ASUS B23E-XH71 12.1-Inch Laptop (Black)

I have had so much trouble with this machine (**3** trips to Asus repair center and it's still not right!) that I have to rewrite my review. Lest anyone think I have a vendetta against Asus, nothing could be farther from the truth. I just opened my ASUS VivoBook X202E-DH31T 11.6-Inch Touch Laptop and THAT machine is behaving the way I would expect from the more than a dozen other Asus notebooks, laptops, and tablets I've bought for myself, family, and friends.

I am one of the closest things Asus has to a fan-boy without (as this review demonstrates) actually being one, so if I'm giving this notebook 1 stars, and recommending against buying it, something's up. It started out as the trackpad. Now, it's that and more.

Whenever I'm in the market for a product, I'll buy an Asus model if they make one. So, when I was looking for an i7 notebook, it was only natural that I'd get this one. It's i7 fast. While I wish the hard drive were larger, 500Gb is nothing to sneeze at. Nice screen. Fingerprint reader, if I ever decide I want to try it. But then there's that *&%&*% trackpad.

It's hard to type a full paragraph without the cursor jumping around the page at some point. It's bad enough that I wish I'd never bought this machine. I'm getting really good at using Ctrl-z to erase the messes the trackpad makes.

* It's not the driver. I've tried three different ones at all range of settings, all with the same results. Right now, I'm back to the original with Smart Detection as great as I can make it, and the cursor has still been jumping around nearly a dozen times (with me having to go back and make corrections) as I type this review.

* I don't think it's me. As I've said, I've got a bunch of Asus notebooks and netbooks.

* I don't think it's this particular machine because I've searched the Web to find others with the same complaint. If I turn off the trackpad and use a mouse, everything is fine, but if I wanted to turn off the trackpad and use a mouse, I wouldn't have bought a laptop.

* This machine has been back to Asus TWICE and each time it has come back as jumpy as before and now the left button sticks under the top (bad alignment) unless it's pressed just right. I'd send it back again but I just sent it back for that problem and it came back the same way.

I'm sick and tired of pressing Ctrl-Z and Ctrl-Y to recover after the cursor goes off on its errant way.

I tried the *free* utility Touchpad Blocker, which locks the touchpad for a short period (from 0.1 sec to 3 sec; I like 1 sec) after a keyboard key is pressed. At one point it got me to upgrade my review to 3 stars, but do you know the joke about Sam the Tailor? (Credit: I cut and pasted the text from iamlearningdisabled dot com and tweaked it a bit.)

-----------------------------------------------------------------

A guy goes to Sam the Tailor to have a suit made. He comes back and....

"This suit doesn't fit me at all!"

"What's wrong with it?"

"Well, the right sleeve is too long"

"So, raise your shoulder and it will be fine". He raises his right shoulder.

"But the left sleeve is too short!"

"So, hold your arm like this and it will be fine!" He holds his left arm in that position

"But it's too big in the chest!"

"So arch your back and stick out your chest and it will be fine". He arches his back and sticks out his chest.

He pays.

He's walking down the street: One shoulder raised, one arm crooked, back arched, chest out.

Another guy stops him and says "You poor man! Who is your tailor?

"Sam the Tailor. Why?"

"Because if he can fit you, he can fit anyone!"

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Well, this machine must have been contracted to Sam the Tailor...and I'm tired of it. In fact, I'm SO tired of it that after I get the X202E up and running, this machine is going back too Asus again...and yet again, until they get it right! I'll keep you posted.

I try to keep reviews balanced. *IF* (that means a BIG "if") you would be content to never use the trackpad (that is, use a mouse, instead) 4 or 5 stars would be appropriate. It's an i7 and runs like it. The overall Windows score is limited by the graphics. But, if the trackpad matters at all, stay away!

Misc items from my original review.

Yes, it DOES NOT have a DVD drive. Other business models do, but this one does not, as can be seen on the Asus website. I'm guessing it's to keep the size and weight down, which is why I chose this model.

Battery life is mediocre at under 3 hours, but such is the price of an i7 processor, I guess, and that's what I got this machine for...its speed. If I need more battery life, I'll grab a netbook.

I could go on, but with the trackpad behaving the way it does and a "Don't buy!" recommendation, is there a point to it?

I have had no problems with this computer. It is very fast, light and I am enjoying it. Sorry that I am not a tech person, so someone else will have to tell you those things. I sure can say that I like ASUS products.

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Think the only thing i didnt like about it is its a little heavy 4a little computer have a 10" single core internet labtop & its light as heck guess thats what u get when u actually pay for a real processor.

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This laptop is absolutely killer. it's small size, rugged case, good power, docking capability and ease to swap out to an SSD makes this the best laptop I have ever bought. and I buy 20 laptops a year.

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I considered at least 50 laptops before trusting the description on this product's page and went ahead and ordered it.

When I received it, no DVD/CD drive. I called Amazon.com who told me it did come with the DVD drive and that I should contact ASUS customer service. 2 days, 5 hours worth of calls (4 hours of hold) and 4 reps later, the specs are still unclear. Manual indicates no optical drive, but both Amazon reps and ASUS reps insist there is a optical drive.

Everything else seems to be working fine. There are overheating issues though.

I will update my review once I use it for at least 2-3 months.

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Sony VAIO S Series SVS15113FXB 15.5-Inch Laptop (Black)

I wanted to buy a new laptop because of a new expansion pack coming out for the Sims 3. My previous laptop was from 2007 and so it was obviously time to get a new laptop. For some reason I found myself drawn to this laptop. It met my computer specifications that I had on my search. Correct graphics card, fast, and light. I love this laptop! The graphics are extremely clear. There is nothing wrong with the sound. It sounds like sound would on any laptop. I don't use the track pad so I don't know how well it works or doesn't work. Colors are great. I only address these issues because people complained about them. I haven't had any problems with my laptop thus far. I'm very happy with my purchase! The reviews had made me a little weary but I took a risk and am happy with my gamble!

I bought this laptop mainly for the IPS monitor -I am a professional photographer and I needed a travel computer for when I cannot edit at home. I wanted a computer where my photos would not look completely different because we all know how unreliable editing on a laptop can be. I have owned this laptop for several months right now, and overall I am extremely happy. When you tilt the screen up and down, the color and brightness does not change one bit, which is fabulous for editing. I love the multi-touch trackpad -I can't go back to using older trackpads after this laptop. This laptop is lightning fast, sleek and thin, and has a quality display that can't be beat. I'd recommend it to anyone.

