<p>I don't think my mom is going to buy a Mac...there's so many PC brands and we've never had a home computer,I think my library has a DELL but my school has a Mac.
And if there's certain brands I should avoid tell me,please and thank you.</p>
<p>What's the difference when its called a notebook,does it mean it's only for typing?</p>
<p>What's a good printer and do all computers come with built in memory?</p>
<p>Also is it better to have just a mouse or that touch pad some laptops come with?</p>
<p>As factors I'm looking for:
-price</p>
<p>-battery life</p>
<p>-usuage of wifi(I don't know how it works on a computer but my phone can get free wifi if its server has it w/o a password)</p>
<p>-one that doesn't heat up too much </p>
<p>-durabilty</p>
<p>-doesn't get a lot of viruses(I'm not sure how getting a virus protector works but I'm sure I'll learn later)</p>
<p>-screen doesn't freeze up/blurry pixels(I think that has something to do with the browser but don't know which one is best since I usually use safari or internet explorer)</p>
<p>-you can lock it so people can't acess it without hacking</p>
<p>-typing in easy and has word processing/document(I think it gets downloaded but I'm not sure since I've used 2 different ones</p>
<p>Avoid Gateway and HP. For PCs Lenovo seems to be the king of long lasting laptops. More precisely their think pads. For anti virus just get Microsoft Security Essentials and you will be set unless you illegally download a ton of stuff. All laptops should come with built in memory, if they do not avoid them. I don’t know the difference between a notebook. I reality there is no difference since they will all be running Windows 7 which can do basically anything.</p>
<p>Son is a computerphile and has a Dell. He has a second, smaller laptop as well, An Acer I think. Other son had Dell and replaced it with a MacPro which he loves. </p>
<p>Whatever you purchase, get an extended warranty and even repairs in home. Both sons have had problems with Dell and Mac. Just the nature of the beast!! They will send parts to you, but will come to the house/dorm if they have to (needed to do this for coomputerphile son when part they sent didn’t fix problem.</p>
<p>In addition to Lenovo, both Asus and Toshiba are pretty reliable brands as well.</p>
<p>A lot of the other things you said are OS based, in which case it doesn’t matter a whole lot. Both OS X and Windows are pretty complete as consumer operating systems.</p>
<p>Antiviruses:
It’s not worth paying for an antivirus. By that, I mean there are good free ones. The ones I can think of off the top of my head are Avira, Avast, Avg, and microsoft security essentials (MSE). I don’t remember which is best, or which is good anymore.</p>
<p>All I can really give from personal experience is that AVG has given me some false-positives, Avast has annoying update announcements by default, and that I have yet to have a complaint about MSE (which I am currently using). I haven’t had any failures from any of them. Of course though, knowledge is the top method of prevention.</p>
<p>physical characteristics (heat and battery life): You can find reviews online that go into a lot of detail, giving battery tests under an assortment of methods as well as even detecting the heat on various parts of the laptop. You just have to search for the reviews.</p>
<p>I believe ASUS and msi are very good brand, as they tend to wick heat away and cool down the console itself.
DELL and Toshiba are durable, but they are very hot (especially in summer).</p>
<p>For antivirus solutions, Microsoft offers it for free, so it is not a concern.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Check with your college. Many require you to download their anti-virus software before allowing you on their network. There is no charge for their anti-virus software, since the security of their network is foremost.</p></li>
<li><p>If there is a BestBuy near your campus that is easy to get to, their extended warranty is an option. D spilled soda on her laptop keyboard, she took a free bus to the Best Buy, and got is serviced through them. If your school has an on campus computer store, they would probably give the fastest service should repairs be needed.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Consumer class laptops normally don’t last that long. I would recommend a business class machines. Just saying HP and Dell are junk doesn’t solve anything since you would be too vague in saying that. HP and Dell make great laptops if you are willing to pay for it. For example HP makes the Elitebooks and Dell makes the Vostros , Latitudes , XPSs , etc.</p>
<p>D had an expensive Dell Latitude, and she had just as many problems as other D who had a HP from BestBuy. Both benefited from comprehensive coverage plan.</p>
<p>Expensive Dell Latitude had a board blow out (not our fault) while cheap HP had no trouble until soda spilled on keyboard (obviously not HP’s fault).</p>
<p>You can get a good HP, and you can get a lousy Lenovo or (dare I say it!) Mac.</p>
<p>If you are really unlucky I guess you would have problems anyway. Generally good build quality would mean that the laptop would last longer.</p>
<p>I had a Dell Vostro 1700 for over 3 years and the only problem with it was that the battery wouldn’t hold a charge. I didn’t want to buy a new battery so I ended up selling my old Vostro and used that money to help me buy a new (and improved) Vostro 3550.</p>
<p>One good thing about getting Dell Latitudes or corporate-line notebooks instead of consumer-line ones IME is that there’s far better support and it is easier to replace/upgrade hard drives, RAM, and optical drives. </p>
<p>Sounds like you got a lemon…though I’m not 100% positive on Latitudes considering some friends/colleagues in IT have complained about drop in build quality over the last decade. Then again, that’s been happening across the board with the possible exception of IBM before they sold to Lenovo and Apple. </p>
<p>After repairing dozens of consumer-line HPs/Compaqs(Same company)…I make it a point to warn people off of them. One friend chose to ignore me and after just 2 years…facing serious overheating issues due to poorly thought out vent/fan design and from talking with other experienced techs…their use of the lowest grade thermal paste.</p>