# Need a new laptop?



## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

Hey guys, I know that more than a few of us are going off to college for the first time next year, or returning to school, or continuing in graduate studies. I bet quite a few of us might also just need a new laptop to replace the obsolete paperweight we carry around now.

Anyway, I've been searching around a lot for the best "bang for the buck," and it seems that I've found it. I was looking for a laptop that would run under $1,200, and would likely last me all four years of undergraduate work, while providing fast processing, etc etc (I'm not too knowledgable with computers) that wouldn't make owning the laptop a pain.

So here is a link.

According to those who reviewed it, it was clearly the best buy in terms of price and performance. The only knock that repeatedly came against it was the fact that it would run "hot," and require a laptop cooler for precaution. Also, the battery life is supposedly unremarkable, but I plan on having the laptop plugged in most of the time, so that isn't something I'm concerned about. Finally, recommendations that were repeated several times were to add one extra gig of ram to ensure that everything would run smoothly at all times, and to reformat the hard drive and convert it to NTFS (I won't pretend to know what that means) as soon as possible.

Well, there you have it. With the extra gig of ram and a laptop cooler and shipping, the price comes out to just under $1,200. If you've been searching around for a nice laptop for a great price, that's the best one I've found so far. Any other recommendations are welcome, since I have yet to purchase the laptop.


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## xcooperx (Jun 24, 2006)

thats a best buy erijnal, Intel Core Duo is one of high end latest processor of Intel company, you can run multiple program with this processor. 1 GB of Memory is fine unless you want it to be a Gaming Machine, 120GB of hard disk is a lot. The most important thing here is the ATI Radeon Video Card, thats the first thing i should know before buying new PC not to mention im a Gamer  The downside of Acer Laptops is their battery, mine only last 30 mins even its full charge so i have to bring my adaptor all the time. But with overall performance of my acer its 5 stars.

Oh, i really recommend that site because of their low prices and fast shipping

Im also buying some parts here, you can check it if you want : http://www.buy.com/cat/Laptop_Computers_Notebook_Computer_Accessories/212.html

that laptop is also a good deal, The difference is its AMD Turion 64, this processor is designed for laptop. The performance is same with AMD Athlon 64

This is the most cheapest laptop online, if you want a minimum specs, you know for Intenet and School use, but check the Processor its Intel. here's the link http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2301439&Sku=A180-1240

All Online store that i gave you is Secure and Safe, i guarantee it

Dont Forget to check your local Circuit CIty, i bought my Acer Notebook last year for like $500


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

James,
For upgrading the RAM...make sure you take into account the fact that you'll need to buy two 1GB RAM modules. It comes with 2x512 and only has two slots for RAM. The good news is you don't need to upgrade the RAM any time soon (Probably only if you upgrade to Vista).

Also...don't forget you are a student. Through your college you can get discounts on a lot of software. For some people, they can get incredible deals here if eligible.


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## foremptyfields (Jun 14, 2006)

I've never even heard of that brand and that is usually a bad sign. Im going to be a junior this coming august at my college and im going to be buying one of those macbooks from apple. I have heard that microsoft is coming out with a new windows update and that it is really horrible. So i think that an apple would probably be the best investment.


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

fef,
Acer has been around for a LONG time with a specialty in high performance computers. Their laptops in the last few years have been some of the best performers on the market.

James,
As a side note in response to your first post, NTFS is the NT File System. With XP you will see better performance with NTFS as it is the native mode for the OS. It really describes how the hard drive is organized and accessed. It is one of the options you have to select when loading the OS from scratch. 

The "bloatware" is a good thing to get rid of as well. I don't care which company you buy a laptop from, they will usually have their own software package that helps them support you. The problem is when these programs can be used to collect demographic data on you without your knowledge. Reloading windows yourself (Make sure the laptop comes with a windows CD) isn't hard and allows you to only install the programs you want.


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