Cheap MSI Computer Corp. GT60 0NE-403US;9S7-16F311-403 15.6-Inch Laptop

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List Price: $1,799.99
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GT60-ONE

Just a little backround, I build my own computers and also do so for my friends and family, probably about 20 or so over the years. I am not a professional, nor do i claim to be any type of expert, however i do have a decent amount of insight and knowledge in modern PCs. I also do a lot of research on the components i buy.

First let me start with the Cons, so you know upfront what you are dealing with.

This laptop is quite large and heavy for a 15/16 inch laptop, which is to be expected for a gaming laptop. The laptop is about the size of most normal 17" laptops. It is about 15 3/8"W x 10 7/16"D x 1 9/16 in the front to 2 1/8"H -this includes the feet in the rear. Whether you deem this "portable" is based on personal preference and uses. For me, being basically a portable Desktop that i can take to other locations, it is definetly portable and i dont mind carrying this around. (I have a tablet and a phone to use for light web surfing/social/media applications/checking scores etc)

The power brick is also quite large but yet a little slim at 6 3/4"x 3 1/4" x 1 9/16". You should basically expect to use most 17" laptop bags/carrying cases/backpacks.

Turbo Fan setting is loud, I would liken it to tower style fan (home fan, not desktop tower) on high setting loud. However while the noise level gets up there, it isnt irratating loud and has very little whine to it IMO. Seems like a great feature to use while alone and using headphones as the cooling boost is nice. Of course this can be turned on/off very easily

Windows 8.... still havn't found a reason to like it, it feels a bit more clunky to use than Windows 7. I am debating installing windows 7 back onto this computer.

No SSD, for the price it is debatable whether this is a negative, I installed my own SSD on the side so i can have a boot 250GB ssd and use the 750GB as a disk drive. Performance does suffer compared to any SSD laptop, so for the price i would definetly recommend an SSD.

There is shiny plastic around the screen, which sometimes can be annoying if it gets hit with the right light angle.

So with all of that said, here is what you get.

For basically $1900 -$2000 w/Mail in rebate (price of SSD included) you get:

GTX680M probably the reason most of you are looking at this laptop, It is also the 4GB version. This thing performs. Dont expect 680 Desktop performance, but for something you can carry around, you play most games at Ultra, or high and get great FPS. My 3Dmark 11 (No Overclocking) scores are about 6200 or 3000 or so less compared to my Ivy I7 GTX670 4GBVRAM Desktop. Keep in mind my desktop graphics car alone is probably 1/3 the size of this entire computer!

Optimus I get between 2 1/2 Hours to 3 1/2 hours off the plug depending what am doing. Keep in mind though that performance is throttled down when off the plug, so dont expect full performance off the plug. To me this is exceptional for a gaming laptop with desktop performance.

I7 3630QM slight upgrade from standard I7 Ivy QM, probably not much difference, but nice upgrade.

12GB Ram dont need to put extra ram in which saves some $.

15.6" 1080P Matte HD screen This screen is really really nice. Comapred to my desktop screens which are samsung LED's of last year, the screen on my laptop is noticibly better. It is bright, and clear, and most importantly has no glare (switching from an Alienware this is a huge difference). It is not one of those 95% NTSC High Gamut screens, however it also does not need color calibration programs which can be tricky to operate in some games and look off without proper calibration software, and also all of these screens cost extra on top if you buy Clevo Chassis Laptops.

Steel Series Keyboard this is one of those preferences, but i like the keyboard, it has a nice feel to it, and the backlight and customization are nice. Keys aren't quite full mechanical, but also not close to mushy like a lot of other laptops, a little firmer than my alienware which i liked for gaming. The keys have to me a 3/4 satisfying click of a mechanical keyboard id say, which is pretty darn good for a laptop keyboard.

Blu-Ray Burner! Pretty awesome to have a blu-ray burner not that i would burn any movies or anything. I think all nice laptops these days should come standard with atleast a blu-ray player. It is definetly a plus to be able to watch blu-rays on this nice of screen on the road without having to carry an extra drive. Also Blu-ray Disk rewrittables anyone?

Dynaudio Speakers I can say that these are without a doubt the best speakers I have personally heard on a laptop. The sound quality is really impressive for laptop speakers. The sub isnt that powerful, but the overall sound quality is really exceptional. I'm not an audiophile, but I have a decently trained ear. A lot of people try and compare these to their 5.1 or 7.1 home speakers saying how its not that good, but there is no comparison IMO because i am not going to carry a 5.1 or 7.1 speaker system or even a 2.1 speaker system around with me ever.

Killer 1202 Fast Dual band 2xMIMO wifi card, and also has bluetooth. Very impressed with the speed of the Killer Wifi cards overall.

750GB 7200RPM HD + (should add) SSD IMO this isnt too bad a deal. just add in your own ssd and use the 750gb as a disk drive since it is atleast 7200 rpm.

Has a nice combination of ports, no DVI, but it has HDMI, displayport, and VGA, USB2/3, esata ports. Also I like that the Ethernet port is on the back, I didnt like that my Alienware had the Ethernet on the side.

Cooling works well, laptop stays cool even during gaming. I havn't run any prime test because this thing performs perfectly for what I wanted to do out of the box minus the SSD and probably windows 8.

Build Quality Brushed Aluminum Wrist area and back cover, lots of plastic everywhere else. Doesnt bother me other than fingerprints, however I have not met too many laptops that are not fingerprint magnets! Overall Build Quality is good, not macbook level, but until macbooks can fit a 680M and/or even come close to the price with that card, I think this is your best bet if you want a GTX680M Gaming Laptop.

So In Summary,

Here were my guidlines

Must have:

Intel I7 Ivy Bridge

GTX680M-4GB or AMD 7970M (680M prefered due to speed and optimus if included)

1080P Screen nice looking hopefully:)

Killer 1202

Like design (Obviously preference)

Let me start out by saying I wanted the Asus G75 or G55. I like the design, and i actually buy Asus over MSI unless price is more of a concern.

Here is too me what is wrong with each of the computers and why I did not buy them.

Asus G55/G75 Weak Video cards, great design, but 660m-675M just doesnt cut it for me, especially for the same or more $.

