Discount Asus Matte Deep Blue Square 14" X401U-EBL4 Laptop PC with AMD E1

Customer Ratings:

I bought this laptop for work and after several months of owning it here are my impressions of it.

In terms of external features, this laptop seems to offer a good bit, sporting an HDMI and VGA port, USB 3.0 port, multitouch track pad and a Webcam. Overall, the features are very good for the price you pay for it.

Internal's on this laptop are on par with other budget laptops. Intel Pentium processor, 2-4GB of RAM and Intel integrated graphics wont hold up running AutoCAD or Photoshop very well but handle essential business apps like Outlook, Word and internet browsing just fine. Some apps like VLC can take up to 20 seconds to load but after loading, they run without issue.

Overall construction isn't the best ive ever seen but its certainly not the worst. Laptop manufacturers these days have moved away from making laptops out of tough matte casing that lasts for years to shiny casing that looks good in-store but holds up poorly in day-to-day use. The casing on this laptop skips the gloss but still attracts some fingerprints and the screen is also glossy though a screen protector should fix that. Overall I've found the casing to be better than other budget laptops but still nothing compared to the casing found on proper business laptops (think Dell Precision and HP EliteBook). However you get what you pay for and for the money its not that bad.

The laptop ships with Windows 7 Home Premium and there isn't too much to be said here in terms of features. The laptop is slowed somewhat by bloatware and the 64bit flavor of Windows 7. However if you're willing to get your hands dirty, re-installing Windows in the 32bit flavor and leaving out the bloatware should speed things up considerably.

Overall you get what you pay for. For the money this laptop is one of the best deals on the market and with a few tweaks on the software side, this laptop will be a perfect companion for basic computing tasks.

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If, like me, you're a normal person (i.e. NOT a techie) wanting to get the real deal on a low price laptop, this is it.

Before Christmas, I read several dozen reviews before purchasing this laptop. The main thing for me was the price, since none of my laptops have lasted more than 3 years, and my last one (Dell-500.00) only lasted 2yrs. So I was very tempted to buy this ASUS, as it was advertised for $325 around the holidays. I didn't really see very consistent complaints on the various websites I looked at (Best Buy, etc), so took the plunge but now wish that I hadn't.

IT's not that this laptop is terrible. It's not. And it certainly has all the features I really needed: Windows 7, webcam, ok speakers, and good screen size. It also is very light--a real plus. It has good battery life so far, doesn't get hot, and doesn't have the annoying keyboard panel that is so common these days (the side panel with the extra set of numbers on it). From a list of externals, the computer fits the bill.

FYI, it does NOT have an internal CD/DVD drive.

also FYI, the speakers are on the bottom of the computer (where your legs hit), which is not a dealbreaker but weird. Ok volume but makes it kind of muted.

The big down side is the touchpad. It's a dealbreaker. A lot of people complained about odd things concerning the touchpad, like the sensitivity, but that kind of thing is fixable if you know what menu you're looking for. What is not fixable is the actual design of the touchpad. Firstly, the right and left click buttons are not raised or separated from the touchpad itself; nor are they distinguished from one another. There is just a line painted on the pad that divides right from left. This means that it is very awkward to click, select, and drag. It's very easy to delete a whole selection you're highlighting, or right click when you mean to left click. Many times I touch/click and nothing happens at all. So far, after a month, my fingers have still not adjusted to this new set up--and I am having a hard time selecting/dragging, etc, accurately and quickly. It seems like maybe something under the pad does not have the right design/sensitivity because I have never struggled with this kind of thing before, not even on those computers which have the raised dot touchpad in the center of the keyboard. This one is just OFF in a funny way.

Also, it seems like the touchpad is located rather left of center. So if you're left-handed, this may be the touchpad for you. But if you are right handed like me, your right hand has to stretch quite a ways over to click/select.

This is definitely the most annoying feature for me, enough to make me wish I had tried it out in the store first. But I also have had some trouble with audio-visual speed/internet speed/printing speed which may or may not be related to the computer--but I sure didn't have trouble with my previous laptop, nor does anyone else experience it on our other house computers. I think it might be a memory/RAM problem because I cannot watch Netflix (or listen to iTunes) and print/surf at the same time. Lots of delays which, like I said, might be a problem with something else but I wouldn't take the chance.

So, if you're on the fence about this machine like I was, and not able to really interpret other reviews to make a good decision, don't take the plunge just to save the money. Maybe try the cheap Toshiba, which is also around $300, and, while heavy, cumbersome, and ugly, didn't have any of these problems.

Best Deals for Asus Matte Deep Blue Square 14" X401U-EBL4 Laptop PC with AMD E1

I got mines from my local Walmart and it's working good!

It plays both 720p and 1080p Youtube videos FLAWLESSLY. Maybe it's my good connection.

My touchpad is working good so far and if indeed gets damage I have a tiny mouse for backup.

I don't need a cd drive as I have always used Usb hard drives.

The HDMI is wonderful , I play a movie and connect this baby to my tv and its awesome!!!

WARNING: IT COMES WITH A LOT OF BLOATWARE , BUT YOU CAN JUST UNINSTALL BUT LEAVE THE ONE THAT SAYS ASUS RECOVERY ALONE.

Honest reviews on Asus Matte Deep Blue Square 14" X401U-EBL4 Laptop PC with AMD E1

I love this lap top. I wanted Windows 7 & this is it. Others said the mouse is too touchy, but there are adjustments built in for the preferred touch. The speakers underneath does hinder the sound. I'm going to purchase an extra speaker, tho.

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I got mines from my local Walmart and it's working good!

It plays both 720p and 1080p Youtube videos FLAWLESSLY. Maybe it's my good connection.

My touchpad is working good so far and if indeed gets damage I have a tiny mouse for backup.

I don't need a cd drive as I have always used Usb hard drives.

The HDMI is wonderful , I play a movie and connect this baby to my tv and its awesome!!!