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I got this laptop for the following reasons and I am satisfied after ~1 month of heavy use.

+ great graphics for ultrabook

+ numpad on keyboard

TERRIBLE sound

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Item arrived fast.

This laptop does what I need, the one I received did not come with any Office. I had to buy it separately.

The internals are impressive! I'm playing the new Medal of Honor: Warfighter on it with graphics set to high and some to ultra, and it looks better than it does on my ps3.

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I bought this laptop for a friend who insisted on the Sony brand even though I told them they could save going with a different brand starting with letter L. The laptop is pretty nice, but have a plasticky body and flimsy lid that flexes. The 1080p screen however is very nice and with beautiful and accurate colors, this is the only real reason to get this laptop. It only have a Core i5 and the nVidia GT640m video is adequate to play newer games with low to low-medium graphic settings.

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TP R400 C2D/2.53 14.1W 2G-160GB DVDR WLS CAM WVB

I purchased this laptop two years ago and it has been running great ever since. The Lenovo R400 is designed for durability, and performance. It is a great choice for programmers, and professionals who need an affordable laptop to get their work done. I mostly use my laptop for school work, writing, editing and this laptop goes above and beyond.

The touchpad is large, responsive and comfortable to use. I have also used it for CPU resource-intensive programs such as Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Dreamweaver. The sound quality is excellent and I haven't had any problems with it. The most amazing thing about this laptop is its spill-proof keyboard which drains liquids away from the internal components. I have twice accidentally spilled coca-cola and the laptop has survived beautifully. My Thinkpad R400 has endured its fair share of knocks and rough treatment without coming to any harm so for that I give this laptop a 5/5.

The only thing that I can consider a disadvantage of the Thinkpad R400 is that it's quite heavy and can get annoying to cary in places. It has a nice CPU (Core 2 Duo 2.4Ghz) which can handle pretty much everything you throw at it including some light games. It also has enough ram (4GB) which is more than enough these days for intensive applications. My laptop came with a 160GB HDD but I have upgraded it to a Samsung 830 128GB SSD and it flies like the wind. It also has a nice DVD burner which I use quite a lot. The battery is decent, not the best but it gets the job done. For me it lasts around 2hrs with half brightness. I'm still using this laptop and it has never slowed down.

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Gateway NE51B16u 15.6-Inch Laptop (Satin Black)

It's slim, lightweight, and easy to use. Windows 8 takes a bit to get used to but overall a great buy for the price.

I have had a lot of computers over the years, and two of those being a Gateway desktop. I've never had a Gateway laptop, but I sure do love having one now. It's a little workhorse! Crystal clear images, loads fast, and is so easy to set up. It didn't take me long to figure out Windows 8, and although I like WIndows 7 better, this is pretty easy to use. Everything is right on your desktop and you can remove what you don't want on it and choose what you do want on it.

Very happy with this computer!

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I purchased this for my fiancé and I... We both have used it on and off, along with my gateway PC. The laptop is pretty lightweight. Just the right, weight. If you can work Windows 8 and are used to it. This laptop's price is very fair for the specs. It runs quick enough, maybe not the fastest. But that is easily fixed with a cheap upgrade. All-purpose laptop for us. Some gaming, E-Mail, Browsing. It loads everything proper enough. I'd buy another one for sure. I intend to add more memory. Other than that. 4 stars. Satisfied with the purchase.

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You can't even watch a YouTube video without it skipping and the speakers crackle. This computer is laughably bad and I'm returning it.

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I purchased this laptop for myself a few days ago and am very pleased with it's performance.I like that it's light weight and is easy to use once you get accustomed to windows 8.This laptop works well for gaming as well and for the price it's a great buy.

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HP Envy dv4-5220us 14-Inch Laptop

My old toshiba protege(r830) died and I recieved my money back from squaretrade.

I had a hp ultrabook envy4 but it wasn't user upgradeable. I returned it and I recieved this inside.

This is my 1st HP laptop and so far the quality is great.

1) Upgradeable to 16gb ram(User Serviceable). This is great for virtual machine testing.

2) User serviceable bays for battery and hard drive.

3) Fast processor and speedy performance.

4) Great screen and the webcam works well.

5) Nice keyboard with good feedback.

Cons:

1) Heavy. at 4.78 lbs. My toshiba was 3.8lbs

2) I wish I didn't have the dvd drive which adds to the weight.

3) Touchpad always gets dirty really easy.

I have been using this laptop for 1-2 month now on daily basis, got it right before school started.

my upgrades:

4GB RAM

460 7200RPM Harddrive

50GB SSD

core i5 2nd gen turbo boost

Nvidia Geforce 630 1GB

I try to take care of by turning it off every 1-2 days, and use high security. The laptop still turns on and off quickly. I have had several updates, and right now it seems I am not guaranteed to have the laptop to upgrade to windows 8.

Pro: small, light weight, quiet, and doesn't get heat up. It has a beautiful smooth look to it. Has a pretty loud speaker.

Cons: I guess it's pretty expected from customization. A lot of the common features easily crash. I can barely look at pictures with this laptop.

The Nvidia Geforce 420M 1GB doesn't seem to do anything more compare to my old Toshiba with no dedicated graphics card.

What annoys me the most is the keyboard. the mouse is constantly interfering with what I type. Even now, whenever my hand hoovers over the mouse pad, the typing tool gets navigated to a different location, so I have to keep putting it back to where I am typing (if you have to write a lot, this keypad will annoy the heck out of you). I am in pharmacy school, and it requires fast note taking in class, it is really annoying when the mouse goes all over the places which I have to make the mouse to come back to the right place and miss many important things professors talk about. One trick I now use is to just turn off the mouse pad, however that still causes inconvenience.

Another thing that bother's me is the up and down arrow key. The two of them are the size of 1 key, and it's ridiculously hard to get use to (which I still haven't). The sound bottom doesn't work sometimes no matter how you try to press the volume up/down, though I can live with that.

The laptop doesn't fold that far flat, so when I try to play bass, I'd have to bent down a lot to see the screen.

The battery life has decreased significantly it seems since the time of purchase. Even though I try to use the battery life whenever I can and fully charge it before unplugging. It has froze on my once, which I am not so happy about considered it is only 1 month old.

6-22-2013 update:

The battery completely died on me in less than a year, it shows that it has 0% and does not charge. So I performed a diagnosis on "HP Support Assistant" for the battery and got an error code. Then I made a call to 800-HP invent (or 800-474-6836), fortunately the laptop is still under warranty, I was able to get a free battery ($120 worth) to be shipped to me soon.

