Friend Needs Laptop

[trogdor796]

My friend recently informed me that he needs a laptop and asked for my opinion. I looked up some and found some, but would like other thoughts too. Now I realize that you are supposed to fill out the form, but since this is for my friend I will supply the information that I do know.

-Price range is $400-$700.
-He goes to college in fall, so he will need it for that. This means a decent battery life, so anything over 3 hrs should do.
-He wants it for gaming, but he doesn't need to max out games with it. Medium or lower settings for intense/newer games will be okay.
-I already told him on the phone to avoid HP. So do not suggest an HP laptop. I don't care how cheap it is, they suck. Everyone I've know with one has problems with it, and even here with people who ordered the Dv6 Quad Edition because it was so cheap have mentioned the poor build quality, overheating issues, and various other problems.
-I told him some good brands that I would aim for are Sony, Samsung, and ASUS. However, feel free to suggest others too, as long as it isn't HP.
-Here is a model that I found on newegg. Specs look good to me, but I've never had experience with Lenovo, but I've heard good things about them. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834246156
-He and his mom have looked at best buy, but I realize he will probably get a better deal from newegg.com and other sites.

I believe that's all the info that I have, sorry it isn't more. Any suggestions are welcome.

 

[hpfreak]

The 520m on that Lenovo laptop is very weak. But I don't think you can do much better with that. The Lenovo is a good deal.

 

[WR2]

Here is another good option: Dell XPS 15 Core i5 Sandy Bridge Laptop $644 & free shipping
i5-2410M CPU & GT 525M graphics

 

[trogdor796]

How is the build quality on those new xps 15's? How about the reliability?

 

[WR2]

Build quality should be highly competitive with any other $800 laptop on the market.
There are enough reviews out on the Dell XPS 15 (L502x) to get a good idea what it's about.
Example: Dell XPS 15 Notebook review @ Notebookcheck Not an identically equipped model but the basic notebook features will be the same.

Reliability is a lot harder to judge since we don't really find out any one specific model till a couple years after it's been released. As a brand, Dell is pretty much 'average'.
You can expect the XPS models to be slightly better than the cheaper models. Again, you're probably looking at reliability being within a few percentage points of other $800 notebooks.

 

[trogdor796]

Alright, thanks for the suggestion. I just don't want to suggest a notebook and then it ends up breaking within a year. But I have to realize that that could happen to any brand.

Any idea how long that deal on the Dell will last?

 

[WR2]

The #1 danger to laptop longevity is mis-handling, including being dropped, etc. And of course theft is always an issue.
http://www.nssi.com/nssi/coverage Accidental Damage, Theft, Fire, Flood, Natural Disasters, Vandalism and Lightning Strikes
Coverage for more than just the laptop, such as phone, MP3 player, etc.

That particular coupon deal expires 7/26.
You can usually find something similar and the 'back to school' sales aren't far away.
Be sure to check the University recommendations for student laptops and see if they have links to student deals.
And keep an eye out on that LogicBuy website for updated deals.