i need opinions, please
June 3, 2008
The time has come for me to purchase my first “IBM” type of PC. The software i use for work is not Mac compatible and since I will be doing a chunk of work from home it has become necessary to bite the bullet. I use a pc at the office and I kinda like it. I have only about $500 to spend and I need something I can use for WoW as well as work. Work is basically Internet and Turbolister.
I can’t decide whether to get a desktop or laptop. My Apple laptop needs a new keyboard (possibly worse) and a memory upgrade. I love a laptop for portability, obviously but it must have at minimum a 15″ screen for WoW. I want to get the most bang for my buck but if i buy a desktop I’ll need a desk and a chair so it does become more expensive. If I get a desktop, I’ll probably fix up my Mac laptop. If I get a laptop, I’ll sell the Mac to a friend. Office Depot is currently advertising Toshiba laptops for $499. They seem to have all the bells and whistles but I”m fairly clueless about this stuff. Also, I’m a bit leary of Vista.
I know my computer geek/guru friends are out there…Thoughts?
Entry Filed under: Uncategorized. .
3 Comments Add your own
Leave a Comment
Some HTML allowed:
<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <pre> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>
Trackback this post | Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed
1.
nstryker | June 3, 2008 at p0305
so would it be worth it to have two computers and still have a mac/laptop? only other advice i have is to stay away from vista. i think pretty much any cheap windows laptop is gonna be the same.
2.
JaredB | June 3, 2008 at p0312
I’ll give it a shot… some more Mac-centric people may want to weigh in with their opinions too, though.
My first recommendation is that if the *only* reason you need a PC is to run some Windows software (Turbolister, etc.) you may want to look into virtualization options (Parallels, VMWare, VirtualBox, etc.) These are software programs (some are even free) that will let you run an installation of Windows “inside” your existing Mac OS. You mentioned a memory upgrade, which would be advisable if you went this route since the VMs do need dedicated memory.
I think that would be the cheapest and best option for you, based on what you mentioned above, unless you need to get a new system for other reasons. If you want to explore the VM thing, I (or another of our mutual friends) could help you out further.
In the event that you DO need a new system, however, I’d normally recommend getting a laptop, but the price range will be a challenge as far as that goes. There are low-end PC options in that range, but you might later wish that you’d waited and gone the next step up and then it would be too late.
Macs (AFAIK) would be out altogether, although you might find one for relatively cheap on ebay. Best time to look is right after a big new product announcement from Apple, as all the raving fans try to unload their previous generation devices to support their new purchases, but even then I don’t know if there would be any in that range.
3.
mimici06 | June 3, 2008 at p0328
Thanks you guys for replying. YES I do need a whole new setup b/c I mostly use Sam’s desktop and that is not working so well in our lives anymore. The 12″ screen on my laptop is just way too small for regular use. So if I did the pc sofware thing It would be on his computer. What kind of trouble do you foresee if I purchase a low end laptop? Is it better to purchase a low end desk top? Lol. And i need to buy one in the next week or so because I”ll be increasing my hours.