Sandy bridge is 2nd gen and ivy is 3rd? I'm definitely going to go 3rd... Was torn between the i5 and i7, and figuring out what I really needed.

One thing I definitely want is a full HD screen. It looks like laptop screen resolutions have taken massive steps backward compared to every other device.

2/6/2013 2:09:10 PM

^ yep...sandy is 32nm, while ivy is 22nm (and as such, is faster at the same clock speed)...also, 4000 (ivy) graphics are noticeably better than 3000 (sandy)

2/6/2013 7:41:49 PM

Although I don't know. I'd almost wait on Haswell mobile chips. Rumor is they're going to be released in June or so. Much faster graphics performance (HD 4600).

2/7/2013 10:12:30 AM

"almost"...in addition to waiting another 4-5 months, there won't be nearly as many options for systems to purchase and those that WILL be available will be comparatively expensive

i do recall reading that intel claims the 4600 will double the performance of the 4000, but i find that unrealistic and would be surprised if it's actually that significant...a solid 40-50% increase in gaming capability? sure.

not worth the wait unless you're purchasing a system for the sole purpose of gaming...because the 3000 graphics were more than adequate for almost everything else, and the 4000 improved performance by something like 40% (IIRC)...at this point, get something with dedicated graphics as something like the GT 630 is pretty much guaranteed to perform just as well (if not better), is available now, and in an ivy bridge system, probably cheaper

i'm far from an expert, though, and i don't think there's much solid info on the 4600, yet

2/7/2013 10:52:52 AM

Well true alternatively all the prices on nice Ivy Bridge laptops will drop with the first start coming out with Haswell.

2/7/2013 11:07:21 AM

true...but it still comes down to waiting 4-5 months for that to happen...and even then, it will likely be the fall before you get a REALLY good deal on ivy bridge

2/7/2013 11:54:15 AM

When haswell comes out is it worth the added cost over ivy bridge? I know ivy was supposed to be a significant jump over sandy, but it looks like haswell only has modest performance increases?

I've been out of the loop on processor tech for so long

2/7/2013 3:46:23 PM

Get an SSD and enough ram and as long as you have an i5 or so you really won't be able to tell a difference. Unless Haswell has a crazy decrease in power consumption then get Ivy. Now if you're counting on integrated graphics for gaming (say an ultrabook without discreet card) then you might want to wait until Haswell. If you want something now for gaming get Ivy with a discreet card. As long as it's half-way decent it's going to be better performing than HD 4600.

2/7/2013 4:31:22 PM

Sounds reasonable. Thanks.

Still really on the fence with what I'm going to do, so I'll probably wait for haswell to come out so I can see how prices go.

I don't use my laptop as much as I used to, I do most of my browsing on my tablet, but plan on playing Sim city. My current computer meets minimum specs, but just barely.

2/7/2013 5:52:20 PM

I need a simple laptop that will be able to handle ~5-7 years of simple tasks as a student.

I saw this on tiger direct:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4904405&sku=A50-156417&cm_re=Homepage-_-Zone2_2-_-CatId_17_A50-156417

ASUS A55A-TH51
3rd generation Intel Core i5-3210M 2.5GHz,
6GB DDR3,
500GB HDD,
DVDRW,
15.6" Display,
Windows 8 64-bit

Aside from Windows 8 (I would prefer to use Windows 7) and a slow hard drive, it has everything I'm looking for at an exciting $479 price point. Is there anything else I should look at/consider before I jump on this?

2/12/2013 8:14:16 AM

don't sweat windows 8...download start menu 8 for free (http://www.iobit.com/iobitstartmenu8.php) and you have a snappier windows 7

if it's just a computer for schoolwork, that should be more than adequate...you don't even really need the i5 (though don't get me wrong, it's nice to have and at that price, worth it)...my only question is the same i'd ask anyone getting a 15.6" screen...why?

not that they don't have their place...i just find them unnecessarily large, heavy, and clunky for most uses...my personal preference is to never have anything larger than 14"

personally, i'd get a 14" (or smaller) and pick up a cheap ~22" monitor (or two!) for $100/each to use at home...heck, i got both of my 22" monitors for about $80/each after tax and they do their job admirably

but i digress...that's a decent machine for a decent price and if that's the size you want, i think it will work fine

2/12/2013 9:10:08 AM

I want something more than a netbook. I'm comfortable with carrying a <6lb 15.6". I don't care for smaller screens myself. My other laptop that i occasionally use is way too cumbersome (17" and 9.5lbs).

as long as it fits in my backback, we're golden. Its just a work station. I have a portable and dedicated gaming platforms.

