Great out of the box experience.
Load the battery, plug it in and be on the internet within 10 minutes.
Small and compact. The photos do not show the battery which elevates the rear by a half inch--but also makes a nice keyboard angle for typing and allows for cooling of any heat dissipation.
Near full sized keyboard, perfectly adequate for typing.
But no keyboard back light for hunt and peck typists.
11.6 inch screen is sometimes difficult to see small type, but otherwise is fine.
Proven simple reliable Windows 7.
Fast for tasks like word processing, spreadsheets or web surfing.
But needs an external disk drive to load DVD based programs.
Quiet, fast for simple office work. No overheating battery.
Battery can last for days if properly managed.
Great Price and Great Value. Small and compact.
This product is perfect for business tasks. A nice compact size and easy to set up
Showing posts with label notebook covers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label notebook covers. Show all posts
Monday, December 8, 2014
Monday, November 17, 2014
Cheap Apple MacBook Pro MB986LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop 2.8Ghz
Coming from a troubled Nvidia 8600M GT MacBook Pro let me say that I was very skeptical buying another Apple Laptop with nVidia chip in it.
However, one weekend I decided to visit the nearest Apple Retail Store and check out the newly released models. My decision was mostly influenced by the reduced prices and increased battery life.
After some debating over buying the older model for same price or getting the latest one we settled on the newest mid end $1999 model with 2 GPUs. As is common I got a very nice resale price for my older MacBook Pro as it had AppleCare.
This generation is an all around improvement over the past generation unless you happen to be using ExpressCard on 15" model that is. In our case we never used the ExpressCard after attempting to use a eSATA card that did not work really well. And we have a few SD Cards that we figure we can easily use.
So on to the specific improvements over its predecessor -
1) Battery Life I was very doubtful that the battery would last any longer than 4 hours at the maximum but was pleasantly surprised to find that for surfing/email type and the occasional CNN/Youtube flash videos getting 6+ hours was quite easy.
2) Prices No doubt prices are the most reasonable Apple laptops have ever had. If you have no need for the dual GPU you can get the $1699 model which comes with a respectable 2.53Ghz Processor, 4GB RAM and a very capable 9400M GPU.
3) Operating Temperature I have owned my share of laptops (Apple and non-Apple) and I have to say this one is the coolest it never gets too warm and I can use it on my lap all the times even encoding videos using the HandBrake application did not make it uncomfortably hot. However if I switch it to use the 9600M GPU it gets warmer even on regular use. It also runs very quiet the fans may be coming on but I never notice.
Initially there was a lot of furor over Apple's downgrade of the Serial-ATA interface speed (used to transfer data to and from the hard disk) to 1.5Gbps but Apple quickly restored the speeds to 3Gbps I do not however notice any difference with the 5400RPM hard disk.
About the display it is gorgeous and colors are vibrant. I had the opportunity to use a calibrated color profile to make it look even better. However I find the display to be a little too much reflective but I am coming from almost always using matte display so I figure it's a matter of getting used to it.
Apple's use of Mini DisplayPort is ahead of its time not many displays support it and so I had to buy a $30 DVI adapter not a big problem but Apple should at the very least re-start bundling the adapter with the Pro machines. Also, another USB port in lieu of the SD Card Reader would be quite welcome people can use the SD Card Reader for only SD Cards, but a USB port can be used for SD Cards as well as other peripherals.
That said, this generation is overall a very nice improvement the great battery life itself is enough to convince one to upgrade.
[ Edited to add some findings after extensive use ]
After using it for a few months, I find a handful of things moderately annoying about this laptop -
1) The positioning of USB ports both USB ports are on one side of the laptop and they are far too closely positioned to use both at once. For example I found I could not attach my Sandisk USB thumb drive and anything else at a time. And I don't have any irregular/unusual devices. They should really go back to having the ports on two sides or at least position them a bit more apart.
2) The Lid of the laptop is loose this was known to me before but I never thought it would become annoying. I don't routinely use the laptop in bed but whenever I do it's annoying.
3) The amount of RAM Apple advertises (4GB) is not actually entirely usable only 3.75GB is. So you lose 256Mb of RAM for the dual GPU.
Still going strong, using this machine as a primary dev workstation for a full 3 years and 7 months. 3.5 years! Still going strong! I've since upgraded to 8GB RAM (new firmware update secretly enabled this new maximum, which, in my opinion, extends the useful life of the machine for another 2-3 years). Everything else is as normal. I've dropped the machine by accident once or twice, so it has a dent now. But the case held up great and there was no damage! It still looks good as new unless you search for where the dent was (I carefully banged it out with a hammer).
My next upgrade will obviously be a new MBP with probably no optical drive (who needs 'em with internet speeds as fast as they are these days?) and hopefully retina display. There's every reason to believe it will be as good as the last, but with more than double the processing power, a faster SSD and the incredible resolution main display. Can't wait!
---
Update April 2011:
Follow up over a year past my original review I've now owned the machine for 2 years and 5 months (give or take) and it's still going strong as it was on Day 1, if not stronger. I've upgraded the RAM to 6GB (maximum; I originally had 2x2GB=4GB, so I just found a good matched-speed 4GB DIMM to place along the existing 2GB, it works flawlessly). I upgraded the hard disk to 320GB/7200RPM somewhere in there (about to go to 640GB... for the same price as my 320 drive... incredible).
2 issues I've had: First, the power adapter slightly broke. Just the little hinge that allows you to wrap up the wire fell off, not a big deal but they replaced it immediately at the Apple store without question. 2nd issue: Battery started bulging, I noticed issues with my track pad not clicking (battery was pressing on it) and the bottom panel eventually wouldn't close. Popped it open and yep, just what I expected, bulgy battery. Apple store once again replaced immediately, no questions asked. (I do have 3 year Apple Care, I'm sure that's a factor, and turns out it was well worth it for the awesome support).
Overall this has still been the best computer/piece of tech I've owned thus far; impressed with every aspect of it hands down. I am so glad I invested in the Mac-and yes, I mean invested. It was worth every penny, and based on the fact that over 2 years later, this computer is still keeping up with the latest in performance and intensive usage, the resale value on this machine should contribute very well when I want to upgrade to my next MacBook Pro.
By all appearances, the latest MBP's are still the way to go. The Core i7 processors and improved graphics and battery life all within the same sturdy solid aluminum case can't be beat. Highly recommended from 2.5 years of experience.
---
(Original Review):
This machine is without a doubt the best computer, if not the best piece of technology gear, that I have ever used or owned.
Going to try to keep this review short, but sweet.
I've had it for about 9 months now, basically since the Unibody MBP's came out. First, the construction is just outstanding. The solidness of the enclosure makes the whole thing feel sturdy and basically indestructible. In 9 months, I have treated it like I treat all my equipment I use it thoroughly without too much concern for cosmetics and there is not a single scratch or sign of wear on the entire machine. The thing still looks new, after 9 months that's how durable it is. Incredible.
The speed and responsiveness and stability of the computer itself is excellent. I'm a programmer and photographer, so I take it to the max every time I use the computer, and I expect a lot of it. With 4 GB of RAM it's never sluggish and handles everything better than any computer I've ever owned.
Graphics and gaming performance is surprisingly good with the 2nd dedicated Nvidia 8600 video card. I dual boot to Windows XP (however reluctantly) and it works great.
I don't even need to talk about the software, hopefully you know all about it by now. OSX is truly awesome, especially for programmers. It's so refreshing to have a real operating system where you can pop open a real console and still have a nice graphical interface on top of it. The OS is a matched pair with the quality of the hardware.
In short, this is a seriously great machine. I'm no Mac fanboy I run Windows, Linux, Mac, whatever but I'm very impressed with the quality and especially the construction and build durability. It's honestly at a level above any other laptop, it's a pretty stunning difference. If it is more expensive, it will make up for it in longevity and resale value alone. Definitely worth it.
Here are some benefits:
+ Beautiful 15" widescreen display. I'm coming from a 17" PC, and since the display was a bit more squared, I don't feel that the screen size decrease is too noticeable
+ Much lighter than PC. At 5.5 lbs, it's easier to carry around than similarly sized PC's
+ Super fast power up and power off. I would say it takes between 30-40 seconds to power on, and less than 10 seconds to shut downoutstanding
+ Robust battery life. It's rated at 7 hours. This time will vary depending on your usage, but it's about right if you don't jack the brightness and surf too heavily
+ Refined, gestured trackpad. If you want to scroll, just swipe with two fingersto select options or webpages, a single tap on the trackpad will accomplish this. Also nice is the ability to zoom webpages a la ipod touch/iphone pinching. I wish you could save a zoom setting to default on Safari though
+ No crashes, except for internet surfing (more on that later)
+ Love the preinstalled iPhoto application it comes with to view and edit photos
+ No problems with spyware, viruses, or crappy, obtrusive antispyware (i.e. Trend Micro) to combat it
+ Outstanding customer support (and I've used them a lot so far!)
And now for the not so good:
If you want word processing/spreadsheet functionality, you're pretty much stuck with plunking down $100 for Microsoft Office. You could use alternatives like iWork, but with most people using the Office standard, it makes sense for compatibility purposes. No generic preinstalled word processing software, Apple?
The learning curve (if you're a long-time PC user). The menus and interface that Macs use are pretty well laid out, but it's a pain to relearn where some items are. Example, you're in Mail and you'd like to add an email folder. The solution? Select "New Mailbox." I'm sure most PC users were scratching their heads with that solution
There's no "maximize" function on the windows. It will save your settings once you resize everything, but if you want a window to take up the screen, you'll be doing some manual dragging to get them the way you want
Not enough ports. Here's an example. Let's say you have a usb mouse, you're listening to iTunes from your iPod, and you're saving backup data to a USB drive as you're working in MS Word. Well, that's one too many usb apps, so you'll have to constantly unplug everything to accommodate your needs
No number pad. Now I realize this does not affect a large percentage of users, but I'm a finance guy, and work in Excel a lot. Not putting a number pad on the keyboard is reasonable, but what is not reasonable, is offering no first/third party solutions for a USB/Bluetooth numpad. Props to anyone that can find such an accessory
A bit tricky to port your iTunes media from PC to Mac. You'll be contacting support on this one, trust me
Too many extra charges from Apple. $350 for 3 years of support, $99 per year of storage backup. Considering what we're paying for Macbooks, you'd think Apple would cut us a break on some of the "extras"
Here's my biggest gripe. I have had SERIOUS stability issues with my Macbook and 2Wire DSL AT&T modem/router working together. I originally had a problem with Airport dropping my signal (fixed it with a Google search). Then, I had numerous problems with "Broadband Link Not Established Errors" from my 2Wire modem. Again, I was able to find a posting online which allowed my to turn 2Wire notification messages off, resolving this. So after numerous Google searches, and tech support from Apple and AT&T, my internet is pretty stable, but still not great. I'm still having issues where common websites will not load without stopping the request and clicking the reload button. Some users have had these stability issues resolved by purchasing the Airport Extreme Router, but at $179, this is not a cheap solution. I've had none of these internet problems running other devices from 2Wire. I'm not sure who is at fault, but my gut tells me that Apple did not go out of their way to make their Macbooks overly friendly with 2Wire's network. I feel like Apple should send me a partial rebate for all the hard research I've put in to get a stable connection
So is it worth it to switch to Mac? In a word, yes. Although they're certainly more expensive, 13" models are available at $1,200 which provide decent value. New Mac users will certainly notice an increased level of refinement and simplicity when they make the switch. Overall, a very nice laptop that would easily merit a 5 star rating, if not for the terrible 2Wire compatibility issues.
8/5/09 update:
My 2Wire modem continued to error out and reset itself while surfing webpages. The DSL and Internet lights would flash red, and my internet would disconnect for 20 seconds every time this happened. I finally found a solution to this problem. Not thrilled about the extra $89, but my internet experience is finally stable. The product I picked up is the D-Link ADSL2/2+ Modem/Wireless Router combo. I also reviewed this product on Amazon.
The D-Link is highly recommended for AT&T DSL users with Mac/2Wire compatibility issues.
