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Looking to buy a laptop
GreasyKidsStuff
MOMMM!ROAST BEEF WANTS TO KISS GIRLS ON THE TITTIES!Registered User regular
MOMMM!ROAST BEEF WANTS TO KISS GIRLS ON THE TITTIES!Registered User regular
So I'm in the market for a laptop, because living in a house of five, who all use the computer, it can get pretty aggravating when either a) you want to use it and it's occupied, or b) you're using it and family members are badgering you for it. So having a computer of my own would be awesome. Thinking of a laptop just so it's there for when I go to school in the future, whenever that happens (graduated last year, taking a year off working). And just generally being able to use it anywhere.
I'm not sure what I wanna get though. I haven't really done a whole lot of research (I probably should've before I made this thread, but whatever). So I'll just start off with a list of what I'm using this thing for. It's pretty basic.
- Internet, instant messaging (windows messenger)
- Music (I use iTunes on the home computer, so familiarity with that is making me lean towards a macbook)
That's really it, as of now I don't do any actual work on the computer, not being in school at all. I'm not looking for a gaming rig, just a good all-purpose computer that won't give me too much hassle.
I'm leaning towards a Macbook because one of my friends recommended it, she uses it for the same stuff I'd use it for and she says it's awesome. Anything I should know that would deter me from this?
Another question I have is how easy it would be to transfer some files I have from one computer to the other. I have a big iTunes library and some stuff I bought off the store, and I'm worried that would be a pain in the ass to transfer to another computer, be it a Mac or something else. Would whoever I bought the computer from offer that kind of service?
My price range is kinda large, I have about 2500 bucks to spend on it, and my parents are lending 500 as a graduation gift. So price isn't really the biggest issue, I just don't wanna go blow it on something super high-end I don't really need. Basic uses and all.
Any help is appreciated, but please don't go dump a bunch of technical specs on me cuz I guarantee I won't know what it means or how it stacks up. Sorry for not coming in with a better idea but... that's what this is for I guess.
Thanks!
I'm not sure what I wanna get though. I haven't really done a whole lot of research (I probably should've before I made this thread, but whatever). So I'll just start off with a list of what I'm using this thing for. It's pretty basic.
- Internet, instant messaging (windows messenger)
- Music (I use iTunes on the home computer, so familiarity with that is making me lean towards a macbook)
That's really it, as of now I don't do any actual work on the computer, not being in school at all. I'm not looking for a gaming rig, just a good all-purpose computer that won't give me too much hassle.
I'm leaning towards a Macbook because one of my friends recommended it, she uses it for the same stuff I'd use it for and she says it's awesome. Anything I should know that would deter me from this?
Another question I have is how easy it would be to transfer some files I have from one computer to the other. I have a big iTunes library and some stuff I bought off the store, and I'm worried that would be a pain in the ass to transfer to another computer, be it a Mac or something else. Would whoever I bought the computer from offer that kind of service?
My price range is kinda large, I have about 2500 bucks to spend on it, and my parents are lending 500 as a graduation gift. So price isn't really the biggest issue, I just don't wanna go blow it on something super high-end I don't really need. Basic uses and all.
Any help is appreciated, but please don't go dump a bunch of technical specs on me cuz I guarantee I won't know what it means or how it stacks up. Sorry for not coming in with a better idea but... that's what this is for I guess.
Thanks!
GreasyKidsStuff on
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$1000 will get you a desktop system that will comfortably run *any* current game. With that budget, you could get a 3GHz Core 2 Duo, 2-4 GB of RAM, an 8800 GTS video card, and a 19-22" widescreen LCD monitor, plus of course the other necessary bits like a decent case and power supply, optical drive, hard drive(s), etc. You'd end up with something that would be incredibly comfortable to work on, and also powerful enough to handle anything you might want to throw at it within the next couple of years.
Then, use the leftover money to buy a basic Macbook. That will fit your needs just fine as far as portability goes, and it'll still have enough horses under the hood to take care of browsing, IMing, etc.