Alienware IMO comparable to Apple Build quality. All these people who rag on alienware, they probably are just haters or just repeating things they heard. They are actually not overpriced anymore, and have the best warrenty/service and build quality of the gaming manufactuers IMO. But their prices are still too high for certain configurations and they do overcharge for add ons. Their best deal was for a 7970M, however while the 7970M is comparible, the Enduro issues and the fact you have to add on the 1080P screen just made this laptop too expensive for the configuration (considering how well priced the GT60ONE is). Oh and they charge Tax which adds on.

IbuyPower Best hardware for price, build quality and brand is questionable still. Very intriguing, however Not looking to burn 2K on a brand i dont really knowthey used to be mostly a pc building operation.

Samsung Nice build premium price, 675MX which is about 30 percent slower than the 680M.

Clevo Brands more expensive for same build, custom build time. I was set to get a sager or mythlogic, however the better speakers, better 720P webcam, better keyboard, mic not being on the keyboard all drove me to the MSI. Basically for what i paid overall, I am spending $200-$300 less for the MSI that has better speakers, about the same build quality, a better keyboard, better warrenty, 2HDD bays instead of 1, and I can buy it from Amazon!

Overall I am very pleased, It is a Great computer. Still trying to get used to windows 8. What really set this over the top for me is the speakers. I watch a lot of movies/netflix when I am on trips along with gaming. These speakers do not disappoint. Oh an Very little bloatware!

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I've had this laptop for just over a week. I installed an SSD in the second drive bay and had a pretty annoying experience completing a clean install my Windows 8 Pro license, but that is not MSI's fault in any way. I ended up having to install Windows 7 and then "upgrade" to Windows 8 in order to get my install to work.

Now for the good:

This thing performs as expected based on other reviews and the hardware included. It handles everything I've thrown at it thus far with ease (Total War: Shogun 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Borderlands 2) on high/max settings. It gets a bit warm in the upper left hand area of the keyboard under heavy load, but not disturbingly so. The speakers are very nice for a laptop. The potential volume output is great. The multi-touch pad is acceptable but nothing special (as in don't expect Apple touch pad like response, but you can 2 finger scroll and swipe in from the sides).

The not so good:

The build quality appears to be pretty bad. My unit has a few apparent problems. The plastic panel to the left of the power button pops out and will not stay in place. The backspace key is finicky and has to be hit just right to consistently respond. The keyboard itself doesn't seem to be fitted properly. There is a noticeable bulge/warp to it around the o/p/bracket keys. I'm probably going to need to make a warranty claim on it, but I'm concerned they will deny it because I "tampered" with the laptop by installing the SSD. I'll update on that later, if there is anything to report.

Overall, I'm very pleased with the performance of this thing, but am disappointed with the build quality. When I spend this kind of money on a laptop, I want to feel completely satisfied with my purchase. In this case, that cannot truthfully be said. If MSI stands behind the product and gets these issues taken care of, I will be a very content/happy customer!

Best Deals for MSI Computer Corp. GT60 0NE-403US;9S7-16F311-403 15.6-Inch Laptop

I own the MSI GX660R so I have enjoyed that enough to purchase another MSI Gaming Laptop.

Build Quality and Stuff:

I recently purchased this computer from another reseller and so far I have had zero complaints. I own the 15.6" variant so I could fit it into most laptop bags. The build quality is very good. It feels solid throughout. The body is mostly brushed black aluminum and the keyboard feels very sturdy,(more than the GX660R, mostly plastic body). It has a Steel Series brand keyboard which is an attempt to make it like a mechanical keyboard for laptops. They did a good job too because typing on this computer is a joy for me. The GX660R would flex a bit, but not this keyboard. It also lights up just like you see in the picture. It is fully customizable in color so you can make it what you want. It can light up in different modes as well. The sound system on this computer is the best I have ever heard for a laptop. Its not some low budget sound system I hear in most other machines. My build uses the stock screen and I must say that screen is amazing. The clarity is just brilliant. I wanted to get the 95% color gamut but couldn't justify it as I would mostly be using an external monitor (ASUS VE278Q). The laptop screen blows the doors off my external monitor though. The touchpad is nice as well. Although I rarely use it, it gets the job done. Built-in webcam is clear. Hinges on this computer feel solid. I have had zero issues with my previous MSI so I only expect improvement from here on out.

Performance:

This machine is currently able to run every game I have thrown at it. That isn't saying much in my opinion. What matters is that I can run mostly every game at the highest graphical settings in the native resolution of 1920 x 1080. Now that is saying something. The frame rates on this computer are sometimes choppy though depending on the game. Maybe I can get some feedback from someone who has encountered this problem and resolved it. I am currently playing Borderlands 2 and I get mostly 50fps but there are some instances where the frames drop to close to 16. I believe this to be a driver issue and here is why(Nvidia 310.90 Driver at the time of writing). If I stand still in that spot of low frames, the frames slowly ramp back up to the 50ish range (waiting 5 seconds or so). As I move around after the frames rise, they stay high and don't drop again until I arrive somewhere else completely new. Its like the video card doesn't know I need that power now, not in 5 seconds. I also am experimenting with the Nvidia Optimizer in hopes that this issue would be resolved, but no luck yet. I also signed up for the GeForce Experience but this appears to be in closed beta and I have not gotten an invite yet. I have also been playing WoW MoP, Saints Row 3, and BF3. All of these games pretty much run flawlessly and stay around 40-60fps.

I almost didn't buy this computer because I wanted to wait for the Haswell chip sets that I heard are coming out next but I think they were backed up to 2014 or something? Either way this machine makes me happy. I use it for everything, work and play. No regrets after 3 weeks of ownership. This machine is awesome.

My system is customized. It has all stock parts except:

I only have 1 hard drive, Samsung 840 SSD 500gb (updated firmware)

16GB DDR3 1600 MHz SDRAM, 4 x 4GB SODIMM

IC Diamond Thermal Paste on cpu and gpu

BIOS Ver. E16F3IMS.50U

Bluray Reader in place or writer

3DMark 11 Score P6071 Video Benchmark

Honest reviews on MSI Computer Corp. GT60 0NE-403US;9S7-16F311-403 15.6-Inch Laptop

I agree with many of the reviews you'll find here. Its hard to find a more loaded laptop at this price. I looked at alternatives and this was the best value for the money.

