Okay, so apparently I'm getting a new laptop tomorrow. The problem is, I don't know which brand to go for.
My Brother-in-Law and father both say to get an Acer. I kinda like the Toshiba, but the Brother-in-Law said they've had their fair share of issues over the years.
If I get the Toshiba, I get a $100 prepaid visa card. The deal for the visa card lasts until the 9th, which is why I'm considering the laptop. But yeah. Your opinions or recommendations? I would appreciate some insight. :3
Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2012 1:09 pm
I had an Acer before... Complete and utter nightmare. I prefer Lenovo. They're built to last and haven't given me much problems.
Silent Sympathy
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Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2012 1:14 pm
Silent~ X3
I was told the Acer "is probably in the top tier as far as quality per dollar amount is concerned." from the Brother-in-Law. XD And I trust his input, since he works with technology and the likes on a daily basis. Any particular reason why the Acer gave you trouble?
Editness: So after getting in touch with Father, he says either the HP or this Acer laptop. D8 Too many options...! Editedit. Fixed the acer link. Thanks, Mickey. :3
Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2012 2:39 pm
All I know about computers is I have the same computer as my ex's friend, who's in computer engineering. So I guess it's good? sweatdrop
It's a Gateway though, usually I have horrible luck with Gateways.
I work with tech too. Acer laptops are so shitty. Toshibas in my experience ( some friends family, and work) actually last a long time, and have less issues than Acers.
also, as silent said. Lenovos are actually really good. Consider them.
Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2012 6:41 pm
Best Buy link is broken. Are Staples/Best Buy the only places you've looked so far? If you have specialty computer scores, I would look there too. You can usually get some better deals (from experience). Don't rush the buying process. Do your homework before you buy something shitty. Not to say that you aren't doing research or anything, cause as far as I know, you are. dramallama
My (scattered) thinking process:
The $100 Visa card, no matter how tempting, should not be the final reason as to choosing Toshiba over any other laptop. You'll be using (I assume) your laptop much more than $100-worth. Getting a better laptop will last longer and give you fewer problems (read: costs $$ to get fixed). Cause if that was the reason, I'd tell you to get a Macbook.
Normally, I would say go HP over Toshiba/Acer due to personal bias. I have an HP and it works great even after the abuse I put it through.
I'm not really familiar with the AMD processor, but keep in mind that Intel i5>i3.
Toshiba weighs less compared to the other two (but not by much) if you do plan to carry it around a bit. It seems light, but once you carry it around in your backpack for a while, it DOES get heavy (or, I'm mighty weak ohohoho). That being said, you'll be getting a smaller screen with the 14", but after you get used to having a 14", 15" + seems to become huge and unnecessary. Are you going to do something with your laptop that requires you to have a large screen? If so, the program that you need to run on your computer will use a lot of juice and the i5/AMD might be your best bet. (I'm adding AMD in there because I really don't know what's good nor bad about the processor, I can't be bothered to go figure it out since it's not my laptop that I'm buying. razz ) Also, 14" isn't that small. Neither is 13". They're big enough to get stuff done. ;D
I almost feel like 15" + are enough to be considered desktop-replacement computers. Just my opinion though.
From what I understand, Acers are really what you get for your money. I doubt you'll be overpaying for anything if you get that. So your brother-in-law is probably right about his statement. My dad has an Acer, and I haven't noticed any issues with it.
HP comes with a LOT of junk pre-installed on the laptop. Have your brother-in-law take a look and take off everything that doesn't interfere with the laptop workings. Do you really need an ebay link right on your desktop? Do you really want to die using Norton? Yeah, no.
I don't really know much about computers, and this is all just coming from what I remember when I was getting my own laptop. Out of the three laptops, I would say Toshiba.
Oddly enough, I am using a Toshiba Satellite I bought after my Acer Aspire One quit. The Acer had a BIOS problem which could only be resolved by rewriting the hard drive. That was just a few months after I bought it, too. Last February, it went into BSOD mode. It was about two years old. I've had no problems with my Toshi so far. As for HP, let's just say I've had enough problems with their computers that the company is on my personal black list.
Also, I would look into refurbished computers direct from the manufacturer. They work great, with no real difference from a brand-new one, and cost less.
Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2012 7:11 pm
Well, I was going with my mother to Staples while she did school shopping. Best Buy is in the same shopping center. And since we both have work in the evening, we don't have time to shop around for long. XD And yeah, I would think that I know well enough to talk to people who know what they're doing~ Because I know I don't~
The whole visa card thing is the reason my mom was pushing for the Toshiba, since it's more or less free money that comes with it. I currently have an HP mini netbook, but I can't judge much since this is my first computer. It's been fine, but it's a netbook. No CD drive, not as much power... Even when I first got it, it had trouble running zOMG on its lowest settings.
*nods* Five pounds adds up when you also have other materials to carry, like massive school books and work. D8 And it will be a major difference, since my netbook is only like, two pounds? But as for the screen size, I wouldn't mind a larger screen. Over the years, I went from 20" monitor on a desktop to a 10" netbook monitor.
My father also noted the i5 would be a lot better for processing power, compared to the other options we looked at. If I was worried about the graphics, to go with HP. My main concern was the processing speed, and all of the laptops can have their RAM upgraded to 8GBs. And from there, the major factor would be the processing speed. Acer' and HP are both 2.5GHz.
At least, I think. I forgot most of the conversation with him.
Aw. But thanks you guys, for the input. I can't make a final decision until I see what's in stock near here, but I'll keep you posted. ^^
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Posted: Fri Aug 10, 2012 4:59 am
My sister got a Toshiba, and she's really liked it so far. I don't think it's given her any problems in the 13 months that she's had it.
Posted: Fri Aug 10, 2012 5:18 am
I've had my Toshiba for a good two and a half years now. And when I had a harddrive problem, I got the laptop back from service 'bout a week later. My older Fujitsu laptop left me with a 4 month waiting time for some service on the power supply, where they apparently had "forgotten" 'bout me.
My thoughts:
I don't know what service issues there may be with different companies in the US.
If you look at issues with computer stability, you better give up. There's not much hardware produced for laptops or PCs by companies such as Toshiba, Acer, Hewlett Packard, Dell etc. If there's any hardware issues, those companies are just a third party you receive service trough. There's also poor guarantees on new hardware anyway, as it's much cheaper to send a replacement part than to make the proper testing to see if it work as it should.
Gakre
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Posted: Fri Aug 10, 2012 5:37 am
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I used to know someone called Toshiba... she pulled my hair once. I didn't like her much after that.
Anywho the links (bar the amazon) only ask me for a zip code for where it will be delivered and no details on the product (probably to do with being outside the US or something) so I can't reallllllllllllllly help.
Best thing I can suggest is to forget about the specs of the different ones and think about what you really need in their performance eg graphics/sound/memory. Once you figure that out then pick the one that best suits. If you STILL can't decide then they are probably so similar that it doesn't matter and you might as well go for the cheaper one and buy an ice cream with the money you saved or something.
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Posted: Fri Aug 10, 2012 11:38 am
My mum has an acer as does my sister and we've not had any problems with them. Though I know people who have had them and have had a lot of problems. Given the choice of any laptop I'd probably go for an HP model
X3 Thanks again for everyone's opinion. I ended up getting an HP Pavilion with an AMD A8 processor, which seemed like a good choice considering the options available and the budget I had. :3 I appreciate everyone taking the time to help out~!
Posted: Fri Aug 10, 2012 5:30 pm
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Ohhhh yay, glad you managed to get one you really like! It can be pretty tough deciding 3nodding
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