Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

I was going to purchase a Dell inspiron 1100 or 1150, but then I
started reading about the celeron processor and thought maybe the
inspiron wasn't such a good idea. Here's my problem: I am not very
computer savvy, so I want to purchase a computer with good technical
support. But from what I've been reading, the only good technical
support is from Apple. Being that I have to buy a pc clone, what do I
do? (I'm only going to use the laptop for word processing, simple
spreadsheets, lots of web surfing, and burning some CDs.) Any advice
would be appreciated!

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

ralgam wrote:

> I was going to purchase a Dell inspiron 1100 or 1150, but then I
> started reading about the celeron processor and thought maybe the
> inspiron wasn't such a good idea. Here's my problem: I am not very
> computer savvy, so I want to purchase a computer with good technical
> support. But from what I've been reading, the only good technical
> support is from Apple. Being that I have to buy a pc clone, what do I
> do? (I'm only going to use the laptop for word processing, simple
> spreadsheets, lots of web surfing, and burning some CDs.) Any advice
> would be appreciated!

Get one with an Athlon XP processor. You will get much better performance than a
comparably priced notebook with a Celeron processor. Apple is selling many
notebooks, however the prices on those aren't so low, and there is much more
software available for a pc than for a Mac.

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

ralgam <ralgam@aol.com> wrote:
> I was going to purchase a Dell inspiron 1100 or 1150,
> but then I started reading about the celeron processor
> and thought maybe the inspiron wasn't such a good idea.

Entirely reasonable. I believe Intel has significantly
improved the Celeron with their 300 series. The earlier
ones were truly crippled. If you want a Dell, then
consider a Pentium M. AFAIK, Dell doesn't sell AMD.

> Here's my problem: I am not very computer savvy, so I
> want to purchase a computer with good technical support.

Is HPaq that much worse than Dell? Their AMD Athlon XPs
are very cost effective.

> But from what I've been reading, the only good technical
> support is from Apple.

Naturally! You pay more, and they have a _much_ better
operating system. But beware, they still also have highly
biased fans around.

-- Robert

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

In article <41407009.4895282B@netscape.net>, JK <JK9821@netscape.net> wrote:
>
>
>ralgam wrote:
>
>> I was going to purchase a Dell inspiron 1100 or 1150, but then I
>> started reading about the celeron processor and thought maybe the
>> inspiron wasn't such a good idea. Here's my problem: I am not very
>> computer savvy, so I want to purchase a computer with good technical
>> support. But from what I've been reading, the only good technical
>> support is from Apple. Being that I have to buy a pc clone, what do I
>> do? (I'm only going to use the laptop for word processing, simple
>> spreadsheets, lots of web surfing, and burning some CDs.) Any advice
>> would be appreciated!
>
>Get one with an Athlon XP processor. You will get much better performance
>than a comparably priced notebook with a Celeron processor. Apple is
>selling many notebooks, however the prices on those aren't so low, and
>there is much more software available for a pc than for a Mac.
>
>

To say "purchase a laptop with an athlon" is not much help to the OP
since the quality and support have everything to do with brand, not
the CPU. The OP's hot button is support, and Dell generally does that
better than most. Dell is on everyone's short list of good x86
laptops, along with Toshiba and IBM.

Apple got top marks on the recent PC Magazine support satisfaction
survey. You can bring $1200 to the Apple store and come out with a
very nice laptop. There are not many $1200 x86 laptops I'd want.
An Apple will save the OP save $40/year by avoiding the expense
of AV software.

To say there is "lots more software for the PC" is questionable, and
irrelevant unless the OP wants to do something that MAC can't do,
which these means business applications and some games.

Celeron is fine in a laptop, if it's a good laptop, and you are going
to do word processing, internet browsing, and email.