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I bought this computer for my college classes, and it has exceeded my expectations. Powers on and off quickly, the sound and video quality are great, there's lots of space for my college assignments and programs, and the graphics card is good enough to run the games I enjoy with ease. The battery life fluctuates between 5 and 7 hours, but that's a small complaint. All things considered,I am thoroughly satisfied with the product, and will definitely buy another HP computer in the future.

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Purchased this little computer at the end of December 2012 for a fantastic price at Amazon. Smooth transaction and speedy delivery. Had it charging up and using it straight from the box. No issues, very quiet and stays extremely cool even if on for long periods of time. Not heavy, weighs exactly 5 pounds on the bathroom scale. I had a small Acer netbook prior to this and my Envy is just as portable and quite attractive as well. It does come with a CD burner which was not listed in the product details. Needed to call Amazon to confirm this. The keys feel fine to me, as there was one review that stated the opposite. It is fast, the screen displays bright and clear graphics. Windows 8 takes a while to get used to but I like it so far, especially the "app" format. All kinds of ports (3 USB) and card reader. Holds a charge for a very long time. Been off the charger all day and still has 7+ hours on it. I searched for a long time to find a lightweight computer with a decent speed and memory that could be my workhorse, as I am using this mainly for business. This little gem has it all! Totally satisfied!!

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Just recieved this laptop a few days ago, fast delivery from Amazon. Setup was fast and smooth, no problems.

The picture just pops out at you so clear and real. Transfering my email information over also went smooth.

The 14" size will make this computer easy to travel with.

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HP Pavilion dv6-3052nr 15.6-Inch Entertainment Laptop (Silver)

Pros: Processor and GPU are excellent. I have ran Star Craft 2 on ultra settings without any issues. WoW on ultra except for shadows and get roughly 45 FPS in Dalaran. Minimal bloatware only took about 10 mins to remove.

Its a beautiful machine. The case has some kind of artsy pattern on it.

loading times are low thanks to the 7200 RPM drive. other laptops in this price range didn't have this. I was able to copy the 18GB WoW from my main computer to this in about 4-5 mins (via ethernet cable not wireless).

Cons: the display resolution is a little low for the size. I've seen other laptops in this size range with superior displays. In spite of this, the resolution is worth the sacrifice in exchange for everything else being so powerful.

The touch pad is a bit strange. The buttons are part of the pad. This means that while your trying to click on something you can accidentally move the mouse, however the sensitivity is very good.

A great product. This laptop is 1 grand the same price as a macbook but with much better specs. Comparing the two you instantly realize that this laptop offers 3 times the ram 2 times the processor cores and a much better graphics card. Macs are over priced buy this notebook to get the most out of your money.

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Ok, first off the specs are great for the price. A lot of bang for your buck.

Now the less obvious things that may or may not be deal breakers.

-The screen resolution is weak. I use this primarily on my desk with a big 24" monitor attached, so it doesn't bother me. But if you're on the go with this often, 1366 x 766 is not much screen real estate.

-The keyboard is PAINFUL to use. HP has added a column of 'Quick Launch' keys on the left side of the keyboard so that %50 of the time that you think you're hitting Ctrl you're actually launching the calculator app. Also by default the F1-F12 buttons are replaced by 'Action buttons' (volume, screen brightness, etc.) so that you have to hold the 'Fn' button to actually get the Function keys incredibly frustrating.

But don't worry, with some hacks, you can program the keys do whatever you want. Download KeyTweak and check out this thread:

And you can toggle the 'Action Buttons' setting in the BIOS Config (ESC on startup).

Overall, Great value, terrible keyboard. After tweaking the keys, I'm happy with the purchase.

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CAVEAT EMPTOR, this notebook is OK, performance is excellent, screen OK... but the keyboard is hideous. I hate it. I didn't notice how annoying it was until i opened the notebook and started using it.

The complete keyboard is displaced one key to the right. This is very annoying. If you have some experience with computers, (e.g. if you don't fish in the keyboard using two fingers) you are used to having the leftmost column of keys being the [`] key, the tab key, the caps lock, shift key and ctrl key.

This machine has some custom buttons (remember the compaqs from early 90's?) in the leftmost column of keys, one for email, one for firing the (slow) software that deals with video and music, one button for the browser, one for the printer (???) and one for the calculator (??????)

I don't understand how someone could make the decision that having a custom button to fire up the browser is so important that the lateral and awkward shifting of the keys is acceptable.

Every time i want to press the A key i end up hitting caps lock, etcetera..

I must work with other computers, so if i eventually get used to this keyboard, i'll press the wrong keys in other machines.

HP should fire the guy that designed this keyboard. (i rate the keyboards in the previous HP machines i owned as excellent)

If i could pay some money to have this keyboard replaced for a regular one, i would gladly do it.

This machine has other design problems.

One of them is the touchpad. It's a lot bigger than usual so it's difficult to touch just with one finger. You'll inadvertently end up touching it with other fingers. The keypad also lacks a hardware button to turn this huge touchpad off. This is annoying.

This machine lacks the (now usual) hardware buttons to turn the volume up, turn the wireless on, etc. They are integrated into the F keys (F1 to F12). So, if you are working in excel and want to change the contents of a cell, you press F2 and this dims the screen brightness. To press the REAL F2, you have to press the FN key and then F2. How much more annoying this keyboard could have been???

Last, it doesn't have the numeric keypad. OK, i've owned notebooks without numeric keypads in the past, but they had smaller screens. I own another DV6, with a Core 2 duo that has the exact same screen size, and it has an integrated numeric keypad.

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This computer is great; you really get your money's worth for the price you pay. I have had this computer for about 4 months and it has been living up to its expectations. I am an Industrial Design student and I needed a good preforming computer to run different types of design programs effectively and efficiently. When I am using this computer I usually have iTunes, Facebook, my e-mail, and multiple design programs running at the same time and it still runs very smoothly. Aside from the performance, it is also very user friendly and easy to start using right out of the box. Some of the different features are great on this computer. I love the fingerprint scanner, which I use not only to log on to my computer, but also for any website that requires a password that I need to log in to. The hinges on the screen are very sturdy and you actually need 2 hands to open it (one to open the screen and one to hold down the computer. The web cam is good quality and the HP MediaSmart web cam program has some great features. All in all this computer is a great buy if you are looking for a high preforming, sturdy, and reliable machine that fits in somewhat of a budget.

