Suggest a laptop for my wife*

[GreatWhiteEbola]

Originally Posted by Hack&Lube

The only drawback is that it's much larger and less portable. There are always USB numberpads that you can plug in for work which is what I do.

Periherals are such a PITA, 15.6" is not that much larger, and less then 1" thick. All-in-all not a bad laptop for the price. However, the reliablity is subject.

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by GreatWhiteEbola

Periherals are such a PITA, 15.6" is not that much larger, and less then 1" thick. All-in-all not a bad laptop for the price. However, the reliablity is subject.

Sorry, I meant with a smaller notebook like a 10" one which is great for portability and that's when using a USB numpad helps. Then when you take it to work, you plug it into a big LCD that you leave on your desk.

[FlamingStuffedTiger]

Just a quick point on docking stations, since it is a concern for you. Generic USB-based docking stations generally have far more limitations than specialized native options. For example, if you are running a bunch of devices and need a large monitor attached to the dock, they might perform poorly depending on how much activity is taking place at any given point in time. On the other hand, a native dock usually performs much better because the bandwidth ceiling is often much higher. So, you guys will probably have to find out if you can get away with using a USB dock or if you would prefer something more robust. This might help you further narrow down your options because some companies do not offer any specific docking stations for their laptops.

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by FlamingStuffedTiger

Just a quick point on docking stations, since it is a concern for you. Generic USB-based docking stations generally have far more limitations than specialized native options. For example, if you are running a bunch of devices and need a large monitor attached to the dock, they might perform poorly depending on how much activity is taking place at any given point in time. On the other hand, a native dock usually performs much better because the bandwidth ceiling is often much higher. So, you guys will probably have to find out if you can get away with using a USB dock or if you would prefer something more robust. This might help you further narrow down your options because some companies do not offer any specific docking stations for their laptops.

Yes, a lot of consumer laptops are not designed for docking stations and business and enterprise oriented laptops are more for this like you would find on many Lenovo models (since they bought IBM's laptop division).

[FanIn80]

Ah. I didn't know they use the same plants. Weird that Apple would be able to get the level of secrecy that they do from that same plant that is making other brands.

How do we explain the differences in hardware reliability though? Why do so many more Acers go in for repairs than Apples?

Is that all just engineering?

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by FanIn80

Ah. I didn't know they use the same plants. Weird that Apple would be able to get the level of secrecy that they do from that same plant that is making other brands.

How do we explain the differences in hardware reliability though? Why do so many more Acers go in for repairs than Apples?

Is that all just engineering?

There is no real secrecy because there is nothing to hide. All these factories are under strict NDAs when it comes to products from different companies but all of this is mostly for the marketing department for competitive practices to keep upcoming products under wraps. Apple has no technological secrets to hide from the others. It's all the same stuff at heart, just engineered differently. Everything on an Apple board is off the shelf parts. Yes it's a proprietary design but every chip and component on there is something available to any other manufacturer as well if they wanted to use it. Usually stuff made by the semiconductor industry in Taiwan, China, Malaysia, Japan, etc. The entire computer industry works like this. Competitors often source their parts from the same factories and the same foundries. Apple may have some custom ASIC designs that I am not aware of but it looks like everything is off the shelf these days compared to previous years. It's cheaper and makes more sense for them that way.

I have a feeling Apple may be used higher internally binned parts along with stricter internal QC that give them more reliability overall as well as other things like higher quality components but I have no evidence of this. The higher quality manufacturers probably do the same. That said, you do pay for it.

For most computers, hardware failure is catastrophic and there is no ability to repair aside from completely replacing whole parts (or sometimes reflowing). I think the reliability reports need to factor in the human element as most of the problem is usually the user not taking care of their computer. I've said before that Apples may have higher reliability simply because they are a bit more foolproof from users.

What are reliability problems you guys have had with Acers or other computers specifically? Was it mostly software? Or was it hardware? Batteries die mostly because of users. Sometimes there are bad batteries of course (Sony and their exploding batteries). I have seen an Apple with a melted keyboard before though. I've also seen quite a few notebooks with blown LCDs. It's usually the backlight or the controller. The rest is usually due to heat because people don't blow out their notebook vents and fans properly and they get clogged with dust over time.

Sorry Old Yeller, this is getting off topic because Fanin80 had to bring up the Apple fanboyism earlier in the thread . Figure out the portability needs of your wife and what you are looking at for docking options and you'll get some better information that is useful to you.

[Azure]

I've never thought that the Macbook is superior because of hardware. I've always thought that it was superior because of the Apple operating system, which is indeed superior to Windows even if I don't agree with Steve Jobs or the Apple outlook.

Windows does the job though for most people, and I've found out over the years that if you take the time to look after your computer/laptop, you can get pretty good shelf life out of it. Hardware going bad...well it goes bad on all units. Sure, some laptops are cheaper than others, but you largely get what you pay for. So obviously a $1500 Macbook is going to be a lot better than a $500 Acer.

I don't think Dell does the pre-installed junk anymore. We only use Dell at work for the most part and have been very happy. I had to fix an Acer laptop a couple weeks ago and had to send it back for warranty. HD or motherboard went kaput. And throughout the years I've always had that problem with numerous Acer laptops.

If I had to buy one for that price I would probably go with a Dell.

[sclitheroe]

I think a lot of laptop failure can be attributed to how well the chassis is built and the system engineered to withstand the rigours of mobile computing. Laptops with accelerometers and auto-parking hard drives will probably have more reliable drives (pretty much everyone these days). Systems that are more rigid and resistant to flex will probably have more reliable motherboards and better protection for their LCD panels (eg. Apple, Lenovo, Panasonic, Sony to a degree with their carbon fibre stuff). The Magsafe design eliminates a huge point of failure which is DC-in jacks suffering broken solder joints. Laptops like the Thinkpads (and others, no doubt) with their spill-through keyboard design are great, and help protect against a common failure mode (spilled drink).

So to bring this topic back around on topic, I’d say, that considering that all the other components (RAM, CPU, chipset, graphics cards, hard drives, sound cards, NICs, batteries, etc) are all made by someone else, and are largely the same between laptop manufacturers, you want to buy the best built (ie. most sturdy, most attention paid to durability, most environmental design considerations) laptop for your money, not neccessarily the highest performing on paper, the most feature rich or gimmick laden, etc.

In that regard, even a slightly lower spec business class laptop from one of the big manufacturers is going to be better for lugging to and from work every day, than something that is meant more for home or student use. Let’s face it, for 95% of us, anything faster than a 2ghz Core2 Duo and 4 gigs of RAM is overkill, so put your money into intelligent design and solid construction. If it creaks when you pick it up, like so many lower end machines do, I’d pass, even if it means going down a few notches in processor speed or hard drive capacity.

[FanIn80]

Yup yup. I checked out that Asus laptop I linked earlier today... it's really put together well. If I'm in the situation to buy a PC laptop again, Asus will be the first ones I check out. I like my Dell, but that one I saw today was really well-built.

[chalms04]

I've had my eye on this baby ever since I returned my school laptop: http://www.memoryexpress.com/Product...0%28ME%29.aspx

I'm on a bit of a tighter budget though.
However, you could step it up a couple rungs on the model line for a little more:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/Product...9%28ME%29.aspx

[FanIn80]

Edit: Whoops, wrong thread.