Toshiba Portege R835-P50x w/ Intel® CoreTM i3 Processor / 13.3" Display / 4GB Memory / 640GB Hard

First of all, this is a wonderful laptop. Light, great battery life and small. All with an optical DVD drive.

But the price listed here is $999.99. Wow... You can get the exact same model with the exact same specification for $750 at Best Buy and that's the regular price.

Sorry, it is $749.99 at Best Buy to be exact!!

I have had this laptop for the last year. My parents bought it for me as a graduation present before I went to college. I use it everyday and could not be happier. It is super light so toting it all over campus isn't a problem. With the crazy long battery life I am not always in need of an outlet. And it has treated me so well. My roommates had mac's and I would not trade them my laptop for anything.

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Appears to be an excellent laptop. A similar model was well reviewed in Consumer reports, the R705-P35 ($700). However, it is no longer available. After finding the current model (R835-P50X) at Best Buys for $750, I "naturally" wanted to buy it a Amazon, based on my general experience of: better price, free shipping and no sales tax. Much to my dismay, the Amazon price is $854 (free shipping) or from another Amazon vendor for $814 (with shipping). Have not purchased yet.

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ASUS R Series 15.6" Laptop, AMD AMD E2-1800 Dual Core Processor with ATI HD 7340G, 4GB, 500GB, WiFi

I bought this laptop for my mother. It arrived within 2 days of my purchase which has given me plenty of time to set it up for her to be able to jump right in for christmas.

The build quality of this laptop is quite nice, the trackpad is more than big enough, the keys and buttons are all responsive and easy to find.

windows 8 is a different beast of an OS, but it feels like a breath of fresh air and a logical extension of the legacy windows platform.

The hardware specs are very nice for a laptop. If you are looking for power gaming, turn away. If you are looking for a portable family computer though, for the price this is a great piece of hardware. 4GB of RAM is adequate, the processor is snappy for being a dual-core, and 500GB of space is more than enough to house music, videos, pictures and apps that will undoubtedly accumulate through use.

For the price of this laptop, it is more than worth the purchase.

I purchased this laptop just to upgrade from my netbook, so I could have something to do homework and travel. I wasn't looking for a desktop replacement; I have a real desktop beast for home use. When I got it home, I did some re-configuring on it, cleaned the the bloatware off, and added a Win7 style shell. I was surprised how fast it was. So I loaded WoW to see if it could run that (I normally only play on desktop). I was able to fly around Orgrimmar on medium graphics settings with little to no lag. For a machine that I paid so little for, I am very impressed.

It is unfortunate that this very capable machine gets poor reviews because the operating system is not as user friendly as its predecessors. I am not an Asus fan boy, but I have never been disappointed by their products.

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The computer is fine, however it appears that it is Win 8 32 bit not 64bit. Unable to address all the memory in the system. The packaging was a joke, The computer was in it's original box and then placed in a shipping box with NO packaging so it could just slide around during shipping and the shipping box was quite a bit larger; really sloppy work. Win8 is a joke, I wish I could have gotten this with Win7. The first thing I installed was a utility to give me the Win7 start button. Not to much bloatware though. A good basic laptop so I'm pleased but the packaging and Win8 knocked off 2 stars for me. My bad, it is Win8 64, Installed IOBit start 8 and a much better experience, still it's 2 stars off for the packaging.

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I've had several Asus computers before. I've always loved them. It seems the quality of materials for has gone down significantly since my last purchase a few years ago. The keyboard has poor response, and I often find myself going back to correct missing letters that I have apparently not hit hard enough. The keys also "bubble" up in the center of the top two rows, it's unsightly and they make an obnoxious noise when I have to it them.

Other than those issues, and maybe the fact that Windows 8 is a pain to figure out, I like this computer. It does what I need it to.

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just what I needed. not to fancy not to cheap. great buy for the money. delivered fast and healthy. will do it again when ready

Save 25% Off

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Sony VAIO VPC-EE31FX/BJ 15.5-Inch Laptop (Black)

I just got this laptop for $448 at Walmart and I love it. It looks a lot more expensive than it is, has more than enough power for everyday use and is loaded with features wireless Wi-Fi, webcam, 4 USB ports, HDMI, Sony assist feature for troubleshooting and maintaining the laptop and more. Coming from a 12 inch screen, the 15.6 inch screen is like looking at a flat screen TV. The speaker volume is nice and loud. It is realatively light weight, but at 5.9 lbs heavier than many. I do wish the battery life was longer. But so far, I'm lovin it.

I purchased an Hp almost 2yrs ago. The motherboard went out on me twice, all though I was happy with my turion 64 dual core, I needed something more stable and I was done with HP at that point. After doing some research, I read that Athlons are actually best in desktop computers because they use more power but are faster than turions. When I compared the specs they seemed pretty equivalent to my old HP laptop which ran great with Windows 7. I guess the big seller with the turions was the 1mb cach, which I took note that this computer has as well. This computer however uses DDR3 which is faster than DDR2. I had 3gb in my old laptop with ddr2 and this has 3gb of ddr3... I want to say this is faster but it really is not.

I almost feel my turion had more of a zing when doing a lot of multi-processing. But all in all for the price you can't beat it. I mean I purchased this exact computer over the summer at walmart for 590 and ended up taking it back because I wasn't ready to spend that much yet again on a laptop when I just spent 700 on my hp 2 yrs ago..

As most store bought computers the manufacturer tends to load it up with their garbage "helpful" software, which really only slows the machine down more. I would recommend removing that useless stuff, but hey, if it doesn't effect you than no need.

Final thoughts, if you can get this computer for $449 it's a great deal. Jump on it, if I had one big complaint vs my hp it'd be the sound. The speaker quality could be better but hey for $449 can't have it all..

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Do not be dissuaded by the reviews giving this laptop only one or two stars. Most of those complain about characteristics common to almost all new laptops, like the position of the keypad; or they are based on comparisons between apples and oranges.

I like the full keyboard including a separate numerical keypad. But, that means everything is shifted to the left. Most new laptops are configured this way. But, it is hard to rest the computer on my lap and use it without cramping my wrists to one side. In addition, the vent slots on the bottom of the computer are placed so that there is no place I can rest the computer on my left knee without covering some of the vents. I have resolved both of these problems by placing a piece of Plexiglass on my lap and resting the computer on it. The computer felt hot on the bottom near the vents when I rested it on my lap, but when I rest it on the Plexiglass, it still feels cool, even after hours of use. The Plexiglass support also allows me to shift the placement of the computer so that I do not need to cramp my wrists to one side. I usually have this piece of Plexiglas with me to use as a writing board, anyway.

I am trying to restrict my comments to an evaluation of this computer without drifting into a review of Windows 7. Having said that, I used a computer with Vista on it and did not like Vista. Somehow, I am finding Windows 7 to be very nice, even though there are strong similarities between them. Already I have found some things easier to find and do than on Windows XP, like add a second keyboard configuration.

The keyboard is nicely responsive. The display is crisp and clear, even on battery. My old HP laptop went to a less bright display on battery. I have allowed the battery to go down until the low battery warning appeared, but did not time how long battery life is. I am guessing it is around three hours.

I am pleased that the larger, wider "letter box" format still allows the computer to fit into the bag I used earlier to carry my old laptop.

The touchpad can be programmed so that a tap to the upper left corner functions just like a right mouse button. It has taken a while, but I have finally learned how to find the right spot quickly. I let my finger slide over the corner around the touchpad and then lightly onto the touchpad. Then I simply raise my finger and the menus prompted by the right mouse button appear. I have also found the touchpad responds to the padded area below the tip of my index finger better than to the tip of my finger. There is no need to tap hard on the touchpad. It responds to electrical capacitance between it and your finger.

I know there are problems for synchronizing Palm Handhelds with Windows 7, since Palm handhelds ceased to be available well before Windows 7 was introduced. I was able to download a free copy of Palm Desktop Software, version 6.2 and it runs well on this laptop. My handheld is a Sony Clie' and I have a Sony Memory Stick card for backing up all of its data. My Sony Vaio computer has slots for memory cards, but neither of them accepts a Sony Memory Stick. My Clie' does not synchronize with the Palm desktop software, but I can export my Palm files to a thumb drive and load them onto my Sony laptop. To update calendar items without making duplicate entries, I delete the user name which deletes all entries. Then I can enter my user name again and load updated Palm files.

I do not play games, but surf the Internet and do word processing. The keyboard is very comfortable for continuous touch typing. This computer has plenty of power for what I do.

I know some have had difficulty installing a printer on computers using Windows 7, but I had no trouble at all. I am finding this is a great laptop. Surfing the 'Net is faster on the same wireless connection I have been using now for a couple of years.

I had some problems a few days after I got this computer. SONY's support people were very polite and helpful. I documented everything with e-mails to technical support. After a while it became clear to them that my hard drive was failing. They told me a local technician would contact me and replace the hard drive. He came to my house within the specified time frame promised by the technical service people. He also left the software installation discs. Those are a $40 item if purchased on-line. Hard drives are like water pumps on automobiles. They can last a long time, or they can fail shortly after installation. (I once had a new water pump fail within its first 100 miles.)

Overall, I am pleased with this computer. I have been using it for more than a year since the installation of the new hard drive. Not only has it been flawless, but it is a delight to use.