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Dell Latitude E5420 14" LED Business Notebook / Intel Core i3-2350M / Genuine Windows 7 Home, 64-bi

I contacted the seller regarding this laptop in advance to make sure it did, in fact, come with a webcam, and when it arrived; everything was as expected. Packaged in OEM Dell boxes I was quite happy.

To greatly improve performance, I'd recommend pulling the 2gb ram out and replacing with 8gb (2x4gb) or 16gb (2x8gb) of ram; it really will make a big difference with the I3 processor...

For the price; can't really beat it for a NEW system.

It's fast but heavy. I did not realize that there was no camera. Screen is fine. But still it is good for the price.

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Toshiba Satellite A105-s2141

• CD-RW/DVD-ROM
• 4x USB
• 4 Cell Battery
• PCMCIA
• 15.4"1200x800 Screen

I've had my Toshiba a105 for about 4 years now. I haven't had any issues with it. It initially came with Windows Vista, but I upgraded it to Windows 7 professional with no problem. I haven't had any problems with my DVD drive. Never had a blue screen or any sort of malfunction. I like to do a lot of customization so I have rainmeter running on it, rocketdock and a host of other application that run at startup and my toshiba hums along with no issues. I like that I can log in to my computer just by scanning any finger with the Biometric scanner on the lower right side of the keyboard area.

It has 4 USB ports which is great. I'm using them all simultaneously right now without a hiccup. I use an additional monitor connected through a VGA port, but it also has a Svideo port and I've hooked it up to my tv, several times. The wifi on it is great. My router is in the office, one floor up and I've never had a problem connecting or losing signal.

I have a desktop that I hardly use because this laptop does a great job. Even though I haven't, putting more memory in would make this laptop perfect. It comes with 1GB of RAM, running at 1.73Ghz (Faster than some laptops currently produced).

The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because I'm stingy. I might have given it five stars if it had an HDMI port, but when this computer was produced, very few laptops would have come with a HDMI port. I can't say enough about this laptop. Very tempted to make it 5 stars... Toshiba made a winner here!

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on old (over 6 years) toshiba's the disk drive stops working (this happened to my friend also). I'm thinking of not reinvesting in toshiba laptops for this reason. also my version does not come with a dvd capability. this model is really inconvenient and I don't have money to buy a new one. the model I had before this one ( also a toshiba lap top but a higher grade) worked for 5 years until it was accidentally damaged. but make sure you buy one better than this model.

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HP Pavilion DV6-7000 15.6" 1080p Anti-Glare Quad HYBRID SSD series, 3rd Gen Intel Core i7 Ivy Bridg

took a week to receive the computer. This is my 10th laptop. Not new to computers. I run a business and dont have time for things that dont work. Amazon has been hit or miss. This was a miss. After 2 hrs of charging the battery i press the on button to find the fan kicks on...a few lights flash...and it shuts off! over and over again....Now i dont have the computer I need for my business, my $$ is tied up until it is refunded....and i still have to go out and get a computer. A WASTE OF TIME!!!!!

ONE WEEK LATER: ADDENDUM: 5 stars for computer, 5 stars customer service

One day after writing the first review I received an email from Will at Eluktronics. He told me that the RAM cards were defective from HP and a new set would be on its way in 2 days. He explained how to remove one of the two cards to see if one card would allow computer to workIT DID!! So I was able to use the computer for a presentation and taxes over the weekend. On Monday the RAM cards were in the mail. With just a screwdriver to gain access to the bottom cover I was able to easily remove and replace the RAM cards. Left computer on for 24 hrs and ran it through some tests like having movie, internet radio, and 6 other screens open with downloads at the same time. Amazing lap top! When downloading 16 gig thumbdrive the computer was so fast that I could hardly believe it really transfered all the info. This lap top does not overheat as other high end HPs have in past.

With medical charting a part of my work life Im now able to shave off an hour each night with a fast and yet simple computer. I really like the finger swipe feature that allows me to enter into various screens quickly...

this more than makes up for the dismal start on this laptop.

Cant say enough about the excellent customer service. Im not sure if Will is alone or has a room full of people helping customers....all I can say is that he should write a book about true customer service!! It is a lost art these days!!

FOLLOW-UP 5-25-2013

This IS the best computer I have had to date. I recently went back to use my old (2 yr old) laptop to help my daughter with schoolwork and was frustrated with the slow speed. This new computer is very fast. I estimate an extra 1 hr free each day because the HP is so fast, doesn't crash, and allows me to use a finger swipe to log into all of the different web sites I use on a daily basis. I had another HP 2 yrs ago that didn't shut down and ran all night eventually overheating! I could see a visible wave to the keyboard from the heat. this NEW HP has a better fan and the computer has not become alarmingly hot. I like this HP so much that if it just lasts one yr Id be happy.

I did my research before purchasing this laptop. I am pleased to say that I have received this laptop and it has exceeded my expectations in quality and ease of use! It shipped quickly and was delivered in perfect condition and I am glad I used Amazon interest free financing on the product!!!

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Arrived earlier than expected. I like the weight and functionality. Like all laptops there is essentially no documentation on the keyboard functions so when you hit the magic key sequence that activates a function, have fun trying to figure out what you did. Most of the time you can find the answers when you goggle the question.

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Toshiba Satellite M645-S4080 14.0-Inch LED Laptop ( Fusion X2 Finish in Charcoal)

pros

+ backlit keyboard

+ amazing speakers (like, best I've heard on a laptop, amazing (though my new xps 14 is at least equal to these)

+ circular scrolling is extremely effective

+ high resolution hdmi out

+ nice slot loading dvd drive

+ FN keys accessible from the screen with the mouse

+ boots very quickly if you enable it

cons

-extraordinarily loud fan

* fan turns on at a high power level even when laptop is idle

-keyboard keys occasionally (often) fail

-extremely limited viewing angles

Update: I've since purchased a dell xps 14, and It has the gt420m that this was originally advertised as having. Having tested both the 420 far outperforms the 330 in real-world testing.

Be careful this model does not come wth a 420M graphics card as advertised but with a 330M. Otherwise pleased with the laptop so far.

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The Toshiba Satellite M645-s4080 is a very nice computer, great specs and a great look to it. I'd have to say I'm impressed. I was a little skeptical when I saw the reviews stating that the computer had an "obnoxiously loud fan" however, this is not the case! The computer runs nice and quiet, I mean sure there is always a quite hum to the computer and when you ramp up the processor while gaming it does get a little louder, but it is far from obnoxious.