I like the keyboard on this unibody macbook pro as compared to the old one but really don't know why--perhaps it is a perosnal preference. it is backlighted but so was my old one.
tech support at apple is superb, another reason i will never consider anything but apple. and if you have an apple store near you, you can get one to one personal training for a little less than $2 per week. in addition, they offer free classes to adults and children. you learn so much that you are finally able to take advantage of the features your computer can do without being a computer whiz.
the new version of the operating system, called snow leopard, will be out sometime in sept. if you buy a system now with the old version, you can upgrade with apple for $9.95.
the graphics card is very good in this machine, however, i am not much of a gamer so i don't really reap the benefits of that. but it is a dedicated card so it has great potential for those that would utilize it.
another awesome thing about this computer is that the bettery last 7 hours or so. at times, mine has lasted longer. it depends, i guess on what you are doing. and, even with the better battery, i think this computer weighs less.
if you are debating on whether or not to switch to apple, all i can say is that i am extremely grateful i did and so is everyone else i know that made the switch. one of the things i like, in addition to the ease of use of programs and the seemless integration is that there are no virus programs to run that slow the computer down tremendously. in addition, my old mac book pro ran as fast on the last day as the first and i am anticipating the same for this. unlike my windows laptops that got progressively slower as time went on. another great thing about apple is the seemless backup of files that it will do automatically for you. you don't have to figure anything out. jut let it do its job and if you ever lose all of your data, you will have a back up to restore your computer. That in itself can be worth tons of money. i know you can do this on windows machines, but it takes knowledge and effort--something i never seemed to posses when it came to computers.
one thing that i don't like is that the plug is hooked to the computer via a magnet. it is suppose to be safer so that it will unplug easily if someone snags it. that way it doesn't drag the computer to the floor. for me, i find it a little annoying because it can become unplugged easily. minor detail but it is a little irritating. if i could change one thing it would be that you have an option of which plug you wanted.
another thing that is different about the unibody macbook pros is that you can get a 13 inch with a full keyboard if you want. when i bought my last one, the 13 inch had a weird keyboard and as a typist, i couldn't even consider that size. i still chose the 15 inch because that is what i wanted, but now i can also purchase a 13 inch for my children rather than buying them the 15 inch.
one thing that the mac store employees recommended to me rather than getting a desktop was to get the 13 inch laptop for my kids and use my existing desktop monitor, hook up the lap top, add a keyboard and mouse if desired, and use that as a desktop. but you could always have the portability of a laptop if you ever needed it. i haven't done that yet, but that is going to be my next apple purchase.
It took me over a year to decide to switch to mac. It was a very tough decision for me. change is hard. i didn't know if i could do everything i wanted on the mac. i have never regretted it once. and if you are one of those rare users that has an application that can only be used in windows, you can use the program preloaded on the macbook pro or buy another program so that you can run your application--its like 2 computers in one. one caution, however, whatever portion of the computer you dedicate to windows is subject to viruses so you will have to run an antivirus on that portion. for me, i have found no need to use any windows application. and i even found that i work is much better than ms office in my opinion. but if you are partial to ms office, you can purchase a mac version.
Good luck with your decision and purchase. if you buy any of these macbook pros, you will be happy.
The performance of this laptop is amazing. I went with the 2.8 GHz CPU and as such got the dual video cards with maximum video RAM. I run at least a half dozen different programs at once, sometimes more, including Firefox with 20+ tabs and VMWare running a virtual machine of Windows 7 and this thing doesn't not even hiccup. Blazing, screaming, insanely fast. My MBP arrived 9 days ago and I have yet to reboot it once. The trackpad is sweet and the finger gestures are a great innovation. The battery is also amazing. I've given up on the dedicated video (see below) and am getting 6+ hours out of a charge, without any extreme power saving efforts. I'm carefully counting each cycle, as I'm sure a lot of other users are, and will happily scream and yell at Apple if this thing doesn't last 1000 cycles as promised.
Now for the Con's, although they are minor.
1. The dual video cards seem a bit gimmicky. Okay, I'm glad for the dedicated card when running Adobe CS4 apps, but really, I could live with the performance of the onboard card. The dedicated video card also sucks battery and heats the laptop up considerably, almost alarmingly hot. Running the onboard video there is almost no discernible heat. The biggest annoyance is that you have to close everything and log out every time you want to switch cards. Because of the heat and battery issue, I've found myself just living with the onboard video. It's not worth the hassle to log out and change it.
2. It's a BIG HONKING laptop, almost as big as the 17". If it was an inch narrower it would be the very definition of perfection. It barely fits in the laptop sleeve of my gigantic Patagonia Half Mass bag and it's girth makes it a little cumbersome and unwieldy to pick up and move around or use on one's lap. I would have happily gone for the 13" model if I could have gotten the same performance specs.
I sell and repair computers for a living and this is hands-down the best laptop on the market for my specific needs. While I paid a premium I feel it was a good value. Average users would do well with the MacBook or 13" MBP. Nothing in the PC laptop world even comes close. That being said, this review is specific to my needs for a laptop. A desktop is a completely different beast and my desktop workstation still runs Windows XP Pro.
However, one weekend I decided to visit the nearest Apple Retail Store and check out the newly released models. My decision was mostly influenced by the reduced prices and increased battery life.
After some debating over buying the older model for same price or getting the latest one we settled on the newest mid end $1999 model with 2 GPUs. As is common I got a very nice resale price for my older MacBook Pro as it had AppleCare.
This generation is an all around improvement over the past generation unless you happen to be using ExpressCard on 15" model that is. In our case we never used the ExpressCard after attempting to use a eSATA card that did not work really well. And we have a few SD Cards that we figure we can easily use.
So on to the specific improvements over its predecessor -
1) Battery Life I was very doubtful that the battery would last any longer than 4 hours at the maximum but was pleasantly surprised to find that for surfing/email type and the occasional CNN/Youtube flash videos getting 6+ hours was quite easy.
2) Prices No doubt prices are the most reasonable Apple laptops have ever had. If you have no need for the dual GPU you can get the $1699 model which comes with a respectable 2.53Ghz Processor, 4GB RAM and a very capable 9400M GPU.
3) Operating Temperature I have owned my share of laptops (Apple and non-Apple) and I have to say this one is the coolest it never gets too warm and I can use it on my lap all the times even encoding videos using the HandBrake application did not make it uncomfortably hot. However if I switch it to use the 9600M GPU it gets warmer even on regular use. It also runs very quiet the fans may be coming on but I never notice.
Initially there was a lot of furor over Apple's downgrade of the Serial-ATA interface speed (used to transfer data to and from the hard disk) to 1.5Gbps but Apple quickly restored the speeds to 3Gbps I do not however notice any difference with the 5400RPM hard disk.
About the display it is gorgeous and colors are vibrant. I had the opportunity to use a calibrated color profile to make it look even better. However I find the display to be a little too much reflective but I am coming from almost always using matte display so I figure it's a matter of getting used to it.
Apple's use of Mini DisplayPort is ahead of its time not many displays support it and so I had to buy a $30 DVI adapter not a big problem but Apple should at the very least re-start bundling the adapter with the Pro machines. Also, another USB port in lieu of the SD Card Reader would be quite welcome people can use the SD Card Reader for only SD Cards, but a USB port can be used for SD Cards as well as other peripherals.
That said, this generation is overall a very nice improvement the great battery life itself is enough to convince one to upgrade.
[ Edited to add some findings after extensive use ]
After using it for a few months, I find a handful of things moderately annoying about this laptop -
1) The positioning of USB ports both USB ports are on one side of the laptop and they are far too closely positioned to use both at once. For example I found I could not attach my Sandisk USB thumb drive and anything else at a time. And I don't have any irregular/unusual devices. They should really go back to having the ports on two sides or at least position them a bit more apart.
2) The Lid of the laptop is loose this was known to me before but I never thought it would become annoying. I don't routinely use the laptop in bed but whenever I do it's annoying.
3) The amount of RAM Apple advertises (4GB) is not actually entirely usable only 3.75GB is. So you lose 256Mb of RAM for the dual GPU.
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Update 5/23/2012:Still going strong, using this machine as a primary dev workstation for a full 3 years and 7 months. 3.5 years! Still going strong! I've since upgraded to 8GB RAM (new firmware update secretly enabled this new maximum, which, in my opinion, extends the useful life of the machine for another 2-3 years). Everything else is as normal. I've dropped the machine by accident once or twice, so it has a dent now. But the case held up great and there was no damage! It still looks good as new unless you search for where the dent was (I carefully banged it out with a hammer).
My next upgrade will obviously be a new MBP with probably no optical drive (who needs 'em with internet speeds as fast as they are these days?) and hopefully retina display. There's every reason to believe it will be as good as the last, but with more than double the processing power, a faster SSD and the incredible resolution main display. Can't wait!
---
Update April 2011:
Follow up over a year past my original review I've now owned the machine for 2 years and 5 months (give or take) and it's still going strong as it was on Day 1, if not stronger. I've upgraded the RAM to 6GB (maximum; I originally had 2x2GB=4GB, so I just found a good matched-speed 4GB DIMM to place along the existing 2GB, it works flawlessly). I upgraded the hard disk to 320GB/7200RPM somewhere in there (about to go to 640GB... for the same price as my 320 drive... incredible).
2 issues I've had: First, the power adapter slightly broke. Just the little hinge that allows you to wrap up the wire fell off, not a big deal but they replaced it immediately at the Apple store without question. 2nd issue: Battery started bulging, I noticed issues with my track pad not clicking (battery was pressing on it) and the bottom panel eventually wouldn't close. Popped it open and yep, just what I expected, bulgy battery. Apple store once again replaced immediately, no questions asked. (I do have 3 year Apple Care, I'm sure that's a factor, and turns out it was well worth it for the awesome support).
Overall this has still been the best computer/piece of tech I've owned thus far; impressed with every aspect of it hands down. I am so glad I invested in the Mac-and yes, I mean invested. It was worth every penny, and based on the fact that over 2 years later, this computer is still keeping up with the latest in performance and intensive usage, the resale value on this machine should contribute very well when I want to upgrade to my next MacBook Pro.
By all appearances, the latest MBP's are still the way to go. The Core i7 processors and improved graphics and battery life all within the same sturdy solid aluminum case can't be beat. Highly recommended from 2.5 years of experience.
---
(Original Review):
This machine is without a doubt the best computer, if not the best piece of technology gear, that I have ever used or owned.
Going to try to keep this review short, but sweet.
I've had it for about 9 months now, basically since the Unibody MBP's came out. First, the construction is just outstanding. The solidness of the enclosure makes the whole thing feel sturdy and basically indestructible. In 9 months, I have treated it like I treat all my equipment I use it thoroughly without too much concern for cosmetics and there is not a single scratch or sign of wear on the entire machine. The thing still looks new, after 9 months that's how durable it is. Incredible.
The speed and responsiveness and stability of the computer itself is excellent. I'm a programmer and photographer, so I take it to the max every time I use the computer, and I expect a lot of it. With 4 GB of RAM it's never sluggish and handles everything better than any computer I've ever owned.
Graphics and gaming performance is surprisingly good with the 2nd dedicated Nvidia 8600 video card. I dual boot to Windows XP (however reluctantly) and it works great.
I don't even need to talk about the software, hopefully you know all about it by now. OSX is truly awesome, especially for programmers. It's so refreshing to have a real operating system where you can pop open a real console and still have a nice graphical interface on top of it. The OS is a matched pair with the quality of the hardware.
In short, this is a seriously great machine. I'm no Mac fanboy I run Windows, Linux, Mac, whatever but I'm very impressed with the quality and especially the construction and build durability. It's honestly at a level above any other laptop, it's a pretty stunning difference. If it is more expensive, it will make up for it in longevity and resale value alone. Definitely worth it.
Best Deals for Apple MacBook Pro MB986LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop 2.8Ghz
After installing a Trend Micro update and bricking my PC (which I was later able to remedy after 8+ hours of system restores and firewall modifications), I had enough and decided I was done with Microsoft. I have been using the Macbook Pro 15 for a little under a week, and so far, I'm pleased that I made the switch. Obviously, there's a pretty steep premium on Macbook Pros, so I'll try to cover the items that make it worth the extra coin, as well as some annoyances I've encountered as a first time Mac user.Here are some benefits:
+ Beautiful 15" widescreen display. I'm coming from a 17" PC, and since the display was a bit more squared, I don't feel that the screen size decrease is too noticeable
+ Much lighter than PC. At 5.5 lbs, it's easier to carry around than similarly sized PC's
+ Super fast power up and power off. I would say it takes between 30-40 seconds to power on, and less than 10 seconds to shut downoutstanding
+ Robust battery life. It's rated at 7 hours. This time will vary depending on your usage, but it's about right if you don't jack the brightness and surf too heavily
+ Refined, gestured trackpad. If you want to scroll, just swipe with two fingersto select options or webpages, a single tap on the trackpad will accomplish this. Also nice is the ability to zoom webpages a la ipod touch/iphone pinching. I wish you could save a zoom setting to default on Safari though
+ No crashes, except for internet surfing (more on that later)
+ Love the preinstalled iPhoto application it comes with to view and edit photos
+ No problems with spyware, viruses, or crappy, obtrusive antispyware (i.e. Trend Micro) to combat it
+ Outstanding customer support (and I've used them a lot so far!)
And now for the not so good:
If you want word processing/spreadsheet functionality, you're pretty much stuck with plunking down $100 for Microsoft Office. You could use alternatives like iWork, but with most people using the Office standard, it makes sense for compatibility purposes. No generic preinstalled word processing software, Apple?
