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Lenovo Essential B590 15.6" Business Notebook PC - 59366616

A quality Lenovo product. 4-star rating is assuming you are willing to upgrade the RAM the 2GB that it starts with is pathetic and runs the OS rather sluggishly. I have upgraded to 8GB (2x4GB) of RAM and it works out nicely. Onboard graphics are plenty for most applications, but not friendly towards gaming.

Also, some B590 models have a fingerprint scanner, this one does not. No foul I see it being a somewhat unnecessary feature.

Pros:

Price w/ Core i3 processor = good value

Windows 7 (Win8 is better geared towards touch interfaces IMO)

Durable construction (although time will tell)

About 6hrs of battery use w/ factory 6-cell

Plenty of USB ports

Cons:

2GB RAM (MUST be upgraded > 4GB to warrant 4 stars)

No backlit keyboard

Included crapware (pretty much standard on every laptop now)

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Lenovo Thinkpad T420 14-Inch Laptop

I have had one TP Lz61 m before, it was a excellent computer.

I'm finding the same for this. at the date the machine seems accomplish it

weight 95%

screen 95%

performance 90%

keyboard 85%

battery performance 90%

besides terrific fulfillment.

Dell Inspiron 14z i14z-2203sLV 14.0-Inch Ultrabook (Moon Silver)

I owned and loved a previous version of the Dell Inspiron 14z. Unfortunately, it didn't love me back when I got caught in a major thunderstorm and it got soaked through. When searching for a new computer, I look at other brands and models before settling on another Inspiron 14z.

First, the cosmetics. This laptop is considered an ultrabook -it's super thin (0.8") and light (4.12 pounds). For a Dell, it's remarkably chic and stylish. I love the Moon Silver finish.

The battery life on this computer is fantastic. I typically get four to five hours of moderately heavy use; if I'm consciously trying to conserve power (turning down display brightness, limiting programs running in the background, etc.) I can routinely get at least six hours. Compared to other computers I've owned, this is simply great. The Inspiron 14z also charges quickly, which is one of my favorite things about it.

It has an 1.8 GHz Intel Core i5 processor (a third-generation Intel processor), which is fantastic for the price. It also comes with a 500 GB hard drive and 6 GB of RAM. The computer boots up fast and has no problem running numerous memory-intensive programs at once. The graphics quality is great, it has an HDMI port, and the webcam works wonderfully. I definitely give it 5/5 for overall performance.

As with most Dell products, it takes some initial tweaking to get the machine working the way you want. Adjust the sleep/hibernation settings right off the bet to avoid major annoyance (the default is far shorter than I prefer), change the energy-saving preferences, and alter the trackpad settings. I also uninstalled McAfee and installed Norton instead (personal preference -I've had major performance problems with McAfee in the past). It takes a few days to get used to a new trackpad and keyboard, but the transition was easy for me, as I've owned an Inspiron 14z in the past.

Overall, I highly recommend this ultrabook. It looks fabulous, is light and portable, and is lightning fast. That, combined with the excellent battery life, make this a fantastic product in my book. Enjoy!

The Dell Inspiron 14z is sold as an ultrabook. We get 2-3 hours of battery life even when we are doing simple, low energy tasks like editing a document. Reality (2-3 hours), Dell's promotional materials (5-8 hours), and their post-purchasing customer service are three entirely different things. We are very unhappy customers.

Dell's promotional material says that the Inspiron 14z (6 cell battery) gives "Power to stay productive Ultrabooks don't skimp on battery life: with 5 to 8 hours or more of running time they can keep you productive all day" (http://www.dell.com/us/p/inspiron-14z-5423/pd) and Dell's on-line customer service chat will tell you the "Inspiron 14z's battery last for up to 7 hrs depending on operating conditions"

We bought the Inspiron because we thought we were getting a reasonable battery life. After we purchased the computer, we contacted Dell about the battery life issue, thinking that the computer was malfunctioning and could be repaired. We even sent it back to them for "repair." Still only got 2-3 hours. We talked further with customer service (many calls over many weeks). Dell's technology staff now say that with a 6 cell battery, you should only expect 2-3 hours and that the marketing material (5-8 hours) refers to time when the computer is asleep. I don't know about you, but I'm not being "productive all day" when my computer is asleep.

Dell won't stand by their product. They basically told us that we should have known that a six cell battery will only last 2-3 hours and we were out of luck. We will never buy another Dell product. Their customer service is horrible and you can't trust anything they say on their own websites or in their on-line chats.

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I received my inspiron ultrabook for Christmas since then I have had multiple issues. I would have expected a company like Dell to have backed up their computer and been able to see when a computer is a lemon and replace it, but they will not. My mic port went out first they had to flash my BIOS. Then my USB port went out they updated drivers and flashed the BIOS twice and replaced the motherboard. At this time the tech they sent out told me that the computer had internal cracks and was missing screws (this is a refurbished computer I was told was guaranteed). I was very upset and felt like I provided Dell money and was given a product that was defective. The online tech guys just repeated over and over that they will not replace the computer just the parts (the parts keep breaking). Now the computer will not see its own battery charger. I get the same thing we will fix it your computer it will be fine, yes until my warranty runs out and you do not have to deal with me. It has not been fine and they will say that until the warranty runs out. I am stuck with a lemon. I asked them just to give me a credit and I would add money to it and buy a computer from them that was brand new and maybe then I would not have issue and they did not want to help me with that either. I just keep having issue after issue and no wants to see I have a lemon. No one on the chat session will point me to someone that can help me better. Today they offered me a new usb hard drive. This had nothing to do with my issue and they admitted that. They just wanted to shut me up, because I wanted a computer that worked. I went with Dell because I thought I could trust them, maybe I should fall in love with Apple.

