Samsung 15.6" laptop (with Numpad!) for $379 shipped

[Kaido]

Best Buy link:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Samsung+...01US&cp=1&lp=1

Model: NP300E5E-A01US
SKU: 8923922

This is my new "cheap laptop" recommendation. Just set one up for a friend. Has a nice, easily-readable screen (large/low-resolution), it's lightweight, and runs well. Could use an SSD if you want more performance, but it's passable. You can get it shipped online for free, but if you need something quick, they also have it at the B&M Best Buy stores (you can check online for local inventory at checkout & do in-store pickup if you want to).

There are a lot of laptops out now in the $279-range, but with varying specs - really slow AMD CPU's (like 1.3ghz), Pentium CPU's (vs. a Core i-CPU with hyperthreading), lack of an optical drive, lack of a numpad. So depends on what your budget/feature requirements are. Overall tho, for an upgradable Core i3 machine with a Numpad & DVD burner, >$400 is pretty decent!

Quick specs:

Windows 8
1.9ghz Core i3
4gb RAM (upgradable to 8gb)
500gb 5400rpm hard drive
HD4000 graphics
DVD Burner
15.6" 1366x768 LED screen (220 cd/m² brightness) - looks decent
3 USB 2.0 ports
802.11n wireless
Gigabit Ethernet

Until Windows 8.1 comes out, I'm still recommending StartMenu8 (free) to add a Start Button & also to have it boot directly to the desktop: (bypasses the Metro touch GUI)

http://www.iobit.com/iobitstartmenu8.php

This is pretty much the perfect budget laptop - it runs well with the i3 & HD4000 integrated GPU, it has a keypad, it has an optical drive, and it's not heavy. Have had several friends buy it, no complaints for the price!

 

[elwood]

How does the samsung compare to this Asus? http://www.amazon.com/ASUS-X55C-DS31...productDetails

A guess the Asus has a second to last gen i3, one model lower graphics but pretty much the same everywhere else. I've seen and used quite a few Asus laptops and I like them quite a bit. Never seen a Samsung laptop.

So i'm thinking of the Asus from the previous link. Also, with no tax it's $30 cheaper too.

 

[Kaido]

How does the samsung compare to this Asus? http://www.amazon.com/ASUS-X55C-DS31...productDetails

A guess the Asus has a second to last gen i3, one model lower graphics but pretty much the same everywhere else. I've seen and used quite a few Asus laptops and I like them quite a bit. Never seen a Samsung laptop.

So i'm thinking of the Asus from the previous link. Also, with no tax it's $30 cheaper too.

About the same. I do like the keys on a Samsung more. Another buddy bought one today & I set it up for him. Could definitely use an SSD, but then I'm used to 7200rpms & solid-state drives, so 5400rpm feels slow, even though things still open reasonably quickly.

 

[WiseUp216]

I don't know if the Series 3 are similar to the Series 5 (i5-2410m / GT630), but when I set my girlfriend's up it was atrocious how bogged down it was. So bad that it felt *slower* than the dual-core Pentium w/ Vista that it replaced.

I forget what the program was called, some kind of 'RAM optimizer' and it was using 3.98GB out of 4.00GB total. Just removing that helped immensely. Who is the idiot that decides to put this bloatware on?

The HDD and RAM were pegged at 100% while the CPU sat at 3-5%, hardly being used.

I ended up putting a fresh Win 8 (with ClassicShell) on an SSD and it is crazy fast now. Very nice laptop after the hassle and would recommend them to anyone tech-savvy enough.