MSI G Series GE70 2OE-017US 17.3-Inch Laptop (Black/Red)

This laptop is amazing! Super fast, looks great, solid build. I have been using 17" HD laptops for years and this is the best I have ever used. I bought an miniPCI-E SSD card and used Acronis to move the system image over to it and now it boots SUPER-FAST! The only issues I originally had were figuring out how to scroll with the touch pad. It's like a Macbook, you use two fingers and drag in the reverse direction you want to scroll. Took me forever to figure it out, but it works great. I also couldn't figure out how to force the video card to be the Geforce versus the Intel HD one, so the Windows Experience Index was pretty low (comparatively) until I went in to the Nvidia control panel and changed the 3D default settings. Then, it was zooming (though, no real need for it to always use discrete graphics, so I switched it back).

In the end, everything is great. I love the separate button for the illuminated keyboard and another for the "cooling down mode" which amps up the fans and lowers the laptop temp by 10 or so degrees.

The keyboard feels great. The touchpad is huge and works well (after getting used to it) and there is VERY little bloatware. The MSI utility for creating boot discs also works great (I created a USB key and 4xDVDs).

If you're in the market for a 1200.00-1300.00 performance laptop this is the one.

The screen is beautiful as is the chassis. All around, the best laptop I've ever had.

After several days of getting to know the laptop, I decided to write a review. I apologize for the lengthy review, but there was no way I could just put in a few sentences for a large purchase such as this.

First of all, I'd like to say that the price point for this laptop is amazingly good. Sure, it could have been cheaper, but you'd lose all of the features it had!

Performance wise, it's a great laptop. It dynamically adjusts the clock speeds depending on the load, meaning you'll save a lot of battery. I've seen it run as low as 700 MHz, and I've seen it go all the way up to 3400 MHz The Haswell processor handles it very well, resulting in a very little loss of performance even when you leave it idling and decide to start opening up programs.

When you need the performance, you can expect it with this laptop.

Now moving on to the graphics part The included NVIDIA GTX 765M is nothing to scoff at. Granted, it's a laptop, so you shouldn't expect it to perform as well as a gaming desktop. For all intents and purposes, this card will run everything you need at 1080p in medium to high settings, or sometimes ultra settings! I was able to play several games in 1080p ranging from medium to ultra settings with an absolute minimum of 60 fps.

NVIDIA Optimus is another cool thing on this laptop, it will automatically determine which graphics processor to use. When you want battery life, you can set it so that it'll run on Intel's integrated graphics unit. However, when you want the performance, it'll switch over to the NVIDIA GTX 765M. You can actually see which mode the laptop is running on based on the color of the power button's LED. Blue for integrated, Orange for NVIDIA.

Of course, you can always override this and set it to permanently use integrated graphics or NVIDIA graphics. If needed, you can also configure each program individually to run on integrated graphics or NVIDIA graphics.

I have to comment about the keyboard. When I looked at the pictures, I was concerned that some buttons were cut short (Such as Right Shift, Enter, and Backspace buttons), but after handling the laptop, it proved that it was of no issue. The backlighting, while it didn't look anything like in the pictures, was still decent. It was sufficiently bright, and there was 3 modes. The first 2 modes being on/off, and the third being half lit. Apparently the purpose of this was to illuminate only the keys you'd use during gaming.

The keyboard itself was a pleasure to type on, sharp enough to receive feedback, but soft enough to have that cushioned feel. Also as an added bonus, the wrist area (the space below the keyboard) stays very cool even while playing games!

The display is perfect, there was no dead pixels. Excellent quality and color. The viewing angles are wide enough for me, so I don't have anything to complain here.

The battery life on this laptop is good, but not amazing. I haven't really tested it in different scenarios though. However, at full brightness, I was able to watch a 2 hour long movie before it died. However, I would expect the battery life to dramatically increase when you reduce the brightness and do less intensive tasks.

The temperatures are decent, idling at around 40-45c for the processor and the graphics card. I did run a prime95 stress test, as I wanted to see how hot the processor could get. The CPU did go up to 93c, but did not go beyond that. I don't expect the CPU to get this hot with normal usage or even gaming for that matter. The GPU ran considerably cooler than the CPU though. The hottest temperature I've ever seen it reach was at around 75c.

Now, moving on to the cons:

Even though I know that this is a gaming laptop, the battery life could have been better. I'm really surprised that they only put a 6-Cell battery in this laptop. It was probably to maintain the slim form factor, but still, I feel like this is something they could have improved on.

The USB 3.0 ports are finicky. On the first USB 3.0 port, it would only perform at USB 2.0 speeds, on the other port, it'll perform at USB 3.0 speeds, but disconnect constantly (USB 2.0 devices doesn't disconnect however). A firmware update fixed the USB 2.0 speeds, but it also switched ports I was having issues with, so the first port is now having the disconnections, while the second one works flawlessly. I suspect that this is a firmware issue, and might be fixed at a later date. However, it's not a big issue. It seems like a common problem, not with MSI products, but with USB 3.0 in general.

Also, on Amazon's product description page, it said that there was 3 USB 3.0 ports and 2 USB 2.0 ports. This is incorrect, there are only *2* USB 3.0 ports.

The "Cooler Boost" function on this laptop barely did anything. It might have knocked the temperatures down by 1 or 2 degrees, but nothing to be amazed about.

This thing attracts a lot of fingerprints. The area below the keyboard, and on the sides of the keyboard, and the lid all attract fingerprints.

Considering the positive aspects of this laptop, coupled with few (very) minor annoyances, this is a great laptop for the money. I would suggest this notebook to anyone who's looking for a laptop that has the performance of a desktop, and the portability of a laptop.

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This laptop runs WoW on ultra no problem, Skyrim, FarCry3 all on highest, and every other game I have thought to try. Pretty large laptop but beautiful screen. DONT try to uninstall windows 8 however because you'll need to order the recovery disks separately to get your windows 8 key back which is hidden in the bios. I did notice however that this machine is overclocked which they should mention before buying it.

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I noticed these notebooks are selling like hotcakes and since I just received mine today, now I know why. I have never considered myself a technically savvy person but this laptop is extremely user friendly. All I had to do was put the battery in and turn on the machine. The software loaded quickly and I was good to go! It comes with an instruction manual which you can find on the desktop once the machine loads all the apps. It is very informative and easy to read. I purchased a Microsoft Office 2013 package since I will be using this mainly for schoolwork.

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The others reviews must be from MSI because I have had nothing but PROBLEMS with this laptop since the get go.

CONS:

1. The Touchpad is a HEADACHE from the start. BE WARNED! It is so sensitive it will randomly click when you are dragging the mouse

around (VERY ANNOYING) and will always click on the ads or something you don't want to click. I have tried turning down the sensitivity

and every setting does not make it better. You are better off using a wireless mouse..

2. The battery is horribe! It claims it gets 2 hours on a full charge.. but I haven't seen it past 1.5 hours at all the whole 5 months I've had this computer.. If your gaming.. pfft you get maybe 30 minutes if that.

3. The laptop is very slow.. I thought this was a core i7? It is more like a core i3.. It takes FOREVER to do windows updates..

and likes to crash around 15% until you pull the battery out and restart it like 2 times. It will update EVERYTIME you reboot it

and it takes 10 minutes to do system updates.. which is weird because windows 8 still says it hasn't been updated... Really MSI?

Can't you afford some Quality Control?

4. If you don't register the product within 30 days MSI screws you over and doesn't allow you to register it period.. *Wow thanks MSI!!*

What about the new people to computers who don't know your rules??

5. Freezing issues: The laptop likes to FREEZE ALOT! I've had it freeze over 20 times sent i bought it.

6. Wireless Network Aapter: The internet will drop more than a drum beat at a rave!

You have been warned do not buy this laptop. I can't believe a company would even attempt to put this on the market.

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Dell - Inspiron Laptop 1440 Obsidian Black with Intel Pentium 2.2GHz, 14" display, 4GB Memory, 500G

Hi there. I purchased a Dell Inspiron 1440 and a 13" (for my wife) 18 months ago and I'm still happy with the decision.

Dell laptops seem to be very quite and reliable. One of the laptops (the 13") was a refurbished. After 4 months the battery started to charge for about only 45 minutes. We called Dell and no problem, they sent us a brand new battery which is still perfectly working. So I have to say that hardware-wise that was the only problem we had, and the service from Dell was excellent.

