Which laptop for university?

[green_duck]

I'm going into university for the fall, and was going to buy a laptop to take with me to residence.

General Questions

1) What is your budget?
under $1500 canadian

2) What size notebook would you prefer?
b. Thin and Light; 13" - 14" screen

3) What tasks will you be performing with the notebook?
typing out notes, searching/surfing the net, chatting. I wont be playing many games.

4) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places or leaving it on your desk?
Taking it with me to various places (classes, back home)

5) Will you be playing games on it; if so, which games?
No major games, perhaps just games like the ones on popcap.com

6) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
Prefer: toshiba, compaq, hp, (maybe dell)
Dislike: acer

7) How many hours of battery life do you need?
Would like a laptop with a longer battery life (3+ hrs)

8) Do you mind buying online without seeing the notebook in person?
I would like to see what I'm buying, but if there's a good deal online I don't think I would mind much.

9) Please select your country's flag as a post icon and tell us what country are you buying this in?
Canada

Screen Specifics

10) Would you prefer standard or widescreen?
Doesn't matter? Don't know what kind would be better for me... I'm not too bright on this screen stuff..

11) From the choices below, what screen resolutions would you prefer?
Not quite sure.. I would probably watch some movies on my laptop (instead of having a tv in my small residence room)

12) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non-glossy screen?
Maybe matte so that there's no annoying reflections?

Build Quality and Design

13) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
Yes, I want something that looks appealing.

14) When are you buying this laptop and how long do you want this laptop to last?
Buying this laptop around back to school sales (August). Wanting a good quality laptop that'll last a while.

Notebook Components

15) How much hard drive space do you want; 40GB to 120GB?
80GB+

16) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a DVD-ROM, DVD-CD/RW or DVD-RW drive
dvd-rom

[lambert]

Hi
How about HP DV2000T
You can see it in Bestbuy(Toronto).
The price is about $12XX, and it looks very good.
I have saw it yesterday.
I think it will fit your request.

[cy007]

Now this is a tough one. I know you don't game, but anything below 15" is usually costs more than $1500 with tax. The only one I can think of on the top of my head is the Dell Inspiron 640m. With the T2050 (should be good enough for your use) and 3-year warranty, total comes to $1139+tax. The other alternative is to buy an Acer, but since you really don't like the brand, it's hard to find anything cheaper. Hope this helps.

edit: Sorry that I could not recommend a matte screen laptop. Truth is, within your budget, there simply isn't such a thing. The laptop that's best for your needs is the Dell D620, but with decent options (T2300E, 1GB 533MHz RAM, DVD-RW, 9-cell battery, 3-year warranty), it'll come to $1519 (or $1739 if you have to pay GST+PST).

[cy007]

Hi
How about HP DV2000T
You can see it in Bestbuy(Toronto).
The price is about $12XX, and it looks very good.
I have saw it yesterday.
I think it will fit your request.

Really? I thought it was supposed to be $1399.99. Besides, seeing one should always buy the extended warranty, it should be way above his budget.

[1-800-Zealots]

maybe the inspiron 6400 series? a friend of mine just got one for 1300 (canadian)

[green_duck]

That one, HP DV2000T, looks pretty awesome... Not quite sure where I'd get it though, if I went to a store in the city (Calgary) to look at it.
Also... Are HP computers actually good quality for the price they are? Or would one just be paying a lot for the name? (Still not decided on the brand I'd prefer. I have this little issue with indecisiveness...)
Her budget**

[huskyfan23]

seeing one should always buy the extended warranty, it should be way above his budget.

You should never buy Best Buy's extended warranty. I used to work there. They screw you around when you bring back a big purchase.

HP is decent. Compaq is HP's low-end brand. Toshiba just full out sucks.

[cy007]

That one, HP DV2000T, looks pretty awesome... Not quite sure where I'd get it though, if I went to a store in the city (Calgary) to look at it.
Also... Are HP computers actually good quality for the price they are? Or would one just be paying a lot for the name? (Still not decided on the brand I'd prefer. I have this little issue with indecisiveness...)
Her budget**

Yes, build quality's exceptional for its pricerange. More rigid than most laptops I've seen.

The DV2000T is a great laptop, but the Core Duo T2050 processor and its high $1399 pricetag prevents it from being the best deal.

Just did a little search and found this (ASUS A8f):
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...nufacture=ASUS

Similar build and faster T2400 processor for the same price.

[lambert]

That one, HP DV2000T, looks pretty awesome... Not quite sure where I'd get it though, if I went to a store in the city (Calgary) to look at it.
Also... Are HP computers actually good quality for the price they are? Or would one just be paying a lot for the name? (Still not decided on the brand I'd prefer. I have this little issue with indecisiveness...)
Her budget**

In my opinion HP's quality is good for the price.
Just went to a store and take a look first.
Than buy it from HP website, they have rebate now:

http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/sh...ies&catLevel=3

» Free shipping!
a $49 value!
» $50 mail-in rebate
$100 instant savings
Free upgrade to 80GB hard drive
from 60GB
Free upgrade to 1GB memory
from 512MB

The recommand config price is $959.98(USD)

[green_duck]

Thx for the suggestions guys, was helpful.