WARNING: IT COMES WITH A LOT OF BLOATWARE , BUT YOU CAN JUST UNINSTALL BUT LEAVE THE ONE THAT SAYS ASUS RECOVERY ALONE.

UPDATE Please read all

Things you need:

http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-Cruzer-Flash-Drive-SDCZ36-004G-AFFP/dp/B007JR531I/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1351680984&sr=8-2&keywords=4+gb+usb+sandiskYour Windows OEM key which is located on the sticker on the back of you're Laptop

OKAY now to what I want to say

.....I've been starting to get a few problems with this laptop to the point that I wanted to sell it back, But I found out that the OS *operating system* has been modified for some unknown reason and this causes bugs from the keyboard, to the touchpad..AND I found a way to fix it, which is a simple solution. ALSO this makes your Laptop MUCH FASTER...

If you're planning to get this laptop I recommend to buy a 4 gb usb drive and download Windows 7 usb/dvd download tool and burn a Windows 7 Home premium 32/64 bit, ((depending on your Laptop)) ISO file to the Usb drive with the program.

After burning the ISO file to the USB, disconnect it and connect it again.. Start up the Windows Installer and install the new fresh copy and follow instruction

This removes EVERYTHING from your current OS from files to programs BUT DO NOT FEAR..

After installing the OS FORMAT the USB drive and Use another computer or the library to download necessary files from the Asus support website...

and download Atheros Wireless Lan Driver and Application ... and also Foxconn Wireless Lan Driver and Application.. COPY it to the USB drive and put it on your Laptop....

Install these to put Wifi back on your laptop...after you put Wifi back , Use the laptop to download more files, like the bluetooth one or the mouse / touchpad settings one..

Download every file that looks necessary and install them on your Laptop... ALSO do a Windows Update.. BUT you can't do an Update unless you verify that you have a legit copy of windows By going to Start Control Panel System and Security System Scroll down to where it says Windows activation and Activate Now! , use the key on the sticker on the back of your Laptop

DID YOU KNOW YOU CAN ALSO INSTALL UBUNTU ON THIS

ASUS UX31A-DH71 13.3-Inch Zenbook (Silver Aluminum) Reviews

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $1,499.00
Sale Price: $1,179.99
Today's Bonus: 21% Off

I travel on a regular basis and wanted a laptop to carry around. But still want form and function beyond a tablet.

This fits the bill perfectly. I was able to load the few programs I use and documents and still have a great deal of space left, which was my concern on the ultra-books.

Speed? you lift the screen and the unit is on and running. Programs run fast and smooth.

The other review talking about the track pad was correct, however they updated the software for the unit and its totally fixed. In fact right when it updates the first time its powers on this is fixed.

The only difficult section is getting used to the quick gestures that Windows 8 uses to move between programs, scan up and down a page etc. But once you figure them out its pretty quick and intuitive.

Overall this was a great purchase. I have had it for 3 weeks and love it.

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My Sony Vaio VPCSA was only one year old and got stolen from me, so I needed to buy a new laptop. It was quite clear that I wouldn't get the same model again. Just like last year, I spent a lot of time learning about the current state of the laptop market before purchasing the Asus UX31A. So far, I have been very pleased with my choice.

My hard requirements for a laptop are fairly basic:

writing

software development in Linux

the option to play games such as StarCraft 2 and Diablo 3.

possible to carry around every day: ideally not larger than 14"; if 15", then it should be lightweight

no fan noise during office use

battery life > 4 hours

My wish-list included:

very good display

non-glossy display

SSD drive

very good build quality

hybrid graphics card (*)

I learnt quickly that there is no perfect device and that you have to compromise somewhere. Luckily, the only compromise I had to make for the UX31A is the hybrid graphics card (*). It turns out that laptops with a hybrid graphics card are often at least 15" and quite heavy (such as the Macbook Pro Retina 15", which is the only Macbook Pro Retina that has hybrid graphics and is too expensive), and they generally have a relatively bad build quality, loud fans, and a very short battery life (even when the dedicated graphics card is powered off). I considered the UX32VD, but I didn't want to sacrifice both the SSD-card and the excellent build quality of the UX31A just to get a low-end hybrid graphics card.

I am so glad I did compromise on this point! I can play StarCraft 2 and Diablo 3 perfectly fine on customized Mid settings after playing around with some of the settings. Some options that only require RAM and do not depend on the GPU can even be set to High. It is important to manually switch to the "High Performance" power plan in Windows and not use the default "Power4Gear High Performance" since the latter appears to exhibit noticeably worse performance. The graphics still looks very good, and besides, I've heard that StarCraft 2 Pros actually play it on Low. In fact, I feel like these games actually run much smoother now than on my old Sony Vaio, which did have a dedicated graphics card. Maybe this is because you can't use ATI's original graphics driver, but you have to use Sony's outdated version. Furthermore, hybrid graphics has always been a hassle, especially in Linux, and it is annoying to switch graphics cards. It's awesome not to have to deal with this. The Intel HD 4000 appears to be a really decent card.

The display

The Chromebook Pixel, the Macbook Pro Retina, and the UX31A are, at the time of this writing and to the best of my knowledge, the only laptops with high-resolution displays. The gaming requirement meant that I couldn't get the Chromebook Pixel because it's not clear that you can install Windows on it (you can install Linux). The Macbook Pro Retina display is glossy, and apparently, even more prone to reflections than old glossy Macbook displays. The UX31A has an excellent non-glossy display and is a pleasure to work with!

The UX31A and Linux

I installed Ubuntu 12.10 on this device. I ran into some minor issues during the installation, but now that everything is set up, everything seems to work perfectly.

To install Ubuntu 12.10, you either need an external DVD drive or an external storage device. I used a DVD drive. Unfortunately, the computer did not automatically boot from the DVD, and I first had to change the corresponding setting in the BIOS (now called EMI). You also need to deactivate a strange "secure boot" feature in the EMI, as this does not work with Ubuntu.