The learning curve (if you're a long-time PC user). The menus and interface that Macs use are pretty well laid out, but it's a pain to relearn where some items are. Example, you're in Mail and you'd like to add an email folder. The solution? Select "New Mailbox." I'm sure most PC users were scratching their heads with that solution
There's no "maximize" function on the windows. It will save your settings once you resize everything, but if you want a window to take up the screen, you'll be doing some manual dragging to get them the way you want
Not enough ports. Here's an example. Let's say you have a usb mouse, you're listening to iTunes from your iPod, and you're saving backup data to a USB drive as you're working in MS Word. Well, that's one too many usb apps, so you'll have to constantly unplug everything to accommodate your needs
No number pad. Now I realize this does not affect a large percentage of users, but I'm a finance guy, and work in Excel a lot. Not putting a number pad on the keyboard is reasonable, but what is not reasonable, is offering no first/third party solutions for a USB/Bluetooth numpad. Props to anyone that can find such an accessory
A bit tricky to port your iTunes media from PC to Mac. You'll be contacting support on this one, trust me
Too many extra charges from Apple. $350 for 3 years of support, $99 per year of storage backup. Considering what we're paying for Macbooks, you'd think Apple would cut us a break on some of the "extras"
Here's my biggest gripe. I have had SERIOUS stability issues with my Macbook and 2Wire DSL AT&T modem/router working together. I originally had a problem with Airport dropping my signal (fixed it with a Google search). Then, I had numerous problems with "Broadband Link Not Established Errors" from my 2Wire modem. Again, I was able to find a posting online which allowed my to turn 2Wire notification messages off, resolving this. So after numerous Google searches, and tech support from Apple and AT&T, my internet is pretty stable, but still not great. I'm still having issues where common websites will not load without stopping the request and clicking the reload button. Some users have had these stability issues resolved by purchasing the Airport Extreme Router, but at $179, this is not a cheap solution. I've had none of these internet problems running other devices from 2Wire. I'm not sure who is at fault, but my gut tells me that Apple did not go out of their way to make their Macbooks overly friendly with 2Wire's network. I feel like Apple should send me a partial rebate for all the hard research I've put in to get a stable connection
So is it worth it to switch to Mac? In a word, yes. Although they're certainly more expensive, 13" models are available at $1,200 which provide decent value. New Mac users will certainly notice an increased level of refinement and simplicity when they make the switch. Overall, a very nice laptop that would easily merit a 5 star rating, if not for the terrible 2Wire compatibility issues.
8/5/09 update:
My 2Wire modem continued to error out and reset itself while surfing webpages. The DSL and Internet lights would flash red, and my internet would disconnect for 20 seconds every time this happened. I finally found a solution to this problem. Not thrilled about the extra $89, but my internet experience is finally stable. The product I picked up is the D-Link ADSL2/2+ Modem/Wireless Router combo. I also reviewed this product on Amazon.
The D-Link is highly recommended for AT&T DSL users with Mac/2Wire compatibility issues.
Honest reviews on Apple MacBook Pro MB986LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop 2.8Ghz
I had an older version macbook pro but i dropped it with some force and it broke so i had to purchase a new computer. After having a mac for 1 1/2 years, it wasn't a question of what brand to buy but which mac to buy. I purchased the mac book pro 2.66 ghz with 4 gb ram--which is what i had in my last mac book pro. What i didn't realize is that this ram is the DDR3 instead of DDR2 which means it is suppose to be better and faster. i'm not a computer geek so i don't understand it all but basically having the 4gb in the old machine was still not as good as the 4 gb in this machine. Also, this machine has a much, much better track pad that does all kinds of tricks i'm just learning about. 2 finger swipes do one thing, 3 finger swipes do another, 4 finger swipes do yet another. and then you can also configure it to do the windows type double click think. The whole pad can be clicked on so you don't have to find a particular spot--anywhere will do. It does take some getting use to but it is so beneficial it is worth the learning curve.I like the keyboard on this unibody macbook pro as compared to the old one but really don't know why--perhaps it is a perosnal preference. it is backlighted but so was my old one.
tech support at apple is superb, another reason i will never consider anything but apple. and if you have an apple store near you, you can get one to one personal training for a little less than $2 per week. in addition, they offer free classes to adults and children. you learn so much that you are finally able to take advantage of the features your computer can do without being a computer whiz.
the new version of the operating system, called snow leopard, will be out sometime in sept. if you buy a system now with the old version, you can upgrade with apple for $9.95.
the graphics card is very good in this machine, however, i am not much of a gamer so i don't really reap the benefits of that. but it is a dedicated card so it has great potential for those that would utilize it.
another awesome thing about this computer is that the bettery last 7 hours or so. at times, mine has lasted longer. it depends, i guess on what you are doing. and, even with the better battery, i think this computer weighs less.
if you are debating on whether or not to switch to apple, all i can say is that i am extremely grateful i did and so is everyone else i know that made the switch. one of the things i like, in addition to the ease of use of programs and the seemless integration is that there are no virus programs to run that slow the computer down tremendously. in addition, my old mac book pro ran as fast on the last day as the first and i am anticipating the same for this. unlike my windows laptops that got progressively slower as time went on. another great thing about apple is the seemless backup of files that it will do automatically for you. you don't have to figure anything out. jut let it do its job and if you ever lose all of your data, you will have a back up to restore your computer. That in itself can be worth tons of money. i know you can do this on windows machines, but it takes knowledge and effort--something i never seemed to posses when it came to computers.
one thing that i don't like is that the plug is hooked to the computer via a magnet. it is suppose to be safer so that it will unplug easily if someone snags it. that way it doesn't drag the computer to the floor. for me, i find it a little annoying because it can become unplugged easily. minor detail but it is a little irritating. if i could change one thing it would be that you have an option of which plug you wanted.
another thing that is different about the unibody macbook pros is that you can get a 13 inch with a full keyboard if you want. when i bought my last one, the 13 inch had a weird keyboard and as a typist, i couldn't even consider that size. i still chose the 15 inch because that is what i wanted, but now i can also purchase a 13 inch for my children rather than buying them the 15 inch.
one thing that the mac store employees recommended to me rather than getting a desktop was to get the 13 inch laptop for my kids and use my existing desktop monitor, hook up the lap top, add a keyboard and mouse if desired, and use that as a desktop. but you could always have the portability of a laptop if you ever needed it. i haven't done that yet, but that is going to be my next apple purchase.
It took me over a year to decide to switch to mac. It was a very tough decision for me. change is hard. i didn't know if i could do everything i wanted on the mac. i have never regretted it once. and if you are one of those rare users that has an application that can only be used in windows, you can use the program preloaded on the macbook pro or buy another program so that you can run your application--its like 2 computers in one. one caution, however, whatever portion of the computer you dedicate to windows is subject to viruses so you will have to run an antivirus on that portion. for me, i have found no need to use any windows application. and i even found that i work is much better than ms office in my opinion. but if you are partial to ms office, you can purchase a mac version.
Good luck with your decision and purchase. if you buy any of these macbook pros, you will be happy.
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Apple MacBook Pro MB986LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop 2.8Ghz
First, let me say I'm an IT consultant and as such a bit of a computer snob. I build my own workstations and servers and know what's what and where things count. My previous laptop was a IBM Thinkpad T23 that was the most bulletproof computer I've ever owned. I dragged that thing around with me for 8+ years and it never gave me a single problem. However, it was just too slow to keep up with me and my need to run Adobe's creative suite and MS Office 2007. My expectations for a replacement were quite high and I set my sites on the MBP about a year ago and watched the specs slowly creep up to where I wanted them and of course waited for Snow Leopard to arrive. What finally sold me was VMWare Fusion, which allows you to run Windows as a virtual machine from within OS X. I know Bootcamp can boot Windows, but I wanted to work entirely within OS X as I don't have time to be rebooting and reopening things. This was a must-have both for the ability to run my huge investment in Windows software as well as run the various flavors of Windows needed to support my clients. The folks at the local Apple store showed me VMWare running and I placed my order the same day. I went for the matte screen and 500gb drive, both of which I am very glad I did. The glossy screen is gorgeous, but I was going to use this as a laptop not as a desktop replacement, meaning it would be going with me in all sorts of environments where I couldn't control the ambient lighting so glare was a huge concern. The matte screen isn't quite as sexy, but it is still the brightest LCD screen I have ever used. I turn the brightness down a couple clicks even when on AC power, just because it's so dang bright.The performance of this laptop is amazing. I went with the 2.8 GHz CPU and as such got the dual video cards with maximum video RAM. I run at least a half dozen different programs at once, sometimes more, including Firefox with 20+ tabs and VMWare running a virtual machine of Windows 7 and this thing doesn't not even hiccup. Blazing, screaming, insanely fast. My MBP arrived 9 days ago and I have yet to reboot it once. The trackpad is sweet and the finger gestures are a great innovation. The battery is also amazing. I've given up on the dedicated video (see below) and am getting 6+ hours out of a charge, without any extreme power saving efforts. I'm carefully counting each cycle, as I'm sure a lot of other users are, and will happily scream and yell at Apple if this thing doesn't last 1000 cycles as promised.
Now for the Con's, although they are minor.
1. The dual video cards seem a bit gimmicky. Okay, I'm glad for the dedicated card when running Adobe CS4 apps, but really, I could live with the performance of the onboard card. The dedicated video card also sucks battery and heats the laptop up considerably, almost alarmingly hot. Running the onboard video there is almost no discernible heat. The biggest annoyance is that you have to close everything and log out every time you want to switch cards. Because of the heat and battery issue, I've found myself just living with the onboard video. It's not worth the hassle to log out and change it.
2. It's a BIG HONKING laptop, almost as big as the 17". If it was an inch narrower it would be the very definition of perfection. It barely fits in the laptop sleeve of my gigantic Patagonia Half Mass bag and it's girth makes it a little cumbersome and unwieldy to pick up and move around or use on one's lap. I would have happily gone for the 13" model if I could have gotten the same performance specs.
I sell and repair computers for a living and this is hands-down the best laptop on the market for my specific needs. While I paid a premium I feel it was a good value. Average users would do well with the MacBook or 13" MBP. Nothing in the PC laptop world even comes close. That being said, this review is specific to my needs for a laptop. A desktop is a completely different beast and my desktop workstation still runs Windows XP Pro.
Monday, November 3, 2014
Review of ASUS Zenbook UX31E-DH53 13.3-Inch Thin and Light Ultrabook (Silver
First of all, there's have been a lot of dispute regarding this laptop. Many have said that this laptop is a pure copy of the Macbook Air. I personally think not. Just because Apple was the first company to make something so small and so thin like the MBA, it doesn't mean that any other company who does something similar is a copy. The build quality on the chassis seems much stronger and of much more quality when compared to MBA. And, I must claim that this is the best looking notebook on the block. Much better looking than any computer with the Apple logo on it.
Touchpad Update the driver (downloading it from the Asus website). Before doing anything, do updates on the computer first. Some may say that this is absurd and that it should work out of the box. But, I think it's correct to say that you need to update the driver! Same goes for keeping your virus definitions updated for your anti-virus program! After the update, almost flawless trackpad. It's just as good as any Windows trackpad. Obviously not as good as a Macbook with it comes to smoothness (but Mac trackpad doesn't work well in Windows either since it doesn't have the drivers).
Sound Very very good sound for the form factor. For something so thin, I don't think you can find anything that matches the quality of these speakers!
Screen I personally did not have any viewing angle problems. The screen is very bright and high resolution, but I did have a dead pixel on the top left edge of the screen. This can be verify by the video I made for it! Also, there's a small quirk... The screen hinge is a little loose and when typing on your lap at a wider angle, you might experience the screen to fall backward. I also made a video of this.
Now, the worst of all! Keyboard! What were they doing with the keyboard? There's very little travel on the keyboard and absolutely zero support on the side of the keys. Longer keys like "Enter", "Shift", and "Spacebar" would experience problems where the key is pressed but it doesn't registered. This happens on other keys as well, but less occasionally. I made 2 videos of this problem and posted it on Youtube as well. You can see a few examples where FN + F11 (volume), I should be able to adjust the volume. But, when the FN key is pressed on the side and not in the dead center, it won't register. Therefore instead of changing volume, I get full screen! This goes the same for the enter Key where pressing it on the side or edge it doesn't move the words to the next line. Yes, you can argue that I just need to adjust my typing, but how hard is it to make a keyboard that works? Other manufacturers who use chiclet keyboard don't have this problem (Sony, Apple, HP). Also, how are you to guarantee that while typing 50-75 words a minute, your hitting dead center of every key including enter or shift.
Realistically, if keyboard is 100% registering every key, dead pixel wasn't there, and tigher hinge... I would recommend this as the Number 1 laptop in it's form factor (including price). I will be returning the laptop because of the problems above as I think it's pretty annoying correcting my typing as the keys don't register!...
