Help Choosing Laptop: Making it easier, Overall... which brand is better?
1522880
I'm a med student myself, actually already an MD here in my country, but plan in taking my step 1 this june... anyways, I have to recomend ASUS, the laptop has 5 stars build quality as well as performance! I actually bought the ASUS UL80vt, and fits perfectly to my lifestyle, and just so you know, that 12 hr battery thing is for real!!! you should get the ul80vt instead, its quite faster and better at multitasking than the ul30A-x5 since it has turboboos technology, also the screen is 14.1 and comes with DVD drive, which you may not use as much, but I prefer to have it than not.... BTW, go with the Silver model, it looks nicer!!! happy shopping!, let me know what you went for!
343245
The U100 is upgradeable to 2gig memory and has more wireless capability, incl bluetooth. I want the memory for photo editing. After I purchased this little puppy, I dumped my new entertainment pc and desktop. I found that I just kept reaching for the U100. I had evaluated the Asus HE and the Samsung. Both weighed more, and the Samsung cost a lot more. I am quad booting this with XP, OSX, Linux, and Windows 7 so that I can test my web site on several platforms. What a solid, well-designed little machine! The keyboard and speaker issues are minor compared to the tremendous value and flexibility of this laptop, and are easily dealt with. The U100 is upgradeable to 2gig memory and has more wireless capability, incl bluetooth. I want the memory for photo editing. After I purchased this little puppy, I dumped my new entertainment pc and desktop. I found that I just kept reaching for the U100. I had evaluated the Asus HE and the Samsung. Both weighed more, and the Samsung cost a lot more. I am quad booting this with XP, OSX, Linux, and Windows 7 so that I can test my web site on several platforms. What a solid, well-designed little machine! The keyboard and speaker issues are minor compared to the tremendous value and... » Read More The U100 is upgradeable to 2gig memory and has more wireless capability, incl bluetooth. I want the memory for photo editing. After I purchased this little puppy, I dumped my new entertainment pc and desktop. I found that I just kept reaching for the U100. I had evaluated the Asus HE and the Samsung. Both weighed more, and the Samsung cost a lot more. I am quad booting this with XP, OSX, Linux, and Windows 7 so that I can test my web site on several platforms. What a solid, well-designed little machine! The keyboard and speaker issues are minor compared to the tremendous value and flexibility of this laptop, and are easily dealt with. « Show Less
1180791
Bird's Word: I've tested 2 of the 4 front runners (Acer & OSI) and the biggest differences I've noticed between the 3 (I know nothing about Lenovo's product) are Price, Monitor, Warranty, Touchpad & Upgradability (in order of personal import). Winner Acer - Best Display (Reflective TFT), Warranty (2 Year US / 1 Year International - I've NEVER seen this before! - Buy with Amex and get 1 additional year) and Touchpad Management Features Honorable 2nd ASUS - Best Price for Retail Value & Only Unit w/ Upgradable RAM Distant 3rd OSI - Best Screen Size (Non-Reflective TFT) I could say alot more but I think everyone needs to do their own reasearch and bargain hunting to ensure you find the best unit/deal for your personal need(s). Happy Hunting! J. Bird, CEO, BIG Ideas
597786
they both look pretty good to me according to laptop magazine's reviews. I think it depends on which keyboard you prefer cause that's one of the most important aspects. Also, the trackpad seems better on the toshiba but there's not multitouch which I use a lot on the asus for two finger scrolling. Also, if you plan to use the camera for video conferencing, then the Asus has a 1.3 mp camera versus the toshiba's 0.3 mp. Keep in mind only the toshiba black one is cheaper and it's because the keyboard is not as good and the build quality is cheaper. The other toshibas which are $399 are more expensive than the 1005ha. One advantage on the on the toshiba is the hard drive protection. Other than that it seems like personal preference to me. Both screens on the asus and toshiba are glossy. It's just the lid on the toshiba is matte. It seems like that is the trend on the newer generation of netbooks for some reason even though a lot of people prefer matte screens. I recommend going to Best Buy and trying them out in person first. They sell a lesser variation of the Asus there and also the same toshiba.
1832979
Thanks for the input. I constantly have to tell my kids they can't play with my $2,000 Mac laptop when I'm not there with them and the price is definitely right on these. Amazing what they manage to put in these little things for the money. I decided to go with the 900 since the smaller keyboard will probably actually be easier for them. Found one with the same hard drive as the 904. I hope they can make it last. I know they will love it as long as they do.
911378
Thanks for your reply. I think I'll spend the extra $ for the larger hard drive (and better warrenty even though Asus had the best reliability rating of most other laptops so probably won't need it). I am replacing my ancient Toshiba Satellite and think the Asus is a better value.
2106384
Part II of my response: HP ENVY 14-3010NR Spectre 14-Inch Ultrabook (Silver/Black) is the laptop I would recommend. Great functionality, nice keyboard aluminum not plastic, and lightweight. Easy to travel with.
