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Old 10-17-2018, 05:57 PM   #61
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I don't know how things compare now but laptop AMD CPUs used to be a bit less energy efficient than those from Intel but that may have changed. I've had AMD CPUs in my desktops for years and they've always been good. They also tend to give you more bang for your buck. Certainly, I'd expect that your proposed laptop would work well for you. It's a big screen so I assume it's more of a "desktop replacement" than it being for someone always on the go with it. So battery life may not be an issue.
Bingo on the desk top replacement. 95% of the time that is how it is used. battery life is not really an issue.

To address Golden Mean: Current resolution is 1366 x 768, with a 15.6" screen, so probably the same. For normal web use, more than adequate, I think. I can upgrade to 1920 x 1080 for $100. Is it really going to make a big difference? No gaming. Nothing special.
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Old 10-17-2018, 06:09 PM   #62
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Bingo on the desk top replacement. 95% of the time that is how it is used. battery life is not really an issue.

To address Golden Mean: Current resolution is 1366 x 768, with a 15.6" screen, so probably the same. For normal web use, more than adequate, I think. I can upgrade to 1920 x 1080 for $100. Is it really going to make a big difference? No gaming. Nothing special.
I would say yes, it's worth it for the higher res. Especially since you'll probably get a higher quality screen too. 1600x1200 at 17.3 is 106 ppi. For reference, I don't think Mac has made a laptop less than 200 ppi in years. Fonts will look much clearer. Most books are printed at 300+ dpi for example.

If you have a Fry's or Best Buy close by, you might try to find a 1600x900 and put it next to a higher resolution/dpi laptop and see if it makes a difference to you.

This article touches on the issues with the lower res displays: https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/l...olution-ripoff
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Old 10-17-2018, 06:30 PM   #63
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I would say yes, it's worth it for the higher res. Especially since you'll probably get a higher quality screen too. 1600x1200 at 17.3 is 106 ppi. For reference, I don't think Mac has made a laptop less than 200 ppi in years. Fonts will look much clearer. Most books are printed at 300+ dpi for example.

If you have a Fry's or Best Buy close by, you might try to find a 1600x900 and put it next to a higher resolution/dpi laptop and see if it makes a difference to you.

This article touches on the issues with the lower res displays: https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/l...olution-ripoff
I read the article, and understand what you are saying. I will take your suggestion and go to BestBuy tomorrow to make an in person comparison,

Thanks
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Old 10-23-2018, 05:00 PM   #64
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Just to add my 2 cents worth... and my opinions only, of course! But...

Windows 10 is an improvement over 7; more stable and support for 7 will be terminated before too much longer. Microsoft claims Win 10 is their long-term solution. We'll see.

8GB is enough for a laptop; unless you're playing Fortnite/FarCry/Call of Duty/etc type games which are memory hogs.

I like ASUS computers; Macs are great and the Mac store will teach you the interface so also very good support, if pricey; HP, ACER, Dell, Lenovo, etc are all good, it just depends on the features you want.

For word processing, spreadsheets, etc. Apache's Open Office is free and fairly comprehensive. I've been using a home version of MS Office so haven't done a lot of experimenting with the online ones like Google Sheets so no opinion...

SSD boots up faster than traditional hard drive. The earlier models had a higher failure rate but seem to be ok now. My SSD is 500GB and is plenty of storage. If you need more, buy a portable external hard drive (although not a WD external drives because they partition them and it's annoying; try Seagate) or store on the internet - assuming you always have good internet connectivity (I travel and often don't) and are fairly trusting of the provider's security.

Best Buy is a good place to buy. I bought my travel laptop off a discount sites on the internet, and the gamer off Amazon. I wouldn't buy from Wal-Mart, it strikes me as very low-end stuff. I haven't bought Dell because I thought they were too high priced but maybe they're more competitive now. Microsoft stores are pricey too.

I use Vipre internet security for my anti-virus & firewall; fairly low profile and not power-hungry. McAfee & Symantec are good and the big names with good support and there're lots of others out there.

If all you're moving are your Word, spreadsheet files, you can do that yourself by copying everything out of your My Documents folder over. If you're using Chrome, and let it sync over the internet, it'll move all your bookmarks and favorites over for you (if you're using them) but with Internet Explorer or Edge, you'd need to google to see how to move the bookmarks.
For games or software programs, if you have the disks and license keys, you can easily install them yourself. Geek Squad can move them for you but they'd still like your disks and license keys if you have them, in which case it's just as easy to do it yourself.

AMD has made a comeback - either AMD or Intel are fine.

