Laptop Deals Master Thread

[sol19]

Not sure if this is proper thread as i'm looking for advice not to post any deals, but.....

I have $600 in amex credit to use ASAP along with $200 statement credit after 800 purchase. The way I figure it, the laptop should cost around 1100 + 100 for taxes, if I want to maximize my credits. This would allow me to spend out of pocket around 600 (for a 1200 laptop)

Alternatively, i can just get a $600-800 laptop and not spend much. I prefer this as have no need for such a high end laptop.

https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/dell-laptops/sr/laptops/next-day-delivery?sortBy=price-ascending&min=500&max=1200&appliedRefinements=39551,31461,15689

https://www.dell.com/en-us/work/shop/dell-laptops-and-notebooks/sr/laptops/15-inch?sortBy=price-ascending&min=500&max=1200&appliedRefinements=15604,39551,31461

Recommendations?

Vostro 5510 $899
11th Generation Intel Core i7-11390H Processor (12MB Cache, up to 5.0GHz with ITBM3.0)
Windows 11 Pro
Intel Iris Xe Graphics
15.6-inch FHD (1920 x 1080) Anti-glare LED Backlight Non-Touch Narrow Border WVA Display
16GB, 2x8GB, DDR4, 3200MHz
256GB M.2 PCIe NVMe Solid State Drive
Intel Wi-Fi 6 2x2 (Gig+) and Bluetooth
Backlit Keyboard & Fingerprint Reader

[AsherO]

Back on the market for a new laptop for personal use. My priorities are: Thin and light, durable build quality, good value, sufficiently powerful specs. I’m not very particular about screen/audio, as long as they aren’t outright poor quality. Actually prefer lower resolution (1080p is more than sufficient) so things aren’t tiny.

For context, here’s the historical list of laptops I’ve owned over the past 20 years: Dell Latitude x1, Dell 700m, Sony Vaio Z13, MacBook Pro (boot camp for Windows) ~2014 which is aging so I’d like to replace it.

There are two 2-in-1 laptops on the market that seem fairly compelling and hinge quality seems to be okay, if you’re aware of any similarly sized/weighted laptops at a similar build quality and price point ($900-1200) please lmk

- LG Gram 16” 2-in-1
- Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 15.6”

These too seem to be the right size/weight, with larger screens than I’ve had but similar weight, well built, and a good value. If you know of any specific deals to be had on these (better than the recent Costco one for LG for instance), please do share

TIA

[Yo ssi]

What's about the Lenovo yoga, Dell XPS or hp spectre?

[JlmBoi]

Looking for a good budget laptop. Will be used only for 2 person zoom meetings, I want a 15. 6 screen. Have been told i3 will suffice.
Here is what I was thinking. Open to better suggestions.
https://www.newegg.com/p/1TS-000D-0KVM7?Item=9SIAE4NH7A0776&quicklink=true

[AsherO]

What's about the Lenovo yoga, Dell XPS or hp spectre?

Thanks Yo ssi. Those are all “premium” offerings from lowest-common denominator brands. Doubt I’ll get build quality of the Dell 700m from any of those. I actually had a Dell XPS m1330 (I don’t believe I had it for long) and I wasn’t too impressed.

The Yoga 9i 15 is pricier and 4+ pounds. To be fair it also has dedicated graphics.

Other than my poor experiences with the Dell XPS m1330, I can’t speak against the XPS 13 2-in-1, I simply don’t know enough.

A few years ago when I was looking for what was out there the Spectre 360 (or was it Spectre x360) was all the rage for thin and light, but was too pricey to be a good value.

Do you feel like any of these are significantly more compelling for any of the priorities I listed? I’d be happy to reconsider but I still feel like LG Gram leads the way. Costco had it for $1,099 and I missed that, and now it looks like their $1,199 option ended as well. But more deals will come, I’m confident.

[Yo ssi]

Thanks Yo ssi...

I guess it's a matter of priorities. Whatever you go with there will be some tried off, the question is which trade off do you care about least.
Are you looking for 15" screen size specifically? Do you care for a 2 in 1 design? What about battery life? (If yes M1 mac is for you ). Is weight more important to you than build quality?

[AsherO]

I guess it's a matter of priorities. Whatever you go with there will be some tried off, the question is which trade off do you care about least.
Are you looking for 15" screen size specifically? Do you care for a 2 in 1 design? What about battery life? (If yes M1 mac is for you ). Is weight more important to you than build quality?

