Showing posts with label acer notebook support. Show all posts
Showing posts with label acer notebook support. Show all posts
Sunday, November 16, 2014
Buy Dell Latitude D610 1860MHz 1024MB 40GB CDRW/DVD 14.1" Notebook
I purchased this as a gift, but I did test it myself first. This works wonderfully. It is fast. It is just as good a new. I also purchased another dvd rw drive to install on it because it only has a cdrw/dvd. This computer works great though. I am very impressed with the quality of this refurbished product. The WIFI works great as well. Very good range.
Monday, November 10, 2014
Review of Dell Vostro 1510 Notebook Computer
Working as expected from the advertising. Shipping was prompt and punctual and I'm glad to have made the purchase. Thanks from the bottom of my attick.
I would use this vendor again...
Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>
First the machine was advertised as a Vostro 1510 and in reality it is a 1520... Different animal... But it works for me. The touch pad is beat so using a mouse is a necessity which is OK too because I usually carry a mini mouse... all in all it's a good machine, I did upgrade it to WIN 7 ProI would use this vendor again...
Saturday, October 25, 2014
Reviews of Toshiba Portege R700-S1331 13.3" Notebook PC
I love how lightweight this computer is, for the great computing power that it has. I will probably use it to run Matlab so I needed the power, and I don't have many muscles so I needed the low weight. I really appreciate how fast I received it after order, just two days.
I have used a laptop every day of my working life (Compaq, Samsung, Dell, Dell, VAIO, Samsung, Dell, Toshiba in that order...there is an ACER in there somewhere as well). As a working laptop, this has been a solid performer. I find it to be lightweight and durable and good for business travel. Because my officemates also carry this computer, I have included some of their input. I also asked my 14-year-old son whether he felt the computer was adequate for his on-line games. I have included his opinions.
Weight:
It is sufficiently lightweight that when I have a choice of ditching it and taking my Samsung tablet, or an Ipad for travel, I have usually chosen to go ahead and bring the laptop for its increased functionality.
Quality:
This laptop has presented no quality-control problems for me or my officemates.
Keyboard and touchpad:
The keyboard is what I expected once I got used to the feel of a new keyboard. I am not a fan of the touchpad. I find it cumbersome for really manipulating documents or presentations.
Speed:
My officemates and I complain about the slowness of the computer to start up. Programs on it include Office, wordperfect, virus scan. However, once the computer has booted, it does not have a problem in speed for work purposes. My son felt that the speed was fine for his level of gaming. He usually plays while connected with a group of friends via Skype.
Screen:
I am not a fan of the screen, as there is significant glare for working on documents. I need to have the screen at the correct angle to view it without glare. In my non-gamer opinion, the problem of significant glare makes this inadequate for gaming--my son is grateful to have a computer, so he did not complain about the screen.
Hubs and ports:
This computer has an adequate number of adequate usb hubs (two), and an hdmi hub, which can be used to connect the computer to a larger screen. While many new televisions come with built-in netflix and suite of apps to connect on line, I find the hdmi port helpful. One can also insert an sd card, which I find as a helpful backup in transferring documents from computer-to-computer, or from printer-to-computer, or from camera-to-computer. When wireless networks are down, etc, it has worked beautifully to have one on standby held securely in the computer.
Wireless and Bluetooth:
I find the bluetooth to be cumbersome enough that it is my preference to use non-bluetooth devices with this computer. This is not a problem for me, as either I have adapted, or bluetooth wasn't the best solution in the first place. The wi-fi works as it should.
Battery:
This battery does not overheat, and it lasts as long as it was rated when it was new. This has not faded over time.
Rating:
I debated between giving this between a 3 or 4-star rating for office use because of the touchpad and screen glare. However, because I would purchase this or request this model again (or it's update) for office use, I chose to give it a 4-star rating. I would not purchase it for my teen for school and gaming purposes even if wished to spend at this price point for him.
For context, I am "that geeky guy." I have about 10 computers at home at the moment, and manage a programming team for a very large and well-known Internet company. I went through 4 other very good laptops, some costing more than this one and some less, before choosing this one. As soon as I got it I knew it was a keeper. Just awesome.
The Portege had a very noisy fan right out of the box, plus within a few weeks the plastic casing around the headphone jack came out making the jack unusable. Upon return from the service department, the fan was only a little less noisy and the jack had not been fixed. I didn't return the computer a second time only because my daughter didn't want to lose the use of it for another several weeks. This experience was highly disappointing, but the nightmare is yet to come.
The Satellite developed some nasty lines in the display after a month or so, so it too goes off to the service depot. Then I get a phone call telling me the repair isn't covered under warranty because they considered it to be caused by abuse, and they wanted $300 to fix it. I don't believe the computer was ever abused, but if I wanted it fixed they had me over a barrel, so I gave them my credit card number and authorized a repair.
A week later the computer shows up, and far from being repaired, it is twice as bad as it was before, with even more lines! I call again, they tell me to ship it back to them again, I do so, blah blah blah. Couple weeks later it returns.... NOT FIXED. This time they actually didn't fix it on purpose. I received a letter with it saying they couldn't reach me to authorize the repair. Not bloody likely I had received no phone calls or emails or messages from them. And why does it need authorization? I already paid for it!
So I call again, and now, get this: THEY HAVE NO RECORD THAT I EVER PAID FOR IT. I can see the charge on my credit card statement, but these morons don't know it was paid for. I can't even ask for my money back because they don't even realize I paid them! I give up in disgust, call my credit card company to dispute the charge, and I take the computer to my local, very honest and very competent repair shop, which does a fine job fixing it for less money.
Take it from someone who made the mistake of buying Toshiba not once, but twice. JUST SAY NO! I have sworn never to buy any Toshiba product again, not a computer, not a television, not a radio, not nothing. Once burned, twice shy. Wait a minute make that twice burned. Sheesh.
Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>
I received this Toshiba Portege as an office computer when it was new on the market. My 14-year-old son is making an attempt to take it over as a gaming computer, so I am in the search to purchase a laptop for my son at a lower price point for school and gaming. I am writing this review because of the shortage of reviews by non-journalists or everyday people who use these products over time. Please pay it forward.I have used a laptop every day of my working life (Compaq, Samsung, Dell, Dell, VAIO, Samsung, Dell, Toshiba in that order...there is an ACER in there somewhere as well). As a working laptop, this has been a solid performer. I find it to be lightweight and durable and good for business travel. Because my officemates also carry this computer, I have included some of their input. I also asked my 14-year-old son whether he felt the computer was adequate for his on-line games. I have included his opinions.
Weight:
It is sufficiently lightweight that when I have a choice of ditching it and taking my Samsung tablet, or an Ipad for travel, I have usually chosen to go ahead and bring the laptop for its increased functionality.
Quality:
This laptop has presented no quality-control problems for me or my officemates.
Keyboard and touchpad:
The keyboard is what I expected once I got used to the feel of a new keyboard. I am not a fan of the touchpad. I find it cumbersome for really manipulating documents or presentations.
Speed:
My officemates and I complain about the slowness of the computer to start up. Programs on it include Office, wordperfect, virus scan. However, once the computer has booted, it does not have a problem in speed for work purposes. My son felt that the speed was fine for his level of gaming. He usually plays while connected with a group of friends via Skype.
Screen:
I am not a fan of the screen, as there is significant glare for working on documents. I need to have the screen at the correct angle to view it without glare. In my non-gamer opinion, the problem of significant glare makes this inadequate for gaming--my son is grateful to have a computer, so he did not complain about the screen.
Hubs and ports:
This computer has an adequate number of adequate usb hubs (two), and an hdmi hub, which can be used to connect the computer to a larger screen. While many new televisions come with built-in netflix and suite of apps to connect on line, I find the hdmi port helpful. One can also insert an sd card, which I find as a helpful backup in transferring documents from computer-to-computer, or from printer-to-computer, or from camera-to-computer. When wireless networks are down, etc, it has worked beautifully to have one on standby held securely in the computer.
Wireless and Bluetooth:
I find the bluetooth to be cumbersome enough that it is my preference to use non-bluetooth devices with this computer. This is not a problem for me, as either I have adapted, or bluetooth wasn't the best solution in the first place. The wi-fi works as it should.
Battery:
This battery does not overheat, and it lasts as long as it was rated when it was new. This has not faded over time.
Rating:
I debated between giving this between a 3 or 4-star rating for office use because of the touchpad and screen glare. However, because I would purchase this or request this model again (or it's update) for office use, I chose to give it a 4-star rating. I would not purchase it for my teen for school and gaming purposes even if wished to spend at this price point for him.
Best Deals for Toshiba Portege R700-S1331 13.3" Notebook PC
I will keep this short and sweet: this is the best laptop I have ever owned! It is as light as a Macbook Air and faster than a Macbook Pro. In fact, I returned a top-of-the-line Macbook Pro for this, and that was a great decision. I am not going to disrespect Richard's one-star assessment, but I simply cannot believe anyone would rate this laptop as anything but fantastic. I have had it over half a year now, and it is fast, stable, portable, and powerful. Very, very good stuff.For context, I am "that geeky guy." I have about 10 computers at home at the moment, and manage a programming team for a very large and well-known Internet company. I went through 4 other very good laptops, some costing more than this one and some less, before choosing this one. As soon as I got it I knew it was a keeper. Just awesome.
