Laptops (2 Viewers)

[The Gate Keeper]

Mac are not inferior at all. I would not deem them better then windows, but they aren't at all worse off.

The main issue i have with Mac is the amount of software you can get running on a Mac OS, which is very limited, and what's available is normally VERY expensive. Hence why you can now get Windows using Bootcamp on your mac.

Yes, it is true that there are very few viruses or spyware, i think there has only ever been 3 or 4 viruses in Mac's existance. But think of it this way, if you were a virus maker, who would you go after? Those that have a mac? or those that have windows? Of course, you'd go after the majority. I'd say like 1 in 20 have a mac, the rest are all running windows. Of course, there are those with Linux and that, which is quite a good OS from what i've read/heard, but still the factor of finding things available for Linux, that's a drawback.

At the end of the day, the main consideration should be, what are you going to be doing with it? how much are you willing to pay for it? What size do you want it? as in 15.4", 17", 12.1" 13.3" (first 3 are dell screen sizes, 13.3" is MacBook)? And whether you plan on buying a new one later on, as in, do you need it just for short term or long term.

Have we confused you people enough yet?

 

[maskd]

I wouldn't worry about availability of software, most people want to use their computers for things like word processing, browsing the net, sending email, instant messaging, etc.

Word Processing - Office 2004 (Comes with Mac, although it's a test drive, can be bought or *cough* downloadede *cough*), Pages (also a trial period)
Watching a DVD - iDVD
Listening to music - iTunes
Instant Messaging - Adium
Browsing the Net - Safari, Firefox, Camino
Email - Mail

iLife has a few other cool programs, as you can see, most programs that the majority of users need are included with the operating system.

 

[The Gate Keeper]

yea, i was more refering to my aspect, i'm one to go pretty hardcore with programs so yea, i have a good pile of programs on my comp which all come in use once in a while.

But maskd is right, for the general purpose stuff (which most of you guys would be doing), mac covers them.

 

[Collin]

hYperTrOphY, it really comes down to what you need.

MacBooks are great laptops, but if you don't need OS X, then there's no dire need to get one. The viruses comment also becomes redundant if you end up getting the MacBook just to run Windows anyway.

As for hardware, basically anything 'new' out today will run the list of activities you listed.
Decent processors to look for are the Core and Core 2 Duos. Other good processors are the Pentium Ms (although a little outdated) and some of AMD's new range including the Turion X2s. You'll want atleast 512MB of RAM, preferably 1GB. Other specs are fairly trivial.. i.e hard disk space, well that's totally user preference.
As for wireless - the vibe I got off your post was that you wanted wireless internet 'anywhere'. In that case, you would want a subscription to a wireless broadband provider like iBurst or Unwired. However make sure you are within the coverage area of those providers, which is at the moment the metro areas of a few bigger cities in Aus. You can also get Telstra's CDMA wireless, which has much larger coverage area, but generally less performance (vs. $$). For this to work, you usually just need a PCMCIA slot on your laptop to attach the wireless PCMCIA modem the ISP provides you.
The other 'wireless internet' subtype you can use involves using the inbuilt wireless card inside your laptop (if you have one inbuilt), or an external one to connect to a router/access point of relative close proximity. However I believe this isn't the situation you're referring to.

As for recommendation of laptop models.. most people know I'll recommend Dell. They generally give you the best performance vs. price machine, but some people complain of their build quality/customer service issues (which I haven't ever personally ran into).

 

[jemsta]

pretty good deal for toshiba
http://www.laptopsplus.com.au/products/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=165

 

[cerpin taxt]

i would support the macbook, but i won't

get a mac sure, just not a macbook

 

[maskd]

i would support the macbook, but i won't

get a mac sure, just not a macbook

Any reasons behind this? I'm guessing because of the apparent heat and mooing issues?

 

[cerpin taxt]

Any reasons behind this? I'm guessing because of the apparent heat and mooing issues?

more the hard drive failure, the random restart issue and the total failure of the LCD screen

 

[Zozo6969]

Toshibas are the best for high-end laptops, while good and solid ones for a decent price are usually Asus and IBM, maybe even HP. Wouldnt go for Sony or LG.

 

[jemsta]

Toshibas are the best for high-end laptops, while good and solid ones for a decent price are usually Asus and IBM, maybe even HP. Wouldnt go for Sony or LG.

whats so bad about sony?

 

[maskd]

more the hard drive failure, the random restart issue and the total failure of the LCD screen

Random restart issue has been patched by Apple, I haven't heard any stories on the net about any hard drive failures that are out of the ordinary, nor have I heard any negative stories about the LCD, apart from it being really bright...

whats so bad about sony?

They laptops that Sony develop are mainly small portables, they are very nicely designed and sturdily build, but you have to pay the price.

 

[cerpin taxt]

Random restart issue has been patched by Apple, I haven't heard any stories on the net about any hard drive failures that are out of the ordinary, nor have I heard any negative stories about the LCD, apart from it being really bright...

well i'm telling them now

what the fuck do you take me for?

 

[maskd]

well i'm telling them now

what the fuck do you take me for?

Someone who needs to chill out.

 

[cerpin taxt]

Someone who needs to chill out.

now can i chill out when i have a rooted macbook?

 

[maskd]

now can i chill out when i have a rooted macbook?

What?

 

[cerpin taxt]

What?

haha chill out man i'm messing with you

 

[maskd]

haha chill out man i'm messing with you

Mate I'm fine, I just didn't understand what you said *scratches head*

 

[jemsta]

yeah i agree with alan that asus is definitely a brand worth considering, along with the others that ive listed a few posts earlier. i wouldnt personally get a dell because even though its cheap for its specs, i dont completely trust their build and quality

 

[The Gate Keeper]

being an owner of a dell laptop, i can say i'm happy with it. I know i put in a bit more money then what is wanted (i put in 3g), but my laptop outdoes all of my comps at home (best comp at home is P4 3.06ghz with HT), and most of my mate's computers. The fact that it's got 2ghz core duo and 2gig of ram, well that stokes most people right there.

I have heard stories of DELL's bad technical services, but I tested it myself and found it more than satisfactory being that ALL communcation was done by email. It didn't cost me anything because it was covered under the warrenty. And yea, DELL does offer quite a bit under warrenty, i've international theft/damage cover, meaning i'm covered for anything that happens for 3 years , but it does cost a bit for that.

But yea, there is a lot to consider. Asus is a very nice brand, though i didn't find much on their websites about their laptops (though i didn't look greatly cause i didn't see much talk about it).

So yea, speaking from experience, I would say that the quality is very reasonable, and i haven't had any issues apart from the one that was with my 1394 port, and yea that could have been due to poor handling, but aye, it's covered under warrenty, which it would be under any standard warrenty offered by any company.

 

[sunny]

Lenovo are having a special on T43s right now

http://www-604.ibm.com/webapp/wcs/s...36&langId=36&promoName=clearance&re=home_A_au

My friend just ordered the $1.8k version.