Laptop advice: Sony E-series

[t_ski]

My wife wants a replacement for her aging Compaq laptop. She said she likes the Sony E-series:

http://store.sony.com/webapp/wcs/sto...52921644784018

Anyone have any experience with these? She doesn't need it for much, other than browsing, iTunes and light Office use.

[N-Gen]

Seems pretty reasonable for that price, I never hear any complaints from friends using Sony laptops. Personally I'd go with an optional i series CPU and dedicated graphics just to have that little more headroom, but that's just me.

[Fourstaff]

Not too sure about pricing on the US side, but Sony products are generally a bit more expensive for the same specs/build quality as your regular run off the mill laptop. This one looks ok.

[Cold Storm]

I owned a few sony laptops back in the day. I love their products. They are normally, like 4 says, more money then most, but it all boils down to what the person likes.

I'm really thinking of their tablets...


I'd go for it for the wife.. if I had one.

[t_ski]

Originally Posted by N-Gen

Seems pretty reasonable for that price, I never hear any complaints from friends using Sony laptops. Personally I'd go with an optional i series CPU and dedicated graphics just to have that little more headroom, but that's just me.

I was thinking the i series CPU, but the Nvidia graphics would be a waste. There's nothing she's use it for, and Nvidia does not have the best reputation for laptop graphics.

Originally Posted by Fourstaff

Not too sure about pricing on the US side, but Sony products are generally a bit more expensive for the same specs/build quality as your regular run off the mill laptop. This one looks ok.

I agree that they may cost a little bit more, but I plan on exploring sales and promo codes to get a better deal than what's listed.

Originally Posted by Cold Storm

I owned a few sony laptops back in the day. I love their products. They are normally, like 4 says, more money then most, but it all boils down to what the person likes.

I'm really thinking of their tablets...

I'd go for it for the wife.. if I had one.

You had no concerns of the build quality? I've owned a few Sony products, and they've been good for the most part.

[cheesy999]

Originally Posted by t_ski

You had no concerns of the build quality? I've owned a few Sony products, and they've been good for the most part.

if their laptops are like most of the other things they make they'll probably outlast the owner

[Fourstaff]

HD3000 is not bad, its graphics power is about the same as my 4570 and I play Starcraft 2 on it.

If you can get promo costs to drive it down, then it becomes your normal run off the mill laptop again, but with Sony sticker on it (if it lets you sleep better at night).

The only problem I have met is my friend's Sony SB series. After 3 hard years of service, it overheats everytime you game, but fine if you dont. I suspect the problem is that fans need cleaning etc, but I haven't have time to open it up and give it a clean yet.

[N-Gen]

The GPU I can understand not being wanted seeing as the intel graphics are quite decent for what they are, and adding to that, if there's no nVidia Optimus on it, it will last less on the battery.

On the build quality, to be honest I think compared to other brands the quality seems to be superior to some extent, at least from what I've seen.

[Cold Storm]

Originally Posted by t_ski

You had no concerns of the build quality? I've owned a few Sony products, and they've been good for the most part.

The only problems I ever had, was when their power bricks were the talk of the town... Meaning, they got as hot as a Fermi GPU did.. But, I never had one blow up on me, and mine last one lasted almost 6y... Ex fiance got it...

[Suhidu]

I repaired a somewhat recent(of the past few years) Sony laptop. It seemed to be built pretty decently but was a pain to service. Took a million screws to get the HDD, and Sony's website wasn't very helpful (compared to Dell and HP).

Granted, this was with a single model, so things may have changed for the E-series. As far as any improvements to their support website and its lack of useful service manuals, I can't check because their website isn't loading for me right now.

Originally Posted by Fourstaff

The only problem I have met is my friend's Sony SB series. After 3 hard years of service, it overheats everytime you game, but fine if you dont. I suspect the problem is that fans need cleaning etc, but I haven't have time to open it up and give it a clean yet.

Needed for desktops, let alone laptops. (3 years beats the <1 year I got from my HP before the fans screamed at the sight of 3D graphics.)

[cheesy999]

Originally Posted by Suhidu

Needed for desktops, let alone laptops. (3 years beats the <1 year I got from my HP before the fans screamed at the sight of 3D graphics.)

yeah 3 years is good for a laptop, sony did well there, my HP has a fan profile which keeps them turned off up till about 80'c where they then switch to minimum, needless to say it overheats if you don't clean it once a year or so

[t_ski]

I just showed my wife this laptop:

http://www.staples.com/Dell-Inspiron...product_403342

They have a deal on it for ~$450 with a coupon, and it has specs to rival my Latitude E6420 from work. She loves everything about my Dell (LED screen, snappy CPU, awesome wireless speed, etc), but this one adds more ram, a bigger HDD, a bigger screen, a built-in 10-key (like the Sony does), and still has switable lids if she decides to customize it.

So it sounds like she might be willing to look at another brand if we can keep it around the same price.

[Cold Storm]

Originally Posted by t_ski

I just showed my wife this laptop:

http://www.staples.com/Dell-Inspiron...product_403342

They have a deal on it for ~$450 with a coupon, and it has specs to rival my Latitude E6420 from work. She loves everything about my Dell (LED screen, snappy CPU, awesome wireless speed, etc), but this one adds more ram, a bigger HDD, a bigger screen, a built-in 10-key (like the Sony does), and still has switable lids if she decides to customize it.

So it sounds like she might be willing to look at another brand if we can keep it around the same price.

It does look to be a "better buy" when it comes to what it can give ya. Plus, it will give her something that she can "buy" to make it her own.. It's a "win win" in perspective.. IMHO


Just remember to Format that baby once it comes home! Staples has LOADS more cr@p onto their systems then most..

