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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.
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Warning: most of the wiki that follows was written a very long time ago and the information on it can be outdated.

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 3660810 times)

Offline U-no-me!

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #200 on: December 10, 2011, 07:04:25 PM »
HP Pavilion g7t Core i3 Dual 2.4GHz 17" LED Laptop = 474.99 Use Code SAVE25HP
http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/load_configuration.do?destination=review&config_id=6889957

Includes:
Intel Core i3-370M 2.4GHz dual-core processor, 17.3" 1600x900 widescreen LED display,
6GB RAM, 500GB hard drive, DVD burner, 802.11n wireless, webcam, 6-cell battery, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.

Deal ends December 17.
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Offline U-no-me!

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #201 on: December 10, 2011, 07:14:04 PM »
Toshiba Satellite Core i5 Dual 2.4GHz 16" LED Laptop with FREE 8x8 Shutterfly Photbook = $449.99


Includes:
Intel Core i5-2430M 2.4GHz dual-core processor, 15.6" 1366x768 LED-backlit widescreen LCD, 4GB RAM, 500GB hard drive, DVD burner, 802.11n wireless, media card reader, 6-cell battery, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.
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Offline AJK

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #202 on: December 10, 2011, 07:25:19 PM »
Toshiba Satellite Core i5 Dual 2.4GHz 16" LED Laptop with FREE 8x8 Shutterfly Photbook = $449.99


Includes:
Intel Core i5-2430M 2.4GHz dual-core processor, 15.6" 1366x768 LED-backlit widescreen LCD, 4GB RAM, 500GB hard drive, DVD burner, 802.11n wireless, media card reader, 6-cell battery, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.

Seems pretty good with the Sec Gen i5.

Thoughts on this for a sub $500 lappie?
2015: 116K bkd | 1.6M brnd | F: OZ,NH,AA,EK | J: UA,CA,TK,DL,TN,AF,VA | LIH,NRT,ROR,PEK,CNS,BOB,MEL,TLV & Pacific Hopper

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #203 on: December 10, 2011, 08:20:27 PM »
Dell Inspiron 15R Core i5 Dual 2.4GHz 16" LED Laptop = $499.99

Includes:
Intel Core i5-2430M 2.4GHz dual core Sandy Bridge processor, 15.6" 1366x768 (720p) LED-backlit widescreen LCD, 4GB RAM, 500GB hard drive, DVD burner, 802.11n wireless, Bluetooth, webcam, 6-cell battery, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.
Ends December 12.
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Offline Yordai Dooma

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #204 on: December 10, 2011, 08:30:29 PM »
thoughts on this one: ASUS A53SV-EH71 15.6" Core i7-2670QM
$669 from amazon

Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
Display: 15.6-inch HD display (1366 x 768) (LED)
Processor: Intel® Core™i7-2670QM Processor (2.2 GHz)
Graphics: NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 540M with 1GB of DDR3 VRAM Graphics
WLAN: 802.11 b/g/n
LAN: 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet
Memory: 6GB DDR3 SDRAM,2 x SODIMM Sockets (up to 8GB)
Storage: 640GB 5400RPM hard drive
Optical Drive: DL DVD±RW/CD-RW
Camera: 0.3 megapixel
Speakers: Altec Lansing® Speakers
Microphone: Microphone
Card Reader: 5-in-1 card reader (SD, MMC, MS, MS PRO SDHC (SD2.0)
Input / Output: 1 x Mic-in, 1 x Headphone-out, 1 x VGA port/Mini D-Sub 15-pin for external monitor, 1 x RJ-45 LAN, 2 x USB 2.0 ports, 1 x USB 3.0, 1 x HDMI
Battery: 6 cell
Dimensions: 15.12 x 10.12 x 1.4 –inches (W x D x H)
Weight: 5.72 lbs (with 6 cell battery)
Color: Black

Dont know much about these things, but on SD people are saying the resolution is bad.
« Last Edit: December 10, 2011, 08:37:24 PM by David »

Offline YG

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #205 on: December 10, 2011, 08:33:40 PM »
I have an ASUS netbook, and it gives me tzoros, but my reading around here tells me, that that's 'par for the course' with netbooks.

One thing I'm noticing, is that all these prices do not include Microsoft office, which costs well over $100 extra, and I don't see a laptop being productive without it.  But I suppose that's consistent across the board, so it is what it is, and you just gotta keep it in mind when being excited by an advertised price.

Offline AJK

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #206 on: December 10, 2011, 08:46:56 PM »
I have an ASUS netbook, and it gives me tzoros, but my reading around here tells me, that that's 'par for the course' with netbooks.

One thing I'm noticing, is that all these prices do not include Microsoft office, which costs well over $100 extra, and I don't see a laptop being productive without it.  But I suppose that's consistent across the board, so it is what it is, and you just gotta keep it in mind when being excited by an advertised price.

Google Open Office or Google Docs.
2015: 116K bkd | 1.6M brnd | F: OZ,NH,AA,EK | J: UA,CA,TK,DL,TN,AF,VA | LIH,NRT,ROR,PEK,CNS,BOB,MEL,TLV & Pacific Hopper

Offline YG

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #207 on: December 10, 2011, 09:14:05 PM »
Google Open Office or Google Docs.
I suppose....
Although that limits you to only being able to do word processing when you have internet connection, and if you get around a fair bit and don't have a USB Modem or a hotspot, it could seriously limit productivity.