The sound on it is great! I love the virtual surround sound, when I'm sitting listening to music on the laptop it does feel like I have a surround sound system, it's good quality sound too, I didn't know a laptop's sound quality could be so good.

The screen is nice and bright, very clear good quality picture, and I love the fact that you can view the computer at an angle without getting the dark shadows like you usually do on the LCD computer screens, it stays nice and crisp even viewed at an angle.

The only critiques I have on the computer is that when I got it and the backlit keyboard came on for the first time... it was rather bright, and hurt my eyes a bit, but then again I am not used to backlit keyboards either. Now I don't notice it as much and I've only had it for 4 days now, so I no longer have complaints about it, and in fact it's been a nice feature when I'm in a low light setting.

Also, right now Amazon shows in the pictures that the DVD drive is the standard pop out drive, however, this is also not the case. It is a dvd drive that is a slot drive, where you push the CD into a slot rather than pop out a tray. This was a pleasent surprise for me, one turn off on dvd drives on laptops for me has always been the pop out drives because they are so flimsy that I feel like they'll break on me.

The fusion finish is a great little touch as well, it gives it a nice texture and creates a mat finish, which means no more finger prints! This finish carries over onto the keyboard area and over the mouse trackpad, so you'll feel that texture under your fingers. This is nice, because it keeps your finger from sticking to the trackpad. I had difficulties with my finger sticking to the shiney track pads that I've had in the past, so this textured fusion finish was great!

I have noticed that the track pad can be a little jumpy, I'm still having a little bit of trouble if it skipping around at times and making me scroll down pages when I don't want to... though I bet if I go in and ajust the trackpad settings I can fix most of this problem, I'll update if I find a solution for it. Overall, it's not really impeding to use, it doesn't bother me much, it's just a slight annoyance now and then when it decides to act up a little. I've now had this computer for almost two weeks, no more complaints about the trackpad, it just took a little getting used to!

Also, the keyboard is wonderful, not flimsy little chicklet keys, but good solid keys, and they respond really nicely when you type, I barely have to put any effort into typing at all and my typing speeds have increased.

Overall I'm VERY pleased with this laptop, and I couldn't be happier! It runs all my programs with ease.

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This is a great little computer! I spent months looking for the perfect laptop. I do a good deal of audio and video processing so I wanted something fast and with a big hard drive but I also wanted something small and portable. I also needed a firewire port. I had almost given up and gone with apple when I found this toshiba. this thing is really fast. It boots up fast, turns off fast, and crunches through sound and video conversion like a champ. It is much lighter than my old hp yet the screen is not so small that I want an external monitor. It is quiet and runs much cooler than my hp did even on battery.

the only complaints I can think of are that the battery only lasts a couple hours which would have been unheard of a few years ago but now is only average. also the right and left clickers on the mouse pad are very stiff. this isn't a big deal but there it is.

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NO BLU RAY as ADVERTISED last September 26,2010....

I was shocked when I received this laptop it has NO BLU RAY on it but in the description when I bought it last September 26,2010 there is....Please explain the sudden change of specs???

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Toshiba M305-S4910 14.1-Inch Widescreen Satellite Laptop

All I have to say is that I bought this laptop also from Best Buy and I LOVE it. As an IT guy with nearly 10 years of experience, this little guy is well worth the investment. What I like most are the keys. I normally type 60+ wpm but the way that the keys are designed, it seems like its 70+. Very ergonomic. Battery life is great and with the amount of RAM the performance is exceptional. Very slick look! Highly recommended.

The price was so right! I bought this computer recently and it is a work horse, I love all of the things it can do. My problem is the design of the screen, it cannot open all the way which drives me nuts. The screen stands vertical, not good. Frequent pushing on the screen will damage the machine eventually, other laptops that I own, open like a book, not this one, it barely opens half way. Other than that it would have been just what I needed so I'm returning it.

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i purchased this from best buy back in may 2009, it's nothing special but if you need a laptop that will do its job, this is one i'd recommend. it's just hard to keep it clean since the keyboard is of a glossy finish. i use it daily and definitely enjoy it!

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I spent endless hours looking for the best rated laptop for college. I found that the best reviews for any research is not on this site, but on the site (real laptop reviews). I went to Best Buy & bought this same one for $ bucks less!! The quality is great & the battery will last for over 5 hours! The weight is not to heavy-about 5 lbs with the battery. I'm really happy overall with this model.

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Bought two of these at the same time. Didn't move them around much; his was mostly used to read the newspaper in the morning, check email, and watch an occasional movie, and mine was used to check email and fiddle around with Photoshop here and there. We also both use Skype once in awhile; the camera quality wasn't good, but it did the job. Both worked well for awhile the keyboard is easy to type on, the harmon/kardon speakers are a nice touch, and no complaints in general. Just over a year in, his camera stopped working; technical support said they couldn't do anything about it and were generally unhelpful. About a year and a half in, my computer's screen started flickering/flashing once every ten seconds or so. If turned off for a day or two, it would be fine again for awhile. Again, technical support was completely unhelpful. But this is the reason I would not buy a Toshiba product again: my power cord died two weeks ago, and his died one week ago. They died within a week of each other! We have no pets who could chew wires, don't move the laptops around much, and shut the power on the power strip at night / when we're not around. I called Toshiba's technical AND customer support and asked if they would replace these, as they seem to be lemons. Both were polite enough, but refused to help in any way, and could not offer anythingno replacements, no discounts, nothing. I will absolutely not shell out $140 for two new power cords when these two died after two years; my last power cord lasted almost seven years. I know generic replacements are available for pretty cheap, but it was more the principle that incensed me. So much for standing behind your products. I would not recommend the laptops and would not recommend Toshiba products unless you buy with the knowledge that you are on your own once your warranty expires.

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Sony VAIO E15 Series SVE15128CXS 15.5-Inch Laptop (Silver)

I actually bought this computer at Compuserve when it was on sale for $749. At that price it was a really good deal. The computer yields a lot of power for the money. I am comparing to a 4 yr old HP machine with 4g memory running Vista, so I'm dated to say the least. The Vista to W8 is a moderate learning curve, but I don't want this to be a W8 review.

Pluses:

Very fast

Wonderful graphics

Large HD

8g ram

Minimal "bloatware"

Nice trackpad (a little different from traditional track pads with a tactile click)

Cons:

Not used to the chicklet style keyboard, yet. This will come with time.

