What laptop should I buy?

A little pep talk on buying a laptop, part one of two

The question every geek dreads: “What laptop should I buy?”  Throw in “What low-cost laptop should I buy,” and raise it to the level of “It’s for my kid who’s away at school, to use for schoolwork” and you have a recipe for frustration.  It’s one of those innocently simple questions that has a really complicated answer, like when people ask MrsDoF how she makes those incredible oatmeal chocolate-chip cookies of hers. They end up asking her; “Do you really have to use both kinds of oats?” and she has to explain for the ninetieth time, yes, and this specific shortening, etc. just like the recipe says, unless you want different results.

Please understand, we geeks get this question (about laptops, not cookies) all the time.  I went to the funeral of a dear friend once, and wasn’t three feet in the door of the church before the minister buttonholed me with a similar question.  And the answer isn’t what you really want to hear, but here it is anyway.

Get ready to spend some money and learn some stuff…

First of all, is the decision of Windows or Mac or Linux.  I wouldn’t have added Linux in there until recently but Linux has gotten better while Windows has gotten much, much worse.  The new “Vista” Windows is, to put it bluntly, terrible.  It’s so bad that four companies you may have heard of - Dell, HP, Compaq and Lenovo - pressured Microsoft to let them keep selling computers with the old XP Windows on it.  XP wasn’t all that great (it’s a big support headache) but it was better than not as bad as Vista.  And it runs a lot of specialized software that is only available for Windows (and which won’t run in Vista).

Mind you, when I refer to software as “good” or “bad”, I mean a combination of how easy it is to use, and more importantly (because you can get used to anything) how easy it is to keep it running.  The “failure scenario” where for one reason or another the computer becomes a never-ending source of frustration to the recipient, is what I’m trying to avoid.

Add to this the fact that a Windows PC isn’t “ready to go” when it comes out of the box.  It’ll need to be hooked up to a high-speed network and install anywhere from twenty to 100 “patches”, which are software fixes from Microsoft to keep the Russian mafia from turning the computer into their own private little mail server.  Patch installation isn’t all that simple; you will need to go through the procedure three or four times to get everything, and then set the computer to receive future patches automatically (a process which often fails).

It will need anti-virus software added - you’ll have to pay for a subscription, not a trial version that will stop working in 30 days.  And it will need, at minimum, some kind of office software.  Most institutions will insist on Microsoft Office, which will need its own set of patches.  There are free office suites that work just fine - better than MS office in fact - but many users freeze up at the thought of clicking on an icon that doesn’t say “Microsoft” on it.

So if you give your offspring a Windows laptop, make sure they have access to local technical support.  It will gradually work worse and worse until it starts jamming up and taking forever to do anything, usually during finals’ week.  They’ll need help, at minimum, from a knowledgeable friend.

OK, so you look at Macintosh laptop and immediately start complaining about the “high price”;  I don’t want to hear it.  The Mac will end up being much cheaper in the long run.  It starts working when you take it out of the box and keeps working while their friends’ Windows machines get slower and slower.  Load the free OpenOffice suite on it and you’re good to go.  If you need to swap files with someone who uses MS office, use the “Save As” feature to make it a Microsoft-style document.

I prefer physically smaller rather than larger laptops, because small generally means durable.  (Use a ruler to measure the distance between the Q and P keys on the laptop and a regular keyboard.  Even a small laptop should have normal-sized keys.)  And because anything can be defective or can fail, whatever laptop you get, buy the extended warranty, with damage insurance if you can get it.

On the other hand, if your laptop is going to live an easy life (only transported in a padded case and handled gently) one of the large-screen laptops can be an excellent replacement for a full-size PC.  Assuming it has the computational power you need a big laptop is less “stuff” than a PC with monitor, keyboard, and mouse connected.  It’s more ‘elegant’.  So there is a place for huge laptops.

Now for the wild-card: Linux.  You can actually buy a new Dell laptop with Ubuntu Linux already installed.  This option is so scary to most people that Dell says on their Ubuntu page;

The main thing to note is that when you choose open source you don’t get a Windows® operating system. If you’re here by mistake and you are looking for a Dell PC with Windows, please use the following link…

Omigod!  No Windows?!!  Well yeah, no Windows.  Let me tell you a little secret: the definition of a “computer” is not bounded by that company from Redmond, Washington.  You can do all that computer-stuff just fine on a Macintosh or with a Linux machine, minus the headaches of using Windows.  The only reason to use Windows is if there is specific software that absolutely requires it.  Otherwise, Windows is Old And Busted.