2/12/2013 11:09:36 AM

And if you're worried about drive speed, I just bought a 7200 rpm, 500 GB drive for $70 off newegg.... With that in mind, I'm sure you can find a HDD that meets your desired specs for under $100.

2/12/2013 6:07:14 PM

A SSD will do, especially since capacity is not an issue for me. (I just need ~120GB), but I doubt I will do anything to it. Maybe in the future.

With that said, fuck proprietary ASUS MS-OS. Gonna make sure I get a damn restore DVD. That shit was a headache last time. Getting my original copy of windows to work when I replaced the G74 harddrive to an SSD was a 10 hour nightmare that shouldn't have taken more than 1 hour.

[Edited on February 12, 2013 at 9:16 PM. Reason : ..]

2/12/2013 9:14:27 PM

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=7637185&csid=_61

$20 shaves of a little more than a 1/4 lb in weight and gets me Bluetooth 4.0, an extra USB 2.0 Port, and a bigger 750GB HD.

2/12/2013 9:37:58 PM

Ouch 15" at 1366 by 768? that's pretty horrible.

2/12/2013 11:41:23 PM

lol. 5-7 years. Are you serious? It will last you 3 before you get tired of it.

2/13/2013 12:05:45 AM

I say 5-7 years because I don't want something that will only work for 3 years (ie: disposable laptop).

Every computer I've had has lasted me 5+ years, minus a Dell Laptop from 2000, which lasted 2 years before it was finally sent back under Lemon Law. Dell then sent me a factory refurb to replace it and it too only lasted 2 years.

As long as it gets what I want done (circuit simulations, clerical work, various low/med load demanding programs), then that's all I want it for. Something I can take into work/labs to be productive, and the very occasional trip/vacation where I want a PC that has internet access that's more user friendly than a 5" smartphone.

[Edited on February 13, 2013 at 12:19 AM. Reason : .]

2/13/2013 12:10:26 AM

In August I bought an Asus U57A (I asked for advice earlier in the thread) and I hate it. HATE. FUCKING HATE.

I'd been having some issues with it and took it to Best Buy yesterday. Spoke to them today and they told me the hard drive was bad, so I should call Asus for a recovery disk because my dumbass didn't make one because I didn't have any blank CDs (FTR I thought I had a few but some asshole had tried to burn shitty music on them and when it didn't work he put them back ). So yeah, a recovery CD is $50.

I also have a cracked screen. Where is a reputable place that I can buy a screen for cheap? And how difficult are they to install? I saw a bunch of "how to" videos, so I was thinking of doing it myself (instead of paying BB $90 to do it), but I don't want to fuck it up more. Advice?

2/23/2013 2:37:27 PM

I recently bought the Dell XPS 12 and have been extremely happy with it, in case anyone is considering it.

2/23/2013 6:31:00 PM

^^ Is that $90 with the screen, or is that $90 labor with the cost of the screen being separate?

Because $90 altogether is a great deal. Unless you can get the whole lid (more expensive), just replacing the LCD is a pain in the ass. I've done it before, it's do-able, but it is a pain in the ass, as you have to pretty much disassemble the entire laptop to do it.

2/23/2013 8:02:24 PM

$90 + cost of screen

2/24/2013 7:04:30 AM

I highly doubt that the HD is dead in it, the people at BestBuy are idiots. Why did they think it needs a new HD?

2/24/2013 12:10:20 PM

^cracked screen could mean she dropped it so its possible the hdd was damaged then.

Having replaced a screen twice, I won't do it again. $90 is kinda high but I'd be open to paying that just not to deal with it. I'd call around to a few other repair shops first though.

2/24/2013 5:10:46 PM

Quote :

"Where is a reputable place that I can buy a screen for cheap? "

ebay is the only reputable place you will be able to possibly find a replacement screen for cheap.

You can find reputable places online and locally, but they will charge you likely more than a new laptop would cost.

Fuck getting a replacement disk. Just download a copy of Windows and burn it to a dvd on someone else's computer. You can go download the drivers yourself and put them on a thumbdrive.

2/24/2013 6:47:05 PM

Quote :

"Fuck getting a replacement disk. Just download a copy of Windows and burn it to a dvd on someone else's computer."

Quote :

"I highly doubt that the HD is dead in it, the people at BestBuy are idiots."

2/24/2013 7:09:01 PM

Any laptops with 512 GB (or 500) SSD only? I am checking on amazon, and have found one Fujitsu, one HP, and a few Asuses.

