Laptop advice

[Giggity]

I know there are a bunch of threads out there, but I can't seem to find help on what I specifically need anywhere.

My laptop's about had it. I'm looking to buy one that I would primarily use to hook up to my HDTV and watch TV/movies on. (Other stuff too, but that seems to be the thing that would require the most oomph).

So, does anybody know how much power I need? Am I looking for a big processor, lots of memory, a certain kind of graphics card ...? I'm kinda dumb about this stuff, so I can't even make sense of what I've found via google. I get the sense a graphics card is something that exists, but that's about as far as I've gotten. I've also been trying to figure out processors, and something called the i7 seems to be pretty much the ****. But would that be overdoing it? Underdoing it? Justrightdoing it?

 

[slappy4428]

http://www.cpubenchmark.net/
Will compare processors and video card against value...
Personally, I've always been a big fan of loading up on as much memory and processor speed as you can afford, keeping in mind that what may be the standard now is mid-range in six months and obsolete in a year.

 

[Dick Whitman]

Go buy a MacBook Pro.

Enjoy.

 

[Buck]

 

[ucacm]

http://www.cpubenchmark.net/
Will compare processors and video card against value...
Personally, I've always been a big fan of loading up on as much memory and processor speed as you can afford, keeping in mind that what may be the standard now is mid-range in six months and obsolete in a year.

This just isn't true for what he's talking about doing. Your computer isn't going to suddenly get worse at playing DVDs/Blu Rays/streaming movies.

 

[Giggity]

So, what should I be looking for then, assuming I'm not going with a Mac?

 

[Oggiedoggie]

Pick a skinny girl.

The ones with the big boobs will crush your pelvis.

 

[NoOneLikesUs]

Your computer isn't going to suddenly get worse at playing DVDs/Blu Rays/streaming movies.

No, but that might be a lot of stress to put on a laptop if you're heavily into playing media. If you want to save wear and tear on a laptop, get a DVD, Blu Ray, streaming media device for your entertainment purposes. It shouldn't be too expensive.

 

[Dick Whitman]

So, what should I be looking for then, assuming I'm not going with a Mac?

Why don't you want a Mac? Just curious. I know they might seem really different, but you adjust quickly. You'll never want to go back. Trust me.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

Does anyone here have one of the small netbooks? Do you like them?

 

[Hank_Scorpio]

Does anyone here have one of the small netbooks? Do you like them?

Read an article recently that said these were starting to become obsolete, or at least less popular. I forget some of the other reasons.

I think it was a Yahoo article about top tech things not to buy in the next year. Another thing on that list was GPS units, mainly because almost every smart phone has or will have that capability.

 

[slappy4428]

http://www.cpubenchmark.net/
Will compare processors and video card against value...
Personally, I've always been a big fan of loading up on as much memory and processor speed as you can afford, keeping in mind that what may be the standard now is mid-range in six months and obsolete in a year.

This just isn't true for what he's talking about doing. Your computer isn't going to suddenly get worse at playing DVDs/Blu Rays/streaming movies.

No, but you have to think ahead...

 

[ucacm]

Does anyone here have one of the small netbooks? Do you like them?

 

[Dick Whitman]

Does anyone here have one of the small netbooks? Do you like them?

Horrible. Slow as ****. I mean slooooooooooow. And almost impossible to type on.

Replaced mine with a MacBook, and it was the best $1,500 I've ever spent in my entire life. Never have to worry about anything whatsoever. Runs like a dream.

 

[qtlaw]

Does anyone here have one of the small netbooks? Do you like them?

Bought one for my wife early this year and it.......works. For email/surfing/streaming music and NPR podcasts, its fine. Typing is lame and the lack of memory comes into play pretty fast with photos and videos being downloaded.

Its more portable than a laptop but now I'm thinking there was a better way.

 

[Giggity]

So, what should I be looking for then, assuming I'm not going with a Mac?

Why don't you want a Mac? Just curious. I know they might seem really different, but you adjust quickly. You'll never want to go back. Trust me.

I have a sense that, if you know what you're looking for, you can get more computer for less money with a PC if you know what you're looking for - that you're paying a cool-tax to get a Mac, basically. Obviously I DON'T know what I'm looking for, so it's possible I'd be better just going straight for the MacBook Pro. We use Macs at work, and I'm fine with them, but if I can find a faster PC for $1000 or $1200 I'd rather go that road.

 

[Giggity]

This is typical of the type of thing I've read that's made me suspicious of Macs: http://www.duclarion.com/2.969/what-s-so-great-about-a-mac-1.45848

 

[Hank_Scorpio]

Giggity:

Some of the minimums I would get: 4MB RAM, 250 GB hard drive, at least a dual core processor.


Depending on what you can afford, I would upgrade to 500 GB hard drive.

Asus K60 model isn't a bad lower end to mid-range. About $450. 4MB Ram, 500 GB HD, midranger dual core processor.

That linked that slappy posted about CPU processor benchmarks is pretty good tool.

 

[Buck]

A friend just got a Macbook Feather. It clearly a nice piece of equipment.
But it would be hard for me to justify the $1,500 Mac price tag.

 

[Det. Jimmy McNulty]

My laptop advice? Spend less than $600.