h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hello community. I need to buy a Laptop/notebook pc that can actually travel. I had a Dell but everytime i travelled she became very sick so we are retiring her now. The new computer must be able to support video, read dvd, burn cd's and works with microsoft office. I know I am asking for a miracle, but just to stretch things a bit I would like it to be fair priced (1500usd aprox).
Can anyone advise me on a brand that is reliable?

booo ur shy then i,m rick glad to meet you

Well, you know, I've had my Toshiba for yonks, and I've got no complaints. I got mine (Toshiba Satellite 1800 A330) two and a half years back for... um, *about* USD 1.5K - it's PIII 1.0 GHz, 384 MB RAM, IR port, has a built-in CD writer, 16 MB graphics card, Windows XP (rather low specs nowadays, but back then it was pretty good) - and it still goes like a bird. If you're not willing to spend that much, I've friends who're using Compaq and are recommending it.

For the love of God, don't buy anything with a Celeron processor. If you do, buy a gun as well so that you can shoot yourself when things go bad.

Thanks Farlander, that sounds ok, I might use the gun still to shoot myself everytime i try to turn on the Dell inspiron 1850, who was supposed to be so great, or contact Dell's tech support. It is absolutely by far the worst piece of sh... (equipment) I have ever had the misfortune to buy. I can't believe I even ahd to pay for it.

You know, every single person I know who's used Dell lets out a torrent of curse words when asked about their computers. I've never used their laptops before, but all the PCs in our computer lab were Dell, and... (sorry to all those Dell workers out there!) I can say in all seriousness that they're awful. There isn't a week that goes by without at least five machines going haywire.

Out of curiosity, what *does* your Dell do, exactly? (or fail to do)

*pops head in*

I also have a toshiba and I'm very pleased with it.
I used to have a HP and it really wasn't a happy bunny.

Toshibas tend to be more of a business laptop and slightly chunkier than a lot of their competitors, but they travel much much better. Mine lasts a very long time switched on, and survives the knocks and bangs of travel very well without getting upset and throwing a tantrum.

My only problem is that my screen seems to have some sort of slow update thing which means that it looks fine until I start moving windows around and then everything moves in a slow flicker way...which is probably just me though, not the laptop itself.

Yeah, Toshiba laptops are comparable to Nokia handphones in terms of hardiness. I once committed the horrible sin of knocking my laptop over, and it fell from the table to the ground. My heart skipped several beats, but it was none the worse for wear. Of course, it was in a light travelling case at the time, but still...

I intially had a BIOS problem with mine, which caused it to spontaneously shut down whenever it felt like it; however, I found the new BIOS at the Toshiba site, and it fixed the problem completely.

Do you work with video in the Toshiba? I would mostly need to do some video presentations so I would need decent video resolution.
By the way I just so your contributions on the language thing, It sounds great. I need to practice German. Where can i find my u- number?

So maybe if I update the bios, it can work again until I buy something else?

Just marking.

However: the problem with the Dell is probably mechanical and may be the hard drive; from the key symptom that it just doesn't like travelling. You could probably get it replaced with a more reliable model for a couple of hundred dollars.

You can find your U number (U760176) by hovering your mouse pointer over your username. The number appears in the URL bar at the foot of the screen (in IE at least).

F

Well, that would depend on what your Dell's problem is. What *does* it do? Personally, I find that going to the official forums and asking people there for help gets me further than phoning up tech support of any sort.

I do quite a lot of things on my Toshiba, from gaming (I'm a big fan of the Hitman games) to animation with Macromedia Flash to graphics (Corel PhotoPaint 9 etc). The only 'video' software I've ever used is Fraps, though, so I don't know how well Toshiba compares to other brands, but I don't think it would do too badly, seeing as most of them have video cards.

Re: Your U number - I assume you're talking about your user number? Look at the URL of your personal page - it's right there. Alternatively, check the top bar of your personal space. It should say, right above 'personal space', 'Name: etc etc [Researcher xxxxxx]'. The xxxxxx would be your user number.

Thanks for the user number!! As for what i need is mostly sports video editing for presentations. so I need to be able to play a video formerly saved with sometimes frame by frame editing
I saw your page, you are into genetics. Have you read The selfish gene?

I use my toshiba for a lot of video editting, playing, presenting etc. It works well and gets the job done. I haven't had any problems with graphics, software or anything from it at all. I have also...dropped it...previously, without a case, and it's still here and working nicely. Thank everything! I've already broken 2! That might show how good Toshibas are for hardiness

Do feel free to join the Language Thing. We're always looking for new people and it doesn't matter how good your grasp of the language is. I look forward to seeing you there.

Yep, that was the very first Dawkins book I read! Just bought 'A Devil's Chaplain', actually.... but oh dear, I'm derailing the thread! Oops.

Does it have to be a laptop "PC"?

I'm sure Douglas Adams would agree with me here if I was to recommend an Apple Laptop. Admittedly they're not always the cheapest (but actually much more competitive than most people care to realise).

The iBook is fantastic value IMO, and really quite rugged. The newer models have more than enough oomph for everyday tasks (word-processing, spreadsheets, internet, email etc.). If you need more power, then the more pricey (but more shiny!) PowerBooks might be worth a look.

If you do go down the Apple route then I'd consider getting Bluetooth built in. Nothing beats being able to use a wireless mouse instead of a trackpad for long periods of use.

Well, there's my two cents.

L.I.

*cough* I managed to break an iBook once. Dont ask how, it wasnt really my fault.

Ouch!

Break an iBook. That must have hurt (your wallet I mean!).

Yeah, I know they're not invincible. I was having this discussion with my sister a couple of years back (when they made the iBooks all white). I thought they'd be really flimsy - not that laptops are every really heard wearing, but they looked so clean, crisp and... well fragile too.

But after I'd had a whizz on her's I was sold. They're solid pieces of kit, really sturdy and have all the rubber-mounted-ness things inside. I've been carrying mine with me for well over a year now and it's still a happy little bunny. Gets thrown in Backpack (with a slip-cover on) and cycled to Uni at least once a week.

How'd you manage to break one? Not a dropped on the floor job eh? I'd hate to hear that crunch!

L.I.