The Wireless adapter didn't work right away on my device. However, if the USB to ethernet adapter is plugged in before the computer boots, you can get internet this way at the time of installation.

After the installation, going through this guide helped me to set everything up: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/AsusZenbookPrime

It is likely that the installation will be much smoother on Ubuntu 13.04.

Final remarks

The UX31A is sturdy, lightweight, and thin. It is so light that I have to open my backpack to check whether I really put it in there. I really like the keyboard and the display. The trackpad is a bit unusual, but of high quality too. The computer boots in seconds and is fan-free during office use. If you have needs similar to the ones I listed above, consider buying this laptop.

Best Deals for ASUS UX31A-DH71 13.3-Inch Zenbook (Silver Aluminum)

I travel a lot for my job and I thought I would give an Ultrabook a try with touchscreen capabilities, even though I like my trusty Sony Z series lightweight 13" laptop I've had for 2 years.

Bought this on the road at Best Buy and my initial impression was great until the next 5 hotels and other buildings I used it at. Whenever there was even a 2 to 3 bar signal the wifi slowed way down. I even brought out my aging Sony and my Samsung 10" tablet to be certain it was an issue with the computer and not all the crappy wireless signals you can get at certain hotels. It was this computer. Every time I compared it, it was painfully slower than the other 2. Downloads, and playback of video news stories were constantly stopping and starting, while my Sony and tablet just played and downloaded the same files without a hitch.

So I called tech support, downloaded the latest driver, tweaked the power settings to all max, did it all to no avail. Returned the unit and bought another one a few weeks later thinking maybe it was just "that" Asus, and wanted to give it another chance. Same exact problem occurs at every hotel, and now, even at home with blazing fast wifi (50mbps). As soon as I take it even 20' away from the router it fails miserably in general wifi performance. I am a pretty accomplished techie guy and researched the hell out of this noting wifi adapter strength settings in the power settings that I read in other forums. Nothing works to eliminate this problem. Unfortunately I will be returning this one as well.

Too bad really, because in most other ways this is a great ultrabook, which is why I've been trying so hard to make it work. Just have to wait for something better around he corner.

Honest reviews on ASUS UX31A-DH71 13.3-Inch Zenbook (Silver Aluminum)

Would you believe this laptop is not only amazingly thin, light, and fast, but it also supports two external monitors in addition to the laptop screen!? I run one monitor at 1920x1080 over the micro HDMI port and another at 1920x1080 over the micro VGA port.

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I really like this laptop. The screen is bright. The solid state HD makes it fast. The keyboard is lit and has a nice feel. (Yes, the delete key should not be next to the power button, but I've never accidentally shut it off.) The audio is good enough. The camera is excellent. The screen dimming range is less that I would like, but not bad.

The worst thing of all is the touch pad. First off, you must upgrade the driver or it will not work for you at all. I recommend doing all the setup with an external mouse until after you have updated the touchpad driver. Also, spend the time to remove the junk software that comes pre-installed. Note, you can turn off the touch pad from the keyboard using the function key.

Even after you install the new touchpad drivers, life is not good. The left and right buttons are built into the touch pad. They are continuous with the touch-sensitive surface, so I often end up moving the mouse or, worse yet, resizing the text/graphics while trying to click the left or right button. The pad is too large. It is designed for gestures, but it is too easy to accidentally touch the pad while typing. I am a very good touch typist and there is nothing worse than having a sentence jump into the wrong part of the document. The pad is cumbersome at best and burdensome at worst. I use an external mouse when I can, but much of my work is with the laptop on my lap (duh?).

Don't buy this laptop based on specs. The specs are great and it does meet expectations in that regard. But, try one out and see if you can tolerate the touch pad. "Tolerate" is all that I can do.

Best Dell Studio 1537 Black Deals

Customer Ratings:

I purchased this laptop in 2008. I used it mostly for work, and didn't need the sound features much, until this year when I needed to use a variety of sound-based applications for work (SKYPE was one). The sound output is inconsistent at best it works sometimes, then quits. Of course, it's beyond warranty, so I can't do a thing. There are posts all over the web about the sound problems with the 1537. If this were a car, there would be a RECALL and a FIX. If Dell wants to keep its customer base, these issues should be addressed. No one cares about unhappy customers anymore! I don't plan to buy another Dell.

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unlike the other reviews before me i never had any serious issues with this laptop but i do agree that the sound from laptops are pretty useless. i really like the backlit key option and screen is quite nice. My main purpose was graphic design and it worked exactly the way i needed it to but if i was listening to music the headphones weren't too far. performance, design and quality are actually pretty good but it is a pretty heavy laptop. the only time i had any issue is when i switch the video via hdmi to a tv back to the laptop the sound doesnt play so i have to set the laptop speakers as default instead of the hdmi but it's more of an annoyance since it's not broken. for some reason it doesnt recognize that it's switching from hdmi to pc. overall it's a pretty good buy because it's pretty cheap and there is plenty of software. i stopped using it because i am doing more video editing so i picked up a macbook pro. the laptop can handle basic video editing through windows media maker but for what i needed i had to switch to apple. :) i still keep the dell around just as a backup.

Best Deals for Dell Studio 1537 Black

I had continual problems with this laptop. Upon arrival the keypad was flimsy and warped, I sent it back and had it replaced with a less warped keypad. The touch buttons never worked right, ever. There is an annoying blue light around the charger plug that ispart of the design. After 8 months the battery stopped working, Dell replaced it in a timely manner. For the price it is fine, but after 18 months it just died out of no where, of course after the warranty was over. My hubby is an electrical engineer said the bios was fried. Out of warranty Dell was useless, I spent an hour on the phone get transferred from here to there and finally just gave up. My replacement laptop is a lenovo sl 510 thinkpad. It doesn't have the visual oompf of the dell but at least the keyboard doesnt feel cheap and nothing is warped on it.

Honest reviews on Dell Studio 1537 Black

Please do yourself a favor and don't buy this laptop. I had a Dell for 4.5 years before this one and that one worked better!! I "upgraded" last year to this 1537 and it has been nothing but a headache ever since. Don't buy it. I only wish I could rate it less than one star.