Here is the HP:
http://www.amazon.com/HP-dv4t-5200-2-70-3-70GHz-i7-3820QM-Blu-Ray/dp/B00APLZ7QQ
Fujitsu:
http://www.amazon.com/LIFEBOOK®-U772-FPCM47032-1-8GHz-2-8GHz-Ultrabook/dp/B00AN84KEG
Asus:
http://www.amazon.com/S56CA-DH51-i5-3317U-1-7GHz-2-6GHz-512GB-Ultrabook/dp/B00AN7L4X2

My questions:

1) Under Hard Drive Interface, it says "Serial ATA-300" for the HP, whereas the others says "Solid State", even though all have SSD only. What's the difference, and is one better than the other?

2) All the models I found with 512 GB SSD are being sold by Computer Upgrade King, which takes OEM computers, upgrades RAM/HDD/SSD/etc and then sells them. Is it a good idea to get something from a company like that?

3) Any laptops come with 512 GB SSD directly from the manufacturer? Didn't find any on amazon.

Thanks!


[Edited on March 3, 2013 at 6:06 PM. Reason : ]

3/3/2013 6:05:56 PM

Serial-ATA is SATA. It is the connection type/standard used. They will all be SATA.

My concern with using a dealer that upgrades components would be the warranty and where are they sourcing them (new/refurb/used?)?

As to why you don't see many laptops coming with 512 gb SSD is because of price and demand. Most people find 128/256gb to be sufficient. You can find manufacturers who will offer a BTO 512gb, but usually it is cheaper to just buy the base storage and upgrade it yourself.

3/3/2013 7:39:09 PM

Any particular reason you don't buy the laptop you want and then replace whatever hard drive that came with it with the humongo ssd?

3/3/2013 7:41:54 PM

^ this

though my experience is that they don't make it nearly as easy to access the HDD slot/bay as they used to...depends on the laptop, of course, and it seems to happen most frequently in models sold at the big box stores

3/3/2013 8:32:22 PM

update: laptop fixed (fo free, no $50 replacement disk needed), but I still need to buy a screen. couldnt find anything on ebay, and all the other websites I'm finding look sketchy. can someone please help me find one?!

3/7/2013 8:52:00 PM

Heads up for anybody looking for bargains. Lenovo Outlet will be having a sale starting tomorrow. 40% doorbusters and 15% off everything else.

One pretty good deal I might take advantage of is a Yoga 13 refurb. Currently it's at $749 but will be $636 after the discount. Link with specs below.

http://outlet.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/outlet_us/LenovoPortal/en_US/catalog.workflow:item.detail?GroupID=445&Code=59RF0002

Coupon code is MADNESS.

3/8/2013 5:43:56 PM

Sony won't offer 1366x768 resolution laptops anymore. Brav-fucking-o

http://theverge.com/2013/5/7/4306786/sonys-new-vaio-fit-lineup-entry-level-laptops

5/7/2013 10:47:58 AM

yes!!!!!!

1366x768 is the worst!

5/7/2013 10:59:31 AM

^^^

now its $581. Couple hundred left right now, probably not for long.

5/7/2013 1:02:55 PM

boss offered to buy me a yoga 13

i'm playing with one now and i'm not especially impressed...he's pushing it because HE really likes his

i don't want less than 8GB of memory and 256GB is too small a hard drive for me...my laptop is my "everything" machine and while i do move stuff off from time to time, i probably have ~200GB of software and general stuff that i would very much prefer to keep with me on my laptop at all times...and then i like another 250GB of free space for working on HD video files and pictures (i shoot in RAW, so that eats up a lot of space when we go on vacation)

the 8GB memory model is around $1250 and it comes with 256 SSD...i'm not sure i have the option to get a different laptop because, like i said, he likes his and thinks i "need" one...my personal machine is just fine (and better in a lot of ways, IMO...it's only about 18 months old), but i could probably sell it for $500 or so and just pocket that cash

are there any better options around that pricepoint? i'd like something no larger than 14" that has a 3rd generation i5/i7, 8GB+ of memory, and a traditional hard drive...oh, HDMI out and at least 1 (preferably 2) USB 3 ports are necessary

5/15/2013 10:47:50 AM

they are on sale for a lot less than that now

i like my Dell XPS 12 if you want a similar convertible device, but I don't know if you can get it with a traditional HD. (It doesn't have HDMI out, but it has mini display port you can run to HDMI)

5/15/2013 11:58:40 AM

^ i was basing the cost on the staples website...it's a federal government grant/contract, and it has to be purchased from within a specific set of vendors...i think

and yeah, mini DP would work...i'll check out the XPS 12

5/15/2013 12:16:48 PM

gigabyte u2442

5/15/2013 12:37:32 PM

^ if that's a recommendation for me, it won't work...honestly, i'm happy with my current laptop, but my boss is pretty gung-ho about buying me a new one (first world problems, i know)...but he wants it to be an ultrabook of sorts (specifically using this new-fangled thing called a "touchscreen")

i'm only really considering it because i can sell my current laptop and pocket the money and i'm greedly like that

[Edited on May 15, 2013 at 2:39 PM. Reason : looks like i didn't specifically mention that it needs to be similar to a yoga...my bad]

5/15/2013 2:37:56 PM

Neither the yoga or XPS-12 support a digitizer stylus though.