Read Best Reviews of Dell Inspiron 14z i14z-2203sLV 14.0-Inch Ultrabook (Moon Silver) Here

it was a headache I get it and it broke down the next day I was going to send it back but I take it for a technician to fix it witch cost me $80 to fix it

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Acer TimelineU M5-581T-6807 15.6-Inch Ultrabook (Silver)

For the price, this laptop is hard to beat. Check out the features: 500GB Hybrid HD (30GB SSD), 8 GB RAM, excellent screen with edge to edge brightness; aluminum case with plastic bottom; 10 numeric keypad.

It's an i5, so it's going to have some fan noise, but it's minor. The only thing it needs but doesn't have is discrete graphics. Other than that its a great little computer.

By the way, this laptop has wonderful audio imaging! Stereo channel separation is better on this laptop than any I've ever heard. The speakers are a little lacking but put on your favorite track and listen... you'll be able to hear information coming from both channels; very, very enjoyable. One suggestion however.... when listening to music use the laptop on a table as the speakers are on the bottom of the unit and would otherwise fire into your knees and muffle output otherwise. Other than that, a very nice little laptop.

I bought this unit refurbished a little over 3 months ago. Seemed like a great value until the warranty period expired. I first started having connectivity issues, now it won't even power on. The Acer support site says a power reset may solve the problem, but the instructions state to remove the battery. Alas, the battery is not removable. No other support is offered because it is out of warranty! I'm now left to scour the internets for possible DIY fixes. Other than that, it performs quite nicely.

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That is the only thing I don't like about this system. Microsoft needs to put the start button back now

Read Best Reviews of Acer TimelineU M5-581T-6807 15.6-Inch Ultrabook (Silver) Here

Very satisfied with the performance of the laptop. Very asthetically pleasing and super thin. It doesnt start up as fast as I though it would but that is no biggy. For the use I put into this laptop, it is over powered.

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I received this laptop in good condition with a slight dent on the front but outside of that it's in good condition being that it's refurbished. I do sometimes have to re-boot it when the circles don't appear but outside of that I'm happy with the unit. I wish I could revise this review and bring it down to 3 stars instead of 4 since I've returned this unit for a third generation one since the re-boots sometimes took up to 4 plus error messages like this computer needs repair. So far this new generation unit is much better and starts up with no fuss.

Lenovo G550 15.6-Inch Black Laptop - Up to 3.8 Hours of Battery Life (Windows 7 Home Premium)

First of all, I am a Mac person. I don't know that much about PCs. The reason for buying this particular model was money. I would have had to pay $1700 for a comparable laptop from Apple. I could not see spending all that money for a computer that was to be mainly used for word processing and web browsing. While made of plastic, this laptop has a solid feel to it. When opened, it doesn't seem like it will split into two pieces or that the screen is flexing. The keyboard is not flimsy and it should be able to take a lot of use. (I've only had the computer for a couple of weeks.) This model comes with Windows 7 and so far I like it. Very easy to set up. Connecting to my network was a breeze. Installing a couple of programs was also easy. Updates are simple. I have had limited experience with Vista and did not care for it. Windows 7 is a much better, user friendly, operating system. As I said previously, I have had this laptop for a short period of time, but so far I have no complaints and no regrets. A lot of computer for a little bit of money.

The LED backlit display that I thought would produce better colors thinking that LED backlit was all the hype in LED LCD HDTVs like Samsung, Sony, etc. produces a slightly purplish color cast to the image. I thought getting the LED backlit display at such a low cost was a great deal, but I guess you really get what you pay for. In this price range, I'm almost thinking a traditional CCFL backlit LCD would have looked more accurate in terms of colors. If you're using this for photography, I would stay away. If you're using it for web surfing or word processing, it won't matter. For my desktop I have a color calibrating Samsung display, so right away I can notice the purplish color cast on the Lenovo. I did attempt to correct for the hue by running my color calibrator on it, which helped, but didn't completely fix it.

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Overall this is a good machine with some feature issues.

Long Battery life

It is fast

Display is great

very strudy for the daily life with kids around

Windows 7 runs great

Never had machine related issues

Battery never gets hot even after using for more than one hour like other laptops

But there is one annoying thing in this computer... Keyboard and Mouse pad.

Keyboard is very hard to type because I need to press exactly in the middle. If I press at corners, it does not register. and I make too many typing mistakes.

Mouse pad is not sensitive enough to make it a good experience. Most times, it does not register the tocch/drag.

But this machine is overall a good machine for the price I gave.

Read Best Reviews of Lenovo G550 15.6-Inch Black Laptop - Up to 3.8 Hours of Battery Life (Windows 7 Home Premium) Here

I find it strange that a couple of people (maybe the same person) complain about service for this notebook. I called and had a response within 2 minutes. I had a minor issue regarding the features on the notebook and was assisted and off the phone in ten minutes.