I'd give this laptop a 5 except for MSI's customer service. After having the laptop for 2 months, the hard drive is failing. I reconfigured my system to boot Windows 7 from a SSD and I use the 750 gig that came with the laptop for data. I couldn't save any files, got errors from Windows 7, the chkdsk program loaded on startup, and the drive failed the smart test. I called MSI and they wanted me to first rule out a software problem by reinstalling Windows 8 on the hard drive. They wouldn't just send me a new drive to swap out. They wanted me to send the laptop to them so they could do the work.

That's crazy. My laptop is confugured how I like it. It actually ended up being less trouble to buy a new hard drive for $72 then reinstall operating systems and send in my computer to them so they can realize that the problem is the hard drive and install a new one. Not very customer oriented.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for MSI Computer Corp. GT60 0NE-403US;9S7-16F311-403 15.6-Inch Laptop

Don't think you'll be able to find a computer packing this much power for the price. If you're a gamer, you'll love it. It can be a little on the heavy side and the AC adapter is a brick but I'm satisfied with the purchase. I wish that it had a volume control on the side instead of having to use the function keys. Speaking of the keyboard, it is very tactile and the color changes are awesome.

ACER AO756-2840 11.6" Intel Celeron Processor 847 2GB DDR3 Ram Review

Customer Ratings:

I read the reviews others have left for this model and I felt compelled to come to it's rescue. I didn't buy this netbook from Amazon. I got on sale from a major retail store. The reason I purchased The Aspire One is because my aged Eee PC 900 Linux has seen better days. I happened upon the AO756-2840 while browsing the computer section of a store and the price was good and being familiar with Acer products I jumped on it. When I got home I looked up some reviews for the 2840 in particular and found that besides Acer's website the only other place I found any were here. Acer's website had glorious reviews (of course). The reviews here weren't so hot. My heart sank. I decided to try the machine and form my own opinion. (Not to toot my own horn but I've been building and using PC's both as an enthusiast and professionally over the past 27 years. So I do possess a little technical knowledge when it comes to these matters.) From a hardware standpoint what you get for your money is far worth it. A 64 bit dual core processor running at 1100Mhz, 2 GB RAM and a 320GB hard drive. Intel HD graphics, etc.. You can see the specs above. On further investigation I found via using SiSoft SANDRA that the machine does in fact have 128 MB of dedicated video memory. This is not found in the specs. That brightened my day a bit. I should also mention that the 2840 has UEFI. The machine I purchased came with Windows 8. To my surprise there wasn't a whole lot of bloat-ware installed as I've experienced with other products. This was my first experience with Windows 8. And I have to say I do not like it. Thus the 4 stars. The dumbed down "Apps" page gets in my way and does not always find what I look for when using it's "search" function. Windows 8 and it's apps seem to me as those made for mobile devices such a tablets or smartphones (Android-like.). Also Windows 8 does not include a mail reader that supports POP mail. I found this to be a major put-off. I wound up installing Thunderbird, which I use on my desktop PC anyways. I also wound up installing a third party application to make Windows 8 behave like Windows 7 with it's Start button and menu. This provides me with a much friendlier user interface and something that I am more accustomed to. (I use GNU/Linux as my main OS and Win 7 for gaming.) I've run the machine through it's paces and I've found that for a netbook with low specs it performs better than I had hoped. Once the machine has booted it's pretty perky and opening applications doesn't take long at all. In all fairness for the given hardware this thing performs much better than I anticipated. You can multi-task and an acceptable rate of performance in my opinion. I should also mention that I was able to get 5 hours of battery life without forgoing anything. Buyers just need to be aware that this is a "NETBOOK" it's not a laptop and it's not going to perform like one. But it does do what it's designed for very well. You can surf the web, read and write email, write documents and presentations, do some light gaming on a machine that comes in a pretty small package. I should also mention that the 2840 has approximately the same specs as the 2626 (Except that the latter comes with 4GB RAM.) and has much better reviews. (The 2840 probably hasn't been purchased and fairly evaluated by Amazon customers due to the reviews it has received.)

I've been using the AO756-2840 for about a week now. I had intended to wipe the hard drive and install GNU/Linux but being that it does what I want I'll leave it as is. I really enjoy this little machine!!

(BTW.. I've tested this machine with various Debian GNU/Linux distributions and everything works fine right out of the box. If you choose to venture that way make sure that the distro you choose supports UEFI!)

In my humble opinion the AO756-2840 is a good product and a good value. Again I'll mention I gave it 4 stars because Windows 8 UI and Mail are lacking. Hardware-wise I would give it 5. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this model to a friend or anyone looking for an inexpensive netbook at a decent price.

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Well for $300 I wasn't expecting much, but it does the job. It's great for just browsing the web and watching youtube or netflix. It lasts a modest 3 hours on battery.

Pros: Has 2GB ram, while most other netbooks come with 1GB. Decent sized harddrive, and comes with Windows 8.

Cons: The Celeron processor is a little on the slow side if you try to do a few things at once.

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This net book is pretty nice. I really like the track pad and the screen is sharp and colorful. I got this to replace my gateway that died, and I didn't have enough money to get another, so I got this and I couldn't be happier.

Honest reviews on ACER AO756-2840 11.6" Intel Celeron Processor 847 2GB DDR3 Ram

Let me start off by saying that I had high hopes for this little machine. I understood from the beginning that the computer's specs reflect the cost, so I expected there to be some quirks. This is my first Windows 8 machine, so there was a slight learning curve but I had it down in under a day. Aside from the awkward setup that Windows 8 is based on, this machine is SLOW, WEAK and DIES quickly. This Acer Aspire One wishes it could hang, but it just cant. Even simple tasks can make this computer freeze up, resulting in lost time. When this computer gets overwhelmed and has a fit, you are not getting anything else done for at least 10-20 minutes. Depending on the amount of work you were attempting to accomplish, the machine might even restart itself on it's lovely 12 minute restart cycle. I mean that too! This thing just sits and sits, never giving a consistent restart time. Even with the machine working flawlessly, my internet will just drop out and that's it. Sometimes it will automatically reconnect itself, but mostly I end up having to restart the machine. A return wasn't an option, so I headed down to the nearest Wal-Mart that carried this model on display. I brought my cord with me and managed to find a plug and fired the display unit up. Someone had already set it up, so I was good to play around and see if my computers experience was anything realistic. Sure enough, not even a few minutes into me testing my personal scenarios the machine locked up. This time, not even long presses of the power button could get it to restart. I couldn't take the battery out of the display unit, so I abandoned my mission feeling like this Acer Aspire One is really just a POS that I happened to buy. For the money, it's just not worth it. I had a smaller, Atom powered, Windows 7 netbook that out performed this Windows 8 machine all day long. I just needed something more and thought the Acer would have provided that. People, don't end up like me with an Expensive Paperweight that will sit on craiglist until the end of days... Stay away, trust me.