Honest reviews on Toshiba Portege R700-S1331 13.3" Notebook PC
I had the misfortune to buy not one, but TWO different Toshiba computers for my two children a Satellite A665-S6056 and a Portege R500. Both have been unreliable, both had to be returned for service within the first two months, and my dealings with the Toshiba service depot ranged from very disappointing to downright nightmarish.The Portege had a very noisy fan right out of the box, plus within a few weeks the plastic casing around the headphone jack came out making the jack unusable. Upon return from the service department, the fan was only a little less noisy and the jack had not been fixed. I didn't return the computer a second time only because my daughter didn't want to lose the use of it for another several weeks. This experience was highly disappointing, but the nightmare is yet to come.
The Satellite developed some nasty lines in the display after a month or so, so it too goes off to the service depot. Then I get a phone call telling me the repair isn't covered under warranty because they considered it to be caused by abuse, and they wanted $300 to fix it. I don't believe the computer was ever abused, but if I wanted it fixed they had me over a barrel, so I gave them my credit card number and authorized a repair.
A week later the computer shows up, and far from being repaired, it is twice as bad as it was before, with even more lines! I call again, they tell me to ship it back to them again, I do so, blah blah blah. Couple weeks later it returns.... NOT FIXED. This time they actually didn't fix it on purpose. I received a letter with it saying they couldn't reach me to authorize the repair. Not bloody likely I had received no phone calls or emails or messages from them. And why does it need authorization? I already paid for it!
So I call again, and now, get this: THEY HAVE NO RECORD THAT I EVER PAID FOR IT. I can see the charge on my credit card statement, but these morons don't know it was paid for. I can't even ask for my money back because they don't even realize I paid them! I give up in disgust, call my credit card company to dispute the charge, and I take the computer to my local, very honest and very competent repair shop, which does a fine job fixing it for less money.
Take it from someone who made the mistake of buying Toshiba not once, but twice. JUST SAY NO! I have sworn never to buy any Toshiba product again, not a computer, not a television, not a radio, not nothing. Once burned, twice shy. Wait a minute make that twice burned. Sheesh.
Monday, September 29, 2014
Discount HP dv6-6c10us (15.6-Inch Screen) Laptop
I am going to post a legitimate review about the actual product here. A few of the other reviews on this product were pretty much ranting and pointless. I am an IT technician, and I will sum it up as short as possible, but to the point. I bought this for my own personal use, not for work. All in all, this PC has great speed, good hibernation in and out of lid closes (hasn't locked up once yet), and fingerprint reader is actually very useful. Beats audio is marketing mostly, sounds a little better though. This PC is gorgeous aesthetically, and touchpad is useable for once. It has advanced functions (two finger zoom/scroll, etc.). Also, for those of you that don't like the touchpad light that surrounds the touchpad, (fn) function & spacebar toggles it on and off. Double tap the top left corner of the touchpad to turn it off and use a wireless mouse. Other than that, quad-core processor, 2 USB 3.0 ports and 2 USB 2.0 ports, pretty good graphics card, fingerprint reader with shortcut software included (you can setup different website shortcuts and/or system functions to access with recognition of different fingers; ie: shutdown with your pinky, or go to your 3 favorite websites with just one swipe of your index finger). It has 6 gigs of ram (expandable to 16 GB), 640 gig HDD, memory card reader, beats audio, and bluetooth, you really can't go wrong for the price. Remember, all PCs have bloatware these days pretty much, most PC support problems are dealt with through globally outsourced firms. This does suck, but it keeps their costs down for us to buy them. I suggest removing all the programs you don't want or need from add/remove programs in the control panel right away when you get it (within the 14 day store return policy), and give this computer a lot of use within that period to make sure it's for you. If you are not tech savvy, pay extra and purchase the store's extended warranty program. DO NOT PURCHASE THIS OR ANY COMPUTER 5 HOURS FROM YOUR HOUSE like one of the other reviewers did. Way too risky when spending 5 benjamins. Anyways, I hope you buy and enjoy this product. I do NOT work for HP by the way...lol. I will say that I did not buy this at Amazon unfortunately because I found it 120 bucks cheaper at a local chain store that starts with an (S******) and has a red brand theme. I would expose the store, but Amazon might not post this review. Last I looked, that deal was still going on. Hope this helps some people.
Microsoft Office Starter also came loaded on this computer. Word and Excel Starter are a nice addition if you don't need the full version of Office. All you need for home use.
Disabled or uninstalled all of the items that we didn't want or need without a glitch. Took about 15 minutes.
The laptop recognized all of the equipment that she had for her old laptop and installed it without a glitch.
After everything was hooked up and operating, including her printer, she decided that she wanted to use it as a wireless printer instead of a wired printer. No problem just pulled her printer software package, that came with the printer, out of a drawer installed the wireless printer drivers and presto, wireless printing. If you no longer have the printer software that came with the printer you can usually download the software from the printer manufacturers website.
Some older equipment such as printers and etc. may not work with Windows 7 desktop and laptop computers. Microsoft makes this quite clear. Many equipment and software manufacturers did not build drivers for their older products so Microsoft could not add drivers for this older equipment to Windows 7. This also happened with Vista. It is not the responsibility of Microsoft to build the drivers for equipment. In the case of printer drivers it is the responsibility of the printer manufacturer to develop and build drivers, then pass the drivers on to Microsoft.
Relating to the previous review of the DV6-6c10us and lack of wireless printing. Almost all fairly new printers will be recognized by computers running Windows 7 when hooked up by way of a USB cable. However, the drivers used for this hook up are not the same drivers required for wireless hook up. You normaly have to install the software that came with the printer to get the proper wireless connection. For that matter to get all of the functions of your printer to work properly you should load the software from disk or other media that came with your printer.
I didn't buy this laptop from Amazon. I in fact bought it from my local Staples when they had an amazing deal too good to pass up. I was in fact on the verge of ordering a different laptop from Amazon when I came across the deal I found on this machine. Thankfully Amazon allows us to review products we own so others can make informed decisions so I'll give my assessment of this laptop here.
I've spent a couple of weeks getting used to this laptop & putting it through it's paces so that I can offer a more thorough assessment.
Full review of HP Pavilion dv6-6C10US 15.6" Laptop:
I spent a few weeks researching new laptops & I thought I'd settled on a few choices from online. I went into my local Staples & discovered this steal of a deal & couldn't be happier I did. I was actually in the market for a much more costly alternative (Apple) until I found this laptop.
A few of it's standout features;
1) A nice quad core processor & built in AMD discrete graphics make it capable of handling most anything you throw at it. I use Adobe CS5 for my personal design business & in my tests this laptop handled even a heavy Photoshop render (multiple effects & layers) with ease.
2) The build quality is outstanding. I'm a big fan of the brushed metal shell. It feels good in the hand & stays cool to the touch. No cheap textured plastic here except for the bottom which is to be expected. It also repels fingerprints so it looks clean. Nice job on this attention to detail HP.
3) Expandability beyond the out of the box configuration. This was my major gripe with the Macbooks I was considering. They look great & run great but offer virtually no future upgrade potential. This laptop allows upgrading of the hdd & memory with a simple removal of it's access door on the bottom. I also love that I can increase the memory up to 16gb if I need to. I use some memory intensive software so this will inevitably come in handy.
A few other extras worth mentioning; 2 USB 3.0 ports (rapidly becoming the industry standard), the fingerprint reader that allows quick access to apps, built in bluetooth (nice), & Beats Audio (that I'll admit I thought was a gimmick but I'm pleasantly surprised with it's sound quality).
There are a few drawbacks I must mention too;
1) Battery life is not too good. Of course I've only used it for a few days so this could be a premature judgement on my part. Your mileage may vary.
2) Bonus software that I'll never use. Yep it's got some bloatware. Not too much & it's easily un-installed or deleted. I do wish this practice would end by PC vendors but it keeps costs down for the consumer so that's the breaks. But really 52 games that I'll never play pre installed? And the majority are limited use demos? Come on HP just leave that mess off or include a disc in the box with optional bonus apps & games on it. Let the customer decide.
3) The touchpad is tricky to operate. It seems real sensitive & can be wildly inaccurate. But that could also be user error. Again your mileage may vary.
A few other minor gripes of note; no lighted keyboard (hey we all have a wish list), a rather small eject button on the optical disc drive, & the cheap plastic bezel around the screen itself. It's a fingerprint magnet that looks out of place considering the rest of the machines build quality.
A word about support;
Apple gets alot of credit for their support as they should. Their agents are professional & thorough whether on the phone or in the store. You do get what you pay for here. HP in my experience hasn't been that bad either. They are no Apple, nobody is in that respect, but they provide a decent warranty that should handle any problems with the build quality, installed software, or all too often user error (see above review from Anti-Genius). Frankly, I am of the opinion that for the savings in up front price over a comparable Macbook, which is in the hundreds of dollars & possibly more than a cool grand, this HP laptop will serve the users needs quite well.
