AboutBobbert Expertise General purchasing questions, in areas regarding price to performance ratios and future expansion, drawing from roughly a decade of experience and numerous unique situations for customers and myself, I'm willing to help you get the best computer for your money.
Experience I have been an enthuiast of PC's for many years, and can answer most questions about purchase of a new computer from personal knowledge or experience through other online Q&A services in advising on the same topic.
Question I'm looking for a new laptop as mine is nearing four years old and is on it's last legs. I use a graphics tablet with CS2, Image Ready, etc., and spend a full day (around 8 hours total) on the computer, working on graphics or just playing around online, with iTunes, watching movies, etc.
My two laptops so far have been Dells, and I've been happy with them, but have also been considering an Apple Certified Refurbished Macbook. I would like to be able to play and burn both CDs and DVDs, a large screen (14.5" or more for the graphics), touchpad rather than rollerball style mouse (if this is even an issue anymore), and I really really really do not want to use Windows Vista.
However, I'm clueless about the specs that I actually would need; memory, ram, speeds, processors, it's all Greek to me! Any advice for the specs or the computers themselves would be very much appreciated, thank you!
Answer Honestly, "anything" would likely be a suitable replacement for your existing system (with respect to processor selection and memory), modern computers are much faster than anything available in 2004-2005. I would suggest looking at Dell, if you've been satisfied, but I would also suggest Asus and Gateway as alternatives.
The biggest issue is avoiding Windows Vista (and I agree with that choice), as many manufacturers have adopted the operating system by this point. I would look at Dell Small Business, as they've continued to offer Windows XP Professional on a number of systems. Beyond that, you'll need to uninstall Vista, and install Windows XP yourself. This is not a problem, as Windows XP is still available for users to purchase: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116511 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116515
Beyond that, I would ensure that you get a screen that suits your needs (if you're doing graphic design, note that "glossy" is popular in the consumer space, while it generally isn't what most designers prefer), and enough storage (which is purely up to you, how much storage do you need? is your current system enough? or are you relying on external disks to "fill the gap"?).
If you've got any questions feel free to ask a follow-up, and I'd be happy to look over any models you're considering, I just don't want to suggest anything at this point, especially without knowing your budget, and overly color your choices.