Unless your library is excessively large, this should at most require buying a $20 USB memory stick and copying files over a few times. If it's utterly gigantic you can (a) go a little crazier either networking the two computers, (b) putting the old hard drive in an external case to move them over, or (c) just hook the two computers up to the internet and send the folder to yourself overnight over aim/some other file transfer program. In any case, with the money you're talking about an external hard drive for storage (especially at college, and especially since laptops generally don't have as large internal HDs as desktops would) is always a nice purchase anyway, and would make this easier
*edit
for itunes purchases you will have to authorize the files on your new computer, but you can authorize itunes purchases on (I believe) something like 3? computers, so it's also fairly straightforward if you know your itunes account name/pw
As for the laptop itself - judging solely based upon the fact that you think transferring itunes files will be difficult, I would say a Mac wouldn't be a bad idea. Like a couple of the above posters, I'd look towards the lower end of things - decide what size screen you'd like (which will probably be the most important decision for you, if you're going to use this computer a lot I wouldn't, say, get a 14" screen), and look towards the cheaper end of those. What people are saying is more that Macs in general are somewhat overpriced, and especially for gaming (which you don't seem overly interested in), desktops are faaaaaar more bang for your buck.
I was steered towards the EEE PC. I ended up grabbing a 1000h, and I couldn't be happier with it. Does everything I want it to, it's fantastically small, has great battery life, and on top of that it was damn cheap
I'd like to second this. I got myself a 701 recently and I'm totally in love with it. If I was going to do it over again I'd make sure I got a 901 or 1000 rather than the smaller 701, but unless someone offers me a straight swap, the 701 was perfect for me.
The best bit about it is that it's so small and lightweight that I'm comfortably using it on the tube and bus. You wouldn't be able to use a big laptop comfortably in a regular bus seat, but the Asus Eee loves it. Also, it never gets heavy. A regular laptop tends to get kind of uncomfortable after sitting with it on your lap for half an hour, but I have no such problems with the Asus. I even use it when I'm lying in bed, as a portable movie player.
Super cheap is a plus too. For the PC, case, and an external HDD you can spend about 600-650 and be fine. Save the rest for car/college/rent/entertainment.
They also come with XP and XP can run iTunes just fine. No need to get a Mac just got iTunes.
No need to spend more cash than you need.
Then again they might all explode upon boot up (thanks, Nvidia).
Check out the Mac thread in the Moes Tech Tavern subforum. Great ppl there to help! (if you're interested)
Edit: Oh, I should mention, for my money Apple makes some of the best notebooks around, period. Their build quality for notebooks is really good, based on what I've seen. The new MacBooks should be especially tough, their made using the new unibody process. Essentially, the two halves of the main section (where the keyboard, trackpad, CPU, ports, etc. are) are carved out of solid aluminum with the scraps recycled. That means there are no welds or rivets in the main body, which should make it exceptionally tough for its weight. Apple puts of a lot of work into the physical design of their units, and that often gets overlooked by people comparing Apple and non-Apple notebooks.
Unfortunately, I have giant man hands of thick-fingered-doom. Thus my typing on her EEE can best be described as cumbersome.
I was worried about my giant man hands interfering with my typing, and for the first day or so it was kind of awkward. But a week on, I'm touch typing without problem. My only complaint is that the screen is just a tad too small - so I'd recommend getting a 901 over a 701 (much better battery life, too).
If not an Eee, I'd go for a Macbook. They're really nice, well-designed things. If I didn't need/love the ultra portability of the Eee, a Macbook would be my choice.
The new N10 is the highest end netbook on the market and runs at 699 (the 1000H was about $200 cheaper even with a memory upgrade) off newegg. Its basically a 1000H with a face life, better speakers, vista, and a MUCH better video card.
Honestly man with 3g's you are much better off getting a ASUS N10 and a high end gaming desktop/monitor. Spending that much on a laptop is a real waste. But hey if you want a macbook then I guess you can't really go wrong. Just go for portability with the mac. Get one of the 13 inchers. Carrying around a 15 incher will get cumbersome.
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