If you are happy with your current device, could you talk him into a secondary device with a digitizer stylus, is that allowable by your contract? If you would need an i7 processor the Surface Pro supports pressure dependent digitizer stylus. If you need something with less power but a long-life battery, the Lenovo Tablet 2 and Dell tablets are options. Then you could use Skydrive or dropbox or something to keep your files synced between them.

(while I'm happy with my XPS-12 and enjoy the touchscreen on it, its very helpful for somethings, i would not say that its helpful enough to switch entirely if you like your current computer. something with a stylus might be though)

[Edited on May 15, 2013 at 3:19 PM. Reason : .]

5/15/2013 3:18:03 PM

anyone had any problems or hear horror stories of RAM soldered to the mobo? i picked up a thinkpad twist s230u for $435 after tax from the lenovo outlet site (they're actually a bit cheaper right now, coming in around $415 after tax) and i like it well enough, but it only comes with 4GB of memory and there's no way to upgrade (since it's soldered)

and while we're talking about thinkpads...are they really worth the premium? i usually buy "value" machines and they've always been just fine...i ordered an ideapad U310 for about $370 and in terms of specs, they're about the same (i5, 4GB memory, 500GB + 24GB mSSD, touchscreen), but the ideapad gets better battery life and has a "regular" stick of memory so it can be upgraded

i have 3 and a half weeks to play around with them and return them for free with no restocking fee, so there's no huge hurry...but i'm having a hard time getting over the idea of soldered memory in a "real" laptop and not being able to upgrade/replace it myself

11/2/2013 10:34:00 AM

looking around for a new laptop (first in about 3 years) and it seems like a LOT of them have integrated graphics now instead of dedicated cards. I realize this is a result of trying to keep weight, size, heat etc. down but have the integrated graphics improved to where a dedicated graphics card isnt really needed or something? I am not a hardcore gamer by any means but I will load up Skyrim every now and then and fuck around...

11/7/2013 11:39:27 AM

The newer Haswell HD4600's on some of the ultrabooks aren't bad. You'll probably get maybe low-medium on Skyrim depending on your resolution but I still wouldn't count on them for gaming. You can still get dedicated video cards on laptops they just won't be ultrabooks. There are a select few that offer them but usually your battery will suffer.

11/7/2013 11:48:09 AM

at a low resolution and low presets, you'll get 40-50fps in skyrim with the intel 4000

but yeah, the haswells will give you okay performance for something like skyrim

you might want to look at what AMD has to offer...it's been a while, but i was under the impression that some of their mobile chips had better onboard graphics than the intel 4000

11/7/2013 1:19:08 PM

Just ordered a Yoga 2 Pro from Bestbuy. They're going in and out of stock but they currently have both the 4gb/128ssb/i5 version and the 8gb/256ssd/i7 version for $999 and $1199 respectively. Picked up the $1199 version. Only concern I have is the high resolution and compatibility with some of my non-standard apps. Other than that looking forward to having a personal laptop again.

11/27/2013 6:14:30 PM

I've heard very little about the Yoga 2. What sold you on it?

11/28/2013 8:58:34 PM

My coworker has the original and he sold me on it. Just seeing how often he utilizes the various positions was cool. Aside from its obvious selling point as a convertible it's also an amazing deal as an ultrabook. It's anywhere from $200-500 cheaper than alternatives from Sony or Samsung and has been getting great reviews. Aside from a mediocre battery life (6-9 depending on who you ask) there haven't really been too many complaints. That plus I haven't had a personal laptop for over two years. I've been using my old work Dell e6410 as my primary laptop. It'll be nice to have something a little more portable (roughly similar in size to the 2013 13" Macbook Air).

My main concern is the 3200 by 1800 screen and compatibility with some of the programs I use. I'm sure I'll figure out work arounds though.

11/29/2013 12:52:32 PM

I need a new laptop but hate shopping for them at any price range. I'd like an ultrabook but don't want to take a hit to performance like some of the ASUS low-end mock Vivobooks. Hate piecing through Black Friday sales but I might have to.

11/29/2013 2:08:54 PM

Yeah the new Haswell ULV chips aren't bad. You can do some light gaming if you really want to but the main point is longer battery life. It really just depends if you want to sacrifice performance for potability and battery life. For me I think it's going to be cool to have a 13.3" slate I can play app store games on. Although I have no experience with the Windows App store and what's even available. We'll see.

11/29/2013 3:05:30 PM