I'd like to purchase a laptop for blogging on the go (coffee shops, airports, abandoned crack houses, etc.) Any recommendations?
Here's what I need: 4 to 5 hour battery life, medium sized screen, okay to travel with and type on, can do standard web-based stuff (Blogger (duh), Flickr, Gmail, video chat, etc.), can access YouTube and other parts of the internets.
I've looked at the HP laptops at Best Buy (oh, here comes the spam) and been tempted; the $429 G42-415DX is something I'm looking at (AMD Athlon II processor). I've been tempted by the HP laptops with the Intel i3 processors ($599, I think.)
I don't have the money right now for an Apple product, so I apologize for that in advance. Sorry, folks.
I'm also looking at purchasing a Verizon mobile broadband card, too. Any thoughts on this and how much I need to purchase? $50? $100?
Thanks in advance for any help you might give.
Here's what I need: 4 to 5 hour battery life, medium sized screen, okay to travel with and type on, can do standard web-based stuff (Blogger (duh), Flickr, Gmail, video chat, etc.), can access YouTube and other parts of the internets.
I've looked at the HP laptops at Best Buy (oh, here comes the spam) and been tempted; the $429 G42-415DX is something I'm looking at (AMD Athlon II processor). I've been tempted by the HP laptops with the Intel i3 processors ($599, I think.)
I don't have the money right now for an Apple product, so I apologize for that in advance. Sorry, folks.
I'm also looking at purchasing a Verizon mobile broadband card, too. Any thoughts on this and how much I need to purchase? $50? $100?
Thanks in advance for any help you might give.
Go with what you're used to ... if there's anything you happen to be used to. The rest is semantics.
ReplyDeleteDespite your exclusion of Apple products, have you considered an iPad? The low-end 3G model runs for $629, which is in the range you're talking about and would not require an extra broadband card. If the on-screen keyboard is too small, there are a few options for external keyboards.
ReplyDeleteI recently got one and have been quite impressed by its speed and ease of use. I do not use mine for blogging, but it's great for all the other things you mention.
I'll suggest a Lenovo Thinkpad X120E (with a E-350 chip - not the E-240). It is small and light, powerful enough for what you describe, has a longer battery life than what you need and is <$500. The downside is the screen is smaller than what I'd call medium, though bigger than a netbook. You can also upgrade to some integrated mobile 3G foo on the Lenovo site, though I don't know how this works with Verizon. If you google around (or look at slickdeals) you can find a coupon code for 10% off as well.
ReplyDeleteWhatever you get, try if possible to get the extended warranty. I've managed to minimize the financial damage of my Apple product addiction as their warranty protection is excellent. 3 Macbook and 5 iPhone replacements would be pretty much impossible otherwise on my stipend.
ReplyDeleteI've been impressed with my labmates' Sony laptops, although they might be a little extra too.
I use my iPad for blogging, without an external keyboard. The 3G version works well when you're traveling plus it's light.
ReplyDeleteThe drawbacks - you can't watch all videos and not all websites work properly.
I also have a HP netbook. It's light and it works just like all windows computers. It's slow compared to desktop/iPad/notebook and things don't fit right on the screen sometimes, but it works fine. I think you can also buy 3G versions of netbooks.
Since getting the netbook/iPad I would never travel with a standard notebook. The smaller size is just so much more convenient to lug around. In fact, I just carry my iPad in my purse.
The iPad is obviously very tempting, but I am concerned that I will not be able to access my toddlers's favorite YouTube videos, among other concerns.
ReplyDeleteYou won't be able to see videos on Sesame Street.com or NickJr.com either. Most video intesive kids sites (all of them) use Adobe Flash Player. It's the biggest downside to our iPad, IMHO.
ReplyDeleteI have a 6 year old Sony laptop and have been very pleased with its durability over the years. They are much more reasonable at this point.
Any way you go, you can get a solid laptop for under $500.
It has a YouTube channel on it, so you should be able to find it. It doesn't run Flash Videos though.
ReplyDeleteToddlers looooove the iPad. My niece did. She played with it all throughout Christmas.
One other thing - I can't post a comment to your website from my iPad. The verification code doesn't show up properly.
ReplyDeleteI am a big fan of all products Toshiba...you could even say my last three notebooks have all been Toshiba. Decent battery life, like a rock (survive coffee spills, drops, etc), and priced right, about $350 for a midrange laptop (40 Gb drive, internet built-in, webcam, etc).
ReplyDeleteWarranty through BestBuy / CompUSA (if you want) is usually $100-200.
Toshiba Portege- only three pounds!
ReplyDeleteThe HP with the Athlon processor is what I have, and the battery life is shorter than you will like. Battery is realistically only good for about three hours with normal use. They say 4-6h, they lie. You can get an extra battery and all that, but you're better off just getting something with a decent battery life to begin with.
ReplyDeleteI've had two Lenovos - first one was a beast of an A31p (seven years ago), latest a Dual core 2GHz T61, also excellent, but now old.
ReplyDeleteIf I were buying new today, I'd go for an Acer timeline X series, I'd probably go for the Core i5 version at $629.
http://www.amazon.com/Acer-TimelineX-AS5820T-6401-15-6-Inch-Aluminum/dp/tech-data/B004ETOBPI/ref=de_a_smtd
I have an Asus eeepc which while it might not be the highest spec (1005PE version if you are interested) it has a great battery life (around 9 hours) and is hard as nails. After blogging with it all the way round the world it is now my main research computer. The keyboard is comfortable too.
ReplyDeleteIt can run spotify, Word 2010, chemdraw, firefox, opera and endnote, all at the same time - I doubt an Ipad can do that. And it is very portable, I bike with it to the lab and back every day.
So if you want something that is great value for money and does everything you want I would recommend it. It isn't particularly flashy however.
I tend to prefer the Toshiba as a laptop. It's in the right price range, and works as a travel and work computer for about 4 years.
ReplyDeleteI found the best prices at MyDeals247 - nothing can beat that.
ReplyDeleteipad i think best for blogging.....
ReplyDelete