Dell Laptop need opinion !

[BruceMyers48]

My son is interested in a Dell laptop , I need an opinion on it if it is worth it. Below I will list the specs. Thanks Bruce

Inspiron 1501
AMD Turion 64x2 mobile @ 2.0 GHZ/1mb
2 gig DDR2 @ 533mhz
120 gig sata HD 5400 rpm
DVD burner
Ati radeon Xpress 1150 256 mb mem. Hyper memory
85 hr battery
1390 802.11g mini card
network card and modem
Vista Home prem.

 

[lostandwandering]

What will the laptop be used for and how much are you looking to spend?

If your son wants to play games, that laptop won't do it. If it is for just basic word, Internet, IM and such it should be fine.

 

[BruceMyers48]

No games. He is in Tech school and uses it for classes. There might be some cad programs he might have to load. The price range is about $ 800.00. I have heard that Dell is junk, but I think most lap top are made from the same parts, it just what parts you get when you purchase the laptop. I have looked at Acer and Toshiba too. Bruce

 

[lostandwandering]

Dell's laptops are consistently better than their desktops IMO. I'm not sure how well CAD will work on that laptop because of the integrated graphics. I know the new Inspirons are a little on the expensive side, but don't forget that Dell has thousands of coupons floating around the internet for as much as 30% off certain systems.

 

[BruceMyers48]

Well we ended up with an Toshiba Satellite A215-S4757
Dedicated 128 megs for video. 2 gigs system memory and vista home Prem.250 gig HD and Dual core AMD Turion. Also DVD burner.

 

[lostandwandering]

Should suit his needs well. Good pick-up.