BS: Laptops - which most preferred?

Subject: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: katlaughing
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 12:50 PM

I am going to be purchasing a used/refurbished laptop, so that I may write elsewhere besides at home, at the mercy of so many distractions, including whiney cats, pissy dog, telephone, etc.:-)

Anyway, I've found several sites with good buys, but I would really like to hear from you and what experiences you may have with them.

My main criteria is that it be fairly lighweight, good for word processing, and good sized monitor screen. CD-Rom capability and modem, of course, will be nice, as most of the ones I am looking at have those built-in.

Anyway, please share what you can about what you use and why you like it.

Thanks!

kat

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: GUEST,John J
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 12:56 PM

What sort of price range are you looking at, Kat?

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: MMario
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:00 PM

sound like possibly you might want to concentrate on which one gives yo0u the most time per battery.

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: wysiwyg
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:02 PM

I know you already know this, but I thought I'd say it anyway.

The best one to get is the one that comes from someone you know, and that comes with a good long warranty. In allocating the bucks I would choose reliability over fancy features, since you are pretty clear on what you want it to do and don't need a new toy to make you all happy. *G*

We have gotten our best used stuff from the tech that does our repairs-- just like with our good-condition used cars. We prefer to trust someone who knows we are going to be right in his service area for quite awhile, and that we will support what he does as long as he keeps us up and running.

With that mutually understood, we prefer to wait till our contact person finds a machine he can equip us with in good faith.

~Susan

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: katlaughing
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:15 PM

Well, Susan, that would be nice, but we have no tech person in our immediate area. Plus, the sites I've visited have some pretty good ratings, some belonging to the Web Beter Business Bureau, with consumer ratings and award, plus warrantied. Some are on Yahoo and backed by Yahoo's guaranty thing about preferred business.

MMario, I plan to use it plugged in, as much as possible at either th local library or the college library, plus Rog was telling me I could also get an adaptor to run it off the car battery. But, it is still a good point.

JohnJ, the ones we've been looking at are in the $2-300, possibly a little more, range.

I've talked with two writers who both say they like their laptops for doing creative work on. In fact, one of them, my cousin, with several published books to her name, says she never does any of her creative work on the desktop, it is all on her laptop. Guess I should ask her what kind she uses, huh?**BG**

Thanks, everyone,

kat

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: MMario
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:17 PM

actually - if you are planning to use mostly plugged in - then concentrate on screen quality and keyboard - *grin*

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: Mrrzy
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:19 PM

Those of you using laptops - how can you see those obnoxious screens? My main problem is I can't find one with a screen I can read...

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: katlaughing
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:19 PM

T'anks...*bg*

Any suggestions about either of those?

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: katlaughing
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:23 PM

Mrrzy, some of the ones I've been looking at have 14" screens, the same size as my desktop. Is it size which bothers you or quality or that they are kind of close? That is one of my concerns. I know that for ergonomics, a screen should be about 3 feet away and also at a certian height to avoid neck and eye strain.

So, how about it, laptop users? How do you cope with these and what are the best for good qualitites to combat such?

Thanks! (Oh my cousin is not home at the moment. Will post her preference when I hear back.)

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: MMario
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:26 PM

kat - in my experience a lot depends on personal preference - what one person considers a keyboard with a good feel is completly awkward for another - and I have often run across screens that the owners swear is the best quality they have ever seen on a computer that I cannot read!

I myself will by *preference* only use a laptop when it is in a docking station with full monitor and keyboard - but that is my own personal prejudice.

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: mousethief
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:29 PM

Be sure to test-type the intended brand/make/model, to see if you can stand the keyboard. Laptop keyboards are not like desktop keyboards, and some of them are just horribly difficult to use.

Also the mouse. Some have that thing like a pencil eraser stuck in the middle of the keyboard; others ahve a track ball that attaches to the side; others have a track ball down below the space bar; still others have a "mouse pad" (no, it's not a condo for the likes of me!) which you navigate with a fingertip. The latter are (IMHO) the hardest to use, the eraser-thing takes some getting used to but once you get the knack isn't so terrible; the rollerballs (having it at your thumb rather than having to reach for it is a good thing) are closest to using a mouse (for my $$). And you could always just plug a mouse into the back, if you have table-area enough to support it (and don't mind packing the extra weight/bulk).

Just a couple of things to ponder!

IIRC the Dells we had at Boeing were unreliable. I've never heard anything bad about Toshibas. Take that with a grain o' NaCl as my experience is very slender.

Alex

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: MMario
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:50 PM

ditto on the Dells - at my place of work we also have not had much luck with laptops from Gateway. The IBM laptops have given us a LOT of problems with drivers. Toshiba - very little experience with them. Compaqs in our experience tend to have problems with the video - both driver wise and with them breaking at the point the video feed goes through the hinge - but not all models.

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: IvanB
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:52 PM

In contrast to Alex's experience, when I was working (pre-1998), I bought around 200 laptops of various brands over the space of 3-4 years. The Dells were by far the most reliable. Also, the later ones all had the touch pad, which I greatly preferred over the 'eraser' tip. Some had the built-in trackball, which I also liked. Unfortunately, since I was purchasing computers for field staff, I didn't get to play with them as extensively as I'd have liked, except when I checked one out for travelling.

One thing I liked about the Dells was that their keyboards were the closest I found to full-size. I also liked their monitors, although I agree that nothing beats a desktop monitor. Probably the computers that I was buying near the end of my tenure are those that you're going to be considering with your price range, kat.

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:54 PM

Mac G4 Powerbook, not the titanium kind, though.

