Ok guys I am worked with jobs ATM. So I am asking for some help. I have no clue with mobile processors or graphics or anything mobile for that matter. My daughter is going to graduate next month and I wanted to get her a laptop as a grad gift. The thing is I don't have much to spend and I am not sure what she will need on a laptop for college. Could you please recommend me a laptop for around the $500 dollar range? Any help in this matter would be appreciated.
Got time? Help please.
- Thread starter Indobos
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God, $500? There's not much room there, but here are some options:
Newegg.com - Recertified: Gateway ML6720 NoteBook Intel Pentium dual-core T2310(1.46GHz) 15.4" Wide XGA 1GB Memory DDR2 667 120GB HDD 5400rpm DVD Super Multi Intel GMA X3100
Newegg.com - Acer Aspire AS5315-2142 NoteBook Intel Celeron M 540(1.86GHz) 15.4" Wide XGA 1GB Memory 120GB HDD DVD Super Multi Intel GMA X3100 - Retail
Newegg.com - Gateway MT6729 NoteBook Intel Pentium dual-core T2330(1.60GHz) 15.4" Wide XGA 2GB Memory DDR2 667 160GB HDD 5400rpm Dual layer DVD Burner Intel GMA X3100 - Retail.
and of course there's the eee PC:
Newegg.com - ASUS Eee PC 8G - Pearl White Eee PC Intel processor 7" Wide VGA 1GB Memory 8GB HDD Integrated Graphics - Retail
If you can spare a bit more, your daughter would love this:
The Apple Store (U.S.) - Refurbished MacBook 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo - White
...it's definitely the best option for users her age.
Newegg.com - Recertified: Gateway ML6720 NoteBook Intel Pentium dual-core T2310(1.46GHz) 15.4" Wide XGA 1GB Memory DDR2 667 120GB HDD 5400rpm DVD Super Multi Intel GMA X3100
Newegg.com - Acer Aspire AS5315-2142 NoteBook Intel Celeron M 540(1.86GHz) 15.4" Wide XGA 1GB Memory 120GB HDD DVD Super Multi Intel GMA X3100 - Retail
Newegg.com - Gateway MT6729 NoteBook Intel Pentium dual-core T2330(1.60GHz) 15.4" Wide XGA 2GB Memory DDR2 667 160GB HDD 5400rpm Dual layer DVD Burner Intel GMA X3100 - Retail.
and of course there's the eee PC:
Newegg.com - ASUS Eee PC 8G - Pearl White Eee PC Intel processor 7" Wide VGA 1GB Memory 8GB HDD Integrated Graphics - Retail
If you can spare a bit more, your daughter would love this:
The Apple Store (U.S.) - Refurbished MacBook 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo - White
...it's definitely the best option for users her age.
Puddle Jumper
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This Dell Vostro comes to exactly $500
The Dell Online Store: Build Your System
It should run everything your daughter would need for college. The weak point is the graphics card but it will be fine unless she plans on gaming.
The Dell Online Store: Build Your System
It should run everything your daughter would need for college. The weak point is the graphics card but it will be fine unless she plans on gaming.
peterhuang913
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Dell Vostros are very nice. It'd be perfectly fine for college. And I don't think she's going to college to game
atomic tofu
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only use windows....or any non mac machine...keep your child normal and not weirdy thinking they'll be some type of elitist
Acer Aspire 5315-2713 Notebook PC - Intel Celeron Dual-Core T1400 1.73GHz, 802.11bg Wireless, 1GB DDR2, 120GB HDD, DL DVDRW, 15.4" WXGA, Windows Vista Home Basic LX.ALC0Y.336 at TigerDirect.com
only a celeron, but it's ok for schoolwork....maybe
Acer Aspire 5315-2713 Notebook PC - Intel Celeron Dual-Core T1400 1.73GHz, 802.11bg Wireless, 1GB DDR2, 120GB HDD, DL DVDRW, 15.4" WXGA, Windows Vista Home Basic LX.ALC0Y.336 at TigerDirect.com
only a celeron, but it's ok for schoolwork....maybe
Peter.Cort
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only use windows....or any non mac machine...keep your child normal and not weirdy thinking they'll be some type of elitist
Acer Aspire 5315-2713 Notebook PC - Intel Celeron Dual-Core T1400 1.73GHz, 802.11bg Wireless, 1GB DDR2, 120GB HDD, DL DVDRW, 15.4" WXGA, Windows Vista Home Basic LX.ALC0Y.336 at TigerDirect.com
only a celeron, but it's ok for schoolwork....maybe
ok mr microsoft fanboy........