--
Al Dykes
-----------
adykes at p a n i x . c o m

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

ralgam wrote:

> I was going to purchase a Dell inspiron 1100 or 1150, but then I
> started reading about the celeron processor and thought maybe the
> inspiron wasn't such a good idea. Here's my problem: I am not very
> computer savvy, so I want to purchase a computer with good technical
> support. But from what I've been reading, the only good technical
> support is from Apple. Being that I have to buy a pc clone, what do I
> do? (I'm only going to use the laptop for word processing, simple
> spreadsheets, lots of web surfing, and burning some CDs.) Any advice
> would be appreciated!

The "Help Me Choose" for on the Dell4Me page says that the Celeron on
the 1150 has 128K cache (as opposed to 512K cache in the offered mobile
P4). I wouldn't; the NetBurst (P4) architecture is really crippled with
such a small cache.

Whether _you_ can get by with the Celeron is more a matter of your own
style than of the machine. If the applications really are as
undemanding as you imply, and if you really can't spare the extra $150
for the P4, you'll get by with the Celeron. Neither machine would be my
choice, but you probably don't want to spend the money for a Pentium-M.

Technical support? Make friends with somebody who knows what they're doing.

RM

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

Robert Redelmeier <redelm@ev1.net.invalid> wrote:

>> But from what I've been reading, the only good technical
>> support is from Apple.
>
>Naturally! You pay more, and they have a _much_ better
>operating system. But beware, they still also have highly
>biased fans around.

c/biased/rabid/

8)

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

Al Dykes wrote:

> In article <41407009.4895282B@netscape.net>, JK <JK9821@netscape.net> wrote:
> >
> >
> >ralgam wrote:
> >
> >> I was going to purchase a Dell inspiron 1100 or 1150, but then I
> >> started reading about the celeron processor and thought maybe the
> >> inspiron wasn't such a good idea. Here's my problem: I am not very
> >> computer savvy, so I want to purchase a computer with good technical
> >> support. But from what I've been reading, the only good technical
> >> support is from Apple. Being that I have to buy a pc clone, what do I
> >> do? (I'm only going to use the laptop for word processing, simple
> >> spreadsheets, lots of web surfing, and burning some CDs.) Any advice
> >> would be appreciated!
> >
> >Get one with an Athlon XP processor. You will get much better performance
> >than a comparably priced notebook with a Celeron processor. Apple is
> >selling many notebooks, however the prices on those aren't so low, and
> >there is much more software available for a pc than for a Mac.
> >
> >
>
> To say "purchase a laptop with an athlon" is not much help to the OP
> since the quality and support have everything to do with brand, not
> the CPU. The OP's hot button is support, and Dell generally does that
> better than most.

Others would disagree with that.

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipse [...] i=2149&p=7

> Dell is on everyone's short list of good x86
> laptops, along with Toshiba and IBM.
>
> Apple got top marks on the recent PC Magazine support satisfaction
> survey. You can bring $1200 to the Apple store and come out with a
> very nice laptop.

Or one can spend $699(after rebates) for an Athlon XP notebook
with a 15" screen, or $599 at Walmart for one with a smaller
screen and slower cpu. $699 vs $1200 is a huge price difference.

> There are not many $1200 x86 laptops I'd want.
> An Apple will save the OP save $40/year by avoiding the expense
> of AV software.
>
> To say there is "lots more software for the PC" is questionable

Questionable? Why are you in doubt?

> , and
> irrelevant unless the OP wants to do something that MAC can't do,
> which these means business applications and some games.

Those are extremely popular software categories.

>
>
> Celeron is fine in a laptop

Fine? Why? Why settle for less performance in that price range than
you can get with an Athlon XP notebook?

> , if it's a good laptop, and you are going
> to do word processing, internet browsing, and email.

With that logic, someone should buy a $300 4 year old used notebook.

