Query - laptop for mom

Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
edited June 2009 in Hardware
what's a good laptop for my mom who's been bugging me to buy her one? She feels left out of the garden club that she's in and everyone in the club has one.

it'd have to be 17" & 4 gigs ram and would be used for general internet surfing & reading email.

in short, this'll be her early christmas & birthday combo present!

Comments

  • UPSKingpinUPSKingpin Sir Elkhart, IN Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    Would it really need 4 gigs of ram if it's used mainly for internet and e-mail? It might be better to go with a cheap netbook with 1-2 gig instead of paying extra for something that wouldn't be used. Of course, if it needs to be 17", you may be hard-pressed to find a cheap netbook with a display of that size.
  • CycloniteCyclonite Tampa, Florida Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    17" kind of defeats the purpose of the term "netbook." :)

    Anyway, if she's just browsing the internet and reading email, 4 GB is definitely overkill. You can find a notebook that's on sale somewhere, and it would probably be more than adequate for her needs.

    Of course, this all depends on how much you want to spend. If you've got a couple thousand to blow, shoot, go for it. But I think you'd be able to find something reasonable for $500-$600. Maybe less.
  • MAGICMAGIC Doot Doot Furniture City, Michigan Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    Keep an eye on woot, they have some decent deals on laptops from time to time.
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited June 2009
    hows this Toshiba laptop from Best Buy?

    http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9163861&productCategoryId=abcat0502003&type=product&id=1218040477075

    with regard to hard drive space, it has a 250gig hd @ 5400rpm, should it be downgraded to something like maybe 100 gig?
  • CycloniteCyclonite Tampa, Florida Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    That would be just fine for her. As for Hard drive, I doubt a downgrade would actually change the price much.
  • Cliff_ForsterCliff_Forster Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    Dilbert Firestorm wrote:
    hows this Toshiba laptop from Best Buy?

    http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9163861&productCategoryId=abcat0502003&type=product&id=1218040477075

    with regard to hard drive space, it has a 250gig hd @ 5400rpm, should it be downgraded to something like maybe 100 gig?

    Thats a decent spec machine for that price. Probably still a little more than Mom needs, and its going to be heavy when compared to a smaller model, but its performance is going to be fairly desktop like with that dual core CPU and 3 gigs of DDR2. Also, my experience working on Toshiba laptops has shown them to be fairly durable and well made.
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    Is there any reason why mom needs a desktop in a bag?
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited June 2009
    Thrax wrote:
    Is there any reason why mom needs a desktop in a bag?



    :scratch: I have no idea what you are referring to... desktop in a bag?????

    a woosh moment for me! :scratch:
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited June 2009
    since the laptop has wireless hardware, and I do have a wireless Dlink router, but it is located in my room on the 2nd floor of my house.. Do I need any other hardware to make sure it works ? To date, I have never used the wireless portion of the router.
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    I mean that the laptop you're getting for her is HUGE. Is there any reason why she needs a laptop that is so big?
  • shwaipshwaip bluffin' with my muffin Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    17" is a huge screen. really. i almost regret my 15.4" screen, but i bought it as a desktop replacement, not a super portable machine so it's not a big deal
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited June 2009
    so she can see better?

    well, likely that I probably will share the laptop with her when we need to evacuate from a hurricane.
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited June 2009
    oh, any suggestions on the hard drive partitioning???

    C: - OS
    D: - Mom's partition
    E: - DF's partition

    what do you thinK?
  • shwaipshwaip bluffin' with my muffin Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    i think you (read: your mom) should go to a store and see how heavy and big a 17" laptop will be
  • FoldingAddictFoldingAddict Montgomery, AL
    edited June 2009
    The proverbial buying a gift for mom that you will probably end up using more than her? Is that what's going on here? ;)

    ~FA
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited June 2009
    FoldingAddict wrote:
    The proverbial buying a gift for mom that you will probably end up using more than her? Is that what's going on here? ;)

    ~FA

    not really, she'll be using the laptop a bit more (well, way more) than me.

    The DF partition for me would be for games, email and stock market software, nothing else. Hers would be primarily browser & email.

    I'm not sure if this laptop would make a decent game machine at a certain level.

    If not, then maybe later, I'll get my own 17" laptop more suited for game playing.

    At this time, sharing prolly makes sense for the time being.

