Best Law School Laptop for the Money Forum

[beach_terror]

Holy crap, my Thinkpad just shipped. I ordered it on Monday.

Just FYI, it's considered an international shipment, so you have to sign for it. Mine came around 10am while I was at work, so I had to drive down to my UPS and pick it up.

[JollyGreenGiant]

To say I'm upset with Lenovo would be an understatement. Ordered my laptop almost a month ago, and it gave a late july estimated ship date. Then it changed to no ship date which basically meant I was screwed. Then it changed to early August. Now it is late August.

It's a friggin' joke. Either e-mail me what is going on or do something. I'm gonna end up going to school without a laptop cuz this is taking for friggin' ever. You guys talk down Dell a lot, but you'll get your computer within a week from there (even if it might be crap). I'll be lucky to get my Lenovo after a month and a half.

[ResolutePear]

To say I'm upset with Lenovo would be an understatement. Ordered my laptop almost a month ago, and it gave a late july estimated ship date. Then it changed to no ship date which basically meant I was screwed. Then it changed to early August. Now it is late August.

It's a friggin' joke. Either e-mail me what is going on or do something. I'm gonna end up going to school without a laptop cuz this is taking for friggin' ever. You guys talk down Dell a lot, but you'll get your computer within a week from there (even if it might be crap). I'll be lucky to get my Lenovo after a month and a half.

Wow, that's crazy and sorry to hear that. Call and ask to speak with a manager, you've waited long enough and leverage a possible negative BBB review against the company. Higher ups personally look at BBB reviews and he's tied to you from just picking the phone up. It'll force some action, refund or expedited shipping.

I've never heard a Thinkpad shipment from the manufacturer taking more than 10 days at most and I'd be pretty pissed too.

[cranberry]

What kind of Lenovo did you order? Mine was Thinkpad Edge. The estimated ship date was Aug 19 and it went out today... so weird.

[JollyGreenGiant]

What kind of Lenovo did you order? Mine was Thinkpad Edge. The estimated ship date was Aug 19 and it went out today... so weird.

Mine was the T-410. How long ago did you order?

I sent out an e-mail because I had trouble understanding what the guy said the last time I called. I'm normally very easy-going when it comes to stuff like this, but I kinda flipped out after I got back from camping today and read the new order date.

[legalnoeagle]

Ordered the T-410s last week. Ship date went from 8/9 to ???. Not pleased.

[cranberry]

I ordered on Monday, August 2nd at like 7pm, and my projected ship date was August 17. It changed to August 19 the next day, but shipped today. So three days between order and ship date. Maybe they are selling more Edges right now so they were able to throw mine together faster.

[kalvano]

To say I'm upset with Lenovo would be an understatement. Ordered my laptop almost a month ago, and it gave a late july estimated ship date. Then it changed to no ship date which basically meant I was screwed. Then it changed to early August. Now it is late August.

It's a friggin' joke. Either e-mail me what is going on or do something. I'm gonna end up going to school without a laptop cuz this is taking for friggin' ever. You guys talk down Dell a lot, but you'll get your computer within a week from there (even if it might be crap). I'll be lucky to get my Lenovo after a month and a half.

Have you called?

I did, and they told me there was a hold on the account. I asked them what it was regarding, and they couldn't tell me. After a little run-around, I told them the laptop better ship on the date it was supposed to since they had no valid reason they could supply for holding it up. The rep told me they couldn't do that, so I told them to cancel the order and I was going to buy an Asus.

Magically, they could all of a sudden remove the hold.

[kalvano]

Also, for anyone not sure of what laptop to get, I love my Edge, but if you don't want to order a Lenovo, I have to say my wife's Asus UL-80 is exceptionally nice. I think it's about $750 at Best Buy, and is very well-equipped.

[savagecheater]

My Latitude arrived today; runs very smoothly, but 15.6inch is larger than I thought. It was actually cheaper (by about $80), so I figure I won there, but I was kind of surprised by it.