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It was advertised as just like new, and it exceeded those expectations. I believe that it had never been used.

Review of Laptop Notebook, Top Laptop, ANDROID | 7" SCREEN | TOUCH SCREEN

Customer Ratings:

The main reason I bought it was for the touchscreen, and touchscreen doesn't work. I had to deactivate the screenlock so I can get into it without a problem. Other than that I haven't had any problems with it. Once you get it you might want to buy a new charger for it, the charger that comes with it has a piece to be able to plug into US outlet but its very loose, I had to tape it up.

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Sony VAIO VGN-NW320F/B 15.5-Inch Laptop (Black) Review

Customer Ratings:

I LOVE this laptop. I have both worked on and owned several brands and types of laptops. This is by far the best one yet. I know this sounds silly but after owning (and constantly cleaning) stainless steel appliances the thing that caught my attention on this laptop was the 'non-fingerprint' finish and the keyboard touch. I have owned the laptop for about a month now without any issues whatsoever. I have owned more expensive (and heavier) laptops in the past. For the price and size this baby delivers.

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Although this laptop is a bit more expensive than some of the others, I really like the chiclet keyboard, and the HDMI port is great to hook up the laptop to my LCD TV (there's a special button to turn off the computer display when I'm using the TV as a monitor). I don't regret this purchase at all.

Best Deals for Sony VAIO VGN-NW320F/B 15.5-Inch Laptop (Black)

This laptop is really worth the money.I bought this laptop from costco..

Pros:excellent hd quality;nice speed

cons:WORLD'S MOST WORST WIRELESS NETWORK CARD,battery life.

I have had severe issues with this n/w card.Reputed brand like SONY should take serious note on the reviews by customers and should provide some assitance.

Honest reviews on Sony VAIO VGN-NW320F/B 15.5-Inch Laptop (Black)

This laptop has a great value for the money you spend on it... good stuff

Dell XPS XPS14-3636sLV 14-Inch Ultrabook Review

Customer Ratings:

I searched a lot of sites and reviews before finally deciding on getting the XPS 14 and I was not disappointed.

The Good:

It is solid, fast and with Windows 8, it is even more fast and presents an enjoyable experience. It is also very solid and stable and you can see the materials used are top quality. It is really good.

The battery life is around 7 9 hours of regular use and it boots and shuts down in 7-10 seconds. Really quick. This can be due to to SSD portion of the drive and also Windows 8

The bad:

Keyboard: The keyboard will need getting used to as they are not like your regular keyboard but once you re used to it, you will enjoy the feel of it.

***Display: The display is good and crisp but when you look closely to the display, the images are not definite and does not look perfect for an HD display. But it is ok and manageable. I am not sure if it is the notebook or it is Windows 8.

***Update: After video driver updates picture quality is much better and HD videos are truly HD. Nice nice now.

Touch Pad: Another new from dell that needs a lot of getting used to. The touchpad is larger and sometimes when typing, there is a likelihood you will touch it. So again, it will take you are while to get used to it.

The mouse has just a line dividing the clicks and you will need some time as well to adjust when right-clicking. The clicks make some sound I don't actually like but well, I am getting used to it.

Weight: It is heavier than the average ultrabook but hey, it is loaded with heavy materials and content.

Ports: No Serial/VGA port, 2 USBs which I think is not enough, No CD/DVD drive. But you can get some of the connectors on Amazon and use the mini port to get VGA etc.

Wifi: Dell confirmed they had fixed the wifi issue but I still experience some disconnections to the wifi once in a while. Not really good though.

It can also get a little hot sometimes.

On the whole, I think it is one of the best notebooks/Ultrabooks I have used yet. It is fast, solid, intuitive, and almost perfect and I wil recommend it to everyone if you can ignore the minor flaws.

It is a good buy for me ad I think it is a real competitor to the MacBook Pro (but not in display).

I will recommend this ultrabook.

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The fan was creating problem which they replaced, but actually its a tape or something which was continuously touched to the fan. The warranty is 2-3 months less than a year whcih is quite disappointing.

Best Deals for Dell XPS XPS14-3636sLV 14-Inch Ultrabook

I ve been very dispointing by the wireless capability of this PC.

I should have read the review , I am experiencing trouble with the wireless card ( hard to make it work more than 10 feet away from the router, very unstable, create instability on the network even for other users)...

I called dell 3 times already they finally send someone to change the wireless card, the technician came, but without the card... he has to come back again...

That may be that I am unlucky and got the wrong one, but I read other review about trouble with the wireless capability of this PC.

UPDATE : DELL Send a tecnician to my place, ;ore than 2 weeks after I reported the issue ( supposed to have a Next business day on site warranty included with this XPS). Technician came a first time, without the wireless card. Technician came a second time 1 week later, change the wireless card, then it was still having issue, he left and tell me : I am only in charge of hardware, this maybe software.

I bought this computer a month ago and Wifi is still not working properly, and I spent maybe 4 hours with the technical support....

Honest reviews on Dell XPS XPS14-3636sLV 14-Inch Ultrabook

This laptop works great, feels great and looks great. It is heavier than a standard ultrabook it's hardware is beefier and it even feels sturdier. How many ultrabooks have dedicated graphics cards? The speed and battery life is great. The keyboard and touchpad take a while to get used to but, it feels great once you do. Screen is quite bright is detailed, fun to watch movies on. The battery life is a pleasant surprise.

Ports: there are only two USB ports on the 14", so one more would be ideal. The video ports are HDMI and mini-dvi, so hi def reigns (outdated VGA ports should never be included on quality machines). The ethernet port is cleverly designed and the audio port doubles as a microphone port.

This laptop loses one star because of persistent issues with the WIFI.

Overaall, Very sturdy, powerful computer and a great buy. Great alternative to a macbook pro. Heavier and thicker than most ultrabooks, but more powerful too.

