Topic Wiki

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 3151292 times)

Offline Galitzyaner

  • Dansdeals Presidential Platinum Elite
  • ********
  • Join Date: Aug 2011
  • Posts: 2961
  • Total likes: 119
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 13
    • View Profile
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10340 on: December 20, 2016, 02:53:56 AM »
The $379 (really good price for what it is, better than BF) should be adequate (except if you're doing all of the above at one...)
This happens to have a lot of reviews for a laptop on both Microsoft Store and Amazon.  The reviews are quite negative... but these specs at this price makes it very tempting!  (Although it's only $50 more on Amazon,  so it's not the deal of the century exactly)
What do you think?

Offline B.D.Da'ehu

  • Dansdeals Presidential Platinum Elite
  • ********
  • Join Date: Jul 2012
  • Posts: 3771
  • Total likes: 100
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 126
    • View Profile
  • Location: Jerusalem
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10341 on: December 20, 2016, 07:07:06 AM »
Lenovo 15.6" Ideapad 310 Series Notebook for $299.99 Shipped with free Next Day delivery from B&H.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1260386-REG/lenovo_80sm0059us_core_i3_6100u_6gb_1tb_windows_10_15_6.html

PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS

2.3 GHz Intel Core i3-6100U Dual-Core
6GB DDR4 RAM | 1TB 5400 rpm SATA HDD
15.6" (1366 x 768) LED Backlit Display
Integrated Intel HD Graphics 520
SuperMulti DVD Drive | Media Card Reader
802.11ac Dual-Band Wi-Fi | Bluetooth 4.0
USB 3.0 | USB 2.0 | VGA | HDMI
Windows 10 Home (64-bit)
What are the biggest downsides of this? It looks tempting from an economics perspective :P

Offline David Smith

  • Dansdeals Lifetime Presidential Platinum Elite
  • *********
  • Join Date: Jun 2015
  • Posts: 8075
  • Total likes: 212
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 13
    • View Profile
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10342 on: December 20, 2016, 07:14:48 AM »
What are the biggest downsides of this? It looks tempting from an economics perspective
i3, 6 GB RAM, dual core, 768 display.
Who do you think you are fooling? You think you are going to pull a quick one on your Creator? Good luck with that.
JTZ

Offline Yisroel Tech

  • Dansdeals Lifetime Platinum Elite
  • *******
  • Join Date: Dec 2015
  • Posts: 2162
  • Total likes: 365
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 2
  • Gender: Male
    • View Profile
  • Location: Monsey, NY
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10343 on: December 20, 2016, 08:46:31 AM »
This happens to have a lot of reviews for a laptop on both Microsoft Store and Amazon.  The reviews are quite negative... but these specs at this price makes it very tempting!  (Although it's only $50 more on Amazon,  so it's not the deal of the century exactly)
What do you think?
Define quite negative. For some reason (I haven't yet figured that out) almost all PCs tend to have not that good if reviews. I'm still yet to find any laptop on Amazon (with, say, more than 25 reviews) that has a real high rating. So against the almost-top of 4 stars 3.6-3.7 isn't that bad.

Offline Yisroel Tech

  • Dansdeals Lifetime Platinum Elite
  • *******
  • Join Date: Dec 2015
  • Posts: 2162
  • Total likes: 365
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 2
  • Gender: Male
    • View Profile
  • Location: Monsey, NY
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10344 on: December 20, 2016, 11:03:26 AM »
So I just received the laptop and spent the better part of the evening getting it setup and an image backup. I'm not noticing much if any speed difference in regular tasks between my old Acer i5 that crashed on me. The most annoying thing about this computer is the keyboard. The right shift key is tiny and I keep hitting the up arrow key repeatedly where the shift key would be on any other laptop, you can't use page up or down if num lock is on (which makes flipping through tabs a total pain) and to use the Function keys (F2,F5,etc.) you have to hit "fn" as well which is a total pain for any excel user.

I kind of regret buying this computer. I didn't realize how important it was to focus on having a solid keyboard setup. Out of 6+ laptops i've owned between personal and work I've never felt so disappointed. I know a bunch of you guys are computer wonks and would never have been tripped up by this but maybe I can save someone else the disappointment in buying the 3 series Lenovo. It looks like I'm stuck with it thought because restocking fee is 15% plus s/h.