Best Dell Inspiron 15 i15RM-3415SLV 15.6-Inch Laptop (Moon Silver) Deals

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $520.99
Sale Price: $499.95
Today's Bonus: 4% Off

We got it for parents, $400 for a 15.6" Dell, i3 third gen, 4 GB RAM, 500 GB HDD, Windows 8. Brushed metal finish.

Overall fit & finish is good and matched any high end laptop, but don't compare with mac books. Its more that what you should expect for the price, looks good, thinner and much lighter than laptops in below $500 range.

The 15.6" screen is bright and clean, viewing angle looks ok, resolution is standard 1366x768. The speakers are loud and clear, much much better than my $800 Sony VAIO with worst ever speakers. The webcam, touchpad, keyboard are all nice and as you would expect.

There are lot of USB ports and a HDMI port. Be careful, there is no analog VGA 15 pin port used to connect to older monitors or projectors, but anyways I don't need it anymore. Optical drive (CD/DVD writer) and SD card readers are built in.

Windows 8 is new to us, very fast boot and shutdown, but would take some time to get used to new user interface. The way START screen works is irritating and I hate the loss of transparent windows and rounder corners, no AERO Glass any more. But under the skin (once you get used to the primitive look and feel, plus the stupid "apps") its still lot of good old windows.

I had a DELL Inspiron 700m 12.1" almost a decade ago and I loved it. And I love this new DELL Inspiron 15R Moon Silver stunning, reliable and solid performer for regular home use. It make me hate my all white Sony VAIO even more, not because its white but more so 'cause of its bad speakers, dull screen, useless blu-ray drive and all the junk for which I paid double the price. I tried out Lenovo, Toshiba and other brands for below $500 which our friends got. This DELL is a winner.

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I love it, It's the same I choose. Exactley hte Dell I choose in my mind. Beautiful display,... Silver moon very nice.....It's mine.

Best Deals for Dell Inspiron 15 i15RM-3415SLV 15.6-Inch Laptop (Moon Silver)

I absolutely love my new Dell Inspiron with Windows 8. It was easy to set up and has so many great features.

Honest reviews on Dell Inspiron 15 i15RM-3415SLV 15.6-Inch Laptop (Moon Silver)

I thought it was a good deal, but just one week after start for two times, it cannot come to normal working state after "sleep" for a few hours, just keep blue screen with only mouse! I can only force restart by power button, which is not good! Now I cannot use sleep function because I cannot figure out what problem it is. That's unexpected for a brand new computer!!!

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Dell Inspiron 15R is the first laptop for my wife. She likes it. However using Windows 8 was not so easy compare to Windows XP.

Reviews of Dell Computer I15N-2591BK Dell Inspiron I15n-2591bk Intel Ci3-2330m

Customer Ratings:

This dell computer is truly amazing! After having a terrible experience with laptops (bought two acers, both broke within 6 months and acer didn't even bother helping me) this laptop gave me hope. The RAM is just right with 4gb and a 2.30 gh processor this machine is so fast. Its been working great for me, and is good for traveling. I am a DJ and use my laptop for music and it worked great at my first gig a couple weeks ago. I also use it for my personal use and I like my computers super fast. This is perfect. Also Dell is a great company with excellent support. I would recommend this computer to anyone weather it be for personal or business use. Also never buy from Acer I amazed that their even allowed to stay in business with the crap they sell.

P.S. I didn't buy my Dell at amazon I bought it at BestBuy.

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This Dell Inspiron i15N-2591BK Laptop with Intel Core-i3 2330M 2.20GHz. is very Rich Featured Powerful Machine for Every-Day Computing. Portable, Long Battery Life, HDMI Output, Plenty of Storage Space & Budget Friendly.

Best Deals for Dell Computer I15N-2591BK Dell Inspiron I15n-2591bk Intel Ci3-2330m

The laptop arrived in perfect condition. Works perfectly after you get rid of the "advertisements" that one just "must" have. For me its just what I needed.

Review of HP Spectre XT Ultrabook 13t-2100

Customer Ratings:

I own and operate an Internet Service provider. As such I am very demanding of my portable computer.

I often have to debug equipment in field conditions, including operating at the end of a bucket truck boom in the rain, snow or sleet.

In the past our little company has used ASUS 1201-N Netbooks for our field operations. They work well enough to keep the network running, but are cheap enough that if you drop one off a bucket, run it over with a van, leave it at a POP or otherwise destroy it, it won't break the bank.

I bought one of these HP 13t-2100 Ultrabooks to replace my latest 1201-N (R.I.P.). The key difference between this book and other ultrabooks is that this one has a RJ-45 port, which is essential in my line of work.

I have been very happy with my decision. The frame is sturdy and doesn't have any wobble to it. It is substantially faster than the netbook I was using. It is running Windows 8, but don't hold that against it.

The WiFi drivers are top notch. It connects to new networks easily and recovers from sleep mode almost instantly. When it recovers it connects up at once and immediately draws an IP address.

The one I bought doesn't have external media for OS re-installation (really guys, just throw in 32GB USB keychain, I'll even pay extra for it!), instead it uses around 20% of the hard disk to store a "recovery" partition with the OS on it. Since the disk only has 128GB of storage on it, this is kind of a bummer.

Pluses:

Low Cost

Great Battery Life

Solid Feeling

Attractive

Backlit Keyboard

Screen Brightness & Resolution

Hot Keys

Fast Sleep/Wake

Minuses:

Squirrley touchpad (hard to keep mouse on queue)

Recovery partition takes 20% of hard disk

All in all I'd recommend this computer to anyone who needs a lightweight companion that works well, but isn't so expensive that you worry about breaking or losing it.

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If you are looking to purchase this laptop, beware that HP does not support downgrading to Windows 7. Found this out the hard way. I'm not impressed.

