mldavis2

Laptops are traveling tools. Unfortunately, desktop computers are not travel-friendly, so sometimes you must compromise, which is the case here.

There are several things to deal with. First, laptops are minimally upgradable, if at all. So make sure you start out with as much horsepower as you can afford and plan to live with it.

Second, graphics are not a strong point with laptops and are not generally upgradable without considerable expense, nor are small screens ideal for photo editing.

Third, hard drive capacity is limited and fills up quickly with large RAW files, so perhaps an external storage source will need to be added quickly to maintain adequate disk swapping needed with digital photo editing.

Another frustrating thing with pre-built computers in general is that you never get the original OS installation disk, just a "recovery" disk that is of minimal usefulness in case of disaster.

And finally, while some IT people have a fast-track line to Dell (or other) tech support, the general public does not, and it can be very frustrating for a reasonable request for assistance from a knowledgeable user to get through the layers of "dumbed-down read from the checklist non-native English speaking" customer assistance service.

And, no, I'm not a curmudgeon. Been there, done that and still wear the T-shirt.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Take a look at these:

http://www.xoticpc.com/custom-gaming-laptops-notebooks-clevo-sager-notebooks-ct-95_51_162.html

Most of what concerns you is addressed - upgradeability, larger screens, 1 TB standard, with room in the box to add two SSD drives and a second mechanical drive, 4 memory slots for up to 32 gb ram, lifetime, 24/7 USA sourced support, and the OS installed in a recovery partition that is actually better (faster to implement) when you have to re-install windows. You can always make an image of that partition and write it to a DVD, or save it to a cloud storage solution, if you want to be extra safe.

Graphics - some of their models come with workstation graphics cards - the NVidia K600 or K2000, and you can add a second display adapter to drive up to 6 displays. But gaming laptops are known for their graphics card capabilities, which is why I generally recommend them. BTW, all upgrades are user installable.

This article has good things to say about Clevo screens, with regards to color gamut. But I agree, most laptop screens are less desirable than an 8 or 10 bit 24" or larger IPS screen.

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1432348

You've made some broad generalizations about off-the-shelf laptops in the $400-$1000 price range. For the most part what you have said is true. But when you get into the realm of custom configured laptops most of what you said does not apply. But you wouldn't have known that unless you did a little research.

So where are you hiding your curmudgeon t-shirt? :)

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

I have an old Vostro laptop running XP that's still working fine, so I have no complaints about reliability or durability.

I just checked, and it looks like I got it in 2008.

Picdude Loc: Ohio

Thanks for the links. Wish I had known about this site before I got my HP last time.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

Some of you folks are not aware of the progress made in laptops. They (the good ones that is) are running circles around desktops with memory up to 32GB (find that in a desktop) videos of up to 8GB (find that in desktop too) and up to 2TB storage. Add high definition screen and you have incredible machines that are portable. Yes they are about 8~9lbs but try to carry your desktop with the same features.

As to connectivity? Ethernet, wireless, blue tooth, name it.
Ports? HDMI USB3, Audio 7.1

Calibration? Xpro Spider did not make any visible change when calibrating the display. (Still does not)

So no skimping there.

Pricey? About 3k, not much more than a desktop with the same features. The screen of course adds to the PC cost.

Upgradable? No. Extendible? Yes, that is what the docking station is for. (Never needed one)

Conclusion? Laptops if selected carefully among the best, not 'el cheapo' run circles around most PCs and iMacs for years.

I purchased an Alienware MX17 in 2008, fully loaded. Now it shows its age due to my changing demands but it still runs around most PCs. 7 years w/o needing an upgrade, 7 years without repair, 7 years traveling with it, 7 years of lugging the damned thing around in essence 7 years of daily use w/o experiencing a need to change or upgrading it. I did not change it this year not because of cost or features (I wanted twice the memory 32mb) but because the new unit I was looking at (17') weighted just as much.

So by all mean suggest cheap end of the road laptops. These are ridiculously priced but also laughingly under powered and outdated as fast as they come out.

mldavis2

No, I didn't research top of the line laptops based on the OP's $1,500 price tag. I never use a laptop for editing. My travel laptop is a Lenovo ultrathin with 512GB SSD (for weight), and my home desktop computer is a newly home built near state of the art that I use for flight simulators as well as editing.

But that one is not suitable for college students moving around frequently - 24" monitor, i7-4790K o/c'd at 4.8GHz liquid cooling, 32GB RAM, nVidia GTX980 w/ 4GB VRAM, 512GB SSD and a pair of 4TB HDs with 64GB cache stuffed into a Corsair 450D case. (less than $3,000)

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

If you look at my recommendation - $1600 buys 16 gb ram (upgradable to 32), 512gb SSD system drive, 1 TB mechanical (upgradable to 2 SSD and 2 mechanical drives in the case), and your choice of mobile graphics card, but it comes with NVidia GTX965 with 2 GB ram, and you can expand that with a second card. And unless you are driving multiple 5k displays and doing video editing, there is no need for 4 gb vram. The cpu is an i7 4720HQ, but the next model up, the 8278, offers choice of cpu, (4710 is standard) up to the 4940, workstation graphics card, or the GTX980 for gaming and video, and lots of other options. It can also be overclocked, to 4.5 ghz, and they will upgrade the cooling to prevent overheating. It still has space for 2 SSDs and 2 mechanical drives, which you can set up as RAID 0 or RAID 1.

