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Please, when posting a link to a laptop listing, make sure to include the price at time of posting. It helps.
Requesting help with a purchase? Please post here: https://forums.dansdeals.com/index.php?topic=135662.msg2794782#msg2794782

Dell:
Precision - Very powerful desktop replacements - great warranty, ridiculously expensive - Usually overpriced or overkill

Latitude - Good Laptops - Great warranty! Highly recommended for any Business environment - Sometimes expensive.

Vostro  - Lower end Business Machines - Better Priced - still durable - Usually 1 Year warranty.

XPS - The nicer looking dell machines, Some are better than others...

Inspiron - YMMV Every model is different

(Plain) Insprion Series - Dells lowest end laptop
(R) Insprion Series - Perfect Home use, dependable, decent build quality, recommended
(Z) Insprion Series - A little slimmer than the R series, Some are Ultrabooks (Very often don't include Optical Drives)

HP:

Spectre - Top of the line personal (dragonfly is the top of the line for business) - lightest laptops, and beautiful!

Pavilion - YMMV (Some better than others)

Probook - Stable durable business systems - Usually a little on the heavy side.

Elitebook - Business Higher end systems, usually pretty expensive

ENVY - Used to be the HP sleek and nicer systems, they pretty much replaced most of the standard pavilions now and call them either ENVY or sleekbooks

Sleekbook - like it sounds slimmer line of laptops

Lenovo:

Thinkpad Series - Very Dependable Business Machine, Expensive (Not Pretty but Durable)

IdeaPad Series -

S Series
U Series - Usually the slimmer line Ultrabooks, Doesn't always include DVD Drive
Y Series - Nice machines with good specs and features (Cool Backlit Keyboards)
Z Series - Step up from the G Series, all around decent build, priced nicely, great home use laptop
G Series - Lower end

Samsung:

Series 3
Series 5
Series 7
Series 9 - The nicest, sleekest looking laptops I've seen in a long time - Can pass for a Macbook!!


HT: Dh Data Recovery & Name Changed


A great post by caliheat:
I believe that there are many factors when deciding what laptop to purchase.
1) What is your intended use and necessary features. e.g. light use vs. heavy use & optical drive, computer speed etc.
2) As mentioned several times in this thread, RAM itself is very easy to upgrade after you purchase.
3) Brand - IMHO this is pretty important as well - which do your prefer vs. which brand do people recommend.
4) Price - you should decide a price range that best suits your needs.
5) Operating System - Many people like myself prefer Windows 7 vs. 8.1, so this would be another consideration.
6) Warranty - does it include 1 year or more, cost for extending warranty.
7) Detailed Specs:
  Processor  - model and speed i3, i5, & i7 2.0 Ghz, 3.0 Ghz etc.
  RAM - This IMHO should be minimum 8GB, especially if running 8.1, however can be added easily.
  Hard Drive - SATA vs. SSD, the latter being much faster. SATA itself offers 5400 RPM vs. 7200 RPM again, the latter being faster.
  Screen Size - this is a personal preference as you can always attach a larger screen in an office setting.
  Battery & Weight - overall laptop weight preference & battery life.
  Graphics - Integrated graphics vs. dedicated graphics, e.g. Intel 4400 vs. Nvidia GTX etc.

In summary, you have to decide what are you priorities, what can be upgraded and what you are flexible on.



Excellent article about the differences between the Intel processor suffixes.

Excellent "Laptop Buying Guide" by @dailykasha, written for Black Friday 2021, updated for holidays 2023

Author Topic: Laptop Deals Master Thread  (Read 3197292 times)

Offline cubicles

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10980 on: June 26, 2017, 10:42:30 PM »

Offline Mendy22

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10981 on: June 30, 2017, 12:44:45 AM »
Anyone have advice on a good laptop to buy? Budget is 400-500$
What I'm looking for:
Good performer (Core i5/i7?)
Good battery life
Would love if it also had a SSD (256Gb+)
(13-15 inch screen)

Was looking at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XJJG4PD But no SSD...


Offline Yisroel Tech

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10982 on: June 30, 2017, 01:02:45 AM »
Anyone have advice on a good laptop to buy? Budget is 400-500$
What I'm looking for:
Good performer (Core i5/i7?)
Good battery life
Would love if it also had a SSD (256Gb+)
(13-15 inch screen)

Was looking at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XJJG4PD But no SSD...
You can't set both the max price and also the min specs...it just doesn't work that way.... (imagine going to a car dealer and asking for a Bugatti and not less than 1000 hp, and budget is 20K....)

Best I can find for ya is https://www.amazon.com/Notebook-Computer-i5-7200U-2-5GHz-Windows/dp/B01NCQAAGT/, which is $50 above your budget and not really good battery life.

Offline Mendy22

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10983 on: June 30, 2017, 01:24:03 AM »
You can't set both the max price and also the min specs...it just doesn't work that way.... (imagine going to a car dealer and asking for a Bugatti and not less than 1000 hp, and budget is 20K....)

