Any thoughts on a good laptop in the $800-ish range?

[SacredCow]

My Acer is telling me that it's about to quit. It's locking up (could probably fix that), and the case is cracked which is causing the screen to go squirrely (not worth fixing).

I've got no particular brand loyalty (though this Acer has been a surprisingly reliable machine) and just need something for personal use. Intertubes, Quicken, MS Office, Photoshop, and stuff like that- no gaming needs.

[graywarrior]

1. Good question

I'm looking for the same thing.

[SacredCow]

2. Well, then feel free to tag along!

:hi:

[graywarrior]

4. I will!

:toast:

[HopeHoops]

3. HP dt5 - I just configured (and received) an almost fully loaded one for 1053 delivered.

Configure it yourself at HP.com. The one I got has a 500GB drive, 4GB memory, both the 8 cell and 16 cell batteries, internal modem, MS Office Student (that was $130 or so on its own), and the bluetooth option - and shipping was free! They built it on the day they predicted and it arrived FedEx two days later. It is a beautiful machine. I'm sure you can configure one for $800 or so - like I said, just dropping the MS Office thing kills $130. Pretty much the ONLY thing I didn't upgrade was the processor. I've got 5 HP laptops now and love them all.

[SacredCow]

6. I don't see the dt5 on their website....

it goes from 4 to 6.... But HP is actually high on my list- I've heard good things about them.

[HopeHoops]

9. Try this link

Here's a similar configuration...

http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/computer_can_series.do?storeName=computer_store&category=notebooks&a1=Category&v1=Performance+and+entertainment&series_name=dv6t_series

[seaglass]

11. Did yours come from China? I've always bought Dells but my son

had his heart set on a touchscreen/tablet/laptop and I thought I got a fairly good deal on an HP I ordered last week. I wasn't happy that it's not at least being assembled in this country. :-(

[NJmaverick]

5. I don't push any particular brand

however I will say you need to try and get 4 gigs of ram and preferably a seperate video memory. I have seen many unhappy owners of laptops with 1 gig of ram and shared memory (running Vista of course). Also look to see if you can get a free Windows 7 upgrade (I know Best Buy is doing something along those lines), when it comes out in October.

[SacredCow]

7. Thanks for the suggestions...

all duly noted!

[mix]

8. i like my lenovo ideapad...but it tends to get hot...very stable/dependable...looks okay

[kath]

10. Hubby bought one for daughter for a grad gift a couple of months back --

I think it was this one-- apparently BestBuy had a contest or something where they asked people to design their ideal laptop or some such, and this is what they come up with. Hubby did a LOT of research before buying, and this seemed like a very good value for the features it has. Think he paid $800-850.
http://www.redorbit.com/news/technology/1581528/toshiba_and_best_buy_collaborate_on_new_exclusive_satellite_e105/

http://reviews.cnet.com/laptops/toshiba-satellite-e105-s1402/4505-3121_7-33309979.html

If it turns out this is not the right one, or if I'm wrong about the price, I'll send an update later.

[TrogL]

12. I've been happy with Acer

Stick with that

[Initech]

13. Check out Asus.

I have an Asus motherboard and I love it - their laptops should be really good quality too.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220519

[northernlights]

14. anything wrong with Dell inspiron or studio?

they're on sale with now with Windows Vista Home Premium until 7/20, and I think I saw something about a free upgrade to Windows 7 if you register.

I see 4GB memory and 500GB hard drive for $799 for 17", $699 for 15" studios. dell.com/delights

[BreweryYardRat]

15. HP Pavilion dv5.

Mine runs very well, despite having Vista. (I'm upgrading to windows 7 as soon as the first system pack comes out.)