Laptop recommendations?

[ArcticChicken]

So for Christmas/Chanuka/Holiday-where-I-bake-and-people-give-me-pretty-toys everyone is giving me cash to put towards a new computer. I've decided I want a laptop, because I like being in the living room and hanging out with people, rather than being sequestered in my room. All I really need right now is the ability to access the internet, use Itunes, and write a paper.

Can anyone recommend a manufacturer? I want a machine that's likely to last until I have to buy a new one to play Diablo III on.

[alogram]

I would strongly, STRONGLY advise that you not buy a Dell.

I recently bought one, it didn't work right out of the box, and their customer service was AWFUL. I had to call multiple times just to get a return shipping label, had to explain over and over why I wanted to return it, and then had to wait ages to get a refund.

It was a very frustrating process!

I just got a new Gateway and LOVE IT so so much!

[DevilBoy]

Apple MacBook

Sony Vaio NS Series

[Yfandes]

A second vote for the Apple MacBook - I loves mine I do. And if you are a student or affiliated with any school at all you can get the educational discount.

The 13-inch is nicely lightweight with a decent size keyboard and a pleasant screen.

And DiabloII LOD plays very nicely on it

[MadMike]

I would strongly, STRONGLY advise that you not buy a Dell.

Acers are horrible, from what I've seen as well. Both my son and one of my close friends had bad experiences with them.

I don't know what my friend ended up doing about hers, but with my son's, we got rid of it and got an HP. We've had no problems with it so far, and it's been over a year. The Acer, on the other hand, started giving us trouble almost from day number one.

[Eric the Grey]

I'd second the Vaio myself. I've owned one, and my sister is on her second one, and all three have been very good machines.

I'd love to get myself a MacBook for school since I'm doing graphic design now. Until this semester, I'd never used one before. Now, I'm loving them. It's too bad so much that I do on computers requires windows....

Perhaps next fall I can add enough to my student loans to get one. It won't happen any sooner though.

Edit: Looking at the Mac site, it says that Mac's can run Windows XP using Bootcamp. Does anybody have experience with this? Does it run smooth? Maybe I'll look into a Mac instead of a Macbook....


Eric the Grey

[Chromatix]

Strangely enough, a MacBook Pro is said to be the fastest laptop to run Vista. And it's pretty good at XP too.

But I would say that if you get an MB or MBP, don't bother with Windows at all, just use the superior system it comes with!

[Eric the Grey]

Strangely enough, a MacBook Pro is said to be the fastest laptop to run Vista. And it's pretty good at XP too.

But I would say that if you get an MB or MBP, don't bother with Windows at all, just use the superior system it comes with!

Probably for the best, but I, for one, cannot do without my games.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread.... (no more hijacking for me...)

Eric the Grey

[DevilBoy]

Looking at the Mac site, it says that Mac's can run Windows XP using Bootcamp. Does anybody have experience with this? Does it run smooth?

BootCamp does nothing more than a create a partition and then install the hardware drivers for Windows. The Mac OS is untouched.

The two operating systems run independent of each other. One does not affect the other.
In other words, if you install Windows, you will still need to take precautions against malware, trojans, spyware, viruses...etc. for your Windows installation.
Those types of things won't do a thing to your OS X installation.

So if you use BootCamp and then install Windows, Windows will run natively... just as it does on any other computer.
So if someone desperately needs a computer for their Windows-based games, you can have that with an Intel-based Mac if you use BootCamp to install Windows.

[ArcticChicken]

A second vote for the Apple MacBook - I loves mine I do. And if you are a student or affiliated with any school at all you can get the educational discount.

And DiabloII LOD plays very nicely on it

Actually, I've got the "friend who works at the apple store" discount, but I want to check all my options.

And LOD won't run on my cousin's MacBook. But his is a bit screwy anyway.

[SteeleDragon78]

depending on your budget, i have found that Toshiba makes an affordable laptop with reasonable specs. though if your budget will allow for a mb or mbp go for it, there are several windows emulation programs that will allow you to play your games on the mac with little aggravation.

[Jack T. Chance]

I just bought a new laptop about a month and a half ago, after finding one that EVERYONE was raving about... Maximum PC, Laptop Magazine and Consumer Reports ALL recommend it based on it being the best bang for your buck out of all the gaming laptops that are currently available.

The Gateway P-7811 FX. If you want it, buy it NOW. Do NOT wait! It's only been out since the middle of August, and by the end of October, when I bought mine, Best Buy (the ONLY place you can buy it) had ALREADY discontinued it! Every single Best Buy in my area has been sold out for 2 months, and they will NOT restock the stores. As you can see on the website, it's listed as an OUTLET ITEM, which means that once the online order warehouse runs out, it's DONE. Get it while you can, it's an AMAZING laptop.

EDIT: Well, looks like Best Buy's online order warehouse is out of stock, as well. Try the store search, if you're super lucky, there MIGHT be a store in your area that still has one. Otherwise, wait for its successor, which will probably hit Best Buy stores early in the new year and will most likely be even MORE powerful.

[froglet]

I got a new Toshiba laptop in August or so, and I noticed rather quickly that the left speaker, which is placed near the monitor, so the sound gets muffled when the monitor is down, seems to have a loose connection, since it goes in and out. I travelled an hour and a half away to get it looked at under warranty, but when I went and got it back a week later, the speaker is exactly the same, after a mobo replacement.
My brother in law seems to like his Toshiba though. I was just after something quick after not having a computer for a while, he took more time with his.

[otakuneko]

For my part, I'd say, avoid getting the absolute cheapest. You'll be unsatisfied with it, even if you don't ask for much.

Also, if at all possible, consider one with XP over one with Vista.

[Broomjockey]

Look, I'm going to say this flat-out. If you don't need a Mac-specific program, don't get a Macbook or MBP. You'll have limited software options, networking with a Windows-based computer will be awkward, and you'll be paying more for the "status symbol" aspect (also known as the "Mac Tax"). Macs have their place in a professional environment, but not for general use. My best friend's recently had to start programming on Macs at work, and he says in a 3 month stretch, the OS (not just the program he's using) has crashed at LEAST weekly, while his Windows XP machine's crashed twice. And this is a machine in a professonal environment, where no one's doing anything hinky, or just for fun. I know saying "get Vista" will be useless, so get a machine with XP. Toshiba makes a wide range of great machines, and even the Compaq I had for years was a sturdy little machine.