mssyAK Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 I love my Dell Inspiron 1501, but it's going on 5 years, and I fantasize about Macs, though I know nothing about them. Does anyone have any advice on a computer they purchased for going back to school? What did you end up buying? What do you wish you had bought? What specs were you looking for? And most importantly, if you own a Mac, out of all the beautiful Macs to choose from, which did you pick? Any help is much appreciated!
fifa0001 Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 I was looking for advise too. Went to some stores last week, a rep. introduced me to Acer. It was very light, easy to carry, LED screen, which saves battery life. it cost about 500 USD. I am not sure about it tho, I heard Acer is a Taiwan brand, but how good is it? has anyone test it out?
Lisa44201 Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 I love my Dell Inspiron 1501, but it's going on 5 years, and I fantasize about Macs, though I know nothing about them. Does anyone have any advice on a computer they purchased for going back to school? What did you end up buying? What do you wish you had bought? What specs were you looking for? And most importantly, if you own a Mac, out of all the beautiful Macs to choose from, which did you pick? Any help is much appreciated! I love my Inspiron 1720, which'll be three come this summer. If you've had a good experience with Dell, why switch brands? My $.02, I'd go with a newer Dell.
nogone Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 Macs aren't worth the price, in my opinion. My husband received the basic entry level macbook for christmas a few years ago, and we're already thinking about replacing it. It has been consistently slow and disappointing. Maybe spending the money for a higher end mac would have different results, but just think of all the ramen you could buy with that extra grand! Moxie42 1
rainbowworrier Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 Don't do Acer, check out ASUS Eee PC instead. Great reviews on their netbooks. I bought one for under $400 from amazon and it has been amazing. If you are only using it for writing papers, web stuff, and nothing needing major computing power, this is the way to go. That way, you can take more time deciding what you do want, before laying down a couple grand on a mac (sigh. I wish I could afford a mac, but it's not in the cards right now. :-) )
Strangefox Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 (edited) I have a question. I've got a netbook and I was thinking about buying a laptop and then a friend recommended me just getting a desktop computer when I arrive to the US (I am an international student). I kinda like this idea because when I am at home I prefer to use a desktop computer and I am not so sure I will use a laptop so much outside of my appartment. May be there is something about grad students' life I don't know? May be I absolutely need a laptop?? What do you think? (I will have my netbook with me anyway so if I absolutely need to type something outside of my appartment, like in a library, I can take it with me.) Edited March 8, 2011 by Strangefox
mssyAK Posted March 8, 2011 Author Posted March 8, 2011 I love my Inspiron 1720, which'll be three come this summer. If you've had a good experience with Dell, why switch brands? My $.02, I'd go with a newer Dell. true, but i love my inspiron in the blindly-loyal sort of way; i've had problems with it from the first moment. first it was this weird thing with the touch pad no one could fix, then the battery shit the bed, it only sporadically picks up wireless, etc etc - on top of the fact that it's just slow. i upgraded, which somewhat helped, but windows vista is still so slow it makes me want to cry. i love it because it has gotten me from point A to point B and sometimes back again, but my first inclination is to run screaming from a dell, though i am open to convincing. with all that said, can you tell me about your 1720? why that computer? what are your specs?
pawqara Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 I changed to Mac a few months ago, specifically to 13 inches mac book pro and absolutely adore it. I can edit videos without fearing it would crash, run all my analysis without any problem, it is extremely light and the battery lasts almost 10 hours (only docs with low screen light, usually 6-7 hours with normal work). I do maps, and the top program doesn't run on Mac's snowleopard, so I put on Parallels, and installed windows vista, and installed the program on windows, and really, it works better than in my older laptop! I absolutely adore it, can't think of life previous to it
newms Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 I have an Acer netbook and I'm pretty happy with it. It does pretty much everything I want it to do. Of course, it doesn't handle video games or video editing, but handles all my web surfing and document processing needs. I'm getting a Dell with high specs for grad school though - I decided against a Mac when I realized how much more computer I could get going with a PC rather than getting a Mac at the same price point.
Strangefox Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 I have an Acer netbook Me too! I decided against a Mac when I realized how much more computer I could get going with a PC rather than getting a Mac at the same price point. When you say PC do you mean a desktop computer or just a non-Mac laptop?
