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Recommend a sub-$200 laptop

Discussion in 'Tilted Gear' started by Bear Cub, Feb 17, 2013.

  1. Bear Cub

    Bear Cub Goes down smooth.

    Location:
    At the bar, eyeing the pretty one.
    Your mission: To find BC a laptop, new or refurbished, for under $200, that isn't a steaming pile.

    Normally, I would not be looking in this price range for a laptop. However, what I'm needing is a laptop with at least a 15" screen that will be dedicated to my racecar for the sole purpose of using the engine management software, downloading video from the GoPro to clear out the memory card, and getting online for e-mail to send out data logs/import fuel & timing maps. The other 99.9% of its life, it will be used as a door stop. Here's the needs:

    -Windows based (software compatibility)
    -15" screen minimum (I need to be able to see fuel map curves well enough that I can use a mouse to drag and adjust as needed)
    -USB connectivity (need two ports min. for mouse and ECU)
    -CD drive
    -WiFi
    -Good battery life a huge plus

    Aaaaand, that's about it. Recommendations (and links to smoking deals) are very much appreciated!
     
    Bear Cub, Feb 17, 2013
    #1
  2. Craven Morehead

    Craven Morehead Very Tilted

    Location:
    third rock from the sun
    No recommendations on a laptop but always have had god xperiences with eCost, there are dozens similar though.
    Searching for at eCOST
     
    Craven Morehead, Feb 17, 2013
    #2
  3. Plan9

    Plan9 Rock 'n Roll

    Location:
    Earth
    Hey, here we go...

    Price tag seems a little unrealistic given what I can find on NewEgg and TigerDirect.
     
    Plan9, Feb 17, 2013
    #3
    • Like Like x 1
  4. Bear Cub

    Bear Cub Goes down smooth.

    Location:
    At the bar, eyeing the pretty one.
    Can stretch to $250. Have found some refurb'd Latitudes in the $200 range. Can go with a 14" screen if I have to, but prefer not to.
     
    Bear Cub, Feb 17, 2013
    #4
  5. Baraka_Guru

    Baraka_Guru Möderätor Staff Member

    Location:
    Toronto
    Baraka_Guru, Feb 17, 2013
    #5
  6. Shadowex3

    Shadowex3 Very Tilted

    $250 falls squarely into craigslist and P-P-P-Powerbook territory. I'd look for something used.
     
    Shadowex3, Feb 17, 2013
    #6
    • Like Like x 1
  7. Bear Cub

    Bear Cub Goes down smooth.

    Location:
    At the bar, eyeing the pretty one.
    Found a local place doing refurbs with a T60P Thinkpad, 2.33GHz Intel Dual Core, 2GB RAM, 100GB HD, DVD/CDRW, Win 7 and WiFi for $200. Going to give them a call tomorrow.

    I must say Plan9, I'm deeply saddened by your absence of internet prowess on this one. Here I was, thinking you could find me a supercomputer in trade for a wooden nickel, empty gum wrapper, and a picture of some kid that was the stock photo in a picture frame.
     
    Bear Cub, Feb 18, 2013
    #7
    • Like Like x 1
  8. Plan9

    Plan9 Rock 'n Roll

    Location:
    Earth
    C'mon, Bear Cub... I'm hardly the tech guru. I can barely handle tying my shoelaces.

    Lordeden and Martian are the go-to Designated Nerds for all your computer queries here on TFP.

    I guess $200 isn't too unrealistic for a used computer that you pick up from a Random Stranger on the Web.

    Perhaps some computer brands are like Glocks... new or used they're always good. My knowledge is waaay limited.
     
    Last edited: Feb 18, 2013
    Plan9, Feb 18, 2013
    #8
  9. martian

    martian Server Monkey Staff Member

    Location:
    Mars
    15" laptop for less than $200? You're looking at used, and not fantastic. Fortunately, it doesn't sound like you need fantastic.

    If you can live with 13" your options are greatly expanded. Smaller screens tend to come with longer battery life and better portability, so honestly I think that might be a better option for your stated application. 13" isn't too hot for serious productivity, but if you're not doing a lot of multitasking and/or multimedia work on it that screen size should be enough.

    There's always a cost/performance/size tradeoff. You want cheap and don't need a lot of performance. Going a bit smaller honestly sounds like the better choice.

    It's difficult to recommend a used laptop over the interwebs -- ideally, for a used model you want to be able to take it for a test drive before you lay down your cash, and that's obviously not possible if you're ebaying it. Craigslist might be an option, but without knowing your area I can't really look that up.

    One possibility is to trawl Craigslist looking for off-leases. Most small and medium businesses replace their hardware on 3-5 year upgrade cycles, and will sometimes let some decent hardware go for cheap. You probably won't get a hard drive with it and the battery may or may not be replacing, but with a bit of love it can be a good way to get decent, well-cared-for used hardware for a good price.

    For brands, my go-to recommendations are always Toshiba and Asus. They're both excellent brands (and for the record, I've had everything from monitors to motherboards to laptops from Asus, and have never been unhappy with a single piece of hardware I've gotten from them; the only other manufacturer with that kind of track record for me is Logitech). Lenovo isn't terrible as a mid-range brand, and the Thinkpads have a reputation for durability -- if this thing is going with you on track days, that's a good trait to have in a laptop.

    I don't think your ask is unrealistic, but I think it might involve a bit of patience and effort on your part. Good luck to you, sir.
     
    martian, Feb 18, 2013
    #9
    • Like Like x 2
  10. Lordeden

    Lordeden Part of the Problem

    Location:
    Redneckhell, NC
    I got some for sale under $200 I think. I might even throw in a TFP discount. I'll PM you when I look at my stock.
     
    Lordeden, Feb 19, 2013
    #10
    • Like Like x 1
  11. Bear Cub

    Bear Cub Goes down smooth.

    Location:
    At the bar, eyeing the pretty one.
    Let me know, Eden. Thanks for the reply, Martian. As you'd mentioned, I don't need fantastic. The user interface of this software is approximately one step up from an early 90's adventure game from a graphics-intensive perspective.
     
    Bear Cub, Feb 19, 2013
    #11
  12. Lindy

    Lindy Moderator Staff Member

    Location:
    Nebraska
    I've had good luck buying a couple of used Macs off of Craigslist.
    Also, a local store here in Lincoln was advertising brand new generic PC laptops for $197, so there must be some out there that would work for a non demanding service.
     
    Lindy, Feb 22, 2013
    #12
  13. MKOLLER

    MKOLLER Vertical

    Location:
    Susanville, CA
    Definitely going to be looking at refurbished. Core 2 or Atom, 1-2 GB of RAM, and integrated graphics. Craigslist or Ebay, then yank out the operating system and (you're going to hate this) put in Linux and run your Windows programs through WINE.

    Unless you're really good at Ebaying.
     
    MKOLLER, Feb 22, 2013
    #13