Discount Compaq CQ56-219WM Presario Laptop 15.6" LED display / 2.20GHz

Customer Ratings:

Compaq CQ56-219WM Presario Laptop 15.6" LED display / 2.20GHz Celeron Processor / 2GB DDR2 RAM / 250GB HDD / Lightscribe DVD±R/RW / 802.11 b/g/n Wifi / 6 Cell / Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) I was somewhat hesitant to purchase this laptop, but aside from the negative reviews here, other site's reviewers were much more postive so I took the plunge and have been quite pleased with its performance.

Pros: Very easy setup . . . especially if you go wireless. I disabled the built in mouse pad and went with a wireless mouse, and use a wireless internet connection. The computer automatically picks up the signals and you're ready to go. Took maybe 5 minutes altogether.

Some folks have complained about its speed, but I found that the Norton Anti-virus Program that comes with it was the problem. After completely removing it from the computer and installing Microsoft Security Essentials . . . it became lightning fast, especially on the internet.

Cons: Just one: I couldn't get my printer to work on it, but decided to go wireless with a printer and got a new one.

All in all, this laptop does all that my old XP desktop did, but much faster and without all the wires dangling and protruding from it. No need for a monitor screen with its wires; got the wireless mouse and wireless printer. The only wire that I have inserted is the AC cord to recharge the battery. It's lightweight, portable and fast.

Some people complain that it's no good for games and such because it's too slow. Maybe it is too slow for some games. I wouldn't know because I don't play them. I use it for emailing, surfing the web, writing and research. It doesn't come with a webcam or other bells and whistles. It's a basic laptop for basic computing needs. It comes with Microsoft Office Word and Excel, but not outlook express. You can upgrade to get the additional programs for a price.

I've used computers for years and this is my first laptop. If you're looking for a good, solid, basic, fast laptop without the frills and thrills, you can't go wrong with this one.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Seems to be a great preformace laptop for simple use. That is what it was purchased for. The size and weight are the normal for most Windows 7 bring a lot of features that windows XP did not have.

Best Deals for Compaq CQ56-219WM Presario Laptop 15.6" LED display / 2.20GHz

I bought this laptop when i was 12 and had it for about a year. It's a wonderful starter laptop. Might not be a good work computer but a good play computer especially if you download GameBooster. It lets me do all I need and more.

Honest reviews on Compaq CQ56-219WM Presario Laptop 15.6" LED display / 2.20GHz

I have used this laptop for 2 years now, and it has been a very slow 2 years indeed.

I can't tell you how slow this computer can be. It is definitely cheap, and has trouble running basic programs like word. It's a computer that freezes up frequently, and don't you dare think you can run three programs at once without having to wait a whole minute just to maximize one of them.

It is definitely not the greatest computer, but it works. As long as you have patience and aren't playing games or doing too much, it is great.

It is definitely great if you are like me and can't fork over $500 for a new laptop and just need something to do basic things on.

It might not be the greatest, but for the price it is worth it. It is a little bulky, and the keyboard is irritating (That PowerDVD button!!!) but you get used to it after a while.

All in all, it's what you pay for.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Compaq CQ56-219WM Presario Laptop 15.6" LED display / 2.20GHz

Edit: My fan's already gone out at the 3.5 month mark. Bad soldering or circuit board leads.

Edit again: I've had it on a cooler ever since, and now at the 13 month mark the hard drive just crapped out. At least it didn't do that during my stats grad class, but I'm annoyed that it did this a day after I finally got Virtual DJ and the Emu 0204 running flawlessly by doing nothing more than creating a new user account (who knew cluttered/default Windows 7 profiles could so foul up ASIO?). I am hoping it's the motherboard, since the fan also had an issue as stated previously, but I'm not hopeful. Still, I purchased a 2.5" SATA to USB HD enclosure to test the internal hard drive with something else to be sure. If it checks out, I may buy another CQ56 and move it into that one. I'm not optimistic or even looking forward to buying another one of these if that is the case, but I don't want to go through the LONG process of installing all my stuff again. In retrospect, I was not being too hard on this computer.

Yet another edit: It was the HD. Darn. I hardly ever took this thing anywhere and it looks mint. Turns out the backup and clone features never exactly worked properly. Perhaps I should have cloned or copied the onboard HP backup partition? Windows 7 has a clone/ghost feature built in, yet even after creating a properly-sized Fat32 partition (required apparently in the wizard) on an external drive, that still never worked. I hoped it would run in the background after turning it on in Windows in control panel with my 3TB Seagate USB drive, but no. It looks like the CQ56 cannot either boot-from or clone-to an external USB drive, which is a problem considering it has only one HD slot internally.

Furthermore, the wifi adapter is not automatically recognized and plug-and-play upon a new Windows 7 installation. That means if you're on wifi, you won't be able to ever get on the net until you either go to another computer or connect to a hard line. HP really should have included a backup DVD.

Their forums are also full of people with dead fans and hard drives.

I'm changing it to 1-star and will never buy HP again.