Weight is more important than build quality, but build quality is important. Meaning I’m looking for sub-3 lbs. but anything sub-3 I’ll take best build quality. Biggest screen I can get.

I’m curious about 2-in-1 but I never used one so not sure how much use I’ll get from it, especially considering it’s 2+ lbs so not quite a tablet.

Anything on the market that meets my other needs will have sufficient battery life. M1 won’t work for me as I I need to run (via boot camp) Windows x64 natively on the hardware.

[Yo ssi]

Weight is more important than build quality, but build quality is important. Meaning I’m looking for sub-3 lbs. but anything sub-3 I’ll take best build quality. Biggest screen I can get.

I’m curious about 2-in-1 but I never used one so not sure how much use I’ll get from it, especially considering it’s 2+ lbs so not quite a tablet.

Anything on the market that meets my other needs will have sufficient battery life. M1 won’t work for me as I I need to run (via boot camp) Windows x64 natively on the hardware.

It sounds like LG gram is a good choice. I honestly can't imagine that the Samsung is a good value, I have never seen one though.

I personally like the 2 in 1 form and it has nothing to do with using it for a tablet-like experience (it's a horrible one).
Not sure if it's realistic, but I'd go into a Best Buy and get a real feel for the laptop your getting.

[AsherO]

It sounds like LG gram is a good choice. I honestly can't imagine that the Samsung is a good value, I have never seen one though.

I personally like the 2 in 1 form and it has nothing to do with using it for a tablet-like experience (it's a horrible one).
Not sure if it's realistic, but I'd go into a Best Buy and get a real feel for the laptop your getting.

I checked both out at Costco while I waited, and the LG was really nice, but I’m realizing now that the LG at Costco at the ideal price point wasn’t 2-in-1.

I don’t like checking out items at a shop I know I won’t be making the purchase at, that’s called showrooming, and might be halachically problematic

[JlmBoi]

I checked both out at Costco while I waited, and the LG was really nice, but I’m realizing now that the LG at Costco at the ideal price point wasn’t 2-in-1.

I don’t like checking out items at a shop I know I won’t be making the purchase at, that’s called showrooming, and might be halachically problematic

I have seen a few LG Grams (I do think 2 in 1a) they all seemed very flimsy. I and a good friend have great experience with Samsung laptops, he has a 2 in 1, I have a standard, really great in every way.

[Chuchum Ainer]

Looking for a good budget laptop. Will be used only for 2 person zoom meetings, I want a 15. 6 screen. Have been told i3 will suffice.
Here is what I was thinking. Open to better suggestions.
https://www.newegg.com/p/1TS-000D-0KVM7?Item=9SIAE4NH7A0776&quicklink=true

Sufficient, but not a great deal at that price.
Consider a chromebook

[Chuchum Ainer]

Biggest screen I can get.

Lg gram is the only light 17.3 inch.

I've used the Samsung galaxy book pro and was very impressed.

If you go down to 14 inch, the yoga 9 is an amazing computer. At 15 inches it's too heavy, though the yoga 7 is a bit better.

[Chuchum Ainer]

I checked both out at Costco while I waited, and the LG was really nice, but I’m realizing now that the LG at Costco at the ideal price point wasn’t 2-in-1.

I don’t like checking out items at a shop I know I won’t be making the purchase at, that’s called showrooming, and might be halachically problematic

Not quite getting if you want 2 in 1 or not, but the 15 inch lg gram was $750 a few weeks ago. Not sure how often it goes on sale.

[AsherO]

Not quite getting if you want 2 in 1 or not, but the 15 inch lg gram was $750 a few weeks ago. Not sure how often it goes on sale.

$750 sounds nice, but if I’m getting the Gram then the 16/17” sounds much more compelling even for an extra $200-300.

The 2-in-1 is a curiosity, I want to try it but not sure how much value I’ll get from it.

[Chuchum Ainer]

Looking for a good budget laptop. Will be used only for 2 person zoom meetings, I want a 15. 6 screen. Have been told i3 will suffice.
Here is what I was thinking. Open to better suggestions.
https://www.newegg.com/p/1TS-000D-0KVM7?Item=9SIAE4NH7A0776&quicklink=true

Did you buy something? Still need advice?

[JlmBoi]

Did you buy something? Still need advice?

