What's The Best Laptop For Los?

[britmaveric]

Heard good things about Acer - I'll stick by Toshiba, but after owning hp/compaq laptops previously decided never again.

[patsfangr]

Well, I sincerely appreciate all of the opinions and advice from you guys. You're all much more experienced that I with laptops, and with hardware, in general.

Of course, now my head is really spinning!

TO LAP OR NOT TO LAP?

Buy a laptop

They're just swell

Acer, HP, Sony, Dell

Stay with desktop

Cheap as dirt

If you build it,

It will work.

This brand

Heats up and breaks down.

Gives good service.

Out of town!

More opinions on PCs than there are on the best bar girl in town!

I am, however, reading every post to this thread, and taking notes. I am no closer to a decision; but I have a much better idea of some of the most important criteria to consider. I continue to welcome any and all additional input from you experienced users.

THANKS!

GR

[Plus+]

I'm going to buy a budget notebook this Sunday - under 40k ($1000). I'll use mainly for the Internet and occasinally to watch DVDs if the main TV at home is busy with Thai soap.

I checked the specs and prices and decided to go for Acer. It looks and feels better than Compaq and for the same price the specs are higher. Top brands don't sell budget notebooks here, ecxept IBM, but again, Acer's specs are far superior in that range.

Terdsak, what about Windows installation on your Compaq. Did you have to download some drivers to install Windows?

[patsfangr]

I'm going to buy a budget notebook this Sunday - under 40k ($1000). I'll use mainly for the Internet and occasinally to watch DVDs if the main TV at home is busy with Thai soap.

I checked the specs and prices and decided to go for Acer. It looks and feels better than Compaq and for the same price the specs are higher. Top brands don't sell budget notebooks here, ecxept IBM, but again, Acer's specs are far superior in that range.

Terdsak, what about Windows installation on your Compaq. Did you have to download some drivers to install Windows?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Ahh, but are cheap ones going to give you the picture quality and battery life that you want for maximum enjoyment of DVDs? And, since I also expect to be using my PC for some high end games, I feel the need for speed in that processor, as well as mega RAM. Right, guys?

GR

[Hikage]

I'm going to buy a budget notebook this Sunday - under 40k ($1000). I'll use mainly for the Internet and occasinally to watch DVDs if the main TV at home is busy with Thai soap.

I checked the specs and prices and decided to go for Acer. It looks and feels better than Compaq and for the same price the specs are higher. Top brands don't sell budget notebooks here, ecxept IBM, but again, Acer's specs are far superior in that range.

Terdsak, what about Windows installation on your Compaq. Did you have to download some drivers to install Windows?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Agreed, I recently opted for the Acer. I just could not look past the high specification for such a low price. So far so good, has not skipped a beat. All the Thai guys I did business with in TH (now in Japan) used Acer too and swear by them.

[Firefoxx]

From Plus's explanation of his situation, I doubt that he will be using it to watch DVDs on the move... more like watching DVDs at home. At this price he can get an Acer with a crystalbrite/clearbrite display, which is excellent. There are also plenty of models at this price which have ATI X700 level 3D graphics, which is plenty enough for games. Adding ram to increase from 256MB to 1GB won't cost that much, around 4,000 baht. CPU speed will be around 1.7Ghz, Pentium-M.

[terdsak_12]

Terdsak, what about Windows installation on your Compaq. Did you have to download some drivers to install Windows?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Dunno! The shop did it with a moody copy. Had it for a week now and hasn't busted yet.

[ProThaiExpat]

Pay attention to what Firefox says. I have had Dells for ten years and the support in Thailand is non-existent. Next day repair is possible in the U.S. and Hawaii, but a "wet dream" in Thailand for the "average" Joe.

As to the PC vs. laptop post, I wouldn't have anything but a laptop, as I have no interest in sitting at a desk during retirement, too many years there while working.

My laptop sits on a armchair table, a thin arim-to-arm lap top desk which goes on and off my lazy-boy chair with ease. Available for travel, but rarely used that way.

Do pay attention to what internet connection you will be relying on in Thailand. I have a Sierra Wireless Card that connects to GPRS for my internet, as I didn't have a land telephone line for a number of years and ADSL and Broadband are not available except in city centers.

If you are considering wireless connections, make sure your laptop accepts "cards", so you can add wirless, USB cards and the like.

It seems to me from the posts that most "advocates" for certain brands are "happy users" of their current brand.

I am going for a "prior high priced" second hand IBM as a replacement for my current Dell. My daughter and her husband are IBMers and their machines are phenominal. I have them to rely on so I get a good machine from an IBM online service. Their Australian web page provides re-conditioned and warrantd machines for about a quarter of the original price. They will deliver for Christmas.

I am looking for durability first, weight last and high internal speed. There are some good Thai repair shops around, but beware of many of them.

I agree that the brand is rarely the manufacturer of the product so I am sure you can get a good machine from almost anyone and a bad machine from almost anyone as well. Make a list of your priorities as to what you want your machine to do and then buy the one that provides them at the best cost and then cross your finders. Good luck.