Perhaps if something serious goes wrong you may find it annoying. For example, we have an HP notebook and it took 3 technicians and a supervisor and over 3 hours of our time to get them to ship us a replacement battery for a brand new computer.

The margins are very thin on these machines, so don't expect them to come to your door. If you buy a $400-$500 computer you cannot expect them to provide you $400 worth of support time if you are inept in computing and not hardware savvy.

This notebook is an absolute steal for the money and very well made. My only complaint and it appears in HP as well is the notebooks run a tad hot. I have not had any problems as a result, but it may be a good idea to get a cooling pad for while you use it at home. If you are a road warrier, traveling coolers are available as well.

The notebook has excellent battery life, an astoundingly nice display and a well designed keyboard. All touchpad's stink, from the HP to Dell. So, get a notebook mouse.

Great notebook for the money!!

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I thinks its a good laptop to buy at affordable price. Till now i have not faced any problem.

Alienware M15X 15.6-Inch Cosmic Black Laptop (Windows 7 Home Premium)

I ordered my Alienware M15x through the Dell website on 12/3/2009. Delivery occurred on 12/18/2009, which was the original order anticipated build completion date. Nice! The laptop is replacing a home-built custom quad-core Cosmos gaming PC.

During the purchase process, I opted for the RAM upgrade to 4GB @ 1333MHz, upgraded the video card to the 260m (and got a $50 Dell promo gift card from this), got the 1080p screen, and upped the hard drive to 320GB. I subscribe to Steve Job's notion that Blu-Ray is a bag of hurt, so I stuck with the DVD/CD slot burner.

Performance-wise, the M15x is Sea Biscuit. I've thrown several games at it, from Crysis (silky-smooth at high resolution), WoW, Torchlight, Fallout 3, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Half-Life 2, Sins of a Solar Empire, and Company of Heroes. All ran flawlessly, at max or near-max settings. The standard Core i7 1.6GHz (2.8GHz turbo) cuts through these applications like nothing I've seen. While I enjoyed overclocking my custom desktop PC, this machine doesn't really need it. It's greased lightning right out of the box.

Pros:

I liked the price point. I knew I was getting a great machine for the money, and what I spent matches what I received.

Weight. This is a desktop replacement, so I expected some heft. I like the fact that this thing has some meat to it. If I wanted a light, take-anywhere laptop, I would have bought a netbook.

Alienware effects/polish/workmanship worth the price of admission. This is a beautiful machine.

Dell's service. Anytime a company underpromises and overdelivers, I'm a happy camper. The M15x arrived way ahead of schedule, packaged professionally, and came out of the box ready to roll.

My cons are pretty similar to other reviewers:

screen is really reflective, but playing in a darker room mitigates this.

touchpad. I don't know who was driving the boat when they decided on this particular hardware. It's not that bad, but it's not great either. Onscreen movement is pretty herky-jerky, even after software update. Mouse-users won't bother with it.

After years of desktop machines and business laptops, this is my first personal laptop, and start-to-finish, it's been a great experience. It's easily replaced my workhorse desktop for all my uses. I will gladly buy Dell/Alienware again down the road. Can't recommend it enough.

I got this computer last week and I've logged soooo many hours on it already its ridonkulous. Plays wow good. Super fast for editing photos (I'm a photographer so I opted for a larger hard drive). I will use this machine until it dies on me. Screen is crystal clear, boot times are fantastic. Good, solid, stable machine for gaming runs cool and we all know alienware isn't surpassed by looks. Get one and get the enjoyment I have from mine! Hoo-yah alienware!

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I bought this laptop over three years ago and it still runs like it did the first day. I've only ever had one problem when the power cord died, but who hasn't had that problem? Great graphics, very fast quad core.

Some things to note:

-Pretty heavy (around 9 or 10 pounds)

-Expectantly low battery life (about 3 hours)

-Kind of a beast, certainly not meant for school/travel

I was really into gaming when I got this laptop and it has treated me well through many online and offline games, never giving me issue. The support/warranty is pretty phenomenal including Next Day Business and Remote service through Dell.

If you're a gamer, I would certainly recommend this laptop. If you're just doing your normal day-to-day, I probably wouldn't buy it. It's pretty pricey, but you get what you pay for.

Read Best Reviews of Alienware M15X 15.6-Inch Cosmic Black Laptop (Windows 7 Home Premium) Here

My son wanted this laptop as he is an "online gamer'. We couldn't be happier with this computer. Runs great, user friendly and is the perfect gaming computer.

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I've had this machine since early 2010 and to start things off it was EXTREMELY over-priced for the specs it has. An Asus or Lenovo of the same, or greater quality would be nearly half the price. You're only paying for the "wow" affect this computer leaves people with.

Once I took this thing out of the box, I had issues within a week. It was overheating CONSTANTLY. I contacted Alienware and got 0 support, and after much research I found this was an issue with the entire line of M15x machines and that I was screwed the only way to cut down on the overheating was to air dust it every few weeks or so, which was VERY annoying to do, and yet the problem still persisted.