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My original review was 1 star because the laptop would not restart after shut down. I didn't want to deal with technical support for a brand new laptop so I requested a replacement. It worked fine until I tried to restart the laptop. Same problem, the Dell splash screen appeared but Windows did not load. This was a bit different because I was able to get into Setup easily and this was a problem with the earlier laptop. I did decide to call technical support since I suspected a driver conflict or something similar. I had to change a hard disk setting in the Setup menu and the tech support guy installed all Windows updates remotely. (Dell tech support is really good, by the way.) That solved that problem.

I did notice however occasional and brief WiFi dropouts so I checked Dell technical support and changed the settings on the WiFi adapter. Note: the Intel adapter on the laptop was not identical to the one on the support page so I was not able to change one of the properties. I'll wait to see if the changes I made did work and if not, another call to tech support.

It seems that some initial tweaking is required to get this laptop sync'ed with Windows 8, drivers, adapter, etc. However, the laptop is very fast and Windows 8 loads very quickly after fixes.

So if you don't mind a little tweaking, this laptop is a good purchase. You can check the reviews to verify this.

Windows 8 is another issue with software incompatibility, etc. but you will have to deal with this with any new laptop or computer that you buy right now.

Reviews of Sony VAIO VPC-EA45FX/BJ 14-Inch Widescreen Entertainment Laptop

Customer Ratings:

First an explanation -I was in the first batch of people to buy this computer from Amazon. But I have had to return it because the bluetooth was defective (confirmed by tech support). Amazon quickly sold out and is now backordered 3-5 weeks, and since I need a machine "now" I have had to buy something else rather than get a replacement for this model.

That said, here is why, though I like the machine, I was not too disappointed to get something different.

What I did not like :

1. All 3 USB ports are on the extreme front of the right side -pretty dumb, because if you have devices always plugged in, the cables are always in your way. This may sound anal, but in fact I bet most people will find it a constant nuisance.

2. There appears to be no way (certainly no easy way!) to re-assign the three physical buttons above the keyboard. They do internet-without-computer (never use it), Vaio help (really, how often?) and the Sony photo etc program (NEVER use it and don't like it). But they can't be changed. (My old Vaio had buttons that you set to do whatever you wanted.)

3. I was all excited to have been able to order the MATT black, as I hate the glossy crap that is so popular these days. Well, yeah, turns out that it's matt ... EXCEPT for the most important part, in front of the keyboard where your wrists rest. That panel is super glossy, so it feels "sticky," you know, that annoying feel of rubbing against glossy plastic, exactly what I wantd to avoid. WHY do they do that on a "matt" black machine?

4. The screen is TOO GLOSSY (too much reflection). (I know, they all do that now...)

5. Touchpad is textured. Not bad, but I prefer smooth and dull.

(Final comment -why can't computer companies offer SOMETHING for those of us who do not like the wide screens? I long for the old proportions, higher and less wide.)

What I do like about the machine -well, all the obvious, good performance, good keyboard, very fair price, reasonable compromise on size, price, portability, power.

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Okay now I will tell you why do I call it the best laptop I have ever owned.

First, the look and the sense of buttons placed is perfect. Although I do not like all the three USB ports in line since it renders one port useless (they are very close).

Second, the keyboard. I know for a fact that many people who review laptops do not put up a decent review for keyboards and I am going to do just that. I can compare this keyboard with HPs that I had before I was forced to change and I got this Sony. Keyboard makes a hell of a difference specially when you are someone who has to write a lot. I tried to adjust to the HPs new keyboard but I could not. The keys were hard and I used to miss a lot of letters as i typed. This keyboard, however, is just amazing. It is so soft at the same time very nicely fitted. All keys a leveled, something HP can not do apparently. All keys need the same power to work, again something HP is unable to achieve with their chicklet style keyboard. I will recommend this laptop to everyone and specially those who are looking at using a laptop for some serious writing.

Third, very sexy. This laptop is very sexy. I got the black one and I am very happy with how it looks.

Fourth, battery life is good, about 5 hours.

Fifth, I think the laptop gets hot a little more than the HP dm4 (new) that I had but it is not something that I can not live with. All laptops these days are like that and that is why they started calling that Notebooks instead.

Sixth, RECOMMENDED :)

Best Deals for Sony VAIO VPC-EA45FX/BJ 14-Inch Widescreen Entertainment Laptop

What a great computer

had an old, slow dell inspiron that was great for 5.5 years, but a workhorse.

I can get on the internet in seconds, great size, love the 5 hr battery, light, easy to transport can watch movies good resolution

only thing I would change ports for headphones would like on side of computer but a small complaint

worth the extra money

hope this review helps someone I took a long time to make my decision

I have to transport it to work daily and it is great

cover scratches easily wish there was a fix for this

but for the important issues this is a great computer !!!

Amazon had a fast 2d delivery ontime as always

I have had this computer for 2.5 years nowstill love it -no problems except one and wanted to let readers know about it so that maybe Sony will correct it. The touch pad is way too sensitive and I have trouble with the cursor jumping to another place and messing up my typing

I found a solution tape a non-bar plastic card (shape of a credit card) and tape it over the touchpad and use a mouse. You can still use the split bars, and if you press hard you can use the touchpad this solution works for me but wish they would fix it but otherwise still a great computer.

Honest reviews on Sony VAIO VPC-EA45FX/BJ 14-Inch Widescreen Entertainment Laptop

I am a little bit leery of writing a review of a product I've had for only a week, particularly since I once gave a 14 inch HP a great review, only to have it crack in half six months later. But...yes, so far this is a very nice laptop. Sharp images, very fast, and a lot of memory. I downloaded about 20 movies, and it barely put a dent in the available space. It's the lightest laptop I've ever had, and unlike my past laptops (mostly HP's), it doesn't attract fingerprints nearly as bad. The only reason I didn't give it five stars, is because the volume is pathetic. What is the point of dolby stereo speakers, if they're given no power? Fixed the problem with a logitech clip on speaker, which makes the computer sound like a two hundred dollar boombox. Well worth the 45 dollar investment. Now, if this computer holds up for a few years, I'll be happy. p.s...I do not know why some of the reviews are claiming only 3 usb ports, as there is a fourth one on the opposite side of the three inline usb's.