Best Ideapad S10-3 - 160GB Deals

Customer Ratings:

I miss the old Thinkpads, I really do. I have a stack of 'obsolete' Thinkpads in a corner. I still use my 5 year old X30 despite it's USB 1.0 standard. The X40 was better until it was time to upgrade the hard drive, a new mini-drive made it more cost-effective to buy a new laptop.

I also own the Dell mini Inspiron and Acer Aspire netbooks. So the Ideapad is equal in the display department, superior in the W I D E keyboard department, but that touchpad, UGH.

Why, Lenovo, WHY? Why did you have to take away the one thing that set IBM apart from the other guys? It's a love-it-or-hate-it issue, but the Trackpoint aka Track Stick aka nipple-mouse aka eraser-mouse, or whatever you want to call it was a thing of genius in my mind.

The touchpad of the Ideapad is ridiculously oversensitive. It's bad enough when you're typing and you inadvertently just ever-so-slightly brush your palm or thumb over the touchpad while furiously setting down your thoughts, and you look up and everything you've typed for the past half an hour is GONE.

Gone because you waved your palm, highlighted your entire text, and deleted everything without realizing it. Clicking UNDO is futile. It's all gone. Forever.

You never had that problem with the eraser-mouse.

But Lenovo had to go and make their new touchpad SO sensitive that a breeze in Nova Scotia is now enough to wipe away all of your deepest thoughts. It also jumps around randomly like a wild rabbit on a sugar bender. Frankly their touchpad a piece of crap. The Ideapad's touchpad is worse than any I've used and they're all pretty bad to start with. Not good for productivity.

I am also not grooving on Windows 7 'starter' as of this moment, and it states clearly on their website that you can happily obtain a 'downgrade' disk for XP by calling their toll-free number.

Don't bother. If you're still an XP fan, make backups of your install CDs and clutch them for dear life until at least Seven-SP2 is released. As much as I love technology, the OS is not supposed to be a video game.

Seriously, all of the netbooks are basically the same, what you're really purchasing is the support when things go bad. I've had generally OK service from Lenovo when that's been the case. Dell has also been responsive as well, I can't yet speak for Acer. BUT the Acer and the Dell are substantially less expensive with the same functionality. And at least they have better touchpads.

And Lenovo? If you're reading this, BRING BACK THE TRACKPOINT.

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Discount Gateway 15.6" Laptop 4GB 500GB | NV56R14u

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $449.99
Sale Price: $359.99
Today's Bonus: 20% Off

Windows 8 has been neutralized with a free program. With a start and shut down button and no flying tiles the unit seems to work well. Still disappointed with MS, dropped a lot starting with the very good media center with junk in return. Downloaded VLC.

The first thing I noticed about this unit was the keyboard, best I have ever used. Large responsive island keys with a light pewter colored border. I am downloading a ton of stuff with no freeze or hiccups so far. Had to install the latest Adobe flash. Good at multitasking, did a big heavy test run. Jump up for me from my dead Compaq 61 AMD dual core. Quite a difference from returned underpowered Asus. Uh oh, slight freeze on NBC replay of AGT. Great price on i3, even previous generation.

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start fast and stay fast. Love the windows 8 by the way. Best windows yet. Definitely recommend it for anyone.

Gateway 15.6" Pentium P6100 2.0GHz Laptop | NV55C03U Review

Customer Ratings:

this computer was a gift for my girlfriend, and she is happy with it. the price was reasonable, and the product is as advertised.

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I got this laptop to use while in college. For the price, it has everything. Works great, good memory and speed. I use it for pretty much everything, work and leisure. Overall performance has been great, on issues whatsoever.

Best Deals for Gateway 15.6" Pentium P6100 2.0GHz Laptop | NV55C03U

I'm a repeat gateway consumer. Early last year, I purchased this laptop to replace my old mx6214 model. Well, a year and a half later, I'm typing this review on the trusty mx6214. It seems that the NV5503 I purchased has a faulty hard drive. Or at least it does not have the hard drive lifespan I would expect. I didn't know that Gateway had been purchased by ACER in 2007. I can't confirm that the buyout had anything to do with the substandard product, but now I get to either figure out how to replace a hard drive and somehow get the OS/files over to the new drive, or get a new computer. Ick.

Honest reviews on Gateway 15.6" Pentium P6100 2.0GHz Laptop | NV55C03U

I took my dad to a computer store and we got this laptop at a decent price. It's solid, great size, and doesn't feel cheap. It has a numpad and worked great for my dad who is of older age. I'd say battery life was 3-4 hours. Keyboard felt good too.

Dell Inspiron 17 i17RV-9909BLK 17.3-Inch Laptop (Black Matte Review

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $649.99
Sale Price: $529.99
Today's Bonus: 18% Off

I am very pleased with this Dell laptop. Initial set up was smooth and subsequent additions of my existing programs went well. I especially like the textured finish on this model. Looks and feels very nice. The 17.3 display is also very nice. The only addition I added was a wireless mouse which makes it almost as complete as my desk top model which I used constantly in my business. The model runs extremely quiet with hardly any noise at all. It should be noted that not everyone might like this size model since it is larger than one might expect, but that is what I wanted for remote work. Overall I am extremely pleased so far and highly recommend this model for anyone looking for a larger laptop with plenty of power for online work and office applications.

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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program I've had prior experience with a 17inch laptop before; i owned a Gateway 6860fx and it was a bad experience. I hadnt used a 17inch laptop since then until i tried this Dell 17inch. After a month of having this in my possession i really like it alot; and would definitely recommend it for those looking for a mid-tier 17inch laptop for everyday use. The following are the notes i've taken in my month with the product:

-I got roughly 3 hours on highest performance setting while watching Netflix. General use, you can easily get 4hours.

-It takes roughly 1min to open from cold boot. From standby it takes like 10 seconds.

-The lcd lid doesnt have a latch or anything. Just pull up to open. Because of this it doesnt open very easily and you need to use both your hands (one to pull the lid , the other to hold the bottom down)

-The sound levels produced by the speakers are adequate.

