Need a new laptop - Suggestions?

Hi all!

I'm in the market for a new laptop and need some suggestions. My old one was a Lenovo Thinkpad W530 and, while it was a good laptop, it was very big and bulky, and the battery died after only a year to a year and a half. I had to give that laptop up (for issues other than the dead battery) so now I'm looking for a new one. Does anyone have any recommendations for a good laptop? Here are my requirements:

• 15"+ display
• 2.6GHz+ Processor speed (faster is better, >3GHz)
• 1TB+ HD (though I would settle for 500, but no less)
  
• 16GB+ RAM
• Powerful graphics card (not too picky, but must be able to handle Adobe and CAD programs without an issue)

OS can be Windows 7, 8, or 8.1 but must be 64-bit. If anyone has had a good experience with a certain model, or even a certain company, feel free to weigh in!

Thanks,
Matt

I had an old 15" Compaq/HP running XP which served me well with no problems but it only had 1GB of ram and got so slow that I decided to replace it.
I looked for the best deal and ended up buying an HP Pavilion with Windows 8.1, a 17" screen (I like the larger screen when doing graphics or having two windows open side-by-side), 1TB Hd, 6GB RAM (can be upgraded of course but that amount seems adequate for my uses, right now I'm using 43% of available memory for example), and an AMD A8 2GHz processor, for $400 after rebates from Office Max.
It runs my LTspice simulations with no problem and has about a 5 hour battery life (the gauge says over 5 hours after a charge but I haven't tested how accurate that is). (Note that higher speed processors tend to mean shorter battery life.)
I don't do anything that's real graphics intensive so can't comment on that but it seems quite adequate for anything but perhaps fast gaming
I've had it since Christmas, use it every day, and it's doing fine so far.

My new one is a Samsung 550p

I got it from a "seconds" place online... There is a scratch on the lid and that's all... CoreI7 Nvidia graphics GT650
1TB hard drive and 8GB DDRIII memory..... It had Windows 8 on but I soon got shot of that..

Running Windows 7 and pretty good..... I play UT3 alot and it handles it very well... I also have CAD and Blender

Should have been £950... I got it for $440...

Back a few years I was in the disk drive business. We sent Dell out best stuff, 1 because they were our biggest customer and 2 because they were the toughest on quality. Don't know if it is still the same today.

PS.
We sent the leftovers to distribution. People that would package single drives, etc.

Based on your list Im going to make a few suggestions. I dont know your budget but Im going to assume around $650, which for a desktop would be a midrange gaming computer. Ive personally used ASUS motherboards and have talked to people who have used ASUS laptops, so they are a good company.

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834232132R

This is an open box. Ive also used MSI and they are considered top notch in the DIY pc world.

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152586

Dont get caught up on the CPU speed too much, the ASUS one is quad core, while the MSI laptop is a dual core. I would suggest going with a quad core, its better for multitasking. You might noticed that the ASUS laptop only has 8Gb of memory, you can upgrade that (oddly it only supports up to 12Gb). DDR3 is cheap, 4Gb is about 30 bucks. The Newer AMD CPU's have an integrated graphics card thats inside the CPU itself (rather than offboard). In the reviews Ive read, they are generally much better than integrated graphics.

I am about due also as my old Dell is going on 6 years old running Vista. I will likely go with another Dell. I also like the 17" screens when doing graphics and schematics, just nice to have more working space. Then too, anymore the only time the laptop sees any real use is when we travel.

Ron

DerStrom8 said:

Hi all!

I'm in the market for a new laptop and need some suggestions. My old one was a Lenovo Thinkpad W530 and, while it was a good laptop, it was very big and bulky, and the battery died after only a year to a year and a half. I had to give that laptop up (for issues other than the dead battery) so now I'm looking for a new one. Does anyone have any recommendations for a good laptop? Here are my requirements:

Click to expand...

Target use: Gaming/CAD

Prefer 17" widescreen (if Win 8, then Touchscreen option?)
Prefer Intel Multicore (i7 Quad) 3Ghz+, but check #threads per core
3 drives if possible, 1 SSD (for OS), 2 HD(raid 1 for Data)
16GB+ RAM
Prefer Nvidia high performance graphics

USB 3.0

Wireless N (check for wireless AC)

Docking station.

OS can be Windows 7, 8, or 8.1 but must be 64-bit. If anyone has had a good experience with a certain model, or even a certain company, feel free to weigh in!

Click to expand...

Prefer HP and Win7 x64 Pro, but Win8.1 should be considered. Win 8.1 supports DX 11.3 for faster graphics (faster than win7/win8)

Thanks,
Matt

Click to expand...

Budget for laptop should be around $1500.00

eT

Docking station. When I got my Dell years ago I got a docking station. Yep, set it up, tested it, and never used it again. Docking station is real nice if you use it I guess.

Ron

Overclocked said:

Based on your list Im going to make a few suggestions. I dont know your budget but Im going to assume around $650, which for a desktop would be a midrange gaming computer. Ive personally used ASUS motherboards and have talked to people who have used ASUS laptops, so they are a good company.

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834232132R

This is an open box. Ive also used MSI and they are considered top notch in the DIY pc world.

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152586

Dont get caught up on the CPU speed too much, the ASUS one is quad core, while the MSI laptop is a dual core. I would suggest going with a quad core, its better for multitasking. You might noticed that the ASUS laptop only has 8Gb of memory, you can upgrade that (oddly it only supports up to 12Gb). DDR3 is cheap, 4Gb is about 30 bucks. The Newer AMD CPU's have an integrated graphics card thats inside the CPU itself (rather than offboard). In the reviews Ive read, they are generally much better than integrated graphics.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the info everyone!