The keyboard has a noticable "give" give. I'm not a heavy handed typist, but someone who is will really notice this.

All in all, good value for the money.

Update 12/9/12:

After a few weeks, i have upped my review to 5 stars. I have adjusted to the keyboard (still adjusting to the touchpad), and am loving this computer. I installed software which gives me the start button back, and am making periodic forays into the tile portion of W8. I think the other reviewers who ditzed this computer due to the operating system are a bit out of place. W8 can be adjusted just like any other operating system to satisfy each individual's taste.

New Pros:

Charges quickly

Very light weight (much lighter than my 4 yr old 14" HP)

This is a feature packed computer that I would highly recommend to a friend, especially at the mid-$700s.

Backlight keyboard, ten key on the keyboard, don't really care for windows 8 yet, I might just re-install windows 7, but that has nothing to do with the hardware. Always have preferred the Vaio's over all other laptop brands as they all have that sleek and trendy look. Overall very happy with purchase. The best bang for the buck.

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I purchased this laptop on Black Friday and got very, very good price for this machine.

Likes:

Large hard drive

Beautiful screen with almost endless viewing angles

Great sound

10 key!

Backlit keyboard

Dislikes (personal preferences):

I don't much care for Windows 8, was hoping there was an included Windows 7 downgrade option.

I don't care for the mousepad; there are no physical left/right buttons

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Very happy with my new computer. I am a Sony person and the large screen works great for my aging eyesite.

East to travel with and sturdy, yet light enough.

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Bought this computer at Fry's Electronics on a black Friday deal. The computer comes with a Windows 8 OS. I had heard nightmare stories of Windows 8 being a piece of crap, but decided that the deal was too good to pass up. After about a day and a half of fighting the Windows 8 OS. I purchased the Windows 7 OEM Professional and wiped Windows 8 from the hard drive. Now that Windows 7 is installed on the computer, it runs a lot better. The computer is a great deal for the money and would recommend it if it had come with Windows 7 to begin with. If you buy this computer wipe Windows 8 and install Windows 7. It will save you a headache in the long run.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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Sony VAIO VPC-EB3AFM/WI 15.5" Notebook (2.0GHz Intel Pentium Dual-C P6100 3GB RAM 320GB HDD DL DVD-

I got this laptop for college, and it runs GREAT!! I usually have to do A LOT of research and write tons of papers, so I use the web all the time and have to use a ton of different programs. It updates itself when it needs to, and I LOOVE the keyboard (with the numbers on the side). It is big enough for school, but fits perfectly in my backpack. I ride my bike everywhere, and it isn't heavy. Also, I skyped often, and the image and sound was great.

The volume doesn't go too high, but I wear headphones all the time (and is loud enough like that).

I bought this for my uncle, and the computer works very well with great appearance. The price has been raised, it was cheaper when I bought it. I don't think it worth the current price.

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Estoy contento con mi compra.

Es un producto nuevo de buena calidad y de una marca prestigiosa.

Saludos y gracias

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I have owned this computer for almost two years now and i have not had any problems with it at all. its still fast and fufills all of my computer needs. I wish it would have came with more ram but i cant really complain. i got the computer for 400 dollars( black friday). Still i think this laptop would be worth the money.

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MICROCENTER HAS A NICE SONY COMPUTER Intel® Core(tm) i3-2330M

4GB DDR3-1333 RAM

640GB 5,400RPM Hard Drive

15.5" LED-backlit Display

Intel® Wi-Di Ready

DVD/CD Player/Burner

Memory Card Reader

Intel® HD Graphics 3000

10/100/1000 Network

Intel® Centrino® Wireless-N 1000

Microsoft Windows 7 Professional (64-bit)

FOR ONLY $559 NEW IN BOX

I GOT 2 SONYS FOR MICROCENTER VERY GOOD, DO NOT BUY THIS DEAL IS NOT GOOD!

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Lenovo G575 43834WU 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black Textured)

Fry's had this on sale today, the 2GB version for $249. I picked one up since my X61 was getting temperamental.

I figured for $249, how bad could it be? Well...with Windows 7 (and I'm a Mac guy as a rule) the computer is just fine for general use. Quick enough loading web pages, and, unlike the usual assortment of crapware that most computers come pre-loaded with? Office Starter (Word and Exel) for free!

I'm just a happy little guy-I would have easily spent more on a used computer, not had the most current OS, not had the upgradability (I bet when I move this to 8GB of ram it will fly!) and really, for my purposes I think this was a great buy! Highly recommend.

.

I'm like the other two reviewers, I got this at Frys for $249. For the money, I'm surprised at how fast it is. It's super light and the screen is crisp & clear. I didn't want to spend alot of money on a laptop, because as fast as technology goes this will be outdated within a couple months. But it's perfect for me for light use and I would highly recommend it!

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Was waiting for a price drop on this unit on Amazon but finally saw it at Fry's for $249. I just need a basic simple Laptop for surfing web, MS Word and email and this works great for what I need to do. I dont expect amazing performance at this price, but it works better than I expected. Nice sized screen, easy touch keyboard, super quite fan ( I never hear it kick on and off like my old one), runs amazingly cool even when sitting on a bed or couch, fast when im online. I even ran some CAD/CAM programs that ran almost as well as my work system, the graphics card seems to handle 3D CAD/CAM fine as well as Photoshop, although the monitor might not be up to displaying super fine photo-editing qualities... it's a nice screen, just not near as good as higher end units. Build quality is good, but nothing fancy. Not a designer Laptop, just a good all around basic unit that exactly fits my needs. Im very happy with this computer.

Update: I installed an extra 4 MB of memory, for a total of 6 MB, noticed no real performance increase at all. Glad it was only $20, but install went smooth, no issues installing additional Crucible brand memory

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This laptop arrived well-packaged within a couple of days of ordering. My wife was tired of her old laptop and asked me to get her a replacement. I decided on the Lenovo brand based on my prior experiences with IBM/Lenovo. I purchased a Lenovo G570 last year and was very pleased with it. The Lenovo G575 uses an AMD Dual-Core processor and runs much faster than her old laptop. This item does come standard with a 1-year hardware warranty. I would highly recommend this item to friends and family.