Our laptops came with Windows Vista. That was a terrible system, as we all know. For some extra dollars we updated last January to Windows 7. That was the best decision, I have to say. For software opportunities I also have installed Ubuntu in one of the hard drive partitions. I use everyday my laptop to work with programs such as MatLab, C++, and Office and until now the computer has been running in both, Win 7 and Linux, without freezing the first time.

I feel like I should tell some of the cons, but, believe me, there is nothing that I can recall that concern the loudness or the performance of the machine. In summary, I think for the range of price Dell laptops are an excellent option.

Summary:

1. Adapter stops working in the first year of purchase

2. Touchpad wired with wrong material and stops working in the first year of purchase

3. Permanent & annoying COntrol Panel Glitch

4. Messed up audio circuitry freezes computer

5. Transition from Windows XP to Windows 7 is painful. Windows 7 is crap.

6. Dell's repair service plan is crap.

Purchased this computer at the beginning of January 2010. Previously had a 3 year old Dell E1505 that worked perfectly. Thought I'd get the same quality three years later. Nope.

The day I took it out of the box and tried to set it up, my Control Panel froze. Ever since then, I have always had this problem. The solution is to force the Control Panel close using the Task Manager, then reopen it. ANNOYING!

In July, my adapter began malfunctioning. By August, it stopped working. Dell had to replace it. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE ADAPTER LIGHT IS VEEERRY BRIGHT BLUE. Not always good for dorm room sleepers. You'll have to unplug your adapter every time to keep the light out of your eye.

Yesterday the left and right click buttons below the touch pad stopped working. Both now go to auto scroll when I click on them. Googled solutions and found numerous customers complaining about a malfunctioning touchpad. Apparently Dell uses the wrong material to make the cable connection for the touchpad. Here is a thread about it, as well as a solution from a guy who Dell themselves thanked in the thread!

Still haven't gotten my click buttons to work. Dell told me that since I'm still under the warranty, they'd send me a box to mail in my laptop for repair. But I'd be without a laptop for 7 10 days at least, since they can't give me a replacement in the mean time!

The other option would be for me to pay $59+tax for a Dell technician to come to my home to do the repair. Imagine that! And that mightn't even work!!!

What is even more annoying is that the Control Panel never works when I pull it up the first time, so trying to deal with this click button problem is just more problematic because to simply access my settings is a big deal after restart.

There is a big difference between Windows XP & Windows 7. Windows 7's user interface is deplorable. Trying to adjust settings in my problematic Control Panel yesterday to fix my click button problem was an absolute headache, because there is no Classic View in the Control Panel and if you're not familiar with the contents, you will find yourself clicking on every single heading in there just to find the one control that you want. MS Office 2007 is also drastically different from older versions. I constantly have to YouTube tutorials on how to do the simplest things in MS Word and Excel that used to be so easy to figure out in older versions of the software.

Lastly (and I'm really hoping that it's 'lastly' and that my 8 month old computer doesn't come up with any MORE problems!!!), my audio circuitry seems to be messed up. I watch movies using external speakers to give me better sound than my laptop speakers. But whenever I'm watching a movie and I receive an instant message alert on Skype simultaneously, the sound reverts back to my laptop speakers, and the external speakers are automatically deactivated. Unplugging and replugging them doesn't to get the sound back to the external speakers. My movie freezes, followed by my entire computer, and I have to force shut down by holding the power button down for 10 secs. What is that about??? This happens every time that I receive a Skype message alert while watching a movie on my computer. The messed up audio circuitry freezes my computer. Now I have to remind myself to exit Skype before running a movie!

I trusted Dell because of the positive experience that I had with my old computer. But this new Inspiron 1440 is making me never want to buy Dell again. I'm very frustrated with this "new" laptop and would just like to get my money back and buy a new computer. All the little problems have compounded to leave me with a very bitter taste in my mouth. Dell's quality has DETERIORATED over the years it seems. Unless I can get my problems fixed permanently and easily, I won't be buying from them again. I recommend that before you purchase this laptop, go google Inspiron 14 PROBLEMS, and see what comes up. You might see some recurring themes!!!

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Dell XPS XPS15-9375sLV 15-Inch Laptop (Silver)

I've had my Dell XPS 15 for about two weeks now and I believe it is an excellent computer. For the past 2 years, I had been using a Dell Inspiron and and I have played with the Dell XPS L502X (The Previous Generation Model) so I decided to give this one a look as my computer for college. There are many great aspects about this laptop, and while there are definitely some things that could be fixed, it's still a great machine for multimedia lovers, students, and even gamers.

Hardware-

First of all, the hardware is absolutely fantastic. I'm not going to lie, it's a pretty unabashed copy of the Macbook Pro. On the outside, the only main difference is the color of the aluminum. However, the inside has a extremely nice black coating that gives the palm rests a very comfortable feel as well as a unique look. While the design is very sleek, the laptop is still quite heavy at almost 6 pounds. This isn't as bad as it sounds, but for people who will be taking this everywhere, it might be worth testing the weight and seeing if it's for you. Thankfully, the weight does make the laptop feel very sturdy and while I wouldn't be slamming this into the ground anytime soon, it should still survive the occasional drop.

The keyboard and trackpad are great as well. The keyboard could do with a little more depth, but it is still comfortable to type on and I had few complaints as I was typing this review. The trackpad is simply amazing. It is made by Synaptics and it is flawless. I've even stopped using a mouse due to its performance. It feels amazing and multi touch gestures work perfectly. It puts pretty much every other Window machine to shame. My only nitpick would be that it has trouble differentiating right and left clicks every now and then but outside of Apple, no other manufacturer has such a good touchpad.

Many people have complained about the WiFi and honestly, I've had no major problems. Reception is slightly weaker as compared to other laptops, so I'm guessing the aluminum is interfering somehow. However, I'm still getting around the same network speeds as compared to other laptops, although my speeds have been slightly lower so hopefully Dell can fix this with a driver update.

Display and Speakers-

The display is a 350-nit TN panel covered with Corning Gorilla Glass. While IPS panels, such as those found in the new Asus Zenbooks, have a more varied color gamut and better viewing angles, the display on the Dell is still awesome. Everything is crisp and clear, and most text is readable without having to zoom in. Contrast is great with the low black levels and viewing angles are still great. The L502X had a better color gamut but this is still a great display, especially for those coming from the traditional, low quality 1366x768 TN panels.

The speakers are great as well, even if they don't impress as much as the display. They're loud and clear but they're a bit lacking in bass, especially coming from the L502X with the integrated subwoofer. That being said, they still outclass most every other laptop in sheer volume and clarity. Dell has some included software that you can mess with to provide you the sound that you would like.

Performance-

I've never been a fan of benchmarks, and I generally rely on real world testing to see how the computer does. So far, I've been nothing short of impressed. The 3rd Gen Intel i7 and 8GB of RAM handle everything smoothly and lag is virtually nowhere to be found. I've opened multiple windows of Chrome playing 1080p video and I still have no trouble doing other activities. The computer does use a traditional hard drive instead of a SSD, and while performance could benefit from the addition of a SSD, I honestly haven't seen the need to. The hard drive is plenty fast, but it does generate a noticeable amount of heat under the left palm rest, so keep that in mind. The Dell also uses a 32GB SSD to quickly start up and shut down the computer, as well as quickly open frequently used applications and so far start up and shut down times have been great, although they fall short of SSD only computers, especially ultrabooks.

As far as games go, the 2GB NVIDIA Geforce 640M video card should be able to play most everything at respectable frame rates, although you will probably have to turn down some effects if you want to play games at the full 1080p resolution. However, games such as Assassin's Creed Revelations and Skyrim look great and the computer has no problem with playing them with most effects turned up. There have been many complaints of throttling, especially have 1-2 minutes of intense gameplay, but I've noticed no problems. If you purchase the laptop, I would suggest upgrading to the new BIOS as to make sure you don't come across any throttling issues.

As far as bloatware goes, Dell has been surprisingly lenient. There's very little true bloatware, other than the annoying McAfee trial, some included Dell software, and Microsoft Office Starter 2010 (which isn't even really bloatware) so kudos to Dell.

Noise and Heat-

Unfortunately, the laptop has a tiny bit more noise than I would like. This probably has to do with the fact that it uses a hard drive, instead of an SSD. That being said, if you're browsing the web or doing regular office work, you'll never hear it, especially if you're playing music. But if you start playing games and doing some other intense multimedia work, the fans will spin up and definitely make themselves heard. Thankfully, the fans are located in the hinge so you're not exposed to the air and the computer doesn't tend to heat up to the point of discomfort.

Like I mentioned before, I suspect the hard drive generates a certain amount of heat which is noticeable, but never truly annoying. I had no problem using the machine on my lap for hours.

