Hello-
Have combed the threads here and didn't find anything that really fit what I was looking for. I would very much appreciate any advice from you folks here, I got great recommendations and advice on my first few system builds over in that forum from Tom's Hardware.
I'm looking for a laptop to take with me to law school next year, which puts some odd stipulations on it. My last laptop lasted me for 6 years, a Dell Inspiron 1505, it was fantastic but at this point the battery lasts 5 mins not plugged into the wall.
I was originally interested in Dell because my friend works there and I can get a 17% off coupon code, but the more I looked around the web the more the HP and Lenovo deals stuck out as being as good or better than what I would get w/ the 17% off. I'm looking to buy this before the end of the summer, maybe wait for end of summer sales?
1. What is your budget?
900-1200 dollars.
2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
I would love a 14 inch w/ 1080p screen, but those don't seem to exist, so I think I am looking at 15 inch.
3. What screen resolution do you want?
1080p.
4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
I want a portable, I have a gaming PC I built myself that I will do much of my work on and any photo or video editing.
5. How much battery life do you need?
As much as possible. There are outlets in the classrooms but battery life is probably one of my highest rated attributes in my desired laptop.
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)?
It would be nice to play league of legends on this but I do have a desktop for that. Really don't need/want a dedicated graphics card unless it comes along w/ other features that I need more.
7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)
60% of the time I will be surfing the web, 30% of the time typing in word documents. 10% of the time watching streamed movies or playing games.
8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?
Very little. I will store most everything in the cloud. I know how and am down to replace an HDD w/ an SSD myself, if that helps.
9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.
Don't care.
10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?
3-4 years. I will likely need a new one after school. One reason I'm tempted by the ultraportables is that they seem more likely to remain useful after they slow down a bit.
11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
I don't really need one...
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'm not a particular fan of any brand, I just buy whatever fits my needs best. I've looked mainly as Asus, Lenovo, Sager, HP, Samsung, and Dell.
13. What country do you live in?
USA
14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.
One thing that has turned me off of a bunch of computers like the Envy, Zenbook, and XPS z series is that the keyboards are shitty. I really need a great quality keyboard for exams where I will have to type as fast as possible for several hours. I type 70-90 wpm on a regular keyboard and have a mechanical at home so this is very important to me, although I realize some people will find it silly. Anyone know of a laptop that has a great keyboard? I have had trouble finding information on them because most people don't seem to care; it's glossed over in reviews.
I appreciate you taking the time to read and make suggestions. If you think its to my advantage to wait until the end of the summer to take advantage of the back to school deals, please also let me know. I've seen some great HP coupons over the past few weeks that look to be competitive w/ end of the summer stuff, but don't want to miss out on anything.
Thanks!
Have combed the threads here and didn't find anything that really fit what I was looking for. I would very much appreciate any advice from you folks here, I got great recommendations and advice on my first few system builds over in that forum from Tom's Hardware.
I'm looking for a laptop to take with me to law school next year, which puts some odd stipulations on it. My last laptop lasted me for 6 years, a Dell Inspiron 1505, it was fantastic but at this point the battery lasts 5 mins not plugged into the wall.
I was originally interested in Dell because my friend works there and I can get a 17% off coupon code, but the more I looked around the web the more the HP and Lenovo deals stuck out as being as good or better than what I would get w/ the 17% off. I'm looking to buy this before the end of the summer, maybe wait for end of summer sales?
1. What is your budget?
900-1200 dollars.
2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
I would love a 14 inch w/ 1080p screen, but those don't seem to exist, so I think I am looking at 15 inch.
3. What screen resolution do you want?
1080p.
4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
I want a portable, I have a gaming PC I built myself that I will do much of my work on and any photo or video editing.
5. How much battery life do you need?
As much as possible. There are outlets in the classrooms but battery life is probably one of my highest rated attributes in my desired laptop.
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)?
It would be nice to play league of legends on this but I do have a desktop for that. Really don't need/want a dedicated graphics card unless it comes along w/ other features that I need more.
7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)
60% of the time I will be surfing the web, 30% of the time typing in word documents. 10% of the time watching streamed movies or playing games.
8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?
Very little. I will store most everything in the cloud. I know how and am down to replace an HDD w/ an SSD myself, if that helps.
9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.
Don't care.
10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?
3-4 years. I will likely need a new one after school. One reason I'm tempted by the ultraportables is that they seem more likely to remain useful after they slow down a bit.
11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
I don't really need one...
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'm not a particular fan of any brand, I just buy whatever fits my needs best. I've looked mainly as Asus, Lenovo, Sager, HP, Samsung, and Dell.
13. What country do you live in?
USA
14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.
One thing that has turned me off of a bunch of computers like the Envy, Zenbook, and XPS z series is that the keyboards are shitty. I really need a great quality keyboard for exams where I will have to type as fast as possible for several hours. I type 70-90 wpm on a regular keyboard and have a mechanical at home so this is very important to me, although I realize some people will find it silly. Anyone know of a laptop that has a great keyboard? I have had trouble finding information on them because most people don't seem to care; it's glossed over in reviews.
I appreciate you taking the time to read and make suggestions. If you think its to my advantage to wait until the end of the summer to take advantage of the back to school deals, please also let me know. I've seen some great HP coupons over the past few weeks that look to be competitive w/ end of the summer stuff, but don't want to miss out on anything.
Thanks!
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