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I bought this computer for general use. I talked to one of my friends who works on technology and he suggested the Lenevo brand because as of right now Lenevo is rated in the top 3 laptop brands. I love it! it's light, the speakers are loud, and it is good quality. the backspace and number pad are a little smaller than normal but then again most laptops don't have a number pad. And sometimes the mouse turns into automatic mode..that might be able to be adjusted just haven't taken the time to see if it can or not...It is my first laptop...but have used many other people's and for the price it is great. i did pay $419 on amazon so was a little upset when i saw it was cheaper but oh well. hope this helped

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Acer Aspire V3-551-8469 15.6-Inch Laptop (Midnight Black)

"Long and dark, shiny and black ... open up your engines, let `em roar, tearin' up the highway like a big old dinosaur!" said Springsteen about Cadillac Ranch, and the same could be said of this four hundred dollar laptop from Acer. I got it as a desktop replacement to run Windows 8 as well as indie PC games, and I think it's going to work out fine.

It's a big, heavy, shiny black plastic thing, portable but not light. Hinges and latch move well. The screen is bright and sharp, with adequate but not great viewing angles. I wouldn't mind watching a movie on this screen, but it would be difficult to share it with someone else given these viewing angles. I suppose you could consider this a privacy feature. The chiclet style keyboard has full size keys with good tactile feedback and an intelligent layout. The full-size number keys are particularly welcome. I wish it were backlit but that's something for a higher-end machine. Functions such as media playback, volume control, and brightness control require two hands -one to press the function key on the left side, and another to press the desired action. Not optimal but fair enough considering the price.

There's a webcam with microphone and a "Dolby Home Theater" speaker grille up front, both of which work as expected. The large trackpad is off center with the screen but lines up nicely with the keyboard, and is responsive to touch. The trackpad buttons are easy to hit with your thumbs. Up front is an SD card slot, which SHOT THE COVER ACROSS THE ROOM when I tapped it to eject it. Be careful with your photos when loading them onto this machine!

Ports on the left side of the machine: Power (where it should be, near the recessed power button), gigabit ethernet, a large exhaust vent, a full size VGA port, HDMI out, USB 3.0, microphone, and headphone jacks. Ports on the right side: Kensington security slot (I wonder about its usefulness given the plasticy feel of the machine), a pop-out DVD tray, and two USB 2.0 slots, unfortunately right where a right-handed person would want to use a plug-in mouse.

Wifi-N is superfast, the 500GB hard drive speed is a bit pokey but acceptable, system boot speed is quick, and graphics performance is wonderful for the price. A8 Vision from AMD is considered the budget gamer card of choice, and it does not disappoint. I threw every 3D game from my Steam collection at it, and the only title that required me to turn down the graphical detail was Star Wars: The Old Republic, and then only down halfway while running at full resolution.

The system ships with Windows 8, which is a mixed bag -check the reviews elsewhere for that. It's as schizophrenic as they say, but it's probably going to get better with software updates. The Acer suite of pre-installed software is innocuous and easy to remove.

Verdict? If you want an inexpensive laptop that can play games and run Windows 8, this is certainly worth a look.

UPDATE: I've added some new hardware to this machine. It's no longer a four hundred dollar laptop, but know this: the machine can take 16GB of 1600MHz DDR3 RAM (despite the manufacturer saying it maxes out at 8GB), which bumps the Windows memory rating up to 7. Add a solid state hard drive and the storage i/o rating goes up to 8. Both upgrades, especially the SSD, really make this machine /sing/.

UPDATE #2: The Wifi driver is inexplicably set to power down by default, which explains the unreliability some people have reported. Solving this problem requires you to simply uncheck the box in the wireless network interface Properties pane.

I've spent a few days with this laptop and I absolutely love it. Though it has shortcomings, the outstanding price/performance far outweighs them. I could throw a slew of benchmarks at you that I've done on this laptop, however, that would do little to represent real world performance. I'll try and keep this as short as I can.

Right off the bat I should say that I upgraded to 8 GB of RAM. There are two RAM slots and you can throw up to two 8gb SODIMMs in this thing for a total of 16gb if you'd like. Although, I would recommend just 8gb. If you want to optimize your graphics performance (which uses the system RAM) spend a little extra and get memory clocked at 1600mhz. I always recommend G.Skill memory products and after installing 8gb of it into this laptop, (for gaming) I jumped an entire preset up in most games, sometimes two presets. I mention this right away because I want to make it clear that upgrading the RAM in this machine will make it shine.

The included HDD is 5400rpm. It's passable, but will slow down loading for larger programs where a lot of data is involved like Photoshop, video editing software, and games. I wouldn't necessarily recommend an upgrade to an SSD unless you want to put up the cash for a high capacity drive. I'd stay away from 7200 rpm HDDs unless you want to cut your battery by 20% or if battery capacity isn't important to you.

Speaking of battery life, It's alright. It's average for it's class, getting around 4 hours on a full charge more if you conserve with no audio, video, or heavy use. Less if you are doing any gaming while not plugged in. Keep screen brightness down for best results.

The keyboard is fine. It's comfortable to type on and the trackpad is well positioned and sized. My only gripe with input devices is the keyboard not being backlit. The numberpad is a nice touch also.

The screen, while average resolution, is pretty nice. Color reproduction isn't very good (for all you artists), however text is very readable and the display generally looks great in most lighting conditions. The viewing angles are just okay, but some may consider that a positive for privacy.

The speakers are above average for laptops in this class, however nothing amazing. The sound is clear and gets fairly loud. However, as is a problem with most laptops, bass is almost non-existent.

Enough ports to get the job done, and USB 3.0 is a nice touch, albeit a little anemic at a single port.

Windows 8 is okay. I'm sure that it will only get better with time, but I've encountered many bugs with the OS so far that have almost made me switch to 7. After getting them fixed though, I'm pleased with how the OS works. The learning curve can be steep if you're used to 7 and not prone to picking things up quickly. Microsoft took 8 out of the oven before it was done, but it's really close to being a great operating system.

A quick note on upgrading. Everything is easily accessible via a removable hatch under the unit towards the front. Good call, Acer.

The processor, while not as powerful per core as a lowly Sandy Bridge Core i3, is actually quite speedy with four cores and "turbo core". I've had no bottlenecks with everyday use and gaming. The only situation where the AMD silicon has let me down is multimedia editing. Photo and video editing is clearly this CPUs shortcoming. While not terrible, the i3 outclasses it by at least 10% under full load. The Intel architecture is simply better and more efficient. Don't let this hold you back from purchasing this if you're on the cusp however. I, myself, am a photographer and use have used this in the field on numerous occasions to great effect.

