Computer Gurus...Help me find a laptop!

[Suicide Bobb 5,000+ posts]

Here's the rundown: In anticipation of the introduction of the iPad 2, and thus the deflation in the selling price of my iPad 1, I am going to sell my iPad and get a laptop to hold me over until I get the Atrix and its' laptop dock. In the meantime, I will play around with the laptop dock at my store and see if it's a viable alternative for me (I'm probably getting the Atrix in late March).

I need your guys' help finding a laptop...If you didn't already know, I'm not computer-savvy, and have absolutely no idea what to look for!

I just want the best bang-for-buck laptop for under $500 (my selling price for the iPad is going to be $500 because it has an invisishield, 3 cases, and it's in perfect condition). To be safe, see if you can find something good that's under $400.

I don't want a Mac, just because they lack in the performance/dollar ratio. I don't really like Dells (or HP's, but I'd take an HP over a Dell) either, just because they aren't reliable in my experience when you load them up with a bunch of ish. I want something fast and reliable. I would prefer to buy used, so maybe someone can browse portland.craiglist.org/ele for them? Unless you think I would be better off with a brand new one...

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[dbjunior 10+ year member]

acer aspire as5552-3691 $398

 

[MikeofTulsa Moderator]

just bought a decent acer from walmart for about 450.

 

[Suicide Bobb 5,000+ posts]

I do like Acer and Asus a lot, I hear they are pretty damn good for the money...Is new the way to go for laptops right now?

 

[DonWan 10+ year member]

Just really depends what you use your laptop for. Gaming,making videos,or just getting on the internet fooling around? If it's the internet which I take the assumption it is.I would suggest a few different laptops for the cash, just a fyi most laptops all come with the same hardware name brands it don't matter if it's Dell/HP/Gateway etc. the only time you get different parts is when you buy mac etc which are higher brand and cost more.. anyway I would suggest checking out dealnews.com they show the good deals you can find without doing all the searching

what size monitor would you like? and I can find you a decent rig you need

 

[Buck 5,000+ posts]

I found a laptop. I'm typing on it right now.

 

[Suicide Bobb 5,000+ posts]

Just really depends what you use your laptop for. Gaming,making videos,or just getting on the internet fooling around? If it's the internet which I take the assumption it is.I would suggest a few different laptops for the cash, just a fyi most laptops all come with the same hardware name brands it don't matter if it's Dell/HP/Gateway etc. the only time you get different parts is when you buy mac etc which are higher brand and cost more.. anyway I would suggest checking out dealnews.com they show the good deals you can find without doing all the searching
what size monitor would you like? and I can find you a decent rig you need

I do a little of everything...Lots of videos (pron), light gaming (no CD games or anything), I download a bunch of ish, torrent a lot...Graphics are of no concern to me. Audio quality is not a big concern either. Screen size doesn't matter really, just average laptop size I guess. No netbooks.

 

[DonWan 10+ year member]

torrent is all based around how fast your internet is and how big your hard drive is. I dione a fast search and found a few in your budget.

I know you said you didn't want to spend the whole 500 but this is a great deal

http://www.buy.com/prod/acer-aspire-as5742-6475-15-6-notebook-intel-core-i3-380m-2-53ghz-4gb/q/loc/101/218224744.html?listingid=-1

this is under 500 but not a bad rig it has 500gb HD and also has 4gb ram which is nice as well

Asus K52F-RGR6 Notebook

this one is more your budget downsize is it has 320GB HD 2gb ram which I think would fit you the best

Acer Aspire AS5253-BZ660 LX.RD502.039 Notebook PC - AMD C-50 1.0GHz, 2GB DDR3, 320GB HDD, DVDRW, 15.6 Display, HDMI, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, Black at TigerDirect.com

I would suggest any of these,if you don't like these I can find some more for you, but the third one is a good rig and will suit you right. the first and second are really nice but they're out of your budget. Between the first and second the first one is boss it has a sexy CPU and graphics card in it.. anyway good luck and like I said I can find more if you don't like these choices. also I tried to stay away from Dell/HP

 

