Buying Laptops...

[mrcowdude20]

Hi,
I'm looking at the HP g4, but other options are available. I need the following in my laptop....
1. At least 4GB RAM
2. 500 GB Hard DRive
3. 15.6" screen
4. Good battery, more than 4hrs.
5. NOT TOSHIBA, SAMSUNG, OR ACER/ASUS

Can you help me find some laptops. DON'T SAY BUY A MAC BECAUSE I ALREADY HAVE ONE.

 

[Bluisnblklungs]

Why don't you upgrade the current Mac you have to the specs you want and install Windows on that? Or sell the Mac you have now buy a new Mac with that you want and then install Windows on your new computer?

 

[MagicBoy]

Probably not the best place to ask for non-Mac advice

 

[slotcarbob]

The skinny

Your first problem is you went with a cheaper Mac. I'm not a fan of the MacBook, and never was (with the exception of when they had an aluminum version for one year). That may be your issue? If it is, buy a new MBP, and sell off your old Mac. It may seem like you pay more, but if you sell your Mac every couple years and get a new one (I do it every year, actually, so I am always in warranty) the "Mac Tax" becomes irrelevant. This way you always have the best machine made. Running the Mac OS also keeps you from all the hassles of Windows viruses, and updating the security problems.

If you have decide to just get a PC anyway, then this is not the place to ask, I am guessing.

 

[shyam09]

Your first problem is you went with a cheaper Mac. I'm not a fan of the MacBook, and never was (with the exception of when they had an aluminum version for one year). That may be your issue? If it is, buy a new MBP, and sell off your old Mac. It may seem like you pay more, but if you sell your Mac every couple years and get a new one (I do it every year, actually, so I am always in warranty) the "Mac Tax" becomes irrelevant. This way you always have the best machine made. Running the Mac OS also keeps you from all the hassles of Windows viruses, and updating the security problems.

If you have decide to just get a PC anyway, then this is not the place to ask, I am guessing.

i second this.
you can sell your mac, and settle for a 15" MBP [refurb ,most likely if you are on a budget, or a new one]
that way you aren't stuck with two computers, a big bulky one and a medium one. you can get two in one - The 15" MBP with much better specs too

but let me know if you are really in for the PC. I will try searching for one

 

[OldMike]

I'm not sure exactly what you are looking to do with your new laptop, but I can tell you my story.

I needed to get laptops for my two children, whom I homeschool, ages 7 and 8. Originally I was hoping to keep everything in the house Apple, but just could not justify spending $1K+ on each of my kids computers. At this age, a lot of the school work they do is flash based (which automatically eliminated the iPad from being a contender for us), so I wanted something that was inexpensive but had decent graphics performance (so I was looking for an ATI graphics options versus the Intel integrated graphics).

I ended up picking up two of these Dells:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Dell+-+...lack/2560082.p?id=1218335741659&skuId=2560082


After spending $1500+ on my MBP and some upgrades, I have to say I was VERY impressed by these new Dells at the sub $300 price point. They seem to be a lot better quality than the early 2000s Dell Inspirons I had a long time ago. With Win7, the performance is very good as well.

I see now that they offer a Core i3 with HDMI output that exactly match the specs you are looking for.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Dell+-+...lack/3504588.p?id=1218407014253&skuId=3504588

I'm not sure what the battery life on that model is, but on ours we are getting around 5 hours depending on usage.

If you don't mind throwing in some extra cash after purchasing the laptop, I would put in extra memory and try putting in a faster hard drive (I have a Seagate Momentus XT hybrid drive which boots really fast on my MBP). Upgrades are much easier in the Dells due to the removable panels (as opposed to removing all those screws on the MBP).

I would think you would be really happy with the performance for such a cheap PC.

I have nothing against Windows, I used it forever professionally as both a software and systems engineer, but really needed a change and happily adopted the Mac full time (I had used Macs for many years but never as my sole OS). If Apple made lower cost laptops aimed at younger kids, I would have probably went in that direction.

We are, however, very happy with the price/performance and reliability these new Dells offer.

Hope that helps a little.