>
>
> --
> Al Dykes
> -----------
> adykes at p a n i x . c o m

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

Oops. I posted the wrong link in my previous post.

http://www.resellerratings.com/seller1867.html

JK wrote:

> Al Dykes wrote:
>
> > In article <41407009.4895282B@netscape.net>, JK <JK9821@netscape.net> wrote:
> > >
> > >
> > >ralgam wrote:
> > >
> > >> I was going to purchase a Dell inspiron 1100 or 1150, but then I
> > >> started reading about the celeron processor and thought maybe the
> > >> inspiron wasn't such a good idea. Here's my problem: I am not very
> > >> computer savvy, so I want to purchase a computer with good technical
> > >> support. But from what I've been reading, the only good technical
> > >> support is from Apple. Being that I have to buy a pc clone, what do I
> > >> do? (I'm only going to use the laptop for word processing, simple
> > >> spreadsheets, lots of web surfing, and burning some CDs.) Any advice
> > >> would be appreciated!
> > >
> > >Get one with an Athlon XP processor. You will get much better performance
> > >than a comparably priced notebook with a Celeron processor. Apple is
> > >selling many notebooks, however the prices on those aren't so low, and
> > >there is much more software available for a pc than for a Mac.
> > >
> > >
> >
> > To say "purchase a laptop with an athlon" is not much help to the OP
> > since the quality and support have everything to do with brand, not
> > the CPU. The OP's hot button is support, and Dell generally does that
> > better than most.
>
> Others would disagree with that.
>
> http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipse [...] i=2149&p=7
>
> > Dell is on everyone's short list of good x86
> > laptops, along with Toshiba and IBM.
> >
> > Apple got top marks on the recent PC Magazine support satisfaction
> > survey. You can bring $1200 to the Apple store and come out with a
> > very nice laptop.
>
> Or one can spend $699(after rebates) for an Athlon XP notebook
> with a 15" screen, or $599 at Walmart for one with a smaller
> screen and slower cpu. $699 vs $1200 is a huge price difference.
>
> > There are not many $1200 x86 laptops I'd want.
> > An Apple will save the OP save $40/year by avoiding the expense
> > of AV software.
> >
> > To say there is "lots more software for the PC" is questionable
>
> Questionable? Why are you in doubt?
>
> > , and
> > irrelevant unless the OP wants to do something that MAC can't do,
> > which these means business applications and some games.
>
> Those are extremely popular software categories.
>
> >
> >
> > Celeron is fine in a laptop
>
> Fine? Why? Why settle for less performance in that price range than
> you can get with an Athlon XP notebook?
>
> > , if it's a good laptop, and you are going
> > to do word processing, internet browsing, and email.
>
> With that logic, someone should buy a $300 4 year old used notebook.
>
> >
> >
> > --
> > Al Dykes
> > -----------
> > adykes at p a n i x . c o m

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

JK <JK9821@netscape.net> wrote in message news:<41407009.4895282B@netscape.net>...
> Get one with an Athlon XP processor. You will get much better performance than a comparably priced notebook with a Celeron processor.

What manufacturer would you recommend, considering I may need to use
the technical support?

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

On 9 Sep 2004 11:40:16 -0400, adykes@panix.com (Al Dykes) wrote:

>In article <41407009.4895282B@netscape.net>, JK <JK9821@netscape.net> wrote:
>>
>>
>>ralgam wrote:
>>
>>> I was going to purchase a Dell inspiron 1100 or 1150, but then I
>>> started reading about the celeron processor and thought maybe the
>>> inspiron wasn't such a good idea. Here's my problem: I am not very
>>> computer savvy, so I want to purchase a computer with good technical
>>> support. But from what I've been reading, the only good technical
>>> support is from Apple. Being that I have to buy a pc clone, what do I
>>> do? (I'm only going to use the laptop for word processing, simple
>>> spreadsheets, lots of web surfing, and burning some CDs.) Any advice
>>> would be appreciated!
>>
>>Get one with an Athlon XP processor. You will get much better performance
>>than a comparably priced notebook with a Celeron processor. Apple is
>>selling many notebooks, however the prices on those aren't so low, and
>>there is much more software available for a pc than for a Mac.
>>
>>
>
>To say "purchase a laptop with an athlon" is not much help to the OP
>since the quality and support have everything to do with brand, not
>the CPU. The OP's hot button is support, and Dell generally does that
>better than most. Dell is on everyone's short list of good x86
>laptops, along with Toshiba and IBM.