As I said right off the bat, the graphics performance can be greatly improved with an upgrade to the RAM, as the integrated solution uses the onboard RAM as VRAM. For you gamers on a budget, this is a great buy! But, you should manage your expectations. This is a laptop. The hardware is specifically designed to work with a 1366x786 res screen. If you plan on hooking this up to a 1080p display, remember you might need to back off on the post processing a bit. While I don't have specific benchmarks as I couldn't get my license of FRAPS to play nice with Windows 8, here are a few games and basic presets this machine is capable of with the specified RAM upgrade: Fallout 3 High (Barely Playable on Ultra) , SW:TOR Medium , Skyrim High , Borderlands 2 Medium , Saint Row/Third High , Portal 2 MAX.

I hope this review was helpful. I highly recommend this laptop for almost anyone. With or without a few hardware upgrades, it is worth every bit of the price tag and more.

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I have an older Acer laptop, and it's served me well for about the past 5 years. My wife was finally up for having one of her own. We wanted state-of-the-art, but didn't have an exorbitant budget.

I was hesitant about Windows 8, but she loves it! We're learning through trial and error what programs work with Windows 8 (LibreOffice won't install, yet OpenOffice will).

Still, a real good laptop.

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I owned 2 Acer Aspires previously. The last one was fully loaded and more then I ever needed, picked it up for around $500. Well it officially was laid to rest last night but the hard drive was still good. I went to Compusa and found this Acer. Another great deal on a BEAST of a computer. I paid $450 ($50 mail in rebate) so $400 after rebate. I have been playing on it for a good 2 hours and love, love, love how fast this system is. I am a big movie downloader and with a 500gig HD this puppy takes whatever I throw at it with ease. Again I am a dedicated Acer customer, its my 3rd laptop in many years and again......great product! Good work Acer!!!

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I bought this because of the AMD a8 and the 7 series GPU and was for some light gaming and i must say this laptop didnt disappoint..its sturdy and the USB 3 was fast..Its really lighter than my other asus k53e core i7 2630qm,6gb,640...Acer rocks...I"ll say this was my best bang for my buck... I'm buying 2 others for my friends..5 stars

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Dell Inspiron 700m

Purchased directly from Dell in Spring, 2004. Still working although I just replaced the OEM power cord with a cheap one from Amazon. Now it charges great and cosmetically it still looks and runs like new.

Some people have had issues with the OEM power cord. Mine worked fine for about 4 yrs. but it became very inefficient and the 'brick' started getting way to hot, but all is good now that I replaced the original adapter.

While the 700m is not as slick as my newer Apple MBP, Win XP Pro is still running fine and all my cool PC games are loaded on it so I hope it lasts 7 more years!

A very lightweight notebook(even lighter than my old Sony VAIO) so it is easy to travel with.

I own 2 batteries the original and a 3rd party battery with longer capacity. The newer battery lasts about 4 hrs unless I watch DVDs and play games continuously. That runs it down in about 2 hrs.

all that needs to be said is if i could find another version of this laptop today, i would buy it again! it is super compact, almost like a netbook, but still has a cd/dvd player.. which a lot of netbooks don't.

i just bought a dell 14 to upgrade, but it just doesn't compare to my little 700m :(

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I just purchased Dell's newest laptop XPS 15z, wonderful, thin, lots of good

components...but, I can't get it onto my home wireless network. After a long,

protracted and repitive discussion with a Dell tech, she wanted to sell me

some additional software because the new computer already had fragmented

files, etc. (it was diagnosed over the web). I had not even started loading my

Photoshop CS2, or any other programs.

At the same time, my little, old, slow Inspiron 700m goes online (wireless),

does the job albeit very slowly but it does it!

I thought buying from Dell again would be good but it is just frustrating and

time consuming no matter the cost of the product! What a fool am I!

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I had this laptop for six years, it lasted me through college and grad school. It has a truly beautiful screen, and having a dvd-cd drive is really convenient. Between the optical drive, the nice display, and the faster processor I like this a lot better than my netbook.

Sadly, the motherboard on mine fried after six years, and I am bereaved. It's been two months, and I'm seriously thinking of getting a second used one, because once you upgrade the RAM to have at least a gig then this is a really powerful machine for how small it is, and I've really missed that in my netbook even if the battery life is lacking in the Inspiron. (You'll have about half an hour for movies or games, though it can do about two hours of word processing on a new battery.)

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We bought our 700M the year we were moving from New England to Florida (2006). After moving a lot of stuff, including the big computer, to the new house in the winter of 2005/06, we returned north to pack up the rest of the household items. The 700M came with us and was our "only" computer for almost 6 months. We picked up a Kensington USB hub with ports for a parallel printer, an external monitor and a serial keyboard and mouse, and we used the laptop like a CPU for most of the time, connected directly to our cable internet provider.

When the time came to hit the road, the laptop came with us and worked great with hotel hookups, cable, dial up and wi-fi. Because of the small size (and light weight), the keyboard is a bit small for real fast typing and the screen is a bit small, but very clear and bright. Now I am still using it for travel, and also for sitting on the patio or on the couch to read emails and surf the web. It has all the features I have ever needed, plus plenty of computing power and storage. And it looks really cool!! I dread the day this little laptop dies...I don't know what I will replace it with, maybe an upscale netbook, if they are still around.

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Lenovo X131e 33722VU 11.6-Inch Laptop

The only thing keeping me from buying this laptop is the incorrect description of the processor.

The ThinkPad X131e 33722-VU has an AMD processor. See page 110 of:This model has the features I want, including the AMD E2-1800 CPU, an a/b/g/n WLAN card and Windows 7 Pro64.

I'll feel comfortable about making the purchase when this advertised information is made correct.

Lenovo doesn't make the x131e with an i5 processor. This error is there since a while, attracting hits. They must know what they sell.

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is a good computer, comes with Norton antivirs I do not like it because the machine works slower, but the rest is very well

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I think the description is a way to take a survey for Lenovo.

The X131e is a great rig, but EVERYONE I know is waiting for it to come with an i5.

It makes no sense for Lenovo to not offer this with an i5 option!

I for one, travel a lot around the Pacific Islands, "camping" more than staying inside anywhere. I do all kinds of computer stuff. This machine is perfect; IF it had the i5.

Otherwise I have to lug around a Pelican Case which weighs TONS! I would happily and eagerly pay the extra for an i5 and throw the Pelican Case in storage where that heavy arse thing belongs!

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