So I'm going to buy a new laptop

[shera]

Thought I'd see if you guys can make some recs before I buy a dell like I always do.

My requirements are
...closer to $500 than $1000
...good quality letterbox display for movies
...good quality built in speakers for movies
...good graphics for...movies

Wwmd?

Ty

[Garth Bimble]

Go with 17.3" display and blu-ray.

[jon gaper]

My new $300 Acer works fine.Try newegg.I dont think any laptop has good speakers

[systemoverblow'd]

Refurb Macbook $549. http://www.microcenter.com/single_pr...uct_id=0380215

It will last longer than your Dell POS and it can even run your windoze.

[L7]

I may be going Asus next time. A comment on a linux forum that makes sense. 'I'd rather by from a computer manufacturer (asus) that outsources their marketing than from a marketing firm (dell) that outsources their manufacturing. Got an asus router at work recently and it is bomber. Same guy mentioned Acer in the same breath.

[thin cover]

I just got my wife a 13" mac book pro brand new at Best Buy for under a K, its the newest iteration with thunderbolt and core duo i5. May trade it up for the 15" still, but if you are 1k and under for budget this is the way to go.

I have a 17" HP with blu ray and its decent but the screen has gone twice and needed new hard drive. I am done with PC's after this. Mac's always work, are more intuitive, they last much longer on average and are just better machines IMO.

[Snow Dog]

SheRa - a moment of your time. Is this laptop for portable use or is it really a stationary system? If it's portable and battery life is important then a 12" - 14" screen works best. If it's stationary then a 17" with a full keyboard is nice. 15" is all purpose. All computers these days have a 16:9 [wide] screen. Almost all laptops have a decent graphics chip for playing movies too. No laptop has "good" speakers. You might as well buy some decent headphones or a 2.1 speaker system (2 small speaker with a subwoofer. Some have excellent sound for a small space.

One irritation with my Lenovo laptop is the DVD drive is LOUD. It sound like a little jet engine on my desk. I try to rip the movie to disk first but most new movies are tough to crack.

[XXX-er]

I would probably go acer

[frosty374]

my dell xps 15 has the best built in sound ive ever heard on a laptop. two speakers on the keyboard and a mini JBL sub underneath. might be a touch over 1k though

[maxwell666]

mac buys hard drives from thailand just like every pc manufacturer. Why would he want thunderbolt? its a useless proprietary connection with barely any supporting peripherals.

[systemoverblow'd]

Yes Apple uses the same hard drives that every company uses. The one in this machine is a Hitachi.

But saying Thunderbolt is useless shows your ignorance. Apple was popularizing USB (created by Intel) way before PC's really acknowledged its viability. Then Apple created Firewire smoking USB. Then Intel made this tech and Apple supported it. Does it matter to the casual user? Not really. But it is 20x faster than USB2.0 and can give you PCI express speeds, even while daisy-chained to a laptop. You could run a full RAID-0 setup connected to your thunderbolt monitor which is connected to your laptop. Something like that from a laptop until this tech came out was unthinkable.

Learn yourself. Stop thinking about the past, and try to look into the future. Tech is changing and anyone saying that INTEL'S creation of Thunderbolt is useless is a moron. Remember when PC's weren't using USB mice and keyboards? Who do you think changed that? Apple.

With the increase in digital media consuption comes the need for faster I/O. Intel is thinking forward and Apple is smart enough to see this.

[shera]

SheRa - a moment of your time. Is this laptop for portable use or is it really a stationary system? If it's portable and battery life is important then a 12" - 14" screen works best. If it's stationary then a 17" with a full keyboard is nice. 15" is all purpose. All computers these days have a 16:9 [wide] screen. Almost all laptops have a decent graphics chip for playing movies too. No laptop has "good" speakers. You might as well buy some decent headphones or a 2.1 speaker system (2 small speaker with a subwoofer. Some have excellent sound for a small space.

One irritation with my Lenovo laptop is the DVD drive is LOUD. It sound like a little jet engine on my desk. I try to rip the movie to disk first but most new movies are tough to crack.

I was looking at 15 because it costs less. Thanks for info on wide screen. Of course I care about battery but graphics is more important to me if I have to choose. I like falling asleep w a movie playing, headphones are uncomfortable. Don't want speakers and cords in the bed either.

my dell xps 15 has the best built in sound ive ever heard on a laptop. two speakers on the keyboard and a mini JBL sub underneath. might be a touch over 1k though

I read this. Might be able to get a decent price since they are trying to move volume here at Christmas time. Still confused by all the flavors of dell 15"laptops.

Thanks for recommendations on acer and asus, I'll have a look.

While I admire apple and am typing on and iPad right now, I won't be buying a laptop. An iPhone next year...

thanks for help everyone, much obliged.

[robbo]

Macbook Pro.