    I'm still thinking about adding a bow tie to the laptop. :)
  • FoldingAddictFoldingAddict Montgomery, AL
    edited June 2009
    Dilbert Firestorm wrote:
    I'm still thinking about adding a bow tie to the laptop. :)

    This. Women like things like that. ;)

    ~FA
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited June 2009
    a pink one.
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    If she will primarily use the laptop at home, stationary, then you should probably go with a 17" screen. If she plans on using the laptop as a mobile device, get something smaller.

    Keep in mind though, my attitude on this is don't punish yourself with a small screen unless it's necessary. But then, some of you out there have better eyes than I do.

    Take your mom to a store with a variety of netbooks/notebooks/laptops and whatever other format du jour is available. Have her look for what screen and size of computer seems most attractive to her. DO NOT talk to sales people or go in with the intention of buying. Just go to learn.

    If all the computer will be used for is Internet, email, and light office work, the hardware specifications don't need to be cutting edge. An Athlon X2 or equivalent would be just fine. (Even less for a netbook - if that's what you're looking for.) Most laptops these days have wireless and Ethernet (LAN) built in. You shouldn't need to purchase any networking hardware.
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    Take a look at your local Craigslist, also. You could always buy something really cheap and turn around and sell it if you don't like it.
  • fmuellerfmueller Auckland, NZ Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    Standard note book size is 14" or 15" screens. 17" is huge, so better have a look at one first hand before you buy or you might be shocked. I wouldn't buy anything from BestBuy if they were the last store in the world. Reputable online retailers like Tigerdirect, Newegg, and ZipZoomFly in my experience offer better prices and better service. Check their web sites for a good deal. I just bought myself an ACER laptop from Tigerdirect for $340 - 2MHz, 2GB RAM, 120GB HD. 14" screen, but I really wouldn't want it to be any bigger. I had checked Craigslist for a while, and couldn't find a comparable second hand machine for cheaper.
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited June 2009
    Looks like the Toshiba is a no-go.

    2 nits really on this one.
    -the graphics is shared which is not good if you're going to play games.
    -the GPU is from ATI. I rather much prefer NVidia.

    too bad about this machine, I liked the price.

    Oh well, I'll have to keep looking.
  • Cliff_ForsterCliff_Forster Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    Dilbert Firestorm wrote:
    Looks like the Toshiba is a no-go.

    2 nits really on this one.
    -the graphics is shared which is not good if you're going to play games.
    -the GPU is from ATI. I rather much prefer NVidia.

    too bad about this machine, I liked the price.

    Oh well, I'll have to keep looking.

    Why Nvidia? Nvidia's fail rate on mobile GPU's was through the roof? If you want a good reliable mobile GPU, you realy should be thinking about something from ATI instead.

    http://www.bit-tech.net/news/hardware/2009/05/13/lawsuit-against-nvidia-seeks-class-action/1
  • primesuspectprimesuspect Beepin n' Boopin Detroit, MI Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    This isn't fanboyism from Cliff, either.

    Nvidia's record in mobile GPUs is absolute abysmal. They got sued over massive manufacturing failures.

    ATI makes good kit in the mobile space, dude. Take the blinders off.
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited June 2009
    I was not aware of the problem with nvidia's gpu and its lawsuit.

    I don't know whats wrong with nvidias management that they would be irresponsible over the handling of the mobile gpus.

    it would not be good to have the gpu to crap out like that.

    I guess I don't have a choice now on the gpu..
  • Cliff_ForsterCliff_Forster Icrontian
    edited June 2009
    You have options, but seriously, I would strongly consider one of ATI's mobile GPU offerings. They have them up and down the line, from basic, to mainstream HD multimedia, to gamer.

    Keep in mind, there are 3d games, then there are 3D games! Wanna run Half Life 2 and Portal, you can go with a lower spec Radeon 3450 paired with a decent dual core CPU and you will get a nice experience considering the mobile platform. If what you realy want is to play Crysis at least at medium, then your going to need to spend more.

    Its all about the games you want to play, combined with your level of expectation for the visuals. Just want something you can tote around to play WOW on? Consider looking at something equiped with the Radeon 3450, Wanna play modern FPS games at a reasonable spec, maybe the 3650 or the 3850 listed here.

    Gotta play Crysis and benchmark the thing, there are newer mobile 4860's, nice, but expensive gamer grade laptops.

    What kind of gamer are you, perhaps we can help you budget for a good experience?

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152087
Sign In or Register to comment.