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You can't avoid it so it shouldn't be a factor in your decision.
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Nov 26, 2015 05:14
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I don't see any upcoming deals for the Dell XPS 13 so I was thinking about pulling the trigger on this one at the Microsoft Store for $899. I figure I can always return it if something better turns up in the coming weeks. Should I be considering any other ultrabooks? Anything else that's sub $1000 but has similar specs? I like what the XPS has but I'm open to suggestions.
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Nov 26, 2015 07:00
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How about this for $600? It's fanless. http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/pdp/ASUS-ZenBook-UX305CA-UHM1-Signature-Edition-Laptop/productID.328071300 This one has an i5 for $100 more http://www.amazon.com/Zenbook-UX305LA-13-3-Inch-Titanium-Windows/dp/B013KKANTE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1448538889&sr=8-2&keywords=ux305ca Mu Zeta fucked around with this message at 12:55 on Nov 26, 2015 |
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Nov 26, 2015 12:48
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The XPS is probably the best PC Ultrabook, unless you want to buy a Macbook Air and load windows on it. You get what you pay for, and $900 is a screaming deal for the hardware and chassis.
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Nov 26, 2015 15:12
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I would get the XPS if the $900 got you 256gig SSD. But 128 is unbearable IMO. And to get 256 gigs you have to pay $1100.
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Nov 26, 2015 15:14
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canyoneer posted:http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/pdp/Dell-Inspiron-15-i5558-5718SLV-Signature-Edition-Laptop/productID.328882600 I've been looking for something very similar for my parents and also want to swap in an SSD as well. I haven't dinked around with laptops in like 7 years though, do they still attach the windows cd key on the bottom so you can just reinstall it on the ssd?
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Nov 26, 2015 15:32
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CaptainAssholay posted:I've been looking for something very similar for my parents and also want to swap in an SSD as well. I haven't dinked around with laptops in like 7 years though, do they still attach the windows cd key on the bottom so you can just reinstall it on the ssd? If not you can use a tool like Magical Jelly Bean Finder to look up the key from the running system.
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Nov 26, 2015 15:51
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Mu Zeta posted:I would get the XPS if the $900 got you 256gig SSD. But 128 is unbearable IMO. And to get 256 gigs you have to pay $1100. pretty much this, even putting in your own ss it's still going to come out a bit above 1k. also the keyboard is supposed to be bendy?
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Nov 26, 2015 16:19
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Hadlock posted:The XPS is probably the best PC Ultrabook, unless you want to buy a Macbook Air and load windows on it. You get what you pay for, and $900 is a screaming deal for the hardware and chassis. But then you're stuck with 1366x768 or 1400x900.
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Nov 26, 2015 16:38
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So, got the Dell Inspiron and largely love it. Only problem is the speakers - they seem pretty crackly at audible volumes which is a bit poo poo. Is there something I can do about this - a setting or something?
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Nov 26, 2015 16:54
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Mu Zeta posted:How about this for $600? It's fanless. Those don't look bad but I notice the first one's has a low voltage CPU and the second isn't Skylake. Mu Zeta posted:I would get the XPS if the $900 got you 256gig SSD. But 128 is unbearable IMO. And to get 256 gigs you have to pay $1100. That's the one thing I noticed is the small SSD. I could just copy the drive over to a new 256GB or larger, 256GB costs about $78. And then I realize I don't have an M.2 enclosure. I guess I could use a key finding app and then clean install.
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Nov 26, 2015 18:08
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Can these ultra-budget laptops push 1080p video to a monitor all right? I just need a cheap device for presentations and Office work, so I don't need the screen to be 1080 but it should be able to play video like that with no hitches. I would probably get a Chromebook but playing Steam indie games would be a nice fringe benefit
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Nov 26, 2015 18:35
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I bought myself a XPS 13 after doubting about a Envy 13 with skylake but it seems to have lots of problems. Back ligtbleeding, nog stable and speaker problems.