The computer also had many bugs that came along with the pre-installed OS, and the DC Port has crapped out on me twice. You only have 2 USB Ports, no HDMI support, its heavy and bulky. Its very glossy, so it scratches easily and the paint chips at ease, and the display is honestly very sub-par for a computer of it's price. It will also sound like an obnoxious washing machine whenever its running louder than most bulky desktops.

The only good thing about this machine was its awesome speed, smooth keyboard, and flashy looks. Playing around with your backlights and other appearance settings in the command center always gets you a nice reaction from others, and just looks simply awesome.

Toshiba Portege R835-p70

For those of us that rely on the Amazon reviews to decide what to buy, or not buy, I thought it would be helpful to post these comments.

I own the Toshiba R835-70 laptop. I didn't buy it on Amazon as it wasn't available, and bought it at Best Buy. Have had it for about 5 months. In most respects I am happy with it except for a few major issues. I did replace the stock 640GB 5400rpm drive with a Seagate 500GB hybrid solid-state drive ($100), which provided about a 20% performance boost in file access.

The big issue with this laptop concerns the constant fan noise, even when you do not use the laptop. The cooling flaws of this laptop, and many other laptops manufactured by Toshiba, concern the cooling design. There are many posts on the internet, and an extensive Youtube video that goes into depth concerning the laptop trapping dust which causes overheating, and on this particular R835 series, a flawed design of the copper heat conduction pipe from the CPU to the heatsink, which is supposed to be copper, but in fact is aluminum. Two other related design flaws relate to the poor heat conduction from the CPU to the heat vent pipe which leaves an improper contact between the two parts, and the fact that the heat pipe which is made of cooper is not soldered to the aluminum heatsink (which was supposed to be copper according to Toshiba's own promotional videos for this laptop series). The Youtube video which discusses these technical issues is found at

What does all this mean? In layman's terms the laptop will have continual heat issues, resulting finally in complete breaking down, perhaps being unrepairable. The warranty is only 1 year keep that in mind.

I had an old Toshiba Satellite 17" laptop which also had the same issues regarding trapping of dust due to the bottom case design of the fan pulling air into the laptop. It would finally stop running or would run the fans continuously. I put up with this for years. When I did a LOT of research to buy another laptop for my wife I settled on the wonderful Asus U30X1 purchase right here on Amazon. It is quiet, cool, and works flawlessly. The difference between it and the Toshiba R835-70 is the Asus is a little heavier, has an I3 processor, and no CD-DVD writer. I would have purchased another Asus and was hoping they would release an I5 model with or without a CD-DVD that would also have no heat issues, but after reading numerous reviews over the past year, I came up empty, and then was "trapped" by all the features and price of the Toshiba R835-70. I would not have imagined that the heat issues I had with my 9-year old previous Toshiba laptop would not have been fixed with a new laptop, but I was dead wrong...

So my friends, my recommendation is for you NOT to buy the Toshiba R835-70 because of the heat-cooling and fan issues. My next step is to get another laptop (probably another Asus), and sell my Toshiba while it is still under warranty and working as it is supposed to, and before anything "bad" happens. Forewarned is forearmed. From all of the postings that I have read concerning Toshiba's lack of response to this issue, which has been well documented all over the internet, I think my days of buying Toshiba are finished.

Most ultra portables in this size leave out the DVD drive forcing you to carry an external one. For road warriors, this defeats the purpose of being portable if you have to carry additional cables and drives.

This is a great machine, very light weight and compact.

Unlike the Asus U46e, this has a plastic feel and is a finger print magnet

Even though it has a plastic feel, for the most part it still feels solid. I've used the older R700 model for over a year for business and I have never had a single problem with it.

Sound is not as loud as I'd like, but most laptops do not have great speakers. When I need loud quality sound, I use external speakers or headphones.

With the weight and size, I can easily place this on an airplane tray table without issues.

I would love this even more if they included a back lit keyboard and a touch screen.

Keyboard and track pad is responsive, keys are a bit smaller than the Asus u46e, but you can still type pretty well and over time, you'll adjust to the feel.

For road warriors, this has the battery life, power, all the necessary ports and DVD drive in a small footprint.

What's great about it: Lightweight, great battery life and includes a built in DVD drive

What's not so great: No bluetooth, no back lit keyboard, no touch screen, fingerprint magnet, built in speakers not so great.

I would recommend this to a friend!

Best Buy had this for $729 plus a $100 gift card, so the cost was $629, but even at $729, it's a bargain. Great for business and college students at a great price.

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Very happy with this laptop the Portege series really competes with the toughness of the Lenovo line. It is incredibly thin and ultra-light, yet is very durable and well-built with Portege's Hard Drive impact sensors, chassis material, etc. It is super sleek, and has everything needed for almost all work and play applications. I'm very happy with my purchase, and the price is perfect considering all that you get.

