What's a good decent laptop cost these days. We need one around the house for your everyday kind of stuff. I just don't know enough about computers and these internets stuff to make a reliable decision on this. What are your guys' thoughts?

Just for general purpose use, and internet browsing? $200-$500 should get you one to meet all of your needs.

Ya, just general purpose and internet browsing, etc.  Load family pictures to. 

(03-31-2017, 04:17 PM)BengalHawk62 Wrote: Ya, just general purpose and internet browsing, etc.  Load family pictures to. 

I would suggest going out to a few stores, and looking at brands, models, features, etc. in person, then do your actual purchase online from Amazon or Walmart, or wherever you like to find your best deals.

(03-31-2017, 04:05 PM)SunsetBengal Wrote: Just for general purpose use, and internet browsing?  $200-$500 should get you one to meet all of your needs.

This.

Very underrated trying out a laptop in the store - you're mainly wanting to see how you like the keyboard (and trackpad!).  Not much difference in brands, really, but I'd stick with Asus/Lenovo/HP/Dell.

You don't need the latest processors, but even for light use I'd go a bit more powerful than you need:
1) Core i5 processor (don't need the latest gen though, at all)

2) 4GB ram is probably enough.

3) SSD isn't going to make a huge difference for you other than to boot faster (and most have sleep/hibernate modes that restart quickly, anyway).  Computers that don't have SSD usually have hybrid drives now that boot almost as fast.

4) Save money with a smaller hard drive by using cloud storage and cheap flash drives.


$200-$500 is a good range, but for something halfway decent I'd expect more like $450-$550.

(03-31-2017, 04:00 PM)BengalHawk62 Wrote: What's a good decent laptop cost these days.  We need one around the house for your everyday kind of stuff.  I just don't know enough about computers and these internets stuff to make a reliable decision on this.  What are your guys' thoughts?

If your only intention is to surf porn  internet then you may want to consider a chromebook. Your not going to be able to do all the business processes you can do on a traditional CPU and sitting one up to print is damn near impossible. But they are much more efficient that a windows based CPU and are not at risk for viruses.


Perhaps try here and see what you come up with:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/laptop-computers/guided-buying-laptop/pcmcat1488897457992.c?id=pcmcat1488897457992#backdrop=false&resultCount=846&&activeQuestionId=question-which-os&currentStep=1&statusTrackerStepsCollectionName=init&introVisible=true

(04-01-2017, 02:36 PM)bfine32 Wrote: If your only intention is to surf porn  internet then you may want to consider a chromebook. Your not going to be able to do all the business processes you can do on a traditional CPU and sitting one up to print is damn near impossible. But they are much more efficient that a windows based CPU and are not at risk for viruses.


Perhaps try here and see what you come up with:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/laptop-computers/guided-buying-laptop/pcmcat1488897457992.c?id=pcmcat1488897457992#backdrop=false&resultCount=846&&activeQuestionId=question-which-os&currentStep=1&statusTrackerStepsCollectionName=init&introVisible=true

Chromebooks can get malware, but it is very unlikely. When they do get malware they can be easily removed because of it's architecture which makes it more difficult to be "infected", but like everything over time the "bad guys" will find ways. There used to be a narrative that Macs didn't get viruses, but in reality it was because their user base was so low people didn't bother creating viruses for them because it was a low user base. As Chromebooks become more popular it'll have it's own set of Malware issues.

I simply say this to remind people that you should still practice smart browsing habits such as not clicking links you do not need to and such.

[quote='Au165' pid='366100' dateline='1491309046'

I simply say this to remind people that you should still practice smart browsing habits such as not clicking links you do not need to and such.
[/quote]


What about the adds at the bottom of this site or adds in say, a news app? Should we not click on them? Serious question, shouldn't sites filter the links that are posted? Not saying the ones on here cause problems (never clicked on one), but I would think there should be some accountability on the site that have certain "bad" links.


To the op, chrome books are a good option if internet and apps are all you need. If more is needed, I've had good luck with a few dell laptops purchased recently. Just like the tv thread, I would go "play" w/ some at a store, get the specs, and search the brand and or the specs online to purchase. If you live near a micro center that's a good place to get your hands on a bunch of different brands.

(03-31-2017, 04:00 PM)BengalHawk62 Wrote: What's a good decent laptop cost these days.  We need one around the house for your everyday kind of stuff.  I just don't know enough about computers and these internets stuff to make a reliable decision on this.  What are your guys' thoughts?

I'm looking currently as well, as my Toshiba running Windows Vista has run out of support by every web browser out there.

Try looking at TigerDirect.com or NewEgg.com, there are more options there than Best Buy, etc...

