Pc deal need quick response

[bigred]

Girlfriend is contemplating buying this: Deal of the Day

She uses her pc mainly for internetting, music, etc. will prob use it for school in the future. Thoughts? Is it too heavy?

[bigred]

Also, what's the rep on asus for durability and stability? Her old laptop had some issue and has sat on her shelf for months when I think all it needs is a reformat. Therefore, stability and support is a must.

[d0zer]

wife has an older asus where the screen has been basically ripped off at the base supports where the force is applied during opening/closing. it rests freely against the wall behind it that supports it. Maybe they've improved quality since then who knows. the specs seem like overkill for what she's using it for but meh, the price isn't bad so....?

[fjuanl]

some potential downsides:

only 3 USB slots
shared video graphics (should be ok as long as she doesnt play games)
hard drive speed not specified (you want 7200rpm and not 5200)

also for what shes using it for you could probably look to get something with less hard drive space and ram. something like 4gb ram, 500gb hd

[boost]

I have an asus... it has had a few problems, but overall it has served me well over the passed four or so years. It is a gaming laptop (something I recommend never buying) and it had issues with the case not being properly ventilated for the high heat output graphics card it came with. Recently the graphics card actually kicked the bucket, which sucks because now even video playback suffers.

Still though, it was quite a bargain when I bought it, and the issues I've had shouldn't be a problem with a more tame model.

I would think about size though. Just as I doubt I'd ever get a gaming laptop again (worst of both worlds), I probably wouldn't get such a big laptop again either. You can buy a better performing desktop for less-- so a laptop's edge should be its mobility. A big heavy laptop is a chore to lug around.

[Hawk]

I'd be happy with it. It probably is overkill, but most systems ARE overkill for most people.

It might be a bit heavy if she's going to be carrying it around regularly. 5 pounds doesn't sound like much, but it's definitely noticeable. If mobility is a main concern you might look at something smaller, maybe 11"-13" screen size.

[bigred]

She opted not to get that one. Based on above requirements what do you guys think of these?

Newegg.com - Acer Aspire One AO722-0022 Notebook AMD Dual-Core Processor C-60(1.00GHz) 11.6" 4GB Memory DDR3 1066 500GB HDD 5400rpm AMD Radeon HD 6290

Lenovo IdeaPad AMD Dual Core 1.65GHz 12" Laptop for $379 + free shipping - 103834U

[JKDS]

Why not just get her an apple?

No, seriously. I fucking hate apple products. But in terms of laptops, they fit a lot of characteristics that ppl want in a laptop. I agree with Boost that laptops should not be gaming laptops (i had the exact same issue with overheating and graphics card poofting), but if shes not gonna be gaming...every laptop will be able to do what she wants.

The benefits of an apple then...
-Typically lightweight
-Can be thin
-Very easy to use
-Less "HALP, I HAZ VIRI" questions
-If all else fails, or if youre lazy, u can be like "go to the apple store"
-All laptops are more than capable of accessing the internet, using a Microsoft Word like program, play music
-Higher battery life than other brands
-More Stylish (honestly, id say more Girly...but its for a girl!)

Cons
-Typically more expensive, and less powerful. But what do u need power for if you're just surfing youtube
-Still some compatibility issues...but im sure theres work arounds for most common things.

I mean...you dont have to get her an apple. But like...if shes not gonna be doing anything thats more difficult to play than farmville then all laptops should be able to do it.

[boost]

Why not just get her an apple?

No, seriously. I fucking hate apple products. But in terms of laptops, they fit a lot of characteristics that ppl want in a laptop. I agree with Boost that laptops should not be gaming laptops (i had the exact same issue with overheating and graphics card poofting), but if shes not gonna be gaming...every laptop will be able to do what she wants.

The benefits of an apple then...
-Typically lightweight
-Can be thin
-Very easy to use
-Less "HALP, I HAZ VIRI" questions
-If all else fails, or if youre lazy, u can be like "go to the apple store"
-All laptops are more than capable of accessing the internet, using a Microsoft Word like program, play music
-Higher battery life than other brands
-More Stylish (honestly, id say more Girly...but its for a girl!)

Cons
-Typically more expensive, and less powerful. But what do u need power for if you're just surfing youtube
-Still some compatibility issues...but im sure theres work arounds for most common things.

