So I'm kind of looking at getting a new laptop. I don't need anything real fancy, but I do like to have at least 2 usb ports (preferably 3, though) and an HDMI port. To be honest, this is simply replacing the netbook I currently have. Why don't I get a new netbook? Well, because honestly all the ones I've looked at kind of suck, even next to the netbook I currently have, or don't look like an improvement considering the expense of getting them (looking at memory and processor mostly). I have found a few laptops that have me interested, though, and I was wondering if anyone knew anything about them in terms of a good or bad reputation: Dell i3552-3240BLK laptop Dell Latitude E6430 Acer Aspire ES 15 ES1-572-37X2
I'm going to assume you want to use the laptop for general purpose: internet browsing, CD/DVD burning, word processing, watching HD video, playing casual or older games, and so on. Dell i3552-3240BLK laptop Solid laptop, but very limited on memory, maxing out at 4GB. While it would work fine for now, you won't be able to upgrade the memory in the future. Still, for about $260, the specs are good, and this would make an excellent replacement for that netbook. Dell Latitude E6430 In terms of bang for your buck, this one is the worst of the bunch. It has a 3rd generation i7 core, which seems powerful, but the current processor generation for the i7 is 7th generation. The RAM, again, tops out at 4GB. The HDD is a solid 500GB, but these laptops have a history of hard drive failure. Plus, this is a Latitude. It's made for a business environment, which means its onboard video processing power is pretty weak. While the graphics chip is an Intel 4000 series (pretty solid), the rest of the system specs don't really support it well enough for it to live up to its reputation (which is good). Plus, this bastard weighs 10 lbs. That gets heavy after a while. The price is almost the same as the first laptop you listed, so I would avoid it unless it's the only option you have. Acer Aspire ES 15 ES1-572-37X2 This is your best deal. Yeah, it's about $300, but it has a 6th gen i3 processor, which is super reliable (I have a 4th gen i3 and it's a beast), an 8x DVD burner, 1 TB HDD, an Intel HD Graphics 520, which is as super powerful as the 4000/4400 series, and it's more than enough to give you great graphics performance, as it is DirectX 12 compatible (you want this, as Microsoft is pushing everything to DX12). It also has a 15.6" display, the biggest of the three here. It only weighs 5 lbs, too, which means it's heavy enough to sit securely on a table or desk, but not so heavy to make your legs go numb if you sit it on your lap. Best of all, the laptop supports a maximum of 16GB of RAM. That means you can upgrade it for the next few years without having to worry about falling behind. If you can get this one, then out of the three here I recommend this one the best.
I'm not terribly concerned about the optical drive (I'm kind of used to not having one) and I didn't really have gaming in mind. Mostly just internet browsing and watching videos when I'm away from home. Actually the HD doesn't matter that much to me, either, as I plan on replacing it with the one from the netbook, which is an SSD with Windows 7 on it and Office 2010, which would save me the trouble of dealing with Windows 10 or getting a new copy of Windows 7 to install on it. As I look into it, maybe the Dell i3552-3240BLK doesn't look as appealing due to the lack of memory upgrade. It wasn't immediately clear to me that was the case since NewEgg's site didn't really say anything about it. Looking on Amazon (actually slightly cheaper there) I see someone answered a question about that and it came up no. The Dell Latitude E6430 actually apparently is upgradable to 16 GB, at least according to the Amazon page and Crucial.com But the weight is a bit of a downside. Plus, for not much more, it looks like the Acer might be better anyway. Plus, I can get the Acer Aspire ES 15 ES1-572-37X2 at Wally-world for $299. I found a review of it, though, and it's actually put me on to a slightly different model that looks even better for about $50 more. It's memory is upgradable to 32 GB according to the manufacturer, which is actually the same as my gaming rig supports. Of course then I'm back to ordering it online. :/ Also seems a waste to replace the 1 TB HD for the 320 GB SSD, though I hate the idea of having Windows 10 and having to get a new version of Office, especially since now it's subscription-based.
If you're doing anything graphics, video, or music oriented, better get a mac (but I guess you knew this already). Anything business, PCs are still king. There are some exceptions so it depends on where you work. I'm strongly PC. I like dell laptops. Have purchased 4 over the years. They are very maintainable with easy parts availability, full manuals, very serviceable. Buy through their business portal if you go that route. They are made by foxconn for whatever that's worth (so are Macs and HPs). That said the last 2 laptops I've purchased have been acer and asus. They have the feature/price advantage in the sub $500 market. SSD's are cheap and easy to swap in, so don't let that sway you for a more expensive model that has one already. Graphics are not changeable. These are soldered to the main board so get what graphics you need to run games; you can't upgrade. Watch prices over the next couple of weeks. I bet you'll see some good buys. (I'm the IT acquisitions guy for an extended family).
And windows 10 is actually nice. It runs very smoothly on my desktop machines (two acer desktops and an ancient Dell Core2). It has the best of Win7 and Win8 and improved on both. I'd keep this running and look to transfer the license for office to the new machine. MS used to facilitate that. If the SSD is fairly new, I'd look at cloning the drive on the new laptop to this and use it. Get the software from the drive manufacturer to perform this. SSD is so much faster and uses less power. You'll hate going back to HDD. 320GB is roomy for everything except video. I'd store vids on an external drive and just copy them when you think you need them. Swapping the drives on an Acer might be tricky. I don't think they're proprietary but it'll probably involve disassembly from the top (take out keyboard). Just a guess. And I don't think their service manuals are readily available.
Well, the netbook was easy enough to swap out. It originally came with a 500 GB HDD, but I cloned it onto the SSD. It was my hope that this would help increase its speed, because it's gotten progressively slower since I got it. Malware scans turn up nothing, the memory is maxed out, and now it has an SSD. In every way I can think of, it's a better machine than what I started with, yet somehow it is worse. Anyway, as far as swapping the HD, I'm thinking the hardest part will be sorting the drivers out, and hopefully I can do this after installing the SSD in the new laptop. If not, I guess I can look up the drivers and install them with the SSD in the netbook, but I've done HD swaps into different machines before and it's never given me much grief, though admittedly, those were with earlier versions of Windows.
I just bought a Lenovo Ideapad 100S because I'm writing more these days and that's a no-go on a tablet. It's my first laptop in years and I'm completely struck by how good this thing is for so little money. No you won't edit 4K videos on it - but it has no problem with Photoshop even beyond the basics. Also, it's nice to look at, extremely light weight, quite sturdy and it doesn't have a fan so it's quiet. For me, it's the perfect little laptop to throw in the bag without thinking twice. When it breaks, well, buy a new one and you have still saved money compared to 'proper' laptops. Two minor setbacks, though: it only has a 32 GB eMMC chip instead of a proper SSD. That and Windows 10 don't leave much space. You'll need an SD card (it has a slot) or minor hardware hacking skills because it seems you can put in an M2 at least in the larger 14'' version (I have the 11''). Also, the display is nowhere near the quality tablet panels offer these days. But it's good enough, especially considering the price and what I'm actually doing with it (type in Word). I can only recommend this thing. Won't be your main computer but it's a perfect secondary companion.
