a laptop without drivers - good buy?

Avinoam73

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May 1, 2012
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hi guys!
i'm looking for a gaming laptop and i've came across the NP8150 which seems like a pretty good sale. i've found one for $800 that comes with the 6970M/6990M, an i7 and 8GB of ram. the catch is, it has no OS on it, and it comes with no drivers. the laptop, and it's charger. that's it.
so... how does it work? let's say that i've installed an OS, can i find the necessary drivers and where?
again, think of this as first time start-up.
thanks for comments and answers!! :)
 
Solution

Eximo

Distinguished
Herald
The manufacturer will have the drivers available on their support website. You may need to use an additional computer to download and use portable media to get the install files to the computer.

Buying used is risky. Confirm that the pictures offered are of the that specific device. And, if possible, a picture of it on. If there are no pictures of it running and the seller does not offer a couple of day return policy, then it may be broken.
 

USAFRet

Illustrious
Moderator
Is this a local buy or online (eBay or similar)? If local, take a bootable CD (Hiren's or a Linux LiveCD) to boot from before any money parts hands. That way, you can verify that it works, and actually has the stated equipment in it.

If an online buy...I'd think twice about it.
 

Avinoam73

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May 1, 2012
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it's on ebay, if you want i can send a link to it.
also if you have a better choice for a laptop, be my guest.
or a site where i can buy sager from, also great!
thanks for the responses also ;)
 

USAFRet

Illustrious
Moderator


Yes, link please.
A laptop from eBay that can't be demonstrated to work is an iffy situation.
 

USAFRet

Illustrious
Moderator


minus - Starting bid of $500 (reserve unknown)
minus - 0 bids so far
minus - No return other than eBay Buyer Protection
minus - Working condition unknown
positive - 100% positive feedback
minus - 3 feedbacks in the last 12 months

Personally, I wouldn't.
If he can't be bothered to even put in a free Linux CD just to show it works...

EDIT: Additional minus - specific i7 model unknown
 

Avinoam73

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that's not true actually, if you scroll down to the item description you can see all the detailed specs for this item +info on where he bought it, what he used it for and how many times he used it.
he also claims the product is working great. he also says that the product is shipped without an OS on it for "security reasons".
that doesn't guarantee it works though. what do you think?
 

USAFRet

Illustrious
Moderator


OK, yeah. It does list the actual i7 model.

"shipped without an OS installed on it for security reasons" is absolute gibberish. Slap a Linux OS on it and show that it works.

It is 'probably' OK. But again...I wouldn't.
 
Solution

Avinoam73

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May 1, 2012
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yeah.. i guess you have a point... i'll ask him tomorrow if he could upload some pics of a linux OS as you suggested, or at least launch the bios so i'd know if it starts up.
anyway, thanks for answering my questions man, you've probably saved me $800.
cheers form israel!! :)
 

USAFRet

Illustrious
Moderator


Yeah really. At least the BIOS.