Purchasing a Laptop

[MissTeach]

I would appreciate suggestions on purchasing a laptop. What features do I need to make sure it has? What brands are the best? What brands should I avoid? Any suggestions will be appreciated!!!

[Flipp]

I would avoid Lenovo. It's IBM's brand, I've worked with a few, and in my experience they tend to crash and have other problems. I like Dell Compaq. I have a Compaq and it's a good workhorse.
I assume you plan to use it at school, are there other computers on campus? a network? PC's or Macs?
I'm a PC guy, so I say avoid Macs. Nothing wrong with them, they work great, very user friendly. The main thing I don't like is that you need a Mac to VGA adapter to connect them to a projector. An adapter isn't that big a deal, just another $20. for something you might misplace just when you need it.

Also, if you're getting a PC and it's at all possible get one with Windows XP Pro and NOT VISTA. Vista's not ready yet, lots of driver and compatibility issues.

[MissTeach]

Thank you for the info! Someone else had mentioned to me about the problems associated with a MAC. Hearing the same from you made me decide not to consider a MAC. I had also wondered about Vista since I keep hearing that it is coming. It doesn't sound like I need to go that route at this time.

I appreciate your response.

[Oakie]

I like the dell latitude series. Nowdays you'l get one with a nice dual core processor and a lot of memory, like at least 1gb or more. XP professional is mature, fast, stable. Get the office 2007 business edition with Word, Excel, PowerPoint.

[MissTeach]

Thanks for the information. I guess I need to spend some time online this week and make a decision!

[merrynl]

I used to be PC only. Then 4 years ago I bought my first mac laptop, after becoming frustrated by my PC one too many times. Now, I LOVE my mac. :) In fact, I just bought a new one and am planning on selling my old one. I upgraded to a new mac because it was a good time for us financially to do it, and I'd still be able to get some money for my old laptop.

Don't be afraid of looking at a mac. They're not for everyone. My husband hates my mac, and refuses to use it unless it's absolutely necessary. I love my mac. :) If you go to an Apple store, you can play with their models in store.

My main objections to macs are that it can sometimes be harder to find software (but this generally isn't an issue unless you're looking for something unusual) and they tend to be expensive.

But, macs are relatively easy to use. There are also not many viruses macs are succeptible to. Most common software is available for mac, and files transfer easily between macs and PC's now.

[MissTeach]

Thanks for the responses! I will have to make a decision soon.

[nickr]

Don't be afraid of Vista. I bought my wife a cheap laptop with Vista on it. She knows nothing about computers (this was her first), but found Vista very user friendly. As for me, I use Vista on my office PC and wouldn't go back to XP if you paid me! :)

[Boxcar]

My advice is not only to think about software, but to try out the actual computer as well. You need to make sure to find a design that you like. They aren't all the same.

[DarrenB]

My Hewlett Packard has totally taken care of me through the years. I started with HP printers, got an HP laptop, got a newer HP printer, and now I have my super sweet HP desktop. HP has never done me wrong.

I have had to contact customer support a couple of times, but they were always very helpful and solved my problems quickly. They even helped me with things I didn't know were problems.

I love my HP, and I don't get paid for saying that!

Darren