Edit: I just did a restart of the computer though and it must've booted up in under 10 seconds so that eases the keyboard pain a little.
Sorry to hear your frustration (for something that I recommended.) As noted here by a few for regular simple tasks this an i5 with 8GB RAM does all just fine, where these better specs kick in are when you have a bit more intense use (say you'll open all of the - basic - programs you're using at once, or at times opening a lot of tabs in your browser.) Except for the SSD which drastically improves loading time both for the PC at boot and for programs when opening them.

The page up problem I'm not sure what you mean (for switching tabs in Chrome you can also use ctrl+tab.) But at least for the FN key issue, which is a total pain for you, there's an easy way to change this behavior. Go into BIOS settings and under the Configuration menu switch Hotkey Mode to Disabled.

Offline Mountain Man

  • Dansdeals Platinum Elite + Lifetime Gold Elite
  • ******
  • Join Date: Dec 2013
  • Posts: 892
  • Total likes: 34
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 10
    • View Profile
  • Location: Colorado
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10345 on: December 20, 2016, 12:09:35 PM »
Thanks for the feedback!
It is still OOS, but I was somewhat hopeful it would come back.
So to summarize, your whole complaint is all about the keyboard setup?  Nothing else?!
That restart time sounds so awesome!!
Was your old Acer also an SSD?
Yeah I think after sleeping on it my biggest complaint is the keyboard setup. The small right shift key, where the arrow keys are placed, page up and down buttons and the function keys. Other than that it's been pretty good. It does seem pretty loud but I guess that's because it has an I7 chip. My previous Acer didn't have a SSD and was running a 4th gen I5.
Quote from: JTZ link=topic=10531.msg1695873
If you never had to eat crow then you lived one boring life.

Offline Mountain Man

  • Dansdeals Platinum Elite + Lifetime Gold Elite
  • ******
  • Join Date: Dec 2013
  • Posts: 892
  • Total likes: 34
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 10
    • View Profile
  • Location: Colorado
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10346 on: December 20, 2016, 12:24:59 PM »
Sorry to hear your frustration (for something that I recommended.) As noted here by a few for regular simple tasks this an i5 with 8GB RAM does all just fine, where these better specs kick in are when you have a bit more intense use (say you'll open all of the - basic - programs you're using at once, or at times opening a lot of tabs in your browser.) Except for the SSD which drastically improves loading time both for the PC at boot and for programs when opening them.

The page up problem I'm not sure what you mean (for switching tabs in Chrome you can also use ctrl+tab.) But at least for the FN key issue, which is a total pain for you, there's an easy way to change this behavior. Go into BIOS settings and under the Configuration menu switch Hotkey Mode to Disabled.
I think a lot of the frustration is with the "learning curve" I'll need for using this keyboard. Everytime I right shift I end up hitting the up arrow key. I usually use ctrl+page up or page down to move through tabs (I usually hit the left ctrl button so hitting ctrl+tab+shift isn't what I opt to do.) I'll see how it goes for the next few weeks. Worst case I can just use it in a desktop configuration with a different keyboard because it sits on my desk 90% of the time anyway.

I opted for the I7 because I've been told it would help with speed and I wanted that. I also wanted reliability after having my previous laptop crash (thank you Amex Extended Warranty). Because that was an I5 I figured let's try out the I7. The laptop I had before my previous one was also a Lenovo (510) and I loved that keyboard. It didn't occur to me that this one wouldn't be the same.

But for speed, I rebooted it again and from off to the welcome screen was something like 8 seconds so I'm very happy on that end.
Quote from: JTZ link=topic=10531.msg1695873
If you never had to eat crow then you lived one boring life.