-Very rarely gets hot on my lap, and its very quiet... even when I did some stress testing on the CPU.

-I think that the build quality is great. The gateway 6860 started breaking down eventually but i dont see that happening with this one.

-The indicator lights on the front are small and hard to see. The power button doesnt have any light.

-Really can be considered light-weight for 17in: Its 5.8 lbs with a small ac adapter. (my old gateway was 9.2 + it had a huge block ac adapter)

So it wouldnt be to much of a pain to carry around, especially since AC adapter is so small and the computer itself isnt thick either.

webcam quality was great on my calls via skype.

Max resolution is 1600x900. But the overall quality is nice even though i did have to adjust gamma and contrast ratings to my liking cause i felt they were off some.

Other tidbits:

-Touchpad supports multitouch gestures(eg pinch zoom , two finger scrolling)

-5.6 windows exp index.

-685 GB usable from the 750GB HDD, but also had 35GB already used by windows 8 and bloatware

-Textured surface is nice but a fingerprint magnet. You can see the places your fingers touched.

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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program My Laptop & Windows History:

Prior to getting this laptop I'd been using my previous one for about 4 years. It was an ASUS and had Windows 7 on it. I liked that one but it was getting old and outdated, full and slow. It was time for a new one. Earlier this year I purchased a Samsung laptop that came with Windows 8. The laptop was horrible. It was slow and cheaply made. I ended up returning it after just a few days. Since this was my first experience with Windows 8 it left a bad impression in my head. I thought my problem with that laptop had something to do with that. When we returned that laptop we told Customer Service that it was like taking a laptop from 10 years ago and slapping a new title on it and installing Windows 8 on it. It was really primitive.

This Laptop with Windows 8:

I was a bit nervous getting a new laptop that comes with Windows 8 but that's pretty much all you can find on the market today. Turns out that I was nervous for nothing. This laptop is great! Although I'm not a huge fan of Windows 8, it's certainly not as bad as I thought it was. It's easy to maneuver around it.

Size and Keyboard Layout:

I have a Dell 15.6 inch touch screen laptop that I use for my everyday usage. Then I have this 17.3" laptop that I find a bit bigger than I need for everyday use but when I want to play a game or even watch a movie on, this size is perfect. This laptop has become what I'm referring to as my gaming laptop. I also do a ton of typing so the keyboard layout is very important to me. I find the layout on 17.3" laptop very comfortable and spaced out perfectly. It's not compact by any means and it's not too spaced out that you have to reach too far either. Except for the number pad, if you use the number pad quite frequently then it's a bit more difficult on this laptop. This is where I find the spacing to be a bit too far apart. The layout on this laptop is pretty close to perfect for me. The number pad isn't horrible, it's just going to take some getting used to.

Other thoughts:

Speed & QuietnessI think this laptop is very fast. And I love how you can boot it up and you're good to go in less than a minute. It's very quiet too.

Picture QualityThe picture looks great on this laptop. Making it great for my games. With that Samsung laptop that I had, the picture quality was awful. I have absolutely no complaints about the graphic quality on this laptop. It's very high quality.

Space750GB is more than I required but for the price it can't be beat. It'll hold I that I need it to.

CD / DVD DriveA CD Drive is not an option for me, it must have one. There are so many laptops out there nowadays that no longer have this feature. I was very happy to see that this laptop has it. It works great too. On my previous laptop I was constantly accidentally opening the CD Drive. This isn't a problem on this laptop. It stays closed. You have to push a small little button in just the right way to get this one to pop open. This is a plus for me.

Textured FinishAlthough I like the feel of the textured finish on this laptop, it leaves way too many fingerprints. It's difficult to clean them off too. When the laptop is just lying there closed it doesn't look too great because it always looks like there are greasy fingerprints all over it. Our hands are always clean when we use the laptop so it's just the oils from your skin that leaves marks. This would probably be the only thing that I would complain about with this laptop.

SolidnessWhen I had the Samsung laptop for a few days I noticed that it felt empty. It just felt like an empty plastic shell. This laptop feels solid and it's not a cheap plastic feel. This laptop feels how a laptop should feel.

Getting startedRight out of the box I found this laptop to be fast and easy to set-up. I had it up and running in probably 5-10 minutes. It's a very simple set-up process.

Overall I absolutely love this laptop and I would highly recommend it. It's a great everyday laptop that I find to be very high quality.

Honest reviews on Dell Inspiron 17 i17RV-9909BLK 17.3-Inch Laptop (Black Matte

Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program I picked up this laptop to replace my old ThinkPad T42. Any machine running Windows XP beyond April of 2014 will be a security nightmare, so it's good to update now. Plus the ThinkPad ran too slow for most modern software, and little tasks were a pain to execute.

What I liked most about the ThinkPad was its sturdy construction. It could be dropped, bumped, and even sat on without any noticeable markings on the outside. Most of the laptops I've seen look dirty with something as insignificant as a fingerprint. That's what interested me in this Dell Inspiron; its shell is wrought so it can take more of a beating. Plus the textured surface easily hides marks. The only thing I noticed was a darkening in areas where I touched it with oily hands, but that can be easily wiped off.

Next is the performance. Getting an i5 for this price range is amazing. It's one of the best processors out there. The negative is that it's only 1.8 GHz; fast enough for everyday tasks, but a bit slow for gaming. I would not recommend this as a gaming laptop even though it's a 17" with a 10-key number pad. Sure, basic games are fine, but don't expect to get into intensive FPS with topped out graphics. 6GB of memory is decent, but the 5400 rpm hard drive is a bit slow (takes programs longer to load into memory, including Windows bootup). My plan was to swap out the drive for a Solid State Drive (SSD), but there's one big problem with that. And that leads up to my next section.

Software.