Battery-

Unfortunately, the battery is sealed within the machine so there's no replacing it without a lot of effort. However, I find the battery to be plenty sufficient for most activities. Obviously, the display will use the most power so toning it down, and deactivating things such as the keyboard backlight will extend the battery life a great deal. If you're just doing plain web browsing mixed in with office work, expect around 4-6 hours of battery and if you're playing video, expect around 4-5 hours. This is acceptable, although some Ultrabooks and Macbooks do feature slightly better battery life.

Wrap-Up-

Like I said, I believe this is a fantastic machine. While it would have been nice if Dell had some more original design features, it's still rock solid and actually feels better than the Macbook Pro. General performance is great, and the screen and speakers make this an excellent laptop for anybody interested in viewing a lot of movies or listening to music. The occasional gamer will enjoy the dedicated graphics and everybody will appreciate the respectable battery life. If only it was around $100 cheaper, it would be absolutely perfect and I believe it would then deserve 5 stars for being such a great all around laptop. For now, I'm giving 4.5 stars and rounding down until Dell can work out some of the kinks with the WiFi and throttling other users are reporting. If you're a college student who needs a machine with better battery life and less weight, I would suggest the new Macbook Air or the new Asus Zenbooks but this machine will handle everything you need and more.

I purchased this computer after buying and returning a MacBook Pro just couldn't wrap my mind around OS X after 20 years of windows. Old habits die hard! This is a fantastic computer excellent display, trackpad technology getting closer to Apple, excellent construction, and overall excellent performance. The only problem, and it is major in my opinion, is that the WiFi speed drops to near zero when more than 10 to 20 feet from a router. The WiFi problem has been extremely well documented on the discussion threads at Notebook Review online. There is even a Dell representative answering questions and disseminating the latest updates. As of today, 1 August, Dell does not know if the problem is software (drivers) or hardware related. Driver updates and swapping the WiFi card to another brand have not yielded success, so signs are pointing to a hardware problem, but nothing has been confirmed by Dell.

Bottom line if WiFi capability at a distance of more than 10 feet from the router is required, purchase with extreme caution until Dell can ensure the issue is fixed. If Dell cannot offer a fix soon, I will return mine while I still can.

Buy Dell XPS XPS15-9375sLV 15-Inch Laptop (Silver) Now

So I just had to write this review feel like I owe it to Dell for putting together such an awesome laptop. This is going to be a short one but hopefully useful to somebody:

Laptop's wireless works fine. (ref other review)

It is SOLID. Awesome build quality

Screen -was my #1 consideration. it is unbelieveably sharp! with wide view angles and extreme color definition. I LOVE IT

Discrete graphics performance -Really good -surprisingly good actually for a laptop. I can play SWTOR on almost the highest settings. Looks really good. Plays smooth. Doesn't overheat

Only other thing I'll say is definitely do get it with windows 8. Yes no touch screen. But what's cool is the latest models touchpad is designed for win8 so you can flick in from the sides to pull up charms menus etc --right on the touch pad -which is also pretty awesome itself.

Can you tell I like my laptop? HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!

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When I first took my XPS15 out of the box I was quite impressed. I was a PC user but got a 2008 Macbook 13" and am now moving back to PC (for my laptop anyways). This thing looked great. I loved the silicone surface around the keyboard and the metal case. After extensive use it stayed cool and quite. On my girlfriends 2012 13" Macbook you can hear the fan whirring all the time. I can even hear it when I Skype with her. This thing came with a lot of features that other laptops offer as upgrades that would push the price well over that of the XPS15 (1080 screen, blu-ray drive, NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M, etc). All of this would make it a great laptop but....

THE WIFI DOESNT WORK!!! As stated in another review, moving more then 10 feet away from a wifi signal will diminish your network connection. I have a brand new dual band N router and this thing has such a hard time connecting to it. My 2008 Macbook can connect to the router better from the opposite end of the house then this thing can right next to it! Even with my network connection is shown to be "good" at 100mbps+ nothing happens, pages don't load, no ping response, I can't even go to my router configuration page. Drivers, replacement wifi cards, DIFFERENT wifi cards won't fix this problem. The only solution seems to be to get an external USB wifi adapter. So really, with computers today, I don't care if this laptop had a 56-core processor at 999 tera hertz and 89273423 terabyte cache and the battery lasted 5 years on one charge. If the wifi doesn't work it's useless.

Another pet peeve I have with this thing is the touchpad. When typing, the SLIGHTEST graze on the touchpad will move the courser while I'm typing and sometimes highlight a whole selection that will get replaced while I'm typing. There is preinstalled Dell touchpad software with settings to eliminate accidental touchpad contact while typing but it doesn't seem to work at all. I have to very consciously lift my wrists up while typing to avoid touching the touchpad. I like that the touchpad is very large but there is a huge downside to it. There is also something about it that makes an annoying clicking sound when you press on it. It's like an old ball (non-optical) mouse with buttons that click very loudly when you press on it. The ENTIRE touchpad is like an old mouse button.

Great looks, nicely lit keyboard, good price. HUGE downfalls. If you NEED a laptop right now but don't depend on wifi then this is a great computer and maybe someday in the future Dell will fix the wifi issue (I'm pretty sure it will require a new screen which is where the antenna is located) and improve the software for the touchpad. If you want something that works likes its supposed to now, well, there are better, cheaper options out there.

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This laptop is a perfect MacBook Pro alternative. I bought 16GB of RAM and replaced my HDD with another SSD. Works amazingly fast and is sleek and thin with great battery life. Way better specs than the MacBook Pro --and HALF the price. The Gorilla Glass and 400-nit 1080p screen gives the Retina Display a run for it's money --extremely bright and super sharp. Dell has had some mistakes --but this is NOT one of them. Excellent laptop, excellent price.

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Toshiba Satellite P755d-s5266 15.6-inch LED Laptop - Fusion X2 Finish in Platinum

Toshiba P755D-S5266 is a decent laptop given all the bells and whistles it comes with(blu ray rewriteable, USB 3.0, Backlit keyboard and premium sound system)

However, the battery life is pretty mediocre barely lasts for 80 minutes when fully charged. Am considering returning this laptop since I expected battery life to be couple of hours.

The laptop freezes a lot when you open several application and my 4 year old Acer laptop does better than this.

6GB RAM is good but the processor speed is slow.

Overally, I don't recommend this laptop unless you find it for $400ish.

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Lenovo ThinkPad 23532MU 14-Inch Laptop

I bought a T430s which was delivered early November. Order and delivery went smoothly. But before you buy this (or any other Lenovo product), there are a couple of things you will benefit from understanding.

1. the 64 bit Windows operating system (either Win 7 or Win 8) will not allow you to use older programs which worked fine with Windows XP. Lenovo offers something called "XP Mode" which is supposed to allow older programs to operate in a "virtual XP atmosphere". This is a bad joke. Neither Lenovo or Microsoft will support this and it does not work as easily as it is advertised to work. The Lenovo salesperson encouraged me to order this (actually, you can download for free if you don't order) with the idea that it was an easy to use system. NOT TRUE. I'm no computer dummie and I was unable to use ANY DOS or WIN XP program with it. Maybe it will work with a lot of effort, but who needs that? So, if you buy a Lenovo computer with WIN 7 or 8 (x64) OS, be prepared to buy new software for any program except MS Office.

2. I had all sorts of trouble with downloading critical updates for WIN 7. Microsoft said it was Lenovo's responsibility to help with this but Lenovo Tech Support refused. It was just by accident that I solved the problem by downloading one update at a time. Lenovo will not support the OS on the machines they sell.

3. I could not find any pre-installed program to use with the CD/DVD burner that was installed. Lenovo again refused to help with this even though they installed the software that would make this part of the computer work. Lenovo support for any software issue is non-existant, even for software they put on the machine. And it isn't like this would take them a lot of time or training to help with; it is just their bad and unreasonable policy. Beware-buy a Lenovo computer and you are on your own from the day it is delivered.

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HP Pavilion 15.6" Core i5-2450m 500GB HDD Notebook PC

Everything is awesome about it i.e. sound, casing, screen, being fast everything. I'll highy suggest it for people who want a laptop for professional use.

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ACER AS5515-5187 15.4-Inch Laptop Notebook

An excellent machine with 3 GIGS of RAM. Super integrated ATI graphics delivers very high performance. Runs very cool not like old hot Aspire 3000. Came with Vista that was promptly removed and replace with XP. Just a very nice performing cool laptop. I am going to buy a second one.