All in all I'd easily give this laptop a 4.5/4.75 rating. I give it 5 stars because it's more than a 4 in my opinion. Don't fall for Apples marketing & pay the ultra premium price for less value. Get a laptop like this one (highly recommended) or the equivalent & have access to the entire Windows program & apps library (very few Windows programs run effectively on Macs using their Bootcamp utility, I've tried dozens of productivity apps) & keep more of your hard earned money in your pocket.
The first issue that is an immediate killjoy is the pretty awful touchpad, specifically the terrible implementation of two-finger scrolling. It just simply will not work properly. Half the time, maybe more, a regular two-finger swipe will not even register, thus the scrollbar will not move. Sometimes, this will happen many times in a row, and then suddenly your document/web page will jump up or down all those times at once. Other times it just won't do anything. This will drive you crazy if you actually intend to use this feature. I have of course played with the touchpad settings in Windows Control Panel, tried varying degrees of pressure while scrolling, updated to the latest version of the Synaptic touchpad driver... none of these things helped.
There is a way to circumvent the problem that is not enabled by default. Go into your touchpad settings via Control Panel and enable single-finger scrolling. This allows you to scroll by moving one finger up and down in the "scroll zone," which is a narrow vertical strip along the far right edge of the touchpad. This works great but is much more difficult to use. Rather than quickly being able to scroll from anywhere on the touchpad surface, you have to be careful that your finger stays right in the boundary of the scroll zone or else you'll move your mouse cursor to the top or bottom of the screen instead of registering a scroll, then you'll get frustrated and wonder "why is it not scrolling?!", then you'll have to move the cursor back down again and do it over.
The other couple of flaws only manifested after three or four days of use. Like another reviewer (M. Woo), I too am seeing splotches of white light in the bottom-right corner of the screen any time there is a dark background on display. For instance, every time the computer goes into sleep/hibernation or comes out of it, this is painfully obvious and just screams low quality. It was not a problem on day one, now it is, and I bet it will only get worse. The last and least of the issues is the fact that now, suddenly the computer will sometimes abruptly go into hibernation while reporting around 35% battery power remaining. It would previously only do this after warning me to plug it into a power source at around 9% power remaining. Very jarring and disappointing.
Were it not for these issues, I would wholeheartedly recommend the HP dv6-6c10us. Because of them, my experience as a user always ends in frustration and disappointment. The scrolling issue is the worst of all because it's a function that one can easily perform hundreds or thousands of times a day, and this laptop just makes it impractical and unusable. The moral of the story is that great specs for a low price do not make up for low quality hardware.
LOOK:
It is very sleek, and the metallic frame looks good, doesn't show fingerprints, and stays cool to the touch. The screen is glossy, but crisp and clear and pretty reflective. The laptop is considerably thin, and lid carries same nice metallic layout.
FUNCTIONS:
-Contains all necessary ports (including VGA, HDMI, Ethernet, 4 USBs, 1 audio in, and 2 audio out, as well as card reader slot and power jack.)
-Touch pad works great, stays cool with friction with finger motions, and can be locked if need be.
-Fingerprint scanner is cool, theoretically, but in reality isnt all that practical. You can only assign 3 passwords per finger, and Chrome remembers all my passwords anyway. I suppose signing in to Windows is the best place to use it.
-Beats Audio sounds just as good as any computer speaker, I cant tell the difference.
PERFORMANCE:
AMD A110 Processor 2.4GHz (4MB Cache), baseline 1.5 GHz
-good for basic programs and gaming
-Windows 7 I went into kicking since I am one of the few to like Vista, but after a while I came to my senses and the look of 7 is better.
-6GB SDRAM RAM for all temporary simultaneous running of programs
-640GB 5400RPM Hard Drive more than enough for me
PLUSES:
-nice battery life, about 5 hours
-extremely quiet, no fan noise with HP CoolSense
-quick startup/shutdown
-15.6 inch screen right fit for size, and portable (light as well)
-easy to connect to wireless network, wireless printer, external display
MINUSES:
-major bloatware upon first startup, took some removal time since I couldnt do a clean install without startup discs
-HP Quick Web is tricky to disable, it just takes longer to sign in to the desktop (which Windows 8 will essentially do as well, so i recommend getting a Windows 7 computer now)
-not supreme graphics or processing for gaming/editing but I dont do much of that anyway
-dont believe the DVD drive has Blu-Ray functionality
OVERALL:
-this will suit all basic web browsing, MS Office, mild gaming/editing needs
-reasonably priced for mid-range laptop, HP has really stepped it up.
-would definitely recommend
thanks for reading
Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>
I was going to purchase this HP DV6-6c10us laptop from Amazon but found a deal at Staples that I could not pass up. Purchased it for my daughter and she loves it. Uses it mostly for work that she brings home from her job along with Internet, email and music. I also hooked the laptop to her 61 inch HDTV with an HDMI cable. She now streams HD shows and music videos to her HDTV by way of the internet. Outstanding resolution.Microsoft Office Starter also came loaded on this computer. Word and Excel Starter are a nice addition if you don't need the full version of Office. All you need for home use.
Disabled or uninstalled all of the items that we didn't want or need without a glitch. Took about 15 minutes.
The laptop recognized all of the equipment that she had for her old laptop and installed it without a glitch.
After everything was hooked up and operating, including her printer, she decided that she wanted to use it as a wireless printer instead of a wired printer. No problem just pulled her printer software package, that came with the printer, out of a drawer installed the wireless printer drivers and presto, wireless printing. If you no longer have the printer software that came with the printer you can usually download the software from the printer manufacturers website.
Some older equipment such as printers and etc. may not work with Windows 7 desktop and laptop computers. Microsoft makes this quite clear. Many equipment and software manufacturers did not build drivers for their older products so Microsoft could not add drivers for this older equipment to Windows 7. This also happened with Vista. It is not the responsibility of Microsoft to build the drivers for equipment. In the case of printer drivers it is the responsibility of the printer manufacturer to develop and build drivers, then pass the drivers on to Microsoft.
Relating to the previous review of the DV6-6c10us and lack of wireless printing. Almost all fairly new printers will be recognized by computers running Windows 7 when hooked up by way of a USB cable. However, the drivers used for this hook up are not the same drivers required for wireless hook up. You normaly have to install the software that came with the printer to get the proper wireless connection. For that matter to get all of the functions of your printer to work properly you should load the software from disk or other media that came with your printer.
Best Deals for HP dv6-6c10us (15.6-Inch Screen) Laptop
OK first things first & in the interest of full disclosure...I didn't buy this laptop from Amazon. I in fact bought it from my local Staples when they had an amazing deal too good to pass up. I was in fact on the verge of ordering a different laptop from Amazon when I came across the deal I found on this machine. Thankfully Amazon allows us to review products we own so others can make informed decisions so I'll give my assessment of this laptop here.
I've spent a couple of weeks getting used to this laptop & putting it through it's paces so that I can offer a more thorough assessment.
Full review of HP Pavilion dv6-6C10US 15.6" Laptop:
I spent a few weeks researching new laptops & I thought I'd settled on a few choices from online. I went into my local Staples & discovered this steal of a deal & couldn't be happier I did. I was actually in the market for a much more costly alternative (Apple) until I found this laptop.
A few of it's standout features;
1) A nice quad core processor & built in AMD discrete graphics make it capable of handling most anything you throw at it. I use Adobe CS5 for my personal design business & in my tests this laptop handled even a heavy Photoshop render (multiple effects & layers) with ease.
2) The build quality is outstanding. I'm a big fan of the brushed metal shell. It feels good in the hand & stays cool to the touch. No cheap textured plastic here except for the bottom which is to be expected. It also repels fingerprints so it looks clean. Nice job on this attention to detail HP.
3) Expandability beyond the out of the box configuration. This was my major gripe with the Macbooks I was considering. They look great & run great but offer virtually no future upgrade potential. This laptop allows upgrading of the hdd & memory with a simple removal of it's access door on the bottom. I also love that I can increase the memory up to 16gb if I need to. I use some memory intensive software so this will inevitably come in handy.
A few other extras worth mentioning; 2 USB 3.0 ports (rapidly becoming the industry standard), the fingerprint reader that allows quick access to apps, built in bluetooth (nice), & Beats Audio (that I'll admit I thought was a gimmick but I'm pleasantly surprised with it's sound quality).
There are a few drawbacks I must mention too;
1) Battery life is not too good. Of course I've only used it for a few days so this could be a premature judgement on my part. Your mileage may vary.
2) Bonus software that I'll never use. Yep it's got some bloatware. Not too much & it's easily un-installed or deleted. I do wish this practice would end by PC vendors but it keeps costs down for the consumer so that's the breaks. But really 52 games that I'll never play pre installed? And the majority are limited use demos? Come on HP just leave that mess off or include a disc in the box with optional bonus apps & games on it. Let the customer decide.