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I bought this product on-line from amazon and got it delivered promptly, through a friend, to Nigeria where i live. I must commend sony for a product like this, ie capacity, battery life etc. The only awful stuff are the 3 USB ports on one side which make no sense as only 2 can be used at a time.Secondly the sound output is not what i expected. It sounds like a gramophone but with ear piecegood to go.

overall, it is agood one.

HP tm2t Tablet PC - Windows 7 Professional, Intel SU9600 1.60GHz Reviews

Customer Ratings:

Hello,

I have the unique blessing of owning one of these extravagant HP Touchsmart TM2T tablet laptops. I bought mine back in May, 2010, and I bought mine brand new via Ebay store. I disagree with this seller's price, however, because my TM2T has almost the exact same specs as his does, and I paid only $800 for mine. Actually the price was $780, but with S&H, it came to the $800. The only thing mine doesn't have that this one has is the ATI dedicated graphics. I did some research on this switchable graphics option on this TM2T tablet laptop, and to be honest, unless a person is a dedicated gamer or does some very serious graphic arts or someting like that, having the ATI switchable graphics will not make much difference. Plus, it drains the battery life. I got the basic Intel integrated HD graphics on my TM2T, and I can play and do the same high end games and the same extreme graphics as one with ATI can do. Instead of burning my cash up on something that I probably wouldn't ever need, I decided to spend an extra $300 shortly after I got my TM2T, and I bought me the full 8 GB brand new memory. Now the memory to me is very useful because I am a Netflix/video buff. With the 8 gigs of memory, my TM2T and Netflix run everso smooth. I have watched the most action-packed and most graphic enhanced movies, and they played without flaw, without lag whatsoever, and were bright, sharp, and clear. I'm not saying to Not get the ATI graphics. I love my TM2T so much that I am planning on getting a second one in a month or so, and I do want it to have the ATI dedicated graphics, just for bragging rights. But I know that that is all I will find use for them for. Anyway, the HP Touchsmart TM2T is just dynamitely awesome; it is built with some very high quality, and the speakers, finally, are elegantly placed right where a laptops's speakers should be placed. And the audio quality is the best I have ever heard on a tablet laptop. The keyboard, webcak, dual mics, Bluetooth, connections, and everything else in my TM2T work absolutely flawless and have amazing performance.

What I don't understand that some of the people that are selling the TM2T, really jack up the price on it, and they don't even have the highest end processor on theirs. There is no way anyone is going to pay $1500 for a near-base model TM2T tablet laptop when they can go right to Ebay or even to HP's site, configure one with everything plus the latest and greatest processor type, ATI graphics, and everything else and pay much less for it; and with special pricing and coupons and student discounts, they would pay even lesser amount for one brand new and with the highes of every spec available. So you people, such as this seller here, that is selling a near-base model TM2T for a jacked-up price, you need to do some research, and then make your prices quite a bit more reasonable. I got everything on my TM2T that is on this one here Except for the ATI graphics, and I even got the 8 gig of memory recently, and I also bought a super slim super fine HP external DVD Burner which works Extremely well and is the clearest DVD player I have ever saw, and even getting all of this, I paid a much less price than what is being charged here. These people charging like this, really need to compare their prices with others, and come way down,a s I have said! Still though, the TM2T is the absolute best deal for a tablet laptop that is going today. HP has a real winner on their hands with it! Thanks for listening!

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Review of Sony VAIO(R) VPCCA17FX Signature Collection C Series 14" Notebook

Customer Ratings:

Pros: Green, Orange, Blue Colors, Blu-ray, 2nd Gen i5, Easy to Upgrade, Great Performance.

Cons: Screen quality can be better, bulky, Ubuntu doesn't work, Plastic Material, Easy to Scratch.

Summary: My point of view:

This laptop is good for kids, teens and university student. My kids 7 and 8 years old love the colors, but when you visit a customer and take the laptop to the meeting room doesn't look professional. Very fast performance with the new Radeon 6630M video card, you can play a good games with it, not using the best performance. The new i5 CPU help the battery life (4 Hours Aprox). Blu-ray included but the 1366x768 resolution doesn't help to appreciate a full HD movie.

The screen quality and brightness is not the best. Easy to upgrade. If you clean the computer with a microfiber cloth you can see little scratches in the top case.

Summary: If you are looking a good laptop for study with a cool colors this is perfect for you.

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Reviews of Alienware ALW14-1870sLV 14-Inch Laptop

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $1,500.00
Sale Price: $1,112.99
Today's Bonus: 26% Off

Product description says it is an Apple A4 2.4 GHz. There are quite a few other laptops that seem to be mislabeled. I hope they're not starting to put old iPad CPUs in laptops.

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It's a great computer and it meets what i wanna. And the deilvery time is short and the package is not broken.

Best Deals for Alienware ALW14-1870sLV 14-Inch Laptop

I've been a Dell customer for over 10 years. Purchased an Alienware M14x R2 February 2013 to replace my old Alienware M11x. I loved everything about it... until a month ago. Less than 6 months after spending close to $1,700 on a top of the line gaming computer, which was extremely well taken care, it broke. During late June/early July I noticed that the left hinge was getting stuck and making a popping sound whenever the laptop was closed and/or opened. Two weeks after the noise/problem began, the left hinge popped out of place and split the case (around the screen) apart. The laptop still worked fine, however, I decided to call Dell customer service and get it fixed. It is after all a six month old laptop, that is still under warranty until 2015. Apparently I was wrong. Yes, it's under warranty. But after customer support checked it, they informed me that the repair is not covered under the warranty that I have (apparently I needed the complete customer subscription). I asked what could cause a hinge on a laptop, which is less than 6 months old, to break and was told that it was MY fault. That I mishandled the laptop and that I have to pay for them to fix it. I was also informed that there have been no complaints (at all) on the M14x hinges, however, a quick search on Google will show that this is not the case. There are hundreds of other complaints, which Dell has chosen to ignore. This is the first time that I've had problems with Dell customer service. I never expected to pay top dollar for a "quality" laptop and have it break so quickly from normal wear and tear. Do yourself a favor and do a quick search on "Alienware M14x hinge" and decided for yourself. I'm personally never again purchasing from Dell. I rather take my money and business to a retailer that listens to their customers and sells a quality product.

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This new model is horrible. I have the Alienware M14x R2 AM14XR2-7223BK and it is amazing. I'm not too sure where they went wrong here but this one is slow and feels like poor quality in comparison to my other model. I would avoid this model at all costs.