I've had this laptop for about three months now and have no complaints. I have had several laptops in the past (Toshiba, Dell, HP, Sony, and ASUS) and have to admit that this laptop holds up pretty well with all of those. This thing is great for regular use web surfing, music, movies and some minor gaming. For the price, I think this thing does more than you can ask for. This is a great intro laptop and I love it so far.

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Less than a week after purchase I lost the $ key. I contacted Acer, and was told to 'send it in for repairs'. I requested a replacement keyboard instead, and was refused. A local computer store said it would be $200 to replace the keyboard (!). So, I ordered one on Ebay, and did it myself with no problems.

Bottom line... it is a cheap computer. But, if you want something simple and easy to use, it's not a bad purchase.

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I bought this Acer 5515 and found that it is not what I expected it to be. I was going to return it but found out after I received it that it was not returnable. The processor is very slow and I do not recommend this for any one who wants to work with flash or even play games! So buyer beware you are not getting a good deal from JC Connections with this product.

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Some confusion on purchasers part as to delivery speed. Item purchased was apparently received as specified in the sellers obligation. Information from Amazon was not understood. Laptop is operating very well and meeting all expectations once received.

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ASUS R704VD-RB51 17.3" Notebook PC

I was in the market for a replacement for my 10 year old desktop. After speaking with numerous I.T. friends of mine, the ASUS was highly recommended. I absolutely live this notebook. The 17.3 inch screen is great. The ease of use and simplistic design have made me happy. I have "pulled the plug" on the old desk top.

I was disappointed with notebook. It has issues with internet explorer. Keeps shutting down and reopening tabs after shutting down? Not happy with keys, they are so flat makes it hard to keep fingers on certain key, inturn I am hitting others.

Also hard to see function keys on bottom, they are black and you need a flashlight to read which ones have a blue lights.

I wouldn't buy another one.

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HP Pavilion 14z-b100 Sleekbook,AMD Dual-Core Processor E1-1200 1.4Ghz CPU, 4GB memory, 500GB hard d

Skipping the fluff, here's the pros/cons -

Pros:

Somewhat lightweight (I don't think they include the battery weight in the specs)

Low profile

Cons:

Comes installed with Windows 8 (the worst OS on a computer, ever)

When trying to downgrade to Win 7, HP offers absolutely NO support

Battery life is not very long

UPDATE:

After less than two months, the screen is already scratched...by the keyboard, itself! the small lip above the trackpad has been hitting the screen and has caused permanent pitting on the screen. Absolutely awful design, demoting it to one star.

I haven't used it much yet, but compared to my old netbook with the Atom processor, it flies. Downloading and installing applications such as Open Office, required 98% CPU which drove the cooling fan quite hard, and initiated a warning window of excessive CPU usage. Nice quality graphics. I bought it for College use and not gaming, so it appears like it may be fine.

Buy HP Pavilion 14z-b100 Sleekbook,AMD Dual-Core Processor E1-1200 1.4Ghz CPU, 4GB memory, 500GB hard d Now

MY HP LAPTOP,WINDOWS 8,"EXCELLENT",ILOVE IT ,MY FRIENDS LIKE AND ADMIRE IT MORE,,BUT I WILL SHOW THEM HOW TO GET IT .

Read Best Reviews of HP Pavilion 14z-b100 Sleekbook,AMD Dual-Core Processor E1-1200 1.4Ghz CPU, 4GB memory, 500GB hard d Here

I give 1 star for the timely delivery. Only problem is, this brand new laptop does not start. It just keeps restarting saying that there is some error that requires the computer to restart.

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Toshiba Satellite C655-S5047 TruBrite 16-Inch Laptop (Black)

I've had more than a dozen laptops in the day. This one lasted 10 days and the LCD "broke" inside, no cracks outside. First time it ever happened to someone who takes care of their computers, and guess what? Not covered by the warranty. Plus they make you spend $25 to ship it to them to figure that out. I will never buy Toshiba again.

For the price they want it definitely isn't worth it you can buy the same laptop on bestbuy for almost 300 dollars less and it isn't even that amazing of a laptop.

Buy Toshiba Satellite C655-S5047 TruBrite 16-Inch Laptop (Black) Now

I bought this laptop for college so I could have a laptop for basic computer needs. I've had it for over year and I can say I'm not impressed. A few months ago I started having problems watching HD videos online. They would randomly start stuttering constantly. The laptop just feels very cheap and it was built very cheap. My DVD drive broke after putting it in my back pack. Even though the laptop was asleep the DVD drive opened and it broke.The keyboard feels very cheap. Can't play any games well. Do yourself a favor and find a better cheap laptop than this one.

Pros

-Cheap Price

-Touch Pad is pretty good

-Nice screen size

-Ok for web browsing, word processing, etc

Cons

-Cheaply built (Won't last long)

-Only 2 USB ports

-Very loud when the fan turns on

-Bad for watching HD videos

-Pretty bad speakers

-Bad for even basic gaming

Read Best Reviews of Toshiba Satellite C655-S5047 TruBrite 16-Inch Laptop (Black) Here

I have had this laptop for about a year, and have had all kind of issues with it. I purchased it from another website.Windows 7 was a disaster, the program kept giving me problems from the beginning. The wifi connection isn't working properly, it goes in and out constantly, even though I am not moving around at all. In fact I sit right next to the modem. It's not cheap, and for the money I am sure there are much better laptops available. We call it my "Toshitta" since it is so unreliable and moody.

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It is functioning as I expected. It is fast. Windows 7 is excelent. The vertical dimension of the screen was smaller than I expected.

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Samsung - 15.6" Laptop - 4GB Memory - 500GB Hard Drive - Titan Silver

It is a great laptop, window 8 , sensitive mouse and keyboard, I am happy with it, good for my school, good screen layout and fabulous display. 15"6, full keyboard, I can type faster and watch movie on my laptop.love it

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Acer Computer AOA110-1722 Aspire One 8.9-Inch Notebook PC

UPDATE 08/29/2008: Received my new Acer Aspire One today. Wow, one day shipping from J&R rocks! The blue AAO with Win XP looks just like the Linux version: there is the SD "Storage Expansion" slot on the left side and a multi-format card reader on the right, 3 USB ports, etc. It boots up pretty fast and runs the so familiar WIN XP OS. I liked the Linux graphics, but to be honest, as a Windows user, I felt lost. So far, I haven't had any problems with the wireless (knock on wood) that I have experienced when I used the Linux version. Yes, you can hear the fan, as some of the reviewers have mentioned, BUT, it is not nearly as annoying as they claim. I can live with that. The Hard Drive is listed as 120GB, however, it shows up as 105 GB. The windows XP version comes with a 60-day trial of MS Office 2007 and McAfee Security Suite. Curiously, it also comes with InterVideo WinDVD, although, as you are aware, there is no DVD drive. Other programs included are: MS Works, Adober Reader 8, IE, MSN, Windows Media Player, Windows Messenger, Windows Movie Maker, Acer eRecovery Manager. I installed Firefox without a glitch. So far, I am very pleased with the laptop. It's not a $2,000 Sony or Mac, but it's a great value. It does what it is supposed to do. I am glad I returned the Linux and ordered the Windows. It works better for my needs.

UPDATE 8/28/2008: So, Amazon dropped the price on Acer Aspire One with Linux OS. However, the Win XP version continues to be overpriced compared to other online retailers. I've decided to order the blue Win XP machine directly from J&R for $369.99 and will get an additional 15% off via Live Search Cashback (total price after cashback excluding shipping: $314.41). I decided to go back to the familiar XP configuration simply because I believe that learning Linux will involve too much effort to justify the cost. In addition, the Linux version of Acer Aspire One appears to have more wireless bugs than Windows. We'll see how the Win XP netbook performs.

UPDATE 8/25/2008. So far I haven't seen any price reductions by online retailers. I think they are waiting to purge their inventory. Best Buy, however, does have the blue Acer Aspire One with 1gb Ram, 120 gb HD and Win XP Home for $349.99. So far they are the first ones to jump on the Acer price drop bandwagon.

UPDATE 8/20/08. Acer just (4 hrs ago) made the announcement on Market Watch that it will slash the prices for Acer Aspire One to $349 for Win XP and $329 for Linux. I miss my Acer One and will order one again as soon as retailers update their prices. I thought it was a great deal for $379 but for $50 less it's an absolute bargain. I do hope that I won't have anymore wireless problems with this one.