Not too shabby for a machine that you can lug around.

I have one question, how did you fit the 24" display into your Corsair 450D case?

rustfarmer

I have had very bad experience with Dell laptops. Most recent disater was 15" i5 4GB 500HD. ram memory failed in first 2 months, and again at 1 year, now motherboard failed at 2+ years and seems not worth fixing. Best results have been with Acer, Asus, Sanyo. On top of that, I have freinds who worked for Dell in Nashville on salary and were forced to work 80 hour weeks and generally treated very poorly. I, for one, will never buy their products again. Customer service usually is someone in India who won't listen to your specific problem but rater always starts with "have you unpluged it and pluged it back in?"

mldavis2

Chainsaw. Actually, using the big Corsair H-110 liquid cooler, the radiator extends into the upper optical drive bay so there's only room for my one Blu-Ray burner in the lower one.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Yeah, I know what you mean - I have a Corsair H80 liquid cooler, and it just managed to fit in my small-ish case. But I like the fact that even at 4.4GHz, it still runs at 23 deg C most of the time and when I am doing a giant pano stitch it rarely goes past 38 deg C.

RichardSM Loc: Back in Texas

BB Geek Squad tech ' s are the poorest example of computer service people on earth don't waste your time on them just a bunch board swapper's. Or a better word for what they do is shotgun your computer. The supposedly tech ' s from BB can't even pass the basic computer test my company gave some them before I retired in 2006.

mldavis2

I've often joked that people should be required to pass a license test to be allowed to use a computer online. My wife (hoping she's not looking over my shoulder) after years of using computers, still relies on me to "fix it" when she can't get it do do what she wants. She still doesn't really understand basic file systems.

The same goes for repairing a computer. Anyone should be able to avoid viruses and hack attacks with a bit of training and awareness bordering on paranoia. Hardware problems are not difficult to locate and verify. Software conflicts can be tricky but you avoid a lot of them by not incurring them in the first place by safe computing practices.

All that to say that unless you need warranty repair or replacement, you should never need to rely on off-shore cheap menu-readers or store squad "experts" who only know how to reformat your HD.

I have not had particularly good results with my Dell laptop, a Studio 15Z. The bluetooth never worked but I didn't really need it so I ignored that. The wifi module failed and I argued long enough to a supervisor that they sent me a new one which I installed myself - their fix was to pack the whole thing up and ship it off for weeks for a total "checkover" and repair. The module did it with no sequelae.

Then the AD/DC charge module died and I replaced that at my own expense.

Then I began getting warnings that the battery (a special high capacity in that model) was in need of replacement and they gave me a link to the Dell website, which in turn told me that a replacement was not available. So I searched the internet everywhere, even China, Taiwan, Japan. No one had one. So I'm running with the AC/DC plug inserted while looking to replace it with a new one (which I did).

Finally I got an e-mail (maybe 6 months later) from Dell saying they had a battery - only $115 plus shipping.

I installed that, and the AC/DC receptacle had become so loose that the plug wouldn't stay connected to charge it. I sent it in for a $100 repair to re-solder a new plug onto the mobo.

I sold it.

meredith a Loc: N. California

[quote=OnDSnap] It found 240 instances of virus's and malware issues on it , brand new not even hooked up to internet yet. They told her to bad you didn't get the warranty from the Geek Squad. , you can pay $125 to have the Geek Squad fix it. Last time I shop there.
But thanks for the heads up on the Toshiba.[/quote
I got a brand new Dell for Christmas and it had over 700 infections in it before hooking up to the internet. I called Dell and they told me that was impossible. Thank you for confirming that I Am not crazy. Lol
My son fixed the problem for me by taking the laptop back to factory reset and installed SpyHunter to clean infections and now all is well.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

I've had better luck with the Dell Latitudes and Precisions - business and mobile workstation respectively. Better components, build quality, and support. The Inspirons and Studios are mid to low level machines. I am not surprised you had difficulties with them. For a while a multinational company I contracted for had standardized on the Dell Latitude, and they proved to be extremely reliable and rock solid.

sloscheider Loc: Minnesota

$1,900 get you a very nice MacBook Pro... has she checked with the college to see what they recomend?

I also find big laptops are well, big... what about a smaller laptop and a good quality monitor that could double as a tv in the dorm? Portability for trips to study groups but big screen when it's needed.