mac's are really nice, but yeah a dell vostro would be great.
I really wish I had my EeePC going through college. It's really small and really light. Being small, it's easy and quick to take out and put away, and it doesn't take up a lot of desk space. Being lightweight, it's incredibly portable, and so easy to just pick up with one hand. And because it's cheap, if it gets destroyed or stolen, you won't have to freak out as much as if someone walked off with a $2000 laptop. Battery life is almost twice of my full size laptop.
I have a pretty nice 15.4" HP laptop which I thought was fairly portable. But it rarely left the house since it was too much of a pain to lug around. Now that I have this EeePC, it goes with me everywhere I go, and easily fits in my glovebox in my car.
However, if your daughter isn't concerned with size, weight, and cost, then don't get the EeePC, since those are the primary reason people buy them. It's drawbacks are:
You need to buy an SDHC card if you plan to install any heavy-duty applications, because the 2GB/4GB/8GB drive is not sufficient for advanced use. I have a 16GB card that holds a lot of my data.
It's also got a tiny keyboard that takes some practicing. I've had my EeePC for about a month and a half now, and I can touch type with ease. But when I first got it, it was a challenge.
And then of course there's the fact that the screen is incredibly tiny. It's a nice screen though, with a much higher pixel density than most laptop screens. But at 800x480, some applications don't fit.
Other issues are very minor, like processor speed. Some people laugh when they hear I bought a new laptop with a 900MHz Celeron that comes underclocked to 630MHz. But it performs incredibly well, and boots up faster than my desktop or laptop (which are dual core and are much more powerful).
If you decide to get a full size laptop, don't get anything larger than 14.1", especially for school.
I have a pretty nice 15.4" HP laptop which I thought was fairly portable. But it rarely left the house since it was too much of a pain to lug around. Now that I have this EeePC, it goes with me everywhere I go, and easily fits in my glovebox in my car.
However, if your daughter isn't concerned with size, weight, and cost, then don't get the EeePC, since those are the primary reason people buy them. It's drawbacks are:
You need to buy an SDHC card if you plan to install any heavy-duty applications, because the 2GB/4GB/8GB drive is not sufficient for advanced use. I have a 16GB card that holds a lot of my data.
It's also got a tiny keyboard that takes some practicing. I've had my EeePC for about a month and a half now, and I can touch type with ease. But when I first got it, it was a challenge.
And then of course there's the fact that the screen is incredibly tiny. It's a nice screen though, with a much higher pixel density than most laptop screens. But at 800x480, some applications don't fit.
Other issues are very minor, like processor speed. Some people laugh when they hear I bought a new laptop with a 900MHz Celeron that comes underclocked to 630MHz. But it performs incredibly well, and boots up faster than my desktop or laptop (which are dual core and are much more powerful).
If you decide to get a full size laptop, don't get anything larger than 14.1", especially for school.
Macs arnt nice they are like Pop and rap in the music world..... commercial, for the masses, dumbed down and noob friendly. Which in turn means they arnt as diverse, mainly just for looks and style with a colourful little gui to go with it that really means nothing whatsoever other than "We put some graphical things in our operating system to make the non-computer savy person think its better than its really is".
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