ORIGINAL REVIEW: I had purchased this laptop from J&R in blue with Linux and it was in my hands the very next day. I really liked Acer Aspire One from the moment I pulled it out of the box. It's very compact, light, elegant, boots in no time (20 sec). I am a first-time Linux user and was actually pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to use. I followed the instructions from one of the Amazon reviews here to unlock the full OS and was able to add Skype (Fedora version) without a problem. OpenOffice is very straightforward and easy to use, email setup was a breeze. I plugged it into my cable modem and loved the very fast web page loading times. All in all, it's a great little laptop alternative, the screen is easy to read, the keyboard size is adequate for error-free typing, the trackpad took some getting used to but it was fine within a couple of hours.

Now to the negatives:

-the surface is very prone to fingerprint smudges

-the screen is very glossy and reflective, but the brightness compensated for the fact that I could always see my reflection on the screen

-the left and right mouse buttons are oddly positioned on either side of the keyboard, so that takes some getting used to

-now last but not least wireless connectivity problems. I've had the Acer Aspire One for over a week and have tried every single approach out there to get the wireless connection on it. the wireless networks would show up on the connection manager, but when I would attempt to connect to a particular network I would get an error message saying connection was terminated. One of the networks I tried to connect to was my own home wireless network which successfully worked for all of my other laptops. I tried the WEP protocol no success, I changed the router settings to WPA tried to connect no success, I changed it to the open network no success although I am sure my neighbors appreciated the open net access they could steal from me in the interim. I've searched the web for a solution and found out that this wireless problem seems to be an issue for a number of Acer Aspire One users out there. Some were able to fix it by running Live Update on a wired connection (I did it, but it didn't fix the problem), some played with sleep modes, reboots, etc. None of that worked for me. I tried to look up this issue on the Acer website, but their customer support is not very user friendly. So, I gave up, called customer service for an RMA# and am returning the Acer Aspire One today. I wish it had worked as I liked it so much, but it's no use to me without wireless connections and I believe that if I purchase a brand new item, it has to be fully operational straight out of the box. So, goodbye my dear sapphire blue Acer Aspire One, you will be missed, I hope your maker solves the wireless problem and I will buy you again when that happens. I would recommend this product without reservation if only the wireless problem is resolved.

I bought this netbook to keep in my backpack at all times for email and web opportunities while I'm out and about. Other netbooks seem to suffer a bit from spec bloatbigger drives, more memory, higher prices.

Pros-

1. Small and light. Really light. I also have the eee pc 1000h. The difference is dramatic.

2. Given it's size, keyboard is ok.

3. On a purely personal note, the blue color is great.

4. Cheap, cheap, cheap. I picked mine up for $309. Other comparable netbooks seem to be up over $400.

5. I really like the Linux operating system. Its more like a PDA's. Lots of apps are included. Upgrading to latest versions looks easy.

6. Quiet

7. Very fast boot

8. Second SD slot that adds to drive size is a cool idea. Now if 16 or 32gb SD card prices would just come down, things would be great. I have lots of media files on SD's for other devices, I can plug them in and still have one free.

9. After seeing the 7" screens, I think the 8.9" is as small as you can go and still have it useful

10. Total travel package is really light. Small, light power brick and cord.

Negs-

1. Battery life is good, but would be amazing with a 6-cell

2. Shinyget used to lots of fingerprints. Would have been much better matte.

3. Included sleeve will protect from scratches, but not much else. No padding, no zipperjust basically a plastic pocket. I'm looking for an aftermarket sleeve.

Because of it's specs its more of a net appliance than notebook. But if you're looking for a cheap way to use hotspots and apps that don't require lots of resources, this is great.

Buy Acer Computer AOA110-1722 Aspire One 8.9-Inch Notebook PC Now

I bought the Blue Acer Aspire One (XP version with 120 gigabyte HD) just as soon as one was available. Did not buy it from Amazon because the price was higher than a local retailer (Micro Center). Micro Center has dropped the price to the Acer suggested retail price of $349 (XP). I did see the Linux Version at Circuit City for $307. So far no real complaints except that the touch pad is difficult to work with and it is not very precise. Actually the buttons are awkward to use and it often "double-clicks" seemingly on it's own. I use a mouse now. So far I have not needed a DVD player since I usually rip my DVDs "for my own use" and load them via the USB port on a Jump Drive or use my card reader. I purchased a home version of MS Office and simply entered the code. No need for the DVD just the code and it worked seamlessly. As noted the exterior is very prone to smudges and I find myself cleaning the unit regularly. I did note that the fan noise is a little loud when used in a quiet room but at coffee shops and other WIFI hotspots it is not noticeable. Again no real gripes and for the price it does what I was hoping for, a small websurfer with the capability of performing more complex tasks if needed. I purchased it for the price of a good PDA and it surfs the web better than my iPod Touch. Its a winner in my book...

Read Best Reviews of Acer Computer AOA110-1722 Aspire One 8.9-Inch Notebook PC Here

It comes with Linux, but it's packed with everything you need while traveling! I was looking for a small alternative to my heavy 17" MacBook Pro for surfing the Internet while traveling, and this was the right device! Not only does it find wireless connectivity easily with its built-in wifi, it comes with two media slots (actually, one is a SDHC-specific slot for adding more memory space). All you have to do is plug in a HDSC card and it does everything for you.

It's also pre-installed with OpenOffice, which is a great and free alternative to Microsoft's Office. It's compatible with MS Office's applications, too (just in case you're wondering). Boots very fast since it's running on Linux and uses a solid-state disk. If you are looking for a stylish, affordable, small laptop for surfing the net and office applications, this is for you! It's very light and comes with a nice faux-leather sleeve. If you have never used Linux before, the learning curve is very easy since this version of Linux uses a similiar windows-based GUI application, and no commands are needed.

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Beside the lesser time at booting up, the software seems really easy to operate with, which is Linux. After a little hack for installing more things, then I just added a bag of the kind that are used with portable dvd players, and extra 4 gig SD memory and a tiny retractable trip mouse (because my fingers are simply too big for any touchpad), and was amazed at how fast everything stuck together. It connects fast to the wifi network, so I have no complaints there, it browse really well. No moving parts gives the battery a long run for the money, and the screen really looks right. The camera is awesome, mics are ok, don't expect too much from the speakers of course. And it runs everything really fast, suspiciously fast I might say. No more than 3 process at a time... just in case. I took a long trip by airplanes, three legs. In every plane was able to use it for about an hour. For that price, I better start getting addons. 325$!!! wow!

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Apple MacBook Pro MC371LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop (OLD VERSION)

After having a 3 year-old Dell die on me (to be fair it was put through multiple trips to and from school in my bag, sometimes while it was still on) and a Toshiba Satellite fail after a year, I was tired of paying bargain prices and receiving a frustrating experience to go with it.

My girlfriend had talked about buying a Mac and I always balked at them as being too expensive. Well, most of the main problems with my old laptops were compatibility issues between hardware and software, often involving frustrating searches for new drivers. Knowing that Apple makes the hardware and develops the software for their computers made me think they would be able to integrate the two aspect better than PC's I have used. I still have nightmares about all the drivers I had to hunt down when I downgraded my Toshiba from Windows Vista to XP.

I had actually purchased a 13" Macbook Pro with a glossy screen from Amazon a few days before Apple did their big upgrade in April 2010. It was a beautiful looking machine and was easy to use after I became accustomed to the differences from a PC, ie; What is the "Finder"? However, the 13" screen was a little small for me. I do some photography work, and I watch movies on it as well so I decided the 15" Macbook Pro would be the way to go. Once they did their upgrade for all their machines I decided to buy directly from Apple.

I debated long and hard on the glossy vs. matte option. Going with the high-res screen (1680 X 1050 as opposed to standard 1440 X 900) was a no-brainer. After doing some online research I also chose the matte option (as opposed to the default glossy screen). I had never actually seen a matte screen as the local Best-Buy didn't have one in stock. I was a little nervous on my decision, but I called Apple tech support and easily arranged for a return on my not-yet-arrived 15" Macbook Pro should I want one with a glossy screen instead. The person I spoke with even arranged for return shipping labels paid for by Apple! I didn't upgrade the harddrive or RAM because I can do those myself, or have them done later, for a lot cheaper than Apple's pricing.

The new 15" w/ the matte screen came and I opened up some high-res You-tube videos and compared it side-by-side to the glossy. This was the middle of the day and the lone window in our living room was creating all sorts of reflections on the glossy screen while the matte was unphased. Sure the blacks on the glossy were a deeper and the colors might have "popped" a little more, but knowing I would be using my laptop in a room lit by daylight or with a bright light, the henious reflections on the glossy screen definitely made it a no-go for me. This was a window that was in front of the computer and wasn't even directly shining on the screen. I was really happy I decided to go matte.