No. Yes.

[nirc]

Thank you everyone for your advice/suggestions.

I ended up with an Inspiron 15 5510 for $725 including tax ---15” screen, 11th gen, i7, 16RAM, 512GB

Used cashback site for $75 off + Amex credits (3).

[Chuchum Ainer]

Looking for a good budget laptop. Will be used only for 2 person zoom meetings, I want a 15. 6 screen. Have been told i3 will suffice.
Here is what I was thinking. Open to better suggestions.
https://www.newegg.com/p/1TS-000D-0KVM7?Item=9SIAE4NH7A0776&quicklink=true

Here goes.

If you are only using it for zoom, consider getting an iPad, costs ~$330, will work well. Need a case or cover with a stand. Or an android tablet. Those will be smaller than 15 inch of course.
Or consider a chromebook. Generally I'd suggest a sleek 14 inch with an HD screen, but I'm not noticing any good deals on those, and you want 15 inch. https://www.target.com/p/acer-315-15-6-chromebook-intel-celeron-n4020-1-1ghz-4gb-ram-64gb-flash-chrome-manufacturer-refurbished/-/A-84139757 this one seems pretty good at $170. It's refurbished, but by the manufacturer, and at that price I wouldn't worry. Not extra slim, kind of a regular full size 3.6lb laptop. Screen seems decent. FHD ips touchscreen. They sell it through eBay too if you prefer it.

If you specifically want windows, and your budget, as seen from your link, is around $450 but really just the cheapest with at least i3 and 8gb, here are a couple options.

https://www.hp.com/us-en/shop/ConfigureView?langId=-1&storeId=10151&catalogId=10051&catEntryId=3074457345619903820&urlLangId=&quantity=1&color=natural+silver ryzen 5, 8gb ram
Starts at $430, better screen is $40 more, bumping up to 16 gb is $80 more. Decent build

https://www.dell.com/en-us/member/shop/dell-laptops/inspiron-15-3000-laptop/spd/inspiron-15-3511-laptop/nn3511eyxsh $391. I3 8gb  Entry level build quality.

https://www.microcenter.com/product/641112/lenovo-ideapad-3i-15itl6-156-laptop-computer-grey $429 if you have a microcenter near you.

There really aren't many good deals these days.
If I see anything better, I'll post.
If anyone else has an idea, please post

[JlmBoi]

Here goes.

If you are only using it for zoom, consider getting an iPad, costs ~$330, will work well. Need a case or cover with a stand. Or an android tablet. Those will be smaller than 15 inch of course.
Or consider a chromebook. Generally I'd suggest a sleek 14 inch with an HD screen, but I'm not noticing any good deals on those, and you want 15 inch. https://www.target.com/p/acer-315-15-6-chromebook-intel-celeron-n4020-1-1ghz-4gb-ram-64gb-flash-chrome-manufacturer-refurbished/-/A-84139757 this one seems pretty good at $170. It's refurbished, but by the manufacturer, and at that price I wouldn't worry. Not extra slim, kind of a regular full size 3.6lb laptop. Screen seems decent. FHD ips touchscreen. They sell it through eBay too if you prefer it.

If you specifically want windows, and your budget, as seen from your link, is around $450 but really just the cheapest with at least i3 and 8gb, here are a couple options.

https://www.hp.com/us-en/shop/ConfigureView?langId=-1&storeId=10151&catalogId=10051&catEntryId=3074457345619903820&urlLangId=&quantity=1&color=natural+silver ryzen 5, 8gb ram
Starts at $430, better screen is $40 more, bumping up to 16 gb is $80 more. Decent build

https://www.dell.com/en-us/member/shop/dell-laptops/inspiron-15-3000-laptop/spd/inspiron-15-3511-laptop/nn3511eyxsh $391. I3 8gb  Entry level build quality.

https://www.microcenter.com/product/641112/lenovo-ideapad-3i-15itl6-156-laptop-computer-grey $429 if you have a microcenter near you.

There really aren't many good deals these days.
If I see anything better, I'll post.
If anyone else has an idea, please post

TY!

[YitzyS]

It's such a nachas to see DDFers like Chuchum Ainer be so gracious and helpful to others. Mi Ke'amcha Yisroel!

JlmBoi: If you only need a device for Zoom, you also may want to consider the Facebook Portal, or other video conferencing devices.