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The display picture says core i7 3.4ghz, and the info says 2.4ghz. Don't be mislead by the typo because there is a huge difference between 2.4 and 3.4.

EDIT: Dell fixed the wrong info, so I'm bumping up to 4 stars. Keeping a star due to poor customer service in the past, which everyone should be aware of before purchasing an Alienware.

Best Toshiba Satellite 17.3" Laptop, Intel i5, 2.5GHz, 6GB, 750GB Deals

Customer Ratings:

i absolutely love this notebook, bought at best buy and do not regret it one bit! has an awesome 17.3" screen with hd 1600x900 screen, 3rd gen i5 processor that is the quickest i have ever seen in a notebook. there is absolutely no hesitation at all.

the sound system on this laptop is not missing anything, you will be surprised. i have never had a laptop with a sound system like this, i downloaded and watched battleship on this the other day and the sound was amazing. it has built in harman/kardon audio speaker sound system that actually gets really loud and stays oh so clear. before, i have always had to buy external speakers with a laptop, but not this one.

and totally new to me, this comes with 6gb ram upgradeable to 16gb ram, ive never had a laptop upgradeable to that much ram before. it has 4 usb ports and all are usb 3.0. hdmi input, dvd player/burner, card reader, and i love the high speed start...you can close the lid and when you reopen it starts up instantly, with no hesitation, also has hdd ssd head protection, if you bump your laptop on something or drop it, it goes into protection mode and secures the hdd ssd from damage, i picked it up the other day and bumped it on the arm of my chair and it came up on the screen saying my hdd/ssd was currently being protected, as soon as shaking settles down it goes back to normal state, really cool. also comes equipped with diagnostic tool and health monitor, plus facial recognition and sleep utility. includes eco utility and toshiba assist.

this computer is lacking in nothing except one thing......no bluetooth, but thats a small price to pay for everything else you get. the etched aluminum body is awesome, you dont have to worry about finger prints or anything like that. you will not regret this laptop it is really the greatest i have ever purchased and i have owned quite a few laptops. not to mention, its one of the top "satellite" laptops made by toshiba.

i think the price is very reasonable for the quality/hardware and software included. oh and it also comes with microsoft office starter for free. also included is google chrome and microsoft silverlight.... oh i forgot, also comes with intel widi...this is a great deal. overall, it really purrs like a kitten, lol.

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Loved this laptop. It was great for the 1 week I got to use it. HATE Toshiba Customer Service.

Toshiba has this great software that reminds you of software updates, driver updates, etc. Everyday, it reminded me that I needed to update my BIOS firmware (required/recommended update). Against my better judgement, I did this and sure enough it killed the PC.

I called Toshiba and their rep told me "oh, we don't recommend people update the BIOS firmware". Except their software update has it as a REQUIRED update and bugged me every day for a week. Turns out that if your BIOS firmware is hosed, then you are totally out of luck and have to return it to the depot for repair. Oh and you have to pay to get it sent (approx $26).

So I send the PC into the repair depot for repair. I get a email with a web-link to check on the status of the repair. The estimated time for any repair is 10 working days. On the 10th day, I get a status update which says "will need new part. will add additional 10 days". Need a new part??? How about just loading the old BIOS?? I can't even imagine how expensive this would be if it wasn't under warranty.

After the additional 10 days, I go to check the status and suddenly there is no record of my repair. I wait a few days and check again. Same thing.

I call to find out if I can find the status. I get the automated answering service and faithfully follow directions to "check on depot repair status". I choose this option and it says "check website link" and hangs up on you.

I call again and finally get a hold of someone (don't try check depot repair status, it just hangs up on you). They tell me that the repair depot is waiting on a part. I ask them why the web-link status doesn't seem to reflect that. They don't know. I ask them when was the information updated, they tell me more than 2 weeks ago. I explain that I am getting mixed messages since his update is the same one I saw sometime back but the website link for the repair does not have any record of my repair. I explain that I am worried that my laptop has been lost, sent back already, or something. I am told to check back in a week and they will have an update.

I check back today (its been a week) on the website link and now the repair link has completely expired and wont even pull up.

At this point I am not even sure I have a laptop anymore. But I really liked it for the 1 week.

UPDATE:

Received the PC back from Toshiba Repair Depot yesterday. PC hard drive had been completely wiped clean (seems unnecessary) and today it does not work again and I have to return it back to Toshiba.

I turn on the PC and it asks me to setup windows all over again. Halfway through it hangs and sits there for 2 hrs doing nothing. I turn off the power and reboot and then it says that there is a problem and it won't reboot.

I call customer service and they run me through the procedure to reboot from partition. Part of the procedure requires you to take out the battery. I turn the pc over and notice that the hard drive cover is open. Also the motion has caused the hard drive to pop out of its slot. I replace the hard drive and reboot. The laptop now doesn't even recognize that a hard disk is available. So now my call gets elevated to a Toshiba case manager.

I get the Toshiba Case manager and they tell me that I will have to return it back to the depot. As in the same repair depot that wiped my hard drive and sent me back a non-working pc. I explain the whole story outlined above and tell them that since the hard drive is completely wiped clean and I don't want to wait months getting my PC back, that I just want a new PC (same type, etc). I am informed that they absolutely will not do a replacement. I ask to speak to someone else and am told there isn't any one else. They do not elevate above case manager (which is only one level above the tech support btw). I ask if they can at least prioritize getting my PC back to me since it came back from the Repair Depot broken. I am informed they don't do this either.

I am NEVER buying another Toshiba again.

Best Deals for Toshiba Satellite 17.3" Laptop, Intel i5, 2.5GHz, 6GB, 750GB

VERY PLEASED WITH TOSHIBA 17" LAPTOP. THIS COMPUTER REPLACED MY DESKTOP AND IT HAS BEEN A GOOD CHOICE IN ALL RESPECTS.

ALSO TOSHIBA KEEPS THE MACHINE UP TO DATE WITH CURRENT FIRMWARE.THANK YOU AMAZON!

Honest reviews on Toshiba Satellite 17.3" Laptop, Intel i5, 2.5GHz, 6GB, 750GB

The computer itself works great but the mouse pad is horrible it does not work well at all. If you use a mouse it should not be a problem. The aluminum case is sturdy but it makes it somewhat difficult to pick up Wi-Fi unless the computer is plugged in charging? It could be something completely unrelated to the casing but it is annoying either way. Works very well as a gaming pc but for on the go or anything of that nature I would keep shopping.