That being said, I have loaded up Photoshop CS5 and it runs great. Way faster than my old laptop. I appreciate a lot of the little touches that Apple puts into their products that are becoming more and more noticable every day I use it. (Such as their search feature is always available with 1 click from the desktop) I plan to buy an Applecare plan towards the end of my one-year warranty period to make sure this lasts me at least 3 years. Hopefully I might be able to keep this for 4 or 5 years.

Overall, if you have the $$ I highly recommend this product.

Pros-

Unibody design is super-sturdy and slim.

Love the matte screen

The high resolution upgrade helps with multi-tasking, programming, photo-editing, web-browing, ect..

Super-fast w/Photoshop

Good side-to-side viewing angle, (better than the screen on the Windows-based laptops I have used)

Keyboard is very pleasant to use

Speakers are adequate

Touchpad is awesome! Large and easy to use with 2, 3, and 4 finger controls not found anywhere else

but on a Mac. I rarely use a mouse anymore, which works well for using it on my lap.

Quick boot up time. Opening and closing the lid for "sleep mode" waiting time is basically zero.

Good battery life

Cons

Expensive (duh)

Can get hot on the underneath towards the back where the processor is located.

Up and down viewing angle not so good (this is common w/laptops though)

Some software not available for Mac

USB 2.0 (instead of newer 3.0)

Glowing Apple logo on the back of the screen is a bit of advertising I could do without.

Sharp Edges on front (can apparently be filed down but I am wary about doing this)

No Blu-Ray drive

Update:

Maybe it is just me, but my Apple seems to have more issues with Flash and streaming internet content than I have ever had with a PC. I know Apple is at war with Adobe and has gone to great lengths to disparage the Flash format. They do not seem to have worked too hard to ensure that Flash content works flawlessly with their machines. Streaming videos will stop or fail to load alltogether. This doesn't happen often, but with a PC I never had any issues like this at all.

Update x2 (8/30/10)

So my power supply had been giving me intermittent issues (every couple of days the power would come on and go off every couple of seconds for no reason). I called Apple support and they recommended just using the shortened version (the power supply is customizable to be either longer with an additional cord, or not), and then to call them back if the problem continued. The guy I talked to thought the cord that lengthens the setup might be the issue. Well I wasn't have any more problems for a while....

Then yesterday (the day before I started a new job teaching at a university) the power supply quits working completely. I call Apple and they say contact the authorized Apple service providers in my area (neither of which were open that day since it was Sunday). The next day, Monday, I called the 2 authorized service providers in my area, one of which says I need to leave my computer there overnight for testing to determine if I am eligible for a new power supply, and the other which couldn't handle my problem when I was available to come.

Now I try to contact Apple support and all day I have been getting the most ridiculous message that says

"At this moment, the customer support team is not available for your support due to unavoidable reasons.. Sorry for the inconvenience caused.."

I suppose it is impossible for Apple to properly staff their service center, so not being available was of course, unavoidable. So I am stuck with a bogus power cord for now.

Update x3 (9/2/10)

I decided to choose the option where I call Apple about my problem, instead of them calling me. That worked much better. I received my replacement power cord in the mail today, a Thursday, after my power supply originally quit working altogether on Sunday. I have to send back the old one, which has actually started to work intermittently now. If Apple deems that I replaced a non-broken power supply they are going to charge me $80. We'll see...

I hope this video helps you make up your mind.

You will not regret buying this machine.

Buy Apple MacBook Pro MC371LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop (OLD VERSION) Now

For summary skip to the bottom. Video to come soon...

I already wrote a review and posted a video on the 13", so I'll spare you the pre-story. The 15" MacBook Pro (Summer 2010 version) is a step up for me. I want to go on record by saying that I did NOT opt for the high res screen, and I'll tell you why in a moment. I'm still an MCSA and an MCTS, and Microsoft is still primary in my world, but I access these resources via Apple.

First, I want to clarify why I chose to buy the 15" when I had a 13" that was sufficient. Because I run VMs a lot (I have reviews of Parallels and VMWare), the real estate of the screen was very important. The 13" handled everything I threw at it like a champ, but I needed more screen area. I also needed a stronger multitask processor to keep up with the demands I put upon it. The 2010 version of the MacBooks achieve gains in three key areas: The processor, which on the 15" and 17" models is the Core i5 and i7 models; the video cards, which again, on the 15" and 17" models are improved with newer technology; and the power management.

The previous processor was the Core 2 Duo an older technology but not a slouch by any means. It was and is a very powerful processor, all things considered, and the 13" was able to deal with everything I threw at it, including multiple VMs at the same time and video encoding processes. Where the Core 2 Duo struggles is with multi-tasking speed; while it can handle multiple processes, it allocates resources towards the most intensive of what's running at the detriment of everything else. In other words, if you encode a video at a medium resolution, you would find that the machine was nearly unusable otherwise; not frozen or dirt slow, but slow enough to be annoying. The fan would come on and the heat would multiply, and you often would fear for the poor MacBook's life. Not so with the i5. It also does get hot hotter, in fact, than the Core 2 Duo but even though it's dealing with intensive processes, it never breaks stride with other applications that might be running. You could encode video, then jump over to your email and work as if nothing were going on. The laptop's fan would be going nearly full blast and the heat would be expunged at an exponential rate, but the laptop would not slow down. I consider that impressive, especially given the fact that battery life did not suffer from older years. The i7 is even more powerful than the i5; but the primary reason I could not consider that version has to do with the heat. It's so extreme it's got people online worried about cooking eggs. I know they're not exaggerating; the i5 can get quite hot, so if the i7 is as strong as I know it is, I can only imagine how hot it must get.

The video cards have been improved in the new MacBooks. They are newer versions of the NVidia cards that were released, and some of the MacBooks have the higher end Intel integrated chips. If you don't understand some of the video card technology, there are dedicated video cards and then there are integrated cards. The dedicated cards mean simply that they have their own memory and don't share the RAM of the computer. Integrated, as evident by the name, uses shared RAM to function, either in whole or in part. The integrated chips are lower cost, obviously, at the trade of a performance hit the RAM it's sharing is inaccessible to the OS and applications, and because the RAM is always a chunk of other RAM, there is an effective tug-of-war going on when using the integrated card. It's really popular in lower end laptops because of the price point if you paid less than $700 for your laptop chances are it's got an integrated card. All of the lower priced 13" Apples (MacBook, $1199 MacBook Pro, MacBook Air) have integrated chips. The Air might have gotten bumped to NVidia, not sure. In any case, Apple has mixed some models with integrated and dedicated chips, so that less intense processes use the integrated and higher processes switch automatically to dedicated, which is more powerful. Most casual users will think this a pointless feature; but it's good to have for battery life.

Speaking of which, the new MacBooks feature a newer version of the MagSafe power adapter. Due to fraying and melting issues with the previous models, Apple has seen fit to redesign this adapter to address the issue. It now holds a lot more solidly than before, and is partially cylindrical instead of rectangular (you can see images above, of course). The cylinder part is where the fraying most commonly occurred, so it makes sense why they did this change. The actual cable itself also feels more solid; kudos to Apple for improving this. It's also retroactively compatible, so if you buy a new adapter you'll probably get the newer version, and it should work fine for your model (assuming it's a MagSafe version and not the plug-in style from old times). The new 13" MacBook Pro claims a battery life of up to 10 hours due in part to the newer video card; the 15" that I'm reviewing here has already shown improved battery life over the older 13", even at maximum screen brightness. The usual activities will of course kill the battery: VMs, video encoding, audio recording, anything where there is a constant stream of data going one way or the other, basically.

One area of disappointment coming from the 13": The speakers. Because the 15" sports actual speaker grills instead of the embedded speaker of the 13", I somewhat expected at least slightly better audio quality. To my surprise and dismay, I did not receive it. I do a lot of audio records of songs and I use Sennheiser HD-280 Professional Headphones...but the problem is, a song can sound perfect in the headphones, but then I listen to it on the MacBook's speakers and the same song sounds absolutely terrible. I know it can't be the song that's bad, because the headphones are spot on with the way it should sound; but the MacBook's speakers just separate sound streams too much. It's hard to describe, but it's like the treble is cranked and I can't adjust with an equalizer or something. Movies are fine, but again, no appreciable improvement over the 13", where I would watch DVDs frequently with great effect.