Read Best Reviews of Toshiba Portege R835-p70 Here

Sony VAIO VPCS132FX/S 13.3 Notebook PC - Silver Intel Core i3-380M

For the price $599 I spent on this laptop there is not too much more we can request so I'm happy at the moment. The speed is "ok", the design and size is perfect. It's very comfortable to carry. I wished to have a Blue Ray DVD Player instead a regular DVD drive as other Sony VIAO series "14 inches Screen Size" provide but I can't say either that I wasn't aware before making my decision to purchase this laptop. I heard that the battery doesn't last for too long but to be honest I haven't used it so much until to run the battery dead and provide my feedback about it. In my opinion is you are still waiting for the laptop of your dreams but it seems that it is not still out there in the market like to risk over $2,800 I suggest to buy one laptop "Cheap" like this one so you can still have something in your hands while traveling, play around with the internet, get your job done and later on to buy that "Mercedez Benz" laptop of your dreams.

LATITUDE E5400 P8600 2.53G 2GB SYST160GB DVDRW 14.1IN C2D WVB/XPP

Note: My company gave me this laptop for work purposes. I've used it for over a month now. I didn't pay for it, so don't know what the cost of this laptop is elsewhere on the internet or in stores.

Build: Looks like a good sturdy laptop for office use. Durability wise, no problems so far.

It does feel heavy for it's size though. It is ugly because it's a "business class" product and not a home or a media class product. The screen size is thicker than other laptops that you get today.

Configuration & Performance: Mine came with a Core 2 Duo, and 4 GB ram. Shipped with Windows 7 professional. So far it has handled whatever I've thrown at it quite well. I've tried a couple of videos on it, the speakers are alright. I've used it for running Visual Studio (2010) and Eclipse (Helios) and it's handled both really well. The boot up time feels a little high for the configuration, but it's not too bad.

Noise: The fans are extremely silent and not just on power save mode. I haven't heard a peep out of this laptop so far. I'm really weird about the noise factor and I have to say so far this laptop has fared well in that department. The hard drive is dead silent (as it should be!).

Keyboard & Pointer devices: The keyboard just sucks. The keys are way too soft so you don't get the feel of pressing them. Yet, they make that typing sound. Just weird. The touch-pad isn't responsive enough even after a lot of tweaking with the dell software. Neither is the pointer in between the keyboard. In fact the pointer is so weird, it registers a left click when you accidentally touch it while typing. That's really annoying when you're trying to get work done! Overall, the keyboard, the touch-pad, the pointer seem very cheap and flimsy. The behavior is erratic and I don't think it's a software issue.

Display: The brightness is fine. The "auto-brightness" is nonsense. The laptop has a light sensor which adjusts the brightness level depending on ambient light. It just doesn't work. As much as someone's shadow standing over your shoulder messes it up to a huge extent. At times there is no change in light and it still flickers. I've just turned it off. The max-brightness is bright enough for work in direct sunlight. Overall, the display is ok. Nothing to brag about, but nothing really big to complaint about either.

Adapter etc: The power brick is nice and thin and the cord has a power indicator on the tip that connects to the laptop. The problem is it stays on even when not connected to the laptop, but I guess they designed it that way so you'd know. The LEDs on the laptop aren't very bright. BUT, I find the HDD light rather annoying. It keeps flickering way too much indicating heavy disk activity even when it's just idling. This indicator shouldn't even be there IMHO. It's pointless.

One thing I like is the ability to stop the battery from charging so you can leave the laptop constantly plugged in when you want without worrying that it'll reduce the overall battery life.

Conclusion: Ok, if you want something to work with occasionally. It's not very comfortable to carry around. You might want to get a mouse and keyboard to use with this thing. I'd say this laptop is worth 500$ given what I've seen so far.

Our school purchased a Latitude laptop for every teacher in our school this year. They are very useful if you are looking for a paper weight or need to flatten out student paintings from art class. Otherwise, they are useless. All of them crash at least once a day, and I mean with the ominous blue screen featuring the ominous fatal error message. Several crash in lieu of a screen saver-students come in for a class, you teach for an hour and return to the computer to complete you work and, Voila!, the lover blue screened fatal error message. This has happened this morning six times already and it is only 10:26 am. I recommend you spend your money elsewhere, Perhaps in decorative paper weights with the blue bird of happiness instead of this lap top with the blue screen of despair.

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I was given this laptop by the school and I want to say that this laptop is absolutely horrible for its intended purposes.

It is flimsy and cheap. The back light is a constant issue and it heats up at the drop of a pin.

The fan spits out plastic after too long of a usage.

Requires constant restarts due to "internal issues"

The keys fall off.

The whole thing is loosely screwed together, leaving the screws to loosen and fall out.

It crashes and or freezes with light knocks (i. e. putting my books on my desk when the computer is out)

I am currently using this laptop to write this review but I would prefer anything over this... thing. In other words, this product is a no go. Get yourself the HP Pavilion dm4-3170se 14-Inch Laptop (Black) or the Lenovo 14" Core i5 500GB HDD 4GB DDR3 Ultrabook. They are cheaper for the value and more funtional. Summary: Don't. Buy.

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The computer was in pretty rough condition when recieved. Cracks in the case but so far it is working well. Battery does not seem to hold a charge but keeping it pluged in is working for me at this time.