Offline danR

  • Dansdeals Platinum Elite
  • ****
  • Join Date: Mar 2010
  • Posts: 348
  • Total likes: 25
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 0
    • View Profile
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10347 on: December 20, 2016, 12:38:08 PM »

Offline Yaalili

  • Dansdeals Lifetime 10K Presidential Platinum Elite
  • *******
  • Join Date: Jul 2009
  • Posts: 12764
  • Total likes: 473
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 157
  • Gender: Male
    • View Profile
  • Location: Crown Heights, NY
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10348 on: December 20, 2016, 01:25:36 PM »

Offline elya

  • Dansdeals Lifetime Platinum Elite
  • *******
  • Join Date: Jan 2015
  • Posts: 2378
  • Total likes: 96
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 1
    • View Profile
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10349 on: December 20, 2016, 02:17:39 PM »
I5 > I3 and Dell > Lenovo imo.
Worth the $80 difference? (Probably a little more considering tax when purchasing from Microsoft)

Offline Yisroel Tech

  • Dansdeals Lifetime Platinum Elite
  • *******
  • Join Date: Dec 2015
  • Posts: 2162
  • Total likes: 365
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 2
  • Gender: Male
    • View Profile
  • Location: Monsey, NY
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10350 on: December 20, 2016, 02:32:48 PM »
Worth the $80 difference? (Probably a little more considering tax when purchasing from Microsoft)
Certainly is! (BTW, B&H doesn't charge tax?) And, before you forgot, add some more differences, the Backlit keyboard, 1920 x 1080 resolution, touchscreen, and 2 gigs of RAM. If you need it for normal work I think it is a no-brainer. The Lenovo is good for someone that is really on a tight budget and still wants something quite decent.

Offline Galitzyaner

  • Dansdeals Presidential Platinum Elite
  • ********
  • Join Date: Aug 2011
  • Posts: 2961
  • Total likes: 119
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 13
    • View Profile
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10351 on: December 20, 2016, 04:15:26 PM »
Define quite negative. For some reason (I haven't yet figured that out) almost all PCs tend to have not that good if reviews. I'm still yet to find any laptop on Amazon (with, say, more than 25 reviews) that has a real high rating. So against the almost-top of 4 stars 3.6-3.7 isn't that bad.
Thanks! What do you think about getting this (the $379 Dell deal from Microsoft) and then removing the HDD for an SSD?
How much to proper quality SSD's go for?
Am I able to add RAM? If I want to upgrade to a 12 or 16 gb, how much would I be paying?
~ ~ ~

Also, about the B&H deal posted today on the DDMS:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1295127-REG/asus_ux301la_ws71t_13_3_zenbook_ux301la_multi_touch.html/BI/1032/KBID/1316/DFF/d10-v21-t1-x773768

Do the specs here really justify the price ($699)? Is there something really spectacular about this that would make this worth it?

TIA!

Offline Yisroel Tech

  • Dansdeals Lifetime Platinum Elite
  • *******
  • Join Date: Dec 2015
  • Posts: 2162
  • Total likes: 365
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 2
  • Gender: Male
    • View Profile
  • Location: Monsey, NY
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10352 on: December 20, 2016, 04:50:48 PM »
Thanks! What do you think about getting this (the $379 Dell deal from Microsoft) and then removing the HDD for an SSD?
How much to proper quality SSD's go for?
Am I able to add RAM? If I want to upgrade to a 12 or 16 gb, how much would I be paying?
8GB of RAM would be in the $50 range (the laptop supports up to 16), and a 256GB SSD would be around $90.

But...I have not examined this specific model just saying in general, Dell started lately copying HP with closed body laptops which are not at all an easy feat to open and upgrade, Even for quite experienced folks needn't say for the layman.

Quote
Also, about the B&H deal posted today on the DDMS:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1295127-REG/asus_ux301la_ws71t_13_3_zenbook_ux301la_multi_touch.html/BI/1032/KBID/1316/DFF/d10-v21-t1-x773768

Do the specs here really justify the price ($699)? Is there something really spectacular about this that would make this worth it?

TIA!
Are you looking for this against the $379 one? This is a 13" ultra-portable laptop. Certainly a very good price "for someone looking for an ultra-portable." High end specs in such a thin and small body definitely justifies the price - again - for someone in need of a light,  small, and good machine.