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Nov 26, 2015 18:50
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CharlieFoxtrot posted:Can these ultra-budget laptops push 1080p video to a monitor all right? I just need a cheap device for presentations and Office work, so I don't need the screen to be 1080 but it should be able to play video like that with no hitches. I would probably get a Chromebook but playing Steam indie games would be a nice fringe benefit Yeah anything with an i3 or i5-4xxx can do 4K. If you need to do dual 4K you will need iris graphics on the i5-6xxx or higher. We crossed the 1080p threshold in 2012. Part of the chromebook certification process involves doing 1080p@30fps
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Nov 26, 2015 19:24
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Aphrodite posted:You can't avoid it so it shouldn't be a factor in your decision. The way I figure, if you look at everything not-good about a computer (size, poor build quality, crummy screen, crapware, sneaky spying root certs, etc.), the root cert thing is at least an easy fix and now that Dell's been caught, they're fixing it and they should be sufficiently aware now of why it was such a bad idea as to not do it again. Maybe it will happen again, who knows. But the XPS is a really drat nice laptop in every other way. If Dell's shenanigans have convinced you to go with a Macbook instead, fair criticism. But Asus? Lenovo? HP? Stick with the Dell.
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Nov 26, 2015 19:55
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Recently I purchased a tricked out Dell XPS15 for work and I couldn't be happier with it. It cost $$$ but it was worth it. I'm looking to purchase a couple more laptops with similar capability, but without the huge price point. These are work machines so the build quality needs to be strong. I'm looking for the following features: 15" preferred, no bigger Touchscreen i7 processor Dedicated graphics card 8gb ram 256gb SSD Ability to connect to 2 external touchscreen monitors Battery life - doesn't matter These laptops will be used to run video, lighting and laser software at music events. The software does some basic 3D visualization when programming hence the need for some sort of built in graphics card. I'm trying to stick to not spend more than $1,000. Anything out there worth buying at this price point?
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Nov 26, 2015 23:11
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Unicorn Vomit posted:These laptops will be used to run video, lighting and laser software at music events. The software does some basic 3D visualization when programming hence the need for some sort of built in graphics card. Are you sure about that? What card does the software actually recommend?
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Nov 26, 2015 23:16
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Mu Zeta posted:How about this for $600? It's fanless. It's interesting that these two are posted here, because I was just looking at them, but I wanted to ask some people who keep up on this stuff better than I do. These laptops look alright to me, but what do you guys think of them? I'm trying to find something that is very thin and lightweight (lots of traveling), and in the range of $600-700 or so. It's a laptop, and it's just meant to be a laptop. I'm not going to be gaming on it or anything like that. I'll be using it for networking/IT work, writing scripts, video calls, writing documents, school work (so, GNS3, a bit of virtual box, and similar). I'm also thinking of running with OpenSUSE (or maybe CentOS or Debian), so Windows/bloat/etc issues should be irrelevant. Would one of these be the best I can get for that range, or is there something better? I really don't want to go into the $900+ area. Still paying tuition out of pocket. That's not cheap.
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Nov 26, 2015 23:28
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Honj Steak posted:If not you can use a tool like Magical Jelly Bean Finder to look up the key from the running system. I'll look into that, thanks!
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Nov 26, 2015 23:28
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Hi thread, my parents are looking for a new laptop. They would ideally like to get something with at least an i5, SSD, 15" (or larger) screen touch preferable, and under 1200. Though the lower the better. I've looked so far at configuring a lenovo 450s that meets that, and I've looked at the xps 15's but I can't figure out how to configure one of those to fit in that range. I'm wondering if there are some others to look at? There are so many brands out there, I know asus has a million different models, so beyond the easy names I know, I'm not sure where to look. They are also wouldn't mind if it was refurbished or not.
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Nov 27, 2015 02:35
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Stumiester posted:So, got the Dell Inspiron and largely love it. Only problem is the speakers - they seem pretty crackly at audible volumes which is a bit poo poo. Is there something I can do about this - a setting or something? The speakers on mine are like that too. They're quite nice and bassy, but do tend to crackle. I think it's probably just that they had to cut corners (notably the trackpad and the speakers) to get these specs at this pricepoint.
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Nov 27, 2015 02:44
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My question's similar to what they're looking for. I'm eyeing the new XPS 15", with i5, 8gb ram and maybe discrete graphics. I want this to be my Steam/entertainment hub for the next few years, but I really don't game all that much any more. Probably the most intensive thing I'll play in the next year or two is the new Star Wars Battlefront. I don't play much nowadays and I don't mind playing on low settings, but I don't want to be stuck missing out on something neat that comes out two years from now. I move around a lot so the balance of a 'smaller' 15" with the power, along with the rave reviews, have me looking at Dell but if I can save a couple hundred I wouldn't be upset looking elsewhere. Don't care about touchscreen or having the most mind-blowing display, but a solid build would be nice.