[JollyGreenGiant]

To say I'm upset with Lenovo would be an understatement. Ordered my laptop almost a month ago, and it gave a late july estimated ship date. Then it changed to no ship date which basically meant I was screwed. Then it changed to early August. Now it is late August.

It's a friggin' joke. Either e-mail me what is going on or do something. I'm gonna end up going to school without a laptop cuz this is taking for friggin' ever. You guys talk down Dell a lot, but you'll get your computer within a week from there (even if it might be crap). I'll be lucky to get my Lenovo after a month and a half.

Have you called?

I did, and they told me there was a hold on the account. I asked them what it was regarding, and they couldn't tell me. After a little run-around, I told them the laptop better ship on the date it was supposed to since they had no valid reason they could supply for holding it up. The rep told me they couldn't do that, so I told them to cancel the order and I was going to buy an Asus.

Magically, they could all of a sudden remove the hold.

Will be trying this method if a rep doesn't e-mail me by sometime Monday.

[Duralex]

Something's wrong with that picture. I've never had a problem with timely shipment from Lenovo...did you do any unusual custom configuration? I'm guessing not.

If it were me, I'd be burning up their phone lines already. They need to tell you what's up.

Lenovo offers better support than most these days, but unfortunately it's not like it used to be with IBM.

Of course, IBM Thinkpad hardware (and IBM stuff in general) typically carried a tax equal to or greater than the Apple tax....

BHP&V has the T410 14.1" 2.4 ghz i5 for $917, free shipping, in stock. (LinkRemoved) I'm not sure if you ordered it through Lenovo's educational outlet, or what you're paying, but you might try that (or Newegg, etc.) Lenovo may not have many units in their warehouses for some reason, but resellers do--so that's an option.

[jdubb990]

What do you guys think about the Toshiba R series? It seems like the perfect size, good processor, good memory size.

[Duralex]

Regarding the Pavillion dv6t above--


--the 1,366-by-768 resolution is not going to be great for reading/writing if this is your only machine


--the 2.0 ghz C2D is an older CPU--the same one that's in my 2007 13" macbook.

--you need to uninstall all of the bundled junk and HP bloatware immediately, or the system will slowly choke to death on cruft

--don't drop it, bang it, close or open it too roughly. Make sure to insert or remove plugs and cables etc with care. Things will break easily.

--expect the finish where your wrists contact the case to erode rapidly, etc.

They are not great machines in my opinion.

HP still makes a few good printers, some decent scanners, some good servers, pretty good networking equipment, some nice monitors--but their PCs and laptops are really pretty janky these days.

[Duralex]

What do you guys think about the Toshiba R series? It seems like the perfect size, good processor, good memory size.

The R700 line sort of wears its heart on its sleeve--it's a Thinkpad imitator, but without quite the same engineering and construction.

--ImageRemoved--

That said, Toshiba tends to build solid if clunky and I think the TP-esque angular design does well with concealing that. It won't be as clean and compact as a TP in person, or as tough, but I think it should do OK. I see a lot of old Toshibas around, and that's generally a good thing.

Depending on the model and who they've got deals with ATM it may come with a lot of bloatware that you'll want to remove.

[kalvano]

To say I'm upset with Lenovo would be an understatement. Ordered my laptop almost a month ago, and it gave a late july estimated ship date. Then it changed to no ship date which basically meant I was screwed. Then it changed to early August. Now it is late August.

It's a friggin' joke. Either e-mail me what is going on or do something. I'm gonna end up going to school without a laptop cuz this is taking for friggin' ever. You guys talk down Dell a lot, but you'll get your computer within a week from there (even if it might be crap). I'll be lucky to get my Lenovo after a month and a half.

Have you called?

I did, and they told me there was a hold on the account. I asked them what it was regarding, and they couldn't tell me. After a little run-around, I told them the laptop better ship on the date it was supposed to since they had no valid reason they could supply for holding it up. The rep told me they couldn't do that, so I told them to cancel the order and I was going to buy an Asus.

Magically, they could all of a sudden remove the hold.

Will be trying this method if a rep doesn't e-mail me by sometime Monday.