~~ If you want to check out my video of the problems I listed above. Go to youtube website and int he search bar, look for "twkidM3". You should be able to pull up my username and it will have 5 videos of the problems. Enjoy!
EDIT~~~~~*****
11/23/11
Need to write an update. I ended up sending this thing back because the keyboard and a dead pixel problem. I did not have WIFI issues or other issues such as the computer shocking you when plugging in the power. But those two reason I listed which I did not like ended up to be a real pain in the butt. Key registering problem was huge and I would miss enter key or shift key left and right. Even FN+F9 sometimes did not register volume buttons.
Now many of you may ask, "Why don't you contact ASUS before returning it to Amazon? Get them to RMA the system because of DEAD Pixel Guarantee!" Truth be told, I did all that. I submitted a query to ASUS 2 days after I bought the system and made the videos. I posted all the videos on all the ASUS fanpages that you can find on facebook. I've also contacted Asus Corporate in Taiwan. They called me at midnight and told me that they will resolve the issue and have someone from Fremont, CA contact me regarding my issues. 3 days later, no response and no contact. So technically I was expecting someone to talk to me around the 9th of Nov. No response so I send it back to Amazon. Customer service? yes or no? you decide! Dropping from 3 stars to 2 stars... Still a beautiful unit with a lot of flaws and lack of customer service!
I decided to give Asus another chance on November 17, 2011 and bought another version of the Zenbook line called UX31-DH72. See my review there, it get's more interesting! =)
I will definitely buy my next ultrabook from Amazon but it will not be an asus product.
Update my review:
I love everything about this notebook except for the fact that mine died after 40 days of use. One second I'm installing Adobe Reader then next I can't even boot into windows. I tried using the recovery partition to no avail. It turned out to be a defective system board so I had to RMA it. When I recieved the RMA unit back it was broken, physicially broken. The screen bezel is cracked and it seems to be getting worse. I contacted ASUS right after I opened the box and now I'm waiting for this "investigation" to finish. ASUS is HORRIBLE at giving me any kind of information as to what is actually happening. I do not know how long this investigation is going to take or if they will actually take care of me and give me a zenbook that is both free of defects and isn't broken. I was told that someone was supposed to contact me from ASUS yesterday and that never happened...
I changed to review from 5 stars to 1 considering I got a defective unit AND have had a horrible experience with this RMA process.
********Old Review Below************
I have been waiting for the PC market to catch up with Apple with a notebook comparable to the "Macbook Air". I believe that the Air has set the standard for what these new ultrabooks coming out are trying to achieve. However, I do believe that while the Zenbook is "like" a macbook and was definitely inspired by the Air, it is also different and unique with its own sense of style. I will try to briefly go over what I like and dislike about the Zenbook.
One thing I will recommend above everything else is going to a local store that has this beautiful ultrabook on display and getting a hands-on feel for what you will be buying. This way you can see for yourself if the keyboard/trackpad will be a problem for you and if you like the look of this beautiful machine. If you decide that this is the ultrabook for you then I would recommend shopping around for a price or buying it from amazon.com. I do NOT recommend buying it from a Bestbuy, Office Max or Costco store for the fact that you will NOT get the FREE 1 year accidental damage warranty that ASUS offers for purchase of this machine. (Please check comments for more information regarding the warranty or check the ADP warranty site for ASUS and read the fine print...)
Likes:
Build Quality and Design The build quality for the Chassis/Frame is second to none and matches that of the Macbook Air. Total WIN in this area.
Lightweight and Portable I will be using this for work meetings and college course and I will definitely appreciate that I will no longer have to carry around my old, large, bulky and heavy laptop as I did before.
Thinness Not only is it beautifully thin, it is also practically thin meaning that it won't take up very much space in my travel bag and it adds to the portability.
Screen Resolution I was a little worried when looking for a netbook/ultrabook to replace my old laptop that I would struggle when working in excel documents due to screen real estate. However the zenbook has a 1600x900 display which offers more than I could of hoped for in a 13" notebook without making the text too small.
Battery Life I never expected to get anything over 5 hours of battery life from any kind of notebook/netbook that would meet my needs. It is simply amazing and I feel "free" from having to constantly carry around my power cord.
Mouse Trackpad my Zenbook came pre-loaded with the latest drivers. I understand that there used to be an issue with the track pad, however I have noticed no issue what-so-ever. Infact I am really enjoying the feel and functionality of the track pad. I use the two-finger scrolling all the time and I am starting to use the three-finger functionality of it now. I will mention that I did need to bump up the speed of both the mouse pointer and the two-finger scrolling to make it "feel right" to me. So I would recommend that you play around with those settings until it feels right for you.
Thermal Design I was a bit afraid that being made out of metal, the bottom of the zenbook might become a little "hot". It surprised me that the thermals for this ultrabook are quite good! I guess the credit should go to the low voltage CPU from intel. Simply amazing and quiet!
Noise Level Most of the time the fan is off and when it does turn on it is barely noticeable. The loudest thing for me is my typing! No need to be concerned that it would be disruptive in a meeting, classroom or library.
Keyboard I really love that the keys for the keyboard also have that metal finish to them. I really pulls the design together for me.
Accessories All the accessories that ASUS decided to include with the Zenbook are just icing on my cake. I love the envelope that the Zenbook can slide into, very nice quality and does not feel "cheap"
Instant On Most ultrabooks will probably have this feature. No more waiting for my machine to "start-up"
ASUS Warranty A "free" one year accidental damage warranty. Nothing one could complain about that, expect that you must be careful where you purchase your Zenbook from to ensure that you will get this warranty. (Don't buy it from a BestBuy or OfficeMax or Costco)
Dislikes:
Webcam Poor quality webcam in my opinion. I honestly never use a webcam anyway on any of my computers so it isn't a big deal for me. However why put such a horrible webcam on such a beautiful and well though-out machine?
Viewing Angles (Up and Down)All laptop screens have issues with viewing angles in my opinion. All of a sweet spot range, some have a wider range than others. I will tell you that the range for the "sweet spot" on this machine is a little narrower than I would like.
Glossy Screen I really wish that ASUS would have Zenbooks with BOTH a glossy and a matte screen so the consumer could pick which screen would fit his/her needs best. Glossy means that any outdoor use for my Zenbook will be limited to overcast days only. I would have preferred a matte screen. In fact I almost didn't buy the Zenbook because the screen was glossy.
Power Connection I wish that the power connection into the Zenbook was a little more "firm", I worry that overtime it might have problems charging due to a wobbly power connection.
Wants:
Different Color Case I hope that ASUS might sell the same cases that they include with the Zenbook in different colors. I am not the biggest fan of the brown color that is sold with the Zenbook.
Better Webcam
Matte Screen
Touchpad Update the driver (downloading it from the Asus website). Before doing anything, do updates on the computer first. Some may say that this is absurd and that it should work out of the box. But, I think it's correct to say that you need to update the driver! Same goes for keeping your virus definitions updated for your anti-virus program! After the update, almost flawless trackpad. It's just as good as any Windows trackpad. Obviously not as good as a Macbook with it comes to smoothness (but Mac trackpad doesn't work well in Windows either since it doesn't have the drivers).
Sound Very very good sound for the form factor. For something so thin, I don't think you can find anything that matches the quality of these speakers!
Screen I personally did not have any viewing angle problems. The screen is very bright and high resolution, but I did have a dead pixel on the top left edge of the screen. This can be verify by the video I made for it! Also, there's a small quirk... The screen hinge is a little loose and when typing on your lap at a wider angle, you might experience the screen to fall backward. I also made a video of this.
Now, the worst of all! Keyboard! What were they doing with the keyboard? There's very little travel on the keyboard and absolutely zero support on the side of the keys. Longer keys like "Enter", "Shift", and "Spacebar" would experience problems where the key is pressed but it doesn't registered. This happens on other keys as well, but less occasionally. I made 2 videos of this problem and posted it on Youtube as well. You can see a few examples where FN + F11 (volume), I should be able to adjust the volume. But, when the FN key is pressed on the side and not in the dead center, it won't register. Therefore instead of changing volume, I get full screen! This goes the same for the enter Key where pressing it on the side or edge it doesn't move the words to the next line. Yes, you can argue that I just need to adjust my typing, but how hard is it to make a keyboard that works? Other manufacturers who use chiclet keyboard don't have this problem (Sony, Apple, HP). Also, how are you to guarantee that while typing 50-75 words a minute, your hitting dead center of every key including enter or shift.
Realistically, if keyboard is 100% registering every key, dead pixel wasn't there, and tigher hinge... I would recommend this as the Number 1 laptop in it's form factor (including price). I will be returning the laptop because of the problems above as I think it's pretty annoying correcting my typing as the keys don't register!...
~~ If you want to check out my video of the problems I listed above. Go to youtube website and int he search bar, look for "twkidM3". You should be able to pull up my username and it will have 5 videos of the problems. Enjoy!
EDIT~~~~~*****
11/23/11
Need to write an update. I ended up sending this thing back because the keyboard and a dead pixel problem. I did not have WIFI issues or other issues such as the computer shocking you when plugging in the power. But those two reason I listed which I did not like ended up to be a real pain in the butt. Key registering problem was huge and I would miss enter key or shift key left and right. Even FN+F9 sometimes did not register volume buttons.
Now many of you may ask, "Why don't you contact ASUS before returning it to Amazon? Get them to RMA the system because of DEAD Pixel Guarantee!" Truth be told, I did all that. I submitted a query to ASUS 2 days after I bought the system and made the videos. I posted all the videos on all the ASUS fanpages that you can find on facebook. I've also contacted Asus Corporate in Taiwan. They called me at midnight and told me that they will resolve the issue and have someone from Fremont, CA contact me regarding my issues. 3 days later, no response and no contact. So technically I was expecting someone to talk to me around the 9th of Nov. No response so I send it back to Amazon. Customer service? yes or no? you decide! Dropping from 3 stars to 2 stars... Still a beautiful unit with a lot of flaws and lack of customer service!
I decided to give Asus another chance on November 17, 2011 and bought another version of the Zenbook line called UX31-DH72. See my review there, it get's more interesting! =)
Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>
After reading the mixed reviews, I decided to purchase this laptop anyway. I loved the size and features and decided to risk it. Very glad I did. The slimness and weight make it super portable, and I have been impressed with the battery life. The keyboard isn't perfect, but after typing on it for two weeks I don't have a problem with it, just took some getting used to. Reviews that dislike the trackpad confuse me, as it's the best one I've ever used. I know I have the Elan trackpad with the newest drivers, but I find it perfect. It's responsive, spacious, clicks are accurate and it is smooth. The screen too is bright and I love the extended resolution. This is my first metal computer, so I'm worried about my metal watchband scratching it while I type, but other than that I am very impressed and would highly recommend it.Best Deals for ASUS Zenbook UX31E-DH53 13.3-Inch Thin and Light Ultrabook (Silver
First, let me say I am not a computer nerd trying to find everything wrong with a laptop. Now, about the Zenbook, it is built very well, love the design and solidity of this ultrabook. The lid opens easily, there is a small tab on the top to open the screen from the bottom, so don't believe anyone when they say they can't open it. So I turned it on, I did the updates which were very easy to do, they were almost automatic. The trackpad and the wireless work with out any problems, I really like that the left and right click buttons on the pad actually click. Typing on the keyboard is different, but I have had no problems. The battery seems to last forever. Now for the best part, this thing starts up so fast, even after I loaded the Norton Antivirus on it. It wakes from sleep very fast, it connects to my wireless home network almost instantly. So, it does what a laptop is supposed to do, plus it's light, fast, and looks really good. I am probably going to buy one for my boyfriend for Christmas. Hope this review helps. Oh yea, the screen on this is really crisp.Honest reviews on ASUS Zenbook UX31E-DH53 13.3-Inch Thin and Light Ultrabook (Silver
After owning this zenbook for less than three months, the a/c adapter stopped working. Although covered by warranty, trying to get it replaced promptly for my daughter in college was ridiculously difficult. I called and opened a claim and was told I would get an email with instructions to follow. A full day passed. No email. I called them and asked them what happened and then they sent the email. I followed their instructions immediately which were to send back a fax. Two days later, they still said the fax hadn't been processed. At first, they said that process took 24 to 48 hours but then started to say it would take up to 72 hours. I could not get a supervisor to do anything to expedite the process. By the time they finally processed the fax, I had made other arrangements through Amazon to get a replacement shipped to my daughter so I told them not to charge me for expedited delivery. If they had sent it overnight or even two-day air at no additional cost to make up for the delays and inconvenience we had experienced, as I asked them to, I would not be posting this.I will definitely buy my next ultrabook from Amazon but it will not be an asus product.