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when i bought this computer it looked wonderful because i knew what i was buying, this dell latitude was made for professional and educational work, when i began using this laptop i erased the windows vista it had and put a fresh copy of windows 7 professional. this computer has been by far the best laptop i've ever owned, i have always purchased from dell and dell never lets me down because i knew what i want. i work as a real pc tech and i know what im in for.the laptop contains 2 wwan slots, capability for cellular data, extra wifi cards, gps, you name it. It also contains 4 usb slots, bluetooth, 14.1 inch wxga lcd screen, 6lbs body weight, interchangeble cd drive to put hdd or other items in the cd-rw slot. also hd speakers capible of reaching 24,bit 192000 hz studio quality sound. s video port for tv, i 1394 port. vga port for external lcd. ethernet and modem port, headphone & mic port. the original battery lasts me 4 hrs on full use using windows 7 pro. my E5400 has been with me a whole year since i have owned this laptop and it has never let me down ever. i even went camping with it and traveled with it also, and my friends always expect for my laptop to die out on me and never has it crashed or physically broken or nothin. the body on this laptop isnt ugly it's called having a secure strong body frame built to last, i'm constantly using this latitude for work and home and it still runs smooth as from day one. people who have a school version, don't assume the pc itself is crap because it's not. on this type of computer the bad work is not on the physical parts of the laptop its the software that runs it. most of the time schools or education places purchase this model of computer because it was designed for easy (IT) networking, meaning that the pc can be controlled and maintained by some lazy fat guy sitting behind a desk and work on it. In my opinion this pc is for the feint hearted and people who are ready to physical demand on the pc. I purchased this pc directly from dell.com because this series is not availible at retail stores. :D very good battery life on this type of dell model

Lenovo Y580 15.6-Inch Laptop

Firstly, the screen is nice. I wish it was anti-glare. I paid with gift certificates, and this is the closest one Amazon had to what I wanted and the only thing missing is an anti-glare screen. That said, the screen is still pretty nice. I love the solid state part of this hybrid drive. Boot-up takes 15 seconds or so from dead off to the desktop. Also, when surfing the web, the thing stays nice and cool. The JBL speakers are pretty good considering how tiny they are. Build quality... It's no Mac, but it ain't shabby. I like it enough to buy a case for it, which is more than I can say from my last two Dells. A comparable Mac would cost more than $1K more, and the Mac enclosure, nice as it is, ain't worth $1K, nor is Mac OS X, nor the both of them combined. I'm not used to Windows 8 yet, and I feel like MS has more or less jammed their mobile/tablet OS onto a laptop, but that's not Lenovo's fault.

If the specs meet your needs, I think you'll be happy with your purchase. From my perspective, no regrets. My expectations have been exceeded. ANTONLINE doesn't offer a fast shipping option, so I had to wait a week but it did arrive when they said it would. Again, not Lenovo's fault. The machine is Bitchin!

I've only had this laptop for a few days now, but thus far, the performance has been exactly what I've been looking for. The only games I've found that can really put a hurting on this video card, is Saint's Row The Third and ARMA II. I had to set the display down to 1366 instead of full 1080p to get the FPS over 30 again with all the graphic options put to near maximum. Overall, extremely happy with this laptop (despite the fact that Windows 8 is....challenging), fantastic price to performance ratio.

The laptop is very solidly built and the back-lit keyboard is very good looking and easy to type on. Some of the keys are in slightly different places than my Acer, but I attribute that also to the fact that there's a number pad on this laptop, which I didn't have before.

Sound quality is pretty impressive, much better than any laptop that I've had recently and I was taken aback the first time I heard some positional audio from the speakers. This laptop runs impressively cool even with a heavy load. I never saw the GPU spike above 60C and once I shut the game down, dropped down into the 30's quickly.

Windows 8. Not my favorite OS, the touchpad gestures can be extremely annoying. If you are typing and you brush up on the right edge of the trackpad, W8 assumes that you're looking for the charm menu. If you're using the trackpad and you like to use the edges of the trackpad, W8 may train that behavior right out of you. That has been my only frustration with this laptop, and I can't blame that on Lenovo.

Buy Lenovo Y580 15.6-Inch Laptop Now

I just got my laptop on 12/04 from Amazon. Don't bother ordering through Lenovo, because the shipping is glacially slow.

The laptop boots up super fast! It takes about 10-15 seconds to boot. Once you are booted, you are greeted by the Windows 8 start screen, which has some really nice features. The laptop comes with a bit of bloatware, which isn't overwhelming, and is easily removed. The speakers are fantastic! Loud and not tinny at all. The only game I've tested with this laptop is Guild Wars 2, and I was able to run with medium-high settings at 1080p with 50fps. About what I was expecting, and I am very pleased with that. The screen is gorgeous! Everything is crisp, as you would expect from a 1080p screen, and the glossy screen makes colors pop. The only things I dislike so far are the trackpad and the bit of heat. The trackpad is okay, but you'll want an external mouse. The heat is really what you would expect from a laptop with these specs and the ventilation is actually very well laid out.

I would recommend this laptop to someone in a heartbeat. I'll update this review if my opinion changes.

Read Best Reviews of Lenovo Y580 15.6-Inch Laptop Here

I needed this laptop in order to edit videos on the go while my main pc was repaired. I ordered this laptop because of it's affordability, speed, and graphics card. It was the first time I would dive into windows 8. After the learning curve and installing adobe master collection CS4, I was ready to go.

