.</p>
<p>Personally, if you choose to go the Dell route, make sure you look at their business line as their Latitude line is quite sturdy and comes with a rather decent warranty (which is really important).</p>
<p>I don't know why people still call it IBM, but it should really be known as the Lenovo Thinkpad since IBM sold its personal computing division to Lenovo, the largest computer manufacturer in China.</p>
<p>well, it's still branded as an IBM, and the laptops themselves are no different (lenovo - formerly legend - has made ibm's laptops for a considerable amount of time now).</p>
<p>"i just got a sony fs640 and it was only $1200
80 gb hd, dvd rw & cd rw and a 15.4 true bright screen.
i thought it wasa great deal."</p>
<p>You got ripped off. I'm sorry. I regularly see it for $1099.99 at both Circuit City and Best Buy. By the way, I think you mean the XBRITE screen True Bright is Toshiba's. This Sony's screens sucks up so much power it's not even funny. It's keyboard is also elementary.</p>
<p>By the way, you could gave gotten a Toshiba (with slightly better specs) for $1100 easily.</p>
<p>When most people refer to the IBM Thinkpad, they refer to the T-series line. Lenovo did not make the T40 series computers for IBM, instead, Lenovo's biggest competitor "Great Wall" made the Thinkpad in a partnership with IBM.</p>
<p>Thus, Lenovo is relatively new at making the T-series.</p>
<p>But they are still branded IBM so I will continue to refer to them as IBMs. </p>
<p>Yea I really dislike Sony vaios. The XBRITE screen i reflective and annoying, and if you want to conserve any power (lessen heat) you have to turn the brightness way down. Even when it's on the lowest settings, it's still really hot. I would never put that thing on my lap</p>