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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 3211560 times)

Offline DH Data Recovery

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7360 on: December 02, 2014, 05:45:52 PM »
That should be fine for you.

Offline princea143

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7361 on: December 02, 2014, 05:47:02 PM »
$20 off $100 is 20 cb  vs Ink at 5 ppd.  Each situation is different.
And I know the joy of finally ordering.  My hands were practically shaking as I checked all my Amex cards to find a Staples offer.
Haha yah.  I got 11.  Trying the split payment for $200 VGCs this week in store.  Have you done all of yours yet?  Oh by the way, there was an issue with my payment for the Toshiba, so when I called to push it through, I just took the $20 rebate card off, and charged the remainder to my Ink.  8)

Offline ari9

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7362 on: December 02, 2014, 09:03:41 PM »
from ddms
http://www.dansdeals.com/archives/56993
is this machine durable? any pros/cons to know about?
looking for something long lasting and not heavy

Offline ckmk47

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7363 on: December 02, 2014, 11:51:05 PM »
Haha yah.  I got 11.  Trying the split payment for $200 VGCs this week in store.  Have you done all of yours yet?  Oh by the way, there was an issue with my payment for the Toshiba, so when I called to push it through, I just took the $20 rebate card off, and charged the remainder to my Ink.  8)
I only got 1 staples offer! :(
Good work on the payment change!
My favorite cause: cssy.org

Offline clear thinker

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7364 on: December 03, 2014, 10:52:01 AM »
I just got a laptop without a cd/dvd drive, so i ordered this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136261&ignorebbr=1
How bad can it be?? I just need it to burn or copy cds...
I also have a macbook, so this drive is compatible with both my mac and pc!

That should be fine for you.
I'm also looking now for one.
Wouldn't a 3.0 be better?

Offline Yehuda25

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7365 on: December 04, 2014, 05:49:53 PM »
http://www.ebay.com/itm/291286899456?customid=491f18cf1be74092bbff5184e7db9e01&pub=5574652453&afepn=5335869999&campid=5335869999&afepn=5335869999


HP-Notebook-350-G1-K4L55UT-ABA-15-6-Intel-Core-i7-4510U-2-00GHz-500GB-HDD-8 $499

Same one that was on ddms yesterday, but with i7 and no ssd

“To avoid criticism say nothing, do nothing, be nothing.”


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Offline ari9

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7366 on: December 04, 2014, 06:49:37 PM »

Offline Yehuda25

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7367 on: December 04, 2014, 06:51:16 PM »
was posted on 12/1
http://www.dansdeals.com/archives/56882
Thanks, I should have checked. I dont get the tweets anymore because they are too frequent and have become annoying. Does anyone look at amazon goldbox??
“To avoid criticism say nothing, do nothing, be nothing.”


― Aristotle

Offline beej

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7368 on: December 05, 2014, 01:20:07 AM »
http://www.ebay.com/itm/291286899456?customid=491f18cf1be74092bbff5184e7db9e01&pub=5574652453&afepn=5335869999&campid=5335869999&afepn=5335869999


HP-Notebook-350-G1-K4L55UT-ABA-15-6-Intel-Core-i7-4510U-2-00GHz-500GB-HDD-8 $499

Same one that was on ddms yesterday, but with i7 and no ssd
A friend and I both just bought this when it was originally posted on DDMS and we are both having the same issue. The WiFi is painfully slow. I would a guess a cheap faulty network card.

The first thing I did was go to IE and download Firefox and chrome. It took at least  a half an hr to download. I did a  speed test on my iPad on my home wi-fi and then the same test using I from the new laptop . My download was 15Mb on the ipad and 1Mb on the new laptop.

My friend had the same issue and when he plugged it into his router it worked fine so he assumed it was his wireless router that was shot.

Maybe the pros can help here.

@DH did you open the one you said you had? Did you have this issue?
« Last Edit: December 05, 2014, 01:24:02 AM by beej »

Offline Yehuda57

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7369 on: December 05, 2014, 07:39:13 AM »
A friend and I both just bought this when it was originally posted on DDMS and we are both having the same issue. The WiFi is painfully slow. I would a guess a cheap faulty network card.

The first thing I did was go to IE and download Firefox and chrome. It took at least  a half an hr to download. I did a  speed test on my iPad on my home wi-fi and then the same test using I from the new laptop . My download was 15Mb on the ipad and 1Mb on the new laptop.

My friend had the same issue and when he plugged it into his router it worked fine so he assumed it was his wireless router that was shot.

Maybe the pros can help here.