I agree with: "That screen resolution is way low ... 1920x1080 is probably the lowest limit I'd go" And if you're not planning on traveling with it, 17" screen would be better. 15" is good for travel laptops. Also, if you're not traveling, battery life shouldn't be an issue since you can plug it in.
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Old 10-23-2018, 05:11 PM   #65
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Bought the computer I have linked below last year off of Amazon. This is easily the best bang for the buck computer out there. It has 16GB of DDR4 RAM, and a DESKTOP GTX 1060 6GB Nvidia card. A 256 GB SSD, with Windows 10 and an Intel i7-7700 CPU finish the major specs off. The case is metal instead of plastic, and the fans are metal, with aerospace grade bearings. It is easily the best computer I have come across, desktop or laptop, for the $. Have had personal computers from the 1980's and can tell you this thing is a steal.

Adding a 2nd drive, or more memory (which seem silly) is very easy to do.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
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Old 10-23-2018, 06:29 PM   #66
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What will you use the laptop for? I've owned a computer consulting business for 32 years, & that's always my first question. The speed difference between your old Pentium Dual Core & today's Core series is immense, so unless you're creating YouTube videos, using Photoshop for editing, or other high-end work, just about any new laptop will work.


That said, look for at least the following: Core i3 processor, 8 GB RAM, 1 TB hard-drive, Windows 10 Home. Anything above that is fine, depending on price. More RAM is always useful (my minimum is 32 GB), but not necessary. SSDs are great for people like me who use high-end software, but you'll never care about the speed difference.Lots of bells & whistles you can add, depending on budget.


Your Works files can be imported into any of the current Office versions, so no worry about that. Buy a student version of Office at Costco or Sams. Buy a new HP printer, too, as Windows 10 is picky about what will work with it. Last, buy a 4TB external hard-drive that connects with a USB cable. Use it to transfer all of your existing data (NOT programs!) from the old machine, & copy those files to the new laptop.


Have fun!
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Old 10-23-2018, 10:41 PM   #67
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Costco has a Dell Inspiron 17.3", 256GB SSD, 2TB HD, 16 GB RAM, WIN 10, Intel I7-8550 processor and a bunch of other stuff for $899 until Oct 28. You should be able to find it here:
https://www.costco.com/Dell-Inspiron...100380003.html

Picked one up a week ago and it's working well. Replaced a 12 year old Dell 15.6" Inspiron with similar features (no SSD drive), old everything, Vista, and paid about $1100 in more valuable dollars. If you're only going to have one computer, it's worth the money. Unless you're really young and can actually see what's on a 13" screen.
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SSD well worth it!
Old 10-24-2018, 05:01 AM   #68
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SSD well worth it!

Spend a few extra on the SSD. I just upgraded HDD to SSD and kept everything else the same. The computer loads so much faster. Applications load dramatically faster. The computer does not make that sound that a HDD makes when it is reading. With time, HDD is going to become the next dial-up. The only thing keeping it going is costing a little less.

There is a great deal on Samsung 860 500GB SSD at Microcenter right now. This is what I just replaced mine with and Samsung makes a great SSD. It's on sale for under $100. The battery will also last longer to save you money over time. Saving money is nice with a longer battery and the much faster computer makes using the computer much more enjoyable.

It is well worth it!
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Old 10-24-2018, 06:28 AM   #69
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You would have to pry my laptop with the SSD from my cold dead hands. I will not buy one without it. Everything is faster and runs so much better.
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Old 10-24-2018, 06:55 AM   #70
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Just in case others missed the course correction Microsoft made with iOS Excel!
Thanks. I definitely missed that enhancement. Also has anyone discovered a decent way to cut and paste on an iPad? Every month I have to cut a portion of a spreadsheet to publish the Monthly results as a Jpeg on another site.
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Old 10-24-2018, 07:43 AM   #71
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has anyone discovered a decent way to cut and paste on an iPad?
It's easier than you may think.
How to Select, Copy, and Paste Text on the iPad
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Old 10-24-2018, 07:48 AM   #72
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I would go no lower than i5 +16GB +SSD, in order to future-proof the investment.
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Old 10-24-2018, 01:35 PM   #73
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OP here.

Pulled the trigger. I had a hard time finding the options I wanted in a standard unit, without topping $1,200 and getting a gaming computer. So I customized one on line. $870+tax.

i5 8250U processor, 17.3" 1920x1080 screen, 512 GB PCle NVMe M.2 SSD, 1 x 8 GB RAM (I can always add more later if I think I need it). It does have a DVD-RW drive. No HDD. Now I need to wait until Mid-November for it to be built, shipped and delivered.