dendrogirl Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 I LOVE my mac book pro (2.4 GHz Intel Core Duo ~13in) . I bought it a few years ago (so its an older version). I NEVER have any problems with it. It is FAST. Here are some of the major benefits I like (not necessarily in order of importance): 1) It never crashes 2) It comes with everything installed 3) It makes it easy to work with Linux/Unix based programs (this is a big deal for me, as a scientist/math/stats person, might not be important to you...) 4) It is EASY to BACKUP with Time Machine (so you don't have to worry that you'll lose a draft of your thesis if, God forbid, something terrible happens, like you drop your mac in a lake) 5) You don't have to worry as much about viruses and stuff. 6) It has multiple desktops so you can keep screens from becoming too crowded. 7) I love using Hot Corners : drag your mouse to a corner to start the screen saver, or access Dashboard (which has various widgets), and especially ALL WINDOWS which shows you all the windows you have open on the desktop (so you can find the one you want, without minimizing the screens one by one) 8) I'm not a computer wizard: I like to use my computer for work and play and I never want think about the nuts and bolts of it. I never have to with my mac. 9) This is a big one: With a mac, you can have multiple program gui's open from the same program at the same time: for example, I can have ten windows documents open at the same time. (Last time I used a window machine, this wasn't possible: it might have changed...) 10) There's probably a lot more that I like, but those are the major ones I can think of in a minute. Oh, and 11) it never crashes!! 12) it never crashes!! Note on switching from Windows to Mac: When I bought this laptop (I guess its more like 3 years ago now) I was coming from a windows platform. Expect to have some frustration getting used to navigating with the mouse/trackpad and learning the new window symbols. Expect to love everything about it after you get used to the controls. mssyAK and NadaJ 2
newms Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 Me too! When you say PC do you mean a desktop computer or just a non-Mac laptop? Right - I meant a non-Mac laptop.
Mrs. Grad Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 Get a MacBook or a MacBook Pro. You will save yourself time, headaches, and money. Even the "trusted" PC manufacturers have let their customer service/product quality slip in the last couple of years. I cycled through two brand new Dell laptops in two years. The products are just defective, and the warranty is useless. I probably spent 12+ hours on the phone with customer service and yet my defective product was never fixed. My MacBook has survived horrible accidents. If you find the right maintenance provider, you will never have to pay for repairs or maintenance costs. They are definitely worth the extra up front price.
thegigglefactory Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 It all depends on what you need. That answer sucks so, I'll give my opinion. The first laptop I had in college was a Dell Inspiron. It became completely destroyed within six months of owning it due to normal wear and tear, and this is not covered by warranty. I personally know two other people with the exact same laptop who experienced the same issue. As far as the hardware goes (i.e., the framing, plastic, etc) they are not well-built computers. I would highly suggest that you look elsewhere. As far as macs go, everyone I know who has one loves them. They are actually required by a program at my university, and so a good number of people here use them. I personally do not like them for several reasons. First, I do not like the user-interface. It is quite a bit different than other operating systems and makes me feel like it was designed to be visually appealing versus having good utility. Second, the software (and thus the computer) becomes obsolete at very regular intervals. This is how Apple stays in business -- attracting loyal customers who are willing to buy the new model every time one is released. The software will inevitably become more and more incompatible with the computing world as more updates are made to the operating system. Finally, I do not like the "culture" surrounding the stereotypical mac user. That is simply a matter of opinion. Having said that, they are very well built machines that are durable and high-performing. Whether or not you get what you pay for depends upon how much you actually enjoy using a mac. Personally, I knew that my main computer needs would be browsing the internet, writing papers, and researching. Therefore, I bought a computer with a low amount of hard disk space, low RAM (because I had not intended to play video games), a sturdy frame, a highly functional keyboard, a huge screen, and a fast processor. The first thing I did when I took it out of the box was completely wiped the disk and installed Linux. I have had the laptop for three years now and it runs exactly the same as the day I first bought it. I don't recommend that you go the route I did, because I just went with what I knew I needed. Just ask yourself what it is that you expect to do with the computer, and what you actually need. I spent $398 and am very happy with my HP.
queller Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 I also love my macbook pro. Though I would look into what types of computers the people in your lab/group are using, since there may be a program you need to run. In my personal experience from working in a computer lab years ago about 1/(10 or 15) Dells is a lemon. No idea if they have improved since, but in my experience Mac's are more reliable. Plus you don't have to worry as much about the viruses that are rampant on college campuses. Unless things have changed in the last couple of years running a packet analyzer on a college network is rather scary. Naturally running Linux also solves this problem, but isn't as user friendly when one starts using it. Though the user friendliness of Linux has been improving consistently over the years.
NadaJ Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 I have a black macbook that I bought in 2006, and I'm still using it. My husband is a PC person through and through and his main argument that they are overpriced is squashed now that I have had my macbook going on 5 years. I have upgraded to snow leopard (the newest operating system--I think I was using Tiger before), and I have 2GB of RAM. I have the latest Microsoft Office and Adobe Acrobat Pro. It runs fast and has never crashed. I will probably have this laptop another 2-3 years. At work, I have upgraded to an iMac, 21" screen and I can never go back to a PC at this point. I love my iMac even more than my macbook (my baby), and if I ever get accepted to a PhD program, I will have to buy an iMac for home, I love it that much.
MoJingly Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 I have a question. I've got a netbook and I was thinking about buying a laptop and then a friend recommended me just getting a desktop computer when I arrive to the US (I am an international student). I kinda like this idea because when I am at home I prefer to use a desktop computer and I am not so sure I will use a laptop so much outside of my appartment. May be there is something about grad students' life I don't know? May be I absolutely need a laptop?? What do you think? (I will have my netbook with me anyway so if I absolutely need to type something outside of my appartment, like in a library, I can take it with me.) Definitely get a desktop if you prefer that. I don't think you will need a laptop beyond your netbook. I have been very pleased with Windows 7 pro. I recently purchased this laptop and am completely happy.
