buying a new laptop. sony vaio or compaq? help!

[richardkeith97]

so i need a new laptop. i know nothing about them all i know is if they're more expensive they're usually better. these are my choices.

sony vaio vgn-ns328j/p
its brand new at bj's for $500 and it comes with windows 7. its on sale and originally was $650.

or hp compaq nc6400
its $400 used and comes with vista and more memory then i originally came with. its been reformatted or wuteva so its pretty much like getting a new laptop i guess. battery still holds a full charge and stuff. 6 month warranty.

i really know nothing about computer so any help wouldbe greatly appreciated. i'm gettin sick of using my ps3 to go online.

[Patches]

get a mac?

[equate975]

I've worked at geek squad for a while, so I get to play with a lot of new laptops. Sonys are garbage IMO, everyone I work with hates them. If anything breaks it almost always has to get sent out for service.

I used to be a strong believer in HP/Compaq but their new laptops I have really hated. The designs are horrible on them. However, the business compaqs/hps are still pretty nice, the nc6400 looks like a decent machine.

Honestly, and I hate to say it, dell seems to make the best laptops these days. However, I had had a lot come in for pre-mature hard drive failure, which is kind of a surprise since they are using western digitals.

My brother bought a compaq 6910p (which I think is almost the same as the nc6400) for like $450 a few months ago. Aside from its 14.1" screen I like it. The only problem is it doesn't get the free win7 upgrade.

If you are a student though, you can get a copy of win7 from MS for like $30.

[Wh33lhop]

Sony is nice but overpriced and last I checked they tend to like integrated graphics = fail

Compaq as far as I'm concerned is crap, just personal preference, but I like HP, go figure.

I'd go for Dell or Mac (little expensive but generally for good reason), or Lenovo (new IBMs).

And I get Windows 7 for free through the Engineering branch at UCSB, so look into that if you're a student.

[george graves]

I'd go for Dell or Mac (little expensive but generally for good reason), or Lenovo (new IBMs).

BTW - You need to tell us what you are using it for.

[danv]

I like my Lenovo t60.

I know it's more money, but consider buying a business-grade laptop, the difference in construction is worth it IMHO. My t60 feels nice and solid, some entry-level dells I've used feel flimsy and fragile.

Also, I hear windows 7 is way better than vista (don't use either) so if you can't get windows through your school cheap, make sure you get 7 instead of vista bundled.

If you're just going to use a web browser and not much else, consider a netbook.

[daniel]

i've had terrible experience with compaq computers. get the sony.

[Desaevious]

I've worked at geek squad for a while, so I get to play with a lot of new laptops. Sonys are garbage IMO, everyone I work with hates them. If anything breaks it almost always has to get sent out for service.

I used to be a strong believer in HP/Compaq but their new laptops I have really hated. The designs are horrible on them. However, the business compaqs/hps are still pretty nice, the nc6400 looks like a decent machine.

Honestly, and I hate to say it, dell seems to make the best laptops these days. However, I had had a lot come in for pre-mature hard drive failure, which is kind of a surprise since they are using western digitals.

If you are a student though, you can get a copy of win7 from MS for like $30.

Every damn bit of this information is true. I sell computers to people at Staples and I over see the nerds in our "Easy Tech" (our version of Geek squad) department. Nothing could be more true of this as the HP designs. The DV-6, DV-7, and DV-4's look STUPID. And our warehouse already has the Win7 models and no more Vista models...so until 10/22 I'm going to have no "new" models to sell, even though I'll have Win7 models in lock up for the next few weeks.

[Kruzen]

buy a dell or an apple or a thinkpad.


This post brought to you by 12 years of IT experience.

[equate975]

Sony is nice but overpriced and last I checked they tend to like integrated graphics = fail

Compaq as far as I'm concerned is crap, just personal preference, but I like HP, go figure.

I'd go for Dell or Mac (little expensive but generally for good reason), or Lenovo (new IBMs).

And I get Windows 7 for free through the Engineering branch at UCSB, so look into that if you're a student.

You know compaq and hp are the same thing right? Both are junk like I said, but their business models are pretty decent. I forget what compaq calls their, but I like the HP elitebooks.

[s0urce]

Recommending a laptop without knowing what you intend on using it for is pointless. I'd disregard every suggestion you've gotten until you post what your needs are.

[James Crivellone]

buy a dell or an apple or a thinkpad.


This post brought to you by 12 years of IT experience.

I wish that was the same case on my side.

EVERY Thinkpad I have purchased in the past 4 years has failed, screens, logicboard, keyboard interfaces, hinges, you name it, we are really getting tired of them and switching to HP Elitebooks.

Have not touched Dell, maybe they are better.

Apple laptops are pure garbage, I won't ever own another.

[Naplm00]

Buy a samsung

[equate975]

Don't forget about bing cashback either, I got $50 off my brothers laptop from tiger direct by using it.

[pureaudio]

We have a lot of different laptops come through my work since we always buy the best laptop for the cheapest price and that is always a different machine. All the Dells we have bought within the last few years had their fans go out and batteries dead within a year but Dell support is pretty good. Toshiba has crap support and had a couple motherboards go out on them. HP/Compaq is decent, support is so so and hardware failure doesn't stand out to me. We bought a couple hundred of the Acer netbooks which have had fantastic luck with and a handfull of other Acer laptops with no problems yet. Only a couple Sony's but they are heavy and awkward, not a huge fan. I've yet to see a brand that is without issue, I wouldn't buy used though.