The laptop comes with a copy of Windows 8, the latest in Microsoft's long line of OS builds. At first, I found it a bit awkward compared to Windows 7. My wife kept getting frustrated when she'd be in one window, and then suddenly it would disappear and another would open in its place. After doing some digging on Google, I discovered that the track pad used something called App switching. Basically, whenever my wife would inadvertently swipe from left to right, it would switch back to her previously used program. After I disabled this in the settings, Windows 8 became a lot easier to use.

Here's the settings:

1. Press the Windows Logo+I keys together and a menu will pop-up in the right-hand side.

2. Click on Change PC settings option.

3. Head to General tab and then turn the "Allow switching between recent apps" slider OFF.

4. Also, disable "When I swipe from the left edge, switch directly to my most recent app."

Now back to my original point. Why I couldn't install my Solid State Drive like I had planned. The laptop does not come with any installation disks. If that wasn't bad enough, there's no sticker on the bottom to give the serial number for Windows 8. So, even if I were to get my hands on a disk, I could not reinstall Windows without that number. This means that your OS is locked to the hard drive that came with the computer. Bad news if your computer crashes and you need to reformat. Of course, Dell gives you the ability to do a factory restore, but what good is that if the drive itself goes bad? My only option for putting in a different hard drive would be to repurchase Windows 8, which isn't a financially smart thing to do. I could always put an older version of Windows on, or even Linux, but part of what you pay for with this laptop is that Win8 license. Seems silly to let it go to waste.

So I decided to keep the slower hard drive that came with it. The drive is not terrible. For the most part, everything loads at a reasonable speed. Plus 5400 rpm will consume less juice from the battery (speaking of which, the battery life is fairly decent--I can get a few hours out of it when streaming video, and more for simpler tasks). Overall, this laptop is night and day when compared to my older and slower ThinkPad T42. It's a great price for a really good system. Just don't plan on having it last forever. Also, you may want to consider the 15" version as this one is a bit of a beast to carry around--but if you keep it on a desk, 17" is fine.

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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program First of all, you need to know that the texture is not a nice thing. It is basically just there to "gussy up" the surfaces from being too obviously plastic. The actual use of the machine isn't effected by the "texture" but it is very noticeable, and I can't help but think that over time, it would be filled with dirt and dust if not fully cleaned on a regular basis. So keep in mind that the surface of the laptop is a major downer. The touchpad and the keyboard are regular plastic and are fantastic to use.... more on that ...

The screen has a good resolution, with poor viewing angles. When looking at it straight on, it is great, but move to the side, or look at it above, and the angles get washed out. If it is an IPS screen, I can't tell it .. I am thinking that it is not an IPS.

Otherwise, the screen is LED backlit and has good colors and a clear picture. It is not a touchscreen and with the bargain price, you would not expect to see one.

The inside processor, memory, and hard drive are all very capable. The machine is fast and can handle anything that you throw at it.

The keyboard is fantastic, with good feel, good travel, and it is very responsive. I love the keyboard! Only downside, is that it is not backlit. So if you work on your computer in the dark, you will need an overhead light or something to help you find the keys ....

Windows 8 is installed, and you can search the Web to find the pros and cons on that OS.

There are plenty of ports and it seems to handle anything you want to plug into it. I am using it as a desktop replacement and I have my Ethernet, a mouse, an iPhone cable, and a printer all hooked in, no problem. It also has a DVD drive to watch movies and to burn dvd's / cd's.

The sound is very good and does a pretty good job at sounding full. I am very comfy watching a movie by myself in front of the laptop (bad viewing angles, not good for more than one person) listening to speech and other sounds. Watching a heavy action flick might pose a challenge with distortion, but during my time with it, it has handled most sound well ...

So to recap:

Pros: Great affordable price tag, very capable processor and memory, good screen resolution, good hard drive space,great keyboard, good sound, lots of ports, and can pack it up and take it with you as needed

Cons: Weird bumpy surface, poor viewing angles, not an SSD, no backlit keyboard, big and heavy for a portable.

Discount Sony VAIO E Series SVE1413TCXP 14-Inch Laptop (Seashell Pink)

Customer Ratings:

I debated spending close to $500 when there are so many laptops in the $400 range, but am glad I did. It was pretty easy to set up and the HDMI port is great for showing the internet on my TV. It is much lighter than my previous laptop. Note to those of you with email that uses a POP server -Windows 8 email app does not support POP servers. But I found Mozilla Thunderbird and it is working out fine. The interface is similar to Microsoft Outlook.

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I love this laptop. It is so beautiful and works perfectly. It also arrived super fast. I love the brightness of the screen and the light on the keyboard.

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I am a student and this laptop is light, portable and fits into my tote without making it heavy. I love this laptop and will def buy another.

Honest reviews on Sony VAIO E Series SVE1413TCXP 14-Inch Laptop (Seashell Pink)

This is a great little machine for the price. If your willing to get used to windows 8 and are on a budget then this may be the laptop for you.

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About one week after I got this laptop, it started crashing and getting the Blue Screen of Death. I've had it for a month and a half now and it's been getting worse. I contacted the Sony representatives and they gave me a few ways to fix the problem. I hope it works, but I would rather have not gone through any problems at all. Also, the webcam is of horrible quality. I played around with the settings and it's still very grainy and captures almost no light. The mouse keeps freezing, too. I have to uninstall and then reinstall the driver for that. The outside of this laptop is beautiful, but the inside is clearly not. I hope Sony will help me out with all of my problems.

DELL D620 CORE DUO LAPTOP, 1.66 GHZ CPU, CD Burner, DVD Player, 1GB Reviews

Customer Ratings:

The computer came without a functioning wi-fi or down arrow key. I didn't bother to find anything else wrong with it since that was enough to return it. The seller has a problem with responding to e-mails and has had the computer returned to them, without giving me my money back, for nine days now.

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This computer is good enough for school online, like LIBERTY.EDU or wherever you dream of going; its worth the price for an education with money back for federal financial aid refunds. Or games for kids............

Please try it, it might work........

It works ok.