----

Original review:

It's amazing how much you can get now for $300. I won't deny that, but this is, after all, a single core Celeron processor without even hyperthreading. Windows 64 also needs 3GB before it starts to have breathing room to do good, stable work. So I upgraded the ram to 4GB total and it helps, but the lack of at least one more core terribly limits multitasking ability. I feel you ought to spend at least $500 bucks for a laptop at the lowest acceptable "end" still. You get exponentially more computer. With only integrated graphics, one core, and slow hard drives, even with double the ram it's just not capable of what a modern machine should do at minimum. With 4GB it can handle single tasks well if you're patient. Don't expect a snappy, crisp interface, though. The screen is also lacking in contrast range substantially. Are you getting ripped off at this price? Nope. It's durable and, aside from the crummy stiff mouse buttons, does the basics. But jumping up in price gives you more than buying two of these would. I recommend the following minimum:

4GB RAM

Multicore CPU of some type (Intel seems the most compatible)

7200rpm hard drives

Dedicated graphics chip and VRAM; not just because of the horsepower needs, but some software literally malfunctions from integrated graphics

Firewire or Expresscard slot... not just USB connectors

HDMI port

Best Dell Studio 1537 Black Deals

Customer Ratings:

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

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

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

Best Deals for Dell Studio 1537 Black

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

Honest reviews on Dell Studio 1537 Black

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

Reviews of Dell Inspiron 15R i15R-1843sLV 3rd Gen Intel Core i5-3210M 8GB

Customer Ratings:

This is my first windows 8 laptop, it very useful and I am thinking to buy a surface. I like it.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Exellent laptop works really good and hardware is fabolous! Price is even more incredible. I recommend! First with a Dell, and I think it will be much more!

Samsung ATIV Book 5 NP540U4E-K04US 14-Inch Touchscreen Ultrabook Reviews

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $699.99
Sale Price: $629.99
Today's Bonus: 10% Off

I liked the ATIV Book 5 enough that when I had to return it because of a minor issue I got a replacement rather than a different laptop. (Hats off to Amazon for remarkable service; they sent me a new one even before I returned the old one, so that I wasn't without a computer.) This unit has an excellent keyboard and touch pad, plus good battery life. It's also speedy and the build quality seems good. On the negative side, the screen is not as crisp as some others--look elsewhere if you're a video fanatic--and the black finish is a real fingerprint magnet. It's reasonably nice looking but not as cool as other Samsung laptops.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I bought this computer to replace my old acer netbook and I have been pleasantly surprised by how wonderful this Samsung computer is. I like the 14 inch size, it's not too big or too small but perfect for my needs. The computer is very very light and is also extremely fast. I looked for a touch screen computer that was not too expensive or too heavy and I read a lot of reviews before I chose this one. I am happy that I decided to go for this ultrabook laptop. Although I paid less than $800 for it the computer looks and feels like a high end laptop. I like the great finish, big keyboard, great speakers and the battery lasts for a long long time. Even windows 8 does not feel as bad as other reviewers have said.

Best Deals for Samsung ATIV Book 5 NP540U4E-K04US 14-Inch Touchscreen Ultrabook

I bought this for my oldest going into high school. she needed her own computer and portability should she need it at school. This is light weight and with a touch screen you can't ask for a better deal. It was right at back to school which I think brought the price down to just under $600. Fabulous.

Honest reviews on Samsung ATIV Book 5 NP540U4E-K04US 14-Inch Touchscreen Ultrabook

Computer seems fine. Fires up quick, easy to setup etc. Only issue is they installed 2 u's. one where u goes and another where J goes. Amazon was nice enough to send me another laptop out even before I sent in the defective one. Would have received 5 stars had this not happened. Ill update in a few months as well.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Samsung ATIV Book 5 NP540U4E-K04US 14-Inch Touchscreen Ultrabook

Very slim, light ideal for someone who travels lots. with window 8 the touch screen option on this machine make it very easy to navigate through the tiles.

the screen quality is extremely clean, and the start up time is shocking

Reviews of Lenovo ThinkPad X230 Convertible Tablet (X230T, newer model of

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $2,294.00
Sale Price: $1,629.99
Today's Bonus: 29% Off

This is a review of both (1) The Amazon Seller, "GW Store" and (2) Lenovo build quality and warranty service.

(1) Good

(2) Really BAD

That's it in a nutshell. Interested in details? Read on.

To be fair, I should be clear that the Amazon Seller, "GW Store" made available to me every option they could offer in helping me deal with the problems. They sell a Lenovo X230 Tablet that is well spec'd and was just what I needed for an extended trip abroad. That was the "Good". It was a "3434-CTO" unit and came with just a 1 year depot warranty.

Lenovo? The feature set looked to be exactly what was necessary for my needs. When the unit arrived, however, it died just a few hours out of the box. I contacted Lenovo support, and we agreed it was a dead main board. I contacted GW Store about a replacement. and they were out of stock and could not say they would have a new shipment in time to meet my fast approaching departure date. So, I sent it to Lenovo for warranty repair. I had about 3 weeks and surely it would be OK.