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With a $400.00 budget I compared two laptops from W-mart, an Acer Aspire 7714Z-4643 with an Intel Pentium P6100 for $358.20 and the Sony VAIO VPCEE31FX/BJ AMD Athlon P340 for $403.20 both with 3GB of RAM. The Acer is a great deal and spec-wise is superior of the two with L3 cache and an excellent 17.3" screen in a very slim design.

I am not a gamer although I wanted something responsive and the Pentium 6100 with the L3 cache clearly benchmarks faster than the Athlon P340 but the VAIO uses ATI Radeon 4250 graphics. After using both laptops the Acer booted up noticeably faster although the VAIO appeared to perform more smoothly overall. They were both very responsive for my needs which are mainly to browse the web, use MS Word and Excel (The Starter Edition that does not expire is included), watch videos and listen to music from MS Media Center with the ability to multitask well.

I ended up keeping the VAIO because of the build quality, excellent island style keyboard with 10-key, great touchpad, and the included Sony software which I found very useful and enjoyable to use. One feature I like is Sony's VAIO Gate that conveniently places your favorite icons easily available from a neat drop down menu at the top of the screen.

The numeric keypad is great to have even though the touchpad will be off-centered, there's no way around it unless you want your left index finger at the [J] key and the right one at the [ ;] key on the home row. The VAIO 10-key configuration for a laptop is easy to adjust to and very efficient after just a short period of use.

Having installed Norton 360 internet security the VAIO still performs very well with no noticeable slowdown.

PROS:

+ Athlon P340 is plenty fast and responsive even without L3 cache.

+ Excellent build quality and feel.

+ Great screen with ATI Catalyst control center software for adjustments.

+ Comfortably responsive keyboard and touchpad.

+ I personally like Sony's software.

CONS:

Weak speakers. (bought a Logitech Z-305 sound bar which is amazing)

Only 3GB of RAM.

Glossy palm rest shows smudges and finger prints.

Textured touchpad has good feel but bumps may wear out over time.

Price is higher than the competition for relative specs although VAIO build quality is better.

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I have had this computer for about 16 months. It has been buggy from day 1, but I assumed it was a Windows 7 thing since it was relatively new when I bought the computer. I have finally decided it must be this computer. It won't shut down unless you force it to due to some Sony program running in the background. I have tried to figure out how to shut it off to no avail. The DVD drive has gone bad, the power cord has gone bad, and it randomly shuts down periodically. What a $500 lemon! Stay AWAY! I'm going back to Dell

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Toshiba Satellite P505-S8980 18.4" Notebook (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo T6600 6GB RAM 500GB HDD Blu-ray Read

I wanted a large screen laptop that I could use around the house. This computer satisfied my requirement. The screen is very large and sharp. My best photos come up large and crisp. Beautiful colors. The speakers are wonderful and were an unexpected surprise. It is like wearing a good set of earphones. The computer is silent. I do not hear the fans or drive. It is very fast.

I did not like the style in the store (Best Buy) since it is shiny black and I prefer a flat finish. But once I got it home I realized it is very smart, modernistic. My wife who is picky on such matters remarked that it is beautiful. The keys are flat like minature tiles but this is ok with me and I would prefer if the function keys were set somewhat lower. It smudges but you only see this in direct light and it wipes off anyway.

I would not buy this computer for travelling due to its size. But as a home laptop it is great. I am very happy with my choice.

This PC it's powerful, beautiful, excellent quality, stunning graphics, top of the line.

I can't give 5 stars because my screen came with a "burned pixel". It's a tiny very bright red point on the monitor. If you have a black or dark background it's very evident. If you have a light background it's very hard to notice. I called Toshiba Services and I can change the monitor using the guaranty if I have 8 "burned pixels" all over it or if I have 3 or more in one sector. It is not a big issue, but I will buy the extended guaranty just in case. Despite this, I love the machine.

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I purchased a Toshiba P505 laptop 2 years ago. Within months we were having problems: the computer would not start, or if it did start, it would shut down unexpectedly. Toshiba's help desk was unhelpful: they wanted it mailed in for examination (even though we had purchased an in-home service contract), but since we were using this machine for daily business, we could not give it up for the 2 months they wanted. By the time we had fussed with it enough, the warranty had run out. So we put it on the shelf and bought another laptop (HP, not Toshiba). Recently I decided to take the time to take it to a real computer repair shop. They found that it had been defective from the beginning: the motherboard could not hold on tightly to the memory cards, which would slip out at the slightest movement of the laptop. They could replace the motherboard, for roughly 1/2 the original cost of the computer, but recommended against it because the replacement motherboard would be original equipment, and the original equipment obviously had a design flaw so the problem was bound to happen again. If Toshiba is selling products with design flaws that they do not bother to correct, the lesson is obvious: don't buy Toshiba products.

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This is just an absolute powerhouse, monster of a notebook which is definitely the definition of DESKTOP-replacement!! I have bought a few of these allready for both me and my relatives and everyone's been nothing but absolutely amazed at these great notebooks. I got mine for really low prices because they were refurbished. You have to make sure you get some kind of warranty Toshiba provides it on refurbished models as well (3 months or so) also make sure to check the condition of the notebook. Some people will list refurbished when its really refurbished and then used. Make sure its in "back to new" condition. Ask the seller if its not listed. That's my few cents on these.

The 2.2Ghz processor with 6GB of RAM and a half a Tera Byte (500GB) Hard Drive along with a bundled Blue-Ray????!!!! For $700 or so??? Common, it doesn't get better than that. Would definitely recommend to anyone!

Cheers!

ES

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Like most reviewers the machine is impressive at first. Bright clear picture, lots of ram and functions. Then you start using them. Problems with the bluray. Had to down load (and pay for) a new program from corel. Problems with sound. Had to download (multiple times) and reload drivers. Problems with the label flash software. The list goes on and on. Then the last straw. Hard drive failure. But the thing that really has sealed this laptop's fate and added insult to injury for me has been the manufaturers response. After contacting tech support multiple times in 10 months and recieving the same level of service everytime, I'm done with Toshiba...for EVER! Rude, condescending and indifferent can describe it best. Ever wonder why there are so many "refurbished" units of this model available on line? That should speak volumes to you...just listen! Save yourself a ton of aggrevation!!!

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Toshiba Satellite PSK2CU-0K101S P3200

I was in the market for a new laptop for school that I could pick up for a good price. I ended up narrowing it down to a few models in the $400 $500 range with a 15.6" display. I ended up getting the Toshiba Satellite L655-5150 at Best Buy for $450, but seriously considered a few others. The Toshiba had 4GB of RAM, the most offered in this price range. The hard drive was only 320GB, but for me that is plenty. I have 2 TB of external drives I use to store videos and archived files on. If hard drive space is more important to you, you can find models offering 500 GB in this price range (The Gateway NV5105u is one I was considering.). The Intel P6200 processor is good, but not necessarily the best offered in the range (The Dell Inspiron I15R-1197MRB comes with a 2.4GHz I-3.). The inclusion of a number pad on the keyboard was a big selling point for me, and the overall aesthetics of the computer are good. Setup was extremely easy and the computer came with very little bloatware installed on the system. I am happy with the Toshiba, but there are several contenders in the "value-priced" laptop category. I think my second choice would have been HP's G62-457DX for $400.

I had the opportunity to set up the Best Buy (Torrance, CA) version and the experience was easy -for a PC -which is saying a lot from this Apple fiend. These are the steps this set-up required: 1) This rig was added to an existing PC only network behind a Lynksys router running a desktop and a Toshiba Satellite L505; 2) I registered w/ Toshiba; 3) Microsoft driven updates totaled 40 which took 3 turns of installing & restarting, but with this speedy machine it was a breeze; and 4) I downloaded and installed individually a menu of free/open source security software including AVG AV, Clam AV, Clam Win, Zone Alarm Firewall, and Panda Cloud AV -(so much because one of the users is Skype/social networks fiend, and so far no problems, and I like to keep it so).

The actual hardware is fabulous -very responsive keys on the keyboard which look like chiclet design to me. The boot and re-boot and turn off times are incredible for this price range. It feels like a well made and well thought out laptop. The only problem I had was the balance on my Podium Cool Pad laptop stand ( ) -the laptop is top heavy perhaps due to the 6-cell battery -and unless balanced precisely it will fall over screen first which is not good for rugged, gaming, dorm room/student use.

The owner set up the webcam, Skype and facial recognition features, and they must be very easy and smooth because I have received no Help! requests, and I hear much laughter from their area.

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If you want a laptop that won't charge (not due to the charger) but because the charger port is faulty, then this laptop is for you!

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I bought the toshiba satellite L655-S5150 last February when my old computer broke. I was in a pinch and had to buy a computer that day. I ended up getting this one on sale in the $400 to $500 price range (I can't remember the exact price). I love this laptop. It is by far my favorite computer that I have owned and I have had no problems with it. I like that a numeric pad is also on the key board. My husband ended up getting the same series but a different model than mine and the only difference I notice in his is that his keyboard is backlit. Nice feature, but I wouldn't have paid for it. All in all you can't go wrong with this laptop. I am a full time student and I can keep everything I need on here.

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HP ENVY 17-2070NR Notebook Computer - Silver

Well, this is my first time doing a review on here, but becuase of how few reviews I have been able to find on this laptop, I figured I should share my thoughts on it.

First off, the packaging was amazing! You can tell they really took their time when designing the way this product would be shipped and opened for first use.

The look and feel of this laptop is also really good. It feels really strong and not made out of some cheap materials. I love how it comes with ZERO stickers on the laptop that display what is it in. The laptop is very sleek and clean looking. I also love the custom theme that it is for Windows 7. It is also very simple and clean. It is a LOT better than the default windows 7 theme. The keyboard is also very well made and I love the backlighting.