There will be a learning curve no matter what computer and operating system you buy - so buy a book, already!  Go to the bookstore and sit down with a latte and go through a stack of them and get one that speaks your language.  It may be three inches thick and have detailed instructions for analyzing log files, or it may be bright yellow and have cartoons in it - either is fine as long as you are comfortable with it.

There are a few other considerations - Toshiba’s wireless setup is a nightmare, for example - but most importantly ask yourself why you are giving someone a computer in the first place.  Remember the former Stanley company’s CEO and his analogy about how their customers don’t want drill bits, they want holes?  That applies to a computer.  You don’t buy a computer to “have a computer”, you buy a computer to surf the web, run software x, y, or z, write papers, collect field data, play World Of Warcraft, whatever.  You buy a laptop to make those functions portable. 

Now the simple part: what brand of laptop. I look for four things in a laptop: durability, durability, light weight, and battery life. (I mentioned durability twice because it’s twice as important to me as anything else.  My laptop is a Lenovo X40, which dual-boots to Ubuntu Linux and Windows XP)  I don’t really care how “fast” it is because my main software applications are very compact - they don’t need super speed computers to run them.  What YOU decide to buy should be based on the software you want to run and where/how you intend to use the laptop.

Some laptops come with the option of a shiny or matte-finish screen.  I prefer matte finish.  That is an entirely subjective preference; shiny gives higher contrast but reflections can be annoying.  Also look at key travel - is it comfortable to type on?  Don’t worry too much about the built-in pointing device; get a small optical mouse with a short cord (Logitech makes a nice one) and enjoy.

Lenovo has a wide range of enhanced-durability laptops, Dell has some, Panasonic is famous for their “Toughbook” series, there’s a new company called “Ruffbook” (no confusion there), and several Johnny-come-latelys.

Obviously if you want to run Apple OS-X, you’re down to an Apple laptop.  That’s even simpler. 

Be forewarned: if the intended recipient of the laptop is your child or grandchild, you may have a somewhat idealistic notion of how it will be used.  If you’re tempted to think “My little darling would never…”, have a nice tall drink of reality.  (This applies to subjects other than laptops, by the way.)  And if you want the gift to be successful, they should be involved in the decision; you wouldn’t buy a pet for someone without finding out if they’re a dog person or a cat person.  Have them read this article.  If at all possible, they should try a computer with the proposed operating system.  Don’t rush.

So there you have it: the quick, simple, uncomplicated answer to “What laptop should I buy?”  Or as simple as I can make it, anyway.  Until someone asks me about buying a used laptop.  I’ll address buying a used laptop next Saturday.

Notes:

  1. It’s pretty obvious I’m giving my opinion on Vista, XP, OSX and Linux but I’m just one guy of course.  For a contrary view on Vista, plus a lively discussion, see Les Jenkins’ treatment of the issue at StupidEvilBastard: Consumers choosing Vista over XP at a 7-1 margin.

Posted by George on 01/05/08 at 03:44 PM
Geeky •

  1. Which one is best for porn surfing? 

    ****

    I wish laptops had a readonly boot mode (fast start)—where you could load an OS DVD image into memory (perhaps built into the BIOS or hypervisor), and only write dynamic, session specific information into a memory buffer. Maybe ask if you want to save data to a USB or just wipe clean when exiting. No visibility to hardware hard drive in that mode for safety.

    Posted by Ted  on  01/05/08  at  06:24 PM

  2. Closest thing to what you are describing is the new Asus EeePC.  It ain’t got no hard drive at all, runs off flash memory, and they’re very small and light.

    Posted by george.w  on  01/05/08  at  06:37 PM

  3. Just as a note to my fellow techies, AVG Antivirus is free, Open Source, and works great on Windows. Don’t waste money paying for the same thing you get with AVG.

    Flash hard drives are certainly the wave of the future for laptops.

    BTW DOF, this is a phenomenal tech support write up.

    Posted by webs05  on  01/06/08  at  11:40 AM

  4. I am a long way from being a techie but at the advise of a techie friend and blogger I down loaded AVG..the version that I had to pay for. It did the trick and I run it every day. Stopped a couple of trojan ponies and a couple who were using my system to down load movies I think

    Posted by GUYK  on  01/07/08  at  07:30 AM

  5. Most community colleages have a Computer 101 class that is available for anyone. For some reason people thing computers are like operating cars, get in and put it in “D”.  I have Dell laptops at work and Acer’s at home. I caught a sale on Acers at Wally World and got one for $350.00, 1 gig of memory, w-fi and Vista basic. Slapped AVG on it, cleaned out the start menu and it flies.

