Hey all!
I'm helping my mom pick out a new laptop (i.e. telling her which one to buy) but am finding it challenging - her preferences & requirements are completely different than mine. Was hoping some of you folks might have recommendations so I can find her something she'll be happy with.
Budget is about $700ish, but there might be a little flexibility for the perfect computer (maybe $800ish). A typical 15" display is fine.
Aside from the usual "reasonably lightweight laptop that can run word processing, web browsing, movies, etc" she's got a few specifics:
1. *Effective* dictation ability. She writes but has chronic wrist/hand trouble so needs good speech-to-text functionality. My plan was to get her Dragon NaturallySpeaking - the software purchase isn't a problem but not having used it before I want to make sure it's compatible across most laptops and that there aren't any dealbreakers for it hardware-wise. Or if there are any other considerations from you guys in the speech-to-text arena - it'll be one of the primary uses for this computer and is something I've got no experience with.
2. Backlit keyboard. I know this narrows down the selection a bit, but she says this is a must.
3. Any other considerations I'm unaware of. My mom is physically a typical person in her late 50s, so both a clear/bright/sharp display and a lower overall weight are ideal. As is general engineering ease-of-use. Beyond that I dunno what other kind of features are helpful for older folks, so any voices of experience are much welcome...
Been a few years since I've bought a laptop, so I'm totally new even to the touchscreen models that are being released - is touchscreen the way to go?
I'm really hoping to set her up with a computer that can get her back into writing despite the hand issues, so want to get this selection right. Thanks in advance!
I'm helping my mom pick out a new laptop (i.e. telling her which one to buy) but am finding it challenging - her preferences & requirements are completely different than mine. Was hoping some of you folks might have recommendations so I can find her something she'll be happy with.
Budget is about $700ish, but there might be a little flexibility for the perfect computer (maybe $800ish). A typical 15" display is fine.
Aside from the usual "reasonably lightweight laptop that can run word processing, web browsing, movies, etc" she's got a few specifics:
1. *Effective* dictation ability. She writes but has chronic wrist/hand trouble so needs good speech-to-text functionality. My plan was to get her Dragon NaturallySpeaking - the software purchase isn't a problem but not having used it before I want to make sure it's compatible across most laptops and that there aren't any dealbreakers for it hardware-wise. Or if there are any other considerations from you guys in the speech-to-text arena - it'll be one of the primary uses for this computer and is something I've got no experience with.
2. Backlit keyboard. I know this narrows down the selection a bit, but she says this is a must.
3. Any other considerations I'm unaware of. My mom is physically a typical person in her late 50s, so both a clear/bright/sharp display and a lower overall weight are ideal. As is general engineering ease-of-use. Beyond that I dunno what other kind of features are helpful for older folks, so any voices of experience are much welcome...
Been a few years since I've bought a laptop, so I'm totally new even to the touchscreen models that are being released - is touchscreen the way to go?
I'm really hoping to set her up with a computer that can get her back into writing despite the hand issues, so want to get this selection right. Thanks in advance!
/store.hp.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ConfigureView?storeId=10151&catalogId=10051&langId=-1&catEntryId=889651&quantity=1&color=
Facebook
Twitter