Solved How much farther will my $1400 go today?

RoloDman

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How much farther will my $1400 get me today?

On 12/17/08 I spent $1400 on a shiny new notebook. $1400 price tag includes $139 3 year extended warranty no accidental damage.

15.4"WSXGA+
INTEL WI-FI LINK 5100AGN
VISTA HOME PREMIUM 64bit
GeForce 9600M GT
C2D P9500 2.53 GHz 6MB 1066
4096MB DDR2 800 (2 DIMMS
2.5" SATA 250GB(7200rpm) HDD

3 Year Extended Warranty. Starting Date: (12/18/2008) End Date: (12/26/2011) @ $139.

If I were in the market today with the same budget how much better could I really do? I always purchase an extended warranty, so please take that into consideration. Thanks for your opinions :geek:

Also, I have never had to send the notebook in for a warranty claim and as you can see I am days away from the three year mark when it will expire. Should I send it in for anything preventative or something like that? Maybe it doesn't work like that haha. One of my USB ports is broken because I jammed a dongle in it upside down and bent one of the prongs inward, I assume they would not warranty my stupidity, but do you think I should give it a shot?
 
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My Computer My Computer

At a glance

7 Ultimate 64 bit Service Pack 1Intel Core 2 Duo P9500 @ 2.53GHz (lower watta...4.0GB Dual-Channel DDR 2 @ 398MHz (5-5-5-18)512MB GeForce 9600M GT
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Sager NP2096
OS
7 Ultimate 64 bit Service Pack 1
CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo P9500 @ 2.53GHz (lower wattage chip)
Motherboard
JHL 90 (U2E1)
Memory
4.0GB Dual-Channel DDR 2 @ 398MHz (5-5-5-18)
Graphics Card(s)
512MB GeForce 9600M GT
Sound Card
Realtek High Definition Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Generic PnP Monitor
Screen Resolution
1680x1050
Hard Drives
Hitachi 244GB @ 7200rpm (IDE)
Cooling
nature
Keyboard
generic
Mouse
Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 3500
Internet Speed
30 megabits down, 5 megabits up
Other Info
1.)Staples 4-Port USB 2.0 Mobile Hub
2.)WNDR3700 - NETGEAR RangeMax Dual Band Wireless-N Gigabit Router
3.)Logitech Webcam C250
4.)Logitech M570
Here is a list of 50 laptops, from $1000 to $1250


Newegg.com - PCs & Laptops, Laptops / Notebooks, $1000 - $1250

Some have screens 17 inches or larger.

Some have an SSD.

Most have an Intel i5 or i7 processor.

Most have Windows 7 Home Premium or Professional; usually 64-bit.

Anywhere from 2 pounds to 9 pounds.

Here are 4 from 4 different manufacturers out of the 50 for comparison, all between $1186 and $1238. You would have to add in more for your extended warranty.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Productcompare.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100006740%204023&IsNodeId=1&bop=And&CompareItemList=32|34-230-028^34-230-028-TS%2C34-246-104^34-246-104-02%23%2C34-157-832^34-157-832-02%23%2C34-200-335^34-200-335-TS


Compare the specifications.

My general thoughts:

Get a desktop PC unless you need the portability of a laptop. For the same money, a desktop is far stronger.

You may not notice superior performance with a new laptop if you don’t cause your current laptop to ever break a sweat.

I would generally ride the current laptop until it would not readily do something I wanted to do, rather than upgrade. Of course, I have no idea if you have money falling out of your pockets. If you do, knock yourself out.

This one for $1200 includes an SSD and for that reason might make the most noticeable difference of any of them. Of course, you could just get an SSD for your current laptop.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834131128
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 7 Home Premium SP1, 64-bitIntel Skylake i5-6600K, not overclocked8 GB HyperX DDR4-2666 (2 x 4 GB)none; graphics are integrated on CPU
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Ignatz Special; 4 speed manual gearbox; factory air conditioning; one of one
OS
Windows 7 Home Premium SP1, 64-bit
CPU
Intel Skylake i5-6600K, not overclocked
Motherboard
AsRock Z170M Extreme 4, micro ATX
Memory
8 GB HyperX DDR4-2666 (2 x 4 GB)
Graphics Card(s)
none; graphics are integrated on CPU
Sound Card
onboard: Realtek ALC1150; external: USB Behringer UF0-202
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell S2340M 23 inch IPS
Screen Resolution
1600 x 900
Hard Drives
System: Crucial MX100 series SSD, 128 GB;
Data: Samsung Spinpoint 103SJ, 1 TB;
Backup: WD Caviar Green WD30EZRX-00D8PB0, 3 TB
PSU
Rosewill SilentNight 500 watt fanless, semi-modular
Case
Antec Solo II
Cooling
Noctua NH-U12S; Noctua F12 intake, Noctua S12A exhaust
Keyboard
Microsoft 200 6JH-00001 USB
Mouse
Dell or Microsoft optical wired; USB
Antivirus
Microsoft Security Essentials and Malwarebytes Premium
Browser
Pale Moon
Other Info
All fans PWM; speeds at idle: CPU circa 500 rpm; intake circa 600 rpm; exhaust circa 600 rpm; CPU temps 27 idle and 47 C load in a warm room (27 C/81 F) when running Intel Extreme Tuning Utility stress test.
That would be accidental damage :p