[t_ski]

I have worked on a few Dells over the years and They are pretty easy to get around in, too.

[Liquid Cool]

T,

In the $500 range...

I've got the Inspiron 17R(N7110), I've had it for about a month. Haven't had any problems with it, nice laptop.

A couple of nitpicks...if you're going to replace the HDD with an SSD...make sure to have the afternoon free. It's not like the HP/Compaq units, where you take off the bottom cover, switch them out and go...I personally ended up taking the whole unit apart while I was at it to put some MX on the chipsets. With an intel G3 120gb and 8gb's of ram...she's a runner, but the HD 3000 seems limiting when thinking of future proofing to some degree. It'll play COD4, but nothing faster. Multitasking with the i3-2310m and the SSD is great though.

I also purchased the ever popular Newegg refurb HP DV6-6135DX...in my opinion...after tweaking(SSD/8gb G. Skill & light OC), it's a screamer. Skyrim? No problem. For some reason I love this notebook. Lots of hidden potential lurking in there.

I've set up quite a few of the 4530s Pro from HP for friends/family. They have it at the egg for $475 I think. Overall for a casual user, I like this one best. Tough as nails. For myself, I like the HP DV6-6135DX, over the Inspiron. Speed and the fan annoys me at times. It REALLY ramps up during any heavy activity even after switching out the paste.

Best,

Liquid Cool

[Suhidu]

Originally Posted by Liquid Cool

A couple of nitpicks...if you're going to replace the HDD with an SSD...make sure to have the afternoon free.

No kidding , at least Dell has easy-to-find service manuals. That HP you mentioned looks nice, I have a pavilion from a few years back that's built pretty well for a non-business/"pro" line.

[Liquid Cool]

My own personal rule is HP for notebooks. Dell for monitors. I broke it when I saw the price of the 4730s vs. the Inspiron 17R. I paid 453 out the door for the 17R. I called and spoke with a customer service rep and they had no problems sending me out the 'real' installation discs. Overall, my experience on the phone with them(after three calls) has been nothing short of superb.

Although, I still believe I like the HP's aluminium cases better. They seem more sturdy, don't know if that means much...smile.

The Pro 4530s...for a cheaper notebook I don't know of a single person who hasn't really liked theirs.

My first HP/Compaq was an M2010US, still ran better than new when I sold it last year for $200. I bought it in 2005.

Best,

LC

[Cold Storm]

I gotta say I'm with you Liquid.. The whole family is HP on laptops and nothing wrong with them.. I love my touchsmart lappy..

[streetfighter 2]

Originally Posted by t_ski

I just showed my wife this laptop:

http://www.staples.com/Dell-Inspiron...product_403342

They have a deal on it for ~$450 with a coupon, and it has specs to rival my Latitude E6420 from work. She loves everything about my Dell (LED screen, snappy CPU, awesome wireless speed, etc), but this one adds more ram, a bigger HDD, a bigger screen, a built-in 10-key (like the Sony does), and still has switable lids if she decides to customize it.

So it sounds like she might be willing to look at another brand if we can keep it around the same price.

I think the Inspirons feel pretty cheap when compared to the Latitude series. When I look for laptops I almost exclusively look at HP Probook/Elitebook, Lenovo Thinkpad (not Ideapad), Macbook, Dell Latitude, etc.

IMO business class laptops are the only rational decision.

[MN12BIRD]

Originally Posted by cheesy999

if their laptops are like most of the other things they make they'll probably outlast the owner

Just like their TV's, car audio decks, cheap DVD players and PS3's!

/sarcasm

But yeah they make decent Laptops. Only beef I have with them is they charge way more for replacement parts like batteries. The batteries usually cost more than the equivalent HP, Acer etc. Replacement motherboards can cost more too but that's assuming you would ever consider paying that much to fix a laptop after a few years. Usually it's not worth fixing anyway. I will say my Cousin has a Sony laptop and the charger died just after 6 months and the battery after a year. He bought a replacement charger and battery but it didn't seem to charge for some reason. I've heard some Sony's have something in the BIOS that may need to be reset when you get a new battery. Not sure if that's true. But to my surprise the laptop itself is still kickin' after about 4 years now it still works great... as long as it's plugged into the wall.

Now one thing I must say I like about Asus laptops. Full 2 year warranty and the 1st year covers accidents! I even think they cover the charger and battery for the first full year compared to most that only cover for 3-6 months. Basically a warranty that is better than any other brand I know of without having to buy an extended one. I would check that out too. HP has a few nice Probooks I've seen on sale recently in that price bracket for Core i3. Otherwise I agree with SFII above, I like Macbook Pro and business class Lenovo's but of course they come at a price.

[t_ski]

Right now she has a Compaq (HP) Presario C304NR. While I must say that the laptop has held up well, I don't like the way HP limits so much crap on the laptop. Wireless cards are whitelisted/blacklisted, you can only put a max of 2GB in the board (even though a single 2GB stick works perfectly fine in either slot), etc. I'll admit I've only worked on Dell Latitude's (no Inspirons), but the laptops are easy to work on and the support I've had (I prefer chat) was always perfect. Of course, it helps that we buy the 3-year gold support warranty at work, too...

[Liquid Cool]

T,

I took a look at the Presario, it has the exact same body as my Compaq m2010US that I used to own...I have quite a few spare parts for that lying around. If you need to part with it...shoot me a pm.

Also, please let us/me know which notebook you select.... Just make sure to get a deal on which ever one you decide on, I'm sure there will be a ton of sales over the next week.

Best,

LC

[t_ski]

The plan is to replace the drive and install a new OS on the Presario, then use it to replace my daughter's Acer ASpire 3610. She's got a missing key, broken hinges and poor battery life.