So...do I recommend it? Well...it depends. I don't recommend it if you're just a casual user, even if you like the larger screen. Go for the 13" and if you absolutely have to have screens of a larger size get an external. I just can't justify the $300 premium for a larger MacBook unless you are actually going to use it for gaming, audio/video, or VMs. Then it makes sense. As far as the high resolution 1680 screen, recommended only if you're gaming, really. I would like to emphasize DO NOT get the antiglare from Apple. It's nice looking, it really is. It will shock you; it will tempt you; it will compel you to fork over the extra $50. Don't do it; the quality of that screen is not as good as the glossy, because the antiglare is not the full glass. Get one of the Green Onions Supply Anti-Glare AG2 Screen Protector for 15-Inch Aluminum Unibody Apple MacBook Pro and do it yourself. You'll thank me later.

Read Best Reviews of Apple MacBook Pro MC371LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop (OLD VERSION) Here

Have been using computers for nearly two decades and have owned both PCs and Macs. Use a PC laptop for work, which is great for that. But this is my first Mac laptop and I have to say, while I was grumbling at the price, you get what you pay for. Here are my thoughts.

PROS -

Trackpad --this may be the best thing about this computer. While I read the review on CNET and they said the trackpad is great, you really have to experience it to understand. It is a transformational way of communicating with the computer. After having the computer for about a week, I am already much faster on this trackpad than I ever was on a mouse. You have to experience this to understand. The size and the functionality built into the trackpad are nothing short of astonishing.

Included software --the included software on iLife is really useful. It has a rather full featured movie editing software for free, as well as iPhoto, iTunes, etc.

Not included bloatware --it is nice not to have to delete all that crap from the desktop and windows system.

Fast --very fast, especially in OSX. We got this with zero options, just the base 15" model. It is very quick with anything you throw at it.

Build quality --you can grab this laptop from any corner and carry it. There is no flex in the casing. You can really feel the difference that building these things out of a solid block of aluminum makes.

Looks --this is really a beautiful machine. You'll be as happy looking at is when it is off as when it is on.

Lighted keyboard --bright enough to see, but not too bright to be distracting. Excellent view of all the keys in any lighting.

Display --we have the base display and it is crystal clear. My brother-in-law got the resolution upgrade, and while you can tell a difference, if you don't have both the computers next to each other, you won't know what you are missing. If you do intensive graphics work, I would recommend the display resolution upgrade, otherwise, it is just bragging rights, for which I don't need to pay extra.

Battery life --basically it goes all day with light use on one charge. There are not too many 15" laptops, if any, that can do this.

Spyware and Viruses --yes there are none now, and that is good. Hopeuflly, there will be none for a long time.

Discounts and Rebates --while most people would not associate discounts and rebates with Apple, this is a pretty good time to buy a new Mac. We got $200 towards an iPod Touch (making it free) and $100 towards a wireless printer (making it free). Thus, in the end, we got a wireless printer and an iPod Touch for the cost of the tax on these products alone. Also, if you are a teacher or work for the government, Apple will knock another $100 off the price. These are some nice discounts when you buy this laptop.

NEUTRAL -

OSX --about two years ago, this would have been a tremendous positive as Vista was an unmitigated disaster. However, with Windows 7 being pretty good (and shamelessly ripping off many of OSX's features), this is less of an advantage than it sued to be. It is really a matter of taste. We happen to like OSX, especially Snow Leopard, but others may like Windows. This computer can run both.

Only two USB ports --this is at least USB port less than the competition in this price range. However, because the track pad is so good, I don't need to fill up a USB port with a mouse like all my friends do. Also, since a wireless printer is about $100 (which Apple gives you towards the price of a new printer), that frees up another USB port. Thus, I only need a USB port for the iPod or the camera. Neither of which is connected to the laptop at all times,

Only 4GB RAM --while it is plenty for now, I can see this not being enough in a few years.

No user replaceable RAM --RAM is the cheapest way to make your computer go faster. Hopefully the computer will still go fast after the warranty expires so that I can take this apart and add more RAM. But it is annoying that there is no easy way to replace the RAM.

No user replaceable battery --I don't know how long the battery will last, but if a problem develops, it would be nice to be able to change the battery.

CONS -

No Blu-Ray --this was the biggest drawback for me, as I would have liked to have a Blu-Ray player in the house. However, since I don't own any Blu-Rays, it is not that big of a drawback. Also, since you can download most movies these days, this missing player is not a deal breaker.

No HDMI output --this is another potential problem. I don't have an HDTV, so this is not a big deal, but if I get one, it is annoying to have to buy a special adapter PLUS an HDMI cable to play video from my laptop's mini-display port on my TV.

CONCLUSION -

All in all, I've liked this machine alot more than I thought I would. It feels good in the hand and great when using. The display is terrific and the machine is quite responsive. While it is tempting to look at a computer based exclusively on specifications, if you only do that, you may lose sight of what you need in a computer and how you use it. All the specifications in thw world achieve nothing if they are for features that you don't use. This computer hits a nice combination of features that people will actually use without including features and complications that they won't. For what we need, it just works.

While we looked at many laptops, we are happy we ended up with this one.

Hopefully this review helped you in your computer shopping. Best of luck.

Want Apple MacBook Pro MC371LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop (OLD VERSION) Discount?

I recently purchased the Macbook Pro 15" 2.4GHz i5 2010 edition to replace an aged 2006 Sony VAIO. I had previously owned a Macintosh around 15 years ago, so I had a working knowledge of what I was getting into. Above all, the Macbook Pro sold me on its unibody aluminum design, long-lasting battery life and a change from the Windows operating system. I have owned the Macbook Pro for about a month and it is truly one of the most fantastic computers I have owned (and I've owned many in past years, all Windows). I've broken down some aspects of the computer below:

Construction & Design:

The Macbook Pro is a unibody design that is cut from a solid piece of aluminum. This means there are not any battery compartments, memory compartments or openings as you find on most laptops. While this means you cannot change the battery on the fly, the computer is solid and doesn't buckle (or feel like it may buckle). The aluminum also helps to keep the computer cool by rapidly dissipating heat across the entire body; in fact, the metal exterior can be cool to the touch despite running for hours.

Display & Graphics:

There seems to be some debate over the glossy blacklight LED display of the Macbook Pro line, especially in terms of glare. There is a distinct reflection from the monitor if viewing something dark. Under normal conditions I did not find this to be an issue whatsoever, especially if you turn up the monitor brightness. The display does look fantastic and images have an extra "pop" as Apple spokespeople claim. Take a look at one in an Apple Store or Best Buy if you want to see it in person. As far as the high-resolution and matte upgrades, the average consumer won't gain much benefit versus a professional photographer, graphic designer or film editor.

Trackpad & Keyboard:

The Macbook trackpad is phenomenal and is truly sets apart the Macbook line from PCs. The trackpad utilizes multi-touch allowing the user to scroll through pages using only two fingers. Swipe back and forth to quickly navigate webpages or pinch and pull to adjust text size or zoom functions. The trackpad itself is massive allowing for a great deal of hand movement compared to most laptops. Still, you'll probably want to invest in a regular mouse, especially if you are Windows inclined for right click features. The keyboard has backlighting which means the keys light up in dark conditions, but I find this to be more of a novelty feature that I never use. The keys have a soft plastic feel and they are easy to type on even for hours at a time.

Power & Performance:

The battery life of the Macbook is unbelievable. Then again, I came from a laptop that could only hold two hours of battery life, this Macbook averages 8 to 9. Not quite the levels advertised, but far beyond what I need for a typical day. With the i5 chip, I find that everything is snappy and responsive. Startup takes less than 30 seconds. The only downside is the default hard drive installed, it runs at only 5400 RPM. This is noticeable to the point that the processor easily outperforms the hard drive to the point of creating a bottleneck. But there's always the option to upgrade the hard drive to 7200 RPM or an SSD.

Cons:

Relatively slow hard drive compared to processor speed & price of the machine

Two USB ports placed very close to one another, one can be easily blocked and inaccessible

Overall:

The Macbook Pro 2010 is a five star product. As a dominant Windows user, I found the OS to be highly intuitive and easy to use from the beginning. Even activating the Apple one year limited warranty was a breeze given most PC manufacturers. The only downside I see with the machine is the hard drive as I touched on above; it is a shame that such an expensive and well-built machine is limited by the speed of the HDD to the point that the user can notice the problem. Aside from this and the minor USB issue, the computer is a fantastic purchase that is well worth the extra dollars. If you're concerned about buying from Amazon or Apple directly, Amazon sells only the base units and only Apple can officially customize the machine. That said, the base unit is more than enough for most users and only a few will seek 8GB of RAM, high-resolution matte display or iWork pre-installed. If you're in search of a laptop, the Macbook Pro is a great option.

