Daughter's Birthday Notebook - Which to Buy??

[jaquith]

I am too close to be objective and I have 2 weeks to order or buy.

Budget: $600 - $700
Use: Honestly - Chatting & Youtube + SIMS ; Webcam ; Play DVDs
Portability: Not so much, but she has a Verizon Droid {tethering}

I love my daughter more than I can say, however she is REALLY hard on her stuff! She's in her teenage years.

Any objective help here is greatly appreciated and will be Best Answered!

Thanks!

 

[IsabellaWinTeam]

I am too close to be objective and I have 2 weeks to order or buy.

Budget: $600 - $700
Use: Honestly - Chatting & Youtube + SIMS ; Webcam ; Play DVDs

I love my daughter more than I can say, however she is REALLY hard on her stuff! She's in her teenage years.

Any objective help here is greatly appreciated and will be Best Answered!

Thanks!

Hi there,

The Dell Studio 15 would be a good choice for your daughter. It has a 15.6" screen, fast processor, 4 GB of RAM, and plenty of hard drive space. It is also very affordable at $649, plus it is available in some fun colors! It is perfect for doing schoolwork, chatting, and watching movies.

What do you think?

Cheers,
Isabella
MSFT Windows Outreach Team

 

[jaquith]

@IsabellaWinTeam - Dell Studio 15 - Yeah, I really like the skins. Here's where the "objective" part comes in i3-370M or +100 i5-450M ; over the budget.

Q - I personally use HP mobile WS; I've heard not so good things about Dell - what's your opinion?

 

[IsabellaWinTeam]

@IsabellaWinTeam - Dell Studio 15 - Yeah, I really like the skins. Here's where the "objective" part comes in i3-370M or +100 i5-450M ; over the budget.

Q - I personally use HP mobile WS; I've heard not so good things about Dell - what's your opinion?

Hi there,

The i3 processor should be sufficient for your daughter's intended uses. Dell laptops are user friendly and reasonably priced. However, they aren't as sturdy as some pricier laptops (there are laptops available with aluminum coatings, etc.) I think this Dell is a great value. A similar laptop is the Sony Vaio EB series. It has similar specs but it a bit pricier.

Cheers,
Isabella
MSFT Windows Outreach Team

 

[jaquith]

A similar laptop is the Sony Vaio EB series. It has similar specs but it a bit pricier.

No argument there! Sony's are indeed pricey.

What about ASUS?

 

[IsabellaWinTeam]

No argument there! Sony's are indeed pricey.

What about ASUS?

Hi there,

It's pretty pricey, but the new Asus U43JC Bamboo Collection is a great laptop (with a really unique appearance). It has a 2.4 GHz Intel Core i5-450M Processor, 4 GB of RAM, and 500 GB of storage space. It also has dedicated graphics. The specs are probably more than she needs (and it costs $999), but it is worth checking out.

What do you think?

Cheers,
Isabella
MSFT Windows Outreach Team

 

[Shadow703793]

You may also want to consider this ASUS: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220745
$680.

It's got a Phenom II X3 which should make a bit of a difference in apps that are not properly threaded for HT (due to 3 physical cores vs i5s 2C/4T) along with a better graphics than the Intel HD which will make a difference in gaming. However, due to the lack of Turbo some single threaded stuff may be slower than on the i5.

 

[jaquith]

You may also want to consider this ASUS: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220745
$680.

It's got a Phenom II X3 which should make a bit of a difference in apps that are not properly threaded for HT (due to 3 physical cores vs i5s 2C/4T) along with a better graphics than the Intel HD which will make a difference in gaming. However, due to the lack of Turbo some single threaded stuff may be slower than on the i5.

For the use, HT hasn't really crossed my mind. I've heard some good things about ASUS Notebooks. If reading - you've gotten the idea.

See you in the MB forum & Thanks!

 

[jaquith]

^bump - come on guys.

 

[IsabellaWinTeam]

For the use, HT hasn't really crossed my mind. I've heard some good things about ASUS Notebooks. If reading - you've gotten the idea.

See you in the MB forum & Thanks!

Hi there,

The graphics in the Asus mentioned above are probably not necessary for what your daughter will be using the laptop for. What did you think of the bamboo Asus?

Cheers,
Isabella
MSFT Windows Outreach Team

 

[jaquith]

They're a $1,000 and impossible to find. If my daughter really used or really needed or took care of her NB I'd certainly get her a solid notebook; HP EliteBook Mobile Workstation.

 

[jaquith]

Best answer selected by jaquith.