15.6 " student notebook for around $500 or less?

[Tammy]

What is your budget?
$500

What country will you be buying this in?
US (online)

What size notebook do you prefer?
Mainstream (15 - 16-inch screen)

What brands do you like or dislike?
Dislike: Dell

Would you consider a refurbished laptop?
Maybe

What are the primary tasks you need this notebook for?
Web Surfing, Office and Productivity Software, Listening to Music, Movie Streaming and Viewing, Output Video to TV or Large Monitor

Where will you be using this laptop?
Will be used different places

How many hours of battery life do you need?
5+

Will you be buying online or in store?
online

Which OS do you prefer?
Windows 7

List the screen resolutions that interest you:
Standard Resolution (1366 x 768)
High Resolution (1600 x 900)

Do you prefer a glossy or matte screen?
Glossy or Matte is fine

Is the laptops design important to you?
No

Approximately what date will you be buying this laptop?
Around 09/03/2012

How long do you want this laptop to last?
2+ years

How much storage capacity do you need?
160 GB

Are you interested in SSD for storage?
No

Do you want a built-in optical drive, what type?
DVD Burner

[idiot101]

Newegg.com - lenovo IdeaPad Z585 (261729U) Notebook AMD A-Series A10-4600M(2.30GHz) 15.6" 6GB Memory DDR3 1600 750GB HDD 5400rpm DVD±R/RW AMD Radeon HD 7660G

Battery life isn't great (should give you about 4 at best), but good value.

[Tammy]

I thought AMD CPU's were to be avoided if possible, esp for someone for whom the graphics is not important (i.e., no gaming whatsoever)?

[idiot101]

There is nothing wrong with AMD processors. They just feel a little slow when compared to Intel ones (when doing something CPU intensive). The IGP is strong enough to play games, but you don't have to use it for that, it would help accelerate the web if your browser supports GPU acceleration. It is cheap compared to Intel versions of the laptop. The price is good for the hardware you are getting. Your workload will not stress this laptop.

If you are uncomfortable with AMD processors, the look for new laptops with the Intel i3-3110M which should cost you about the same. Look for business notebooks like the Thinkpad E430 and the HP Probook 4440s/4540s. They are not yet available with the latest processors (still running Sandy Bridge from last generation).

Newegg.com - lenovo IdeaPad Z580 (215126U) Notebook Intel Core i3 3110M(2.40GHz) 15.6" 6GB Memory DDR3 1600 750GB HDD 5400rpm DVD±R/RW Intel HD Graphics 4000

Newegg.com - lenovo Z580 (215127U) Notebook Intel Core i5 3210M(2.50GHz) 15.6" 6GB Memory DDR3 1600 750GB HDD 5400rpm DVD±R/RW Intel HD Graphics 4000

[iViNtaGe]

The AMD processors will be enough for the basic tasks you mentioned, and offer better power consumption. Keep in mind certain apps, and web browsers too i believe, are GPU accelerated. Otherwise you can get Intel processors but it may be a bit hard at $500. May have to go a bit higher. HP has the Dv6t, Sony has Vaio E15, Toshiba has the C850 series, Lenovo has the Thinkpad Edge series, and Acer has the aspire series. Look into those.

[Tammy]

Thanks to you both!