Bucky's computer thread is going in the wrong direction I suspect!

 

 

I guess a hp with XP would be sweet... everyone ive touched has had vista

 

Let me preface this by saying that I work as an engineer at a computer networking company and we are an HP reseller. If I were to get a laptop I would get an HP because I work with all kinds of laptops/desktops every day and from my experience I have found that HP's are very reliable.

In my opinion brand means very little. The components inside of a PC are not made by HP or Dell or IBM, etc. anyway. Most HP's (at least business class) use Intel components. I would shop for a new laptop based on warranty and how good their technical support is.

I strongly suggest getting at least a 3 year warranty. No matter what brand you buy PC components fail. It happens and you are going to want that warranty to cover the parts. Fortunately, I can do HP warranty work myself so I guess I may be a bit biased towards HP for that reason.

As far as XP and Vista goes, for your purposes either will be fine. If you get Vista (can you even buy new laptops with XP anymore?) make sure you have at least 2GB of RAM. We have been running Vista on our HP nx9420's for 1.5 years now with no issues.

Good luck on your purchase!

 

I'm a ThinkPad man. Since Lenovo purchased the IBM desktop/laptop lineup they've maintained the quality on the higher-end laptops and seem to get consitant kudos across the line. HP would be second on my list I guess. Toshiba really went in the crapper I feel.

 

If you're going Windows I'd look at Dell - you can get some great deals on refurbished machines on their website. I got one for a niece as a HS graduation gift a few years ago for about $700 and it was like new and loaded with software, wireless, etc.

Of course if it were me, I'd be getting another Mac.

 

Not for $800 you wouldn't.