    Posted by james old guy  on  01/08/08  at  10:43 AM

  6. Good to hear James! I have heard back and forth things on Acers, but if they work that’s the most important thing.

    BTW, how’s the warranty with the Acers? That was one thing that interested me the most about them. I saw some on Newegg that had 5 year warranty.

    Posted by webs05  on  01/08/08  at  12:39 PM

  7. Web
    This Acer is my second one, the first one had the pin break off at the recharging plug. Put in a warranty claim, shipped it off and had it back in less than a week.

    Posted by james old guy  on  01/08/08  at  05:11 PM

  8. Most community colleges have a Computer 101 class that is available for anyone. For some reason people think computers are like operating cars, get in and put it in “D”.

    Exactly.  I think most people have decided that their cars are the standard for how complicated anything “should” be.  Never mind the computer serves a much more general and abstract function.

    When cars were new, you had to open the fuel petcock, close the dynamo contact, hand-crank the engine, and manually advance the spark as the vehicle gained speed.  To say nothing of the tricky schemes for shifting drive ratios.  But they still became popular because it did the horse’s job and was simpler than a horse.  Still there were people who confused familiarity with simplicity.

    I’ve noticed that the kind of users who install AVG and clean out the start menu can keep any computer running well.  Typical users (the kind who always forgot to advance the spark) have more problems.  We’re quite a ways from the computer that would be analogous to modern cars.

    Posted by george.w  on  01/08/08  at  06:16 PM

  9. Still there were people who confused familiarity with simplicity….We’re quite a ways from the computer that would be analogous to modern cars.

    Respectfully, I think it’s a bit more complicated because cars don’t have Moore’s law to propel them forward. Can you imagine the waste and cost if cars became functionally obsolete in three years? Since 1980, we are now probably on the 9th generation of PC.

    The constant churn, and the market engine that pushes it, is responsible for the lack of solid standardization in computer technology. The lack of regulation and taxation encourages waste and then disingenuously points to the waste as an unexpected outcome. Change = Innovation, you say? Vista, please?—No, I think a lot of innovation is self-absorbed wankering that’s done strictly for the purpose of market differentiation.

    Posted by Ted  on  01/10/08  at  07:58 AM

  10. Can you imagine the waste and cost if cars became functionally obsolete in three years? Since 1980, we are now probably on the 9th generation of PC.

    Can you imagine the waste if PCs became functionally obsolete in 3 years…  hmmm

    Posted by webs05  on  01/10/08  at  10:25 AM

  11. Well I’m driving a 19-year-old car, which replaced a 40-year-old car.  Both performed their function quite well.  So it’s an analogy, but not a perfect one.  There’s considerable elasticity between the modes of usage.

    Posted by george.w  on  01/10/08  at  11:20 AM

  12. Can you imagine the waste if PCs became functionally obsolete in 3 years…

    I don’t understand your comment.

    PCs are functionally obsolete in about three years and artificially at that. Cars aren’t; because they typically last longer, and the aftermarket is well developed, cars have a longer lifecycle. That longer lifecycle contains enough elements to standardize them and to make them progress socially in a more controlled manner e.g. registration, safety, etc.

    The innovation in cars isn’t as pronounced or as accelerated to the end user as PCs and notebooks are.

    Posted by Ted  on  01/10/08  at  01:15 PM

  13. PCs are functionally obsolete in about three years and artificially at that

    That’s what I meant in a sarcastic way. I wasn’t attacking your comment, just noting my frustration with our societal system of make the economy stronger through waste.

    Posted by webs05  on  01/10/08  at  01:38 PM

  14. I think the waste in PC is pretty much inevitable given the pace of “innovation” (as described by Ted) right now.  But computers have been powerful enough to perform all but a few current functions for at least five years.  Certainly I’m using a 5-year-old computer very happily.  It runs XP and the very latest version of Linux just fine.  But it wouldn’t run Vista well at all. 

    I often tell users; “There’s no computer so fast that Microsoft can’t slow it down.”  I bet computer manufacturers love that.

    Posted by george.w  on  01/10/08  at  01:55 PM

  15. LOL DOF! I think some of it is driven by gaming as well. The more high end games that come out, the more high end hardware is needed. I really wouldn’t care so much if we had better electronic recycling programs. Better as in more people need to know about em. We have one here in town, but I don’t think hardly anyone knows about it.

    Posted by webs05  on  01/10/08  at  02:39 PM

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