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for ASUS Zenbook UX31E-DH53 13.3-Inch Thin and Light Ultrabook (Silver
EDIT:Update my review:
I love everything about this notebook except for the fact that mine died after 40 days of use. One second I'm installing Adobe Reader then next I can't even boot into windows. I tried using the recovery partition to no avail. It turned out to be a defective system board so I had to RMA it. When I recieved the RMA unit back it was broken, physicially broken. The screen bezel is cracked and it seems to be getting worse. I contacted ASUS right after I opened the box and now I'm waiting for this "investigation" to finish. ASUS is HORRIBLE at giving me any kind of information as to what is actually happening. I do not know how long this investigation is going to take or if they will actually take care of me and give me a zenbook that is both free of defects and isn't broken. I was told that someone was supposed to contact me from ASUS yesterday and that never happened...
I changed to review from 5 stars to 1 considering I got a defective unit AND have had a horrible experience with this RMA process.
********Old Review Below************
I have been waiting for the PC market to catch up with Apple with a notebook comparable to the "Macbook Air". I believe that the Air has set the standard for what these new ultrabooks coming out are trying to achieve. However, I do believe that while the Zenbook is "like" a macbook and was definitely inspired by the Air, it is also different and unique with its own sense of style. I will try to briefly go over what I like and dislike about the Zenbook.
One thing I will recommend above everything else is going to a local store that has this beautiful ultrabook on display and getting a hands-on feel for what you will be buying. This way you can see for yourself if the keyboard/trackpad will be a problem for you and if you like the look of this beautiful machine. If you decide that this is the ultrabook for you then I would recommend shopping around for a price or buying it from amazon.com. I do NOT recommend buying it from a Bestbuy, Office Max or Costco store for the fact that you will NOT get the FREE 1 year accidental damage warranty that ASUS offers for purchase of this machine. (Please check comments for more information regarding the warranty or check the ADP warranty site for ASUS and read the fine print...)
Likes:
Build Quality and Design The build quality for the Chassis/Frame is second to none and matches that of the Macbook Air. Total WIN in this area.
Lightweight and Portable I will be using this for work meetings and college course and I will definitely appreciate that I will no longer have to carry around my old, large, bulky and heavy laptop as I did before.
Thinness Not only is it beautifully thin, it is also practically thin meaning that it won't take up very much space in my travel bag and it adds to the portability.
Screen Resolution I was a little worried when looking for a netbook/ultrabook to replace my old laptop that I would struggle when working in excel documents due to screen real estate. However the zenbook has a 1600x900 display which offers more than I could of hoped for in a 13" notebook without making the text too small.
Battery Life I never expected to get anything over 5 hours of battery life from any kind of notebook/netbook that would meet my needs. It is simply amazing and I feel "free" from having to constantly carry around my power cord.
Mouse Trackpad my Zenbook came pre-loaded with the latest drivers. I understand that there used to be an issue with the track pad, however I have noticed no issue what-so-ever. Infact I am really enjoying the feel and functionality of the track pad. I use the two-finger scrolling all the time and I am starting to use the three-finger functionality of it now. I will mention that I did need to bump up the speed of both the mouse pointer and the two-finger scrolling to make it "feel right" to me. So I would recommend that you play around with those settings until it feels right for you.
Thermal Design I was a bit afraid that being made out of metal, the bottom of the zenbook might become a little "hot". It surprised me that the thermals for this ultrabook are quite good! I guess the credit should go to the low voltage CPU from intel. Simply amazing and quiet!
Noise Level Most of the time the fan is off and when it does turn on it is barely noticeable. The loudest thing for me is my typing! No need to be concerned that it would be disruptive in a meeting, classroom or library.
Keyboard I really love that the keys for the keyboard also have that metal finish to them. I really pulls the design together for me.
Accessories All the accessories that ASUS decided to include with the Zenbook are just icing on my cake. I love the envelope that the Zenbook can slide into, very nice quality and does not feel "cheap"
Instant On Most ultrabooks will probably have this feature. No more waiting for my machine to "start-up"
ASUS Warranty A "free" one year accidental damage warranty. Nothing one could complain about that, expect that you must be careful where you purchase your Zenbook from to ensure that you will get this warranty. (Don't buy it from a BestBuy or OfficeMax or Costco)
Dislikes:
Webcam Poor quality webcam in my opinion. I honestly never use a webcam anyway on any of my computers so it isn't a big deal for me. However why put such a horrible webcam on such a beautiful and well though-out machine?
Viewing Angles (Up and Down)All laptop screens have issues with viewing angles in my opinion. All of a sweet spot range, some have a wider range than others. I will tell you that the range for the "sweet spot" on this machine is a little narrower than I would like.
Glossy Screen I really wish that ASUS would have Zenbooks with BOTH a glossy and a matte screen so the consumer could pick which screen would fit his/her needs best. Glossy means that any outdoor use for my Zenbook will be limited to overcast days only. I would have preferred a matte screen. In fact I almost didn't buy the Zenbook because the screen was glossy.
Power Connection I wish that the power connection into the Zenbook was a little more "firm", I worry that overtime it might have problems charging due to a wobbly power connection.
Wants:
Different Color Case I hope that ASUS might sell the same cases that they include with the Zenbook in different colors. I am not the biggest fan of the brown color that is sold with the Zenbook.
Better Webcam
Matte Screen
Thursday, October 23, 2014
Buy ASUS N550JV-DB71 i7-4700HQ 2.4GHz 15" Laptop
Overall this laptop is very good. It has a few negatives but mostly positives. One negative is that the laptop comes with a lot of bloat-ware or pure installed crap from asus but after I uninstalled all of it it was fine. Also at first it was running slow and freezing but I then ran a system recovery and now it runs perfect. The graphics chip is pretty good it played most games at 1600 by 900 at high settings very well but I wouldn't reccomend pushing the resolution past that. Also the processor is very powerful and quick with 4 physical and 8 logical cores. The hard drive has plenty of space with 1000 GB or 1 tb of storage but another positive is that their hard drive is a hybrid drive with 8 GB of ssd cache. You may think that 8 GB isn't a whole lot but it makes a HUGE difference in boot up and wake from sleep times. Also the laptop is relatively light and runs very cool also the brushed aluminum finish looks beautiful.
Friday, October 3, 2014
Sony VAIO VPC-SC1AFM/S 13.3" Notebook (2.3GHz Intel Core i5-2410M Reviews
fast delivery. the vendor said the condition of the computer and match the product I received. They say it has some outside cosmetic scratches and interior clean, but They did not mention that the some keys from the keyboard felt stuck. they work but the do not recoiled. you also need to upgrade many of the windows programs on the net. overall, It is a portable computer compare to 15.6" which is kind of big to carry on all the times. It is like a tablet but with lot of computing power. After searching and comparing for 5 hrs and buy the best computers in the $400 range. I decide to get this one (it play blue rays-I feature that many computesr don't have). I can used it as a bluray player in the hotel's TV. I can save my bluray disc on the HD.
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I am a big fan of the Sony S model, I have had Z models and for the money and comfort as well as conveniece, I pick the S hands down. The laptop is full of goodies all priced as a bundle which was exclusive to Best Buy. The color silver looks great, nice backlit keyboard with a full 2mm keystroke for comfort and speed typing. Very responsive cpu & graphics with a built in "onboard" blu-ray player and DVD/CD read & write. The display is great and typical of Sony products. The speakers are liveable, I would still recommend a "capsule speaker" for about $30. For the budget minded person who demands some performance, this is it. The Sony Vaio S model wreaks of style and has a beautiful display. The performance is equivalent to it's competitors who often have a larger & bulkier chasis. I would like to note there is a newer model of this one available now, not sure of the model number but I believe it now has 6 gig of ram vs. 4 in this model. The important thing I like to mention about this "blue-label" laptop as the market calls it, is it's value. Lot's of good things that make it great deal as opposed to configuring one on your own on the Sony website. The appearance, quality & performance of this laptop make a great laptop for all sorts of users. Great job Sony.Best Deals for Sony VAIO VPC-SC1AFM/S 13.3" Notebook (2.3GHz Intel Core i5-2410M
blu-ray works good for a 13" laptop thats why I bought it. and the price was right also lots of memoryTuesday, September 9, 2014
HP G62-358nr Notebook PC, Charcoal Review
I didn't purchase this computer from Amazon, but would like to give it my good review. I bought it directly from HP several years ago and have found it to be bullet proof. The only upgrade I did was to increase the onboard memory. I found the HDMI out is great for connecting to TV, the speedy optical disc drive with Lightscribe, the fast processor and other enhancements make it a winner even in todays high tech world. I hate to admit it, but if this baby doesn't die with a mechanical or software severe enough to kill it, I will keep it for a long time and not be enticed to upgrade. I might add I am not that anxious to upgrade to Windows 8 from Windows 7 which is what comes with all the new PC's anyway.
Saturday, September 6, 2014
Dell - Inspiron 15.6" Laptop - 4GB Memory - 500GB Hard Drive - Black Reviews
List Price: $549.99
Sale Price: $489.99
Today's Bonus: 11% Off
When I found this deal it was for the previous unit the 2728. It was 399.00 at Best Buy. I can gladly say I wouldn't hesitate to purchase at a higher price.
I will put this review together as I wanted to see when I was researching:
Is it fast enough? I have Google chrome (7 tabs), Opera (3 tabs), Evernote, Word, Excel, WMV player, and Mozilla (7 tabs) all open as I type this and the CPU is ranging from 10% to 30% and the memory from 30% to 60%. So, if this describes your usual desktop, yes...it's fast enough. (One thing I cannot under-emphasize...while a well working and efficient computer is important, for web surfing, slow internet is slow internet. A newer computer will definitely help when doing other activities while surfing the web and that's why I had to have this computer)
It's fairly light...which is why the battery doesn't last forever...but it is consistent at over 4 hours unplugged.
The construction feels solid.
Windows 8 takes a little to get used to and to find the cheats/short cuts, but it isn't terrible.
There were other computers with more memory and bigger hard drives, but the bang for the buck of this computer was too good to pass up. And I have yet to max the 4GB this computer has and I'm using external drives for most of my pictures and large files...so I'm not worried about filling this 500GB hard drive.
I actually took the time to find a place I could write a review because I really like this laptop. So hopefully this emphasizes how much I have enjoyed this purchase.
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I bought 3 computers 2 already need to be replaced. The computers are great, they just have hardware problems and I need to send them back.Best Deals for Dell - Inspiron 15.6" Laptop - 4GB Memory - 500GB Hard Drive - Black
Excellent laptop at a great price.Good features:
1. Good processor speed.
2. Wi-Fi is too good.
3. Nice touch pad
4. Sound and picture quality.
5. Windows 8: just awesome.
Cons:
Weight (2.6 kg)and Backlit keyboard : But at this price, we should not expect too much.
Friday, July 18, 2014
ASUS VivoBook X202E-DH31T-SL 11.6-Inch Touchscreen Laptop ( Silver ) Review
List Price: $569.00
Sale Price: $489.99
Today's Bonus: 14% Off
For roughly 550.00 this can hardly be beat for a small laptop that has windows 8 and a touchscreen. At first I was a little aggravated with the touch pad but, I installed the drivers from Samsung's website that are supposed to be for a series 5 laptop. This laptop along with several others have the same Elan touch pad in them. Once you install this driver it is a night and day difference in the touchpad.
The link for the drivers is in the first comment. Amazon won't let you link to an external website in the main review.
So go to the comment and get to the link then follow what is below.
You then need to click on the Manuals and Downloads link, then click Driver.
After that scroll down and click on the ZIP link for the Touch Pad driver 11.7.2.1
If you have the sorry Asus Smart Gesture installed, uninstall that first and reboot, then install this software. I have had various Macbooks for the better part of the last 7 years and this is my first PC laptop in a while. I was almost ready to return this laptop until I found these drivers. I would say the touch pad is 95% of a Macbook touch pad now and whether you like Apple or not, you have to admit they know what they are doing when it comes to track pads. Aside from all of that I'm extremely happy with the operation of this laptop now.
I am coming from a laptop that had an SSD drive in it so it does seem a little slow in some areas but, others it is working just fine. I have an extra SSD drive that I plan on putting in this machine as well as removing the half height mini PCI atheros wireless/bluetooth combo. I purchased an Intel Centrino 6235anhmw Mini Pci Express Bluetooth 4.0 to replace it with and based on my research I should be able to enable Intel Wireless Display on this laptop after that install. The card only cost me 30.00 bucks and I figured it was worth the gamble to see if it would work. I'll update this review once I get the card in a couple of days to state if it worked or not.
The sound coming from this laptop is actually quite good and I would say better than a lot of the previous laptops I am use to.
The touchscreen is extremely responsive and I haven't had any missed touches or erratic behavior out of it. I have played several touch based games and it worked flawlessly.
Last but, not least this thing is solid, the build quality on it is exceptional for something this cheap.
