Laptop......HELP!

[rogesse]

Only growing related in that it keeps me on the grapevine and I can continue to oggle plant porn (seed catalogues), but, laptops......help!

I need to 'retire' my faithful friend (at least 8yrs old, I think) and want to buy a laptop (would free up half the dining room)but am totally bamboozled by the choices. Basically I need a desk top replacement. I can't decide between Windows or Apple.

I've fallen in love with something called 'alienware' by Dell because of the looks (totally impractical and rather pricey) - are there any laptops out there that have such amazing keyboards?

Please help because my teenage son is laughing at me (no help, I reckon he doesn't know either but still manages to pretend he does....).

feeling old.......

[Bramble_killer]

What do you want to do with your laptop and how much do you want to spend?

No point spending loads on a powerful machine and then only use it to surf the net.
Have you used a mac before? I love it but not everyone gets along with it. and they will be more expensive.

[Glutton4...]

I wasn't sure about having a Mac, but I wanted one, so I bought a second-hand one, locally on eBay. I have had it 11 months now, and there's no going back for me!

[chris]

I've had countless pc's, servers, laptops, and 2 macs. The last mac I had is still going, after 7 years- a PowerBook. Wanted a faster one as we needed another so bought a MacBook pro. Expensive but they do just work, and last.

You'll get a decent bargain on laptops, ESP now in the sales. Have you checked dells outlet? I think it is outlet.dell.co.uk - basically cancelled orders. I've had numerous bargains from there.

All really boils down to your use (stated) and budget.

[Two_Sheds]

Everyone laughs at my desktop replacement because it's so huge, but I love it: it's ideal for doing photos, videos & watching TV on

I did a bit of research before I settled on it, and I looked at Dell but they're too confusing if you're unsure what you want

[Florence Fennel]

I've had countless pc's, servers, laptops, and 2 macs. The last mac I had is still going, after 7 years- a PowerBook. Wanted a faster one as we needed another so bought a MacBook pro. Expensive but they do just work, and last.

You'll get a decent bargain on laptops, ESP now in the sales. Have you checked dells outlet? I think it is outlet.dell.co.uk - basically cancelled orders. I've had numerous bargains from there.

All really boils down to your use (stated) and budget.

I've been thinking about a lap top too as my PC is upstairs, so it would be handy. Thanks Chris, I'll check this out.

[coreopsis]

I've had my Mac for 3 years.No viruses or crashes-it just works.All the horror stories about switching from Windows to ..."goodness knows what" are just fairytales invented by Microsoft friends.This "goodness knows what" is very simple and user friendly.Look at any manual for the computer-e.g.printer and compare PC/Mac-you don't have to download the driver-mac recognizes the printer instantly.Same with the camera.Didn't have to download the software.No going back for me

[Two_Sheds]

I've had my Mac for 3 years.No viruses or crashes-...-you don't have to download the driver- mac recognizes the printer instantly.Same with the camera.Didn't have to download the software.

Same here with my Samsung. It's been brilliant (Windows 7, not Vista)

[Currysniffa]

All I'd add is if your going for a machine that runs a Windows operating system I'd make sure its Windows 7, Windows Vista was not very good at all, there's still some good deals out there with a Windows XP OS.

[rogesse]

thanks for all the advice - Im now tapping away from a Macbook(I took on board the advantages) - it's more than I need but it is 10 christmas's worth. Unfortunately I've never used one before so I've just about managed to set up the WiFi, get on line and work out how to switch between windows and mac - PC world do a mac 101 course for free so I think I'll be going!

Teenager is as jealous as hell - ha ha

(

[Glutton4...]

thanks for all the advice - Im now tapping away from a Macbook(I took on board the advantages) - it's more than I need but it is 10 christmas's worth. Unfortunately I've never used one before so I've just about managed to set up the WiFi, get on line and work out how to switch between windows and mac - PC world do a mac 101 course for free so I think I'll be going!

Teenager is as jealous as hell - ha ha

(

Oooooh, congratulations! Take time to go to Apple's website, and go through the Tutorials, they are great, easy to follow, and you can watch them over and over for now't!

Also, any 'daft' questions can usually be answered with a quick 'google' search. All my daft answers have already been asked by someone else, so that makes it much easier...