I need advice for a laptop

Bonkers Sat Dec 10, 2011 11:09 am

Hello computers genius, I need your help.

I need to buy a laptop for my school and I have no idea what to get. I never bought one in my life and actually never used one.

I need something that will last longer than 4-5 hours, I don't want to have to plug it during the class.
I need something with wifi (they probably all have it but I don't know so I put it in the list)
I need something that wont cost more than 1300$
I need something that is good and wont break on me in 1 year
I don't want a mac :)
I want something that is strong enough to play games when I'm bored in class ;)
I can't buy it online, it need to be bought from a store in Quebec (part of the grant program request) so I'll check availability when you give me suggestions.

I'd like to get a list of things I need to get too. I'll get a bag for it but should I get a mouse or other accessories?

Thank you in advance!

GameFriend Sat Dec 10, 2011 12:16 pm

What do you mean by "needs Wifi?"

If you meant the laptop like "makes" Wifi I don't think that is possible...
Most laptops can except Wifi if thats what you meant :D

Bonkers Sat Dec 10, 2011 12:34 pm

GameFriend wrote:What do you mean by "needs Wifi?"

If you meant the laptop like "makes" Wifi I don't think that is possible...
Most laptops can except Wifi if thats what you meant :D

it need to be wifi capable. like I said, they might all do it but I'm too dumb to know :)

Guest Sat Dec 10, 2011 4:43 pm

Although I wholeheartedly oppose $1300 leg warmers, I'd suggest something with an i7 processor.

If there's a Best Buy in Quebec, go see what they have. 6GB of RAM will more than suffice, as will a Quad-core processor.

Here are some good Dell laptops. Use them for comparison.

http://www.dell.com/us/p/laptops#!facets=51795~0~11384532,135390~0~6687269,52538~0~821509&p=1

A good laptop that can handle games efficiently will cost about $1000. The more you spend, the better it gets, unless you want to build it yourself... which I have no experience with. I mainly do desktops.

Hope that helps!

Bonkers Sat Dec 10, 2011 4:48 pm

We do have BestBuy here.

i7... the laptop will be better than my desktop :)

I was also wondering if XP over Vista is better for laptop since it's lighter?

Guest Sat Dec 10, 2011 5:17 pm

Windows 7 is better than both. It's more efficient than XP or Vista.

The laptop i7's aren't that great, really. 2.2Ghz (TurboBoost to 3.1) isn't stellar, but it most certainly is enough to get ultra graphics on Starcraft 2... provided you're not playing Marine Arena or the final Protoss mission.

Bonkers Sat Dec 10, 2011 6:15 pm

yeah, I meant 7 instead of vista.

how about that one

But 6 hours of battery, is that good?

mikefromcanmore Sat Dec 10, 2011 6:41 pm

One of the Asus UL series. My UL80 from 2009 still gets 8-12 hours of battery with regular use.

Guest Sat Dec 10, 2011 7:03 pm

Bonkers wrote:yeah, I meant 7 instead of vista.

how about that one

But 6 hours of battery, is that good?

Six hours... is bad. But then, I'm accustomed to sitting at my computer for longer than that. My sister's laptop has (I believe) an 8-hour life, but when I was playing Minecraft and copying files all over the place and stuff, it died after about an hour. I think that the lifespan is tied to it's intended purpose... and it's intended to play music and browse the web, and not much more.

That particular laptop was designed for power. You don't go equipping 8GBs of RAM without a dang good reason. That thing will easily kill Starcraft 2's maximum settings (for the time being, at least). The only hesitation is the integrated graphics card. It'll snatch some power that could be better spent elsewhere, but as long as you don't run Battlefield 3 on maxed-out settings, you shouldn't notice any problems.

That's a fantastic buy... and I think it mentions something about getting BF3 for free? I'd snatch it up if I was into craptops, but I'm not, so you can has it. :-)

Bonkers Sat Dec 10, 2011 7:07 pm

The only games I would actually be playing on it would be starcraft 2 and minecraft, I use my home computer for the rest.

I might try to get a deal during the boxing day since I don't need it until January.

Guest Sat Dec 10, 2011 7:52 pm

Bonkers wrote:The only games I would actually be playing on it would be starcraft 2 and minecraft, I use my home computer for the rest.

I might try to get a deal during the boxing day since I don't need it until January.

You Canadians and your silly hoolidays.

Tanrex Sat Dec 10, 2011 7:55 pm

Bonkers wrote:But 6 hours of battery, is that good?

Mine is a 1.5-2 hour battery! what i would do to have 6 hrs......

Bonkers Sat Dec 10, 2011 8:05 pm

Alienware M14X , those things are so pretty.... But is it good?

Tanrex Sat Dec 10, 2011 8:07 pm

Bonkers wrote:Alienware M14X , those things are so pretty.... But is it good?

lap burners............

Guest Sat Dec 10, 2011 8:31 pm

Aye, Alienwares are insanely incredible, but overpriced, and you can make a flamethrower from the heat exhaust.

But seriously, if you have the disposable income...

For comparison, I built a computer once (well, assembled a parts list) on TigerDirect and NewEgg. The cost was $2000, but the specs were that of the $8,000 Alienware Area 51 ALX whatever PC. I guess the extra six grand goes to the Alien head emblem and tower lighting system?

Bonkers Sat Dec 10, 2011 8:41 pm

I wont go with alienware, they are pretty but I prefer to spend the money elsewhere.