(04-04-2017, 08:43 PM)Cure4CF Wrote: What about the adds at the bottom of this site or adds in say, a news app?  Should we not click on them?   Serious question, shouldn't sites filter the links that are posted?  Not saying the ones on here cause problems (never clicked on one), but I would think there should be some accountability on the site that have certain "bad" links.  


To the op, chrome books are a good option if internet and apps are all you need.  If more is needed, I've had good luck with a few dell laptops purchased recently.  Just like the tv thread, I would go "play" w/ some at a store, get the specs, and search the brand and or the specs online to purchase.  If you live near a micro center that's a good place to get your hands on a bunch of different brands.

The ads at the bottom of this page are part of Googles Ad sense program and therefor are more closely monitored and vetted. If you click on one of those you are probably alright. The internet really is a messed up place you no longer even need to acknowledge or do an action to get viruses, simply landing on a page can infect you. The windows cleaner virus a couple years ago did not require you to download anything it was embedded in malicious sites and used Exploits to instal itself. It was kind of a precursor to random ware we see now but it could actually be removed.

Best advice, keep up with operating system and browser updates. Use a anti virus program that runs regular checks and updates. Finally, don't download porn....seriously just stream it haha.

(04-04-2017, 08:43 PM)Cure4CF Wrote: What about the adds at the bottom of this site or adds in say, a news app?  Should we not click on them?   Serious question, shouldn't sites filter the links that are posted?  Not saying the ones on here cause problems (never clicked on one), but I would think there should be some accountability on the site that have certain "bad" links.  


To the op, chrome books are a good option if internet and apps are all you need.  If more is needed, I've had good luck with a few dell laptops purchased recently.  Just like the tv thread, I would go "play" w/ some at a store, get the specs, and search the brand and or the specs online to purchase.  If you live near a micro center that's a good place to get your hands on a bunch of different brands.

My rule of thumb is never click on ads, regardless of how hot she is. Another thing with ads is I always run Adblock Plus (my preference). It blocks ads from automatically running, and greatly reduces the chance of catching something. Some sites will basically force you to turn it off as they dont like it, but overall most dont.

For myself with a laptop, I prefer a 17" screen as opposed to 15" or smaller. I also use it for pictures, editing, movies, streaming movies or shows or games if other tv is in use.

One I have now is almost 5 years old now, an HP. It runs Windows 10 with an AMD processor (2 ghz or almost), 64 bit, 4 gb memory, and 17" screen. I would like to upgrade it, but will probably keep using it for couple more years or so. But any new one you get today will probably be double processor speed and memory I am guessing, and probably near $500 or so if you are get a 17''.

If you are doing pictures, I recommend getting a memory usb stick, like a 16 gb or higher one to backup any pics you have. And then also back them up via cloud which is very handy and of course the old method of burning them on a disc (dvd).

Id recommend not a laptop lol... But that's me I hate them little things


If your just browsing the web emails and such basically any PC you can buy that will turn on will do you good if made in the last 5 years or newer

I love laptops. All I've used for 15+ years. If you like using a desktop, you can always buy an external USB keyboard and monitor along with a bluetooth mouse and get the best of both worlds (just make sure your laptop has at least 2 USB ports for the monitor and keyboard).

I travel a lot, and anything bigger than a 13" screen is a real nuisance to work with on a plane. Perfect screen size to me, but I'm not watching movies on my laptop..

(04-04-2017, 09:36 PM)jfkbengals Wrote: I'm looking currently as well, as my Toshiba running Windows Vista has run out of support by every web browser out there.

Try looking at TigerDirect.com or NewEgg.com, there are more options there than Best Buy, etc...

I think this is what I'm settling on...

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834315604

(04-11-2017, 09:50 PM)jfkbengals Wrote: I think this is what I'm settling on...

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834315604

Nice!

But this is coming from a guy who hasn't been into technology since the 90s, but isn't Acer a 'cheaper' computer. Isn't Dell a top name brand anymore?

I avoid AMD processors like the plague. I have had nothing but bad experiences with them.

I'd also be careful with a quad core cpu - that thing could run hot (too hot to use comfortably on your lap). I don't know, you'd have to check reviews.

(04-12-2017, 09:55 AM)Au165 Wrote: I avoid AMD processors like the plague. I have had nothing but bad experiences with them.

I've had three of them dating back to '95 and they've all been great.  I would have gotten rich off of them had I had any money to invest when in college!

(04-12-2017, 09:04 AM)BengalHawk62 Wrote: Nice!

But this is coming from a guy who hasn't been into technology since the 90s, but isn't Acer a 'cheaper' computer. Isn't Dell a top name brand anymore?

The brand on the shell isn't a concern, it's the brand of the components inside that really matter.  i.e. good motherboard, memory, video, etc.  Dell has had plenty of models which had the same guts as cheapo brands, only costing a couple of hundred dollars more.