[Plus+]

I'm looking at Acer Travelmate 3212 - 39,900 Baht

Intel Pentium M Processor 740 (1.73 GHz, 2MB cache, 533Mhz FSB) - nothing like that from Compaq or anyone else under 40k.

Intel 915GM Express Chipset

512 MB DDR-533 - nothing like that anywhere else either

60GB hard drive (no speed mentioned - I guess standard 4200)

14.1 WXGA (not a clearbrite - I don't like the reflection on those clearbrite displays - you can shave using your notebook!)

Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900 upto 128 MB (shared) - I'd love to get Radeon video card but the cheapest would be 45,900 Baht Aspire 5502 with that "clearbrite".

Battery life is 3-4 hours depending on what brochure I'm reading. Aspire with AMD Turion, on the other hand, promises only 1.5 hour.

These specs far exceed my needs. All the heavy stuff, including gaming, I can do on my home desktop, with a real mouse, good sound system, bigger dispay, better graphics card etc.

[RDN]

Pay attention to what Firefox says.  I have had Dells for ten years and the support in Thailand is non-existent...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Simply not true, PTE. Check out my post here:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?sh...ndpost&p=333253

I called Dell Support in Bangkok, they sent a keyboard to Phuket and a guy came around and installed it.

[ProThaiExpat]

RDN: Based on your many previous sensible posts, I called the Dell number in your linked post and it does contain a message for out of hours message to call during normal office hours.

I will call Monday morning and see if I can get some service. Will report back after I talk to them on Monday. Thanks for the start.

[ProThaiExpat]

RDN: As promised, I called the Dell number referred to in your linked prior post and they were very cordial and helpful, both customer service and tech staffs.

They advised me that there is NO Dell support for the Inspirion line of laptops in Thailand nor may we have parts sent to us for local repair. I was invited to carry my laptop to KL or Singapore where they have repair services and parts for Inspiron laptops. They will not accept shipments of Inspiron laptops to thier repair facilities.

They were emphtice that there was no support for Dell Inspirons in Thailand whatsoever.

I did not question them about support for Dell laptops I do not own so cannot address other Dell products.

Thus I was right in my post about no Dell support for Inspiron laptops in Thailand and you may be right regarding other Dell products.

[Firefoxx]

The range of models sold by Dell Thailand is very limited, and since they base their operations in Malaysia, it's no surprise that they don't support anything other than what they directly sell. It is a bit strange that they're so inflexible, but I guess it's to be expected... they sell in volume to corporations, and corporations don't need any support other than that.

From these clues, you can get the rough idea that Dell Thailand is at best half-baked, at least for the consumer. It's a good business model for corporate profits, but not so good for the consumer outlook.

[lovejoy]

Apparently there's no such thing as a dis-satisfied Apple Mac owner.

i use a g4 powerbook it works great

once you go mac you will never go back

[Firefoxx]

Let's not get too overboard about Macs, folks. They're not for everyone, they can't do everything, and they won't bring about world peace.

Both statements of "no such thing" and "never go back" are simply not true, but rather exaggerations. Hey, my friend owns a Mac... yet he uses his PC nearly all of the time. He just can't get his work done on the Mac, and he's quite ready to pass it on it to his sister, since it's quite useless to him. Dissatisfied? Yes. Went back? Quite so.

Having said that: Macs are suited for some people. PCs are suited for others. Neither is perfect. Both have their failings. Let's not stick to absolutes, since they don't exist.

[lovejoy]

Let's not get too overboard about Macs, folks.  They're not for everyone, they can't do everything, and they won't bring about world peace.

Both statements of "no such thing" and "never go back" are simply not true, but rather exaggerations.  Hey, my friend owns a Mac... yet he uses his PC nearly all of the time.  He just can't get his work done on the Mac, and he's quite ready to pass it on it to his sister, since it's quite useless to him.  Dissatisfied? Yes.  Went back?  Quite so.

Having said that: Macs are suited for some people.  PCs are suited for others.  Neither is perfect.  Both have their failings.  Let's not stick to absolutes, since they don't exist.

macs are designedas a media tool so if that is what you need a computer for they are streets ahead of pcs

a lot of people dont get on to them because of no right click on the mouse

but when you get used to that and use the click and drag i find it to be so much better

but thats just my opinion

also most virus' are writen for pcs and don't effect macs

they are a little bit more exspensive but in MY oppinion well worth it

[Tyree D.]

The Sony VAIO BGN-77SP has just dropped to 49,990! Don't settle for anything less. I've had bad experiences with Compaq 5 and 15 years ago and goto SEARCH to read posters' Acer horror stories.

[Firefoxx]

Do a search on google, and you'll find horror stories for EVERY SINGLE MANUFACTURER OUT THERE. Yes, including oh-so-great Sony. My friend owns a Sony, a VERY expensive one. He's sort of happy with it, but he also has a lot of issues with it. But he's keeping it, since it meets his needs. As with Macs, Sonys aren't the gods of the PC world.