[RShea]

SheRa - how important is Blu-Ray? It probably should be on you list if you want to keep the laptop for a few years and movies playing on the laptop are on your list. 15 inch display laptops should definitely should be in your price range. They will probably be 15.6 inch displays on the units. And unless you are driving to a big screen TV (or truly a road warrior that travels all the time) a movie on that size screen is not very impressive.
I am not a Dell fan, so would definitely suggest taking a look at Lenovo (IBM sold their PC division to them), especially the Thinkpad series. Asus, Samsung and some of the HP as well have some good solid built units too. Blu-Ray will take a graphics card that supports HDCP for the disks to work. I'd also probably make sure the model has HDMI port on it to drive a nice flat screen TV.

[Tye 1on]

Good rec on looking at other stuff than Dell. My 3-4 year old Studio 15 is finally back on it's feet, after a new hard drive and OS. Fortunately have a bud who's a wiz at that stuff, we had it done in an hour, even with a screw dropping into a hidey hole, for ~$70. Runs like a top now.

If i didn't have it back in shape, i would have certainly bought a wireless keyboard for the iPad by now...

[Zesty Not Spicy]

Macbook Pro.

2nd this

But if you go PC just pick anything but a Dell!

[Viva]

Don't want speakers and cords in the bed either.

And this is why Magettes unanimously prefer the LS9000, with its built-in D cells. Plenty of power without the "entanglements".

[Pegleg]

3rd (or whatever) on the "get a Macbook" recommendation. Doesn't matter if you run Windows or Mac OS, the hardware is much better engineered than any Dell and will last longer. I've had 2 Macbooks since 2000 (one from 2000-2006 and one 2006-present), and literally never had a problem with either of them. I'd like to upgrade to a new one just 'cause, but I can't find a reason to because my 2006 model is still plenty fast and still looks and works like new.

[Chugachjed]

You are aware that apple uses intel chipsets and pretty much off the shelf internal hardware right? The only thing proprietary in your macbook is the case and maybe the screen.

[fool]

If you do go dell, you might want to checkout the XPS Z line...might be what you're looking for. The screens are supposed to be amazing. I know it's more business like, but you might be able to find something good in Lenovo's outlet. Full warranty and inventory is updated quite often. I selected my computer preferences (ram, processor, etc.) and then added the website as a favorite. I checked the favorite everyday for about a week till I found what I liked and bought the computer. Though it isn't media specific (T420), it seems to do just fine with music (I don't watch that many movies). Happy with it so far.

[F.ing Mike]

I love MAC users, always trying to prove how their shit better than everyone else's. I have 10 Mac's and 14 PC's here at work and have had just as many problems with them as the PC's. If you take care of your computer, it will run fine. The Mac shop downtown's service dept. is always busy. Both types are fine, it's a matter of opinion which you prefer. If you currently have a PC and have software that you will continue to use then stick with a PC. Get a good antivirus software and keep it up to date, view porn and gamble on someone else's computer and you'll be fine. That said, I have a Dell and a Leveno and both run great.

[DJSapp]

I have a 17.3" 2008 Dell XPS with full 1920x1280 display. Fucking amazing monitor, the best I've ever seen on a laptop, and good (adequate) speakers. Major drawbacks are:

1. It weighs 14 lbs. by itself
2. The power supply is the size of a large brick (seriously, 4" x 8" x 2.5") and weighs 4 lbs.
3. Battery life is under 75 minutes
4. It pumps out more heat than my fireplace

The big 1080p displays DESTROY battery life. I would not want this thing in my bed, ever; it's really just a portable desktop computer. Lesser displays would just be a waste for blue-ray. Maybe a netbook + 20" monitor + DVI/HDMI cable is the answer?

You didn't mention that you're using this computer for any 'computer' purposes. If all you're looking for is something to watch movies on in the bedroom, a monitor + playstation3 would do all of that, and be under $500. Stream netflix, youtube, hulu, and interwebs through the PS3, as well as have a blueray player. Food for thought.

[systemoverblow'd]

Why the hell buy a laptop if you can't move it?

[DJSapp]

Why the hell buy a laptop if you can't move it?

It sits on my desk at work. When I go home, it comes with me and sits in the corner until I go back the next day. Office break-ins and computer theft are really common in construction so everyone takes their cpu home every day, but I needed a hi powered laptop with a big display to run CAD and scheduling software. My point was 17" laptops are not truly the great portable computer some people think they may be.

[chmnyboy]

Don't buy a Lenovo. Purchased mine from newegg about a year ago and had problems right out of the box:
-Biggest annoyance is the touchpad doesn't work very well. It doesn't trace very well, and often times it will think you tapped on it when you really haven't. I looked this up and at the time there weren't any fixes for it - if I remember correctly, its because the pad works on heat and not capacitance, so if your hand is hovering above it, it will sense the heat and think you're touching the pad. Typing is aweful, because it will just click somewhere else in the text at random.
-Mine came loaded with a bunch of aftermarket programs and virus protection and advertisements and a bunch of other shit no one needs.
-I had to spend 90 minutes with tech support when it arrived just trying to get the wireless to work. It was a problem with the computer, NOT the network.
-The screen isn't very clear.

On the plus side, it was cheap.