Buying a Laptop for School...

**DiabloDj1** · July 12th, 2009, 11:53 AM

I want a laptop for school this fall.

Three points about it...
1. Cheap price! But, still quality. Don't want it to die on me by next year.
2. Good battery life is always great
3. I could care less about games! I got a desktop for that, but I try to not even play them anyway

That's about it I guess... Any suggestions?...

I've found the following from bestbuy:
BestBuy.com - Compare Page

Or from Tiger Direct:
1. Lenovo 3000 N500 4233-52U Notebook PC - Intel Celeron M 575 2.0GHz, 1GB DDR2, 160GB HDD, DVDRW, 15.4" WXGA, Vista Home Basic, Silver 423352U at TigerDirect.com
2. Lenovo 3000 G530 4446-35U Notebook PC - Intel Pentium Dual-Core T4200 2.0GHz, 2GB DDR2, 160GB HDD, DVDRW, 15.4" WXGA, Vista Home Basic 444635U at TigerDirect.com

Any other ideas or opinions on these?
I'm a little rusty on my technology =\

Thanks

**osprey4** · July 12th, 2009, 03:56 PM

Hi, Diablo:

One of the most important factors when buying a laptop for college is where are you going to get service. Of the models you listed, the Lenovo would be the best choice, but you need to figure out what to do in the event anything goes bad.

Whichever way you go, please make sure to purchase a 3-4 year warranty.

**DiabloDj1** · July 12th, 2009, 09:29 PM

Alright thanks man... and I'm guessing the Dual-Core T4200 is better than the Celeron M 575 right?

What do you mean by getting service? Like, internet? Or fixing it?

**Flying JJ** · July 12th, 2009, 10:36 PM

Check out Newegg for prices too.

**DiabloDj1** · July 14th, 2009, 12:45 AM

Do you think there would be a major improvement if I spend $600 instead of just $400? I think I can manage the extra bit... I mean, I can afford a $2000 one, but that's a waste of money, I'd rather save my money for a new car, and some lasic surgery ;D I just need this laptop for internet and notes and such

**pullmyfoot** · July 14th, 2009, 01:24 AM

I think this is a good compromise. $450

Newegg.com - Acer Aspire AS4530-6823 NoteBook AMD Athlon X2 QL-62(2.00GHz) 14.1" Wide XGA 3GB Memory DDR2 667 320GB HDD DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 9100M G - Laptops / Notebooks

**DiabloDj1** · July 14th, 2009, 09:16 AM

Nice... I get a discount from HP, these two are options both around $560:
1. HP ProBook 4510s Notebook PC
2. HP Collegiate Elitebook 6930p

I think I might go with the Elitebook

**osprey4** · July 14th, 2009, 11:03 AM

Originally Posted by DiabloDj1

What do you mean by getting service? Like, internet? Or fixing it?

When you're three days away from final exams and your hard drive dies, who's going to fix it? That's what I mean by service. Many universities have their own help desk.

My son's freshman roomy bought an HP at Best Buy (bad idea). Mid way through the year, the thing wouldn't boot. He took it to Best Buy and they wanted to ship it off for service. This was not an option, given his course load. He brought it to the help desk guys and they diagnosed faulty RAM. HP shipped him new RAM overnight and he was back in business.

**theGlitch** · July 14th, 2009, 11:09 AM

Though Dell can be Dicey, I got a Vostro from them real cheap and haven't had any issues. This came as a suggestion from a buddy (who has since had so many issues with Dell he refuses to use them). But my Vostro lasted me 2+yrs of college and not a single issue yet.

Also, if you're just looking to use the laptop for only notes and internet, try looking into a netbook. I haven't looked at prices on them for a while, but I know they had got pretty low and powerful.

**GroundZero3** · July 14th, 2009, 12:05 PM

Originally Posted by osprey4

When you're three days away from final exams and your hard drive dies, who's going to fix it? That's what I mean by service. Many universities have their own help desk.

My son's freshman roomy bought an HP at Best Buy (bad idea). Mid way through the year, the thing wouldn't boot. He took it to Best Buy and they wanted to ship it off for service. This was not an option, given his course load. He brought it to the help desk guys and they diagnosed faulty RAM. HP shipped him new RAM overnight and he was back in business.

Osprey brings up a good point, check with your school to see if they have a brand they prefer or an agreement with the school for the fastest service (and potential deals)

**DiabloDj1** · July 17th, 2009, 02:30 PM

Nvm, still lookin for laptops...

**merviner** · August 17th, 2009, 05:57 AM

A netbook is not an option? They are way cheap. Personally I would think they are to small to work properly with them... Those lenovos didn't seem to bad? Although only come with Vista basic, which has some nasty restrictions if I recall correctly. Anyhow, what will you be using it for ? if you are just making notes in classes in ms word orso you can probably settle with that, but if you require some power atleast get a c2d not a celeron, and I would get atleast 2gb of ram.