The manufacturer is only important in regards to service and support. Other than that, being overly attached or shy of ANY manufacturer is simply not rational, ESPECIALLY considering that hardly any manufacturer actually MAKES the notebooks (or any part of the notebooks) themselves.

The marketing people at Sony should be given a raise... they've done their job so well.

[lovejoy]

would you agree about virus being mostly written for pcs ?

[RDN]

...They advised me that there is NO Dell support for the Inspiron line of laptops in Thailand ...

Thus I was right in my post about no Dell support for Inspiron laptops in Thailand and you may be right regarding other Dell products.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes, you're correct about there being no support for Dell "Inspirons" in Thailand. When I bought my Dell PC (4 1/2 years ago) I checked which models could come with 3 years international warranty - including Thailand. The Dell Latitude was one of the models (the only one?) that came with such support and was the main reason I went for Latitude over Inspiron.

(But you didn't say "Inspiron" in your first post )

The range of models sold by Dell Thailand is very limited...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Very true and a big shame. Look what is on offer in England compared to Thailand! If I regularly went back to the UK I would have bought a Dell and brought it over to Thailand.

[Plus+]

I gave a thought to buying Mac, but they don't support GPRS aircards (or rather cards don't suppport Macs), and I think I'll have problems logging on my school's network with free Internet, or finally getting to network all our home computers. That is also my reason for not trying Linux.

I got Acer on Sunday alright, have nothing to complain so far. It looks less sturdy than my gf's 70k IBM, and a tad heavier, but for the price and specs I'm not complaining.

[phastmike]

Didn't had time to read all the replies so my input may be a dupe.

Sony service is not bad at all, they have at least 2 service centers in bangkok and a few more around thailand. Their service is ok, I had a problem with my cyber-shot and went to their main service center which was very professional.

About the laptop i would go for battery life (=> centrino).

Edited August 16, 2005 by phastmike

[Hikage]

I'm looking at Acer Travelmate 3212 - 39,900 Baht

Intel Pentium M Processor 740 (1.73 GHz, 2MB cache, 533Mhz FSB) - nothing like that from Compaq or anyone else under 40k.

Intel 915GM Express Chipset

512 MB DDR-533 - nothing like that anywhere else either

60GB hard drive (no speed mentioned - I guess standard 4200)

14.1 WXGA (not a clearbrite - I don't like the reflection on those clearbrite displays - you can shave using your notebook!)

Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900 upto 128 MB (shared) - I'd love to get Radeon video card but the cheapest would be 45,900 Baht Aspire 5502 with that "clearbrite".

Battery life is 3-4 hours depending on what brochure I'm reading. Aspire with AMD Turion, on the other hand, promises only 1.5 hour.

These specs far exceed my needs. All the heavy stuff, including gaming, I can do on my home desktop, with a real mouse, good sound system, bigger dispay, better graphics card etc.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Also the Travelmate 3212 does not have bluetooth built in. That and the wimpy graphics chip were the main reasons I opted for the 5502.

And yes, all notebooks have their horror stories and I would not mind betting that the majority of them and due to user ineptitude.

[calibanjr.]

My former biz partner had a fujitsu, whenever he had tech probs, usually alcohol-related, they really took care of him very well, came and picked up the box and fixed it. Past warranty, they still helped him on the cheap, but then he speaks great Thai. Convenient shop in Sukhumvit, Ploen Chit BTS.

[ProThaiExpat]

Firefoxx: Spot on regarding absolutes. While I am well aware of the anti-microsoft bias out there, especially within the "computer expert" community like my daughter, I am not ready to acknowledge that microsofts business model alone is responsible for 90% market penetration worldwide.

I bought my Sierra Wireless Aircard through the Fujitsu shop in Chiang Mai and they were very helpful, including taking me to AIS to get everything working. Fujitsu seems to be about 20k Baht more expensive than comparable models in other brands, but I would sure recommend their after sale service. They seem to have very light laptops, which may account for the added expense.

I would really be drawn to Fujitsu in Thailand if it weren't for the fact that I have "in house tech support" from my daughter and son-in-law who are IBMers and who are delivering a "high end" used IBM Notebook to me at Christmas for 40K Baht.

[simcity]

i am thinking to get a Acer Or perhaps a Asus Or perhaps a IBM .

the unit is not for me , but as present !

Just under 40000 baht

I am incline to go for the Acer but would like any suggestion before the purchase ....

one more question is a 512 mb absolutly necessary ? or 216 is ok ?

will be use for work and presentation with power point .

Thank

[Plus+]

512 MB Ram makes a great difference. On cheap model you'llusually have two slots with one filled with preinstalled 256 and the other empty so you can buy extra memory - about 1300 baht for 256.

If you really need your computer to work you should get 1GB - 2x512, or even 2GB.