After a few days I checked the status online and found that it was on "Hold" for parts. Lenovo Memphis TN warranty facility did not have a main board? Wow. They must have been using a lot of them. I know the drill, so I called to escalate this to a manager. After a week, the board evidently came in, but then the online status screen indicated another "Hold". I quickly contacted the manager and learned it was on hold now for a cable! I explained my time constraints again and he told me that he had found 50 cables available but Memphis had been waiting on a cable to come through as usual.

Altogether, the unit was at Memphis for more than two weeks.

When it arrived, I began to set it up and quickly discovered that the ONLY working feature of the upper (display) assembly was the LCD and backlight. No touch, no speakers, no LED indicators (both front and back) no power-on button in tablet mode etc... Nada.

At that point, I checked GW Store and they had received a shipment. I ordered a replacement overnighted and sent the first unit back. In wrapping this up with GW Store, I learned that their tech was finding Lenovo uncooperative as well.

I am now traveling, and it has been 10 days with the second unit. So far, so good. If a new device works this long, it's probably OK. 90 days from now if it's still good I will feel better.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I custom-ordered from the Lenovo/Thinkpad site. My configuration:

Thinkpad X230 Tablet

+ Core i7 2.90 GHz Ivy Bridge processor

+ 8 GM RAM

+ 128 GB Solid-State Drive

+ 1366x768 Matte Multi-Touch Screen with Active Stylus

+ 9-cell extended battery (sticks out the back and adds a bulge at the bottom; the 6-cell battery just sticks out the back)

+ Windows 7 Pro

+ Ultra-Base 3 with DVD/RW optical drive

No discrete graphics card option

I've been a long-time Thinkpad fan--including 600E (late 1990s), R40 (early 2000s), T42 (mid 2000s), T420 (late 2000s)--for the rock-solid dependability, non-nonsense styling, and in particular the king-of-them-all keyboard. I mistakely tried a Dell Latitude E6400 for a couple of years, and I truly hated it, despite its own pointer stick and solid construction. When I decided to get this X230 Tablet, the only thing I was worried about was how the new keyboard was going to feel. Well, have no fear. I am a big fan of the new keyboard. It's got deep travel, its motion is the perfect blend between smooth travel and pleasing resistance, and the contoured surface actually feels comforable. This new keyboard is a winner. Other than that, there really isn't anything that needs to be said about this machine that the prospective buyer wouldn't already know. I loaded it up to the gills with the fastest and best of everything, except a 3G cellular card--totalled over $3000 MSRP before a the Ultrabase 3 and extra power adapters. On paper, the only thing the X230T lacks is discrete graphics, but the Intel HD 4000 integrated graphics that comes with the Ivy Bridge chipset is good enough for my occasional Engineering analysis and 3D modeling work--just make sure to get a least 8 GB RAM to share with the inegrated graphics. Plus, the Ultrabase 3 is able to support dual monitors via its dual VGA+DisplayPort ports. Just one final tip--get the Multitouch screen; you'll be ready for Windows 8 Pro when it's released.

2012-11-24 UPDATE: I installed Windows 8 Pro upgrade on this computer the week Windows 8 was released. On the first boot-up, everything worked. I the installed all the Lenovo-provided Windows 8 drivers for this machine, and everything continued to work fine. Windows 8 works very well on this machine, as if it was designed for it.

Best Deals for Lenovo ThinkPad X230 Convertible Tablet (X230T, newer model of

I have only had this computer for two months and my experience has been no short of a nightmare. It malfunctions all the time. Every time I have have an assignment due date coming up, the key board or mouse stops working. I have been several places to try to fix it but the problem always comes back! DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY. Buy another brand.

Honest reviews on Lenovo ThinkPad X230 Convertible Tablet (X230T, newer model of

I just bought this item for my friend. But I found something is wrong when my friend received and showed me. The hard driver just 360GB, no fingerprint. It's totally different from what the seller wrote omline.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Lenovo ThinkPad X230 Convertible Tablet (X230T, newer model of

Bottom line, if you want to develop phone / tablet apps, this is a great computer for it.

Specs were for programming Visual Studio 2012 and Eclipse Juno (and occasionally Force.com IDE / Salesforce.com and WordPress). I also occasionally use Adobe CS suite and Microsoft SQL Server for developers 2012 as well as The VS tools and Office 2013...

Intel i7 CPU @ 2.90

16 GB ram

Windows 8 64 bit (upgraded from Windows 7)

Hard Disk: 500 gig no SSD

Docking station

Why Selected:

I selected it because it seemed the best/ easiest way to write mobile apps and easily debug in using the virtual hardware, touch screen and it is GREAT for this.

What's Wrong:

Firstthe computer was incomplete out of the box, Wi-Fi did not work and camera did not work. Two visits from support and this was fixed. I have come to expect this from many vendors, not just computer vendors. So no stars taken. Initially talking with Lenovo, support was REALLY BAD. I expected "Business Customer" support not "Consumer Level"

Summary:

As a software development machine, it's perfect, fast, and easy to test touch screen capabilities of virtual phones. With the docking station I can attach 6 phones and tablets for easy testing and debugging.