Guest Sat Dec 10, 2011 8:53 pm

Bonkers wrote:I wont go with alienware, they are pretty but I prefer to spend the money elsewhere.

I need advice for a laptop Tumblr_ls1hysKXeZ1qkkb5e

Kamisama Sun Dec 11, 2011 2:29 am

First off ... from what I'm reading, I assume a "school labtop" refers to Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe Photoshop Suite, Autodesk, Java/C++, etc ... yes?

DISCLAIMER: I'm just giving my advice ... I'm not really a labtop/notebook type of person; I'm a Desktop PC fanatic. ㄱㄱ

In my opinion, if you really have the money, want to game on the labtop, or plan on using it a lot ... then go ahead and purchase a labtop. But I seriously do not recommend buying from Alienware. (sure, they customize gaming labtops ... but the price is a ripoff and labtops are not meant for hardcore gaming)

Other than that, I'd recommend a "lighter labtop" or a notebook of some sort. Something that weighs less, more compact, and has good ease of access. A labtop is too heavy to carry around school all day.

Tanrex Sun Dec 11, 2011 10:57 pm

Kamisama wrote:First off ... from what I'm reading, I assume a "school labtop" refers to Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe Photoshop Suite, Autodesk, Java/C++, etc ... yes?

DISCLAIMER: I'm just giving my advice ... I'm not really a labtop/notebook type of person; I'm a Desktop PC fanatic. ㄱㄱ

In my opinion, if you really have the money, want to game on the labtop, or plan on using it a lot ... then go ahead and purchase a labtop. But I seriously do not recommend buying from Alienware. (sure, they customize gaming labtops ... but the price is a ripoff and labtops are not meant for hardcore gaming)

Other than that, I'd recommend a "lighter labtop" or a notebook of some sort. Something that weighs less, more compact, and has good ease of access. A labtop is too heavy to carry around school all day.

Amen brother(sister?), amen!

Bonkers Mon Dec 12, 2011 7:53 am

I'll be going to the store today to check some models and see what kind of price I can expect in the next days, I think that Bestbuy is gonna be doing a boxing week before Christmas.

Thanks all for your advice, I know what to look for in a laptop now.

Bonkers Mon Dec 12, 2011 3:25 pm

Ok, I might have found a good laptop.

HP Pavilion dv7-6197ca

Can I get some input on that choice please. I can get it at 1000$ instead of 1200$ because he's gonna be on sale starting tomorrow.

Tanrex Tue Dec 13, 2011 1:45 pm

Bonkers wrote:Ok, I might have found a good laptop.

HP Pavilion dv7-6197ca

Can I get some input on that choice please. I can get it at 1000$ instead of 1200$ because he's gonna be on sale starting tomorrow.

It looks like a good choice, IMO. HP makes good comps to my knowledge.

Cr3aT!oN Tue Dec 13, 2011 6:37 pm

Bonkers wrote:Ok, I might have found a good laptop.

HP Pavilion dv7-6197ca

Can I get some input on that choice please. I can get it at 1000$ instead of 1200$ because he's gonna be on sale starting tomorrow.

Great specs, great brand. But is it a bit to big for school use? 17", is very large. I would find a 13" quite difficult to haul around.
Looks like a battery sapper.

Bonkers Tue Dec 13, 2011 7:00 pm

the battery last 9½ hours according to the specs. it's better than most 15" or 13" I found that only lasted 4 hours.

Tanrex Tue Dec 13, 2011 10:11 pm

Bonkers wrote:the battery last 9½ hours according to the specs.

9½ hrs.................

thesorehead Wed Dec 14, 2011 11:09 pm

When you say "school" do you mean "secondary school" (i.e. highschool), university, college ...?

In any case, the first priority of any notebook that is going to be that mobile should be mobility: how easy is it to physically carry around. Stick it in a bag, hold it in your hand. Second priority should be build quality: it's going to be opened and closed 20 times a day, jostled in a bag, probably held by a corner and almost certainly knocked about every now and again.

I would reccomend the recent ASUS UX31 "ultrabook" models, the so-called "Zenbook" range: http://zenbook.asus.com/au/design/

Review here.

Yes, it looks something like a Macbook Air - but this is a Win7 PC that will meet all of your requirements. The only thing it lacks is powerful graphics, but the latest on-die graphics from Intel will be perfectly adequate for the likes of Minecraft. I don't think you'll have time to play much Starcraft in class, and I'd hate to see anyone try to micro with a trackpad! :--p It's very unrealistic to expect 8 hours of battery life while playing games or doing other power-sucking things, but don't forget also that Suspend and Hibernate is amazingly fast with an SSD. Set it to Hibernate upon closing the lid and you'll last a full day no problems!

Cr3aT!oN Thu Dec 15, 2011 12:15 am

Those Zenbooks are truly beautiful.

Bonkers Thu Dec 15, 2011 1:18 am

I don't think those Zenbook are available in Canada, it's the first time I hear about them, they might have another name here.

I don't expect battery to last long if playing game, I wont play much either, maybe during lunch or the days I'll take the bus and only if I don't have school work to do :)

The only program that I'll be needing it for school is gonna be AutoCAD and it's not something that need tons of power.

I talked more with the teacher today and since I need to buy a better winter suit and some high quality winter boots I lowered the quality of the laptop a bit. here is a link to it.
Since I'm gonna be doing more stuff outside and less inside, I prefer to spend on good winter clothes. We also have desktop computer on every desk to do most of our stuff. The laptop is mostly so I can work in the bus and during lunch if I need to.

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