3) The touchpad is tricky to operate. It seems real sensitive & can be wildly inaccurate. But that could also be user error. Again your mileage may vary.
A few other minor gripes of note; no lighted keyboard (hey we all have a wish list), a rather small eject button on the optical disc drive, & the cheap plastic bezel around the screen itself. It's a fingerprint magnet that looks out of place considering the rest of the machines build quality.
A word about support;
Apple gets alot of credit for their support as they should. Their agents are professional & thorough whether on the phone or in the store. You do get what you pay for here. HP in my experience hasn't been that bad either. They are no Apple, nobody is in that respect, but they provide a decent warranty that should handle any problems with the build quality, installed software, or all too often user error (see above review from Anti-Genius). Frankly, I am of the opinion that for the savings in up front price over a comparable Macbook, which is in the hundreds of dollars & possibly more than a cool grand, this HP laptop will serve the users needs quite well.
All in all I'd easily give this laptop a 4.5/4.75 rating. I give it 5 stars because it's more than a 4 in my opinion. Don't fall for Apples marketing & pay the ultra premium price for less value. Get a laptop like this one (highly recommended) or the equivalent & have access to the entire Windows program & apps library (very few Windows programs run effectively on Macs using their Bootcamp utility, I've tried dozens of productivity apps) & keep more of your hard earned money in your pocket.
Honest reviews on HP dv6-6c10us (15.6-Inch Screen) Laptop
I am so frustrated by this laptop. Considering the specs it comes with, the price seemingly makes it a wonderful deal. The design is sleek and modern. It runs cool and quiet. Nice screen, above average speaker quality, manageable weight. However, after a few days of use, I can't get past two major flaws.The first issue that is an immediate killjoy is the pretty awful touchpad, specifically the terrible implementation of two-finger scrolling. It just simply will not work properly. Half the time, maybe more, a regular two-finger swipe will not even register, thus the scrollbar will not move. Sometimes, this will happen many times in a row, and then suddenly your document/web page will jump up or down all those times at once. Other times it just won't do anything. This will drive you crazy if you actually intend to use this feature. I have of course played with the touchpad settings in Windows Control Panel, tried varying degrees of pressure while scrolling, updated to the latest version of the Synaptic touchpad driver... none of these things helped.
There is a way to circumvent the problem that is not enabled by default. Go into your touchpad settings via Control Panel and enable single-finger scrolling. This allows you to scroll by moving one finger up and down in the "scroll zone," which is a narrow vertical strip along the far right edge of the touchpad. This works great but is much more difficult to use. Rather than quickly being able to scroll from anywhere on the touchpad surface, you have to be careful that your finger stays right in the boundary of the scroll zone or else you'll move your mouse cursor to the top or bottom of the screen instead of registering a scroll, then you'll get frustrated and wonder "why is it not scrolling?!", then you'll have to move the cursor back down again and do it over.
The other couple of flaws only manifested after three or four days of use. Like another reviewer (M. Woo), I too am seeing splotches of white light in the bottom-right corner of the screen any time there is a dark background on display. For instance, every time the computer goes into sleep/hibernation or comes out of it, this is painfully obvious and just screams low quality. It was not a problem on day one, now it is, and I bet it will only get worse. The last and least of the issues is the fact that now, suddenly the computer will sometimes abruptly go into hibernation while reporting around 35% battery power remaining. It would previously only do this after warning me to plug it into a power source at around 9% power remaining. Very jarring and disappointing.
Were it not for these issues, I would wholeheartedly recommend the HP dv6-6c10us. Because of them, my experience as a user always ends in frustration and disappointment. The scrolling issue is the worst of all because it's a function that one can easily perform hundreds or thousands of times a day, and this laptop just makes it impractical and unusable. The moral of the story is that great specs for a low price do not make up for low quality hardware.
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for HP dv6-6c10us (15.6-Inch Screen) Laptop
I did quite a bit of research prior to purchasing the HP dv6-6c10us (15.6-Inch Screen) Laptop, and after trying it out on the Staples floor model I bought it on Amazon for a reduced price. Here are my thoughts:LOOK:
It is very sleek, and the metallic frame looks good, doesn't show fingerprints, and stays cool to the touch. The screen is glossy, but crisp and clear and pretty reflective. The laptop is considerably thin, and lid carries same nice metallic layout.
FUNCTIONS:
-Contains all necessary ports (including VGA, HDMI, Ethernet, 4 USBs, 1 audio in, and 2 audio out, as well as card reader slot and power jack.)
-Touch pad works great, stays cool with friction with finger motions, and can be locked if need be.
-Fingerprint scanner is cool, theoretically, but in reality isnt all that practical. You can only assign 3 passwords per finger, and Chrome remembers all my passwords anyway. I suppose signing in to Windows is the best place to use it.
-Beats Audio sounds just as good as any computer speaker, I cant tell the difference.
PERFORMANCE:
AMD A110 Processor 2.4GHz (4MB Cache), baseline 1.5 GHz
-good for basic programs and gaming
-Windows 7 I went into kicking since I am one of the few to like Vista, but after a while I came to my senses and the look of 7 is better.
-6GB SDRAM RAM for all temporary simultaneous running of programs
-640GB 5400RPM Hard Drive more than enough for me
PLUSES:
-nice battery life, about 5 hours
-extremely quiet, no fan noise with HP CoolSense
-quick startup/shutdown
-15.6 inch screen right fit for size, and portable (light as well)
-easy to connect to wireless network, wireless printer, external display
MINUSES:
-major bloatware upon first startup, took some removal time since I couldnt do a clean install without startup discs
-HP Quick Web is tricky to disable, it just takes longer to sign in to the desktop (which Windows 8 will essentially do as well, so i recommend getting a Windows 7 computer now)
-not supreme graphics or processing for gaming/editing but I dont do much of that anyway
-dont believe the DVD drive has Blu-Ray functionality
OVERALL:
-this will suit all basic web browsing, MS Office, mild gaming/editing needs
-reasonably priced for mid-range laptop, HP has really stepped it up.
-would definitely recommend
thanks for reading
Tuesday, July 1, 2014
Toshiba Satellite U845-S402 14.0-Inch Ultrabook (Sky Silver) Review
List Price: $749.99
Sale Price: $628.60
Today's Bonus: 16% Off
I fell in love with this laptop as soon as it started up!
It's nice and lightweight, doesn't overheat fast, and starts up quickly.
It's my first Toshiba and I'm completely satisfied with it.
The only thing that seems a bit backwards is when using the "F" keys ie. F5, F8 etc, you have to hold the "FN" or Function button and then whichever F key you want. I learned this the hard way by disabling my track pad accidentally!
Aside from that it's great. I was surprised that there was no removable battery pack, which probably is the reason it's so light! It has a nice long battery life when not plugged in and keeps up its speed.
A huge bonus is one of the USB ports will still charge your accessories while the computer is in sleep mode. Very handy!!
I'm not missing NOT having a cd drive, I still have my old laptop in case I need to burn anything.
My canon printer and all other accessories have been able to sync up fine via USB connections without any additional installation issues.
I've had it for a little over a month, so I'm sure there's still tons to find out about it but so far so good, I highly recommend it!
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If what you really do with your laptop is check out websites and your e-mails, download and manage music (that's what I do the most) and maybe some social networking, this one is for you. I'm not into video games, maybe hard core gamers need much more, but I don't. Yes, we all would like to have the last thing out there. For example, I was considering one with Windows 8, but if you think about it, then you would have to upgrade programs you already have like Windows 7-compatible Microsoft Office and maybe buy another printer and who knows what else. Honestly, if you just can't spend $100 more in a new computer, this one is perfect.My former laptop was a 12" Toshiba Satellite but I bought it in 2007. It never crashed or gave me any kind of problem at all, it just felt behind. So I always thought of replacing it with another Toshiba because I trust the brand. I was worried with the size difference (12" vs 14"), but it's so lightweight it's not an issue. And it's so, so fast I love it.
It's an Ultrabook so they don't come with CD/DVD Drives anymore, but I think that's the main reason why they're so light and slender. So I bought Toshiba Portable SuperMulti Drive PA3834U-1DV2 and problem solved. You know you don't use it everyday, so why carry it everyday?
I like the tile keyboard but I guess I have to get used to it because I mispelled more often. And the mouse pad is giant compare to what I had before, also something to get used to. It doesn't have separate bottons for right and left click and that's giving me a hard time. It's like I lose control of the pointer sometimes when I click.
Battery life it's amazing. I couln't believe it but it's true, it lasts a little over 7 hours unplugged. A huge difference compared to my old one. 3 USB, one of them allows you to keep charging even in sleep mode. And now, instead of using a thick and heavy VGA/audio cable to transfer image on screen to my TV, I can use HDMI for better quality.
I bought it almost a month ago and so far so good. I highly recommend it!