Best I can find for ya is https://www.amazon.com/Notebook-Computer-i5-7200U-2-5GHz-Windows/dp/B01NCQAAGT/, which is $50 above your budget and not really good battery life.
I understand...
Maybe instead of saying what i need maybe  I'll say what I'm using(/looking) It for:
A (windows) laptop for everyday use that will last me a couple years,
performs well (not  doing anything heavy just some web browsing ,Microsoft office etc..) ,decent/good battery life,(And it was suggested to me that i should probably get one with a SSD.)
So any advice? Is a 400-500$ budget fair? (though basing from your previous reply I think not :) )
PS.
Don't need any extra features like 2 in 1 or touchscreen...
« Last Edit: June 30, 2017, 02:04:06 AM by Mendy22 »

Offline Yisroel Tech

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10984 on: June 30, 2017, 02:14:40 AM »
I understand...
Maybe instead of saying what i need maybe say what I'm using(/looking) It for:
A (windows) laptop for everyday use that will last me a couple years,
performs well (not  doing anything heavy just some web browsing ,Microsoft office etc..) ,decent/good battery life,(And my friend told me i should probably get one with a SSD.)
So any advice? is a 400-500$ budget fair? (though basing from your previous reply I think not :) )
PS.
Don't need any extra features like 2 in 1 or touchscreen...
If you really want a decent speed, good battery life, SSD, and should last years (not a cheap manufacturer) I'll put it more to the $700 range and more.

This one (if portability is something you are really looking for, evident in the 13 inch that is fine with you) is one of the better options https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M18UZF5

Offline Mendy22

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10985 on: July 03, 2017, 10:15:34 PM »
If you really want a decent speed, good battery life, SSD, and should last years (not a cheap manufacturer) I'll put it more to the $700 range and more.

This one (if portability is something you are really looking for, evident in the 13 inch that is fine with you) is one of the better options https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M18UZF5
How about this one?  https://www.amazon.com/Acer-E5-575G-57D4-15-6-Inches-Notebook-i5-7200U/dp/B01LD4MGY4/ref=dp_ob_title_ce

Offline Yisroel Tech

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Offline Thingywingy

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10987 on: July 03, 2017, 11:01:38 PM »
How does the Yoga X1 compare to Dell XPS 13?
I am sometimes accused of overthinking things. I am still mulling over whether that accusation has merit.

Offline Yisroel Tech

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10988 on: July 03, 2017, 11:19:03 PM »
How does the Yoga X1 compare to Dell XPS 13?
A close call. It is Nicer (Infinity Edge display), smaller and a bit lighter, and cheaper (for the Dell 2-in-1). Versus more durable (business build), better screen (anti-glare, also OLED available for more money), Windows Pro, can have LTE, and is more expensive (for the X1.)

Offline Mendy22

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10989 on: July 03, 2017, 11:20:09 PM »
Acer is considered to be so so.
How so?

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10990 on: July 03, 2017, 11:21:23 PM »

Offline Thingywingy

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10991 on: July 03, 2017, 11:40:32 PM »
I currently have the Dell Inspiron 15 i5547-7450sLV Signature Edition Laptop. I find the keys very shallow, and that slows down my typing. I'm considering upgrading (sticking with 15 inch) and was looking for a laptop with deeper keys that what I currently have. Any recommendations?
I am sometimes accused of overthinking things. I am still mulling over whether that accusation has merit.

Offline Pesach

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10992 on: July 03, 2017, 11:42:17 PM »
What's the best possible price for a base  model iMac 2015. 5 k retina 27 inch in very good to perfect condition from eBay

Offline Mendy22

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10993 on: July 04, 2017, 06:57:17 PM »
So–so
Ok... So what brands are considered good?

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10994 on: July 04, 2017, 07:39:35 PM »
Ok... So what brands are considered good?
Dell, HP, Microsoft. And some devices from Lenovo, Asus. For more expensive there is also MSI and more.



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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10997 on: July 04, 2017, 08:03:50 PM »
I'd consider 2 if you have a benefit from a 2-in-1. otherwise, 1 is a good buy.
Just curious why 1 over 2?

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10998 on: July 04, 2017, 08:31:25 PM »
Just curious why 1 over 2?
1) The 2-in-1 convertibility makes it only less durable, so unless wanted it's rather not to have 2) the matte screen is a good thing to have if you aren't looking for touch 3) has a CD slot, both HDMI and VGA, as well as USB type C.

But honestly, even if 2 is better I wouldn't say it is worth the $100 premium. (for option 1 you can take the Buy Box one, which is not new from Amazon Wearhouse, or the new ones for $749 with no tax which is about the same.)

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10999 on: July 05, 2017, 01:48:54 AM »
1) The 2-in-1 convertibility makes it only less durable, so unless wanted it's rather not to have 2) the matte screen is a good thing to have if you aren't looking for touch 3) has a CD slot, both HDMI and VGA, as well as USB type C.

But honestly, even if 2 is better I wouldn't say it is worth the $100 premium. (for option 1 you can take the Buy Box one, which is not new from Amazon Wearhouse, or the new ones for $749 with no tax which is about the same.)
$749+tax vs $497.23 +35 tax. Not exactly the same...
Gold verion is $579 = $40 tax brand new but is on pre-order...
I am sometimes accused of overthinking things. I am still mulling over whether that accusation has merit.