However, this amazing laptop also has some flaws that I wish I knew about BEFORE purchasing this item. I had no idea that the other Envy products (Envy 15 for example), suffer from black or blank screen problems! At random (normally when the computer is sitting without being used for a short time) the screen will just fade to black. If you look really hard from certain angles you can see the desktop, but its so dark you cannot shut down the computer. This also happens nearly 100% of the time when you close the screen and return to your computer after a short time. From what I have read online, the only "fix" for this is to close the screen again or hold the power button until it restarts. Also, HP does not seem to see this has a problem with the computer, however just google HP envy 17 Black Screen and you will see all the issues people are having with this. HP just seems to replace the computers. Hopefully a fix will come out soon, but nobody can seem to figure out what causes this issue.

Another problem I have been having is the random freezing. I will be doing nothing no downloads, no music playing, just simply sitting at the desktop and the computer will freeze. Again, the only fix for this is to hold down the power button until it turns off. Also, this issue is like the black screen problem. I have not found anybody that has been able to pinpoint the cause of this problem to get it fixed.

Finally, the last problem is the heat! Man does this thing produce heat. It could heat up a house in the winter! With only ONE vent in the side of the computer that is in a really poor location, this thing is hard to cool down. I had to purchase a massive cooling pad to help keep it cool. Also, the place that seems to heat up the worst is to the left of the mousepad (which sucks as well) which if you are a gamer, that is not a good location. You will be resting your palm here to use the WASD keys for many of the games and your hand will get extremely hot.

Overall, I really want to like this computer, but with the issue I am having, I don't know if I will be keeping it or returning it to Amazon. If I can figure out a fix for the random black screens or freezes, I will keep it since I can deal with the heat now that it has a pad. However, the random freezing and the black screens are a deal breaker for a laptop that costs SO much money. You would think that since the black screen problem was a major issue with the Envy 15 that they would have fixed it for the Envy 17, but like I said, HP does not seem to see this as a problem.

EDIT: Well I have been dealing with HP support through e-mail and they are being anything but helpful at this point. Sure they reply to e-mails EXTREMELY fast for such a major company, but you can tell all their answers are canned replies that have already been typed and they simply copy and paste. For example, in the last e-mail from them, they gave me the instructions to do something on my computer for Windows XP...did they even check to see what the heck the laptop was?!?! Does HP even have laptops that have XP on them anymore? So far, after three e-mail messages and tons of research online, none of the problems I mentioned in the first review have been fixed. Buy at your own risk, but HP doesn't seem to understand the problems people are having with this machine.

Out of the box this machine is extraordinary, The packaging alone tells you, you just bought a different type of laptop(very high end) perfectly packed with a couple of very nice extras(nothing big but I won't spoil the surprise)if you like bells and whistles this laptop has them all, aluminum case and the look of the etching is incredible and feels really solid (which is very good, having seen broken or bent motherboards and screens due to flimsy cases) beautiful LED screen, chicklet type illuminated keys, slot load BD player, extra long lasting battery...the works. Ok performance. Turning it on I was amazed by how quick this machine is and I have been around PCs and laptops all teen-adult life so I can tell you, you won't be disappointed. specs are up on the product description, but they are MISSING the best parts. This is a new i7 2.0 GHz processor (CPU) and it is quad core (4 CPU in one) BUT! with "hyper-threading" so if you don't speak geek what it means is that you virtually have (and you will see in your task manager) 8 (eight) 2.0 GHz processors running simultaneously this is awesome. Now to me the most important missing spec is that this is a HM65 chipset, what this means is that it comes available with blazing fast SATA 3 hard drive interface..in all my latest laptops this has been the performance bottleneck even with an SSD hard drive (downside, the laptop comes with 2 500Gb SATA 2 Hard drives. upside they come in RAID 0(you will see just one big disk on your explorer), which is a lot faster than normal setups.)but if you want the extra performance of SATA 3 you will have to buy a new HD. Last thing it has great battery life due to the double video card, so, on power saver, low performance video card and dimmed screen, I can get up to 3 hrs with the 6 cell battery. OK for us geeks that can't leave well enough alone...the laptop comes with 4gb + 2Gb RAM very bad! so BUY 8Gb RAM package and a SSD HD that is SATA 3 compatible (and a SSUSB (or USB 3.0) external enclosure to put the extra HD once your done), you will have to do a new windows install so download your drivers from HP except the SSUSB this one download it from a HP probook which is the same driver but newer and better (don't know why), and an updated video driver...I can't start to tell you how fast this machine turns out! by now you can see that I like computers, this one blew mi mind and I haven't over clocked it yet...hope this helps...long winded and all.

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I just got the HP 2070NR to use as a development work station. So far I've been extremely happy with the purchase.

I have my 2070 running XUbuntu 11.04 AMD64. There were a few quirks specific to this laptop (that will probably effect anyone using Linux on it regardless of distro), one of which is the "click-pad" and the other of which is the hybrid graphics card. I had to patch and build a new package to get the track pad working correctly, but it wasn't really a big deal so I'm not deducting a star for it. You can find that answer on bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux/+bug/582809 (#144). The other thing is you don't want to use fglrx (proprietary drivers) on it, as fglrx does not work with vgaswitcheroo (the Linux kernel facility for switching graphics cards) yet... I'm sure AMD will come out with a fix for it eventually, but for the moment only the opensource radeon drivers work.

Other than fglrx not working and the touchpad behaving weird, everything on this laptop worked out of the box on Ubuntu (wireless, wired network card, sound, even the web cam).

One thing I wanted to note about the two hard drives is they come configured in a Raid0 configuration and the array controller only supports Raid0 (no raid1/mirrored). I had kind of been hoping to mirror my hard drives with a hardware controller... But that isn't really a big deal either because what other laptop comes with 2 hard drives and an array controller?

I'm really happy with this laptop so far. I've had it for 3 days now, and it's definitely a huge step up over my previous laptop. I can run Netbeans, Eclipse, Jboss, Banshee, and a VirtualBox without any problems... This laptop had everything I was looking for in a laptop specs wise, and then some.

As far as battery life:

If you use the 6-cell battery, and aren't doing anything too intense, it should get close to 2 hours.

If you use the 9-cell battery and aren't doing anything too computationally intense, it'll be closer to 3.5.a)

That isn't really amazing battery life for a laptop, but when you consider what a monster this thing is, 17 in display, 2x 7200 RPM drives, i7 quad, discreet graphics, it does a bit better than what I'd expect. I have to give them credit, they built a machine designed to behave much like a desktop, and it still has a usable battery.

As far as build quality goes:

I've always been an HP fan, but I've always hated the pavilion and other home computers. I've always bought the business laptops and workstations. I have to say, HP has addressed a lot of the problems I've had with the pavilions and some of their other home computers being crappy computers. This computer is built like one of their business models, and not only that it's really nice looking. It performs really well, has great hardware, and was at a much more desirable price point than some of their other offerings.

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Very, very well packaged. The unit is very sleek and it runs very quietly. Backlit Keyboard was just what I wanted. Very good. The Display was great.

But upon first use, this unit would freeze up and not respond to any commands. I had to turn the power off using the Power Button. Then upon turning it on again it would run for a few hours (or sometimes a only few minutes) then freeze up again. I had to recycle the power button to get it back on.

HP Customer Service was very courteous (and they spoke English). I talked with them 4 or 5 times in the first fews days after receiving the PC, they seemed to know what they were doing and I got the same department each time I called. They even called ME back to see how I was doing. (The technicians I spoke with knew the other technicians I had spoken to, so I didn't have to keep explaining the problem over and over again)

But everything we tried failed to fix the problem. HP finally suggested returning the unit. Thinking the problem was hardware vs. software.

I did send the unit back to Amazon. Amazon offered me an exchange or my money back. Amazon has good customer service also.

So if you get a unit that freezes up at any time, make sure you call HP for help. They told me this was not an uncommon problem but new HP BIOS usually fixes the bug. (They also said my unit may have set on the shelf for a while, and that newer units come with the newer version BIOS)

HP Customer Service was the BEST customer support I have ever had to use.. too bad the unit wasn't as good..

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Hp Envy 17-2070nr. So far I believe its an amazing laptop. Havent had a single problem, its extremely fast and it came flawless. Hopefully I will not have any problems in the future but if I do I will update.

It did took me a few minutes to get used to the trackpad, but got used to it.

I was afraid of buying because I could not find any reviews but I am glad I took the risk.

edit:

I had some issues with it freezing, supposedly the culprit was the wireless card, but I simply did a clean install of Windows 7 from the partition recovery, and the problem seems to be fixed. i brought it down to four because i shouldn't have to be fixing a brand new computer specially a 1400 dollar computer, but i did because i really love the feel and performance of the computer.

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Toshiba Satellite L955-S5142NR 15.6-Inch Laptop (Fusion Finish in Mercury Silver)

The laptop is made of fragile plastic. It is lightweight and works well for my needs. I use it for email, browsing the internet, music, streaming video and basic Microsoft Office stuff. It's plenty fast for all of those things. The display has nice colors and resolution for my needs. I don't feel I get enough traction when using the mouse pad thing. I also think the keys are hard to push and it causes me to make more typos. Please note that my previous laptop was a premium laptop and so is the one I use for work. Those cost twice what this one does. I think it is worth the money.

an awesome product made my toshiba. this here uses a 6gb. and the processor is faster than toshibas previous product.