Definitely a thought to consider though.
Thanx

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #208 on: December 10, 2011, 09:16:39 PM »
thoughts on this one: ASUS A53SV-EH71 15.6" Core i7-2670QM
$669 from amazon

Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
Display: 15.6-inch HD display (1366 x 768) (LED)
Processor: Intel® Core™i7-2670QM Processor (2.2 GHz)
Graphics: NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 540M with 1GB of DDR3 VRAM Graphics
WLAN: 802.11 b/g/n
LAN: 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet
Memory: 6GB DDR3 SDRAM,2 x SODIMM Sockets (up to 8GB)
Storage: 640GB 5400RPM hard drive
Optical Drive: DL DVD±RW/CD-RW
Camera: 0.3 megapixel
Speakers: Altec Lansing® Speakers
Microphone: Microphone
Card Reader: 5-in-1 card reader (SD, MMC, MS, MS PRO SDHC (SD2.0)
Input / Output: 1 x Mic-in, 1 x Headphone-out, 1 x VGA port/Mini D-Sub 15-pin for external monitor, 1 x RJ-45 LAN, 2 x USB 2.0 ports, 1 x USB 3.0, 1 x HDMI
Battery: 6 cell
Dimensions: 15.12 x 10.12 x 1.4 –inches (W x D x H)
Weight: 5.72 lbs (with 6 cell battery)
Color: Black

Dont know much about these things, but on SD people are saying the resolution is bad.

Can someone weigh in on this? Should i be looking for something else? Is this standard resolution for a laptop like this?

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #209 on: December 10, 2011, 09:40:42 PM »
I suppose....
Although that limits you to only being able to do word processing when you have internet connection, and if you get around a fair bit and don't have a USB Modem or a hotspot, it could seriously limit productivity.

Definitely a thought to consider though.
Thanx

Doesn't seem you googled Open Office.

Does not require internet to use.
2015: 116K bkd | 1.6M brnd | F: OZ,NH,AA,EK | J: UA,CA,TK,DL,TN,AF,VA | LIH,NRT,ROR,PEK,CNS,BOB,MEL,TLV & Pacific Hopper

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #210 on: December 10, 2011, 10:21:39 PM »
Google Open Office or Google Docs.
i use open office and im very happy with it!!
Doesn't seem you googled Open Office.

Does not require internet to use.
+1

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #211 on: December 10, 2011, 10:44:42 PM »
Doesn't seem you googled Open Office.
Correct you are.
My apologies.  I do try not to be lazy on the cheshbon of other people's time and effort.

Google Open Office or Google Docs.
Being unfamiliar with Open Office, I did not realise that the "Google" in "Google Open Office" was a verb, and assumed it was equivalent to the "Google" in "Google Docs" i.e. that it was part of the name of the software, and that being such it would be used online like its (what I thought to be) google docs counterpart.

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #212 on: December 10, 2011, 11:01:04 PM »
Fair enough.

Hopefully Open Office is just what you're looking for.
2015: 116K bkd | 1.6M brnd | F: OZ,NH,AA,EK | J: UA,CA,TK,DL,TN,AF,VA | LIH,NRT,ROR,PEK,CNS,BOB,MEL,TLV & Pacific Hopper

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #213 on: December 11, 2011, 12:51:23 AM »
sounds like it just might be.
laptop shopping just got a whole lot more exciting!

thank you much!

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #214 on: December 11, 2011, 02:35:52 AM »
My pleasure.

Happy hunting.
2015: 116K bkd | 1.6M brnd | F: OZ,NH,AA,EK | J: UA,CA,TK,DL,TN,AF,VA | LIH,NRT,ROR,PEK,CNS,BOB,MEL,TLV & Pacific Hopper

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #215 on: December 11, 2011, 02:43:16 PM »
I need help buying a laptop for my mother-in-law, I don't need the fastest processor or  to much ram basically something for her to go online with and to view digital pictures  it needs to have a built in webcam for video chats and an optical drive(ruling out a netbook) 15 inch screen should suffice.

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #216 on: December 11, 2011, 03:52:00 PM »
Any prices/discounts on XPS 15 or 17?

the real good ones seem to be expired  :'(

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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #217 on: December 11, 2011, 05:54:58 PM »
HP G6 AMD Quad 1.9GHz 16" LED Laptop = $400 w/ Free Shipping

Includes:
AMD A6-3400M 1.9GHz quad-core processor, 15.6" 1366x768 (720p) LED-backlit widescreen LCD,
4GB RAM, 500GB hard drive, DVD burner, AMD Radeon HD 6520G graphics,
webcam, 802.11n wireless, 6-cell battery, and Windows 7
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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #218 on: December 11, 2011, 05:59:28 PM »
Lenovo B570 Intel Dual Core 2.1GHz 16" Laptop = $329.99 + Receive a Free 8x8 Photobook

Includes:
Intel Pentium Dual-Core B950 2.1GHz "Sandy Bridge" processor, 15.6" 1366x768 LED-backlit widescreen LCD, 4GB RAM, 500GB hard drive, DVD burner, 802.11n wireless, Gigabit Ethernet, fingerprint reader, media card reader, webcam, 6-cell battery, and Windows 7 Home
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Re: Looking for cheap good Laptop deal
« Reply #219 on: December 11, 2011, 06:27:32 PM »
Lenovo B570 Intel Dual Core 2.1GHz 16" Laptop = $329.99 + Receive a Free 8x8 Photobook

Includes:
Intel Pentium Dual-Core B950 2.1GHz "Sandy Bridge" processor, 15.6" 1366x768 LED-backlit widescreen LCD, 4GB RAM, 500GB hard drive, DVD burner, 802.11n wireless, Gigabit Ethernet, fingerprint reader, media card reader, webcam, 6-cell battery, and Windows 7 Home
would you say this is a good price for these specs?