Thanks all for your comments.
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Old 10-25-2018, 07:31 AM   #74
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Yes thanks. I do copy but sometimes when moving the blue bars, it decides I want something different and I start over, sometimes multiple times. Nothing as concise at my laptop trackpad. I wondered if anyone had found a better alternative?
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Old 10-25-2018, 02:35 PM   #75
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OP here.

Pulled the trigger. I had a hard time finding the options I wanted in a standard unit, without topping $1,200 and getting a gaming computer. So I customized one on line. $870+tax.

i5 8250U processor, 17.3" 1920x1080 screen, 512 GB PCle NVMe M.2 SSD, 1 x 8 GB RAM (I can always add more later if I think I need it). It does have a DVD-RW drive. No HDD. Now I need to wait until Mid-November for it to be built, shipped and delivered.

Thanks all for your comments.
This sounds like a pretty sweet system. Hope you enjoy!
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Old 10-25-2018, 02:46 PM   #76
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OP here.

Pulled the trigger. I had a hard time finding the options I wanted in a standard unit, without topping $1,200 and getting a gaming computer. So I customized one on line. $870+tax.

i5 8250U processor, 17.3" 1920x1080 screen, 512 GB PCle NVMe M.2 SSD, 1 x 8 GB RAM (I can always add more later if I think I need it). It does have a DVD-RW drive. No HDD. Now I need to wait until Mid-November for it to be built, shipped and delivered.

Thanks all for your comments.
Good deal!!! You are going to love your new laptop.
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Old 10-25-2018, 02:49 PM   #77
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8GB is enough for a laptop; unless you're playing Fortnite/FarCry/Call of Duty/etc type games which are memory hogs.
My laptop had 6 GB in it and it would become painfully slow just using a web browser (Chrome). Web sites have gotten so complex these days that they consume a lot of memory - just open up Task Manager and look. It is crazy what they suck up. I tend to have at least eight tabs open in the browser.

I upgraded the memory in it to 16 GB and it is like night and day difference, it is extremely fast again. I highly recommend 16 GB.
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Old 10-25-2018, 08:37 PM   #78
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My laptop had 6 GB in it and it would become painfully slow just using a web browser (Chrome). Web sites have gotten so complex these days that they consume a lot of memory - just open up Task Manager and look. It is crazy what they suck up. I tend to have at least eight tabs open in the browser.

I upgraded the memory in it to 16 GB and it is like night and day difference, it is extremely fast again. I highly recommend 16 GB.
Amazing how different operating systems use memory and system resources. On my Asus K54C laptop with 6 GB of memory I read 1.1 GB in use out of 5.7 GB available with Chrome open and it's very fast. I use Linux Mint XFCE. I don't normally have so many tabs open but I tested it with 8 tabs open and it now reads 1.6 GB out of 5.7 and I haven't noticed much of a slow down.
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Old 10-26-2018, 01:25 AM   #79
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Amazing how different operating systems use memory and system resources. On my Asus K54C laptop with 6 GB of memory I read 1.1 GB in use out of 5.7 GB available with Chrome open and it's very fast. I use Linux Mint XFCE. I don't normally have so many tabs open but I tested it with 8 tabs open and it now reads 1.6 GB out of 5.7 and I haven't noticed much of a slow down.
Is it the OS or is it Chrome? Chrome on Linux is not the same as Chrome on Windows. One thing I noticed is that for some strange reason Chrome creates 2 or 3 processes for each tab you have open in the browser. This is on Windows, not sure what it does on Linux. Not sure what is going on, but I have complained to Google about it. At any rate, if you are a Windows user, more memory translates to happier computing. And the difference between 8 and 16 GB is only $50.
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Old 12-02-2018, 12:54 PM   #80
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I'm in the same boat as the OP, pretty much. I haven't been in the laptop market for a while, so I went and educated myself on the current features available, pos/cons of each etc. My current Lenovo is just running too slow to be useful, and I don't feel like troubleshooting why.

Although I probably don't need this much in a laptop, I decided to future proof against new applications and processing requirements. Plus I think this machine is a steal at the price...therefore I'm wondering what I am missing.

From Costco online:

Acer Aspire 5
15.6" screen
12GB RAM
1TB HDD + 256GB SSD
NVIDIA GeForce MX150 graphics
Intel i7 processor
No touchscreen
No Optical (DVD) drive
Costco's return policy and 2-yr warranty with their "Concierge Service" (I've never used it, so don't know what it's like)

Price is $725 + $15 for shipping. I haven't seen anything with these specs for under $900, so I think I may go for it. Any thoughts?
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