Good grief. Just call. Email is too easy to ignore.

[JollyGreenGiant]

Good grief. Just call. Email is too easy to ignore.

Well, I sent out an e-mail literally 15 minutes before you posted that. I don't want to be "that guy" who keeps complaining. I'm going to enjoy my weekend, and if I don't hear anything by Monday then I will call.

[kalvano]

Good grief. Just call. Email is too easy to ignore.

Well, I sent out an e-mail literally 15 minutes before you posted that. I don't want to be "that guy" who keeps complaining. I'm going to enjoy my weekend, and if I don't hear anything by Monday then I will call.

Why? They are in business providing a service. If it's not up to par, either make them get their shit together or cancel the order.

If someone is jacking around with me, I'll call every 30 minutes and scream and yell and get fucking corporate presidents on the phone until they get their shit together.

[ResolutePear]

Good grief. Just call. Email is too easy to ignore.

Well, I sent out an e-mail literally 15 minutes before you posted that. I don't want to be "that guy" who keeps complaining. I'm going to enjoy my weekend, and if I don't hear anything by Monday then I will call.

Why? They are in business providing a service. If it's not up to par, either make them get their shit together or cancel the order.

If someone is jacking around with me, I'll call every 30 minutes and scream and yell and get fucking corporate presidents on the phone until they get their shit together.

BBB does wonders. Take my word for it, plz.

[JohnWild]

Regarding the Pavillion dv6t above--


--the 1,366-by-768 resolution is not going to be great for reading/writing if this is your only machine


--the 2.0 ghz C2D is an older CPU--the same one that's in my 2007 13" macbook.

--you need to uninstall all of the bundled junk and HP bloatware immediately, or the system will slowly choke to death on cruft

--don't drop it, bang it, close or open it too roughly. Make sure to insert or remove plugs and cables etc with care. Things will break easily.

--expect the finish where your wrists contact the case to erode rapidly, etc.

They are not great machines in my opinion.

HP still makes a few good printers, some decent scanners, some good servers, pretty good networking equipment, some nice monitors--but their PCs and laptops are really pretty janky these days.

Regarding the Pavillion dv6t above--






What do you think about the HP dm4-1060us? I purchased one of these and I like everything thus far besides the funky touchpad (I plan on using a wireless mouse) and bloated software you spoke off.

Also anyone have any advice for removing the bloated software that came preinstalled on the HP? I tried PC Decrapifier, but it doesn't seem to have gotten rid of everything.

Also what resolution would you recommend for reading & writing?

[sdlaw]

Regarding the Pavillion dv6t above--


--the 1,366-by-768 resolution is not going to be great for reading/writing if this is your only machine


--the 2.0 ghz C2D is an older CPU--the same one that's in my 2007 13" macbook.

--you need to uninstall all of the bundled junk and HP bloatware immediately, or the system will slowly choke to death on cruft

--don't drop it, bang it, close or open it too roughly. Make sure to insert or remove plugs and cables etc with care. Things will break easily.

--expect the finish where your wrists contact the case to erode rapidly, etc.

They are not great machines in my opinion.

HP still makes a few good printers, some decent scanners, some good servers, pretty good networking equipment, some nice monitors--but their PCs and laptops are really pretty janky these days.

Are we talking about the same computer. The CPU is a 2.8 ghz quad core i7 not a core2duo. The only macs that you can get the i7 quadcore on is the brand new macbook pro and they don't even offer the same speed. I'm well aware of the bloatware it's an easy thing to clear out from the start, that's sort of a unspoken rule with all hp crap.

Select editions have a higher build quality that is closer to their business notebooks and from what I've heard even thinkpads. While obviously not as good, the same components in a thinkpad would easily set me back 2000 versus 1100. Hard drive has shock/drop protection...automatically locks itself if any drops or jolts.

The finish is metal...how would that erode?

Still interested to hear answers, i found a 600 dollar coupon off a thinkpad a while back but i think it's expired by now. Plus with anything even close to the same components came out to 500 + dollars more.