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Nov 27, 2015 07:00
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What're the quality laptop brands these days? I know Dell and Lenovo* are usually pretty good, assuming you clear the cert  , any others? *Both of his previous laptops were Thinkpads. It's getting to be time to replace my dad's laptop so I'd like to know what brands to keep an eye out for on cyber Monday. Nothing fancy, it won't do anything more strenuous than email, YouTube and so on, so I know what kinda specs to look for. But he's a small business owner that travels all over and takes the laptop everywhere, bumping around in his backpack so I'd like to get something that will last. This current laptop is about 6 years old, the previous one lasted even longer.
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Nov 27, 2015 09:38
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I'm looking for a decent-priced ($500-$700-ish, AUD) 2-in-1 as something to use on the train and jobhunt with during lunch. Are the Lenovo Yoga 300's any good? The reviews point to a dim display on an otherwise good device, just wondering if it's something all that noticeable. If anyone's got any better recommendations, I ideally I want something about 11.6" with SATA storage rather than eMMC just so I can upgrade/replace the harddrive.
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Nov 27, 2015 10:03
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I've been looking for a good, roughly $600 laptop. I'm thinking that This is a pretty good deal, but I have a few questions: 1. My old laptop is an HP Pavilion. Are Dell computers at the same level of quality? 2. Will buying a refurbished computer screw anything up, or is it just as good as a new one? 3. Should I look into buying a SSD for it, or will its HDD be fine?
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Nov 27, 2015 18:35
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Bretzman posted:I've been looking for a good, roughly $600 laptop. I'm thinking that This is a pretty good deal, but I have a few questions: It's a 17 inch laptop with a 1600x900 screen - I'm sure you could do better for $600. The specs are nothing to write home about either. http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Aspire-E...in%3A9647486011 This one is $600, has a full HD screen and and an actual half-decent dedicated graphics card. http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Aspire-V...in%3A9647486011 This one has an SSD, full HD screen, is much smaller and lighter. I can't say anything as to their build quality, but I would go for them over that refurb dell in an instant. Bardeh fucked around with this message at 18:54 on Nov 27, 2015 |
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Nov 27, 2015 18:50
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Bardeh posted:It's a 17 inch laptop with a 1600x900 screen - I'm sure you could do better for $600. The specs are nothing to write home about either. Hmm I'm also looking for a laptop for my wife to use as a work laptop and to watch videos and such on. Now I'm either looking at that E5 or this Dell Inspiron 15 i5558-5718SLV. Any thoughts between the two?
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Nov 27, 2015 20:33
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what do the different tray icons for an elan trackpad mean? Like sometimes it's just a trackpad looking thing, sometimes it has 1 blue dot on it and then others its 2 blue dots. But I can't figure out what any of them mean and the trackpad doesn't seem to function any different.
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Nov 27, 2015 21:02
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I grabbed the MSI GE62 Apache for $799 which is 720 for me due to Chase rewards http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012AQH9AU?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages00 This should work out great for Dreamhack Austin seeing as I only really play CSGO (in 4:3) and HOTS.
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Nov 27, 2015 21:31
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Etrips posted:Hmm I'm also looking for a laptop for my wife to use as a work laptop and to watch videos and such on. Now I'm either looking at that E5 or this Dell Inspiron 15 i5558-5718SLV. Any thoughts between the two? The Dell, if it's just for word processing and browsing. See if you can get a cheap SSD and replace the hard drive, and it should be fine for her needs. If she's not going to be gaming the gfx card in the Acer will be redundant, and it's probably going to be huge and unwieldy at 17 inches.
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Nov 27, 2015 21:34
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Bardeh posted:The Dell, if it's just for word processing and browsing. See if you can get a cheap SSD and replace the hard drive, and it should be fine for her needs. If she's not going to be gaming the gfx card in the Acer will be redundant, and it's probably going to be huge and unwieldy at 17 inches. I'm not too well versed in the way of laptops. What would be the easiest way of slapping in a SSD and getting stuff installed onto it? Also I assume that I need a physically smaller SSD compared to what is offered to normal PCs?