Dell got crossed off our list a while back - too many probs which, given
inability to correct (e.g. drifting cursor etc.), seemed to indicate
endemic faults.

Rgds, George Macdonald

"Just because they're paranoid doesn't mean you're not psychotic" - Who, me??

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

Robert Myers <rmyers1400@comcast.net> wrote in message news:<G1%%c.406214$%_6.92675@attbi_s01>...
>
> Technical support? Make friends with somebody who knows what they're doing.
>
> RM

You mean like you guys?

Seriously, if price is the same, where would you recommend I purchase
the laptop.. Compusa, Best Buy, Staples, Circuit City? Which would
give me the best service if there is something wrong with the laptop?

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

In article <934ffce7.0409091450.2df6aed0@posting.google.com>,
ralgam <ralgam@aol.com> wrote:
>Robert Myers <rmyers1400@comcast.net> wrote in message news:
<G1%%c.406214$%_6.92675@attbi_s01>...
>>
>> Technical support? Make friends with somebody who knows what they're doing.
>>
>> RM
>
>You mean like you guys?
>
>Seriously, if price is the same, where would you recommend I purchase
>the laptop.. Compusa, Best Buy, Staples, Circuit City? Which would
>give me the best service if there is something wrong with the laptop?


I'd avoid these stores like the plague. I think laptops are best
bought on the web or by phone directly from the manufacturer or a
reputable computer equipment distributer (CompUSA doesn't fall into
that catagory, Newegg does, IMO.)

If you selct a model and customize it on the manufacturer's website
then call a human salesman and keep chat with him you might find they
have a special deal "today only". It's also worth asking what kind of
other hardware or software they can bundle in with the laptop.

I recommend extended warranty, but only from the manufacturer. The
store-brand warranty will be a pain to use if you need to use
it. trust me.

It's also worth looking on ebay for the "stores" IBM and Dell have
remainder and referb models on a regular basis and if you know what
you are shopping for they can be a good deal. WHen I checked, once,
I found that I could buy an IBM laptop on ebay and then call up IBM
withinn 30 daya and buy the extended warranty.

There are lots of business-grade laptops out these that have come off
3-year lease. The major problem I have with used laptops is the
battery is dead.


--
Al Dykes
-----------
adykes at p a n i x . c o m

Archived from groups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.chips (More info?)

ralgam wrote:
> Robert Myers <rmyers1400@comcast.net> wrote in message news:<G1%%c.406214$%_6.92675@attbi_s01>...
>
>>Technical support? Make friends with somebody who knows what they're doing.
>>
>>RM
>
>
> You mean like you guys?
>
> Seriously, if price is the same, where would you recommend I purchase
> the laptop.. Compusa, Best Buy, Staples, Circuit City? Which would
> give me the best service if there is something wrong with the laptop?

There is really no place that I would recommend to buy a laptop.
Wherever I decided to buy, I'd scrutinize the terms of the warranty
carefully and ask as many questions as I could think of about what
actually happens when something goes wrong. What terms are acceptable
is going to depend on how much risk, hassle, delay, and uncertainty you
can live with. There is no way to buy a laptop that does not involve
risk and uncertainty and a substantial possibility of hassle and serious
delay if there is a problem. If you can't live with those things, you
shouldn't buy a laptop.

As to tech support, don't plan on much hand-holding from the
manufacturer. On the margins at which PC's are sold, a manufacturer who
included realistic tech support to a naive user would soon be out of
business. Against that dour assessment, google and the internet are
your friends if you can't find a friend locally.

As compared to the laptop you originally inquired about, gateway offers
an attractive alternative (although the link hints darkly that
availability may not be certain):

http://www.gateway.com/home/deals/offers/m520cs.shtml

The m520cs comes with a Celeron D processor, which has 256k of cache, as
opposed to the 128k of the Dell you inquired about. The price is lower,
and the performance of the Celeron D, while not wonderful, should be
accpetable.

RM