Buy Toshiba Satellite L955-S5142NR 15.6-Inch Laptop (Fusion Finish in Mercury Silver) Now

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HP ENVY 17-2090NR Notebook - Silver

I have owned this unit since 6/2/11, even though I bought it somewhere else. This system is a true desktop replacement with the latest 2nd generation Sandy Bridge i7 quad-core cpu. 8GB RAM & dual 750GB hard drives (configured as one 1.5TB drive).

I'm not much of a gamer but do play occasionally. Driving games look especially good using the TriDef 3D software to launch the game. The system ships with one pair of active shutter 3D glasses. The 3D effects in games and movies is fun but I find it tiring to wear the 3D glasses for prolonged periods of time.

Applications perform blazingly fast. I use CorelDraw X3 a lot and performance on the Envy is perfect. I use Womble MPEG Video Wizard DVD for video editing and Handbrake to convert video files to portable format for my DroidX. The Envy processes everything much faster than my old Thinkpad.

I did update the drivers and BIOS the day I got the system. I had read about issues regarding cpu throttling and knew the BIOS update would fix the issue.

I have no real complaints with this system. Sure it is heavy and the battery life is not that great (it comes with two batteries though) but then again, I didn't buy this to haul around with me everywhere I go. I have a netbook which fills that role.

If you are looking for a very fast system in a semi-portable form factor then it is hard to beat the HP Envy. You definitely get your money's worth.

Within the first few days of purchasing this product, I began to experience issues. These issues included random shutdowns, random freezing (completely unresponsive) and periodic slowdowns. As a customer with standard warranty, I spoke with HP technical service. After my personal experience, it would be a compliment to call their service incompetent. On the first call with HP, I discussed the issues I was having to a technician. She asked me to do various tasks as my computer could not be remotely accessed by HP. The call was concluded with her telling me to call back should the problem arise after I had taken specific actions. The problems still persisted and I called again. The phone was answered by a man who spoke broken English. I asked to be transferred to a different technician and my request was granted. After 5 minutes of being put on hold, I was transferred to another technician. Unfortunately, 10 minutes later the technician transferred me to another department because he informed me that his department was not responsible for HP Envy laptops. After another 5 minutes, the same process repeated until I was finally connected to the HP Envy department. Sadly, the technician decided to hang up on me. On the third call I spoke finally spoke to the right technician. After giving him my ticket number, describing my issues and telling him the previous actions that were taken, he concluded our conversation saying that I should call him when my computer froze...

If you plan on buying HP, beware. Should any issues arise, you will not find any real help at HP.

Buy HP ENVY 17-2090NR Notebook - Silver Now

I must admit that this is the worst laptop I have ever bought in my life and that too for such a huge price.

The bluray player does not read properly. I keep getting the error, "insert disc". The system shuts down so often due to heat.

This occurs especially if you are watching Youtube videos or any other flash content or playing movie. This is very true if you travel around the world where it is hot and humid.

With in a year or two, the laptop has completely crashed with a motherboard failure and now I have to spend money from my pocket again to fix this.

Read Best Reviews of HP ENVY 17-2090NR Notebook - Silver Here

3D is useless !!! On left eye I can see some % of right eye and the same on right eye. So that is very very annoying. Software to veiew 3D is very very slow. To measure time from click button to finaly see picture on screen you not need stoper/watch rather calendar.

I have used many laptops but never seen so bad tuchpad even in 300$ laptops. This itself make the laptop complately usless as a laptop (if you have to carry mouse everywhere).

The speed of this laptop match others in this category but for much lower price without 3D. Speed very good indeed but ...

If you want just a speed get many laptops which are as fast but cheper without 3D

If you want 3D this is not one for 3D look at any high contrast 3D scene and you will see on both eyes nearly same like you will be watching without glasses.

Good points

its very quiet !! Even when really very very hot air coming out the fun are not crazzy like w hair dryier in other laptops.

not bad sound

i like the DVD/BR drive tray-less

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I bought this laptop a few months back ...

I have had nothing but problems with it !!!

With in the first month the heat sink stopped working, had to send it back to Hp to get it fixed.

That took almost 8-10 days..

Then the laptop started crashing every time i would run movies or videos.

I thought it was a problem with the operating system, but technicians at Microsoft told me

that the error number suggested that it was a hardware problem(mostly with the processor or motherboard)

So I had to send it back again to Hp.

I took them 2 weeks to figure out what the problem was even after i specifically told them what was

happening, because the call center person who i spoke to entered the data wrong(even after i repeated it twice)

Now since last week i m again having problems with the laptop.

Its heating up like crazy & shutting down.

I plan to send it back & ask Hp for my money back,

I have learnt my lesson, NEVER to buy Hp again.. Bad products & worse support you will ever find.

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Acer Notebook AOD270-1182;NU.SGCAA.001 10.1-Inch Laptop

Let me first say that this is not my first Acer netbook, nor is it my first Acer computer. I presently own an older Acer Aspire One that took a pretty decent fall a ways back and has a broken screen, which I now just use to control my home automation and security system and cameras (everything else still works, just have to use an eternal monitor.) I also have an Acer desktop computer that I absolutely love and has given me zero trouble which I use for gaming and general computing.

The beginning of May 2012, I purchased TWO Acer Aspire One D270s, one D270-1182 (Burgundy Red) and one D270-1410 (Espresso Black)

PRO:

Both are very light, comfortable sized, and easy to use. I found the price point to be attractive and overall felt it to be a good value. Battery life is good, the mult-gesture touchpad is nice, easy to use the built in webcam and microphone for Skype etc. I bought this pair mainly to skype with my mother while I travel, and for me to surf the web and listen to music as an alternative to my work computer while traveling. My mother has trouble with computers and all other electronics, so I was impressed that she was able to use it comfortably and learn it quickly. The large hard drive also makes it possible for this to be a primary computer for her as well.

CON:

Understandable for a netbook, it is relatively slow, stock from the box. The 1 Gig of RAM that it ships with is way too small to run windows 7 and browse the web quickly or play any large games. While it is passable, those who are used to working with a desktop or full sized notebook will definitely notice the difference. While a RAM upgrade is cheap in terms of parts, it is relatively complicated on this model netbook. To upgrade ram, you must remove the keyboard, many screws and it's a little tricky to get the case completely apart. (There are videos on YouTube that will show you how to do this step by step.) I am a moderate to advanced user, and I performed the upgrade myself in about 30 minutes total, it was a little more complicated than I initially thought it would be but not horrible. (My older Acer netbook has an access port to access the ram, and it was a 30 second, 2 screw upgrade.) This netbook will only recognize 2GB of ram with Windows 7, however I did install a 4GB module. I duel boot in Linux, and Linux does recognize all 4GB. The RAM upgrade made a huge difference, and now I'd say its pretty decently fast for a netbook. My mother was running hers stock on the 1GB of ram and didn't have any complaints.

Double Con, or maybe just my bad luck:

Right out of the box, I had intermittent issues with the screen flickering on BOTH netbooks. It occurs most noticeably and frequently while watching video. This includes while using Skype as well. My mom's D270-1182 also crashed several times while I was setting it up brand new from the box. Then, after she used the computer only a few times, and during a Skype call, her netbook inexplicably shut off and the hard drive died. It was a complete hardware failure of the hard drive, computer would not boot or power up the HD. My diagnosis is a total hard drive failure for an unknown reason. I contacted Acer and they were very good about setting up a warranty repair and sending me a return label for what they are estimating to be a 7-10 business day repair. I just sent it out today, so we'll see how it goes when it comes back.

When setting up the return for her netbook, I asked about the screen flicker issue on both of them, and I was told they do not know of it as a "known bug". I did do some research, and note that several other people are reporting this issue as well. They also gave me a return label for my D270-1410 to return it to investigate the screen flicker issue. So, after less than 60 days, both of them are going back to Acer for warranty repair.

While I'm not thrilled with the double whammy of issues that I had, I'm not going to write them off completely, maybe I just have bad luck... Acer seemed to be very helpful with setting up the warranty service, and I won't know how they do for sure until they come back from Acer. I will update this review once I get them back!

My overall rating:

It's OK, but I wouldn't recommend this model to my friends.

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Apple MacBook Pro MB134LL/A 15.4-inch Laptop (OLD VERSION)

In March 2008, I decided it was time to upgrade from a G4-based laptop to one of the new Intel models. I deliberated back and forth whether the lower priced MacBook would be sufficient or whether to pay the premium for the "Pro" model. Ultimately, I decided upon the MacBook Pro for these reasons.

Construction quality

The aluminum case of the MacBook Pro reminds me of a product made by the Swiss. The build quality is outstanding for a mass-produced device. It feels very substantial, and all the pieces fit together nearly seamlessly. The MacBook's case, however, is made from a high-grade plastic rather than metal. It's nice ... but I found the front edge of the MacBook's case a bit sharp on my wrists as I typed.

Ports

Compared with the MacBook, the MacBook Pro provides an additional USB port plus Firewire 800. The latter is desirable for people who work with video and external drives that have Firewire 800 connectors. The ExpressCard slot is useful for future expansion and services such as wireless broadband (EVDO).

Keyboard

Keyboard experiences are subjective; but I find the keyboard on the MacBook Pro the most comfortable of any laptop I've ever used. It feels solid and responsive. Plus, its backlighting is helpful when typing in dark environments.

