stnnotop

The reason I ask is, I know 3-4 people who all have Dell laptop's, and they have all turned into giant piles of shit. The keyboards all have problems, the LCD sometimes doesn't work, and they run like crap. I know if htey reload the OS, it will probalby run better, but as far as hardware goes, what should you expect out of a laptop? Are dell's quality subpar, or is it inline with the rest of the industry?

Cynthetiq

i have a toshiba laptop that is almost 10 years old. It still works without issues, albeit win3.1 is an issue.

I have another that is around 6 years old and it's a thinkpad and runs wonderfully.

I have an HP that is only 1 year old and it runs great.

Laptops take lots of abuse due to the nature of them being banged around and lugged to hell and back.

Dells are very solid laptops and desktops.... I don't have one but I do have friends that swear by them....

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juanvaldes

Every single person I know who has had a Dell laptop has had some major problem with them.

Charlatan

I had a problem with the track stick on my Dell (I've had it for 2 years now) and I just sent it to the Depot where they put in a new stick and sent if back... all within 48 hours.

My Dell goes all over the world with me and I love it...

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fuelmyfire

i've had an IBM Thinkpad 600E for about 5 years.
amazing thing, have not had one single problem.

now, the battery....that's a completely different issue.....

but i am very impressed with the Thinkpad itself. very solid.

clockworkgreen

I work in tech support, and we have approximately 200-300 laptops in the field. And we probably have at least 5 back in the shop at any one time.

Dell support is really good though, if you have a warranty. Parts are shipped quickly. I just know from experience they do have problems...All computers do.

yodapaul

Well, Lets see I have a IBM I-2611-1411 thats about 4-5 years old. The only major problem I had with that is after the second year of use the hard drive failed. I sent it in, they replaced it, and sent it back.
Also I have a Dell Inspiron(?) 8100, that is about 2 years old and I have never had a problem with it.
Strangly enough, I have had more problems with my desktop computer than with both my laptops.
I didn't mean to brag, but I hope this helps.

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ratbastid

I'm typing right now on a Dell Inspiron 4000 that's probably four years old. I've upgraded it from Win98 to WinXP in the last six months or so, and it did take some craftiness to get the drivers installed for all the OEM parts (touchpad, sound and video drivers, etc). Once I did that, it's been rock-solid.

y2ktenchi

I've got a Thinkpad 390E that I've been using for about 5 years now. Running WinNT (SP6a). P2 333Mhz. 256MB of RAM.

The biggest thing that went bad was the FDD/CDROM combo unit. Replaced that. Some weirdness with losing the PCMCIA slots when I went to 256MB of RAM. IBM had a fix for that, too.

Other than that, it's been damned rock solid. Ideally, I'd like to upgrade it to Win2K and see how much more I can get out of it. It'd be nice to get the USB support in Win2K.

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Soggybagel

Just depends in my opinion...sometimes you'll get lemons. One thing I would absolutely reccomend though is for example at BestBuy they offer those replacement plans....it helps. I know a couple friends who've bought the laptop and replacement plan and it can really be a life saver compared to the manufacturer.

oblar

the biggest problem I have seen regarding laptops (of almost every type) is the battery no longer holding a charge.

best thing to do in that case.. get a long warranty.. and right before your warranty runs out, get a new battery. It will prevent you from having to buy a new one as quickly since they are expensive

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FuddMan

if all you're worried about is battery life...whats the best way to go? anyone? multiple batteries? eh?

Mad_Gecko

Tpad 4 me.

We've had Dells (poo build quality), Compaq (Goodbye), Sony (Compatible with?), Toshiba (who?), and IBM.

We've consistently (sp) stuck with IBM. my T21 has had 2 glasses of wine over it and plenty of bumps and its been fine. Only issue is with COM port conflicts, but they go away with XP .

For battery probs, got NO advice I use my lappy as a desktop and usually keep it plugged in.

PS: Lifespan = 2yrs (but depends on what U use it 4)

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hotdogg

On my fourth laptop...The last two were Dells...I can't remember the first one, but the second one was a gateway(stopped buying gateway due to poor service)...I would buy dell in a heartbeat, if thier is a problem they stand behind thier products)

poof

On Tpad number five. I love my IBM units. They last, are tough, and have standard stuff others think are options.
In answer to your question, I don't know about the lifespan of a notebook. It is like anything other than a wife, children, or pets. You still must care for it, take care of it, and update it.
The only reason I ever sold one of my Thinkpads were because I wanted a more advanced unit, not because it broke.

BTW, you will spend much more for an IBM than a Dell, or any other make. They all have something to offer, but they are like cheap women, fun for awhile then the shine goes away. The Thinkpad is subtle in appearance, dependable, and carrys a certain panache.

Damn, I am gushing about a friggin machine. But there is some hope for me. I was going to get the new A31p, and opted for a nice Miller wire feed welder.

Go figure.

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dim5

Gotta agree with almost everything that's been said about Dells. Their warranty support is great (corporate account). But the batteries on the laptops don't have a long life. They held a great charge at the beginning, but now...Ugh. It's a Latitude-model battery I'm talking about, and it's a problem company-wide...

Soggybagel

Heh..just gonna say again that if you lose charge on the battery I do know for a fact that the service plan covers loss of charge so you do get a new battery.

losfp

Yep, another thumbs up for the ThinkPads! I have one of these same models too - I bought it second hand last year and now it's passed on to my dad. Tough as nails and reliable too. The battery I got with it only held abotu 30-40 mins of charge, but I bought a new one that works just fine.

Frowning Budah

I have a four year old Toshiba and it has never given me a problem. I wish they made desk tops.

zer010gic

I have had by dell for 3 years and not a bit of problems out of it and I useing in a college enviorment and I use it every day not a bit of problems.

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merkerguitars

It all depends I have seen people that own laptops that last them a month. Mainly because they treat them like shit. And I have seen people that have owned the same one for years on years on end. It all depends on if you take care of them from the start. I own a vaio and the only problems I have had was with windows xp, but now i have it tweaked and it works so nice.

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Slims

I think there is a big quality difference between the dells that go to businesses verses to individuals.

The business reviews for Dells are sky high, but every individual I know who has ever owned one has had a plethora of problems.

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charliex

has anyone every had a computer that didn't have any problems ? and did you unpack it ?

all rechargeable batteries have a cycle lifetime, Lion's tend to have the shortest lifetimes, but theyhave a higher output capacity, the brightest light etc, a lot of it does have to do with the users charge/recharge style though. You can significantly shorten the life of a battery with recharge abuse.

our dell laptop is a few years old and still going strong.

BadForm

I have a 2 year old Toshiba which I carry around everywhere. The case is not as rugged as say IBM's and I have had some problems with wear-and-tear (LCD connector broke, headphone jack, etc). Fortunately I bought the extended warrenty (1-3 years) when I got the system. Great buy for $160 since it is very difficult to repair laptops yourself and/or cheaply.

LeviticusMky

My Dell has had more problems than I can count...

But they always are willing to fix the darn thing for no charge, and they get it done quickly.

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poof

<i>LeviticusMky</i>, That Dell accolade speaks volumes! Customer service is important to me. I am helping someone choose a desktop, and I am leaning them towards a Dell. Thanks for your input.