After all my software was installed and updated, I experienced a strange glitch. The laptop would freeze for 2 minutes, then unfreeze for 30 seconds, then freeze for two minutes, then unfreeze for another 30 seconds....etc.

I could not figure out why it was doing that and I couldn't make it stop. I made sure to clean for any viruses, and the problem did not persist in safe mode. After calling customer support, they had me deactivate all services that were not windows related just to get it to act smoothly. I guess it might be a Windows 8 bug, not so much a laptop bug.

After that hurdle, I was able to work with almost no issues. Aside from manually re-activating adobe services just to get the application to launch successfully.

The other problem I faced is while on battery, all games that I would play would get smooth...then choppy...then smooth...then choppy. Frames per second went up and down like crazy. This would not happen when plugged in however. I also DID make sure to start the software by right clicking on it and choosing "Play with Nvidia Graphics Processor", so I knew that wasn't the issue. Not a big deal for me though, but it could be annoying if you like to game on the go.

I've had it for about a month, and I'm completely used to Windows 8. Time will allow any annoying problems to be fixed, I'm sure, and then this computer will be more reliable.

I would definitely recommend the purchase.

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This is the notebook that I dreamed for long! High performance GeForce 660M graphic card, 8G RAM, 1TB HDD, 15 inch FHD screen. And of course with a reasonable price.

Win 8 system took me some weeks to get familiar with, but it's ok.

The only minor problem is the high temperature on then keyboard when the system is in high load. Hope they can fix it in the new model.

ASUS G74SX-TH71 17.3" Black Notebook

I originally started looking at the ASUS G74SX-TH71 and other gaming-grade laptops when my wife and I decided to convert my sacred 'man cave' (office) into a nursery, and so the room no longer existed in our house for a desktop PC, huge glass desk, and triple 28" monitors. I definitely consider myself a gamer, and so I was skeptical about finding a worthy laptop replacement that didn't break my $1,500 maximum budget.

Enter the ASUS G74SX-TH71. After much research, I decided on this machine mainly due to the cost vs performance ratio. Names like Alienware aren't important to me, and I was simply looking for the best system I could get for under $1,500.

After having a few days to get acquainted with this PC, I have the following observations, both positive and negative, that I think might help others who are considering this system.

*This laptop is big and heavy, relatively speaking. Weighing in at just shy of 16 pounds, this thing is a monster when compared to most other gaming laptops. And with 12.8"x16.5"x2.4" dimensions, it will only fit in all but the largest laptop backpacks and messenger bags. I myself bought a Targus XL to carry it, which is a perfect (but very snug) fit.

*The Core i7/Nvidia Geforce GTX 560M (with a whopping 3GB of video and 12GB system RAM) are a lethal combination that is sufficient for 95% of your gaming needs. I am currently and mainly playing BF3, League of Legends, Cities XL 2011 and Empire Total War on this machine, and all of them run smooth. The big test for me was running BF3, and I was completely surprised to see how smooth this laptop ran, especially in multiplayer where it really counts. Dollar for dollar, I can't stress enough how great a value this machine is as a gaming laptop!

*Lots of great features you'd expect in a high-end laptop, like blueray drive, integrated webcam, and useful (if not at least neat) software out of the box. I particularly like the ASUS SmartLogon feature, which uses facial recognition software to log you into your PC with the built-in HD webcam. Overall, the machine came with a minimum of bloatware that I had to remove, but I was annoyed by a lack of physical system restore media, which the computer prompts you to create.

*Excellent heat management. Even after playing BF3 for and hour straight, the laptop itself is cool and the exhaust system is completely adequate. Which also bring me to another point...

*Since the back of the laptop is taken up by the massive exhaust system, all ports are located on the sides. This can be a positive or negative, depending on how you look at it. I personally would have preferred the power adapter connection on the back of the laptop and not on the side.

*The screen is big, bright and beautiful, but the anti-glare coating might turn some off if it's not your thing.

*12GB of RAM out of the box, and another slot for 4 more! It also has a second HDD bay, which makes it easy to install an SSD to use as your OS drive for even better performance! These components are also easy to access and service, as it only takes unscrewing a single screw, and the whole panel pops out which allows access to HDDs and RAM all at once!

The bottom line?

As long as the sheer size and weight don't bother you, this is hands down the best value for your money you're going to find in a mid to high end gaming laptop. Sure, you can spend thousands more on something else. But this thing plays brand new, high-end, games coming out like BF3 with no problem, and has specs (and expansion capability) that put many higher-priced machines to shame. If you're on a budget, don't mind the size and weight, and need a laptop that you can play the newest games on, then look no further! Just make sure you also invest in a good product like the Targus XL or Everki Beacon to protect this beast when you're hauling it outside the home...

Was going out the door to Best Buy for the G74SX-BBK7 and decided to take another look online. I was first disturbed it did not have a blu-ray drive, and then couldn't believe how I could get this and so much more with the G74SX-TH71 for just about $43 more after S/H vs tax. So I just purchased the TH71 from Amazon (ships from TigerDirect). Check it out.

Price: ~$43 more for the TH71 (1299.99 + 14.95 S/H = ~1315) vs BBK7 (1199.99 + 72 tax = ~1272).

RAM: 12 GB in TH71 vs 8 GB in BBK7.