I mean...you dont have to get her an apple. But like...if shes not gonna be doing anything thats more difficult to play than farmville then all laptops should be able to do it.

JKDS, you make some strong points here. Based on this post alone I may seriously consider an apple laptop when I am shopping for my next one. And btw, I am fairly anti-apple, at least when it comes to computers.

[a500lbgorilla]

Apple laptops come with the apple tax which runs a handful hundred dollars for systems with similar specs.

Also, owners of apple laptops tend to be lazier about upkeep because "Apple just works."

Still, nothing wrong with the apple lappys though.

Also about ASUS - I bought a really nice ASUS laptop recently as a home entertainment computer and it's amazing.

Amazon.com: ASUS N53SV-EH72 15.6-Inch Full HD Dynamic Entertainment Laptop (Silver Aluminum): Computers & Accessories

The only problem is that ASUS loves to load down your system with bloatware. It took me an entire afternoon to figure out everything which needs removing.

They also don't give you the windows 7 disk for wiping your system down and just throwing the operating system back on fresh, instead they partition some part of the harddrive away as recovery so if you want to start over fresh you get to run through the bloatware again.

The bloatware stuff alone will keep me from buying an ASUS in the future. It's not a good look.

[kiwiMark]

You can also install windows on apple laptops nowadays, if it turns out mac os x is too horrible or the compatibility issues present too much of a problem, or whatever.

I'm not saying buy an apple laptop to wipe macos and install windows on it, but just if all the other arguments (weight, how cool you look sitting in a café, instantly get to be a superior douche) were swaying you and only some operating system related fears were holding you back.

just thought I should do the obligatory mac guy trying to sway other people towards mac thing, since even the mac haters were stepping up and doing it in my absence

[fjuanl]

For the future if the laptop has bloatware on it:

The PC Decrapifier Wipes Unwanted Junk | The PC Decrapifier

I used it for a new emachines pc and the bloatware was gone in minutes

[boost]

You can also install windows on apple laptops nowadays, if it turns out mac os x is too horrible or the compatibility issues present too much of a problem, or whatever.

I'm not saying buy an apple laptop to wipe macos and install windows on it, but just if all the other arguments (weight, how cool you look sitting in a café, instantly get to be a superior douche) were swaying you and only some operating system related fears were holding you back.

just thought I should do the obligatory mac guy trying to sway other people towards mac thing, since even the mac haters were stepping up and doing it in my absence

So, I was waiting for my ride to show up and I happened to be right outside an Apple store-- so I dropped in to play with some gadgets while I waited. I hate to say, the OS actually seems quite intuitive. Their touch pads are fucking light years ahead of touch pads found on most PC laptops. Hell, I was actually at a station with a huge (30"?) monitor setup and I was messing around for a few minutes before I even realized that I was using a touch pad on a desktop computer! I normally hate touch pads, and tend to plug a mouse into my laptop because the touch pad is so annoying to use. But the Apple one is really inuitive-- I'm sure it would suck for gaming, but for general OS stuff it might actually be superior!

[d0zer]

I think apple makes great laptops, they're just overpriced. OSX is a nice OS too.

[bigred]

Why not just get her an apple?

No, seriously. I fucking hate apple products. But in terms of laptops, they fit a lot of characteristics that ppl want in a laptop. I agree with Boost that laptops should not be gaming laptops (i had the exact same issue with overheating and graphics card poofting), but if shes not gonna be gaming...every laptop will be able to do what she wants.

The benefits of an apple then...
-Typically lightweight
-Can be thin
-Very easy to use
-Less "HALP, I HAZ VIRI" questions
-If all else fails, or if youre lazy, u can be like "go to the apple store"
-All laptops are more than capable of accessing the internet, using a Microsoft Word like program, play music
-Higher battery life than other brands
-More Stylish (honestly, id say more Girly...but its for a girl!)

Cons
-Typically more expensive, and less powerful. But what do u need power for if you're just surfing youtube
-Still some compatibility issues...but im sure theres work arounds for most common things.

I mean...you dont have to get her an apple. But like...if shes not gonna be doing anything thats more difficult to play than farmville then all laptops should be able to do it.

Look at your post. Now look at the price range of the two computers I posted. Now back to your post. Now look at this post. Your post is not as smart as this post but it could be. Now back to the prices of the two computers. Look! A super expensive as fuck apple computer recommendation. Now back to this post. Look! I'm shaking my head at you!