Dedicated video

Unlike the MacBook that shares system memory for video (integrated graphics), the MacBook Pro has a dedicated video processor. This is beneficial for driving large external displays and running graphics-intensive applications.

Is the MacBook Pro worth the $700 price differential over a MacBook? That depends on whether you are a general home computer user (i.e., e-mail, web browsing, iTunes, word processing) or someone who uses their laptop for more advanced purposes. My user profile is more in the second category. Also, since I intend to keep this computer for three years, I figure that the premium breaks down to about $233 each year. This seems reasonable to me for something I use every day.

In view of the additional quality and benefits that the MacBook Pro offers, I think its higher price brings with it commensurate value. It's hard to imagine even finicky laptop users being disappointed with the MacBook Pro.

P.S. -There are two 15-inch MacBook Pro models. I bought the 2.4 gHz "entry level" model. It is the better value. I do not feel the 2.5 gHz MacBook Pro is worth the extra $500.

Also, people who care to add system memory (beyond the stock 2 gigabytes supplied by Apple) ought to purchase it from a third-party vendor and install it themselves. It is a simple process.

Short and Quick Review

This model is worth the 500 difference between the entry level. The screen is beautiful, the new LED Displays are great, better color depth, more color, the laptop doesn't get as hot as previous versions. Everything works, it is very fast, and this laptop replaced 2 high end workstations + 2 high end laptops (A dell with workstation class graphics card, and 17 inch macbook pro). I can edit 1080p high def video in real time with no slow down, edit my 12mp raw files in real time with no slow down. I can play the latest games like Call of Duty 4 maxed out on windows vista at native resolution with no slow down online.

With the beefy 250gb HD, ability to upgrade to 4gb of ram, the 512 graphics card, and 6mb cache, this machine is a complete replacement for me, and revolutionizes my life, work style, and workflow.

It is worth buying, and definitely better than the 2k version, by leaps, read my longer review for more.

Longer Fuller Review.

The new macbook pros are fantastic! I had a 17 inch core 2 duo before, it was nice, but it didn't do everything I wanted or needed. I was forced to keep my mac pro, and my custom built windows PC for running the applications I need, and the ability to play games (I do some freelance game design, as well as photography and animation work)

I grew tired of having so many workstations, but what can you do when you need the power? Apples new macbook pro has answered my needs. I have wanted a laptop with a 512mb graphics card for years, it has never happened until now.

Previous to this laptop, my laptops have been "toys" the only close workstation I had was a dell that cost close to 3k, and would break your back to carry it (but it had a 512 workstation class graphics card!)

With this laptop, I have sold my other machines, it is all I need, or want. If it meets my needs and expectations, it should be able to meet yours easily.

The reason you buy this model, is because of the graphics card, and the increase in l2 cache on the processor. The 2k model has less cache than last years santa rosa model (3mb compared to last years 4mb) this model and the 17 inch has 6mb, as well as the 512mb graphics card, dual core processor, and the ability to use 4gb of ram.

After getting the laptop, I use bootcamp to repartition the harddrive (did not need to reinstall OS X, was able to do this on the fly to install windows) I split it up to give me 165gb for OS X, and the rest for windows.

I need to use specialized software that requires windows, and these programs also require very high end workstations. The life of someone in 3d is not easy. This workstation takes care of all my needs. I'm running the 32 bit version of vista ultimate (the 64 bit is horrible, do not run it) I use windows to run the programs I need (mainly zbrush, unreal engine, and 3ds max) I can and do have maya, and can use it on this partition as well as os x thanks to the dongle, but I cannot use my creative suite software on windows, because of adobes licensees. (though oddly enough, I can run Lightroom on both platforms)

On my OS X side, I run maya, photoshop, after effects, and final cut studio (with shake 4.1, yes I need 2 compositing programs) I have no problems running these programs on this system. I can render out quickly, everything is snappy. With the 8600 geforce (opposed to ATI) maya is very responsive, and I get very few render errors. Dynamics are able to be rendered on this machine, and I can run simulations with ease. Render times are quite quick, and this system is very responsive.

I do photo editing, and this machine is fast as well (I upgraded to 4gb of ram myself for 95 dollars) my camera is a nikon d300, which is 12mp, I use lightroom and photoshop extensively, and at the same time with no problems at all.

I also run maya and photoshop cs3 together all the time (with itunes in the background).

With leopard, I find using this machine even better. I can use spaces, and have maya on one screen, then I can swtich to another screen with photoshop to paint textures, or reference something, and go to another screen for safari or itunes.

The touchpad is cool. Even in windows, I can right click by using both fingers on the touch pad, and clicking with the bar, very smart apple! it works in OS X as well (but you have to enable it)

I bought the apple keyboard (not the wireless, as I need a full size keyboard) and that keyboard is fantastic, the best I have ever owned. I love it. I also bought the logitech g9 mouse to use as my mouse (I cannot stand Mighty Mouse) this mouse is perfect, and similar price. With the wired keyboard you get use ports on the side, so you can attach the mouse to the keyboard with no problems. And it saves on clutter.

For those who enjoy playing video games (I do help make them) you will be happy to know you can play the latest games on PC here with great ease. I can play call of duty 4, at native res of 1440x900 (on vista) with little to no slowdown. Same for Unreal 3 (and all games that use this engine). I can play Half Life 2 and Team Fortress 2 maxed out all the way, at the native screen res, with no problems at all. I can play crysis, and bioschock (not maxed out, but pretty close).

I have not been so excited about a laptop in ages. I had the original powerbook and used it all over, but it was slow, it was something to use when on the road, and at school. When the first macbook pro came out, I was all over it, the software was buggy, it only allowed 2gb of ram, and it was not practical as my only system, nor was it applicable for heavy use by me. I got the 17 inch when the core 2 duo's came out, it was great, very snappy, and with the 256 card it was close to everything I need (but only 3gb of ram) I skipped the santa rose, as It did not really address anything. This model addresses everything. With 4gb of ram, 2 cores, 6mb of l2 cache, and a 512mb graphics card, there is nothing I cant do.

I edit HD video (1920x1080p) in final cut with no problems. I composite this video in shake with 3d made in maya with NO PROBLEMS. I play high end PC games maxed out with no problems! (Call of Duty 4 is a hard game to run, this runs it and I can play it maxed at native res, online, with no slowdown at all).

I work on my raw images from my nikon with no problems at all. This machine is just perfect. Everything works the way it should, and the way it needs to.

The only complaint I have is they did not include remotes in this revision. You can still access Front Row by using Command ESC and use that to view videos (which look very good on my HDTV).

I should also note, if you buy another keyboard (such as the apple external which I highly recommend (the wired, not wireless) You need to go into system preferences and turn off the optiion for F Keys, as this keyboad has an FN button, like the one on the laptop, and renders using your f keys impossible without pressing fn, turning on that option, makes your keyboard normal, and you can use fn to adjust the volume of your laptop.

Right now I have this laptop hooked up to my HDTV using the supplied DVI to VGA cable, and a line out form the laptop. I have sound on my tv (which I could pipe to a sound system if needed, or (what I do) have it piped to my wireless head phones). This laptop is where it is at.

Please, do not think the 500 dollars for this model over the other is not worth it, as it is very much worth it. The difference between this model, and the 2k model is night and day for me. It goes from a toy, I can use when on the plane, to my only computer! And that is HUGE if you are anything like me.

Now the difference between this and the 17 inch does matter. If you get the 17 inch, you will likly not be playing the latest games at native resolution, and I plan on using this hooked up to my TV, so I do not need 2 extra inches. If you will only be using the laptop, and have no plans on games, the 17 inch may be better for you. After reading many reviews, the 15 inch has better response times, and everything is slightly snappier than the 17 inch, which is why I went with the 15. There is not much a difference in size between the 2, the 17 is not much bigger than the 15, but for me, you could not get me to part with my 15 inch for anything.

This laptop is perfect, get it, and enjoy it. The design will likely change by the next revision (rumored in june / july) this could be the last time you can get such a beautiful laptop, that works perfectly, and is everything you can want.

5 out of 5, no problems at all.

Buy Apple MacBook Pro MB134LL/A 15.4-inch Laptop (OLD VERSION) Now

As my second Apple purchase (first being an IPOD Touch 16GB) I am quite upset. This is my first Macbook and I am Impressed with several things. Performance, Build, Style, Sound, Touch pad responsiveness and Overall quality get perfect 10's in my book. However, the reason for the 2 star rating was the quality of the display.

Do a little researching on YELLOWING and you will know what I'm talking about. The first MBP I received from amazon had about 2 inches of yellow (stained) pixels at the bottom of the screen. I brought it to the apple store and the guy noticed it and offered a replacement, warning me that if I take the replacement I am risking getting a worse display. He opened a brand new box for me and the display had no yellowing but had BRIGHT SPOTS all over the place. This affected more of the middle of the screen so I went back a second time for my third replacement. This MBP has also disappointed me because it also has YELLOWING on about the bottom third of the screen.

Still, I am debating of going back to the Apple store to replace or just simply return this laptop and go with something else. Keep in mind I have owned this for 7 days total. This is a very valid issue and for a $2000 plus investment it is something to consider.

This is a known problem since the SR MBP's and I thought they would have fixed it in quality control but no. I will give Apple credit for great quality service, but they should really spend more money on quality control!

I have the Macbook Pro 15.4" 2.4GHz 200GB.

The displays affected were the 9C81, 9C81 and 9C83... two had yellowing, one had uneven bright/dark spots.