Best Deals for Toshiba Satellite U845-S402 14.0-Inch Ultrabook (Sky Silver)
I was looking for a Windows 7 laptop with good memory, storage and options. I found the Toshiba Satellite to be perfect. This is a secondary laptop for the household so I didn't want all the extras on it. It could use a better mouse pad area but most laptops could. Works great with a wireless external mouse. Good size, super light weight, great for average use.Honest reviews on Toshiba Satellite U845-S402 14.0-Inch Ultrabook (Sky Silver)
Laptop is great but there is one major flaw. The video posted by amazon about this product says that it has a back lit keyboard. IT DOES NOT. I am disappointed by this but I guess I will live with it any way. Don't mean to be negative about the product. Amazon you should remove the video that says this product has a back lit keyboard.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Toshiba Satellite U845-S402 14.0-Inch Ultrabook (Sky Silver)
I've just used it for a few days but so far very happy. The greatest thing about this computer is it's weight. It is very light and easy to carry around. I had a netbook before but decided to go for something bigger but still wanted something very portable. I don't need the dvd so I don't miss it. We use it mostly for Word and internet and it's pretty fast. Easy to set up. Only thing I don't like is the mouse buttons. They are hard to click especially right click. Other than that after adjusting the mouse speed, the mouse pad responds pretty well to my movements. People complained about the keyboard but it works fine for me.Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Review of HP Compaq NC6220 Notebook Computer (Off-Lease)
I recently received this computer but I ordered one exactly like it a month prior from a different seller. I found that the computer was fine except I didn't receive a backup disk for microsoft like the first one. The battery was great tho but the computer had some softwear that probably shouldn't have had.. ( should have been wiped clean). I wish it did have a registered back up disk. The computer works fine.. just a bit dissapointed.
Sunday, June 1, 2014
Buy ibook G4 12" 1.2 GHZ, 512MB RAM, 30 GB HD, COMBO DRIVE, AIRPORT
ibooks are a great student computer. I have purchased one for each of my 4 children and never regretted it. Since it is an Apple I don't have to worry about accidental clicking that could cause viruses and with the Microsoft Office 04, the kids can easily transfer their documents and projects to any pc with Office. The iBooks have been very durable and an economical alternative to the pricey pc laptops. Now with Leopard, I can monitor my kids computer time, set child/computer bedtimes, view/limit and the websites and I don't have to pay extra for this it is built in. The kids like all the games and the ability to control their laptops with voice commands. I like that I can stay in control of my kids computers without being a computer scientist.
My only criticism is that it gets a little warm so I keep it on top of a clipboard when holding it in my lap. No viruses, no crashes, no worries.
When netbooks started becoming popular a couple of years ago, I had to laugh because I already have a lightweight, handy netbook. In fact, I'm using it right now to write this review. Given a choice between a new Asus or Dell netbook or a used iBook G4 for the same price, I would take the G4 without thinking about it for a second.
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I've had a 12" iBook G4 since 2005 and it's still my favorite notebook for browsing the internet, writing letters, and even reading pdf's. It's very lightweight and I consider the screen the perfect size. It's held up very well. One of the keys has a hairline crack and one of the rubber feet on the bottom fell off but I clean it every month or so and it still looks almost new.My only criticism is that it gets a little warm so I keep it on top of a clipboard when holding it in my lap. No viruses, no crashes, no worries.
When netbooks started becoming popular a couple of years ago, I had to laugh because I already have a lightweight, handy netbook. In fact, I'm using it right now to write this review. Given a choice between a new Asus or Dell netbook or a used iBook G4 for the same price, I would take the G4 without thinking about it for a second.
Best Deals for ibook G4 12" 1.2 GHZ, 512MB RAM, 30 GB HD, COMBO DRIVE, AIRPORT
I got this computer about a week ago and in the beginning it was not working( error was showing), but i left it for a while and it WORKED~!... about 3 minutes). the laptop has exterior damages but it everything ran fine. its not the fastest computer out there .. but its good for taking notes, chatting (IM), and checking emails. the only problem i had was, when i try to download a programing cd it didnt work.( i didnt know the programming cd was for new computers tho, my fault). everything works! i say buy iT~! if you are only going to chat, take notes, check emails or download something!! but if you want to download parallel on the mac .. i recommend to get something else,( newer~!). BUT GREAT LAPTOP ~!Honest reviews on ibook G4 12" 1.2 GHZ, 512MB RAM, 30 GB HD, COMBO DRIVE, AIRPORT
So I got the laptop and its a good thing I double checked everything before I gave it to my sis (she needed something she could take to school with her for minor projects and such) because it came with what must have been a different laptops charger. It wasn't even close to being able to plug in.. A laptop isn't much good if you can't charge the battery. Luckily the replacement charger only cost like 7 bucks from a different seller, so problem solved. Buyer beware because you might not get the right parts.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for ibook G4 12" 1.2 GHZ, 512MB RAM, 30 GB HD, COMBO DRIVE, AIRPORT
I have had an iBook G4 scene summer of 2011 and I have one thing to say about it, its great but its hard to find apps for. alot of apps do have PPC support but some don't, most of the new ones don't.Saturday, May 31, 2014
Reviews of HP Pavilion dv6t QE Laptop - Windows 7 Home Premium, Intel
This was a gift for my husband, who was using a 2008 Gateway. We wanted something faster with good audio, and HP never disappointed us in the past. He did the upgrade to Windows 8, which the jury is still out on, but from what he tells me, this is a great product.
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
HP Pavilion g7-1260us 17.3" Notebook (2.2GHz Intel Core i3-2330M Review
This laptop has everything I need--light weight, long battery life (more than 4 hours), a huge and beautiful screen, fast speed, much less crap software compare to my Toshiba Notebook, and a perfect keyboard which allows you to type very fast once you get use to it. And it doesn't get hot. All of those features only for $520 makes it a great deal.
I want to mention that if you need to make the laptop to display other language such as Japanese, Chinese etc. like I do, you don't need to download anything, just do: Control panel-clock language and region-change the date, time or number format-administrative-change system locale and choose the language, and windows will then restart and update it automatically.
Alright, I have a major revision to the review that I previously wrote originally. The HP Laptop (which seemed nice at first) had to be returned for an exchange. The reason? The 650 Gig Hard drive stopped working after six days, because it was defective.
I got the blue screen of death when booting up Windows. At first, I thought it was a software crash. But, after using HP Tools in the Boot Manager, to conduct a hardware examination, I soon learned the hard drive was failing. I was shocked. I've never had this happen before with any computer or hard drive I've purchased new. That's why I've revised my rating for this product down to two stars.
I was sort of lucky because the little bugger stopped working within the 14 day return period. But, I ache for the customers who may not be so lucky. So far, I'm crossing my fingers with this replacement laptop. After a few disk self tests (DST) in the HP boot manager, everything seems kosher (but, again, I'm waiting to see.)
As I said previously, I currently own both an HP Netbook and this model.
My original review about the pluses for this machine remain unchanged. In my current line of work, I use my laptop to write articles for an online media publication. I'm guilty of falling asleep while using my laptop. When I was using, just my netbook, it could get searing hot, despite internal fan. For the most part, the 1260 remains cool to the touch.
This model is outfitted with a roomy 640 Gig hard drive (barring defects), a 4 gig RAM memory and a large 17" LED screen. I liked that the keyboard is nice and roomy. I can complete my articles without fearing that the mouse will reposition itself onto another part of the screen while I'm writing an article. The touchpad mouse can be turned on and off (with a button in the left corner). You can even scroll and adjust the zoom using the touch pad. On the right side of the keyboard, there is also a number pad, for accountants, mathematicians, etc; to complete their tasks.
There's also a HDMI plug (cord has to be purchased separately) to hook up with your HDTV. Additionally, there is a SD memory slot (for photographers who like snapping pictures) to easily upload pics to your computer. There are three total USB ports and an internal DVD-R drive.
The HP G7 also comes with a full, customizable version of Windows 7. No backup disk is included with this laptop, so be sure to create one when you first receive your laptop with the HP Recovery Manager. The manager will only allow you to create one full copy (which is four DVDs total). The machine only comes with an evaluation version of Microsoft Office and a 90-day evaluation copy of Norton Antivirus.
I'm going to nitpick, again, here, in spite of its positive features, the speaker quality is sub par. For music lovers who listen to Pandora, watch YouTube or like listening to music on their laptop, the stereo surround sound quality (from Altec Lansing) is poor. I've had similar problems with my HP Netbook, and thought by upgrading I'd get better speaker quality. Not the case. It also comes with a webcam.
The gray case is plain, imo, not so much shiny silver, but a muted charcoal gray. Not very flashy or trendy, if you're looking for your computer to be artsy. I plan on getting a sticker cover to customize mine.
With this model, you'll also have a one year HP warranty. Keep on your toes... you just might need it.
I want to warn customers to make sure that you have copies of your UPC code (don't throw away the box like I almost did). Keep copies of your original receipt on hand in a safe place just in case you have to exchange. Also, do a system diagnostics when you first purchase this machine (hitting the "ESC" after setting up Windows (on reboot). Select the "F2" key from the menu and conduct a system diagnostics to see if your hard drive and other hardware are in good condition.
2nd generation Intel® Core(tm) i3-2330M Processor with several extras like 3 USB ports,HARD DRIVE * 640GB 5400RPM hard drive, 17.3" diagonal HD LED display, 1 HDMI* 1 VGA (15-pin). YES HDMI AND HD !!!