Guys, Apple is great and all but my GF is going back to school, on a tight budget, and not looking to spend more than 500-600. Do they refurbish Apple laptops for that price range?

[eugmac]

Ya I like os x and all and my prior computer was a macbook but I just didn't have $1000 to spend on a computer so I have an HP DM1 with an AMD Brazos proc with win7 and whatever, it's nothing super special but it was 1/3 the price and does the all the jobs I could do on the mac. hardware is a bit chintzy in some regards, trackpad small/sucks, letters are flaked off the keyboard already after like half a year. i dunno how the mobile processor market looks now, but when I bought this anyway amd brazos was pretty well praised and i feel it gives pretty decent performance and also battery life.

[kiwiMark]

If you loved her you'd buy her a mac.

[eugmac]

idk about that. mine would complain that she has to learn a new OS. it would be more for me than for her so that i don't have to clean up random viruses and shit. which isn't all that often any more anyway.

[Jack Sawyer]

If you loved her you'd buy her a mac.

hahaha this!


This is the last laptop she'll ever need. Will last her at least 5 years, if your description is accurate.

Amazon.com: Apple MacBook Air MC965LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop (NEWEST VERSION): Computers & Accessories

If you are hell bent on stayin' on a low budget, get one of these Amazon.com: HP DM1-4170US 11.6-Inch Laptop (Charcoal Gray): Computers & Accessories or these Amazon.com: Samsung Series 3 NP350U2A-A01US 12.5-Inch Laptop (Black): Computers & Accessories and then stick one of these Amazon.com: Crucial 128 GB m4 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s CT128M4SSD2: Electronics or these Amazon.com: Intel 510 Series 120 GB SATA Version 3 2.5-Inch Solid-State Drive: Electronics in there , as windows based ultrabooks (the category actual notebooks should fall into, you know, with awesome battery life forbeing actually productive on the road as any tru laptop should allow you to) such as these Amazon.com: Toshiba Portege Z835-P370 13.3-Inch Ultrabook (Silver): Computers & Accessories are still very expensive (plus, you still need to factor in the price of a decent SSD).

[d0zer]

ya bigred, tell your stupid gf to spend more than 2x her budget

[Jack Sawyer]

Girlfriend is contemplating buying this: Deal of the Day

She uses her pc mainly for internetting, music, etc. will prob use it for school in the future. Thoughts? Is it too heavy?

Also, what's the rep on asus for durability and stability? Her old laptop had some issue and has sat on her shelf for months when I think all it needs is a reformat. Therefore, stability and support is a must.

Good idea: buy a new SSD for between ~$140 and $200, stick it in, install windows, win. Extra RAM if needed, for instance if it can take 4GB but is still rocking 2GB. The PC will be amazingly faster. My recommends on SSDs are in the post above.

Better idea: After you implement the Good Idea, save up in the meantime to buy a MBA 13 down the road. $100 bucks a month (20 less cups of Starbucks coffee!) will get you there sooner than you think. And she's going to be soooo happy!

[Numbr2intheWorld]

Look at your post. Now look at the price range of the two computers I posted. Now back to your post. Now look at this post. Your post is not as smart as this post but it could be. Now back to the prices of the two computers. Look! A super expensive as fuck apple computer recommendation. Now back to this post. Look! I'm shaking my head at you!

Guys, Apple is great and all but my GF is going back to school, on a tight budget, and not looking to spend more than 500-600. Do they refurbish Apple laptops for that price range?

The thing is Apple's laptops are cheaper in the sense that they hold their value extremely well, you might buy one for $1500 but then sell it 4 years later for $600, where in that same timeframe you'll be buying two pc laptops that won't run as well.

[kiwiMark]

Another thing worth considering is maybe applying to a worse school than where she's currently headed, and that way she could save a bit of money on the tuition fees and put that towards the mac.

[mbiz]

I'd just get a dell or lenovo with warranty of however long you want (can get up to 3 yeras iirc but 1yr comes included).

For internet/movies/school, pretty much any laptop will do just fine. I have a $350(australia) laptop and it doesnt skip a beat for internet and movies. I only rec. dell because i know htey have extendable warranties, others might too.

[JKDS]

Have you thought about putting it on layaway?

[flomo]

An apple a day puts anal in play.


If you're already getting that or just not interested in that then have her buy her laptop.