Cheap Acer eMachines E520-2496 15.4" Notebook (Celeron 575 1GB 120GB

Customer Ratings:

Very pleased with this purchase. Great display (actually MUCH better than a much more expensive Toshiba I have). Barely over 6 pounds and runs for 4+ hours on a charge. Nice feel to keyboard. Can find nothing to complain about.

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Discount Lenovo IdeaPad U310 43752BU 13.3-Inch Ultrabook (Graphite Gray)

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $799.99
Sale Price: $676.88
Today's Bonus: 15% Off

I did a good bit of research on laptops before making a purchase, went into stores, read reviews, etc. A few comments.

A number of people note how the screens are flexible, go into a store and try bending screens, all thin laptops are quite flexible. Seems odd to me too, but if everyones doing it, it must work.

I saw a few reviews about wireless problems with the u310, but saw many other good review so I disregarded. Don't disregard. There is a detailed summary at .

Seems to be that lenovo figured out the wifi was really bad, but kept selling units and just fixed it on the new ones. I bought my laptop on Sept 20, it was manufactured on May 28, the fix didn't come out until July 23... The date is printed at the bottom of the tag on the outside of the box, so if you buy in a store you can check.

In my case, the speed seemed not great to me, but the range was terrible. I got maybe 50 feet from the router before I lost signal. Even my phone (which I think has pretty bad reception for wifi) was better than that. I decided to go into work and see if I could pick up signal at my desk and couldn't ... back to the store we go. I read lots of reviews of 2-3 weeks for repairs and the problem not fixed, didn't sound like what I wanted to do with a brand new laptop.

Aside from the wifi issues, it was a great unit, solid build, really nice touchpad, good keyboard, screen was fine. I suppose some people might only use a machine at home, but for anyone that travels around, I think the wifi problems makes this machine a no-buy.

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I wasnt expect the building quality is so wonderful, very cool very solid!

The old wifi signal problem is fixed now, I've tested it intensively use on varies conditions comparing to my thinkpad laptop, iphone, ipad, etc. People who are interested in this laptop shouldn't worry about it now.

but the battery life is not that great. It is advertised as 7h which is not quite possible.

under normal usage of wifi and multimedia, I got about 4h battery life.

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Bought this yesterday and I really liked the look and design.. however, luckily I tested the Wifi reception due to reading the reviews here. Sure enough it only got good speeds when right next to my router. I moved into next room and it dropped to under 1MB (From 20MB) I even changed the settings and un-installed the power mgmt software as detailed on Lenovo forums and it did not work. My 7 year old Dell gets way faster speed over Wifi which is un-acceptable.

Do not buy until Lenovo fixes it if Wifi is important to you.

Honest reviews on Lenovo IdeaPad U310 43752BU 13.3-Inch Ultrabook (Graphite Gray)

I just received my Lenovo U310 and my first impressions are that it is stylish and lightweight. When I started playing around with the laptop, I figured that the mouse pad, though responsive and accurate, makes an awkward clicking sound every time I tap on the pad. No, I am not talking about left or right clicks, just tap of the finger in the middle of the pad! I figured this is because the mouse pad does not have separate left and right click buttons, but the whole mouse pad tilts/depresses to make the click.

Also, one thing that I did not know when ordered this laptop is that the RAM is maxed out at 4 GB for this laptop and no, you cannot upgrade RAM because there are no more empty slots left. This laptop has only one slot with 4 GB max rating! In this day and age where 8 GB RAM is quickly becoming a norm, I never thought there are computers that are restricted to 4 GB RAM with only one slot!

I did notice slightly noisy cooling fan, but I read that it is a common feature for all ultrabooks. So, I can live with it.

Anyway, the performance so far has been good and I will update the review once I get a chance to try more features. For the price I paid ($653.99, after $100 Amazon gift card), I think this laptop offers high end features compared any other laptop on the market today.

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This is the story of a defective support service, 6 hard disk drives and an empty box.

Back in April 2013, I acquired a Lenovo laptop (about $900), directly from the Lenovo.com site. Everything works satisfactorily until 4 months later. The laptop wouldn't boot and the error message points at a hard disk drive failure.

Request #1: A quick and pleasant call to Lenovo and, two days later, I receive a replacement drive and reinstallation DVDs. The hard drive is used, below the specification of my previous drive... and started to fail noisily in the middle of the reinstallation procedure!

Request #2: Calling Lenovo and asking for another drive, which I receive promptly. I install the drive (used parts and below specs again), turn the laptop on and... What's that horrible whining sound?! Conclusion: Yet another failed disk. And to be sure of my diagnostic, I extract an old drive from an old laptop. I successfully reinstall my Lenovo laptop and the old drive.

Request #3: Calling Lenovo again. They want me to return the laptop. I make sure they understand the nature of the problem, why returning the laptop makes little sense and why I expect a drive with, at least, the same specifications as the one I originally bought. A week later, the promised drive wasn't there yet (and actually never arrived).

Request #4: On the phone with Lenovo... They don't know what happened to the previous drive. They'll send a new one, with the right specifications. I didn't bother opening the drive when I received it, it wasn't the right kind!!! In the meantime, tired of waiting, I had bought a new drive at a local store. Unsurprisingly, it did wonder in my laptop.

Request #5: Moving online to avoid being impolite on the phone. There, I go through a weird registration and realized all the limit of their support tools. I almost feel sad for the support people working there. I try my best to describe all the extent of my issues with Lenovo. The field limit to 150 characters don't help, at all. My request: A real solution, in the form of a real drive or a real check to cover the purchase of a new real drive. And, a couple of days later, I receive... an empty box?? After some head-scratching, I understand they want me to return my laptop... #FacePalm!!! It's time to share my story with the Amazonians.

Request #6: I'll get to that as soon as I'm done posting this story. I'll update the post if anything interesting happens.

If you ever buy the laptop you're looking at, I wish you good luck!

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[Update: 07/09/2013, Lenovo sent another empty box :-((( I'm done with them! This is absolutely hopeless!]