Strangefox Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 Definitely get a desktop if you prefer that. I don't think you will need a laptop beyond your netbook. Thanks for the advice! I am definetely more of a desktop PC person
LJK Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 If at all feasible, I would wait on buying a computer until you know what your program is and know whether they routinely supply students with computers. Both programs I interviewed with do buy computers for students and it was a side-note, duh kind of thing - even though my current program does not buy computers for students routinely and therefore it is not a discipline wide practice. Psychology can be pretty computer intensive with experiment programming and/or modeling which could be driving this tendency among my potential schools. I know all fields and all schools are different, so this may not even be a consideration for you guys in particular but I thought I would point it out as a consideration.
Lisa44201 Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 true, but i love my inspiron in the blindly-loyal sort of way; i've had problems with it from the first moment. first it was this weird thing with the touch pad no one could fix, then the battery shit the bed, it only sporadically picks up wireless, etc etc - on top of the fact that it's just slow. i upgraded, which somewhat helped, but windows vista is still so slow it makes me want to cry. i love it because it has gotten me from point A to point B and sometimes back again, but my first inclination is to run screaming from a dell, though i am open to convincing. with all that said, can you tell me about your 1720? why that computer? what are your specs? Why this computer? I had been routinely decimating Gateways, and the Dell was on sale at the time I was looking to replace my last victim computer. My younger sister had a Dell laptop that refused to die (still worked 5+ years after being dropped onto a concrete garage floor from 4ft, etc). ELF (evil little f*cker) stats: 3GB RAM Windows Vista 32-bit Intel Duo T7250 @ 2.00 GHz 17" (I think) screen 8hr battery (I did have to replace this last year) I have bilateral carpal tunnel. It is almost impossible for me to write with a pencil; I take notes on my laptop. One of the external speaker protectors finally fell off a few months ago, and the case has a few dings here and there, but I'm hard on stuff, so it's not completely unexpected. The biggest problem, honestly, has been finding a backpack big enough for it to fit in, because the 8 hr battery sticks out away from the body of the computer. It's also seriously heavy. It does what I want it to, and when it does freeze up on me, I know what I did to get it to that point, and how to fix it. Back when I had spare time (read: no kids), I used to do some light gaming (Diablo II, anyone?), and it could handle that.
hardcrashxyz Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 Desktops are really nice to work with particularly if you invest in a larger monitor with high resolution. But laptops and netbooks are portable. As a compromise, I use whatever laptop I currently have to run a normal mouse, keyboard, and monitor at home. It lacks the power of a high end desktop, but you have improved ergonomics and productivity. Currently using a Macbook Pro 15" with boot camped Windows 7. It is versatile, reliable, and reasonably powerful. But it does cost a premium for the hardware specs. I have it connected to a dell 30" monitor. Thinking of getting a larger harddrive for a larger Windows partition and speed (7200 rpm hybrid). I will have to see which OS is in use at graduate school. Also considering bumping RAM to 8 GB. Less of a need and more like a want though. I use Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows. So although I really like the mac, I am not tied to all things apple. Almost any laptop can serve as the brains for a hybrid desktop with addition of monitor, keyboard, and mouse. And you don't need to buy it all at once. An option to consider at least. MissH 1
Trin Posted March 8, 2011 Posted March 8, 2011 I use a combination of an HP netbook and a desktop machine at home. I love the netbook because it's small and highly portable, and also because it has such a small footprint and low profile that some of my professors who hate laptops in class are okay with me using it for notes. (It's also pink, and matches my pink and green Timbuk2 bag and gear, but that's a personal preference thing.) I love it in part because it doesn't do a lot of stuff that creates distractions. It sucks at showing video and is really, seriously, a dedicated Internet and writing machine. I use Open Office on it. That said, I do drafts on it, but I like to do my final editing on my desktop machine. It has more bells and whistles and can provide more distractions, but I also like the big screen for editing and related work. The good news is that you can get *both* of those options for about the same cost as many of the Macs. A good netbook can be had for as little as $250, up to about $4-500, and a reasonable destop machine bundle starts at around $400-500, depending on what you're looking for.
Strangefox Posted March 9, 2011 Posted March 9, 2011 and a reasonable destop machine bundle starts at around $400-500, depending on what you're looking for. When you say bundle, you mean a computer + a monitor, right?
Trin Posted March 9, 2011 Posted March 9, 2011 When you say bundle, you mean a computer + a monitor, right? Yeah. I was thinking especially of deals on woot.com or similar things. I'm an aggressive bargain hunter. YMMV. :-)
Strangefox Posted March 9, 2011 Posted March 9, 2011 Yeah. I was thinking especially of deals on woot.com or similar things. I'm an aggressive bargain hunter. YMMV. :-) Is this Woot! a reliable website?
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