My wife has used it mainly as a online browser, email, fb, etc. It does well for her usage....Then I tried it on my passion, Zynga games, Mafia Wars which requires several bookmarks and having many windows open while running scripts. I had been using a very expensive Dell laptop with games using Chrome and after opening 15-20 windows the Dell would crash. This HP will run over 20 screens including scripts that drains memory w/o crashing. I am trying to say that it does better than my $1500 Dell so far.
I was a little concerned about the HP reputation as being described as many complaints on HP Customer Service. But as of over 2 months of use it performs very well and because of this I have not dealt with their Customer Service. It can't be any worse than Dell's CS.
The keys and pad are quiet, no loud clicking and very soft. Long battery life for a 17 monitor. The only thing that I dislike is the mouse pad, as it is not visible and a bit of getting used to, but my daughter has not even noticed. Fan runs as needed buht not that you notice any noise except on startup......I a not going to bore you with the specs as they are easily found under product description. Basically the same specs as any other 17.3 laptop that has a i-3 Intel CPU. The only other thing I can think of is that you need to watch the price and try to catch it on sale. This HP model is no WalletMart HP, it's much better equipped.
I want to mention that if you need to make the laptop to display other language such as Japanese, Chinese etc. like I do, you don't need to download anything, just do: Control panel-clock language and region-change the date, time or number format-administrative-change system locale and choose the language, and windows will then restart and update it automatically.
Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>
**REVISED (SEE BELOW)Alright, I have a major revision to the review that I previously wrote originally. The HP Laptop (which seemed nice at first) had to be returned for an exchange. The reason? The 650 Gig Hard drive stopped working after six days, because it was defective.
I got the blue screen of death when booting up Windows. At first, I thought it was a software crash. But, after using HP Tools in the Boot Manager, to conduct a hardware examination, I soon learned the hard drive was failing. I was shocked. I've never had this happen before with any computer or hard drive I've purchased new. That's why I've revised my rating for this product down to two stars.
I was sort of lucky because the little bugger stopped working within the 14 day return period. But, I ache for the customers who may not be so lucky. So far, I'm crossing my fingers with this replacement laptop. After a few disk self tests (DST) in the HP boot manager, everything seems kosher (but, again, I'm waiting to see.)
As I said previously, I currently own both an HP Netbook and this model.
My original review about the pluses for this machine remain unchanged. In my current line of work, I use my laptop to write articles for an online media publication. I'm guilty of falling asleep while using my laptop. When I was using, just my netbook, it could get searing hot, despite internal fan. For the most part, the 1260 remains cool to the touch.
This model is outfitted with a roomy 640 Gig hard drive (barring defects), a 4 gig RAM memory and a large 17" LED screen. I liked that the keyboard is nice and roomy. I can complete my articles without fearing that the mouse will reposition itself onto another part of the screen while I'm writing an article. The touchpad mouse can be turned on and off (with a button in the left corner). You can even scroll and adjust the zoom using the touch pad. On the right side of the keyboard, there is also a number pad, for accountants, mathematicians, etc; to complete their tasks.
There's also a HDMI plug (cord has to be purchased separately) to hook up with your HDTV. Additionally, there is a SD memory slot (for photographers who like snapping pictures) to easily upload pics to your computer. There are three total USB ports and an internal DVD-R drive.
The HP G7 also comes with a full, customizable version of Windows 7. No backup disk is included with this laptop, so be sure to create one when you first receive your laptop with the HP Recovery Manager. The manager will only allow you to create one full copy (which is four DVDs total). The machine only comes with an evaluation version of Microsoft Office and a 90-day evaluation copy of Norton Antivirus.
I'm going to nitpick, again, here, in spite of its positive features, the speaker quality is sub par. For music lovers who listen to Pandora, watch YouTube or like listening to music on their laptop, the stereo surround sound quality (from Altec Lansing) is poor. I've had similar problems with my HP Netbook, and thought by upgrading I'd get better speaker quality. Not the case. It also comes with a webcam.
The gray case is plain, imo, not so much shiny silver, but a muted charcoal gray. Not very flashy or trendy, if you're looking for your computer to be artsy. I plan on getting a sticker cover to customize mine.
With this model, you'll also have a one year HP warranty. Keep on your toes... you just might need it.
I want to warn customers to make sure that you have copies of your UPC code (don't throw away the box like I almost did). Keep copies of your original receipt on hand in a safe place just in case you have to exchange. Also, do a system diagnostics when you first purchase this machine (hitting the "ESC" after setting up Windows (on reboot). Select the "F2" key from the menu and conduct a system diagnostics to see if your hard drive and other hardware are in good condition.
Best Deals for HP Pavilion g7-1260us 17.3" Notebook (2.2GHz Intel Core i3-2330M
I have owned this laptop for a week now. The processor and memory combination exceed my expectation and needs! This laptop replace my three year old Dell Inspiron 1525, the LED back-light is wonderful, colors and and brightness have improved dramatically. The computer runs cool all of the time and fan noise is minimal. The keyboard is going to take getting used to, being flat with the numeric pad on the right, I need to learn where the keys have moved from my old laptop. Battery life is easily 3.5 hours. My only concerns are the DVD drive door seems to be loose (not really a big deal), the other concern is the sound on this machine seems to be a little muffled, but that is something I think I will get used to. I would recommend this to a friend.Honest reviews on HP Pavilion g7-1260us 17.3" Notebook (2.2GHz Intel Core i3-2330M
I don't comment much,Short but sweet!This is a Awesome PC for the $$! speedy processor and memory.Verynice upgrade,from my last HP laptop.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for HP Pavilion g7-1260us 17.3" Notebook (2.2GHz Intel Core i3-2330M
I researched all laptops at the time and found the " HP g7-1260us Notebook PC with2nd generation Intel® Core(tm) i3-2330M Processor with several extras like 3 USB ports,HARD DRIVE * 640GB 5400RPM hard drive, 17.3" diagonal HD LED display, 1 HDMI* 1 VGA (15-pin). YES HDMI AND HD !!!
My wife has used it mainly as a online browser, email, fb, etc. It does well for her usage....Then I tried it on my passion, Zynga games, Mafia Wars which requires several bookmarks and having many windows open while running scripts. I had been using a very expensive Dell laptop with games using Chrome and after opening 15-20 windows the Dell would crash. This HP will run over 20 screens including scripts that drains memory w/o crashing. I am trying to say that it does better than my $1500 Dell so far.
I was a little concerned about the HP reputation as being described as many complaints on HP Customer Service. But as of over 2 months of use it performs very well and because of this I have not dealt with their Customer Service. It can't be any worse than Dell's CS.
The keys and pad are quiet, no loud clicking and very soft. Long battery life for a 17 monitor. The only thing that I dislike is the mouse pad, as it is not visible and a bit of getting used to, but my daughter has not even noticed. Fan runs as needed buht not that you notice any noise except on startup......I a not going to bore you with the specs as they are easily found under product description. Basically the same specs as any other 17.3 laptop that has a i-3 Intel CPU. The only other thing I can think of is that you need to watch the price and try to catch it on sale. This HP model is no WalletMart HP, it's much better equipped.
Sunday, May 4, 2014
Lenovo ThinkPad T410 2516DCU 14.1-Inch Laptop Reviews
List Price: $999.00
Sale Price: $899.99
Today's Bonus: 10% Off
I have been using Lenovo Thinkpads for the past 14 years and have always been super happy. This is also a good machine but has one major drawback "improved" bumpy touchpad....
It is rather horrible I don't know what they've been thinking.... I purchased my Thinkpad online, so didn't have a chance to test it in advance and now a few months into it I am super disappointed. I am an active user of touchpad (I travel a lot and don't like to carry a mouse around with me) and I actually have a very sore index finger most of the time.... The touchpad is extremely uncomfortable to use on the finger and the previous ones felt so good, smooth and silky....
I am also considering using a very delicate version of sandpaper to get rid of the little bumps (as they do seem to wear off eventually) but I am worried about damaging the thing for good.... My fingers are now constantly sore. And I would like to quote another online user here: "This is the worst computer interface experience. It is like grating your finger over 80 grit sandpaper. What a shame. It is a dealbreaker. Miserable! Do not purchase this machine without a test drive."
Note to Lenovo: Guys, you really need to fix this!
