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Mine recently went useless and not able to work so I'll be shopping for a new one this weekend. I want something that's not too expensive (under 500, maybe even 400?) but that's good and reliable. I've gotten mixed reviews on ACER's and other off brands and I'm just wanting you guys opinions. If anything, I'm sure I can find a good HP, Dell, or Gateway that's not too pricey. What would you recommend? My current laptop is an HP that's 4 years old and whatever issue it has deals with replacing the motherboard so I was told its best just to buy a brand new laptop in place of the repair cost that most likely would occur. Help please
Mine recently went useless and not able to work so I'll be shopping for a new one this weekend. I want something that's not too expensive (under 500, maybe even 400?) but that's good and reliable. I've gotten mixed reviews on ACER's and other off brands and I'm just wanting you guys opinions. If anything, I'm sure I can find a good HP, Dell, or Gateway that's not too pricey. What would you recommend? My current laptop is an HP that's 4 years old and whatever issue it has deals with replacing the motherboard so I was told its best just to buy a brand new laptop in place of the repair cost that most likely would occur. Help please
I would get a second opinion on that motherboard issue if I were you.
Define "good". You can probably get reliable for that price, but you may not get "fast" or "features".
Make two lists. One of what you *must* use it for. And one of what you *wish* to use it for. Then you can look for laptops that meed the musts, and work up within your budget to get some of your wishes.
A recent report shows that Asus laptops have the lowest failure rates over the last three years. Lenovos also have a good reputation.
Lenovo outlet (IBM)
Lenovo Outlet - Laptops & netbooks (http://outlet.lenovo.com/laptops.html - broken link)
They've got some really nice refurbs and such for under $500. Nice specs.
And the Geeks have some nice refurbished Dells. Acer Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Duo Notebooks, at Geeks.com
I'm a firm believer in buying refurbs, particularly when it's a brand like Lenovo where you buy it from the manufacturer.
I'd trust the Geeks. They've been around a very long time. My experience buying refurbs from them is perfect and I've bought quite a few.
While I agree with knoxgarden that looking for refurbs is a good idea I will caution you to be careful. As an example this HP PC from geeks is priced at $580. It's a nice laptop and has great features, but:
It comes with Vista. An upgrade to Win7 Home Premium will add $110
It costs $80 to get a one year warranty (standard on new HP laptops)
You are now paying $770 for a refurbished laptop that is equivalent to what you would get new elsewhere.
So you want to carefully compare before you buy. By doing so I believe you can get an excellent deal on a good laptop. Just be certain it is an excellent deal.
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