What to buy? Laptop, that is.

[Busdriver]

I'm going to buy a laptop for my son to take to college in the fall and I'd like to get some opinions.

Probably the most important feature I'm looking for is ruggedness. Doesn't have to be the smallest on the market. Ideally it will have a combo DVD/CD-RW drive, but I think I could talk him out of the DVD player, if it was too expensive. Probably going to need ethernet, as well, preferably built-in. Not sure about wireless capability, I would assume that I'll get him a card if he needs that.

I'd like to go with a Dell, because my company has an employee discount program with them. However, I've heard some horror stories about Dell laptops. I was also thinking about a Thinkpad, maybe a R series.

TIA.

[othell]

First... Check this thread out:

http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=12934

And then... This thread:

http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=10707&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

Then... Check this Fujitso out... It's one i'm looking at:

Fujitsu (http://configure.fujitsupc.com/servlet/acedispatcher?mrd3=20&parId27=52&mrd9=30&parId33=31&mrd10=100&parId34=45&mrd7=0&parId31=60&mrd16=89&parId40=27&mrd5=0&parId29=51&mic=ALM0P0G08E001002000&mfp=1588&mmp=1599&funcId=107&pageId=first&sessionId=83-350-99.9480461230022.48675417.00&_ace_page=first&inc=1&noToggle=1)

After that... Pray :roll:

I've heard horror stories of Dell laptops as well... A co-worker is experiencing it personally right now.

[rhmorrison]

If you want any advice you will have to specify more of what you definately want and what is optional.

DELL makes some very fine laptops.

If battary life isn't too important you can get a number of laptops with everything but built-in WLAN i.e. DVD/CD-RW combo, 15" display, 512 MB memory, 30 - 60 GB hard drive, LAN, serial, parallel, PCMCIA, FireWire, IRDA, diskette ??.

Gateway 450XL and 600 series is nice.
IBM's are very nice but expensive.
DELL also has some very nice units.

Nowadays a DVD/CD-RW is much more important than diskette!!
If you want long battery life then the only real way to go is a model that allows putting a second battery where the DVD/CD-RW module is. DELL and Gateway BOTH have models with this capability.

Toshiba also has some fine units.

You should prioritize a list of whats important in what order and then you can eliminate a lot of laptops and reduce the choices down to maybe 10 or 12 units.

[Busdriver]

Thanks for those links. Good info.

[David Prahl]

I convinced my sister (non-nerd) to buy a laptop for college, but she never used its compact size or mobility for anything except saving desk space.

Laptops are VERY cool, and I'd buy a Thinkpad or Dell if I could :) , BUT there are so many stolen every year from dorms! I think I heard that 500,000 are stolen across the U.S.A. every year (not just college, but business machines, too).

Get him a desktop instead! Unless he really needs the mobility, you can get a lot more "bang for your buck" and prevent theft with a desktop.

Furthermore, it's easier to read and type documents on a desktop. Get a 17" LCD and nice keyboard.

[shawnc]

I started the 2nd link that othel provided and as I mentioned at the end of that thread, I purchased the Toshiba. I've had it for a few months now and could not be happier with my decision. I highly recommend it.

[Janak Parekh]

Laptops are VERY cool, and I'd buy a Thinkpad or Dell if I could :) , BUT there are so many stolen every year from dorms! I think I heard that 500,000 are stolen across the U.S.A. every year (not just college, but business machines, too).
You know, you can get cables and similar solutions to prevent theft for most notebooks. The Kensington Microsaver (http://www.microsaver.com/) is a great solution for this.

--janak

[David Prahl]

http://home.new.rr.com/prahl/bolt_cutters.jpg

:mrgreen:

[Janak Parekh]

http://home.new.rr.com/prahl/bolt_cutters.jpg

:mrgreen:
If you're gonna do that... you can steal pretty much anything, y'know. ;)

Or, how about a locked drawer?

I agree that laptops aren't for everyone. If you feel your kid's not responsible, then it might not be worth it. But it's not hard to protect it against small theft attempts.

--janak

[GoldKey]

Emachines makes a laptop now. I have been very impressed with their desktops for their value. Saw one in best buy and it was pretty cool. It had a widescreen and was just a little over a grand.

[Kati Compton]

Or a locked dorm room. I can't believe how many people just left their rooms unlocked. Where did they think they were??

[Janak Parekh]

Or a locked dorm room. I can't believe how many people just left their rooms unlocked. Where did they think they were??
You know how small-town folk think... ;) People also tend to wander around dorms, in and out of suites, etc.

--janak

P.S. I moved all the posts about dorms & student housing here (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=14290), as that's pretty much a separate question as opposed to which laptop to get.