NotebookForums.com › Forums › General Notebook Discussions › Notebook Forums - General › Which 15'' notebook should I buy?
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Which 15'' notebook should I buy?

post #1 of 10
2/15/07 at 2:56am
Thread Starter 
I'm new here and I'm having trouble deciding which notebook to purchase. I was looking at various 17' notebooks for about a week, but realized that they're just not practical when it comes to my needs as a college student

MacBooks are out

Sony's are out due to a bad experience with my previous laptop (a 13.3 inch VGN-S480p, bad build quality, bad tech support, and keyboard defects)

My budget is between 2200-2500 USD

I'm looking for a powerful configuration in a 15'' form factor, with at least halfway decent battery life.

Build quality and decent tech support are important, if the unit was sleek looking that would be a plus.

The rough specs of what I'm looking for are (2+ghz Core 2 Duo, Geforce 7600-7700, 2GB Ram, 80-120 GB HD.

I'm also somewhat of a gamer and that's a factor, but that's not the main reason I'm buying this laptop.

So, I'm in the position of knowing what I want spec-wise, but I'm not about the company I want to get it from.

If the people here could point me in the right direction, I'd be grateful
Reply
Reply
post #2 of 10
2/15/07 at 4:01am
easily suggest picking up an alienware m5550 or if your willing to try a lighter 17inch the m5790, both as solid good machines that will fit your needs perfectly.
Reply
Reply
post #3 of 10
2/15/07 at 5:28pm
I would recommend the 15 inch DELL XPS laptop. Normal DELL technical support isn't worth a flip. But the XPS support is quite a bit better. I was in the same situation a few weeks ago trying to decide on a 15 incher for college. After about 3 weeks I chose the DELL Inspiron E1505 and I couldn't be happier.
Reply
Reply
post #4 of 10
2/15/07 at 5:34pm
Dell doesn't make a 15" XPS notebook. 12" and 17" only
Reply
Reply
post #5 of 10
2/15/07 at 5:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by cybyte
Dell doesn't make a 15" XPS notebook. 12" and 17" only
Ouch... oops. On a 2nd note, I would get a maxed out E1505 then.
Reply
Reply
post #6 of 10
2/15/07 at 5:46pm
I've been looking at the E1505 looks like a pretty sweet notebook.
Reply
Reply
post #7 of 10
2/15/07 at 7:23pm
the e1505 is NOT a gaming notebook and compared to the competition within the 15 inch segment of the market isnt that well equipped for the price of a loaded one. sorry but its the truth, the alienware would give you a much more capable video card when it came to gaming.
Reply
Reply
post #8 of 10
2/15/07 at 11:41pm
I would also recommend the Dell Inspiron E1505 or the Alienware Area-51 m5550. I have had a lot of experience with Dell and mostly all good ones at that. Plus they have some of the best tech support around. And dell also now owns Alienware. I don't know when you're planning on ordering the laptop but when you do do not by any means do not get Windows Vista Home Basic. Pretty much all it does is add a few security fixes and makes the interface prettier. I would recommend you to go with Vista Home Premium.
Reply
Reply
post #9 of 10
2/16/07 at 8:20am
would recommend the asus v1 series with ati x1700 or maybe even the asus g1 with a geforce 7700
Reply
Reply
post #10 of 10
2/20/07 at 2:02am
Thread Starter 
I decided on an ASUS A8JS.

modifed with a 7200 rpm HD, 2GB of Ram,

The Alienware seemed to have very poor battery life (1:40 min) after talking to some people so I passed on it.

Overall, this notebook seems like a pretty good fit for my needs.

I also have the option to upgrade the CPU from a 2.0ghz to a 2.33ghz in the future when prices drop, so it seems like a pretty good deal all around.
Reply
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Notebook Forums - General
NotebookForums.com › Forums › General Notebook Discussions › Notebook Forums - General › Which 15'' notebook should I buy?