Processor: Newer/better i7-2670QM in TH71 vs i7-2630QM in BBK7.

Video card: both are Nvidia GeForce GTX 560M, but 3 GB in TH71 vs 2 GB in BBK7; I also read the video card in the BBK7 only has a bus width of 128 bits compared to 192 bits in the TH71 and other G74SX's.

Display: 1080p HD resolution in TH71, not in BBK7

Optical drive: Blu-ray player in TH71, not in BBK7

HDD: The only sacrifice, get 500 GB in TH71 vs 1 TB BBK7. Would much rather have all of the above features than a lot of empty hard disk space. Plus there is an empty bay where a second HDD (or SSD) can be added to the TH71.

Best $43 I ever spent.

5 stars for value. Will review performance once we've used it a bit.

Buy ASUS G74SX-TH71 17.3" Black Notebook Now

I don't care about compact or lightweight, I wanted a laptop I could use as a home computer, would be portable if needed, and would never lag. The Asus G74SX laptop is definitely a beast, but man what a powerhouse. I got what I needed and more, wow! Built well, screen resolution up to 1920, and tons of muscle.

My wife summed it up when she said I had the Death Star of laptops.

The **only** issue I have had so far (I have had the laptop for a week) is the mousepad is UBER sensitive... when I type without touching the mousepad it still senses input and moves the cursor on the text while I type. I did a little research and found this is a occurring (don't know how common) problem with Asus laptops. It was not an issue for me as I always use a USB wireless mouse, so I simply disengaged the in-keyboard mouse in the control panel... problem solved.

If this is the only problem I have with this laptop I will be happy with it for years.

Read Best Reviews of ASUS G74SX-TH71 17.3" Black Notebook Here

The ASUS G-Series has handled everything I've thrown at it, with ease. Pound for pound, dollar for dollar the best PC I could have asked for for the price.

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Got it today, so far it has been everything it was advertsed to be, will update as time goes by.

HP Laptop computer / AMD Turion II Processor / 14" Display / 3GB Memory / 320GB Hard Drive - Biscot

This computer is an excellant investment. Not only is it aesthetically appealing, but its performance well exceeded my expecations for the price. The built in webcam, while it does not take the best pictures and video is adequate. The built in microphone picks up sound very well. it's not a flimsy laptop, it's built like a rock so to speak, which is great if you are clumsy or have young children. The screen is a little small, so I wouldn't recommend it for anyone who has a really hard time seeing. If you are looking for a bang for your buck, and some quality performance this is the computer for you.

Great laptop. Just what I ordered and expected. So far so good. The laptop is performing as it should. Love it!

Buy HP Laptop computer / AMD Turion II Processor / 14" Display / 3GB Memory / 320GB Hard Drive - Biscot Now

I bought this laptop in September 2011 for my mother who used it only for watching DVD & streaming TV shows.

She never used its memory for downloading any file. The computer was working between 2 and 4 hours daily.

14 months later, the HP laptop does not work anymore. It shut down with a "90B" error message = "fan not working correctly".

HP customer service did not care of the problem unless I paid $60 for online repair + 2 hours on phone! The computer did not restart because the fan needs physically to be replaced.... HP asked $163 for the repair... sending me a prepaid box and to fix the 14 MONTHS OLD laptop!

Because I did not purchase an extended warranty from BEST BUY it was impossible to receive any satisfaction from HP customer service!

Apparently for HP, there is nothing significant about a laptop that does not work for more than 1 year!!!

Their product quality in my opinion is extremely piss poor. I feel like I was deceived by HP and will NEVER buy another HEWLETT PACKARD product. The customer service is not much better....it is obvious customer service appears to be somewhere other than the US. While attempting to help, I was just passed from one CS representative to another. All this over a mechanical fan that certainly should last longer than 14 months. Never have I had in seven computers a failed fan until I bought a HP laptop.

I bought two GATEWAY laptops within the last ten years and still work with. They are efficient and good quality.

Read Best Reviews of HP Laptop computer / AMD Turion II Processor / 14" Display / 3GB Memory / 320GB Hard Drive - Biscot Here

Samsung -NP305E5A-A01US Laptop / AMD A6-3400M Processor / 15.6" LED HD Display /4GB DDR3 / 320GB Ha

I've had mine now for over a year and it's AMAZING!!! I have mine upgraded to 8gb of RAM. Before the upgrade my windows rating was a 4.6 and after it went up to a 5.9!

I have mine loaded with graphic intense games such as Crisis, Fallout New Vegas, COD, Saints Row, and a lot more. You have to play on medium quality to low for the really intense games, but high for a lot of them. I just use my xbox wired controller and I don't need a game console.

I had originally purchased mine from Best Buy for $350 and it actually has a 500GB HD even though they have it listed everywhere as having 300GB.

Pros:

-Never gets overly hot.

-Great gaming laptop on the cheap.

-Starts up pretty fast.

-10 key is great to have.

-Fast with very few hangups.

-Battery life is pretty good on power save, but only lasts a couple hours if on high performance.

Cons:

-Can't play Crisis on high.

If you're looking for a workhorse laptop that is really cheap and capable of pretty graphic intense games, then this is the one you should go for. I never write reviews, but I have been that impressed with this laptop.

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