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I HAVE BEEN A LONG TIME MAC AND LINUX USER AND WAS WEARY OF A WINDOWS COMPUTER. AFTER TONS OF RESEARCH I DECIDED ON THE THINKPAD. THE T410 IS A FEW YEARS OLD AND CAN STILL OUTRUN ANY i7 PROC. I'VE STRESSED TESTED IS AGAINST. BOOTS UP IN LESS THAN 15 SECONDS. SEVERAL MICE AND CLICKERS TO CHOOSE FROM FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE. GREAT STURDY KEYS. BIG ENOUGH TO TYPE WITH ALMOST NO TYPOS. WHAT A RELIEF ON MY DELETE KEY. NO BACKLIT KEYBOARD BUT HAS AN LED LIGHT NEAR THE WEBCAM THAT LIGHTS IT UP JUST RIGHT.Best Deals for Lenovo ThinkPad T410 2516DCU 14.1-Inch Laptop
Great service and great product! Thank you! I would buy again and again. Love the computer. It is the best.Honest reviews on Lenovo ThinkPad T410 2516DCU 14.1-Inch Laptop
I purchased one from amazon and that is good. I like the screen 16:10 and it runs very stable. I am regret all new thinkpad are all 16:9. so i choose the t410.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Lenovo ThinkPad T410 2516DCU 14.1-Inch Laptop
I bought this computer for music production, and it works great for that. Super solidly built, all around great computer. except the touch-pad doesn't scroll (it's supposed to).Friday, April 11, 2014
Buy Lenovo Z580 15.6-Inch Laptop
I did research before choosing a laptop, and this one seemed to have the features I was looking for: 15" or larger screen, good processor and plenty of RAM, and a brand that consistently gets good customer reviews.
Positives first: The LED screen is very vibrant. It is not one of the top-of-the-line screens that is equally vibrant from any angle, but this is an excellent screen for the price range. The laptop itself is sharp-looking and light-weight.
Negatives: The touchpad is infuriating. I appreciate that it is set up like a Mac so you can use two fingers to scroll or zoom in or out, but it is very spotty in its sensitivity. I found that I have to click two or three times before it recognizes what I'm doing as a click. This in spite of the fact that the pad actually moves and makes an audible clicking noise when you click. I have read some other online reviews that mention the touchpad specifically, and it seems that this is just the way this model works. A driver can be downloaded to improve the touchpad function, but even after that I still had problems.
The shift and arrows keys also have an untraditional placement on the keyboard. The shift key is significantly smaller than normal, and the up arrow is to the right, leading me to occasionally hit the up arrow instead of the shift key.
I am typing this review on a different Lonovo laptop, a ThinkPad Edge, and the touchpad on it is great. The primary physical difference is that the ThinkPad has two distinct bars for left and right clicking, where on the Z580 it is one large pad.
I am returning the Z580 for a different laptop, because even after updating the driver for the touchpad, I find it less frustrating to use an older computer with a lower grade processor than to put up with a zig-zagging cursor that rarely detects when I'm clicking.
Overall I have encountered no issues with regard to general performance and usability of the device, Windows 8 takes some getting used to though. Most of the software apps that came with Lenovo's install were not considered useful though so I uninstalled them.
This Z580 offers some high end components in this low budget introductory unit that allows all the abilities that people love about traversing the web, and there is no lag or interruption while streaming video or music. Doubling the RAM memory is possible but not really beneficial since a step upward to a Y Series Lenovo will net better results for the gamers. I'm gaining a real appreciation for the sturdiness built into Lenovo products and for the wide availability of Lenovo product data sheets. This Z-PC is ready for just about everything from the get-go, and it has an attractive platinum plum tint on its outer shell that shows an amazing resemblance to brushed aluminum.
One cautionary note is that after purchasing your new Lenovo, create all the factory backups before making any adjustments to the hard drive. If just getting familiar with Lenovo products, one discovers quickly there is a new level of intricacy sitting in front of them, and a step taken too far may have no return path. Possibly more sophisticated than most people care to delve into, Lenovo is loaded with innovation, and a wide assortment of possibilities are readily available.
UPDATE: July 29, 2013
There is no compromise for quality, and this computer has it all. Now after using it for several months, my appreciation for it continues to build, and I can't find anything about it worthy of any criticism. Its layout and its reliability are state of art, and I even purchased a second one. The price is going back up to normal again, but even at the full price this laptop will not disappoint. I have used many laptops, and this one is a no-nonsense example of what the perfect laptop should be. Again, a big thanks to Lenovo for this greatest of Z Machines!
Aside from the UEFI, the trackpad is very annoying and the keyboard key placement is off. I haven't used a unified trackpad before, but this must definitely be one of the worse off executions out there. Like another reviewer noted, the sensitivity is wrong. The pointer stops dead in it's tracks when I'm trying to get across the screen. Right/Left clicking while moving the cursor is very clumsy and difficult. I have an old T61 that's a joy to use because of it's excellent keyboard , trackpad and physical buttons. I wish Lenovo didn't try to change what's not broken.
Positives first: The LED screen is very vibrant. It is not one of the top-of-the-line screens that is equally vibrant from any angle, but this is an excellent screen for the price range. The laptop itself is sharp-looking and light-weight.
Negatives: The touchpad is infuriating. I appreciate that it is set up like a Mac so you can use two fingers to scroll or zoom in or out, but it is very spotty in its sensitivity. I found that I have to click two or three times before it recognizes what I'm doing as a click. This in spite of the fact that the pad actually moves and makes an audible clicking noise when you click. I have read some other online reviews that mention the touchpad specifically, and it seems that this is just the way this model works. A driver can be downloaded to improve the touchpad function, but even after that I still had problems.
The shift and arrows keys also have an untraditional placement on the keyboard. The shift key is significantly smaller than normal, and the up arrow is to the right, leading me to occasionally hit the up arrow instead of the shift key.
I am typing this review on a different Lonovo laptop, a ThinkPad Edge, and the touchpad on it is great. The primary physical difference is that the ThinkPad has two distinct bars for left and right clicking, where on the Z580 it is one large pad.
I am returning the Z580 for a different laptop, because even after updating the driver for the touchpad, I find it less frustrating to use an older computer with a lower grade processor than to put up with a zig-zagging cursor that rarely detects when I'm clicking.
Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>
I have only recently received this laptop. I am intermediate when it comes to being tech savvy. I have been building my own for a few years now and bought this for the capabilities that I saw it would have. I ran several stress test and it did wonderful. I would highly suggest this laptop for those who don't just want a middle of the run computers. It will do what I want and not really stress.Best Deals for Lenovo Z580 15.6-Inch Laptop
I have been shopping around for a new laptop for a while, and based upon reviews across the web I decided to buy this product. I must say I am most impressed with the performance capability and sleek design of the Lenovo series of laptops.Overall I have encountered no issues with regard to general performance and usability of the device, Windows 8 takes some getting used to though. Most of the software apps that came with Lenovo's install were not considered useful though so I uninstalled them.
Honest reviews on Lenovo Z580 15.6-Inch Laptop
The best surprise came after receiving it and discovering it is fully equipped for BlueTooth using the very capable Broadcom software. Rest assured, this Z580 has all the basics.This Z580 offers some high end components in this low budget introductory unit that allows all the abilities that people love about traversing the web, and there is no lag or interruption while streaming video or music. Doubling the RAM memory is possible but not really beneficial since a step upward to a Y Series Lenovo will net better results for the gamers. I'm gaining a real appreciation for the sturdiness built into Lenovo products and for the wide availability of Lenovo product data sheets. This Z-PC is ready for just about everything from the get-go, and it has an attractive platinum plum tint on its outer shell that shows an amazing resemblance to brushed aluminum.
One cautionary note is that after purchasing your new Lenovo, create all the factory backups before making any adjustments to the hard drive. If just getting familiar with Lenovo products, one discovers quickly there is a new level of intricacy sitting in front of them, and a step taken too far may have no return path. Possibly more sophisticated than most people care to delve into, Lenovo is loaded with innovation, and a wide assortment of possibilities are readily available.
UPDATE: July 29, 2013
There is no compromise for quality, and this computer has it all. Now after using it for several months, my appreciation for it continues to build, and I can't find anything about it worthy of any criticism. Its layout and its reliability are state of art, and I even purchased a second one. The price is going back up to normal again, but even at the full price this laptop will not disappoint. I have used many laptops, and this one is a no-nonsense example of what the perfect laptop should be. Again, a big thanks to Lenovo for this greatest of Z Machines!
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Lenovo Z580 15.6-Inch Laptop
I need to dual boot my laptop and I've never had issues doing so before. Then Windows 8 comes along with UEFI and screws things up royally. Installing ubuntu on this machine took me back to the 90s when installing linux used to feel like touch and go. This laptop in particular has a BIOS that doesn't allow it to boot anything but Windows and RHEL in UEFI mode. I tried legacy booting, but the install got so royally screwed up that I had to factory reset everything. I lost a couple of days worth of work done to install the software I needed. I'm considering using my old laptop which has issues but still lets me work.Aside from the UEFI, the trackpad is very annoying and the keyboard key placement is off. I haven't used a unified trackpad before, but this must definitely be one of the worse off executions out there. Like another reviewer noted, the sensitivity is wrong. The pointer stops dead in it's tracks when I'm trying to get across the screen. Right/Left clicking while moving the cursor is very clumsy and difficult. I have an old T61 that's a joy to use because of it's excellent keyboard , trackpad and physical buttons. I wish Lenovo didn't try to change what's not broken.
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Buy MSI FX400-062US 14-Inch Laptop (Black)
We ordered this machine because of the excellent specs for the given price point. However, we encountered blue screen issues for our first unit, and also on the second unit we ordered as replacement.
