What BRAND would you rather choose?

[arfandy]

Quality-wise, what 2013 notebook/ultrabook brand do you think would assure you "not to worry" about hardware errors within 2-3 years after purchases?

For some reason, HP & DELL give more wider choices for notebook specs (sizes, colors, OS, etc) at reasonable prices and YET both of them were mostly involved with consumer act legal matter in the past years. SONY, TOSHIBA, & ASUS are said to be better in error-free hardware but they are a bit pricey for mid-end components. And somehow, their used hardware components (cpu, gpu, motherboard, hdd, ram, wireless, etc) are practically the same as any other brands. I wonder if there are double-standards in quality hardware (perhaps ASUS/TOSHIBA/SONY are willing to pay more bucks to get made-in-Japan CPU than made-in-China CPU).

 

[jaguarskx]

I generally prefer Lenovo. I actually prefer IBM, but they sold their ThinkPad Division to Lenovo back in 2005 I believe. However, that is their business line of laptops and they are typically expensive, but pretty rugged. My IBM ThinkPad T40 from 2002/2003 still works, the only issue is related to the original CMOS and the main batteries which are now pretty much dead.

I am thinking about buying a new ThinkPad laptop next year. Not sure if I will be going with Lenovo's "budget" ThinkPad L series, or the premium ThinkPad T series. Most likely the yet to be released 15.6" ThinkPad T540p which will probably cost an estimated $1,300 - $1,400 considering the configuration I am think about. Or perhaps go "cheap" and get the ThinkPad L540 for about $1000 with slightly different specs.

 

[arfandy]

Lenovo Thinkpad series, however, do not have 15 inch display. i think all of them are 14 inch (Thailand region) with quite expensive price. Sony has 15 inch but price does not match with their hardware. Toshiba, i don't see any 15 inch like ever. ASUS, their 15 inch has max 2 USB ports and no DVD-RW. ACER isn't producing any 15 inch in 2013. well, leave out only HP & DELL with many specs at reasonable prices...except their bad reputation in the past...

 

[PinchedNerve]

Look into Clevo's.

 

[jaguarskx]

Well the ThinkPads are meant for business use so they are not as attractively priced as normal consumer laptops. Definitely not worth considering if gaming is a high priority. I like them because at least from my experience they are solidly built which is why I am highly considering buying a new laptop to replace my current Lenovo IdeaPad Y470 which only has a resolution of 1366x768.

I guess 15" laptop selections are limited in Thailand.

 

[arfandy]

Not really a big gamer here but i wonder if Lenovo (ideapad & thinkpad) is able to run 24/7,.. maybe off for 30 minutes top/week without burning the hardware. my HP Probook got melt down due to unknown reason (my guess is overheat above 200'Celcius) after 2.5 years usage, i meant literally melting down with strange liquid spill out of inside the notebook. I could save the HDD, RAM, wifi card, & battery only.

 

[jaguarskx]

Unknown. Laptops generally run hotter than desktops to begin with. No CPU will ever hit 200c (392F), they will burn up and the laptop will likely catch on fire; I believe you meant 100c.

Running 24/7 means you need to monitor the temps and get a cooling pad. From personal experience with an IdeaPad a cooling pad will not cool down the laptop. Lenovo refers to the underside of the Y470 / Y570 as a "thermal panel" which I suppose is meant to limit heat transfer in case anyone actually uses the laptop on their lap. My Y470 overheated when playing GTA 4. I was able to place the laptop on my lap (bare skin); while it was very warm, it was not uncomfortable.

 

[mc962]

Run for 24/7 or be on for 24/7? A lot of laptops can run 24/7 as long as they are well ventilated and you don't plan to do stuff like heavy gaming the entire time. The only time i've ever shut down this laptop since I got it a couple months ago was for updates

 

[arfandy]

I mean, run for 24/7 because of seeding/downloading progress. btw, what's your laptop brand? I know laptops are able to run 24/7, but would they last more than 4 years in average? mostly would probably starting to cause some trouble after the second year of usage, and 3rd year would be dead.

 

[mc962]

There are probably those that could, but i feel like a desktop would probably be a better bet.

That being said, i've played video games for long hours on my last lenovo laptop and it managed to last a couple years...probably would have lasted longer if I knew what I did now about taking care of computers