Have finally decided to go portable !! Anyone know where the best deals are for laptops and what features I should be looking for and who gives best internet access??

The majority of our pc's are Dell (www.dell.com.au) order online, currently have 4 of different ages and user requirements.

My view is get as much in the laptop as you can afford as to make it 'future proof' but if money is a consideration, Bluetooth wifi preloaded basic software will see you with a good machine.

As Bill, I use Telstra/Bigpond, which can be more expensive than some but get wireless service in a lot more areas.

There are alternatives such as iPads, but for most all of our usage we prefer computing machines, versatile across many uses.

Cheers

woody wrote:

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Have finally decided to go portable !! Anyone know where the best deals are for laptops and what features I should be looking for and who gives best internet access??

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 I use a 10in netbook and love it, especially the portability. I put extra ram in it.

Dell have a good reputation as does Toshiba but they did have some heating problems a while back. I like Asus, they manufacture the motherboards as well. Lots of good brands and lots use similar components.

Do watch for battery capicity and the hours available between charging.

Telstra have the better coverage, but Optus reseller have the best prices I've found.

Big Gorilla wrote:

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You wont go wrong with Toshiba. Memory (RAM) you need minimum 4 GB. All the other hardware will fall into place if you specify the memory when you buy. I would recommend new as you never know what you buying when you go second hand. A lot of people sell because of software or hardware problems. If you buy from Harvey Norman, you can get a second year Warranty for a few Dollars more. Well worth it. A new Toshiba will give you Windows 7 operating system. They come pre-loaded with Norton Anti Virus, which is one of the best, and Microdoft Office 2010. But if you activate these programs, you have to pay for them.

A Telstra USB Modem gives the best Internet service. Promos vary from time to time, but as bill12 says, you get 4 GB for around $29.95. That will be ample provided you're not into downloading movies and music.

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 Gday...

I personally prefer Toshiba - although they, like the rest, are all now made in China, from the $700 one I have through to the $4,200 my son has. I have met people who bought the cheapies that Aldi sell and they have had good use. I would, however, always recommend a "brand" name laptop.

A word of caution about the Harvey Norman extended warranty. It is a good warranty, but read it very carefully before you commit to it. It is "return to base" warranty provided by Harvey Norman which means you will need to take it to a Harvey Norman shop to claim any warranty. If you travel regularly/constantly, that can be a problem. When you return it to their shop, they send it away - usually about three to four weeks turnaround to "identify if warranty" and then to rectify.

Cheers - John

woody wrote:

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Have finally decided to go portable !! Anyone know where the best deals are for laptops and what features I should be looking for and who gives best Internet access??

Alan,if you are an aged pensioner you can buy a reconditioned top of the range lap top for about$500 through centrelink.If you Google pensioners lap Tops or similar you can find a site that will give you all the info you need.Hope this helps you.

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I don't use windows or apple I use Ubuntu Linux and strip windows off my computers. Better than windows for the same reasons Jack describes, and a heap cheaper than Apple, and infact free along with software to do most things.

@Woody.....I am sure that there is ample advice about brands, future proofing and telecommunication carriers above so, may I add:

consider the use of the laptop i.e. if it is going to go travelling with you then heat, dust and general bumps and bounces are part of the journey....so purchasing a known robust make/model will always reap rewards later....and also consider making or buying a 'special place' for it to travel too  (padded, dust and vermin proof, temp insulated).

look at the battery capacity of the included powerpack vs the laptops rated power usage; unless you are always likely to be around somewhere to 'plug it in', it would be well worth finding out about how long you can run the laptop on the batteries esp if using the internet.

if you find a suitable new laptop (and have patience), that model will most likely be superceded very soon (if not already) and then the retail price is typically dramatically less

before purchasing asap, remember that everything tends to be cheaper after Xmas

Anyway, good luck and spend as much as you can... subject to being a clever shopper (eg eBay, Officeworks, BigW, Dick Smith, JB Hifi etc etc etc are all potential players here)

I would have to agree with the supporters of Apple products, they are an excellant computer, but there are downsides if you go down this path.

Training in how to use your computer is few and far between if you use Apple, as unless you are live in a city, Apple training is hard to find, whereas just about every Seniors centre has training for Microsoft computer users, also there will nearly always be a neighbour close by who can give you a helping hand, this is not so with Apple unless you are lucky.

Another factor is the cost as you will have to outlay considerably more for Apple products, gone are the days when you didn't have to worry about hackers and viruses when using Apple this is no longer the case.

Microsoft can't be making too many mistakes as more that 80% of the worlds population use Microsoft and most of the problems people have with their computer, can be found to be the lack of knowledge of the user, with the program they are attempting to use, many want to use a computer but are unprepared to put in the time that is needed to become proficient in the myriad of jobs that a computer can carry out.

Cheers

David

We have just been thru this.

Decided to upgrade our two laptops, purchased a new HP laptop forthe wife, advertised at HN for $768 purchased thru eBay for $586.

For myself, I wanted a good gaming machine, best deal I could get in any computer store was $1,850 for an "average" laptop, went for a top of the range machine that was three years old "Asus" again off eBay, cost $450 delivered.

