I need to buy a new laptop, and have been putting it off for quite a while... I need something moderately powerful for school, to run statistical software, as well as the usual business-y kinds of things like writing papers, homework, etc. No gaming, no real multimedia stuff beyond Youtube (which doesn't really count). Oh, and must run TubeNet *flawlessly*!
Try a refurb Lenovo on Newegg if you don’t mind the refurb idea.
David
King 1241, Eastman 853, King 1250 etc etc want a peckhorn?
Lake Murray Symphony; Capitol Brass; Die Lustigen Muzikanten; Seed and Feed Marching Abominable
West Columbia, SC
bort wrote:I need to buy a new laptop, and have been putting it off for quite a while... I need something moderately powerful for school, to run statistical software, as well as the usual business-y kinds of things like writing papers, homework, etc. No gaming, no real multimedia stuff beyond Youtube (which doesn't really count). Oh, and must run TubeNet *flawlessly*!
Seems so cheap! Any red flags that I'm missing? Processor seems decent, decent RAM, 256GB is plenty of storage... a little heavy, but that's ok.
Thoughts? Thanks for the help!
Cheap laptops are... cheap. And low quality. They break, they have bad keyboards and bad karma. I have had some 15-20 laptops during the last 30 years, but for the last 6 years I have had only one: My trusty MacBook Pro with Retina screen. Bought new in 2013 and still in excellent shape. Used daily both for work and for play (and TubeNet of course).
If you cant afford a new quality machine, try a secondhand one; used MacBooks can be great bargains, but buy one with a Retina screen.
Would you buy the cheapest tuba you could find, or would you go for quality and durability, which will set you back a bit more? You would go for quality of course. Same goes for a laptop.
Kind regards
Ole Irgens
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Ole Irgens
JP379CC Sterling
Besson Sovereign Eb
Principal tuba, Alvøen Concert Band
Eb tuba, Laksevåg Brass Band
Bergen, Norway
I use my laptop primarily for gaming and Finale. So it is not cheap. To be honest, I had an older HP basic laptop that was great for bills, YouTube, and other non-resource-hogging utilizations.
New tubist. Ex-euphoniumistststst...
No, wait. Euphoniumist once again... Damn, it's hard to keep up.
MACK Brass EU1150S
Amati ABB-221
Musikwissenschaft.
Composer for all instruments and ensembles.
Eaton Community Band.
Richmond Jazz Orchestra.
I'm with oleirgens - at least, buying an old MacBook Pro, stay away from earlier models prior to the Retina screen. Those older models, like 2011, have common problems, I believe with the construction of the circuit board, that shorten their lifespan.
Donn wrote:I'm with oleirgens - at least, buying an old MacBook Pro, stay away from earlier models prior to the Retina screen. Those older models, like 2011, have common problems, I believe with the construction of the circuit board, that shorten their lifespan.
Actually, if you can get hold of a pre-Retina model, they can be bargains as well, especially if you upgrade to an SSD disk and put in more memory, but as you say, machines this age can have more serious issues. I would also recommend the high-end Thinkpads if you can get hold of a refurbished or well kept model, the old style IBM keyboard is fantastic IMHO and an upgrade to SSD and more memory will bring the speed up.
Regards
Ole Irgens
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Ole Irgens
JP379CC Sterling
Besson Sovereign Eb
Principal tuba, Alvøen Concert Band
Eb tuba, Laksevåg Brass Band
Bergen, Norway
Thanks, guys. I forgot to mention that it has to be a PC, for the specialized software I need. (Running it through the Mac Windows thing just isn't adequate).
The top level Thinkpads are quite nice, I have one at work. Weighs a lot and it's big... But super fast and built like a tank. In other words... Good for work!
oleirgens wrote:Actually, if you can get hold of a pre-Retina model, they can be bargains as well, especially if you upgrade to an SSD disk and put in more memory, but as you say, machines this age can have more serious issues.
It isn't just a question of age, there were roughly one or two bad years where the solder was bad or something. The wikipedia entry at this point mentions a GPU, but I think that's just one of the problem areas. 2008-2010 I wouldn't worry about, just 2011.