I don't use the touchpad, I had significant problems with my laser mouse, but found the right driver (system could not determine the correct driver) and solved the problem.

The tools with Lenovo to maintain updates is very easy to use and I appreciate it, I had to download all the Windows 8 updates, took a long time (why no single package I don't know), most functionality is supported in Windows 8, I had low expectations, so was pleasantly surprised. The utilities of Lenovo are really nice, I don't worry about maintaining my environment.

What I miss:

I wish it had a great on board video card (I knew it did not) because I would like to drive multiple IPS 27 inch monitors and play the occasional leading edge computer game. Games, I have another machine, multiple 27 inch monitors, there is no work around.

Cheap Dell Inspiron E1705 Laptop

Customer Ratings:

I have not have the misfortune of experiencing the problems that others have had with this laptop. I've had mine for 3 years, and it's still working great. I haven't pushed it with 3D gaming or anything, but it's handled everything I've asked it to do. No hardware failures. No crashes. I'm a software engineer, so I've used a lot of computers, and this has been one of the most stable.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I also had the misfortune of purchasing this laptop based on generally favorable reviews. My Inspiron E1705 hard drive crashed within 12-months of purchase destroying all contents. It was in warranty and Dell fixed it. I assumed the faulty hardware was just a fluke and everything would be fine after the repair. A few months later the AC adapter stopped working. Dell sold me another cable for $100 as it wasn't a "standard" model. Six months later the laptop crashed again once again destroying all contents. Mind you the laptop was lightly used and never left the house. Rather than taking the professional high road and resolving the problem once and for all, Dell was quick to remind me that laptop was out of warranty. I spent $1,400 for this? The next few weeks were a nightmare, including hours of unhelpful scripted technicians, misdirected calls, departmental runarounds, frustrating and incomprehensible foreign accents. After weeks of this, the issue is finally escalated to a supervisor who agrees that Dell products should not fail like this within 18 months. He promises to call back and correct the problem. He never does. I try again to get through the call center maze again but to no avail. I gave up and went out and bought a Mac. The moral: this product comes with low-quality hardware. It is a serious customer risk. Given Dell's inability to respond to a legitimate customer issue I would say any Dell product is a serious customer risk. At this juncture I would also be wary of any favorable or fair magazine reviews of their products given their sizable advertising budgets they bring to print and web media.

Best Deals for Dell Inspiron E1705 Laptop

What a workhorse. I have owned mine for over 6 years and never had one issue. I have updated the ram and hard drive, but that was driven by installing new OS's. The laptop has perfomrd flawlesly running XP, Vista, Windows 7 and now Windows 8. I have never had to replace the screen or keyboard. The Intel Centrino Duo processor is a 64 bit processor and runs any application I can throw at it. Way to go Dell, you created the ultimate laptop. I only wish Dell would continue support for drivers for new operating systems. But I have found that new laptops that contain the same touchpad, soundcard and other device drivers work on the E1705 making it possible to continue to install new operating systems as they come out.

Honest reviews on Dell Inspiron E1705 Laptop

This 17'' monster is no lightweight. The Dell Insprion E1705 is a big computer but does the job with no problems. I encountered no problems with this product.

Pros:

The keyboard is spacious and does not cause any trouble when it comes to typing. The display on the is great...like having your own portable TV. It comes with a DVI port that allows for easy connectivity to HD tvs (with the use of a DVI to HDMI cable of course). Media Center is useful when using its TV tuner capabilities.

Cons:

The computer is a bit outdated when it comes to internal hardware. The hard drive is a fraction of the size from what you may see in newer computers. The processor speed is no longer at its prime...lacking speed for multimedia users. Also, this notebook is only capable of holding 2 Gb of Ram. Although it only comes with 1 Gb stock its ability to be upgraded any higher is quite limited.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Dell Inspiron E1705 Laptop

This laptop was the biggest waste of money ever. I might as well have went outside, put the $1000 I spent on this piece of junk in a pile, and set it on fire. Since I've bought it I've had nothing but issues with it. The latest one is the built in speakers have simply stopped working. Now I get to call up Dell customer support and try to figure out what the guy on the other line is trying to say to me for the next 2 and a half hours.

Discount Lenovo 59012696 IdeaPad Y510-1 15.4" Notebook

Customer Ratings:

This lenovo pc its great, it has a lot of features wich include a megapixel camera wieth face recognition software dolby home theater great wich bring great sound and bass ( it has a subwoofer)for a laptop. Im so in love with this computer it works just fine. the design is awesome and unique the cover texture wont leave any figer prints it feels and looks awesome. for your everyday work its a wonderfull computer it might not be the latest pc for gaming but it does come with a lot under the hood. great value great price and it just looks awesome highly recommend it.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Keyboard keys are in weird places. Fn key is in where usually ctl key is. Eventhough it has a full size keyboard you have to use function key to type certain commonly used keys like home, end which is very annoying. I find typing with this laptop very hard. Finally you cannot upgrade any component other than memory in this laptop. Mine came with Intel 3945ABG wifi and want to replace with 4965AGN card found a good deal over the internet. After the upgrade the laptop BIOS catchup saying non lenovo item found and wont boot at all. Moreover lenovo is not selling this card and lenovo branded card cost you a fortune. If this laptop is not under warranty anything happens to it forget it you have to throw it out. My Dell laptop few things went wrong after warranty I replaced the components with bargain price and this I have to trash if I have any problem. I already replaced keyboard under warrany and the cusomer service insisted me to send the laptop and they will do a through diagnostics that it is not my problem only then they will replace. I don't recommend this laptop and it is good only if you have warranty and definetly not worth for money. Lenovo will lose customers to their competetors until they change their proprietary mentality.