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Nov 27, 2015 21:48
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Etrips posted:I'm not too well versed in the way of laptops. What would be the easiest way of slapping in a SSD and getting stuff installed onto it? Also I assume that I need a physically smaller SSD compared to what is offered to normal PCs? Nope, desktop SSDs use the 2.5" form-factor that almost all laptops use. Some ultra-thin laptops may not take a 2.5" drive, and need an mSATA or m2 drive, but most will use 2.5".
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Nov 27, 2015 22:05
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Etrips posted:I'm not too well versed in the way of laptops. What would be the easiest way of slapping in a SSD and getting stuff installed onto it? Also I assume that I need a physically smaller SSD compared to what is offered to normal PCs? You'll need a 2.5-inch SSD, but virtually every SSD is that size, so nothing to worry about here. Laptops often have lids or drawer compartments you have to screw open in order to access the slot. After the SSD has been installed you can install the operating system of your choice via USB or DVD. Make sure to have the LAN or WiFi drivers at hand because without them you might not be able to access the internet you'd need to download them.
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Nov 27, 2015 22:07
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Thanks guys! Laptop ordered along with an SSD.
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Nov 27, 2015 22:10
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Bardeh posted:It's a 17 inch laptop with a 1600x900 screen - I'm sure you could do better for $600. The specs are nothing to write home about either. I started looking into your first link when I ran into these other two models: http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Laptop-E5-573G-56RG-GeForce-Windows/dp/B014J7YEH4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1442527733&sr=8-1&keywords=E5-573G-56Rg http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Aspire-E5-573G-79JP-15-6-inch-Notebook/dp/B012IBOBLM/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_sims?ie=UTF8 I'm looking for a laptop mostly dedicated to heavy web browsing, medium gaming and watching movies. I'm not necessarily out to play the latest titles at the moment, but I would like to have the option down the road at a ~$600 price point. I'm looking for the best long-term deal possible, so would it be a no brainer to go for the i7 processor and sacrifice the 17" display?
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Nov 28, 2015 00:34
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You don't need an i7 - the U processors are all just dual cores anyway so there is little difference between an i5 and i7 You definitely do need an SSD though do factor that in
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Nov 28, 2015 01:58
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Anyone got anything bad to say about the Dell Inspiron 11 3000? The 2015 model, at least. Doing more research and this is looking more and more like what I'm looking for.
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Nov 28, 2015 03:51
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Is there a reliable/safe place to buy replacement parts for Asus laptops in the US? I need a replacement left fan for a G75V (the current one spins, but sounds like a lawnmower). I find a few sites and an Amazon seller but they seem super shady. Went to Asus support and they don't provide replacement parts for self service. I'd have to RMA the laptop and get it repaired.
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Nov 28, 2015 04:07
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my gf is looking for a cheap laptop to surf the internet and stream music on. I recommended a chrome book but she wants office. Touchscreen is not necessary and she wants to be between 100-300$. Are the HP Stream 11 and Asus x205 still highly recommended at this price point? Are there any black friday deals i should be aware of? I also need a laptop for myself, mostly just to browse the internet and stream, however It'd be nice to be able to run DOTA at not rear end settings. Is there anything in the same price range that would work for me? If im way off with the specs required for the dota thing, im leaning toward a Galaxy tablet, as i think i can get bluetooth keyboard mouse and run office if i have to......but i mostly just wanna lay in bed and chat on IRC and read the fourms and stream stuff
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Nov 28, 2015 07:21
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PollosBromanos posted:I started looking into your first link when I ran into these other two models: If you can spring the extra hundred and fifty dollars or so, I would go for the Inspiron that we've been talking about over the past few pages. http://www.amazon.com/Dell-Inspiron...s=inspiron+960m It already has an SSD, and the graphics card is a sizeable step up from the 940M. If you want to play the latest titles down the line, this is probably the baseline that you want to aim for. The 960M is basically a desktop 750ti, which is on par with the console's graphics. Digital Foundry has a whole series about their budget desktop (which has an i3 and 750ti) and it keeps pace with the consoles in pretty much every multiplat game, often running better than the console versions. So, long-term, you can probably expect most big AAA titles to run on this card at decent settings, 30fps at 1080p.
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Nov 28, 2015 09:05
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