Offline Yisroel Tech

  • Dansdeals Lifetime Platinum Elite
  • *******
  • Join Date: Dec 2015
  • Posts: 2162
  • Total likes: 365
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 2
  • Gender: Male
    • View Profile
  • Location: Monsey, NY
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10353 on: December 20, 2016, 04:56:05 PM »

Offline elya

  • Dansdeals Lifetime Platinum Elite
  • *******
  • Join Date: Jan 2015
  • Posts: 2378
  • Total likes: 96
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 1
    • View Profile
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10354 on: December 20, 2016, 07:06:16 PM »
(BTW, B&H doesn't charge tax?)
When shipping to NJ they dont.

Offline mileagejunkie

  • Dansdeals Presidential Platinum Elite
  • ********
  • Join Date: Nov 2014
  • Posts: 2891
  • Total likes: 227
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 607
    • View Profile
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10355 on: December 21, 2016, 10:36:50 AM »
Seems like a great deal to me:

Acer Predator 17 G9-791-79Y3 17.3-inch Full HD Gaming Notebook (Windows 10) & Acer Predator Gaming Kit (Mouse, Mousepad, Headset & Backpack) Bundle

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KWSLJOK/?tag=cl03f-20&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Offline Ai1234

  • Dansdeals Bronze Elite
  • *
  • Join Date: Jan 2013
  • Posts: 31
  • Total likes: 1
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 0
    • View Profile
  • Location: Brooklyn, NY

Offline Mountain Man

  • Dansdeals Platinum Elite + Lifetime Gold Elite
  • ******
  • Join Date: Dec 2013
  • Posts: 892
  • Total likes: 34
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 10
    • View Profile
  • Location: Colorado
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10357 on: December 21, 2016, 02:08:12 PM »
So I just received the laptop and spent the better part of the evening getting it setup and an image backup. I'm not noticing much if any speed difference in regular tasks between my old Acer i5 that crashed on me. The most annoying thing about this computer is the keyboard. The right shift key is tiny and I keep hitting the up arrow key repeatedly where the shift key would be on any other laptop, you can't use page up or down if num lock is on (which makes flipping through tabs a total pain) and to use the Function keys (F2,F5,etc.) you have to hit "fn" as well which is a total pain for any excel user.

I kind of regret buying this computer. I didn't realize how important it was to focus on having a solid keyboard setup. Out of 6+ laptops i've owned between personal and work I've never felt so disappointed. I know a bunch of you guys are computer wonks and would never have been tripped up by this but maybe I can save someone else the disappointment in buying the 3 series Lenovo. It looks like I'm stuck with it thought because restocking fee is 15% plus s/h.

Edit: I just did a restart of the computer though and it must've booted up in under 10 seconds so that eases the keyboard pain a little.
I reached out to Yisroel Tech last night and he was able to help me with disabling the FN key in BIOS which fixed the F1-F12 keys and I was able to remap some keys using keytweek. So now the only trouble I'm having with the computer is the small size of the right shift key which I'll just get used to. Everything else is great.

Thank Yisroel Tech for posting the deal and for the follow up help!
Quote from: JTZ link=topic=10531.msg1695873
If you never had to eat crow then you lived one boring life.

Offline Luvtotravel

  • Dansdeals Presidential Platinum Elite
  • ********
  • Join Date: Dec 2012
  • Posts: 3014
  • Total likes: 131
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 6
    • View Profile
  • Location: Ny
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10358 on: December 21, 2016, 10:27:07 PM »
$379-Dell Inspiron i5 https://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/pdp/Dell-Inspiron-15-i5559-Signature-Edition-Laptop/productID.333089700?

just received this. seems fine except that I expected it to be lighter. are all laptops the same weight or is this considered heavy?
Don't wait for the perfect moment; take the moment and make it perfect.

Offline Yisroel Tech

  • Dansdeals Lifetime Platinum Elite
  • *******
  • Join Date: Dec 2015
  • Posts: 2162
  • Total likes: 365
  • DansDeals.com Hat Tips 2
  • Gender: Male
    • View Profile
  • Location: Monsey, NY
Re: Laptop Deals Master Thread
« Reply #10359 on: December 21, 2016, 10:34:10 PM »
just received this. seems fine except that I expected it to be lighter. are all laptops the same weight or is this considered heavy?
This is the typical weight for mid-range 15.6" laptops from all manufacturers.