[Suicide Bobb 5,000+ posts]

torrent is all based around how fast your internet is and how big your hard drive is. I dione a fast search and found a few in your budget.
I know you said you didn't want to spend the whole 500 but this is a great deal

Buy.com - Acer Aspire AS5742-6475 15.6" Notebook, Intel Core i3-380M (2.53GHz), 4GB DDR3 Memory, 500GB HDD, DVD Super Multi-Drive, Intel HD Graphics, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit

this is under 500 but not a bad rig it has 500gb HD and also has 4gb ram which is nice as well

Asus K52F-RGR6 Notebook

this one is more your budget downsize is it has 320GB HD 2gb ram which I think would fit you the best

Acer Aspire AS5253-BZ660 LX.RD502.039 Notebook PC - AMD C-50 1.0GHz, 2GB DDR3, 320GB HDD, DVDRW, 15.6 Display, HDMI, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, Black at TigerDirect.com

I would suggest any of these,if you don't like these I can find some more for you, but the third one is a good rig and will suit you right. the first and second are really nice but they're out of your budget. Between the first and second the first one is boss it has a sexy CPU and graphics card in it.. anyway good luck and like I said I can find more if you don't like these choices. also I tried to stay away from Dell/HP

Thanks man!

The 3rd is great, but the Ram and Processor speed aren't quite what I'm looking for. I am a "tabber", meaning I open A LOT of tabs and would like them to stay open, so 4gb of Ram is probably a good starting point. I would also prefer at least 4ghz of processing power.

Nothing used? As I asked before, is new the best option? I'm typically a fan of used equipment, but if new is better for the money, than that's what I'll get...

 

[DonWan 10+ year member]

new is better, when it comes to used computers/laptops even with a fresh reboot they start slowing down after time of use unless you can find one that's only been used for a couple months tops.

and when your talking CPU speed your talking more money same with ram. 4ghz is really fast and would cost you a crap ton of money. My comp's CPU speed is 3.1 ghz and that CPU alone cost me 350 bucks //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif (you can buy them cheaper now but they're still pricey). and when it comes to laptops and CPU speed they cost more but the first one I posted is pretty good for the money and that's 2.5ghz which is good on a laptop..

 

[Ignatowski 5,000+ posts]

Newegg.com - MSI CR620-691US NoteBook Intel Core i3 380M(2.53GHz) 15.6" 4GB Memory 500GB HDD DVD Super Multi Intel HD Graphics

 

[disturbed471985 5,000+ posts]

new is better, when it comes to used computers/laptops even with a fresh reboot they start slowing down after time of use unless you can find one that's only been used for a couple months tops.
and when your talking CPU speed your talking more money same with ram. 4ghz is really fast and would cost you a crap ton of money. My comp's CPU speed is 3.1 ghz and that CPU alone cost me 350 bucks //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif (you can buy them cheaper now but they're still pricey). and when it comes to laptops and CPU speed they cost more but the first one I posted is pretty good for the money and that's 2.5ghz which is good on a laptop..

Do what?? I must see proof of this. I have a feeling I will be waiting a lifetime to see any kind of proof.

 

[Cruzer 10+ year member]

u get what u pay for, and lap tops are just plain expensive for the performance u get. $500, the MSI ignatowski linked or the $500 acer donwon linked are virtually the same specs. they have the best processor and ram for that price.

here is one that has slightly less than $500, has 4 gig ram, only 320gb hd, and a 2.0 processor with 3mb of l3 cache

Amazon.com: Acer AS5742Z-4685 15.6-Inch Laptop (Mesh Black): Computer & Accessories

i would just buy one of the $500 listed above, its worth the extra $20 for the i3 processor

 

[DonWan 10+ year member]

Do what?? I must see proof of this. I have a feeling I will be waiting a lifetime to see any kind of proof.

They do believe me or not. Seems like you like to argue with me and I can't get away from you..

 

[disturbed471985 5,000+ posts]

They do believe me or not. Seems like you like to argue with me and I can't get away from you..

No Sir I have no desire to argue with you. But when you make a 100% false statement then it needs to be pointed out so people that don't know better don't get mislead by a completely false statement.

Give me a comp that was built in 2001 and I bet you a million $$$ I can have it up and running just as fast as the day it was built.