Okay, now for the bad which again considering this is a cheap laptop with a touchscreen really isn't that bad.
The fan runs constantly and while it is not overly annoying it does seem to run even when not doing much on the system. That is really my main complaint about the machine at this point. The second complaint is that the viewing angles on this machine are pretty poor but, again don't expect any machine at this price point with a touchscreen to have great viewing angles. Although viewing angles are bad, brightness is very good. I think with the brightness turned all the way up you could possibly do permanent damage to your eyes(a joke of course).
The keyboard is a little cramped but, really not all that bad. I would say I have slightly above average hand size but, again it isn't to bad and I'm able to kick out a reasonable speed without to many more mistakes than I usually make. Expect some adjustment if you are coming from a full size keyboard with large hands.
Again, the stock hard drive is a 5400rpm drive and it does seem a little slow for me but, if you are coming from another mechanical drive then you may not really notice it as a problem. I've been using SSD drives for some time so it does bother me a bit.
These might be major problems for others but, for me they are minor annoyances that I can live with on a cheap machine like this. This is basically an 11.6" Macbook Air that is missing the SSD(entry level is 64GB SSD), backlit keyboard, viewing angles aren't as good for the ASUS and fan runs more often than Macbook Air. However the Macbook Air doesn't have these features: touch screen, 500GB HDD that can be upgraded to a small or large SSD if you like and the Air cost about 450.00 more for the entry level. Granted the Macbook Air is considerably lighter but, it also makes your wallet lighter.
Sorry for all of the Macbook comparisons but, I have come from many years of having Macbooks and decided with Windows 8 to give PCs a try again. I'm glad I did.
Update 11/8/2012:
I installed the Intel wireless card I mentioned above, then installed the latest drivers for the card from the Intel website as well as the latest video drivers from the ASUS website. Then I installed the Widi display software and was able to connect to my Belkin Screencast. It took several tries and then it finally updated the software on the Belkin. After that it has been connecting perfectly with no problems. So I paid 40 bucks on Amazon for a refurbished Belkin Screencast and 32.00 for the intel card. Now for 72.00 bucks I'm able to use my 55" HDTV at 1080p as a second screen.
Update 11/14/2012
I finally got around to installing an SSD drive and replacing the mechanical drive. The drive that came in it was a Hitachi HTS5450A7E380 which is a 7mm thick drive. Unfortunately the SSD I had was a typical 9.5mm and was too thick to work at first. Luckily I was able to remove part of the casing on the SSD drive I used and that made for a perfect fit. So if you plan on swapping out for an SSD make sure it is no thicker than 7mm or it won't fit. I had some trouble where the laptop kept booting into the BIOS. when I went in and disabled fast boot as well as turned of drive security or something like that. I can't remember exactly now but, when the option is enabled you can go further into the BIOS and see PKI keys and DDB keys and a lot of other keys. I just disabled that portion and then it started recognizing the hard drive. This may not be a problem if you clone the hard drive to the SSD before you swap but, I did a fresh install. Laptop is blazing fast now as it boots into windows in about 10 seconds.
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This review is to dispel any incorrect info in the "User Reviews".I'll quickly explain that I am a technician and have been modifying all the non touch Win 8 machines, to look and run like 7. It's a 2 minute job that requires a small program like Classic Shell or iobit's Start 8.
As I give tech advice on some forums, I felt the need to get some experience on Win 8's touch interface, Otherwise, how could I help others, if I've never even used it.
So let's get down to business and set the record straight of what it is, and what it isn't.
WIFI
Those folks who have wifi connectivity problems, have a defect. If they reinstall the OS from the partition that is provided for that purpose, and then it still has wifi problems, then it's time to return the machine or get it fixed, or even get another wifi card. Anyone who thinks that it's inherent to this machine and has decided to put up with it, is mistaken and being inconvenienced unnecessarily.
TOUCHPAD
Those who find that the touchpad is wonky, are either palming it while typing, or have a defect. The same applies as above. Try installing the OS again and if it is still acting up and you're 100% sure that you're not palming the touchpad, then it is defective and needs to be returned or repaired. This is NOT a normal condition.
BUILD & SCREEN
This laptop is well built with premium quality materials. Anyone who feels their screen is weak, should return it. It is NOT a normal condition for this machine, and for those who complained about the bezel being too wide, it is built that way to be structurally strong enough. A touchscreen receives light impact from being touched, thus it needs to be built a bit more solidly than a normal screen.
Complaints about the screen being shiny are valid in a sense. It is truly shiny, but it's a necessary evil. Matte surfaces get dirty faster and are harder to clean.
KEYBOARD
The keyboard is neither exceptionally good or bad. Everyone has a different concept of what a keyboard should be, so there's no right or wrong. It's just an individual's preference. If the keyboard doesn't work perfectly, the machine should be returned or repaired.
BATTERY LIFE
We've heard a wide range of claims, from 2 to 7 hours. Obviously, someone is wrong. Most of the User Reviews, have it straight, when they claim approx. 4 hours. Even if you dimmed the screen and avoided multitasking, you'd still be hard pressed to get 5 hours out of it, and it's unrealistic to expect that, as the screen would be hard to see, at that low brightness. Those who have claimed 3 hours or less, may be running power consuming programs, like watching video/movies at full brightness, in which case, it is 100% true that it will only get 3 hours or less, under those conditions.(See Suggestions below for some revised info)
CAMERA
Yes, it is true, that it's horrible. If you are not in a brightly lit area, the image will be grainy. It is certainly way below the quality of the average laptop webcam.(see SUGGESTIONS below for a revised evaluation)
POWER & SPEED
Those who find that this notebook is slow, or it hesitates/stutters or freezes up, have a defect. Redo the system as mentioned above and if it persists, it is a defective machine. Even with all the bloatware running, this Vivobook has ample power, to handle all the normal use, without ever hesitating or freezing up.(See SUGGESTIONS below for additional info on power plans for better performance)
SSD
Yes it is true that it will be substantially faster and more responsive, if you swap out the hard drive for an SSD. Any and all laptops will benefit, but it is not necessary to swap the hard drive out, as it performs just fine as it is. It's a luxury to go with an SSD. I have swapped the HD out for an SSD in this machine, because I wanted to know how much of a difference it would make, and not because it ran poorly with the included 500 gig hard drive.
While on this subject, those who feel that it is difficult to remove the backplate to access the hard drive, are mistaken. Yes, it is firmly in place and it requires the right tool to pry it apart, but that is entirely normal for almost all laptops. Swapping out the hard drive on this unit, is a breeze.
FINGERPRINTS
I got lucky and received the Silver model (looks like champagne to me) as the silver lid does not show fingerprints as much as the black version. Again, this is normal. Black brushed aluminum laptops, are fingerprint magnets and they need to be cleaned everyday.
VALUE
The sum total of this Vivobook's exceptional build with premium materials, slim and light, great performance, decent battery life, all the necessary ports, good wifi reception and a very decent touchscreen, make it a real bargain at $500 or less.
COMMENTS, CONS & COMPLAINTS
The webcam is very poor.
It would be wonderful to have a backlit keyboard, even though it would shorten the laptop's battery life.
This unit is slow to charge. From bone empty, it may take as long as 4 hours to get to 100%. This may inconvenience some folks (not me), but on the positive side, the internal battery may last several more years than if it were fast charged.
A few users have suggested changing graphics setting to -20 brightness, 51 contrast and 0.9 gamma, and I agree that it looks better that way.
I ran a timer since turning the laptop on at 100% charged and it is now up to 2 hours and 7 minutes, having used 44% of its battery life, so that would come out to a potential 4 hours and 48 minutes, however the machine will shut down before reaching 0%, and it should be noted that I was only running this webpage and the timer, nothing else, so it would be unrealistic to expect that much battery life under normal circumstances.
The Win 8 touch interface is vastly superior to iOS (iPad), Android, webOS or any after market ones. It is true that the store does not have very many apps, but that will come with time. You'd be hard pressed to find any high quality free games, so don't get your hopes up, YET!
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edit.
SUGGESTIONS
1) Download an app called "Show Me", which will give you detailed visual explanations of everything you can do in Win 8's touch interface. Even if you think you know it all, I bet you'll learn a few new things.
2) Clean the screen around the webcam area and you may discover (as I just did) that the camera is a lot better than it was, presumably a bit dirty from top of the screen swipes.
3) If your machine hesitates, stutters or freezes while on battery but performs well when plugged in, you may have to change your power plan to "High Performance". The Power4Gear system, halves the CPU, ram graphics and Wifi power. If you do go to High Performance while on battery, you may want to turn down the brightness a bit, so as to improve battery life.
4) If you use the Powe4Gear power plan while on battery, it is possible to reach 5 hours of usage, provided you are not running many processes in the background, and are not playing games or viewing video.
5) After updating your Vivobook with Asus' Live update program, uninstall it, to stop it running in the background (it can't be stopped otherwise). If you need it again in the future, you can download the installer from the Asus website.
6) If you run Windows Defender, there is no need for any additional Anti Virus programs, as Defender in Win 8, is a full Anti Virus program that is reputed to do as good a job as any other free AV program. If you are running another AV program, either uninstall it and use Defender, or keep it and turn Defender off in "Services". Running both at the same time will seriously slow down your computer.
Best Deals for ASUS VivoBook X202E-DH31T-SL 11.6-Inch Touchscreen Laptop ( Silver )
I'm an IT professional, and have dealt with a few ASUS laptops, which I now prefer to Dell.If you take remove the 9 phillips screws on the bottom, you have access to some of the internal components.
You will need to tug a little, as the case is still held in place by little plastic clippies all around.
You might break a nail, so be careful.
MEMORY:
The memory is soldered into the board, so 4GB is all you will ever have. Period.
DISK DRIVE:
The HDD is a Hitachi HTS5450A7E380 (7mm 2.5") and can be replaced with another "Low Profile" 7mm SSD or HDD. You simply remove 3 screws that hold the cage in (the 4th screw is already removed from removing the back panel), remove the cage, remove 4 screws holding drive in cage, replace with a SATA II/III drive. (It is a SATA 3 6.0 GB/s connection).
I recommend the Samsung 840 series, as they are 7mm 2.5" and very low on power usage. When you remove the old HDD, it has a plastic backing glued on it with two rubber foam strips.
Don't worry with removing it from the old HDD. An SSD doesn't need the shock absorption and will be mounted securely with the screws.
WIRELESS:
The Atheros AR5B225 Half Mini PCIe WiFi/Bluetooth 4.0 module is replaceable.
I am replacing mine with Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6235 so I can use WiDi and Dual Band Wifi.
It was as easy as removing the two antenna wires from the Atheros, popping in new card, reattaching two antenna wires to the Intel 6235.
BATTERY:
The 5136 mAh 2 cell battery is replaceable, albeit proprietary. Not sure what this means for the future.
MY GENERAL OPINION OF THE LAPTOP and Windows 8:
I have been using Windows 8 at work for a bit, and as an OS, it's hard and confusing with a dual monitor desktop power user setup (as I have no need for the Metro interface there, and I feel like I'm fighting it). I had to tweak it to get my start menu back (Open source utility called "Classic Start"). However, with a touch screen laptop, it is very easy to use. I've been thoroughly been enjoying it as a tablet replacement. I admit, I did install an SSD in it, and it is SO much more responsive now (and shaved some ounces on weight as well has dropping at least a watt of power draw). I also have access to a Windows 8 volume license key, and mine is running Windows 8 Enterprise.
Honest reviews on ASUS VivoBook X202E-DH31T-SL 11.6-Inch Touchscreen Laptop ( Silver )
The form factor, specs, and cost all made the Vivobook a product that I was excited to have and to recommend to whoever I came across. Of course, the highlight was the touchscreen which is VITAL if you're using Windows 8. Adding to that was the excellent workmanship (metallic palmrest) and the perfect size and weight (liked it better than the Zenbook or MacBook Air).But less than 2 months later, it all turned into a nightmare.
I can give the conclusion from the very beginning: Swap out the 500GB HDD for a 256GB SSD as soon as you take it out the box. I'm convinced that Asus put in a cheap part (HDD) in order to keep the cost low. But you will pay dearly for that error.
1. During normal usage, the dreaded "Click of Death" came, which is when the head/arm in the HDD touches the platter (disk). I tried to shut it down as soon as possible. But the next time it turned on, the OS wouldn't load and only the BIOS screen would appear. The machine was effectively dead.
2. Asus's warranty would replace the HDD but wouldn't recover the data, all while taking 2 weeks to return the machine to you. And just opening the machine to swap the HDD yourself would void that warranty.
3. Upon opening the HDD, I found that the head was defective (after just 2 months) and tried everything to recover the data. The pros would charge approx $2,400 (no exageration) to repair this kind of HDD problem. After 3 days, this became a lost cause and I knew I'd have to start from scratch.
