I need a laptop

[OceanLottery]

Anybody have one that they really like? I need it for general reporter/editor duties. No game-playing or anything like that. Kinda want to stay away from a Mac, just b/c they're so damned costly.

 

[JackReacher]

Refurbished Macs aren't all that costly. I've had my MacBook Pro for like 6-7 years now. I think I paid $900 for it. Took about 30 seconds to set up out of the box and there's no need for virus protection or anything. I've found absolutely no downside to it. Best computer I've ever owned and it's not even close.

Unless your budget is of the Wal-Mart Acer variety, that's my suggestion.

 

[Monday Morning Sportswriter]

This dude needs one, too.

My MacBook was great for six years, but I replaced it with an iPad with a Zagg keyboard-case and I couldn't be happier. And that was about half the price of a MacBook.

Probably not practical if you don't have another computer at home. But I've had no regrets now for two years.

 

[OceanLottery]

This dude needs one, too.

My MacBook was great for six years, but I replaced it with an iPad with a Zagg keyboard-case and I couldn't be happier. And that was about half the price of a MacBook.

Probably not practical if you don't have another computer at home. But I've had no regrets now for two years.

nice.

 

[Songbird]

The Lenovo I used at the Trentonian was pretty good.

Then I got a MacBook Pro here 2 years ago and it was a charm until too much schmaltz got under the keyboard and made it impossible to use the QW line of qwerty.

I'd go with one of those two.

 

[bigpern23]

I also enjoy my MacBook, though I concede it was expensive at a little more than $1,000.

My feeling is that you should either invest in the quality of a laptop that will last you 5-7 years (think $1,000-$1,500 for a MacBook), or just go dirt cheap and recognize that you'll probably replace it every 2 or 3 years at best (think $300).

Spending $800 on something other than a Mac seems like a mistake to me.

 

[joe]

Oh, I read lap dance. Carry on.

 

[BDC99]

This dude needs one, too.

Smack it up, flip it, rub it down ... Oh no!

 

[WCIBN]

If you're willing to act quickly, this Toshiba C55-B5299 laptop is super cheap on Fry's website. Under $200 bucks but the price is good for today only. Definitely a lower end laptop with minimum memory, but the price is considerable less than you'll find for the same model on Amazon ($224.00), HH Gregg ($249.99), Best Buy ($281.99), Walmart ($299.70) or Office Max ($219.99).

http://www.frys.com/product/8119235?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

 

[TigerVols]

THere are really only two options: A 2010 or beyond MacBook Pro or a Chromebook.

Can't go wrong either way.

 

[SpeedTchr]

Don't spend a lot of money on a laptop. Keep in mind that you will inevitably drop it at least once, especially if you work on the road a lot. Get a solid-spec cheap PC model. I have had a wide variety of laptops, and the best one has been a sub-$400 Samsung. The $2000+ MacBook an employer handed me was a huge pain in the ass. They recently replaced it with a MacBook Air, which is lighter but limited. When I have real work to do, I use the Samsung.

 

[Killick]

Refurbished Macs at www.macofalltrades.com. Got my 13-inch white MacBook (circa 2007) for $250 two years ago, it's still purring along.

 

[Vombatus]

This dude needs one, too.

Smack it up, flip it, rub it down ... Oh no!

FUPA

 

[SFIND]

I'm a huge fan of HP Envys. I have two -- one for work and a personal one. They both kick ass. My personal I bought refurbished off of Woot for $650. It has a touchscreen, 1 TB hard drive and 8 gigs RAM. It runs great. My work one is a monster -- 2 TB hard drive, 16 gigs RAM, dedicated graphics card. It renders videos with file sizes of over a gigabyte in a minute. A real pleasure to use.

I have had HPs for years. I have never had any issues with them. I've had another HP laptop since 2006. It's still running great (though I don't use it). Also bought my parents at 23 inch all-in-one that they love.

I also love Windows 8. I do not understand the hate for that OS. I chalk it up to people not liking change. It's a real pleasure to use, especially on my personal HP with the touchscreen.

Ignore TigerVols advice on a Chromebook, unless you want to be married to Google. I've used them, and they are too limited IMO.

 

[old_tony]

I've got a guy here in my town who refurbishes and resells laptops at great, great prices. He really soups the machines up with software, too.

My sister spilled some water on her laptop and took it into a place with a decent reputation. They told her it was shot. I took it to my guy and he had it up and running in minutes by just replacing the keyboard.

I don't think I'll ever go to a regular store or computer-repair place again.

 

[BDC99]

Don't spend a lot of money on a laptop. Keep in mind that you will inevitably drop it at least once, especially if you work on the road a lot. Get a solid-spec cheap PC model. I have had a wide variety of laptops, and the best one has been a sub-$400 Samsung. The $2000+ MacBook an employer handed me was a huge pain in the ass. They recently replaced it with a MacBook Air, which is lighter but limited. When I have real work to do, I use the Samsung.

I have a Samsung that was right around 400, as well, and it has done me just fine. Don't do a whole lot of heavy lifting on, though.

 

[JackReacher]

If you're worried about having to deal with virus protection and all that, get a MacBook. You can search for and visit the most vile sites on the internet and never have to worry about anything. You go to RedTube on a PC, it'll have computer AIDS within minutes.

 

[BDC99]

What is this RedTube you speak of?

 

[Vombatus]

A place to exercise your tubemeat.

 

[Walter Lippmann]

I've got a guy here in my town who refurbishes and resells laptops at great, great prices. He really soups the machines up with software, too.

My sister spilled some water on her laptop and took it into a place with a decent reputation. They told her it was shot. I took it to my guy and he had it up and running in minutes by just replacing the keyboard.

I don't think I'll ever go to a regular store or computer-repair place again.

Have she noticed any charges to Russian companies on her credit card after getting her PC souped up with software?