Best Deals for Lenovo 59012696 IdeaPad Y510-1 15.4" Notebook

I used this daily for four years, and had no problems with it-at all.

I never had any issues with the hinges, or keys. I have to wonder what people do to their laptops to have so many issues. It is true that I didn't carry it around a whole lot though.

The webcam works great, and comes with easy software. The wireless was quick and powerful. I liked the big orange volume control switch. I had zero problems with the hard disk or OS... zero. No bad sectors, almost never crashed... no freezing or other weirdness. I'd buy another Lenovo.

Honest reviews on Lenovo 59012696 IdeaPad Y510-1 15.4" Notebook

I bought this laptop in 2008 knowing that I would use it for an engineering program at school. It did and excellent job and helped get me through my degree. In 2010 I upgraded the memory and processor in it to use as a gaming system, as well as updating the OS to Win7. I was impressed to find that the motherboard inside would support an 800MHz bus speed, as opposed to the 667MHz bus speed that the laptop uses natively. All the upgrades went off without a hitch. Most people wind up buying a new laptop rather than trying to upgrade the old one, but I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I had some great upgrade options to help give this laptop a significant performance boost. After the upgrades, I continued to use it as a desktop replacement and it has been excellent the whole time!

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Lenovo 59012696 IdeaPad Y510-1 15.4" Notebook

I bought a Lenovo Y510 Thinkpad three years ago. As I type one screen hinge is completely broken which has caused the entire screen hinge to separate from the screen. The keyboard is coming apart bit by bit and I have no A key. My hubby warned me about buying a plastic unit but I am quite careful with my equipment so I thought I would have no problem. The repair shop is unable to obtain parts in US so the expense, and time, to get parts from China is both unacceptable and expensive (~$350). The effectiveness of the unit, i.e. performance, ease of use, clarity of screen,etc. is good but heck, if I can't open and close the laptop screen then the other parts mean nothing.

Review of Gateway NE52203u 15.6-Inch Laptop (Silky Silver)

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $379.99
Sale Price: $329.99
Today's Bonus: 13% Off

This is my first Gateway, I must say I am impressed. I like the way the NE series is put together. The keyboard layout is fantastic. Specially the Function Keys(F1-F12). They are setup so when pressed alone, what is pictured on them is what action is taken. No more useless keys for beginners. It has a nice screen with good graphics, even looks great when using the HDMI output. It has WiFi and Bluetooth. Had only 2 downfalls since purchase. One downfall, though minor, is that there is no internal optical drive(ie: cd/dvd rom). If you install one on your own you void the warranty, so buy an external USB drive. The second downfall is that I had some minor issues shortly after setup(mouse pad issues, screen going blank, etc....), DON'T BE ALARMED. All I did was run a system refresh with the help of Gateway. Has been PERFECT ever since. So I don't believe what others are saying about this laptop. Other than that, the laptop is great for the price and is perfect for students, general everyday users or for those getting their first. Comes with enough hard drive space and memory for most people. I would recommend this to other, definitely. Just not to those who are deep into high end gaming or programs that need a lot of system resources.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Really, you need to specify there is no optical drive included especially at this price. Very disappointing. Returned without even opening the box.

Best Deals for Gateway NE52203u 15.6-Inch Laptop (Silky Silver)

This machine is basically functional and it does what it is supposed to do. However, after going through 5-6 older $300 lap tops, I have to say this is the worst screen quality I have ever seen. The contrast is harsh, the sharpness is very low and the general skin tones are unrealistic. To be clear, the problems are with jpeg files and video, not graphics.

If you plan to watch anything of quality, just skip this series of Gateway. Regardless of how I adjust it, the same things I watched on my $300 D**l which just died are just trash on this machine. They really cut corners here. If this is the future of LED technology, I want none of it.

Added: I am beginning to wonder about this screen. I tried everything I could to adjust the screen and could not make it better. Then, for a different issue, I have had to do a few recovery cycles going back and forth and back and forth, ending up where I started and now the screen looks much better. Very odd.

Discount HP - Pavilion G7-1338DX Laptop / Intel Core i3-2350M processor

Customer Ratings:

HP Pavilion G7-1338DX Laptop I had this computer until my grandson spilled water on it. Looking for something comparable and cant find it. It was a great laptop for me.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

This computer was sold not through amazon as promised.. and was riddled with some kind of virus.

