1. What is your budget?
My max is $900, but I'd really like to keep it under $800.
2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
I've been looking at 11.6'', but I'm worried that might be too small for the kind of work I want to do on it (typing long essays for school, having multiple windows open at the same time, watching HD video). Any advice?. I wouldn't get anything larger than 13'', as I still want a decent amount of portability.
3. What screen resolution do you want?
It's really important to me that it has an HD screen. 1920x1080 is preferable, as I watch a lot of movies and video. I've seen a lot of 11.6'' screens with 1366x768 screens at an affordable price - does anyone know if I'd even be able to tell the difference between that and 1920x1080 on a screen of that size?
4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
Portable. I'll be taking this in a backpack to school, traveling with it, and carrying it around the house.
5. How much battery life do you need?
Enough to get me through the school day. I really don't want to be tied to a charger or have to worry about having one with me during the day. 6-8 hours minimum. I'm usually out from the house, and therefore a charger, for about 7 hours a day. There are times when I'll be out for close to 12 hours, and would prefer not to have to worry about carrying a charger with me. Obviously anything longer is desirable.
6. Do you want to play games with your laptop? If so then please list the games that you want to with the settings that you want for these games. (Low,Medium or High)?
I don't expect a portable laptop to me able to play games (I have a desktop for that).
7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)
As mentioned before, I watch a lot of video, so an HD screen is required. I don't need the power for HD photo/video editing.
8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?
I really want SSD storage for the speed. I can get by with 128 GB, but I'd like to option for expansion through an SD card slot. I can keep most of my files on USB or external storage.
9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.
I'll buy from anywhere (new, not used). I'd prefer somewhere that has a storefront, so I can just go and pick it up in store, but it's not super important to me.
10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?
3-4 years of usage is what I expect to get from any laptop.
11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
I don't need any of these and I don't think anything portable would have them anyways.
12. Please tell us about the brands that you prefer to buy from them and the brands that you don't like and explain the reasons.
I don't really care about brands. However, I really want a nice looking device. I'm a fan of Lenovo, but that by no means is a requirement.
13. What country do you live in?
America.
14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.
I want reliable wifi performance and speed. Some things I really want are: Intel i5 Haswell (or equivalent), SSD storage, and an HD screen. 4GB of RAM should be enough for the usage I need. I don't need a lot in terms of ports. I only really use 1 USB at a time, but having 2 just in case would be nice. I'd also like an SD card slot for quick storage expansion, but I mostly just store my files on a USB anyways.
I've been looking into a lot of 2-in-1 machines, like the Lenovo Yoga line and similar. I don't see the point in having Windows 8 if there's no touch screen or tablet-like functionality. Are 2-in-1s a gimmick or do you think it's a smart purchase? I like to have the keyboard connected at all times - not any of those tablets that can plug into a keyboard. Along with standard laptop usage like word processing, making presentations, etc., I do a lot of light browsing and video watching on the couch/in bed, and having something I can turn into a tablet for a smaller footprint is really appealing.
I really enjoy using a tablet for browsing the internet and other light usages. I know they're not as light as tablets, but I'm usually laying a tablet in my lap anyways (not holding it in one hand), so the fact that it's a little heavier than a tablet doesn't bother me. I haven't really played around with any of them a part from in BestBuy for a few minutes. I really like the form factor, but if you think I can get by without it and have a thinner, lighter device for my money by all means suggest something different.
Basically, I'm confused as to if I should get an ultrabook or a convertible laptop to meet my mobile computing needs.
Thanks for the advice!
My max is $900, but I'd really like to keep it under $800.
2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
I've been looking at 11.6'', but I'm worried that might be too small for the kind of work I want to do on it (typing long essays for school, having multiple windows open at the same time, watching HD video). Any advice?. I wouldn't get anything larger than 13'', as I still want a decent amount of portability.
3. What screen resolution do you want?
It's really important to me that it has an HD screen. 1920x1080 is preferable, as I watch a lot of movies and video. I've seen a lot of 11.6'' screens with 1366x768 screens at an affordable price - does anyone know if I'd even be able to tell the difference between that and 1920x1080 on a screen of that size?
4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
Portable. I'll be taking this in a backpack to school, traveling with it, and carrying it around the house.
5. How much battery life do you need?
Enough to get me through the school day. I really don't want to be tied to a charger or have to worry about having one with me during the day. 6-8 hours minimum. I'm usually out from the house, and therefore a charger, for about 7 hours a day. There are times when I'll be out for close to 12 hours, and would prefer not to have to worry about carrying a charger with me. Obviously anything longer is desirable.
6. Do you want to play games with your laptop? If so then please list the games that you want to with the settings that you want for these games. (Low,Medium or High)?
I don't expect a portable laptop to me able to play games (I have a desktop for that).
7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)
As mentioned before, I watch a lot of video, so an HD screen is required. I don't need the power for HD photo/video editing.
8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?
I really want SSD storage for the speed. I can get by with 128 GB, but I'd like to option for expansion through an SD card slot. I can keep most of my files on USB or external storage.
9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.
I'll buy from anywhere (new, not used). I'd prefer somewhere that has a storefront, so I can just go and pick it up in store, but it's not super important to me.
10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?
3-4 years of usage is what I expect to get from any laptop.
11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
I don't need any of these and I don't think anything portable would have them anyways.
12. Please tell us about the brands that you prefer to buy from them and the brands that you don't like and explain the reasons.
I don't really care about brands. However, I really want a nice looking device. I'm a fan of Lenovo, but that by no means is a requirement.
13. What country do you live in?
America.
14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.
I want reliable wifi performance and speed. Some things I really want are: Intel i5 Haswell (or equivalent), SSD storage, and an HD screen. 4GB of RAM should be enough for the usage I need. I don't need a lot in terms of ports. I only really use 1 USB at a time, but having 2 just in case would be nice. I'd also like an SD card slot for quick storage expansion, but I mostly just store my files on a USB anyways.
I've been looking into a lot of 2-in-1 machines, like the Lenovo Yoga line and similar. I don't see the point in having Windows 8 if there's no touch screen or tablet-like functionality. Are 2-in-1s a gimmick or do you think it's a smart purchase? I like to have the keyboard connected at all times - not any of those tablets that can plug into a keyboard. Along with standard laptop usage like word processing, making presentations, etc., I do a lot of light browsing and video watching on the couch/in bed, and having something I can turn into a tablet for a smaller footprint is really appealing.
I really enjoy using a tablet for browsing the internet and other light usages. I know they're not as light as tablets, but I'm usually laying a tablet in my lap anyways (not holding it in one hand), so the fact that it's a little heavier than a tablet doesn't bother me. I haven't really played around with any of them a part from in BestBuy for a few minutes. I really like the form factor, but if you think I can get by without it and have a thinner, lighter device for my money by all means suggest something different.
Basically, I'm confused as to if I should get an ultrabook or a convertible laptop to meet my mobile computing needs.
Thanks for the advice!
/shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/lenovo/z-series/z40/?sb=:000001C9:00011F90:&cid=us:cse:OAB9Cs:
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