Read Best Reviews of Apple MacBook Pro MB134LL/A 15.4-inch Laptop (OLD VERSION) Here

I am looking at this machine and thinking hard, but just can not find anything negative. OK may be it might be more convenient if it accept usual headset microphones in the inline plug or display can be opened a little bit further. You see after a week of heavy use, these are the only things I can think of.

It is cool, it is fast, and it is silent (I am very picky about fan noises). Multi-touch trackpad (amazing two finger scrolling), backlit keyboard, LED backlit gorgeous display (best blacks I've ever seen in any computer monitor), great audio output (with no hiss at all), mini iSight with superb image quality, all top quality. And of course the best operating system on the planet, you can't get anything better even if you are a billionaire (think about it).

PS: I have the 15.4 inch, 2.4 GHz CPU, 200 GB 7200 RPM HDD, 4 GB RAM model.

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There was no reason for me to switch to a Mac product. I've always have been intrigued, but XP was doing it for me day in and out. My current Dell Latitude was on its way out and I wanted something high quality. I couldn't find anything that comes close in build quality/finish to the Macbook Pro. Asus makes some nice notebooks but I didn't want Vista, with all of its assorted issues and XP doesn't seem like a sound choice given its looming end of life.

So now I have my Macbook Pro. As a software developer I was drawn to the idea of a UNIX shell as a first class citizen (sorry Cygwin). The toughest part is learning the keys. In XP I could move around an IDE effortlessly, with keys: home,end,ctrl-arrow etc.; not so on the Mac keyboard. This proved the most frustrating. The lack of the forward delete is also a disappointment but I hear there are keyboard mapping solutions.

I installed VMware Fusion and XP for initial comfort and to ease the transition off windows. BTW, Fusion is amazing. It feels like it's native, and it's definitely faster than XP on my current Dell. With Fusion, I can map drives, cut and paste and access servers between the two -it's all very fluid. Full screen your Fusion in a different Expose window and you can quickly swap back and forth between Mac and XP.

Now the downside. In the first few days I experienced no less than 4 crashes, where it had to be power cycled. I haven't had any issues since, so I'm going to conveniently forget. Firefox crashes still, but no more than it did on windows, and maybe less.

So in conclusion, Mac was the right choice for me. High quality in and out and at a decent price. The interface is pure eye candy and orders of magnitude superior (usability-wise) than XP. While there will be some pain points in learning, it will hopefully be worth it. Get VMware Fusion and install Windows for when there is no Mac alternative.

*UPDATE* I have now had the macbook pro for 2 months. I'm really enjoying some of the UI features, such as expose and spaces more and more. The hotkeys are awesome (e.g. show desktop, lock/start screensaver).

There are however a few recurring problems that I have been experiencing. I'm going to detail the top two. The first issue is the screensaver hotkey stops working at times. This is a huge issue because it is also the mechanism for locking my computer, and I cannot leave my desk w/o locking it, so I must either close the lid (sleep) or restart, which fixes the issue.

Now for the second issue: often when I try and restart/shutdown, it does nothing, then a minute later tells me that Finder failed to quit and I should quit Finder then try again -great suggestion Apple, given that you CAN'T QUIT FINDER!! So now I have to hold the power button down for 10 seconds to kill it or run "sudo shutdown -r now" from Terminal.

So in my latest conclusion, my mac is not living up to my expectations of reliability. I was led to believe, by many in the mac community/stupid commercials, that Mac was the panacea from XP. The Mac user interface is *unmatched* and that along with the UNIX foundation were and still are my original reasons for choosing Mac. My previous XP Pro notebook however was significantly more stable. The reliability issues are getting more and more annoying and I just hope Apple is able to resolve and restore my faith in their product. Lastly, I would change the star rating to three but it won't seem to let me.

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Samsung Series 3 NP300E5C-A02US 15.6-Inch Laptop (Blue Silver)

I give the Series 3 four stars, minus 1 for the crappy touchpad sensitivity. See Con comment below.

Pros:

Xlnt display resolution

Aesthetically appealing to the eye; cover is brushed 'ribbed' aluminum with 2" black band at rear.

Wide keys, short pressure, positive feel

Full numbers keypad on right

Single screw holds cover to memory and HDD, makes for easy swap out

No dumb WiFi on/off switch front panel, prevents accidentally switching off connection

A full pound lighter than Dell

Strong solid looking hinges

i5-3210M Ivy Bridge, HD4000 controller works as designed

3MB L3 cache

CON: The super sensitive touchpad.

**First thing first; Use the touchpad to set screen size, then go to ctrl panel, Synaptics Touchpad to disable BOTH one-finger and multi-finger gestures. If you don;t this is what you can expect:

1. Sensitivity -horizontal AND vertical scrolling is at the next to last slowest speed.

2. If the left palm is within 1/8-1/4" proximity of the touchpad, the touchpad shrinks or enlarges your screen on its own. Tapping an resetting screen size constantly is annoying. Mostly dues to far left placement of the pad, not centered.

3. Email composes start @ 14+ font then shrinks to 10 and back and forth and back and forth all over the place. When composing the font size appears normal. When the display size changes the fonts do to but they never reset to the last display. Major bug.

More CONS:

1. Annoying bloatware

2. Power cord on left, I prefer right

3. No keyboard backlite

4. OK Samsung memory, 1x4GB & 1x2GB, latency 11-11-11-28. This was swapped for new 2x4Gb sticks

5. Big hunky/clunky 750GB SATA HDD. This was swapped for an SSD. Boot time is now 9 seconds. HDD being used as an external drive

6. Weak/low L1 & L2 cache [256kb]

7. Samsung online Chat Support is h-o-r-r-i-b-l-e. They're absolutely brainless and will waste your time. With a rating of 1 to 10, I generously give them a -10 [minus ten]. Do your own troubleshooting.

8. Battery life claim is up to 6.3 hrs. Even at the lowest setting the best I can get is 4.5 hrs, as indicted in the notification bar.

Don't forget to check the update page. The i5-3210M is fast for a tier 2 CPU, better than other i5's as it does turbo from 2.6 to 3.1GHZ.

The Atheros wireless card that came installed in this laptop was defective and wouldn't hold a connection no matter what network it was connected to. I contacted Samsung and they confirmed that it seemed to be a hardware issue. I returned it and got a replacement laptop. Same issue. I did some research and these cards are just bad. It's a shame because otherwise, the computer is great, but trying to deal with the all the internet issues and hardware problems were beyond frustrating. Terrible experience.

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This laptop is awesome!!! I am a full time student and use it primarily for school, not gaming. It does have an integrated HD graphics card which gives an excellent graphic performance for watching videos or just browsing the web. The i5 processor accompanied with 6GB of RAM makes this laptop super-fast. Out of the box the Windows Experience Index rates this laptop at a 5.7. You can check you WEI by going into the Computer>System Properties> Windows Experience Index. It rates a 5.7 because of the Graphics card, the processor and RAM rate at 7.1 and 7.4 respectfully and the hard drive rates at 5.9. This computer has room for improvements if you want make some upgrades, upgrading the RAM to 8GB and swapping out the hard drive for a solid state will make this thing ridiculous and raise the index on it considerably, especially if you are using for the same thing that I am which is mostly school work and emails.

I have always hated using touchpads on laptops until I started using the touchpad on this one. The pad is large and the so are the buttons, the pad also lets you do multi finger gestures. You can pinch to zoom, two fingers lets you scroll up and down, and three fingers lets you navigate forward and backward. You also have the ability to turn off the touchpad altogether by holding down the Fn key and hitting F5. There are many other features to this laptop that it makes it great like the sleep function when you close the laptop. The laptop is sturdy and is of good design, esthetically it looks great and the sound from the speakers is loud and clear. The boot time is under a minute, I have never timed it but it is significantly faster than my old computer. It also runs cool so no need for a cool pad.

Aside from all the positive things that I have to say about the laptop there is a few negative. I have experienced some malfunction when browsing with Facebook. Sometimes when I try to navigate to Facebook the browser throws up an error and I cannot logon. This could be a problem with Facebook or the browser that I am using, either way the problem is only intermittent and is not too much of an inconvenience. I have also on occasion heard when opening a file or a link that plays audio the speakers will make small pop before playing. These are all problems that I have yet to address but I think are very fixable. All in all this is an excellent laptop for the price and is very versatile and sturdy enough to last for several years. I give it 4.5 out of 5!