It locked me out and was unable to restore it. I had it for 2.5 months and this happened.

Amazon was of no help either..

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

Customer Ratings:

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

Construction quality

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

Ports

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

Keyboard

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

Dedicated video

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

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

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

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

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

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Short and Quick Review

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

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

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

Longer Fuller Review.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

5 out of 5, no problems at all.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Apple MacBook Pro MB134LL/A 15.4-inch Laptop (OLD VERSION)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Dell Studio 1555 15.6-Inch Black Laptop Review

Customer Ratings:

I got one of these from Dell and have been immensely satisfied with it.

Pros:

Truly gorgeous and bright screen.

Laptop's cheese-wedge-shaped design is great because there's not a large "ledge"

Good performance, comes with good video card and supports up to 8 GB RAM. I do a lot of 3D modeling and this has made my life so much easier compared to my old machine.

Second headphone jack makes it perfect for watching DVDs with your buddy while you're stuck in Afghanistan

Windows 7 works like a champ and looks great

Facial recognition software (FastAccess) makes login fast, easy, somewhat fun (not sure if Amazon config has this). May not work if the room lighting is weird.

Attractive design, battery has fair life and doesn't stick out like the badonkadonk my wife's HP.

Laptop speakers that don't suck. Awesome. Also convenient, responsive media controls.

Quiet keyboard. Not sure if this config has the backlit version, but if so you are in for a treat. Very nifty and useful in low light.

Easy 1-door access panel on bottom for upgrade action

SD/Media Card reader to get your camera photos, etc

Cons:

Can get warm. Best used in combination with a Zalman ZM-NC2000 Notebook cooler. The cooler runs off USB (but you don't lose a port because it has some on it), keeps the laptop from getting warm, and fits perfectly. I suggest the black one.

Somewhat hefty. But hey, it's a "desktop replacement" size.

Only 3 USB ports

No number pad functionality

All things considered I'm very pleased with my purchase and I can definitely recommend this model laptop for for someone who travels occasionally but not frequently.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I love this laptop. I wanted to get a laptop for school, and shopped around a little bit, I almost got a dell insperon, but Dell was having a sale, and this computer was $100.00 off! So I bought it, and I love it.

The 15.6 inch screen is really nice, you can see a lot, and 720p resolution is actually really good looking on this laptop. I like the glossy screen, but if you are sitting next to a window there might be too much glare.

The HDMI output is a very nice feature because you can hook your computer to your TV and watch movies, or play games.

I dont know if the one on amazon has the included backlit keyboard, but it is a very nice feature. The keys are very hard to see in the dark without it.

It is really fast with 4 gigs of ram, it can convert movies to another format in an hour with the 2.2GHz dual core processor.

This laptop gets warm when you use it, but I have never had it get too hot. It has good battery life. I have gotten 5 and a half hours out of it just surfing the web, and I have watched 2 movies back to back on an airplane, the movies were not dvds (I copied the dvds to my computer beforehand because the optical drive takes a lot of power).

Overall I would recommend this laptop. This was my first laptop of my own, and I am really happy with it.

Best Deals for Dell Studio 1555 15.6-Inch Black Laptop

I have a variation of the 1555 Studio configuration which consists of:

1) P8700 Processor

2) 4Gb Ram

3) Full 1080x1920 screen

4) 500gb 7200rpm hard drive

5) ATI HD4670 1GB GPU

6) BlueRay drive

I bought it around Black Friday directly from Dell for just over a grand.

Based on some of the comments/negative reviews of this computer, I'd like to say that I have owned and used Dell computers for over 10 years, and aside from one really crap Optiplex220 workstation, have had nothing but good experiences with them across a diverse range of computers including everything from a Dell Mini 10 to a couple XPS gaming machines (before I got wise and started building my own gaming computers about 5 years ago). As a brand, Dell is frequently maligned for being either cheaply made or offering poor service. I can say that in my experience, neither is true. (And to put that in context I work in a an office with about 8 dell workstations that I am responsible for maintaining, in addition to the Dells I've owned personally). I've gotten great service from them including an overnight battery replacement (under warranty) when it really counted. So, while I recognize that any company as large as Dell is going to have some misses, my personal experience has been excellent.

I'd also like to say that I own 5 computers (counting my wife's) including an HP, a custom built gaming computer, and even an Apple. I work with a whole host of computers on a daily basis (Macs included) and am not a fanboy of any brand or manufacturer, nor do I engage in the stupid PC vs. Mac debates. I love technology in general, and will go wherever I can get the features I want for the best price to enable me to finish the task at hand. I bought this Studio 1555 to replace my workstation since I wanted to be able to work remotely more easily.

Now on to my actual review:

First off, there is one thing I really dislike about this notebook and that is the keyboard (which I'm using to type this review). It's not a tactile thing, or responsiveness, my typical complaint against keyboards in general. The keyboard squeaks. Not all the time and not loudly, but certain keys on the right side, including the backspace key, make a slight chirping sound that I find very irritating.

