Highest rated/Most Dependable Laptops

[myrockfight]

Hey guys. My mother is looking for a new laptop for my Dad. He does powerpoint presentations and surfs the internet mostly.

Can you guys recommend a website that reviews notebooks? Or can you recommend one based not only on your personal use, but others as well?


I have a Dell Inspiron 710m. It was the smallest notebook Dell made at the time. After lugging around my other "massive" laptop for a couple of years, I was happy to trade the screen size for weight, portability, and longer battery life.

I am completely open to suggestions, but I need to purchase it quickly. His seminar is on Thursday. So if you see a good deal and happen to think of this thread - Don't hesitate to come knockin'!

Thanks guys!

[MicroBalrog]

Do not, for the love of God do NOT get an ACER.

[myrockfight]

Do not, for the love of God do NOT get an ACER.

LOL. Bad experience? I wouldn't recommend anything like that to them. My Dad barely knows how to send an email. Opening/navigating a program he hasn't used before is tantamount to planning/executing a mission to Mars. No joke.

[MicroBalrog]

My Dad isexactly like yours. Got an ACER against my advise. It experienced crashes on a daily basis. It was hell on earth.

Now, have you considered one of these tiny EePCs? They have a small screen, but they're very rugged and simple. And cheap. And sicne you won't be doing anything demanding...

Not sure if they have all the plugs/ins/outs needed for presentation projectors, though.

[Bogie]

At the same time, give 'em a nice big keychain - at least 4 gigs. Write a batch file that will copy the contents of the my docs folder to it. Fast, simple, largely idiot-friendly backup.
 

[mtnbkr]

Both personally and professionally, I've had great luck with Toshiba and Dell.

I've had rather poor experiences with Compaq and the late 90s IBM Thinkpads with the expanding keyboard.

If I were to buy a laptop for myself right now, it would probably be a Dell.

Chris

[mfree]

I'm very happy with my HP.

[myrockfight]

Ok. On tremendously short notice - they got the Dell Inspiron 13. Staples was trying to sell them a protection plan, but I didn't let them in favor of the Dell that you can buy online.

I was just worried that they would sacrifice quality to get whatever popped up.

BTW- What do you guys think about the service plans offered by Staples, Best Buy, etc. ?  Personally, I won't buy a protection/repair program for anything else. However, I am hard on laptops. So after losing a couple to overall hard use, I decided it would be a good idea. Of course, now I haven't had a single issue going on 2.5 years. LOL. Fine with me though!

[Jocassee]

As a former laptop salesman, I'm here to tell you that ALL brands of laptops suffer from design flaws. Every brand has those who swear by it and those who have had one (or two!) that failed right out of the box. My advice to you is to get a warranty, and make sure you get one that covers accidental damage (unless you can't forsee any circumstance in which you might drop the machine). Don't let pushy salesmen put you off. Do your homework, know what you're looking for, and make sure you get the truth. Buying a laptop is like buying anything else; there is no magic bullet. Sometimes they work, sometimes the don't. Just make sure you're covered, unless you can afford to replace completely if it fails a year later (some people do and they're ready for an upgrade, anyways).

EDIT: I used to sell at a retail place (see post below). Biggest issue was that we were not trained on EXACTLY what we were offering the customer. That can be important when you have a service issue and you told someone the wrong thing...ask me how I know.

[lee n. field]

BTW- What do you guys think about the service plans offered by Staples, Best Buy, etc. ? 

ixnay.  I have seen them get used, but usually not worth the extra.

Do get a nice long manufacturer's warranty, though.

My advice to you is to get a warranty, and make sure you get one that covers accidental damage (unless you can't forsee any circumstance in which you might drop the machine).

Our usual whitebook vendor has what they call a "no fault" warranty.  Covers screen breakage (once), etc.  Bumping a default 1 year mail in warranty up to a "3 year, express, no fault" warranty adds a bit over $500 to the cost of a given laptop.

BTW, these guys have a "Semi-ruggedized" whitebook that, in our wireless internet division, has withstood huge abuse.  One guy got t-boned.  Laptop flew from the back of his van to the front.  Still worked, still at this time in use.  Nobody's dropped one off a tower yet though.

[never_retreat]

The NO list
HP (led sleds bad screens)
Compaq (no comment required)
sony (just junk)

The yes list
IBM (using a 5 year old t42 right now)
Toshiba tough book (I've seen these fall out of a truck, down a flight of stairs, and soda spilled in them)
dell (had a dozen or so deployed in my office overall decent but can be heavy)

This is from experience in in my little IT world.

[MrGreenmachine]

The Dell business line of machines, latitudes, generally tend be better built and hold up for longer.  Not to mention you get a better class/level of service and support.  This is experience from the shop and personal.  You pay a little more but worth it.  Dell's complete care extended warranty is also worth the extra cost.

[AJ Dual]

+1 on the Dell Latitudes. Last two enterprises I worked in used them. They held up pretty well, and we had a high percentage of "road warriors". Only a nominal percentage of breakage. Business warranty would dispatch parts FedEx overnight and a local contracted Tech through Decision One or OnForce.

Out of 150 laptops at the last jobsite, only one dead screen/backlight. Which is usually the biggest expense/PITA to replace.

Otherwise, I've also had very good luck with Thinkpad/Lenovo (used to be IBM Thinkpad, Lenovo was always the OEM though...)

[freakazoid]

For ruggedness I hear good things about the Panasonic Toughbooks, :D

[Ryan in Maine]

For ruggedness I hear good things about the Panasonic Toughbooks, :D

Where can you find a good price on one though? 

[Paragon]

All of our current model laptops here at work are HPs, and that's what my wife and I use at home as well.  Overall, I've been pretty satifisfied with them.  My HP laptop is now 6 years old and still going strong (it could use a new battery, though).  My wife's has been solid as well, we've had her's for about a year.