Manual:Recommended RAM upgrade:

Crucial CT2CP51264BC1067 8GB 204-PIN PC3-8500 SODIMM DDR3 (4GBx2)

Or:

Samsung Electronics Extreme Low Voltage 30nm SODIMM 8 Dual Channel Kit DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM MV-3T4G3D/US

Recommended hard drive upgrade:

SAMSUNG 830 Series 2.5-Inch 64GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-7PC064B/WW

Read Best Reviews of Samsung Series 3 NP300E5C-A02US 15.6-Inch Laptop (Blue Silver) Here

I bought this item recently and am wondering why , when i open up experience index, my cpu is reading at 2.5 ghz

Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-3210M CPU @ 2.50GHz 7.1

Memory (RAM) 6.00 GB 7.5

Graphics Intel(R) HD Graphics 4000 5.1

Gaming graphics 1696 MB Total available graphics memory 6.5

Primary hard disk 618GB Free (675GB Total) 5.9

Determined by lowest subscore 5.1

somebody help! :)

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Purchased this Samsung Laptop (NEW) as a Christmas gift from "City Electronic" thru Amazon.com. AVOID BUYING FROM THE THIS SELLER.... Here is why. When this laptop arrived, it started to BLUESCREEN from the beginning..having some knowledge of Windows machines..I ran a hardware check and found that the Ram or memory was defective. I immediately contacted the seller and ask for a refund or exchange...the seller told me to contact Samsung and refuse to take it back...called Amazon and filed a complaint...because third party sellers must have a 30 day return or exchange policy ...but that did not matter, because the seller was still allowed to sell the same new Laptop thru Amazon.com...Called Samsung and was told mail it to them at my expense and it wound take 3-4 weeks for it to be repaired...later I purchased ram for $42.18 and asked the seller to pay for that ( he did) later after seeing the claim...I swapped out the ram and the laptop worked perfectly (note) the door to the ram and hard drive...is made of very cheap plastic, has to be bent into place for it to fit...I did buy a 3 year SquareTrade warranty for this laptop...did not think that that I should be having to use it 7 days after a new purchased that comes with factory warranty... the seller and Amazon.com let me down....Samsung just has slow and bad customer service...LIKE MOST BIG COMPANIES...bigger is not better. look closely at the seller's return policy before buying from them....good customer service is not important most companies...their bottom line seems to be more profit.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_201077750_RRlandingCantReturn?nodeId=201077750

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Fujitsu Lifebook LH532 i5-3210 Notebook

Fujitsu is not as well known as other Japanese manufacturers, such as Sony or Toshiba, but Fujitsu makes absolutely great notebook computers, and when you compare features to prices, you cannot beat Fujitsu for value. The Lifebook LH532 i5 has more and better features that the Sony Vaio, which costs $250-300 more. The quality is excellent and the 24/7 service is great.Fujitsu Lifebook LH532 i5-3210 Notebook

The only drawback I have with it so far is the weak speakers but I did not necessarily buy it for the speakers much more the functionality of a laptop. I also dislike how the swiping method from outside the mousepad onto the mousepad alternates open windows but I am sure I can edit that once I figure out more of the operating system.

Seller experience: It was a bit confusing due to the fact that the seller sells products on both Amazon and Ebay. I wanted two of these units however one sold on eBay during my purchase of two. I had great feedback from the seller and we cancelled the order and I just had to reorder the one he had left. It was tedious but at least he is up front and honest.

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HP Pavilion g7-1255dx Notebook PC

I am not the easiest person to please. I actually work on computer hardware and software for various clients, in the field, mobile. So, I needed something to meet my standards which are very high. This machine is beautiful silver finish, but whats inside will blow you away! Whisper quiet and cool. The quality of this laptop is outstanding. Love It, Love It, Love It....Very powerful Intel 2nd Gen core i3, 4gb ddr3 (up to 8gb upgradeable), 500gb hd, gorgeous LCD LED 17.3 inch screen, full size keyboard with numeric keypad. Advanced power control functions. Incredible sound. This list can go on and on forever! Check the specs for yourself and then be "wowed" by the low price! Get one while you can !!! HP sets the bar very high for quality and innovation...

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HP Biscotti 17.3" G72-259WM Laptop PC with Intel Pentium T4500 Processor, 4GB Ram, 320GB Hard Drive

We were not sure about purchasing a refurbished laptop, but with my husband using it on deployments it was imperative he have one AND that we not spend a fortune just in case.

Setup was easy, everything is working just great!

Thank you so much for having this option we will follow suite for our next purchase.

its great works wonderful great investment screen and clarity is a wow shipped on time and in complete package..very very happy

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I had my HP for about 2 weeks before it broke. I took it to best buy and they told me the dc port wouldnt charge. It wouldn't turn back on at all. Thank goodness I didn't have anything important on it. I am currently sending it back to the company for a refund.

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Dell Latitude D830 15.4" Laptop (Intel Core 2 Duo 2.2Ghz, 160GB Hard Drive, 4096Mb RAM, DVD/CDRW Dr

Now i was really skeptical about buying this laptop because it looked a little too good to be true, but wow am i glad i did. If your looking for a gaming or hightech laptop, this is not for you. This laptop would best suit a business proffesional. I've only had it for 2 weeks but its already exceeded my expectations. Im very happy with my purchase. The only con that i could truly say bothers me is that the battery only lasts about 40 minutes off the charger so im gonna have to go and purchase a new battery, but for the price of a 2.4 ghz duo core, 160hd, 4gbs of ram, theres not much complaining here.

I have been working on computers for 20+ years, installing, upgrading, repairing and using them. Dell is the only computer that I would recommend if anyone ever asks me. I have setup and sold several of these refurbished Dells and everyone loves them and the price.

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Acer Aspire TimelineX AS5820T-6401 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black Brushed Aluminum)

I was on a budget when shopping for my new laptop, and I did a lot of research. In the end, I went with this Acer. There were three primary aspects that sold me on this laptop, i5 CPU, slim profile brushed aluminum design, and 6000mAh rated battery.

Other features on this laptop are pretty common in the $630 price range. The screen is clear and vibrant. The actual hard drive space is 581GB with the operating system taking 30GB, so you are left with 551GB. This should be plenty more than enough for most users. These days, I almost never look at the hard drive capacity when purchasing a new computer. I think all of them have a hard drive that is big enough for me. What I care more is its clocked speed. This is not a gaming machine, so don't expect the laptop to play heavily 3D rendered games. It will play HD videos and casual games fine.

=====Battery Test=====

1). Default brightness and volume halfway, laptop gets around 4.5 hours for watching YouTube videos with no other application running in the background.

2). Default brightness and volume halfway, laptop also gets around 4.5 hours for browsing the web, chatting on an instant messenger, and playing music using Windows Media Player.

3). Brightness to its lowest but not turning off the screen and idling the laptop without any application running, it will last 10+ hours.

Overall the laptop does not achieve its claimed 8-hour limit under practical use. For most users, you will probably end up between 4 and 5 hours, but this is still better than 2-3 hours that you could get from other competitors in this price range.

########################################

Here I'm going to list the pro's and con's of this laptop that I think are relevant in the $630 price range.

=====Pro's=====

*** 2.66GHz Intel Core i5-480M dual-core processor (hard to find an i5 CPU in this price range)

*** 640GB SATA hard drive (more than most competitors in the same price range)

*** 1.3-megapixel HD webcam (some competitors are still using non-HD webcams)

*** 6000mAh rated battery (4400mAh rated battery from almost all other competitors in the same price range)

*** One of the thinnest 15.6" laptops currently available on the market (however, it is not thinner than the MacBook Pro as pointed out by other reviewers but only a fraction thicker)

*** Multi-Gesture (a convenient feature normally doesn't exist in this price range. To use the circular-motion, you must start your finger from the top right hand corner. This can also be accomplished by sliding with two fingers vertically.)

=====Con's=====

*** 1066MHz RAM (this is nowhere to be considered slow as most competitors and last generation of MacBook Pro are using RAMs clocked at this speed also, but some have upgraded to 1333MHz RAMs such as the Dell Inspiron)

*** No Bluetooth (personally I almost never use this, but this is no longer a premium feature)

*** Keyboard (not a major issue but typing on this keyboard feels a bit awkward. If you are a fast and heavy typist, you might not like this.)

########################################

Apple has been setting benchmark on many things. The hardware specs on their 2011 MacBook Pros will likely to set the benchmark for upcoming PCs as well. Here, I am going to compare the hardware specs between this Acer and the 2011 base 13.3" MacBook Pro priced at $1,199.

* CPU: Acer's processor is slightly faster.

>>> Acer: 2.66GHz Intel Core i5-480M dual-core processor (2.93GHz with Turbo Boost)

>>> MacBook Pro: 2.3GHz Intel Core i5-2410M dual-core processor (2.9GHz with Turbo Boost)

* GPU: MacBook Pro has the second generation of Intel GPU whereas Acer is using the first generation of Intel GPU.

>>> Acer: Intel HD Graphics with 128MB of dedicated system memory

>>> MacBook Pro: Intel HD Graphics 3000 with 384MB of shared system memory

* RAM: Both have the same capacity, but MacBook Pro's is clocked faster.

>>> Acer: 4GB of 1066MHz DDR3 RAM

>>> MacBook Pro: 4GB of 1333MHz DDR3 RAM

* Hard drive: Both are clocked at the same speed, but Acer doubled the amount of capacity.

>>> Acer: 640GB 5400-rpm SATA hard drive

>>> MacBook Pro: 320GB 5400-rpm SATA hard drive

* Battery: Acer actually has a stronger battery, but MacBook Pro has a more energy efficient OS and a smaller screen, so real life battery test can still favor the MacBook Pro.

>>> Acer: 6000mAh rated battery

>>> MacBook Pro: 5800mAh rated battery

Overall I think the Acer stacks up against the 2011 base 13.3" MacBook Pro very well in terms of hardware specs. For almost half the price, this Acer is a bargain. If you are not loyal to any brand, on a budget, and want a fast and long lasting 15" laptop, this is one of the best options out there. If you are waiting for the price drop of Intel second generation of Core processors, don't bother. There really aren't that many changes between the first and second generations of Intel Core processors. It could also take several months before we would see the price drop. I would recommend picking this up before it's gone.

I was surprised after reading the first and only review gave this machine 3 stars.... This is a five star machine. I did A LOT of homework before getting this computer. If you read the reviews of similar models that simply have smaller hard drives and slower processors, you will get the jist of just how solid this laptop is.