What I love about the notebook far eclipses that one irritation, and the screen alone more than makes up for it. As one of the very, very few 15" notebooks that offers full 1080x1920 resolution, it is also one of the cheapest. If you're going to buy just ONE upgrade for this notebook, make it that one. Having that much real estate on such a beautiful screen is worth every penny. SONY is the only other computer maker I could find with 15" notebooks with full 1080p resolution, and they are on average $500 more than this dell. You could argue they are better (less weight, possibly more stylish, etc.) but the bottom line is that the Studio 1555 with a 1080p screen for around a grand is a GREAT deal. Especially considering the screen is beautiful.

The feature set on the Studio 1555 series is also quite good with the newer, faster P series processors leading the way. With their architecture they also use less power, which means a P series notebook will run longer than an identical T series notebook, all things being equal. Windows 7 64-bit being standard is awesome, and once coupled with 4gb (or even 8gb if you want to pay through the nose) of ram, make this a very speedy machine. Boot times are great, and I can easily multitask with several demanding applications with no slowdown.

Aesthetically, the notebook is good, but not fantastic. I elected to get the 'chainlink black' version since I use this notebook for work and didn't need a fancy lid. The layout is functional and logical without being superior (this is where SONY excels--they're probably the only company with a sense of style that rivals Apple). The port configuration is great, with everything you'd expect (HDMI, 3-USB, Esata, SD card reader, VGA) and then a few bonuses (FireWire800, and TWO headphone jacks--fantastic for sharing a BlueRay with someone on a flight, etc...)

The Build quality is average to good. The aforementioned keyboard squeak lowers this category significantly, as does the heat build up on the panel below the keyboard which makes my wrists sweat a little bit. Thankfully Dell did make some solid improvements, including a really good hing for the screen which is heavy duty enough to make me believe the screen will open&close without losing any firmness for years. The charger is adequate, but with a strange layout that defies logic--the power cord (the end that plugs into the wall) is very short at about 3-feet. The single power cable that runs to the ntoebook itself is fairly long, but I'd really like to see dell make a power adapter more like HPs with a nice long cable on both ends (from the wall to the adapter and then from the adapter to the notebook).

Battery life is fantastic and better than I expected. Even when taxing the n-band wireless while streaming videos or downloading files (which uses a lot of power) I can still get 3.5-4hrs out of the notebook. If all I'm doing is word processing, e-mailing, and other light tasks, I can get upwards of 5 hours. If you set your power profile to the minimum, it is possible to get Dell's claimed 7 hours, but you'll have to live with a very dim monitor and no wifi usage to achieve those numbers--not many real world applications where that would work.

PROs:

1) Excellent and truly top-notch screen (1920x1080 HIGHLY recommended)

2) Great feature set for the price, especially with a few well chosen upgrades

3) Functional design that while not convincingly beautiful, is very well suited to getting work done.

4) Quality components for the price

5) Very solid battery life

CONs:

1) Squeaky keyboard

2) Strange, less than stellar power adapter

FINAL THOUGHTS:

I bought this notebook to replace my workstation in my office. It's more than exceeded my expectations overall. With a better keyboard I'd happily give it 5 stars, but that one element is distracting enough to downgrade the Studio 1555 to 4 stars. If you want a very strong feature set for the price, you have to at least consider the Studio 1555 series from Dell. Check out the comments section of this review for some thoughts on configuration/prices if buying from Dell.

4/5 Stars. Recommended for those that value quality screens over pretty aesthetics.

Honest reviews on Dell Studio 1555 15.6-Inch Black Laptop

Dell has a serious flaw in the design of this and their newer laptops/notebooks. They are making computers thinner and lighter which ends up restricting the airflow. This causes internal parts to overheat. The typical result in my computer is that the graphics card will overheat and cause the system to lock up.

I have this Dell Studio 15" with factory upgraded ram and other goodies totaling about $1000 investment. Since the new box arrived at my door a year ago, it has continually crashed and locked-up. Dell support has tried everything under the sun, short of giving me a new computer. This includes sending techs to my house and replacing internal parts like the graphics card, motherboard, etc. Alas, nothing changes. The fan always runs at full throttle within moments of start-up. If I try to watch a video or even if a web-page has anything using flash, immediately graphics card failure occurs resulting an over-sized cursor and a total system lock-up. My only option is to do a hard system shutdown. Disabling flash or other scripts only delays the inevitable.

I have owned several Dells in the past and WAS a huge fan of Dell; however, this experience has left me very frustrated and disappointed. One tech advised me to purchase a Toshiba as they are not having this issue because their laptops are still a little bulkier providing better airflow.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Dell Studio 1555 15.6-Inch Black Laptop

This is the Dell Studio 15 inch laptop (Green Colored Case). I think this a great lap top and it gets the job done. I kept reading all the negative reviews and i have no idea why there's so much bad press. I have never once called customer service and i ordered my laptop at Dell directly through their website. I have no reason to contact customer service and i never experienced any problems at all with any of my Dell products. I get so baffled when i read all these negative reviews. My Dell products which i have had for years including a Dell desktop and a recently purchased new netbooks have never been a problem. The desk top i have is more than 6 years old and I never have any problems. It runs great. It can definitely benefit from an upgrade in some areas.

