My laptop computer is dying. I've had a lot of trouble with it over the past year, but it's really, really bad now. I'm surprised that I can even write and post this right now.
We're getting ready to head north in a few days, so I'll be busy cleaning and packing things up, but I'll keep trying to use this thing whenever it lets me.
I'll be shopping for a new laptop as soon as we get back home. Not sure which brand yet, but it MUST have tons of memory for my photos, be fast, have great sound, great picture, a fairly large screen (this old (2006) DELL has a 17.4" screen...and NO, I will NOT buy another DELL...nothing but problems, and horrible, horrible customer service)...and not cost an arm and a leg. Was considering a MAC, but they're expensive (between 1900.00 and 2400.00 for what I want) and technology is moving along SO fast......so, I'm thinking HP or maybe Toshiba? Most people suggest that I'll be happy with HP (Hewlitt-Packard). I would love to hear YOUR opinions and advice!
Thank you ahead of time for your input!
- Mary Ann
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I would never buy another Dell myself. I have a Mac and am completely happy with it, but the learning curve is such that I just won't make the effort to learn all that I can do with it. I don't mind that actually, and it's wonderful not to have Microsoft's security problems. I would never go back.
ReplyDeleteI love HP and only buy those. Right now I have an HP Pavilion Entertainment PC. Has loads of room and really fast as long as I have good wifi. I have never had any trouble with an HP, I just like to update ever so often. 7 was my last update. I have a 17.5 screen and love it. Not sure you can get a laptop any larger, but you probably can.
ReplyDeleteWe have gone through the same process a couple times, the first time we eliminated the MAC due to price also but this time that is what we got and we are so much happier. The quality control seems much better than on our other PCs. For photo editing they are great, I use iPhoto and sometimes Adobe Photoshop elements but I find it easier than Picasa. For photo storage you can always get a separate external hard drive. We have had our MacBook Pro now for a little over a year. It had one little glitch at the beginning but they directed us to a certified technician and it was fixed within 48 hours and was covered by warranty. My husband is a software engineer and his problem with PCs isn't just the hardware, he hates Microsoft's software and business ethic. He feels they release software that is so buggy because they don't want to take the time to fix it before they release it. Microsoft Vista put him over the edge. I know Windows 7 is better but he feels in the future another Vista will raise its ugly head. There is definitely a learning curve to the Mac but there are plenty of tutorials to help. Good luck on your decision, it is never an easy one.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE my MacBook Pro. It is fast, has a large screen and does everything I want and need. My husband is a computer guy and has it set up to run as both an Apple and as a PC using Windows. So I have the best of both worlds.
ReplyDeleteSo far I have no complaints about storage and have tons of pictures on it. If it ever became a problem, I could move some over to a second disk or memory.
I think you get what you pay for in many cases.
Both our laptops are Toshiba & we have never had any problems with either one. I have tons of high resolutions on both & have not had any memory problems. Our oldest Toshy was bought in 08 & is running XP. Newest one a year ago is running Win 7. XP is still my fav. I have never used a Mac so cannot comment on them. I'm thinking I would probably like them if I could get myself around the learning curve. Learning curves do not come as easy as they once did:((
ReplyDeleteI have a toshiba satelite and am quite happy with it. never had any issues.
ReplyDeleteI hate Dell, had one of those. Screen went kaput and Dell would not even repair it without charging me (they said I dropped it so not part of the warranty?).
Running Windows 7, no issues at all.
We have 2007 HP 17". it has been good to us. Ours was the entertainment addition because we knew we would use it for our DVD movies as we don't use a TV. Love it for our pictures and we still have memory to spare.
ReplyDeleteKevin and Ruth
www.travelwithkevinandruth.com
Hi Mary Ann,
ReplyDeleteMy name is Ted Parry from Wales, UK
You have already had the best advice possible-GO MAC
If your budget won't stretch to a new one, they tend to
have a useful life of at least 3-4 years. No virus problems (possible reason your current machine is so
Sloooooooow.)
Everything you need is 'in the box', no extra sound cards/graphics cards etc.
Your Blog frequency will increase immeasurably which will be so much better for all concerned !!!