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Reviewing a laptop is a risky thing. Post too soon and you'll endorse something that might fall apart in 6 months, but if you wait too long then the product will likely be off the market without anyone looking into buying it. I just got the computer a week ago and wanted to post what I've encountered.

First the obvious things:

(*) Big screen: I grew tired of my previous laptop's small 14" and this size seems large for this price range

(*) Loaded with Windows 7 instead of Windows Millennium 3.0 aka Windows Vista 2.0 aka Windows 8.

(*) Comes equipped with a tool that lifts the HDD drive head if the computer is bumped (I don't know if this is a common feature or if this just wants the user aware)

Less obvious things / Problems:

(*) I had to return the first unit due to a blue pixel stuck in the middle of the screen.

(*) Get a mouse because the touchpad is lousy. The left and right mouse buttons are actually part of the touch sensitive area so the touch pad often recognizes clicks as motion of the mouse.

(*) The keyboard, always an issue on a laptop, is something I still have challenges using=. The nice thing is that it has the numeric keypad on the right but the bad thing is that the arrow keys are half-height buttons that are hard to hit.

The main problem with technology is how fragile it is and how prone to failure things have become. While this computer seems fine today, will it be fine tomorrow or next month? I have no idea.

Cheap Lenovo Ideapad Z580 215124U 15.6-Inch Laptop (Gun Metal Grey)

Customer Ratings:

I bought the Lenovo Ideapad Z580 from Amazon about a month ago. My objective was to get a new laptop onboard while preinstalled Windows 7 was still available. Overall I rate it 4 stars out of 5. With one exception everything works OK and performance, WIFI connectivity and display are fine. There is one bug however. When typing with the keyboard, the computer will unexpectedly jump the cursor back to a random place in the text already completed, and proceed to insert any further typed characters starting from there. This happens independently of the application receiving the text input. Having to stop after this happens and correct the erroneous text really slows down my typing speed. My guess is that there is a problem in the Lenovo's keyboard buffering (it seems to unpredictably lose track of the position of last character typed). Using a USB-connected external keyboard takes care of the problem otherwise I would have returned the product for refund.

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I personally own a Lenovo Z570 and I love it. I purchased this Z580 for my girlfriend as a Christmas gift to replace her aging desktop. She works from home and it meets her needs for work (mostly spreadsheet editing and web searches) as well as her personal use for photos and entertainment. This is a solid performing budget laptop in all categories. Highly recommended!

Review of Lenovo ThinkPad Edge 01965FU Intel Core 2 Duo SU7300(1.30GHz)

Customer Ratings:

Pros: I bought one of these about a week ago for $399.00 and $12 shipping. For the money, I have not seen anything else that can compare in terms of build-quality and performance. Not too much bloat-ware (thanks Lenovo!). Decent performance from the ultra low voltage processor. Much better than the earlier single core versions and yet, only 10 watts used by the cpu. Awesome battery life, up to 8 hours. The Intel 4500 integrated graphics is adequate for my purposes. In ubuntu 10.10, I was able to enable desktop effects for some cool esthetics with no problem. Not enough graphics power for any demanding 3-D stuff. All the functions I have used in Ubuntu so far have worked without issue. I love the feel of the keyboard. The large multi-touch enabled track-pad is awesome. Despite some errors on Amazon, this unit actually weighs in at only 3.8 lbs, very light on the lap. Build quality is very good. I detect no flex in the body at all. I like the mat-black finish (no finger-prints) and the simplicity of design. It is quite thin, but does not feel fragile. I really like the red L-E-D's on the palm rest and on top of the lid where the "i" in ThinkPad is dotted. It's the little things. :)

Cons: The built-in web-cam is only a .3 mega-pixel. Most budget laptops these days are at least 1.3 mega-pixel. I have not yet used the webcam, so cant speak to how well it works at this point. Windows 7 can be a bit sluggish if you are running a virus scan, but otherwise works just fine. There is no CD/DVD drive in this model. I know this in advance, so hesitate to list it as a con. These days, you can use a flash drive to do anything you used to with a CD ROM anyway.

Other thougts: My wife has borrowed this thing from me once and already wants one for herself to replace the Dell Latitude D830 she has been using. I have no complaints at all and would recommend to anyone who needs a lightweight notebook and does not play a lot of 3-D games.

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I bought my Lenovo ThinkPad Edge last Christmas, for about $440. It has the exact same specs as the one on this page, so I was quite surprised to see how stable the market value has been for this machine... amazed really. I expected to see a much lower price by now, and was thinking I might buy a second one. That itself should tell you something about how I feel about this notebook.

Overall it's great. I do math research and having twin processors is key because I can run some programs for my reseach and it will crunch away in the background on one processor, while I work with other software apps with absolutely no noticable performance hit. (Currently, as I write this, I'm even running two separate jobs -both cpus showing 100% capacity -and yet I can type away in my webbrowser with no time lag between when I hit the keys and the letters appear on the screen.)

I have only one fairly significant complaint about the ergonomics of this laptop. While the "chicklet" style keys are nice and big, the trackpad is TOO big. I never imagined that a large trackpad could cause problems, but it was killing me (before I learned how to disable it completely). I would be typing an email and my palm would inadvertantly hit the track pad and select a bunch of text of the message, and the next letter I typed would replace everything that I had accidentally selected! (Thanks to the web browser's Undo function, I can usually get it all back, but what a nuisance!) I thought maybe I just needed to get used to the large trackpad, and I also tried setting the sensitivity to the lowest possible setting, but it kept causing problems for me. My current solution: I made an alias called "padoff" which I invoke every time I log in. It completely disables the trackpad and I use the pointer instead. I don't really like pointers, but hopefully when I become more skilled at using it, I won't mind so much...

Overall, this is a great, high-quality laptop, and the trackpad issue seems minor when I compare it to my old Asus laptop (the flimsy keyboard of which stopped working after only 3 months!) Finally, I should mention I get great battery life -probably about 3 to 4 hours depending on what I'm using it for. (I just unplugged about a half hour ago and, with two compute-intensive tasks running in the background, the battery meter says I have about 2.5 hours left. That's with the standard battery -not the extended life battery, which I believe is available for this machine at a higher cost.)