$1400 will go a looong way. A full hog i7 processored laptop with decent dedicated gpu would be within budget.
What do you use your laptop for?
I'm going to be shocking and put a macbook into the equation! :p

I made the jump at the end of 2010 and I have windows on a virtual machine that intigrates with mac os so its 2 os's in one. But not windowed.

Like you I used to have a high budget, but I've been so impressed I'd only ever get a mac for a laptop lol

Ill be running away now before I get beaten with sticks for offering that input lol

Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 7 Ultimate x64, & Mac OS X 10.9.2Intel Core i5 2500kCorsair Vengence 8gb 1866mhzNvidia GTX 770 OC
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Built by badgers!!!
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64, & Mac OS X 10.9.2
CPU
Intel Core i5 2500k
Motherboard
Asus P8z68 LE
Memory
Corsair Vengence 8gb 1866mhz
Graphics Card(s)
Nvidia GTX 770 OC
Monitor(s) Displays
2x ASUS LED 22" IPS
Screen Resolution
3840x1080
Hard Drives
240GB Crucial M500 SSD
120gb Corsair Force 3 SSD
1TB Western Digital
PSU
Corsair HX650w Modular
Case
Corsair Air 540
Cooling
Corsair H60 Push/Pull
Keyboard
Corsair K70/ Logitech G27 wheel
Mouse
Saitek R.A.T 9
Internet Speed
Too slow!
Other Info
AMD fusion E350N Home server-Windows Home Server 2011 (also made by badgers!)
2011 Macbook 2.4ghz Core2Duo, 4gb ddr3, 120gb Ocz Vertex SSD
That would be accidental damage :p

$1400 will go a looong way. A full hog i7 processored laptop with decent dedicated gpu would be within budget.
What do you use your laptop for?
I'm going to be shocking and put a macbook into the equation! :p

I made the jump at the end of 2010 and I have windows on a virtual machine that intigrates with mac os so its 2 os's in one. But not windowed.

Like you I used to have a high budget, but I've been so impressed I'd only ever get a mac for a laptop lol

Ill be running away now before I get beaten with sticks for offering that input lol

Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk

the only intensive thing on use my notebook for would be Second Life and thats about it. I do, on occasion, convert video and wouldn't mind seeing a bump in that direction. I am not against leaving a notebook for a desktop but do I have to get a huge machine? SSD seems the way to go as I never even come close to filling up any HDD I have.


p.s. thanks for all that info, ignatzatsonic
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

7 Ultimate 64 bit Service Pack 1Intel Core 2 Duo P9500 @ 2.53GHz (lower watta...4.0GB Dual-Channel DDR 2 @ 398MHz (5-5-5-18)512MB GeForce 9600M GT
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Sager NP2096
OS
7 Ultimate 64 bit Service Pack 1
CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo P9500 @ 2.53GHz (lower wattage chip)
Motherboard
JHL 90 (U2E1)
Memory
4.0GB Dual-Channel DDR 2 @ 398MHz (5-5-5-18)
Graphics Card(s)
512MB GeForce 9600M GT
Sound Card
Realtek High Definition Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Generic PnP Monitor
Screen Resolution
1680x1050
Hard Drives
Hitachi 244GB @ 7200rpm (IDE)
Cooling
nature
Keyboard
generic
Mouse
Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 3500
Internet Speed
30 megabits down, 5 megabits up
Other Info
1.)Staples 4-Port USB 2.0 Mobile Hub
2.)WNDR3700 - NETGEAR RangeMax Dual Band Wireless-N Gigabit Router
3.)Logitech Webcam C250
4.)Logitech M570
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