Looking to help my sister buy a notebook...

[nick1985]

we are looking to spend no more than $850.

There are 2 items that have caught my eye,

Item 1 Dell Inspiron 600M

Item 2 Acer TM2304LCI

Now, the Acer is a much cheaper model. It also comes with a bigger screan and more RAM. The downside is that it is a tad slower, heavier, and the battery life isnt as great. Both have 1 year warranty, windows XP, 40 gig, wireless LAN...yadda yadda.

My Questions:

1. The battery life on the Acer is what is holding us back from purchasing that right now. I tried calling acer to see how much a bigger battery would cost but they were closed. Is there anywhere I could get a new battery for this model that wont cost an arm and a leg?

2. What are your opinions on these 2 machines? Which is the better buy for someone who will mainly be using MS word and similar applications?

3. Any other recommendations for laptops?

Thanks!

 

[silverbuyer]

Originally posted by: nick1985
we are looking to spend no more than $850.

There are 2 items that have caught my eye,

Item 1 Dell Inspiron 600M

Item 2 Acer TM2304LCI

Now, the Acer is a much cheaper model. It also comes with a bigger screan and more RAM. The downside is that it is a tad slower, heavier, and the battery life isnt as great. Both have 1 year warranty, windows XP, 40 gig, wireless LAN...yadda yadda.

My Questions:

1. The battery life on the Acer is what is holding us back from purchasing that right now. I tried calling acer to see how much a bigger battery would cost but they were closed. Is there anywhere I could get a new battery for this model that wont cost an arm and a leg?

2. What are your opinions on these 2 machines? Which is the better buy for someone who will mainly be using MS word and similar applications?

3. Any other recommendations for laptops?

Thanks!

What's up with everyone buying or helping their little sister's buy laptops?

 

[silverbuyer]

Go with a dell, but check this link daily to see if there's going to be a $750 off a $1500 inspiron configuration.

 

[Tostada]

There's still a $600 off $1499 Inspirion coupon that's good until Thursday morning 5:59am CST.

I'd just get the basic 600M, add the premium 4-year warranty, 1x512MB DIMM, 80GB hard drive, modular battery and bluetooth, which takes it up to $1514 (actually if it was for me I'd get the SXGA+ screen instead of the bigger HDD).

 

[silverbuyer]

Originally posted by: Tostada
There's still a $600 off $1499 Inspirion coupon that's good until Thursday morning 5:59am CST.

I'd just get the basic 600M, add the premium 4-year warranty, 1x512MB DIMM, 80GB hard drive, modular battery and bluetooth, which takes it up to $1514 (actually if it was for me I'd get the SXGA+ screen instead of the bigger HDD).

OP's looking to spend no more than $850.

 

[Tostada]

Originally posted by: silverbuyer
OP's looking to spend no more than $850.

No sh*t, Capt. Obvious. I really blew away that budget there. Good thing you called me on it.

The OP specifically listed the 600M, though, and going by the link he provided, it's not possible to get a 600M for $850. The $839 model does not have free shipping and tax will be added.

So, you're already paying about $950 if you get the 600M that the OP listed. Therefore you're not spending any more by using a coupon and getting the $1500 version with 4-year on-site and accidental damage.

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: Tostada

Originally posted by: silverbuyer
OP's looking to spend no more than $850.

No sh*t, Capt. Obvious. I really blew away that budget there. Good thing you called me on it.

The OP specifically listed the 600M, though, and going by the link he provided, it's not possible to get a 600M for $850. The $839 model does not have free shipping and tax will be added.

So, you're already paying about $950 if you get the 600M that the OP listed. Therefore you're not spending any more by using a coupon and getting the $1500 version with 4-year on-site and accidental damage.

Thanks Tostada, I will check with my dad and my sister about that deal you posted. :thumbsup:

 

[imported_Kensai]

Maybe a 700m?

 

[BaldAvenger]

I like my 700m, but with the added value of a long warranty and extra add-ons the 600m would be cheaper and probably better for this budget.

 

[fbrdphreak]

Here is what I configured for $1488 for a 600M:
Pentium M 725 1.6GHz
SXGA+ screen
1x256MB
60GB HDD
DVD/CDRW
2 years @ home support w/accidental damage
6-cell

Add more warranty, extra battery, larger HDD, DVDRW, whatever to get to $1499. Apply $600 off coupon. WINNAR!!

You could also get an HP L2000 (1.8GHz Turion, 6-cell batt, 1 year warranty, DVDRW, 80GB 5400RPM) for $899 through Sam's Club.
HP also has academic discounts on all models, you could probly get an L2000/dv1000/etc for around $850. But the Dell would be better equipped for the money.

 

[silverbuyer]

Originally posted by: Tostada

Originally posted by: silverbuyer
OP's looking to spend no more than $850.

No sh*t, Capt. Obvious. I really blew away that budget there. Good thing you called me on it.

The OP specifically listed the 600M, though, and going by the link he provided, it's not possible to get a 600M for $850. The $839 model does not have free shipping and tax will be added.

So, you're already paying about $950 if you get the 600M that the OP listed. Therefore you're not spending any more by using a coupon and getting the $1500 version with 4-year on-site and accidental damage.

Looking to spend no more than $850 means just that to me.

If the OP wants a hot deal on a dell then I'd suggest waiting until another $750 off $1500 deal comes around. Free s/h is usually included too. I'm guessing they'll have another one in a week or two. Just check dell.com/save750 every night/morning and jump on the deal when you see it!

 

[Tostada]

Originally posted by: silverbuyer
Looking to spend no more than $850 means just that to me.

If the OP wants a hot deal on a dell then I'd suggest waiting until another $750 off $1500 deal comes around. Free s/h is usually included too. I'm guessing they'll have another one in a week or two. Just check dell.com/save750 every night/morning and jump on the deal when you see it!

Yeah yeah ... I was just being a smartass.

I hate ppl who respond to "I want to spend $850" by saying, "You should spend $950," but I did try to justify it.

 

[silverbuyer]

Originally posted by: Tostada

Originally posted by: silverbuyer
Looking to spend no more than $850 means just that to me.

If the OP wants a hot deal on a dell then I'd suggest waiting until another $750 off $1500 deal comes around. Free s/h is usually included too. I'm guessing they'll have another one in a week or two. Just check dell.com/save750 every night/morning and jump on the deal when you see it!

Yeah yeah ... I was just being a smartass.

I hate ppl who respond to "I want to spend $850" by saying, "You should spend $950," but I did try to justify it.

 

[justflow]

if its for your sister she probably just wants something cute, get her an ibook or one of those little white averatecs...nether has amazing performance but she'll get way more excited than if you showed her how fast it was.