The first unit worked well; but after a few hours of surfing the net, it blurted a "blue screen". We kept the machine for a few more days thinking that this is a legit error or conflict that will eventually be resolved by driver updates and/or windows updates. The blue screen, however, continued to hound the machine and has appeared intermittently for two weeks. We decided to return the item for a replacement for the same item.
The second machine (replacement unit) arrived and we were quite happy of the fast turnaround (three days shipping is awesome). We opened the package, seated the battery in place and turned on the machine for some testing. After only a few minutes of surfing the internet, we were shocked to see the same blue screen (no time to check up the error codes though) on this second unit. We decided to ship this one back on the very next day; it's quite unusual to have the same blue screen issue to appear for two identical machines.
We are not really sure as to what's the problem with these machines, but I guess part of our expectation is for the machine to work well out-of-the-box. I haven't heard or read too much issues with Windows 7 on a well-built machine throwing out blue screens when you haven't even installed much software into it. We were disappointed with this particular machine only FX400-062US (we previously owned an MSI U123 netbook, it never encountered issues like this) and would not want to have it anymore. We requested for a refund so we can get something that at least works with regards to specifications and common customer expectations. I hope this helps you.
Overall, it is a really good size for me. I used to have a 17" laptop which became too cumbersome to lug around everywhere.
I do have a few gripes... the "a" key has a different springy feel when pressed, and the left mouse button has a jiggle when released. I'll see if a break in period losens these up. I also noticed that he lid when closed has a little bit of play on the one side. ...ok, maybe I rate it 3.5 stars.
The matte black finish of the machine is very cool, and overall it is very light.
The first unit worked well; but after a few hours of surfing the net, it blurted a "blue screen". We kept the machine for a few more days thinking that this is a legit error or conflict that will eventually be resolved by driver updates and/or windows updates. The blue screen, however, continued to hound the machine and has appeared intermittently for two weeks. We decided to return the item for a replacement for the same item.
The second machine (replacement unit) arrived and we were quite happy of the fast turnaround (three days shipping is awesome). We opened the package, seated the battery in place and turned on the machine for some testing. After only a few minutes of surfing the internet, we were shocked to see the same blue screen (no time to check up the error codes though) on this second unit. We decided to ship this one back on the very next day; it's quite unusual to have the same blue screen issue to appear for two identical machines.
We are not really sure as to what's the problem with these machines, but I guess part of our expectation is for the machine to work well out-of-the-box. I haven't heard or read too much issues with Windows 7 on a well-built machine throwing out blue screens when you haven't even installed much software into it. We were disappointed with this particular machine only FX400-062US (we previously owned an MSI U123 netbook, it never encountered issues like this) and would not want to have it anymore. We requested for a refund so we can get something that at least works with regards to specifications and common customer expectations. I hope this helps you.
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For the price and functionality of this laptop, it sure beats investing in something less functional such as an iPad (not trying to bash the iPad). My main goal was a portable device to take with me to be able to work on, tether a camera on a photo shoot, take notes in meetings with clients, or show a client my portfolio.Overall, it is a really good size for me. I used to have a 17" laptop which became too cumbersome to lug around everywhere.
I do have a few gripes... the "a" key has a different springy feel when pressed, and the left mouse button has a jiggle when released. I'll see if a break in period losens these up. I also noticed that he lid when closed has a little bit of play on the one side. ...ok, maybe I rate it 3.5 stars.
The matte black finish of the machine is very cool, and overall it is very light.
Best Deals for MSI FX400-062US 14-Inch Laptop (Black)
I have had this laptop for 3 years now and it has held up great so far. The battery life is excellent and the computer has enough grunt to get through most work. The computer runs solidworks fine as well as games fairly well. It isn't the most powerful laptop but it is certainly more than enough power for typical users and even those who need a simple workstation type computer for graphic or design work. I mainly purchased this laptop for its size and weight as I use this as a portable workstation. My only complaint would be the track-pad. The track pad itself works great but the position is a little awkward and it can be bumped when typing causing the mouse pointer to move. I normally use a mouse and disable the trackpad so this isn't too much of an issue for me. When it is time to upgrade again, I would definitely consider MSI.Honest reviews on MSI FX400-062US 14-Inch Laptop (Black)
My brother spent over 700 dollars on this trash like notebook that crashes and freezes in such random times. I didn't do any upgrades and used it just as it came. This computer was always on a desk, meaning I never carried it around or dropped it. After only three months of using it, the CD rom drive stopped working. I could not get it to open it even after talking to tech support rep. I sent it to their repair center, which took literally over three weeks AFTER RECEIVING the notebook (I checked the tracking). I got it back and CD rom is opening now but still don't use it much because it started to act funny again... I don't feel like sending it again because you can't fix a product that is built like a garbage like this one. Just don't waste your money on this particular FX models.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for MSI FX400-062US 14-Inch Laptop (Black)
Hard drive ruined in less than 7 months. Warranty work not being fulfilled after 2.5 weeks. No way to get any of the technical support to answer to the status on the computer. This thing does not even deserve to be a one star. AWFUL.Friday, March 14, 2014
Review of IBM Lenovo X60s Mini Laptop and Mini-dock Combo
Anyone looking for a cool/compact laptop should definitely buy this. The only cons I have with this laptop is (No CD ROM DRIVE). But I say it's 2011 and technology doesn't rely on Cd's like they used to. And I can just buy a usb cd/dvd burner (simple)!
I advise you to buy from Genie Technologies, LLC!
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I picked up a used one (IBM branded but same model #), with L2400 Core Duo, 60 GB hard drive, and 1 Gb ram. I needed a replacement for my beloved IBM X40 which I gave away to a friend. Great keyboard (IBM made the best computer keyboards), snappy performance (a HUGE improvement over X40 and way better than those Atom processors found in netbooks), strong wifi, great battery life using the 8-cell battery (well over 5 hours of actual work), light weight yet built rugged to handle on the road demands, and nice 12" screen for real productivity and entertainment on those long flights cross country. I tried one of those 10" screen netbooks with it's flimsy keys (a well known brand) and there's no comparison in performance or build quality to this IBM. The best part is that you get a superior computer at less than half the price. Only cons I see is that the screen is not as bright as the newer laptops, the memory upgrade is limited by a single available slot, no touchpad (only trackpoint), and the fan is noisy under strenuous use (maybe it's just my used one). If you're not blinded by fancy colors or design, the newest OS, or i-Name or NEW, this is a GREAT portable for on the road or couch potato users.Best Deals for IBM Lenovo X60s Mini Laptop and Mini-dock Combo
Bought this about a month ago, i was already aware that it had no track pad and that its a pretty small laptop. I actually was expecting a smaller one. The reason for this bad rating is that every time i try to turn the laptop on, it goes into this seizure mode that shows a pixelated lines across the screen. and i have to hold the power button and try again until it powers on normally, I'm just hoping its not a devastating problem because i can live with that considering the price. Im a computer science major and need a small laptop strictly for homework, so i only have a few programs installed, none of which are games or audio/video software, so i don't need extra stuff.Honest reviews on IBM Lenovo X60s Mini Laptop and Mini-dock Combo
I wanted to buy a cheap laptop for a trip and choose this, but The laptop have overcome all my expectations; it's like a new (with 6+ hours battery life!), works like a crazy, but the main what I wanna underline is that, once (after the guarantee term was expired) something happened with HDD and was replaced by the seller for free!!!I advise you to buy from Genie Technologies, LLC!
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for IBM Lenovo X60s Mini Laptop and Mini-dock Combo
I had this Lenovo product for two years and in the first year the hard drive died and I had to send it in to be fixed. The second year the samething happen and the operating system went out as well. It took Lenovo 3 months to tell me if they were going to fix it. They never did and exchanged it for a better pc with a brand name that I heard off. I will stay away from Lenovo products because they don't last long and it is a waste of money.Monday, March 3, 2014
Reviews of HP PAVILION NOTEBOOK DV7-2185DX 2.0 GHz Intel Core2 Quad Processor
I've had this computer for a few days now and I really like it. The display is very bright (actually had to turn it down at night) and clear. Processing speed is great and the 1gb of dedicated (yes I said dedicated) graphics memory is more than I could ask for from an off the shelf computer. ProtectSmart feature for the hard drive is a nice addition (senses if laptop is being dropped and locks the hard drive).
I just wish that it had a Blu-ray player and integrated Bluetooth that I saw on some lower priced models. See the review at
So far this computer has done everything I have asked of it. One thing of note is to make sure your programs you are going to install are 64bit compatible. I downloaded some demo software and found out it wouldn't work.
Also this model is eligible for a free upgrade to Windows 7 if purchased between June 26, 2009 to January 31, 2010.
I just wish that it had a Blu-ray player and integrated Bluetooth that I saw on some lower priced models. See the review at
So far this computer has done everything I have asked of it. One thing of note is to make sure your programs you are going to install are 64bit compatible. I downloaded some demo software and found out it wouldn't work.
Also this model is eligible for a free upgrade to Windows 7 if purchased between June 26, 2009 to January 31, 2010.
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