grungy-gonads 54 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 I'm thinking about buying a new notebook. Took a quick look round but got lost quite soon. Any recommendations? Whats with these new superdooper looking shiny screens? What are they called? I want as powerful as possible and as good as display as possible for my money. (Of course, duh!) Link to post Share on other sites
bobby12 0 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 try DELL Japan I noticed that big stores like Yamada Denki do good deals on laptops these days too. (edited to give better link) Link to post Share on other sites
MistaSparkle 0 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 I would steer clear of Sony VAIOs. I bought one a couple of years ago and there are a few things about it that really pissed me off. 1. Once you buy sony, you're locked into buying more of their crap. I had to pay 4500 yen for a piece of sh*t plastic adapter to use an external monitor. (a capability that was advertised, except that they leave out the detail that you need to buy an adapter) 2. You can't change the operating system. I tried loading an english version of XP into my machine, but after doing so I realized that all the drivers for things like the touchpad and function keys are locked someplace inside their system restore CDs. 3. See #1. After I decided to go back to the original Japanese OS with the restore CDs, it turns out you can only boot the restore CDs with a sony drive (no cd-booting with my non-sony drive). So I had to go out and waste a man (absurdly overpriced for a simple external cd-rom) on a useless drive just so I could restore my machine. 4. Poor quality. My screen hinge fell apart after a year, so now I have to prop the screen up against a book or something or else it falls flat. The battery doesn't hold a charge anymore (it's only been 2 years), and a new one costs something like 1.5 man. The vaios look pretty... I just wish they worked as good as they looked. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 I've heard (and seen) the same about Vaio. Also avoid Sotec (in case you were tempted to go cheap). Sotec fall apart like Vaio but without the style. Here's a plug for my favourite site Tsukumo http://shop.tsukumo.co.jp/dir.php?category_code=1005200 You can sort the product views by price, maker etc. Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 Mr Sparkle Search the Net with the serial number of your battery and you should be able to find a supplier of the cells that fit inside it. Crack your battery open with a craft knife along the join and then change the batteries yourself. It should save you a good few thou. Some places will do it for you, if you can't be chewed. My wife's 505 adapter and adapter socket went on us and Sony wanted something like 50,000 to fix it, but I got a new adapter of Yahoo Auctions for 8000 and now it works okay. The socket is a bit loose, but thats all. Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 I don't think this is grungy's intention, but if the whole point of getting a laptop is that you want something you can take overseas, find out whether the manufacturer's overseas operations are prepared to honour the warranty on a Japanese model/something bought in Japan. Some of them won't do it gratis and others won't even touch a Japanese model. Link to post Share on other sites
jared 0 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 and dont get a Toshiba either - cronic overheating problems, screen problems etc.. Their solution to the overheating problem was to update the BIOS and retard the processor so your 1Ghz laptop runs like a 500hz. My soloution was to wear more clothes and turn the heater off but that oly works in winter. In summer it involves a stack of books and a big fan. Link to post Share on other sites
kintaro 0 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 Go with Dell. You won't be sorry! Link to post Share on other sites
montoya 0 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 Probably IBM Thinkpads have the best keyboards, and a reputation for quality, but a bit pricy. Dells are cheaper, but seem a bit flimsier in construction. I had a Sony VAIO and would also not recommend it, design is nice but their software/hardware quality control is crap and we had problems with many software we later installed in it. Generally, the extremes of spectrum are: *desktop replacement *ultra light and portable Some other things to think about are: *screen size *battery length *OS (eg WinXP, 2000, J or E, etc) Link to post Share on other sites
indosnm 0 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 try a powerbook. I am looking at getting the new 12" model. Don't like big notebooks.. plus when U have an enormous imac... Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 In my opinion, the nipple mouse sucks, I always get a notebook with a tracker-pad mouse. IBM used to use the nipple. Think long and hard before choosing nipple. Link to post Share on other sites