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: mousethief
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 01:55 PM

The dells we had had problems with the mousepad driver. The pointer/cursor would start skittering all over the screen, and you couldn't control it. (The only solution was to reboot, and then they were okay for a time, then fritzed out again.) The newer ones (also Dell) that replaced that model (and for the life of me I can't remember what model it was) didn't have that problem. Maybe ask around your computer geek friends to see if anybody can recall the model with the bad mousepad, and then avoid that 'un.

Alex

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: Amos
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 02:10 PM

Kat:

Greatest reward for the buck is a Titanium or other G4 from Apple.

Large screens, zippy, all mod cons, and robust.

A

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: GUEST,Russ
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 02:27 PM

Kat,

I understand the reality of budgetary constraints, but as a reality check visit local retailers who sell laptops. (CompUsa, Circuit City, Walmart, Staples, etc) See what NEW low-end laptops are selling for. My experience is that when you compare them with new computers, used computers are vastly overpriced.

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: GUEST,John J
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 02:39 PM

You may have seen it, but:

www.usedlaptops.com

might be worth a look.

John

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: Peter T.
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 03:44 PM

kat, if you are just interested in writing and using the Internet, Go Mac. If you can't afford a G4, and don't like i-Books, you might look for a second-hand Powerbook 3400 (they are now ridiculously cheap, about 500 dollars American). Has a CD Rom Drive, internal modem, optional Floppy Disc Drive, Big Screen, standard seems about 900MB, you can practically drop it on concrete, good typing setup. Just a nice machine. I got one about 6 months ago, and I carry it everywhere, do all my writing on it, it has been a lifesaver. There is a stripped down special edition Word 2000 for Mac (keep stripping boys) at about 175 dollars American, what else do you need?

yours, Peter T.

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: mooman
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 03:58 PM

Second hand Mac laptop is very good if you can find one for the right price..

I use a Dell Latitude LS laptop as my exclusive computer at work and it is a great little machine. Light enough to slip into any decent bag or briefcase. Haven't had any quality problems with mine. Due to the very compact size, the CD and floppy drives plug in separately and are not built into the laptop.

I bought a discarded Toshiba Satellite from work for a very decent price which is what I'm typing on at the moment. I've upped the RAM to a fairly decent 80MB and it copes fairly well and is a reliable machine although somewhat "chunkier" than the Dell.

Hope this is of some help.

mooman

I no longer use a desktop at all. Unlike some people who've posted I cannot stand the flicker of the screen of a normal monitor even on a fast refresh rate. You do not get that with DSTN or TFT laptop screens.I will never go back to a desktop + monitor machine.

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: Amergin
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 04:11 PM

Hmm...I'll be getting a new laptop soon...in the next couple of months or so...that is unless visiting my goddaughter in North Idaho and my special lady friend in California does not eat all of my money...Kat, i would go for a new computer...but then that is me...since I do more with mine than just write and surf the net...the newer ones tend to come with ethernet cards....and that would be great for you....you can possibly lock yourself in a room...and get online...and what not...

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 04:30 PM

If all you need it for is Word Processing, I'd look for a used top of the range 486 (remember them?) - a Toshiba maybe.

You'd pick one up for next to nothing these days - why pay for what you don't want?

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 04:30 PM

I just bought a cheap Dell Inspiron 5000e, which model Dell has stopped doing in favour of the 8000, and as it's discontinued it's also discounted heavily. Nice big screen 14" TFT and a big keyboard, the Dells all have modular bits so you can run with a battery and a DVD or 2 batteries, which increases your independence from elec-trickery. The 8000 drives all fit the 5000e slots so although the model is discontinued the add ons continue to be freely available.

Good Luck

Jock

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: robomatic
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 07:15 PM

I had a Compaq Concerto a 1994 pen based laptop that I just loved. I'm only now thinking of replacing it.

Definitely type a few paragraphs on the machine you intend to use. I noticed something I consider pretty nasty about many of the new Compaqs. They center the touchpad part of the keyboard, below the keys and not with the 'gh' keys which comprise the center position for touch typing. So, when I tried to touch type the meaty part of my right thumb kept hitting the right button of the touch pad and it drove me nuts. The Compaq 1700 series does Not have this bad feature, they move the touchpad to the left, and it looks great.

If you can possibly afford it, buy a new one and don't inherit the foibles of a used machine. Prices are very good.

I know several Toshiba buyers who are very happy.

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 07:47 PM

mooman, I don't have the problem with refresh rates over 70 but some of the old desktops with lower rates do make me feel ill so maybe I know where you are coming from although CRT monitors are not the only option for desktops.

My reason for preferring desktop PCs is that they are pretty much like lego kits inside (or most are) and it is so easy to upgrade, replace a faulty part, etc. and few worries about special parts specific to one machine or maker.

Coming back to kat's question, the only lap top I had any longer term experience with was my brother's Compaq. I't was a nightmare, the wires broke (as MMario mentioned above) and something else broke under warranty and on top of that the company were not exactly helpfull...

Maybe the Mac is worth a look, I don't know. The one thing I do know is if I was considering a move like kat's, I'd want something with a proven history of reliability and would be far more concerned about that than whether it had the best looking screen or the nicest keyboard to me (that is not to say these things are not important).

Jon

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: Amergin
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 08:02 PM

If you get a toshiba...make sure it is newer than 98 or 99...

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 08:13 PM

Amergin,

Why? Please explain

Subject: RE: BS: Laptops - which most preferred?
From: Mountain Dog
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 08:22 PM

Kat,

My wife and I have used a Toshiba Satellite Pentium II almost exclusively for the last three years, while traveling through the UK and US gathering material for a book and writing same. We had to replace the CD drive (under extended warranty) about two years into it, but otherwise have been very pleased.

Our experience with Toshiba laptops has been matched and echoed by other friends who have to rely on them for work and recreation.

I'd personally avoid both Gateways and Hitachis.

Good luck and keep those fingers flying over the keys, regardless of what you end up buying!