Good laptop or Bad laptop?

[nocomputerskill]

I'm not really sure where to post this question. So I've been looking for a new laptop to replace the one I'm using right now. I have been looking for about 3 months and found this one Toshiba S55D-A5383 15" Laptop | Staples® It seems pretty good. I just don't know a whole lot about computers and would like any help any one has to offer.

 

[King Arthur]

We really can't give any meaningful advice without you informing us what this laptop will be used for, but from a general purpose perspective I'd say that laptop will perform adequately with most home/office tasks.

Toshiba's also a very reputable and old Japanese manufacturer, so there's assurance for quality there as well.

 

[nocomputerskill]

For me it's just basic stuff. School e-mail netflix stuff anybody does. I don't do any gaming or anything like that.

 

[gregrocker]

Can you go to Staples and test drive it? That's what I would want to do, maybe repeatedly. They seem to hedge on whether you can bring them back, whereas Best Buy really does give 15 days to try out PC's with full money back if it flunks the test. I took them back for 2 years until I found a Lenovo Core i5 that had no fatal flaws I could find.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

What's the absolute top dollar you want to pay?

Are you willing to buy online from someone other than Staples, such as Newegg or Amazon?

 

[nocomputerskill]

gregrocker, Unfortunately none of the staples in a 100 mile radius have them in stock. I do have a friend that bought one about 3 months ago and he says he loves it. ignatzasonic, 400$ is about the most I can spend one. I am willing to buy one from just about any where as long as it's new. I need it to last 4-5 years. I know my budget is very tight. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

That Staples link doesn't take me to a Toshiba laptop, but that model sells for 510 at Amazon.

Let me look around and see what I can find for $400 online. I don't use laptops, but have a pretty fair knowledge of hardware generally. Give me a half hour or so.

You say "school". Does that mean Word and Excel are needed? What's the most strenuous thing you think you would be asked to do on this machine?

 

[AddRAM]

Put in the correct link from Toshiba please

Nevermind, I dodit.

http://www.toshiba.com/us/computers/laptops/satellite/S50/S55D-A5383

 

[nocomputerskill]

ignatzatsonic, Thanks for looking around. I use Open office 4.0.1 right now. The most strenuous thing I'll be doing will be things like youtube and netflix. I don't really play any games or anything. I am looking for something with more than 4 gb of ram because I use windows media center a lot. Sorry about the link.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

Pickings are very slim for a new laptop with more than 4 GB of RAM at $400 or less.

You may need to compromise on things such as screen size, processor strength, touchscreen or not, hard drive size.

Take a look at the 2 links below; adjust the controls on the left side to narrow your selection.

Make a few choices and maybe we can pick out the best among them.

Amazon.com: Advanced Search - In Stock Only / New / Laptop / 5400 RPM / Laptops / Computers & Accessories: Electronics

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...5&HDDMin=0&HDDMax=720&MemoryMin=2&MemoryMax=8

 

[Computer0304]

Maybe this as a second choice? IdeaPad S215 Laptop | Entry-Level Ultraportables | | Lenovo (US)

 

[Computer0304]

Or this: Newegg.com - Lenovo IdeaPad G505s (59406400) Notebook AMD A-Series A8-5550M (2.10GHz) 6GB Memory 500GB HDD AMD Radeon HD 8550G 15.6" Windows 8.1

 

[gregrocker]

I got this a Lenovo core i5 with 4gb RAM, 1tb HD, solid build, number pad - everything I need - for $400. I upgraded to 8gb RAM ($40) and have now added a SSD ($60). With a perfect Win7 install it runs as good as any $1000+ laptop. I don't need anything with greater specs since I'm not a gamer, but I would guess it runs nearly as good as any expensive gaming rig with the perfect install I keep since that tends to make the biggest difference.

It's out of stock at Best Buy but similar to this: Amazon.com: Lenovo G500 15.6" Laptop i5-3230M， 4GB Memory, 1TB Hard Drive, Black: Computers & Accessories

While it was a Black Friday deal there are always $400 laptops to be found. Using Best Buy's 15 day no-questions-asked money back return policy, I was able to trial a dozen of them over two years until I found the perfect one with no flaws. You can do this online with Best Buy but must pay return shipping, so its best to shop in store or at least return in store. If you don't have the time or patience to do this then I would want to know about their refund or exchange policy in case you don't want to keep it. Most retailers alllow a 30-day return but they may not have anythign else you want to try in your price range.