There are some great deals out there, all it takes is a little research.

Ken

We bought a second-hand Lap-top from the Laverton Markets (in Victoria) three years ago for $249.  It had a 3-month warranty and is a Toshiba Portege.   We know it was a chance but we just didn't have the money for a bigger outlay. 

We are still using this computer and it has travelled across Canada and the U.S.A. with us and while we travel around Australia.  We do not have a dongle or pay for internet.  The computer has wifi access and as house-sitters we usually have access to the local home wifi.  When travelling we usually use local libraries - they often have wifi access for our computer or we can use their computers (often free or a very nominal charge).   There are other places for free internet like McDonalds etc.

This is only our experience..... l

jack biggles wrote:

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I'm going to throw the cat amoungst the pidgeons! After years, wait Decades of using windows based computers I decided to do away with them and GO APPLE MAC. Well let me tell you I'm a convert now & what a pleasant change it is to have a notebook that actually works for me rather than me working for it. Scrap all that windows based rubbish and drop past an apple shop & see the difference. My last of was a $2500 Asus notebook just a year old and as usual all the windows based nonsense persists, security issues, viruses, hack issues, software issues, load this load that, reload this reload that HEADACHE AFTER BLEEDING HEADACHE ! Last week I also received my new gen 4 ipad, which runs nicely with my iPhone 4S and my Mac notebook. When I sync them all toghter all my documents, photos, music and important apps are on all 3, so I can access all my stuff no matter where I am. Apple even run courses in their stores to help you get the most out of your new equipment. I was so pleased with all of this stuff I actually smashed my old notebook to peices just to square up with the bloody thing and good riddance to it too. I couldnt pass it on as it had too much sensitive information on it and with windows based stuff security is one of the biggest issues you will have with it. After using this new ipad, i would seriously consider going without a notebook in the future. If you go any windows based product, i wish you well, you are really going to need all the luck you can get to guide you thru the rubbish that goes on with it.

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 Apple for me too. I've been using them for over 15 years and never had a problem. they are physically better made than their Windows counterparts, They have a Warrwnty which can be extended to 3 years. Mine had 2 of the rubber feet fall off after 2 years with me on the road. By the time we got back home it only had 1 month to go of the 3 year warrenty so I took it to an Apple place and instead of new rubber feet they replaced the whole metal base (Oh! did I not mention they are cast from a solid piece of Aluminium not flimsey plastic like other brands).

The keys on the keyboard have an adjustable light so it can be seen in bad lighting (in case you don't want to wake your partner by putting on a bright light).

I get 7 hours battery life out of mine.

I can run the Mac operating system on it or I can run Windows on it if I choose. (I actually have mine set up so I can actually run both operating systems at the same time).

Hylda calls me a Mac nerd but I believe the Mac laptops are simply a step above the pack.

If I was looking for a good travel computer but didn't want a big oneand found the new tablets were too small and didn't mind paying for quality I'd go one of these    http://www.apple.com/au/macbookair/design.html

Sorry for the rave

Cheers

Jon

milo wrote:

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how do you run windows stuff on a mac and can you get virus's from using windows stuff into the mac??

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 To run Windows on a mac, you install a program called Parallels, it sits on your desktop like any other icon and just click on it and Windows starts, it has its own piece of hard drive and does not interfere with mac space, but if you use Windows for the internet you will still need an anti-virus, I only use windows for my games, I would not use it for internet, I have been an apple convert for about 5 years and would never ever go back to Windows, I have no antivirus software on my macs and have never needed it.  I have two macs and both were "refurbished" from Apple store, the were delivered free to my door in packaging as if new and 1 year warranty and they have worked as if new fro the getgo. Just my two bobs worth.

Merr Christmas to everyone!!

milo wrote:

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how do you run windows stuff on a mac and can you get virus's from using windows stuff into the mac??

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 i have a macbook pro nava had a virus and when u get used to it there gr8 but lotsa people dont like em each to there own .

dibs

no spell check used

I run Firefox on my mac and use a mac version of MS Office and use Adobe Acrobat to read PDF documents the same as Windows does.

As EilsnAlby says you run Windows on one part of your hard drive and Mac on another part which is done by partitioning it (divides your HD into 2 seperate ones.

As was said earlier you can use a program called 'Parallels' or, as I do, 'VMWare Fusion' to run Windows while still running Mac but, you can alternatively just boot right out of Mac and reboot straight into Windows which has the advantage of giving Windows the full use of all your memory which is handy for memory hogging programs.

One thing I forgot to mention I love about the Mac is if I want to delete a program I just pick it up and just throw it in the trash and it's gone, so unlike the windows method which leaves bits and pieces lying all over your computer.

milo wrote:

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i wouldnt mind a mac but not sure if microsoft flight simulator x (gold edition ) would run in the parallels etc

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 You would use Bootcamp which means you turn off the computer and then turn back on selecting the Windows drive partition instead of the Mac one. It uses all the computers memory and CPU as it is independent of the Mac OS so would have no problem with Flight Sim.