Overclocked I built a desktop a couple years ago, and it's still running strong. Right now I'm looking for a laptop.

So far the consensus seems to be on an HP, which is what i was leaning towards myself. Either that or another Lenovo. I guess the question now is if anyone has a preferred distributor? Staples? Best Buy? Radio Shack? Online store? Personally I'd like to avoid Best Buy and Radio Shack due to past experiences.

Thanks everyone for the input!
Matt

Reloadron said:

Docking station. When I got my Dell years ago I got a docking station. Yep, set it up, tested it, and never used it again. Docking station is real nice if you use it I guess.

Ron

Click to expand...

Ok...so I didn't say a docking station is REQUIRED. I'm simply keeping the OP informed.

Some laptops are not designed to be be docked.

I use my docking station all the time, and if i were to buy another laptop, I'd buy another another docking station. It also provides port expansion and some can support multiple monitors (like the one I have).

Anyway...just providing as many options to the OP as I can.

eT

As to the distributor? Radio Shack is currently deep in problems (again) with store closures predicted. Were it me, I would consider online with Amazon. Don't know what you are looking to pay but when I look at a $1,000 or $2,000 buy if I buy local in my high sales tax county the tax on $2,000 @ 8% is $160 I could better spend on beer. My wife loves Amazon and has Amazon prime which makes for free 2 day shipping. They have good pricing and great customer help and support. Locally if you go that route I would look for the sales and a reputable distributor who will be around in a week. Staples is in the process of buying Office Max & Office Depot (Office Depot owns Office Max) so you can figure Staples will be around for awhile.

Just My Take....
Ron

eTech said:

Ok...so I didn't say a docking station is REQUIRED. I'm simply keeping the OP informed.

Some laptops are not designed to be be docked.

I use my docking station all the time, and if i were to buy another laptop, I'd buy another another docking station. It also provides port expansion and some can support multiple monitors (like the one I have).

Anyway...just providing as many options to the OP as I can.

eT

Click to expand...

Oh I absolutely agree, for those who use the docking station feature they are the best thing since sliced bread. I just thought it was funny that I felt I needed the feature and never used it.

Ron

I've bought both my last desktop and laptop from OfficeMax because they had the best deals, and I prefer a brick-and-mortar store when purchasing bigger electronic items like TV's and computers.

Hi Matt;
I have a HP Pavilion, it has been good, but the cooling vents need to be cleaned every year or so. I can play Mine Craft on it which is a good benchmark.
Mine Craft will not work on most Laptops.
My wife has a Asus, it runs a lot cooler but never tried Mine Craft on her laptop.

Whatever laptop you buy consider replacing the hard disk drive with a solid state drive, they make the most significant improvement with a single change.

I needed a lap tap to travel, camping, etc. I found the best deals at Best Buy. I paid $189 it has a 15" screen and I did not get the cheapest one.

Lap tops key board are always too small for my hands and I dont like the finger mouse so I made sure I could plug a large key board and mouse into the computer.

It has Wifi and I asked them for a good spyware and malware program and they include that at no extra cost.

Battery is only good for 2 hours so I keep it pluged in all the time.

It works great at Taco bell, Mc Donalds, Motels, and Camp Grounds with Wifi.

I works good with a satellite link too way out in the wilderness 50 miles from cell towers and internet and a solar battery charger.

The down side is, it does not do well with videos. First 2 minutes are fine then it starts having trouble. It takes 20 minutes to watch a 10 minute video.

I use to build computer but got tired of it and quit 10 years ago. Now my Son is the computer wizzad of the family. Some of the companies now days use computer memory as video memory too this slows down the computer and makes low cost computers. If you need good video make sure you get what you want.

Best Buy has changed their Return policy to 2 weeks. Take the laptop home and test it. If it is not what you want take it back for a full refund or upgrade.

My first reason would be any brand laptop of your choice that runs cool all the time. Heat is what I have seen killing most of them. Mainly by wrongly using on top of beds, choking them.

Next, I would look for one with a built-in real off-line GPS receiver. I think few have that feature.

Third, with a plug-in type of hard drive on the side. To swap drives for different operative systems, for domestic or professional use, Linux or Windows.

Externet said:

My first reason would be any brand laptop of your choice that runs cool all the time. Heat is what I have seen killing most of them. Mainly by wrongly using on top of beds, choking them.

Next, I would look for one with a built-in real off-line GPS receiver. I think few have that feature.

Third, with a plug-in type of hard drive on the side. To swap drives for different operative systems, for domestic or professional use, Linux or Windows.

Click to expand...

Just in case you didn't know, Linux offer program that allows dual boot, Linux and Windows from the same disk installed on different partitions.

Thanks moty22. Yes, correct. Am a Linux user since 2005 and will never share anything Windows contamination prone/virus prone/freeze prone/damage prone in my Linux hard drive. Prefer to have a separate Windows drive for the eventual need, and plug it in only for a needed task. So far am very happy with no crashes nor loss of data at all. No more paranoia.

The multiple hard drive works also to have a -say XP and -say Seven OS drives for different tasks and users (kids)

My favorite candy for a desktop is this gadget. Just push in the drive to use, pull the other :
----> https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817998038

moty22 said:

Just in case you didn't know, Linux offer program that allows dual boot, Linux and Windows from the same disk installed on different partitions.

Click to expand...

I have 2 friends both have Linux and both claim it is much better than windows. My son has Linux and wants me to have it too. I would like to try it but I am so damn tired of relearn how things work. It is like being forced to learn German then 6 months later I need to learn French, then 6 month later I need to learn Dutch, then 6 months later I need to learn Spanish, then 6 months later I need to learn something else, it never ends. I am just #$%@ tired of it. Maybe Linux is better I don't need it bad enough to learn it.

Linux is FREE.