Another laptop thread - help me this time

[Warik]

Ok... I have a Gateway Solo 5300 right now that I've been using for roughly 1.5-2 years. It's a PIII 650 Mhz machine with 128 mb ram, about 1.5" thick, viewable screen I believe is around 13.5-14.1". It's getting too slow for my tastes, so I'd like to upgrade. Naturally I'm going to be a new or manufacturer refurb machine on uBid (unless I can find some other outrageously cheap source).

The Sony Vaios look nice but I've always been told that they are overpriced.

I'm looking for a 1Ghz+ system with minimum of:

10 gig hd space
256mb ram
dvd playing capabilities
14.1" screen.

Other features should just be the standard shit... room for 2 pc cards, swappable floppy drive, built in NIC, yada yada yada. Oh yeah... and it must have a touchpad... not that weird little ball in the middle of the keyboard.

Anyway, I've seen VAIOS go for between $1,000 and $1,300 on uBid, but they have so many fucking model numbers that I don't know which is good or not... or maybe I should not get a VAIO at all. What do you all recommend (and how much do you think I could get for my existing laptop?)

-Warik

 

[TheProject]

I'd check ebay to get an idea of what you could get for yours. Used notebooks seem to retain their value fairly well.

As far as new ones go, I'd suggest either HP or IBM. You might pay a little more for an IBM, but they're damn near indestructible, unless you really try to injure them.

I've never checked into the Vaios for work simply because availability sucks on them in quantity, but they are supposed to be nice.

 

[Testosterone boy]

Notebooks are confusing as hell to me. I've been looking for a few months hoping to find a "deal." They have not significantly improved in several months.

A service man said all he ever gets is HPs and Compaqs. Dell has a good rep most everywhere. Sony and Toshiba are about the same, Sony cost more. DDR memory is really much, much better than the previous. Communicates both ways instead of one way I understand.

Hard to find deals on good notebooks bro.

I'm starting another thread soon as well.

 

[HappyScrappy]

I have purchased two laptops off of ubid and I like them.

the sony vaios are really nice and quiet computers. if you want that small a screen, then you should def be able to get it under a grand.

also, it depends what max rez you want it at.

I have an HP that can run 1400something by... whatever the other dimension is. I love the higher rez and would never get a laptop that couldn't do at least that. and on at least 15".

I like the HP because it has a right, left, and middle button, and the middle is a rocker button that lets you scroll.
but it is an athlon, so it runs a bit hotter, and it isn't as thin as the Sonys.

 

[2Thick]

I like the toshiba satellite series.

You could also go for a Dell 8100

 

[XBiker]

Check here if you don't mind buying used.

http://www.dell.com/html/us/outlet/redir/bsd.htm

Dell has good deals on refurb's and (IMO) the best support in the business.

 

[slickdadd]

is pricewatch not a good place to look for notebooks, because of course the prices are low

 

[HappyScrappy]

is pricewatch not a good place to look for notebooks, because of course the prices are low

pricewatch is great if you know what you are looking for. pricewatch just reports prices that are fed to them, so a lot of times they are manipulated by the vendors, so the prices aren't as good as they claim.

I use pricewatch when putting together a system, and while technically there are laptop kits, they aren't as sleek and nice as some of the cool ones out there.

I think alienware (I think that is the name) had a cool laptop awhile back, but nothing all that amazing considering some of them out there.

I think dell has one with a geforce4 in it

 

[slickdadd]

Yeah i assumed pricewatch wasn't mentioned because laptops are pretty aesthetic right now. Still pretty low prices.

 

[Warik]

I'm not overly concerned with heat as long as the system will not cook the surface upon which it is resting. Thin-ness is not a big deal either as long as it's <2" or so. Screen is a bare minimum of 14.1", since I just measured mine and that's how big it is. Res also minimum of 1024x768. I haven't heard much about HP or Dell laptops (plus I hate the "Dude!" guy), so I haven't given much thought to buying a Dell. Then again, my only interest in the Vaios is that they "look cool."

I saw a Sony Vaio Athlon 1500 1.3Ghz w/256 ram, 14.1" screen, and the other bullshit I want for about $1,000 on uBid early. Was going to bid on it but I wasn't sure if that was a good price for the model. I believe it was the PCG-FXA53.

What do you think?

-Warik

 

[HappyScrappy]

I saw a Sony Vaio Athlon 1500 1.3Ghz w/256 ram, 14.1" screen, and the other bullshit I want for about $1,000 on uBid early. Was going to bid on it but I wasn't sure if that was a good price for the model. I believe it was the PCG-FXA53.

What do you think?

-Warik

that is very much like the one I bought one of my ex-girlfriends and that was a nice computer. her's had a bigger screen, but let ram and a slower processor (733 p3).
that is a pretty good price, but if you watch the site a lot, you could get a 15" screen for that money.

I have a HP - not sure what model it is - I could tell you when I get home.
as long as you don't mind it getting warm (meaning you won't actually have it on your lap), then it is fine.
That is my major nitpick with it, and the Mac Ti Powerbook - both get hot to the touch, which is annoying if it is actually on your lap.

The Vaios are very quiet, stay very cool, are really nice and easy to use, and come with a shitload of software.

The only bad thing I could say is that the net cable connected in the back, and in order to get to it, there was a little door thing you had to open (down) and then if you set it on something, the door would push up into the net cable, breaking the connection (depending on what cable you use).
I'm not a big fan of bad engineering.

knock on wood, I've never had any problem at all with my hp, aside from it getting warm if the processor is used a lot. and one might argue that it could be quieter

 

[NY Muscle]

I saw a Sony Vaio Athlon 1500 1.3Ghz w/256 ram, 14.1" screen, and the other bullshit I want for about $1,000 on uBid early. Was going to bid on it but I wasn't sure if that was a good price for the model. I believe it was the PCG-FXA53.

What do you think?

-Warik

Go for it bro… I had a dell Inspiron 7000 laptop, man that fucker was expensive, bought it when it 1st came out in 1998, then xmas of 2001 I went on Ubid and got a Sony Vaio (ill check model # 2nite and post it) 15 inch screen, 128 mb RAM (I can get another 128ram at the local pc store here for $50 installed) 700mghz Pentium III, 13GB hard drive, DVD, 2 card slots…tons of plug in in the back inckuding a plug for my cable modem and the phone jack is back there also…light as hell and quiet, IO paid $933, (efurbished) so basically you could probably get the specs you want which is a a few steps up from mine for around the same price (refurbished)… my whole family uses Ubid, it’s a good place and I love my Vaio, ill get another one in 1-2yrs when they get the 2ghz Chips.