629106
I'm curious to know what you chose and how you feel. I'm having this same problem right now. I bought the touchsmart, and it's on the way. But I'm thinking I should have considered imac. Every mac customer loves them, i'm told they last better, perhaps I should pay more for the less equipped machine.For us we primarily use the computer for websurfing, email, word processing, spreadsheets, and picture storage and minor editing (pics of our toddler for grandparents) We're as basic as they come. I have an ipad, she has an hp touchpad, we have an hp netbook, and we have 3 iphones in our family. So we're an eventually split apple/hp household. The question becomes what should i home base computer be? I'm curious to know what you chose and how you feel. I'm having this same problem right now. I bought the touchsmart, and it's on the way. But I'm thinking I should have considered imac. Every mac customer loves them, i'm told they last better, perhaps I should pay more for the less equipped machine.For us we primarily use the computer for websurfing, email, word processing, spreadsheets, and picture storage and minor editing (pics of our toddler for grandparents) We're as basic as they come. I have an ipad, she has an hp touchpad, we have an hp netbook, and we have 3 iphones in... » Read More I'm curious to know what you chose and how you feel. I'm having this same problem right now. I bought the touchsmart, and it's on the way. But I'm thinking I should have considered imac. Every mac customer loves them, i'm told they last better, perhaps I should pay more for the less equipped machine.For us we primarily use the computer for websurfing, email, word processing, spreadsheets, and picture storage and minor editing (pics of our toddler for grandparents) We're as basic as they come. I have an ipad, she has an hp touchpad, we have an hp netbook, and we have 3 iphones in our family. So we're an eventually split apple/hp household. The question becomes what should i home base computer be? « Show Less
1080544
the laptop has a good screen size and premium sound. Its light weight as well.if you really want ease try the 11.6 inch laptops screen as well
97392
DAB, It's really easy to say that about anything... It's an opinion. I've used every machine you've posted and feel the 1000he was the best choice. I couldn't stand the NC10's mouse trackpad (way too small) and found the right shift key on the 1000he fine. The function key on the right side of the 1000he is also a HUGE plus. Add in the longer battery life and slightly better CPU (not a huge deal, but still a plus) the 1000he fares better... especially when I got the 1000he for more than $100 LESS than the NC10.
923266
I chose the Philips monitor - can't now recall the exact reasons, but I believe that it was due to slightly higher ratings and a little less cost. I'm happy with it. But, for my other office, I spent more and got an HP Envy 32 - slightly wider and the height is great.
39587
NC10 would be your best bet. Battery life is really nice. Also, best keyboard on a netbook, which I'm sure you will care about if you're a blogger.
1295406
It completely depends upon identifying your needs and then matching that to the available models. Decide first, based on your personal needs, if you want a cheap laptop in the $250-399 range (good laptops tend to start around $250) that can't do much more than surf the web and word process, or a mid level model in the $400-600 range that can do nearly all a good desktop can do, or a $700+ model that has the most bells and whistles. Once you've made this decision, then consider the following important features: battery life, type of processor, amount of available and upgradable memory, hard drive size. Consider also any features you find important for yourself, for example, quality of speakers, # of ports, Windows 7 or 8 or 8.1, type of keyboard, etc. Try the buying guide at Microsoft.com and/or Best Buy, I found both to be very helpful and educational for me. I'm in the process of deciding which model to buy, and found their buying guides gave a lot of useful info about what each feature is, in plain English, and how to decide which one fits for you. I've decided to go with a mid level laptop, I won't say which brand, but I will say that I feel that the large companies such as HP, Dell and perhaps Lenovo and Toshiba seem to design more solid and long lasting parts. I'm sure you'll find some people happy with other companies, but I'm going to stick with those ones I think are more reliable.
1766788
I bought a NV55C49u almost a year ago. I really like it. I think it outperforms my Dell laptop I just bought last month.
1920392
After doing quite a bit of research, I would add into the mix the MSI Wind U100. I'm looking for the same thing you are, it seems, and I've seen some really great reviews of that machine. I've narrowed it down to the Wind and the Lenovo S10 at this point.
1660207
Cool, thanks for the input. I think I might pull the trigger on this one. I was thinking about building a Home Server from a POS Celeron D Compaq Presario that I already have, but the Acer's removable hard drive trays and low power consumption puts it over the top.
2256646
I have UL50VT and love it. It's a very solid notebook, with good performance. As far as the keyboard goes, I like it. I have also gotten used to the touchpad. It was annoying that they went with this dimpled touchpad instead of the outstanding matte rubber touchpad that the U50 has. That's not because the dimpled one is bad, it's because the U50's was so nice. I even liked it better than the ones on the Mac Book Pros that I tried. Anyway, you will not be disappointed if you choose to go with the VT.