Dims 0 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 Quote: Think long and hard before choosing nipple. Well that's sound advice in all manner of situations db. Seriously though, I am insanely happy with my 15" powerbook, but I know some people just don't dig Apple, especially their prices. In 18 months the G4 has never crashed, never skipped a beat, never given me one problem. Link to post Share on other sites
I_HATE_CHEESE 0 Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 Quote: Originally posted by jared: and dont get a Toshiba either - cronic overheating problems, screen problems etc.. No way bro! Toshiba make the goods, you must have gota crappy one! I highly rate Toshiba, highly. Ask anyone in the know and they will tell you Toshiba is an industry leader. Link to post Share on other sites
r45 4 Posted March 25, 2004 Share Posted March 25, 2004 I've not had any problems with my Vaio either.... Link to post Share on other sites
jared 0 Posted March 25, 2004 Share Posted March 25, 2004 Quote: No way bro! Toshiba make the goods, you must have gota crappy one! I highly rate Toshiba, highly. Ask anyone in the know and they will tell you Toshiba is an industry leader. Thats what I thought, and its a big part of the reason I paid a little more to get one. My one overheats a lot which is a little better that my friend whos screen stopped working 2 minutes after the 1 year warentee was up. Spent 6 man getting it replaced and less than one year later is facing the same problem. Maby I did just get a bad one - but so did everyone who joined the yahoo group dedicated to the overheating problem. _______________________________________________ Overheating Concerns Toshiba is currently involved in a class-action lawsuit over the performance of its Satellite 5005-S504 and Satellite 5005-S507 notebooks, which used desktop processors. Plaintiffs allege that Toshiba was aware of a design flaw in the notebook that caused it to overheat when running processing-intensive multimedia applications, and Toshiba's solution to the problem was to limit the clock speed of the processor. This prevented the overheating problem, but rendered the notebook unsuitable for demanding multimedia applications. Other vendors, including Toshiba, continue to release notebooks with desktop processors. Desktop processors deliver higher performance for a lower price, but the added weight of heat shields and other features make them more suitable for home use, rather than as mobile PCs. http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,103700,00.asp Link to post Share on other sites
bobby12 0 Posted March 25, 2004 Share Posted March 25, 2004 I am gonna plug Dell once again. I have had mine for three years and never had any problems with it. It never crashes. I have been lugging it to work and back every day for those three years and it is still as good as new. So much for its 'flimsy construction' as one poster wrote above. Also, it is the only company that offers a 3 year on site next business day warrantee. If it breaks, they come to you and fix it, no matter where you are in the world. Link to post Share on other sites
scouser 4 Posted March 25, 2004 Share Posted March 25, 2004 Why did Gateway run from Japan? Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted March 25, 2004 Share Posted March 25, 2004 Quote: Originally posted by scouser: Why did Gateway run from Japan? Mad Cow Disease? Link to post Share on other sites
MistaSparkle 0 Posted March 25, 2004 Share Posted March 25, 2004 NF - thanks for that heads up. I'm definitely going to give that a shot. I've been putting off replacing the battery for so long because of how stupidly expensive it is, but I've never heard of replacing the cells.... interesting. Will definitely look into that now. Link to post Share on other sites
IIIII 2 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 I have a Dell and no complaints about it either. Goes well for me, and I'd buy from them again next time. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted March 27, 2004 Share Posted March 27, 2004 I got me a Toshiba, no problems with it. I don't know shit, but they all seem pretty much the same to me. Is there really much difference? Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted March 27, 2004 Share Posted March 27, 2004 Is it easy to buy 'western' notebooks here? ie, English OS and s/w plus keys in the same place with no superfluous kana characters printed on each key (not the end of the world). I too want a PC laptop... Link to post Share on other sites
BagOfCrisps 24 Posted March 27, 2004 Share Posted March 27, 2004 I have a Gateway and really like it. Link to post Share on other sites
window-cleaner 0 Posted March 28, 2004 Share Posted March 28, 2004 Dell for me. And I'd highly recommend them. Link to post Share on other sites
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