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Coffee Brown 15.6" Gateway NV5207u Laptop 4GB Notebook 320GB Computer w/Windows 7

All we can say is that this was the most bang for our buck. We have owned this model for about 6 months, no problems. Have used it for everything from the wife's photo editing in GIMP, to my light 3d gaming. It's not an Alienware gaming laptop, but it gave EVE online and BioShock a run for the money.

The only thing withholding the fifth and final star was the battery life of only 2-3 hours. With an LED screen you would think that they would do better on that. If anyone knows of a larger battery pack available (like a 9 cell), please let us know.

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Toshiba Portege Z835-P360 13.3-Inch Ultrabook (Silver)

[Impressions after 2 days of use]

I bought my Portege Z835-360 unit (Core i3, 4GB Ram, 128Gb SSD) on May 26, 2012 for $749.99 which is a very good price (2 weeks later and it's $699.99 already... oh well, technology). I decided not to go more upscale with the specs 'cause there are important compromises made by this and all other Ultrabook models as they all belong to the first round of Ultrabooks ever (Toshiba Portege, HP Folio, Asus Zenbook, Acer Aspire, Dell XPS13,etc.). So more money for better specs (Core i5, 6GB Ram) would not make up for the weaknesses of this model. As reviewers have all stated, Toshiba's is the one that offers the most for connectivity and ports. So that plus a very good experience I've had with my current (or should I say "old") Satellite A505 made my decision not-as-hard as it could have been.

Overall, it is a terrific value.

Nicely priced. I think it is the cheapest Ultrabook around (and I don't mean it the bad way).

Good Built Quality.

Insanely thin and light. I think lightest of all 13-inchers.

Good screen size. I don't perceive it as little or cramped (and I'm coming from a 16" screen)

Full array of ports (1 USB 3.0, 2 USB 2.0, full-sized HDMI, Ethernet, VGA, mic and headphone jacks, SD)

Decent sound. C'mon. It's a thin & light 13". Don't expect that much.

Excellent battery life. I haven't drained it yet but it should be over 6 hrs of light use (no watching movies nor playing games).

Aspects that hamper user experience:

Keyboard. This is my biggest complaint. Shallow keys and lack of feedback. I really have to type hard (meaning effort and noise) to have a confident and fast typing. It tires me after a long e-mail. Light years behind the experience when typing in a Sony Vaio.

Fan. It kicks in without me having to do heavy tasks. It just runs every now and then, and has a high-pitch sound. Not that big deal for me, though.

Touchpad. In theory, I like the regular touchpad with the 2 click buttons (at least in other laptops). But in practice, I find the buttons very hard (I mean, very hard) to click on. To left-click, at least I can double tap, but damn it with the the right click... Now, I think a clickpad would have provided a better user experience. Nitpicking, the 2 buttons are very shiny and attract a lot of fingerprints. Plus, they don't go with the design and style. So, why??

Design. Nitpicking again. It is boring (especially compared to the A500, A660, P750 series) and it does look like an 80's laptop.

Hard Drive Size. 128 GB is just not enough. I installed MS Office, Skype and Avast Anti-virus. Only 70 GB left.

About screen. The lid is indeed very thin, flexible and flimsy. I haven't experienced any issues yet. But also, I haven't carried the laptop around or out of the house to really test it. I will soon.

I would highly recommend this Portege Z835 for anyone looking for power on-the-go. At this price point, it is the most attractive offer available.

I hope this review will become useful for anyone looking for an Ultrabook and seriously considering to buy the Portege. Should my impressions change in the following weeks and months after longer-term use, I will update!

So I have been searching for a nice mid-grade ultrabook for a while, and I happened to see this exact model at my local Fry's Electronics store (price was $899). Amazon's price was $799, and strangely Wal-Mart had it for $766, but after adding nearly 10% Arizona sales tax at Wal-Mart, it turned out that Amazon was cheapest since Amazon doesn't charge tax. Even better, all of the local stores were out of stock and I would have needed to wait several days to order a new one (or I could take the display model....yeah, right). Amazon charged me like $9 for SAME DAY delivery.

Anyway, I loved the ultra-thin look of this machine but I think it's possible the unit might be TOO thin (i.e. flimsy). I was very concerned about the other user reviews saying that the screen cracked during normal use and that Toshiba was refusing to honor their warranty. This was ALMOST enough to deter me from making the purchase...but then I did a little research that made me feel a lot better for two reasons.

First, if you're worried about breaking the screen, Amazon sells a 2-year protection package for $99 that will cover physical damage like this. Of course the screen should never break during normal use, but if you're paranoid about it then $99 seems like a small price for that extra peace of mind.

Second, I did some searching and found that you can buy a replacement screen for this laptop for MUCH less than you might think -currently around $75. As it happens my wife broke the screen on her Acer netbook a few years ago, and I was shocked to find that a new screen was only about $45 and replacing it was actually very easy...just remove a few screws and plug the new unit in. People shouldn't be intimidated by this kind of thing...it's not brain surgery!

So, armed with this information I decided that it was worth the risk to buy this ultra-thin ultrabook even though there's a chance the screen might not last that long. If it breaks, then I know I can fix it for about $75, and if it doesn't break, then that's even better.

Having said all this -if the screen cracks during normal use my first call will be to Toshiba. Because I'm an attorney, they are going to have to push back extremely hard for me to accept that the warranty doesn't apply.

Buy Toshiba Portege Z835-P360 13.3-Inch Ultrabook (Silver) Now

I got this laptop because bestbuy didn't have the HP Envy 15 or Folio 13, so I was a little disappointed at first. Now...really happy. Great screen, decent keyboard and touchpad, and really thin(thinner than a pencil even when it is closed). I thought the core i3 would be slow but nothing noticeable. I love the facial recognition too(scans your face and logs you in). The three cosmetic issues I have are 1) the screen bezel is a little thick at the top(around an inch), 2) the camera is pretty large and noticeable, and 3) the mouse buttons pick up finger prints pretty bad. Really those issues are nothing when you use this thing. It boots in less than 12 secs, resumes from sleep in around 2 to 3 secs, has intel WiDi so you can wirelessly display your screen on an HDTV, and the battery life is rated at 9 hours, but I'm averaging 7 1/2 to 8 hours with moderately heavy use(still amazing).

I highly recommend this laptop.

Oh one last thing, if you don't have another computer and you don't use cloud storage for music and other media you might want an external HDD because the SSD is 128GB but only about 88GB after OS is installed and fills up fast.

Read Best Reviews of Toshiba Portege Z835-P360 13.3-Inch Ultrabook (Silver) Here

I purchased this Ultrabook to replace an old Lenovo net book and have not regreted my choice. Not only is this computer fast, it is really fast. It loads in just seconds and is ready to go. I have no trouble connecting to my Wi-Fi, my Mi-Fi, or any other wireless internet service available. While the hard drive, which is solid state, is small by comparison with big note books, I have increased it just by adding a high capacity SDHC card and load my programs such as photo editing and even games on that leaving the hard drive for running the computer. While others say that the screen cracks I have had no problem with that. While I do not want to say other people are hard on their computers, any laptop that is handled rough can be damaged. I have taken this on trips with no problem. I love the battery life, the speed, and the ease of use of this computer and highly recommend it.

Want Toshiba Portege Z835-P360 13.3-Inch Ultrabook (Silver) Discount?

My screen cracked after 2 days. Unfortunately Toshiba customer service says the repair is not covered under the warranty. It sits unfixed for over a month now.

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Acer Aspire 5810T-8060 15.6-Inch Notebook

I like the Acer laptop, but the electrical cord came to me cut in several places to where the wire shows and I had to wrap it in electrical tape. It still functions though. It was returned to Amazon by a customer and shipped to me hoping that I would overlook the cut cord. It looked as if the boxes the Acer came in had been opened before.

I just discovered the faulty cord last week, so it is probably too late to get another shipped to me. But if you can I would appreciate it.

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Toshiba Satellite P755-S5381/ i5

I have owned this computer which is no longer available in most outlet stores, online, and other sources any more. However, I purchased this one a year ago and it is running strong. First time Toshiba owner and I am impressed with the quality of the product. Picked mine up at a local office store for 600-700 bucks.

In a few days after receiving laptop, hard drive failed. Authorized dealer here on the Big Island of Hawaii, had to order a new hard drive, took a couple of weeks (manufacture claims they've had problems with hard drive). I also had to order a new recovery disk. I'm very disappointed. I still haven't gotten back my laptop.

Buy Toshiba Satellite P755-S5381/ i5 Now

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