4. I installed a 256GB SSD.
5. Asus wouldn't give me an ISO image of the factory Vivobook. They told me I also had to get the OS from Microsoft directly, who in turn said they couldn't get me a full version Windows 8, but only an upgrade from Windows 7. This meant I had to install Windows 7 first, then upgrade to Windows 8.
Now I'm stuck because the BIOS won't let me set the boot order to the USB drive. And, yes, I've flashed it to version 206. IF YOU KNOW HOW TO DO THIS, PLEASE COMMENT.
In spite of all the headache, my only advice is to swap for a SSD immediately. 95% of my docs were backed-up but I didn't make an ISO image of the whole system, so I'm paying for it.
In the end, I still think this is a good machine which just had 1 cheap part which went bad very quickly. (BTW, the floor model at the store also had the same problem.)
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for ASUS VivoBook X202E-DH31T-SL 11.6-Inch Touchscreen Laptop ( Silver )
Firstly, some reviewers have referred to this laptop as a netbook. I have nothing against netbooks, but this is actually an ultraportable notebook. In fact, if it had even a hybrid SSD it would meet ultrabook specs. It certainly has the build quality of an ultrabook.The good:
As I said, excellent build quality including the very responsive touchscreen. People have been guessing that I must have paid at least $800 for this machine based on its look and feel alone. It looks and feels like something between a Macbook Air and Pro.
Remarkably thin considering that it has built in VGA and ethernet ports, and yes, some people still need those!
It's fast. Obviously with a Core i3 and 4GB of RAM it's not the most powerful device on the market, but if you're not a gamer or into heavy multimedia editing it runs like a breeze. It boots up faster than ANY computer I have ever seen not equipped with an SSD. I guess Windows 8 is to thank for that.
Speaking of Windows 8, this is a review of the machine not the OS, but I'll just say that it's basically Windows 7 with a better start menu and some handy touched based functionality. On a touchscreen device like this one, I don't see any reason to complain about it.
Incredibly compact power cable. No brick. It's like a tablet charger. You can literally coil it up and carry it in your pocket.
The Bad:
Battery life is indeed about 4-5 hours... that is, with careful power management and light use. Not stellar, but I guess it does deliver the "up to 5 hours" promised.
A little heavy for its size, certainly not so much to be tiring to carry.
Some reviewers have complained about the trackpad. I haven't updated any drivers and I don't find it to be terrible by any means, but it can be a hair too sensitive at times, sometimes registering a single tap as a double.
Overall:
I'd actually give it a 4.5 if I could. I've looked into a lot of alternatives, and I don't believe there is currently a better laptop for under $600 on the market right now. Certainly not in the 11.6" form factor, where the alternatives are either netbooks of inferior build quality and specs, or an ultrabook/Macbook Air for hundreds of dollars more.
Wednesday, July 2, 2014
Cheap Sony VAIO T Series SVT14117CXS 14-Inch Ultrabook (Silver)
I haven't had a new computer in a while (the last one I had was a school-issued Thinkpad) and initially wanted a Mac. I got this instead because it was in my price range, and glad I did. I've only had it a few days so far but I totally love it. Windows 8 does take some time getting used to but it's not complicated. The processor is fast, I love the "rapid wake" feature, the graphics are beautiful and the screen is vibrant with minimal glare. Also like the sleek aluminum casing. I bought a silicone keyboard cover to go with it. Overall I would definitely recommend.
The only con I can think of is that the webcam is kinda low quality, but since I have a digital camera & I only use my computer's for skype it hasn't bothered me much.
Also, when you mention Sony the first thing that comes to my mind is quality. I've owned quite a few Sony products over the number of years and the quality was always excellent. I'm pretty confident that this product will be in the same category.
1only two USB port is there while most of laptops with three ports minimum .
2the product reached to me without case to save the machine , its should be available.
3battery life less than 3.5 hours.
by the way , with those dis advance still its on the top of ultra-book list as design , features, screen size , buttons sensitivities , etc.
I recommended every person want to buy it , directly to VAIO.
during future usage , once I got any other observe I will come to you back for communicates.
The only con I can think of is that the webcam is kinda low quality, but since I have a digital camera & I only use my computer's for skype it hasn't bothered me much.
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I needed a new laptop so I did some research on what to buy. At first, I was fooled by excellent reviews for Mac Book Pro and I bought it, only to return it later. I didn't like the operating system (complicated and frustrating). Now I've got this Sony machine and I LOVE IT!!! I was a little skeptical about Windows 8 but it only took me about an hour to get used to it. It's very user friendly. I'm a small business owner and I really like the fact that when I need to use the computer it'll reboot in 5 seconds and all the apps that I use the most are right in front of me. Productivity matters, right?Also, when you mention Sony the first thing that comes to my mind is quality. I've owned quite a few Sony products over the number of years and the quality was always excellent. I'm pretty confident that this product will be in the same category.
Best Deals for Sony VAIO T Series SVT14117CXS 14-Inch Ultrabook (Silver)
Took a bit to get used to Windows 8, but I love this ultrabook. The screen resolution is amazing. When I hooked it up to my 42" HDTV it was even more incredible. Great price for a wonderful ultrabook.Honest reviews on Sony VAIO T Series SVT14117CXS 14-Inch Ultrabook (Silver)
Good performance and not heavy...It's very fast and works with Windows 8 (free), the video camera does not have good resolution.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Sony VAIO T Series SVT14117CXS 14-Inch Ultrabook (Silver)
yesterday I got my order , Sony VAIO T Series SVT14117CXS 14-Inch Ultra book (Silver) , its very nice but some features are missing as per my opinion1only two USB port is there while most of laptops with three ports minimum .
2the product reached to me without case to save the machine , its should be available.
3battery life less than 3.5 hours.
by the way , with those dis advance still its on the top of ultra-book list as design , features, screen size , buttons sensitivities , etc.
I recommended every person want to buy it , directly to VAIO.
during future usage , once I got any other observe I will come to you back for communicates.
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Discount Hewlett Packard Pavilion 15.6 DV6-6C16NR Entertainment Notebook
Best bang for buck laptop out there, I contemplating this and the ENVY 15 for weeks and I deciding to go for it. Awesome laptop, not going to find a i7 laptop with 750GB and features like this anywhere else. Excellent battery management and beats sound system is a bonus. The slick brushed steel gray front is very nice, as the black aswell. I wanted the slot loading cd drive like the ENVY but I couldnt justify the $500 difference in models. Also it seems that every laptop comes with a bunch of Crapware nowadays, but once you remove everything it's good. Don't hesitate, buy it.
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Come on people all you need to do is click on the little box that says "Watch" and you can see all the specs on a PDF. I actually went to the website of the seller and found the computer listed on their website as well as called them. I also checked it out on HP.com This is one sweet laptop for the money. The technical description is incorrect. I've been looking for a good week now at the best deals and the only thing this laptop doesn't have is the blueray dvd, which I can live without.Thursday, May 8, 2014
Best Acer Aspire NX.M83AA.006;V5-121-0818 11.6-Inch Laptop Deals
List Price: $413.75
Sale Price: $328.99
Today's Bonus: 20% Off
I was very impressed with the arrival of my netbook. I needed an inexpensive netbook because my recent tablet fried itself. The netbook arrived in excellent condition. Out of the box it was up and working. I needed to spend about 8 hours going through updates to the Windows operating system. But i expected having to reboot after upgrades, since this has happened before with other computers who had an initial image of the WIN 7 operating system when it was manufactured, but needed to catch up. Keyboard is acceptable. Glide mouse works great. Sreen is ample when I am in Starbucks, but I plug into a larger Acer flat screen when I work from home.
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Easy to use.... and carry. Windows 7 is still my favorite so we were glad to find a new laptop with 7 on it.Best Deals for Acer Aspire NX.M83AA.006;V5-121-0818 11.6-Inch Laptop
It is the best thing, I think, I could have found for the size and specs I wanted. I'm not crazy about the 1 GHz however it does have more Ram then most little computers, I believe. I am very please with it; I was nervous about getting a computer small then my Viao, but I really do like it. I would have to say what I don't like about it is the top is a finger print magnet and the charger hook up is kinda tricky to plug in. It is a bit slow, but that's only because I'm going from a 2.4 GHz to a 1. All in all, it's little, a Windows 7 (yay!) and gets what I need for my classes done. I would recommend this computer.Honest reviews on Acer Aspire NX.M83AA.006;V5-121-0818 11.6-Inch Laptop
This product is perfect for my sight impaired daughter. The size and keyboard work well with her talking programs. This is her second Acer and she loves them. They don't last all that long, but, what do you expect for what you pay? Will definitely order another like it.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Acer Aspire NX.M83AA.006;V5-121-0818 11.6-Inch Laptop
this little laptop is great, no problems, the processor works great, you can't beat it for the money, money or not you can't beat it.Monday, April 7, 2014
Review of Dell XPS XPS13-9001sLV 13-Inch Laptop (2nd Generation Intel Core
I purchased this Dell XPS XPS13-9001sLV with i7 1.7 GHz processor, 4GB RAM, and a 256GB SSD about two weeks ago after a thorough search of the available reviews and spending several hours in the local Best Buy and MCX electronics section. I also looked at the Samsung, Sony, Asus, and Toshiba ultrabooks and with both i5 and i7 processors as well as briefly at the MacBook Air. I found generally that the ultrabooks were all competent players, each with one small thing the others lacked; usually in the form or function of video outputs or number of USB 3.0 ports.
For my work, I needed a Windows 7 platform. I have been running Ubuntu for the past two years because I couldnt stand how slow my old laptop with Windows XP had become. Recently the online tools I use switched to exclusively MS Internet Explorer which necessitated the purchase of a new machine.
In choosing the XPS it was a tradeoff in some capabilities (processor series and speed) and some quantity and type of outputs (1 USB3, 1 USB2, 1 mini Video, NO SDHC card reader) in order to have a smaller, lighter, more rigid, and potentially longer lasting device.
I have been extremely pleased with the operating speed of the XPS 13. In practical terms, the XPS boots from a cold start into Windows 7 in 12-13 seconds and boots into Ubuntu 12.04 LTS in 11-17 seconds. Additionally, it performs as advertised in its ability to wake from hibernation in 2-3 seconds and from a rest in about a second. Download and internet operating speeds are also excellent, and the fastest I've seen in any computer. My newest U.S. Govt. HP loads most sites like Hotmail or Facebook in 5-7 seconds, but the little XPS will do it in 1-2. I have downloaded several large files and installs and have been happy with the performance of the machine during sustained downloads as well.
When it comes to battery life I knew I was giving something up to get an ultrabook, but in practical usage it has been a pleasant surprise that I can get 3.5 hours out of a charge running Windows 7, surfing the net, downloading and running an external drive. In Ubuntu 12.04 LTS it is even more efficient pulling 4-5 hours, even while charging my phone.
The screen is bright and clear and quite large for such a small machine. Although perhaps not as hi-def as a full retina display, it is much more than DVD quality and plenty big enough. It provides a crisp image throughout and didn't display any tendencies towards motion tracking or blurring when I played a DVD.
The case is perhaps the most attractive part of the machine, but it also functions superbly as a stiff, light and durable frame. The little XPS is significantly stronger than any other laptop I have used, including my wife's MacBook Pro17. The XPS doesn't display any flex in the keyboard or hinge wobble. The build quality and strength were very important to me after my last laptop, a Sony Vaio, popped and flexed when I picked it up by the corner (allowing it to disconnect its own Wi-Fi card; and thereby making itself useless as a portable device).
Pros:
-Beautiful form factor
-Excellent feel of quality and durability
-Excellent speed and efficiency in a light weight package
Cons:
-Only a few ports and no SD/HC reader means you will be buying external accessories if you don't already have them
Some of the deciding factors for me were:
-Light, small, and easily portable
-Strong physical makeup to last a long time on the road and traveling
-Good build quality
-Good battery life
-Gorilla glass screen is durable, easy to clean and beautiful
-Most capable processor available in an XPS 13
Runner up was: Samsung Series 9 NP900X4C-A02US 15-Inch Ultrabook (Ash Black); $1499.99
Deciding factor: The XPS-13 exuded the most quality for the money/inspired the most confidence
Additional accessories or programs purchased or installed:
-LG external DVD-R
-USB 3.0 SD/SDHC/MiniSD/MemoryStick card reader
-Mini video to HDMI plug/pigtail
-Mini video to VGA plug/pigtail
-USB Common Access Card Reader
-ActivClient 6.2 software
-MS Office 2010
-Skype
-Ubuntu 12.04 LTS
-Libre Office Suite
The computer runs smoothly and fast.
The cons: Screen resolution is 1366 x 768. It could be better. Like the MacBook Air, the machine has only 2 USB ports, no ethernet port and a mini-DVI port to connect an external display. Unlike the MacBook air it does not have an SD card reader.