The Studio line is Dell's midrange laptops. The Inspiron being there low end range for consumers that just need a standard laptop. The Dell Studio laptop is completely plastic and it's a bit on the heavy side in my opinion. Maybe because i am so use to my light weight Dell 10 min netbook that i have been spoiled. This is a good lap top. However, i think the flaw in Dell is that their products can get very pricey very quickly. Especially when you are adding in high end features like 6GB RAM rather than 3GB RAM or 2.99GHZ instead of 2.33GHZ etc. You can get the same thing at HP for probably around a hundred dollars less and their quality feels a bit more refined, polished, and sturdy. That being said if you check Dell's website they do have deals going on all the time especially on holidays. But for some reason the price never seems as low as it should be. If you check periodically you will find yourself a deal. I go to that website religiously and build the exact same laptop that I have and it always comes up to more money. I got mine on a special promo.

I really regret getting the green covered case. I didn't realize how bright it would be and once i opened it out of the box I really wish i purchased the Dark Blue or Dark Purple colored case. It's really way too bright. I like the personalization options of the different colors, but i really do regret getting this bright Caribbean green color. My laptop also includes the backlit keyboard which is great for typing in the dark. It also has touch sensitive controls towards the top of the keyboard near the speakers and i think that's a great plus. The DVD is also an optical drive, so there is no door that slides out for you to pop in your DVD. It's like a Playstation 3 slot. You slide the DVDs in & out.

Pros:

15 inch screen

Optical DVD slot

4GB RAM

750 GB Memory

2.66GHZ

Backlit keyboard

4 UBS slots

HDMI outport

Sleak shiek design

Different colored cases

Wi-Fi

Webcam

Cons:

Windows Vista (Super Whack)

A bit pricey in my opinion (That's Dell for you)

A bit on the heavy side

Review of Sony Vaio VPCEB3QFX/WI Laptop (Intel Core i3-370M 2.40GHz, 4GB

Customer Ratings:

This is one of the worst Laptop I have ever seen,

you can read my complete post of issues on the Microsoft LinkThe bottom line is this product does not have

1) N 6200 wireless card ( dual band) as mentioned by Sony VIAO.

2) it has 1000 BGN link wireless card which is not compatible with the chipset

I have returned 3 laptops ( made mistake 3 times)

though i have not bought it from Amazon, but I believe the laptop has an issue since I had bought from 2 different vendors

1) office max (very bad) will never buy any thing from them

2) circuit city

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Best Inspiron 3520 15 Inch Notebook/laptop Computer Windows 8 64-bit Deals

Customer Ratings:

Out of the box, seems a bit cheaper than the other 3 Dell products I have bought in the past ( 2 laptops and a desk top). Problems never resolved after 2 months with Dell. 1) Wireless connection in my home inconsistent at best, drop-out of connection ever 5-10min (not the case with any other device in my home). Keypad, almost on usable, would jump to other locations at any given time, again never had this problem with any other computer. Sorry to say,but Dell seems to be cutting back a quality. Buy Be Ware ! $$$

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I bought 4 of these computers for all of my children for Christmas, it is a wonderful gift. This is perfect for just starting out and for school projects. They are so happy with them. It was very inexpensive and wonderful for the price. We had bought 4 bundle deals from best buy @ $299 each.

Best Deals for Inspiron 3520 15 Inch Notebook/laptop Computer Windows 8 64-bit

I bought two of these laptops, one for me and one for the wife, from Costco in December of 2012. All in all not a bad laptop for my needs. Use mainly for work, spreadsheets and presentations and all that. Arrived prepackaged with windows 8 and Microsoft office. I'm only giving two stars because in the past year both laptops have had the exact same problem. Both suffered lcd screen burnout. Luckily we had, as we always do, purchased an extended warranty through Costco and simply called the concierge service to have each repaired. In each instance Dell had the laptop fixed within a week with no other issues since. If we hadn't purchased an extended warranty we would have been S.O.L.

Honest reviews on Inspiron 3520 15 Inch Notebook/laptop Computer Windows 8 64-bit

I received this computer as a gift for Christmas in 2012. Really cheaply made and keyboard is overly sensitive. The same day, the mousepad went out. I ignored this since the bundle came with a wireless mouse. In May, the hard drive stopped working. I contacted Dell who were very polite and attentive and they resolved the issue, saying the hard drive had gone bad. In August, the LCD screen burned out (which is not covered by the warranty). They want $258 parts and service and $12 in tax to replace the LCD. I'm going to replace the screen myself, sell it and trade up to a new BRAND and model. Overall good and persistent customer service but the WORST piece of equipment I've ever owned. Going back to the Sony Vaio.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Inspiron 3520 15 Inch Notebook/laptop Computer Windows 8 64-bit

I bought this computer on December 2012, my biggest problem with it, is that is very very slow. The application (camera, music, videos) and also the browser take a lot of time to open.