@DH did you open the one you said you had? Did you have this issue?
Reading the reviews, you'll see it is a common issue with this model.

Offline beej

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7370 on: December 05, 2014, 08:36:57 AM »
Reading the reviews, you'll see it is a common issue with this model.
Solution?

Offline Hudi

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7371 on: December 05, 2014, 10:13:26 AM »
DH, can you advise on the value of this deal?

Dell™ XPS 11 (XPS18-9091CFB) 2-in-1 Ultrabook™ Laptop Computer With 11.6" Quad HD Touch-Screen Display & 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i5 Processor $599
http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/665236/Dell-XPS-11-XPS18-9091CFB-2/

Offline SOS

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7372 on: December 05, 2014, 10:35:12 AM »
Is this a good deal?
http://m.staples.com/touch/product.html#1387726
Asus X205TA, 11.6" HD Laptop for $149.99

Offline Yehuda57

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7373 on: December 05, 2014, 10:47:52 AM »
Solution?

Personally, I would return it. even if there is a fix, I wouldn't want to have to start messing around with a brand new machine.

Offline cozmohoot

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7374 on: December 05, 2014, 02:50:54 PM »
Is this a good deal?
http://m.staples.com/touch/product.html#1387726
Asus X205TA, 11.6" HD Laptop for $149.99
Very low end processor and with win8 that could be an issue

Offline Yehuda25

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7375 on: December 06, 2014, 06:37:05 PM »
Dell Inspiron i3147-3750sLV 11.6-Inch 2 in 1 Convertible Touchscreen Laptop for $300 Staples IN STORE ONLY

Screen Size   11.6 inches
Screen Resolution   1366 x 768
Max Screen Resolution   1366x768
Processor   2.16 GHz Pentium
RAM   4 GB DDR3L SDRAM (expandable to 8GB)
Memory Speed   1333 MHz
Hard Drive   500 GB hard_drive (5400 rpm)
Graphics Coprocessor   Intel HD Graphics
Wireless Type   802.11bgn
Number of USB 2.0 Ports   2
Number of USB 3.0 Ports   1
Average Battery Life (in hours)   7.5 hours
HDMI port

“To avoid criticism say nothing, do nothing, be nothing.”


― Aristotle

Offline BrooklynCPA

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7376 on: December 07, 2014, 12:13:14 PM »
A friend and I both just bought this when it was originally posted on DDMS and we are both having the same issue. The WiFi is painfully slow. I would a guess a cheap faulty network card.

The first thing I did was go to IE and download Firefox and chrome. It took at least  a half an hr to download. I did a  speed test on my iPad on my home wi-fi and then the same test using I from the new laptop . My download was 15Mb on the ipad and 1Mb on the new laptop.

My friend had the same issue and when he plugged it into his router it worked fine so he assumed it was his wireless router that was shot.

Maybe the pros can help here.

@DH did you open the one you said you had? Did you have this issue?

I too purchased this laptop. I am concerned about this Wifi issue. Did anyone figure out a solution? If not, can it be returned to Newegg even though there no returns allowed since we purchased a faulty profuct?

Offline beej

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7377 on: December 07, 2014, 12:42:15 PM »
I too purchased this laptop. I am concerned about this Wifi issue. Did anyone figure out a solution? If not, can it be returned to Newegg even though there no returns allowed since we purchased a faulty profuct?
I found the solution in one of the reviews on Newegg. Very weird solution but it works. Download the Broadcom Bluetooth 4.0 driver and software from HP website.
I'll let the pros chime in on how that could possibly have fixed it, but mine works fine now.

Offline BrooklynCPA

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7378 on: December 07, 2014, 04:14:10 PM »
I found the solution in one of the reviews on Newegg. Very weird solution but it works. Download the Broadcom Bluetooth 4.0 driver and software from HP website.
I'll let the pros chime in on how that could possibly have fixed it, but mine works fine now.

I actually called Newegg and told them about the issue everyone is complaining about. They were willing to take it back for a full refund and sent me a return label. If this fix is the answer maybe I should keep it.

 Is there a way to buy a full guarantee on this laptop?

Offline beej

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Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #7379 on: December 07, 2014, 04:16:13 PM »
I actually called Newegg and told them about the issue everyone is complaining about. They were willing to take it back for a full refund and sent me a return label. If this fix is the answer maybe I should keep it.

 Is there a way to buy a full guarantee on this laptop?
I'm having the same dillema. Now that it's fixed maybe I should just keep it...
On the other hand if there's really an issue I don't want it creeping back up on me.