I am not going to go into a lot of detail, but if you go into the purchase understanding that this laptop does not have bluetooth (not an issue for me at all), then you will love it!

I got this for my daughter for an early graduation present and to take on to college next fall. She wanted a laptop that had longer battery life than MOST computers. It does! You will not find a model with these specs, for this price with longer battery life. You will have to get a smaller screen size to do that. She wanted it large enough to watch a movie or tv show via the internet from time to time (plus it has the HDMI out to hook to TV). She wanted a hard drive large enough to hold all her pics and songs. We put everything on there already (tons of pics and about 1500 songs) and it still has 528 GB left! If you need a computer with more storage, you should GET AN EXTERNAL DRIVE! Geez! You can get 2 TB drive for less than $100 at Newegg.

And I would like to add that NO hard drive is going to yeild the space that is advertised because of two main factors 1) It is measured differently by the operating system vs. the manufacturers (about 7% less)which is true of of all hard drives! Of course this disparity becomes more apparent the larger the hard drive (7% of 640 is almost 45 GB!).

2) Hey folks! There is a thing called the OPERATING SYSTEM that uses some space. And sometimes there is a separately partitioned drive (d:) that is embedded within the c: drive used for system restore. Yes, it may come to a surprise to some, but the operating system does take up some space! So no, this laptop will not have 640 GB of free hard drive space when you boot it up for the first time, but seriously, many are trashing it for this reason when they are simply ignorant of why.

Also attractive about this computer is the processora Core i5. This computer is twice as fast as my Gateway NV52 that I am typing on right now. It has twice the hard drive space of my Gateway. It has at least thrice (that means three times!) the battery life of the Gateway. Sure, you may not get 8 hours, but that was the official measurement using the MobileMark 2007 Productivity test, which is what most use by the way. Like ALL the battery life ratings out there, take it with a grain of salt because they are ALL stretching the truth.

It is also lighter than my 2 year old Gateway, however it seems more solidly built. And the Acer was just a little bit more than Gateway I bought less than two years ago. This is the nature of electronic/computers though. I got a good price on the Acer for my daughter though[..] and free shipping from B&H. I suspect more retailers will sell it for around that price for the pre-graduation sales soon.

Again, I doubt you will do any better for the price than this laptop, but more power to you if you do!

Buy Acer Aspire TimelineX AS5820T-6401 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black Brushed Aluminum) Now

It's been about 6 weeks since I started this AS5820T-6401. I have conflicted opinions; on one hand for the cost of this unit, this laptop presents remarkable features that are nicely done.

I'll just mention a couple of my personal favorites:

The processor is robust and quick. Although, I am not a "gamer" and my demands are pretty minimal,so I am not a good judge of its limitations.

The optical drive is an awfully nice feature and performs well.

The keyboard has a good feel.

The inputs and outputs all fuction well, jacks etc make solid connections.

Especially nice, is the Synaptics pad; especially when adjusting "momentum" "sticky borders"etc. This is the 1st time I actually prefer the feel more than many quality "mice" that I've used.

Although, the speakers are not loud at all,the quality of sound is very good; flat throughout the audio spectrum [that's a goods thing];especially apparent when using good headphones or more particularly, when outputting into my ampified sound system.

NOW for the conflict: and the reason I'm doing this review; there is a problem that I have, and some others have also encountered, something appears to be wrong with the BIOS or some driver as best as I can tell. A number of times the boot up never completes with it just "frozen" with the fan running etc. well before loading any windows components.

Having said this, I admit to not being a technician BUT, I've reloaded the OS using the factory backup and still have this periodic problem, especially curious that it happens the 1st time I start it in the day but I can "restart" many times later that day, without problem [its warmed up?] This is not right. Digging into any Acer support site is futile so far, and it appears this is not an isolated problem and its not clear that Acer is going to do anything about it. So be careful before investing too much in personallizing your laptop. If its a BIOS problem, that's not so good.

So, CAUTION, before loading up your music, videos, and many other time consuming programs, notice any problems over a few days , no matter how painful the wait> I can testify I am not happy to have gone through the hoops I've now jumped through and still there is something wrong with startup. I don't want to now stuggle trying to find out how to replace what may be a lemon laptop that I've now had 2 weeks over Amazon's return policy......

Read Best Reviews of Acer Aspire TimelineX AS5820T-6401 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black Brushed Aluminum) Here

I'm a programmer, so I can be pretty hard on a laptop. This is my third Acer and I have not been disappointed with any of them. When comparing prices, I ended up choosing this particular model for the screen resolution, memory, processor, keyboard, and case style.

Pros:

*Value for money. Acer consistently has the best bang for the buck.

*Battery life. On the first full discharge I got around 6 hours by using Acer's power save mode and just light internet surfing.

Cons:

*Squeaky keyboard. I bought this model specifically because of the feedback others had given the keyboard. This could be all in how I'm using this laptop (usually sitting on the couch), but a few keys squeak--just an annoyance.

*Eject button for CD/DVD drive. It's located above the keyboard and not on the drive itself. Without taking everything apart to look, that seems to be a point of failure to me--not sure how easy it would be to switch the drive out either.

Other thoughts:

*I have it dual booting Fedora 14 and Windows 7. It took me a little while to get the mouse working the way I wanted it to in Fedora because I've become so used to two-finger scrolling. Using the 64-bit version cleared that right up. The wireless card is a Broadcom (should have checked that...) which requires a kernel mod, not a big deal, just something to be aware of.

*When moving from site to site in Windows, the colors seem to be a tad off. This could be just me, but nothing noticeable for me to mark it as a con as it could just be a driver issue.

*The case has a bevel with a trench/notch cut in it that from time to time gets my arm hair caught in it. Just an FYI because that can be painful.

*Speaker quality is lacking. I know, before you say anything--it's a laptop. I have spent the last few years with an HP laptop and absolutely love their speakers. After tinkering with the settings, things are better, but still leaves me wanting more.

All in all, I would say this is a good laptop. It's not a high-end gaming machine, but for general every day use, it's great. It has performed well every time I've opened the case and worked flawlessly. I would definitely reccommend this laptop and the Acer brand.

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I've been shopping around and comparing models from different manufacturers, but keep coming back to this model. I was attracted to the non-assuming professional appearance and slim design. I don't care much for the shiny plastic models that seem to proliferate at the local Best Buy.

I was not disappointed with the appearance when my shipment arrived. It has a very elegant and professional look to it in my opinion. It's slim design is also very attractive.

In addition, it is a very capable machine. The I5-480M inside more than holds its own. I can run MS Word, VisualStudio.Net, MS SQL Server, and SQL Server Management Studio without any problems.

I do a lot of typing and find it very easy to type on this machine. I've read some reviews where people have complained about the placement of the track pad, which I don't quite understand. The track pad, in my opinion, is situated where it should be. Centering it would require you to lift your hand off the keyboard more than necessary.

I don't think it's fair to rate a machine for things it doesn't have, especially when it never claimed to have it in the first place, ie blue tooth, gaming graphics, ...etc. Not very helpful in my opinion.

I can understand why some reviewers are disappointed with the speakers though, it can seem on the quiet side at first. But for myself, I found it quite adequate for my purposes (general business machine). Besides, I found disabling the Dolby features in the Control Panel helped pump up the volume somewhat.

As far as bloatware is concerned, I found that it really didn't have any more than any other laptop. Besides, it was fairly easy to remove any way. In rating, I'm more concerned with things that can't be changed, like video, keyboard feel, ...etc. In my opinion, this laptop deserves high marks for design and performance.

As far as battery life is concerned, I'm actually impressed. I know that a lot of manufacturers exaggerate in the first place, so I wasn't really expecting 8 hours of battery life. I've actually been averaging 5 to 6 hours with typical use, ie web surfing, compiling code, and typing. And that's with high performance enabled. I barely got 1 hour on my older Toshiba, so I'm actually very satisfied.

I found the screen vibrant and clear. Some reviewers commented that the screen was too glossy, but I didn't find it any more glossy than Apple's PowerBook, which has a great screen by the way. Too bad Apple target its product to yuppies more concerned with status symbols, than budget conscious buyers. The comparable Apple machine was 3 times more than this Acer model.

I also tested this machine via a burn in software and it passed without any errors.

*** Review update. ***

I am soooooo disappointed. I returned my first machine, because I was experiencing startup problems. It appeared to hang either before or after loading the bios. All I knew, is that it would not even get to loading windows. Neither restoring to factory default or updating the bios resolved the problem. I was hoping that I just got a lemon and the next one would be better.

I wanted to love this machine so much because of it's aesthetic slim design, unfortunately my next one started to go bad on me too. This time with a different problem. After leaving it on all night playing music videos to run down the battery, the fan would not stop spinning, making an annoying audible sound. I thought it was due to the machine simply getting too hot, but after leaving it off the next night and starting it up cold in the morning, the fan kicked on immediately with an annoying, low droning sound (with sporadic clicking noises), kinda like my desktop pc. The sound would even travel up my headset when listening to music.

I can tolerate the noise that my desktop PC makes, because I am able to shield myself from it by placing my PC under my desk on the floor. Obviously, you can't do the same with a laptop. I was very torn between keeping it or returning it, but in the end, the noise was just too annoying to ignore and it really ruined my initial experience I had with this laptop.

For me, the elegance and quality that Acer was trying to achieve with this laptop was only to be superficial. Apparently, the components inside the machine was not given the same attention to quality as it's exterior. Its unfortunate that Acer has not quite escaped its reputation for low quality and poor reliability, at least for me.

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