The pos: Very fast SSD and quad i7 processor. Very robust construction and light weight. Keyboard is large, illuminated and agreeable to use.
For my work, I needed a Windows 7 platform. I have been running Ubuntu for the past two years because I couldnt stand how slow my old laptop with Windows XP had become. Recently the online tools I use switched to exclusively MS Internet Explorer which necessitated the purchase of a new machine.
In choosing the XPS it was a tradeoff in some capabilities (processor series and speed) and some quantity and type of outputs (1 USB3, 1 USB2, 1 mini Video, NO SDHC card reader) in order to have a smaller, lighter, more rigid, and potentially longer lasting device.
I have been extremely pleased with the operating speed of the XPS 13. In practical terms, the XPS boots from a cold start into Windows 7 in 12-13 seconds and boots into Ubuntu 12.04 LTS in 11-17 seconds. Additionally, it performs as advertised in its ability to wake from hibernation in 2-3 seconds and from a rest in about a second. Download and internet operating speeds are also excellent, and the fastest I've seen in any computer. My newest U.S. Govt. HP loads most sites like Hotmail or Facebook in 5-7 seconds, but the little XPS will do it in 1-2. I have downloaded several large files and installs and have been happy with the performance of the machine during sustained downloads as well.
When it comes to battery life I knew I was giving something up to get an ultrabook, but in practical usage it has been a pleasant surprise that I can get 3.5 hours out of a charge running Windows 7, surfing the net, downloading and running an external drive. In Ubuntu 12.04 LTS it is even more efficient pulling 4-5 hours, even while charging my phone.
The screen is bright and clear and quite large for such a small machine. Although perhaps not as hi-def as a full retina display, it is much more than DVD quality and plenty big enough. It provides a crisp image throughout and didn't display any tendencies towards motion tracking or blurring when I played a DVD.
The case is perhaps the most attractive part of the machine, but it also functions superbly as a stiff, light and durable frame. The little XPS is significantly stronger than any other laptop I have used, including my wife's MacBook Pro17. The XPS doesn't display any flex in the keyboard or hinge wobble. The build quality and strength were very important to me after my last laptop, a Sony Vaio, popped and flexed when I picked it up by the corner (allowing it to disconnect its own Wi-Fi card; and thereby making itself useless as a portable device).
Pros:
-Beautiful form factor
-Excellent feel of quality and durability
-Excellent speed and efficiency in a light weight package
Cons:
-Only a few ports and no SD/HC reader means you will be buying external accessories if you don't already have them
Some of the deciding factors for me were:
-Light, small, and easily portable
-Strong physical makeup to last a long time on the road and traveling
-Good build quality
-Good battery life
-Gorilla glass screen is durable, easy to clean and beautiful
-Most capable processor available in an XPS 13
Runner up was: Samsung Series 9 NP900X4C-A02US 15-Inch Ultrabook (Ash Black); $1499.99
Deciding factor: The XPS-13 exuded the most quality for the money/inspired the most confidence
Additional accessories or programs purchased or installed:
-LG external DVD-R
-USB 3.0 SD/SDHC/MiniSD/MemoryStick card reader
-Mini video to HDMI plug/pigtail
-Mini video to VGA plug/pigtail
-USB Common Access Card Reader
-ActivClient 6.2 software
-MS Office 2010
-Skype
-Ubuntu 12.04 LTS
-Libre Office Suite
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This ultrabook has similar size, weight and appearance to a MacBook Air 13, running Windows 7 (upgradable to Windows 8). It is possible to create a special partition in the 256M SSD drive and install Ubuntu.The computer runs smoothly and fast.
The cons: Screen resolution is 1366 x 768. It could be better. Like the MacBook Air, the machine has only 2 USB ports, no ethernet port and a mini-DVI port to connect an external display. Unlike the MacBook air it does not have an SD card reader.
The pos: Very fast SSD and quad i7 processor. Very robust construction and light weight. Keyboard is large, illuminated and agreeable to use.
Best Deals for Dell XPS XPS13-9001sLV 13-Inch Laptop (2nd Generation Intel Core
Really must say I've never had a better notebook. I got pushed into it when Windows * was released and didn't want to be trapped into another ME or ME2, and I knew Windows 7 was a solid as XP. Normally I have it connected to a large display and separate keyboard and mouse but when it has to go it is very convenient, particularly with the long battery life. I suspect a major benefit is provided by the solid state drive and the unit starts up and shuts down in seconds. I've had it hooked to a TV using a USB to HDMI cable, to a DVD drive and an external backup drive and to Ethernet using a USB to Ethernet cable. At first I used a mini display port to VGA adapter but I'd recommend against it. The bulky little box and stiff cable mounted so close to the mini display port put a lot of stress on the connection and in fact the adapter became intermittent after a short while so I sought out a dedicated cable so the stress on the port is minimized. Fortunately the problem was in the adapter because replacing the connector in the notebook would be an expensive chore so abuse should be avoided.Honest reviews on Dell XPS XPS13-9001sLV 13-Inch Laptop (2nd Generation Intel Core
So fast you can't believe it. Be sure to update all the drivers. Have yet to run the battery all the way out after 6 1/2 hr battery use. Love the keyboard-lit and great tactile response..The 2d generation Core I7 is lightening fast. Saved nearly $400.00 at Amazon. It's the first generation of this model, but great quality touches and responsiveness. If Amazon has any of these Dell XPS 13's left at that price-snap them up!Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Dell XPS XPS13-9001sLV 13-Inch Laptop (2nd Generation Intel Core
I've mainly always been the kind of person that likes bigger laptops, basically a portable desktop. Once I looked into the ultrabooks because I wanted something sleeker smaller and easier to get around for work I had an HP ultrabook but returned it and got the Dell ultrabook and couldn't be happier. I never preferred Dell computers because I thought they where to much of a commercial brand but after comparing the HP and the Dell ultrabook, Dell KICKS ASS!!! Highly recommend!!!!Monday, February 3, 2014
Reviews of Nokia 10.1-Inch Booklet 3G (Blue)
List Price: $599.00
Sale Price: $399.99
Today's Bonus: 33% Off
Nokia does the dumbest things, no doubt it gets screwed. It is the Rolls Royce of Netbooks. Great Industrial design, Very Sturdy, Beautiful looks, Great sound and Amazing Display. That's it, NOTHING POSITIVE any more.
NEGATIVES:
1) You have Windows starter 7 + 1 Gb (FIXED RAM on Board. You cannot expand it). How in the world this configuration works. Windows 7 requires minimum 2 Gb RAM. Else Load it with XP. This makes this netbook DEAD slow when multiple applications running.
2) When tried to load XP, extra hardware features this Netbook has FAILS. GPS doesn't works. Not sure abt 3G nor hard disk protection software.
3) When you spend almost 500$ on Netbook, you have a GPS just tells where u are located. It can't route NOR give directions. You got to TWEAK and struggle to make it running. Why in the world anybody require a GPS JUST to tell you where u are located. Crazy thought. No GPS drivers for XP and it fails to work when you downgrade to XP from Win7
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I purchased this pretty one about a week ago,when NOKIA publish its Booklet 3G I had been highly attracted.But till this year this time then I decide to have it.Pretty design,like a mini Mac pro,but compare to the speed...I'd rather to say who made this stupid choice to let it run WIN7?
I used to decide change it into Ubuntu,but I found I can't use MS Office(Word Excel)which I should have in daliy works in that Linux system from others' experience.
BTW,I can't upgrade the memory into 2G because it is a integrated part of the main board.
Anyway...it's just a netbook...i notice the price drop down to 393$ but acctually when I buy it the price is 409$,amazon should pay me back of that discount deduction :P
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Cheap HP Pavilion DV7-1450US 17-Inch Entertainment Laptop
Just recieved the DV7 1450us and read all the reviews about similar products with this new bronze color and the problem some are having seeing the keys. This seemed to be on models with bronze keys/ white letters. This model shows bronze keys with black letters and thats what I wanted. Guess what color letters I have ????? Not Black. Bad Start already. I dont see a major problem, but the black would be much clearer against the shiny bronze keys.
Based on this experience, I cannot recommend HP Pavilions to anyone. The product is manufactured with inherent flaws. When you register your computer, your information is used for marketing purposes -not for what you think it will be used for -to inform you of recalls, service extension programs, etc.
The technical support staff and customer service people are very knowledgeable, but the repair group will not honor service packages or agreements. Unfortunately, there is a definite turf war between repairs, technical support, customer service and warranty departments within HP. Keep in mind if you have a problem, they will demand your credit card for non-refundable repairs or they will send your laptop back damaged. You are at disadvantage and they know it.
I cannot recommend Hewlett Packard for this reason. Apple, Toshiba, Sony and IBM have much better service records and will honor their obligation to customers and stand by their products.
Admittedly, I was skeptical about a laptop so cheap being any good since most of the ones we have are in the $1,500 to $2,500 range. Surprisingly, this laptop grows on you from the moment you open it up. It's a beautiful looking piece of work and as nice as our HP HDX, Sony Vaio and other HP laptops we have.
The screen is bright and readable. Disk drive is large. Processor is very zippy with Vista 64bit.
I immediately gutted it and installed a production version of Windows 7 on it and the whole process toook about 1/2 hour. End result? This machine runs like a bat out of hell right now!!!
Not too heavy, great screen, exceptional keyboard that is very easy to read and better than the other four laptops we have all costing double or more, great network card which connected easily to both our home and office wireless networks at N speeds...
I am still wondering how HP did this? A great value for the price and I'm not quick to give glowing reviews (read some of my other ones)...
By the way, a full keyboard with numeric pad is so convenient. Very happy!
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We purchased the HP dv9000 series model which was manufactured with a defective left hinge. HP acknowledged the problem on their site, but did not inform registered customers of the issue. You had to go deep into their site to find the limited time offer for repairing the issue for free. Ours broke after the service offer had expired. When we called customer service and tech support, they extended the service program for our case. Unfortunately, Julie (manager of repairs) refused to honor the original agreement. Apparently, the defective hinge compromised the laptop while in transit. She claims that the both hinges are broken, the clasp is also destroyed as well as the LCD panel is cracked. When we sent it, there was only problem with the hinge. She was irrate and did not want to hear what we had to say. What should have been a free service, now costs us $300+. According to Julie, it is not profitable for HP to contact registered product owners regarding flaws or defects in their systems or products. When I repeated this back to her, she was silent. Then she said "I meant 'possible' not profitable." If she did mean "possible" ... they don't know who owns what. Not true, my dear Julie, HP spams me everyday to sell me products for my HP Pavilion Entertainment PC... She had nothing to say about that.Based on this experience, I cannot recommend HP Pavilions to anyone. The product is manufactured with inherent flaws. When you register your computer, your information is used for marketing purposes -not for what you think it will be used for -to inform you of recalls, service extension programs, etc.
The technical support staff and customer service people are very knowledgeable, but the repair group will not honor service packages or agreements. Unfortunately, there is a definite turf war between repairs, technical support, customer service and warranty departments within HP. Keep in mind if you have a problem, they will demand your credit card for non-refundable repairs or they will send your laptop back damaged. You are at disadvantage and they know it.
I cannot recommend Hewlett Packard for this reason. Apple, Toshiba, Sony and IBM have much better service records and will honor their obligation to customers and stand by their products.
Best Deals for HP Pavilion DV7-1450US 17-Inch Entertainment Laptop
I just purchased the HP Pavilion DV7-1450US 17-Inch. We got it at Staples (though I usually get my computers from Amazon) for $599!!!Admittedly, I was skeptical about a laptop so cheap being any good since most of the ones we have are in the $1,500 to $2,500 range. Surprisingly, this laptop grows on you from the moment you open it up. It's a beautiful looking piece of work and as nice as our HP HDX, Sony Vaio and other HP laptops we have.
The screen is bright and readable. Disk drive is large. Processor is very zippy with Vista 64bit.
I immediately gutted it and installed a production version of Windows 7 on it and the whole process toook about 1/2 hour. End result? This machine runs like a bat out of hell right now!!!
Not too heavy, great screen, exceptional keyboard that is very easy to read and better than the other four laptops we have all costing double or more, great network card which connected easily to both our home and office wireless networks at N speeds...
I am still wondering how HP did this? A great value for the price and I'm not quick to give glowing reviews (read some of my other ones)...
By the way, a full keyboard with numeric pad is so convenient. Very happy!
Honest reviews on HP Pavilion DV7-1450US 17-Inch Entertainment Laptop
Beware of HP's warranty. Customer service takes you to India and it is like dealing with a toothless tiger. They will dance all around the problem and waste your time. The warranty is as good as useless.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for HP Pavilion DV7-1450US 17-Inch Entertainment Laptop
I am very pleased with my new HP. The large screen makes the difference. I trust Hp, having more of their products. S if you want to buy a very nice, good price, laptop, this should be it.
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