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jwilkerson -> RE: Oh wise forum, I ask of you information... (3/2/2007 4:04:25 PM)
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Ron,
For me, whether buying 1000 laptops for my company or one for myself, the factors are reliability and supportability.
(1) Strong hinges. The hinges of laptops (where the display connects to the main body) are a key point of vulnerability. Some laptops use plastic parts here others use metal (like titanium). If you are really going to be traveling, moving your laptop about (the reason one gets a laptop), then those strong hinges are a good idea.
(2) Display Back. Which is also the "top" of the laptop when it is closed up. Some have this as thin plastic, some have it a metal. I've seen lots of laptops turned in (to my corporate IT helpdesk) with "holes" in the back of the display (I guess people like to punch on their laptops !).
(3) Latches. Yes, the little latches on the front on the laptop that secure the display in the down position. One is better than two. Or one large wide one, is better than one little fragile one. These parts break a lot.
Other than that, keyboards get dirty and break and peripherals, like DVD drives, stop working.
So you want a robust machine that isn't likely to break. And when it does, you want some kind of organization who can fix it, without too much pain (outage time) for yourself.
My last two home laptops for me have been DELLS, both have had problems, too many problems if you ask me. But they did offer more features for the $$ which is why I went that way. But when I had a display outage which meant I had to switch to my wife's laptop temporarily to travel, DELL did send someone to my house within 3 days to replace the display. So the "home serve" does work Thiugh not within the promised 1 business day window).
But the last laptop I bought for my wife, was a TOSH and we bought the service plan from the local dealer. Can't say how good their service is, because we haven't had to use it yet. But I think this means, that instead of buying DELL next time for me, that I will "retreat to quality" and buy maybe a TOSH for me. But I would definitely consider IBM thinkpad. They have all three of the (1), (2), (3) points above .. they are the "fortresses" for laptops. Of course, you have to pay extra for that.
But then it comes down (as it always does) to what you are looking for. If, for a home unit, you are looking to maximum features (CPU Speed, Memory, Harddrive) at a low cost, and will only occasionally be moving your laptop out of the hosue, then DELL might be the best choice, though I'd still get the "Home Service" option. Whereas, if you will be using the laptop for regular travel (business or otherwise) then either IBM or TOSH might be a better choice because they might withstand the rigors of the road better. I've also heard that one guy with an HP/HP is having a good run.
But whatever you decide, I'd suggest some kind of "maintenance" plan with either home or in town service. Packing your laptop to ship it out of town, for maybe a month doesn't leave you with a lot of options. If you can borrow a laptop "for a month" (to replace one in repair) then maybe you can borrow it for longer and avoid buying one altogether! [:D]
Good luck with your shopping.
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