I really only need this computer to last 3-4 years so having it run forever isn't a major issue for me. My dell has lasted me 3 years although it's beginning to fall apart.

[LS18]

I see a good deal of support for the Thinkpad T410 in here, and I am/was strongly considering purchasing one myself.

After reading many reviews online, I have seen multiple complaints of its fan being high pitched and loud to the point of irritation. I can see this being a rather big issue during class/in the library/etc.

Have any users encountered this problem?

[JollyGreenGiant]

Good grief. Just call. Email is too easy to ignore.

Well, I sent out an e-mail literally 15 minutes before you posted that. I don't want to be "that guy" who keeps complaining. I'm going to enjoy my weekend, and if I don't hear anything by Monday then I will call.

Why? They are in business providing a service. If it's not up to par, either make them get their shit together or cancel the order.

If someone is jacking around with me, I'll call every 30 minutes and scream and yell and get fucking corporate presidents on the phone until they get their shit together.

I think it is my background in customer service that makes me refuse to yell at people in that industry. However, today, I woke up to an e-mail telling me that "all or part of my order has been shipped." I guess a nasty little e-mail does wonders. It still puzzles me why they couldn't just ship before. The order status checker still says 08/19 but hopefully that hasn't just been updated yet, and that my whole computer has been shipped.

[Duralex]

Are we talking about the same computer. The CPU is a 2.8 ghz quad core i7 not a core2duo. The only macs that you can get the i7 quadcore on is the brand new macbook pro and they don't even offer the same speed. I'm well aware of the bloatware it's an easy thing to clear out from the start, that's sort of a unspoken rule with all hp crap.

Select editions have a higher build quality that is closer to their business notebooks and from what I've heard even thinkpads. While obviously not as good, the same components in a thinkpad would easily set me back 2000 versus 1100. Hard drive has shock/drop protection...automatically locks itself if any drops or jolts.

The finish is metal...how would that erode?

Still interested to hear answers, i found a 600 dollar coupon off a thinkpad a while back but i think it's expired by now. Plus with anything even close to the same components came out to 500 + dollars more.

I really only need this computer to last 3-4 years so having it run forever isn't a major issue for me. My dell has lasted me 3 years although it's beginning to fall apart.

Apparently we were not talking about the same computer. This is either a newer revision, or a different configuration. It's good to hear about the shock protection--but I was talking more about my experience with HPs notebook cases and their fragility at the seams, cutouts, control buttons popping off, eject levers snapping, etc. (Although I think PCMCIA is pretty much done so no more eject levers.) The "metal" finishes I've seen on previous HPs are just metallic paint or some other kind of coating. It rubs off under your palms/wrists over time if it's still the same material. (HP isn't the only one with this problem.) If the body is actually metal now, then it is indeed a nicer HP than I've seen before.

I would expect it to last 2 years. I'm not sure about 3. The last HP I supported in daily use was a 15" model issued in 2007 that buy the end of 2009 had more or less had it in terms of little things breaking.

Maybe someone can give you better feedback on this particular model.

[sdlaw]

Apparently we were not talking about the same computer. This is either a newer revision, or a different configuration. It's good to hear about the shock protection--but I was talking more about my experience with HPs notebook cases and their fragility at the seams, cutouts, control buttons popping off, eject levers snapping, etc. (Although I think PCMCIA is pretty much done so no more eject levers.) The "metal" finishes I've seen on previous HPs are just metallic paint or some other kind of coating. It rubs off under your palms/wrists over time if it's still the same material. (HP isn't the only one with this problem.) If the body is actually metal now, then it is indeed a nicer HP than I've seen before.

I would expect it to last 2 years. I'm not sure about 3. The last HP I supported in daily use was a 15" model issued in 2007 that buy the end of 2009 had more or less had it in terms of little things breaking.

Maybe someone can give you better feedback on this particular model.

Thanks for the response, It's definitely a different model. The dv6tse is in their high performance range. It has aluminum chasis and body. I've heard bad things about older HP's but supposedly this is one of their highest quality constructions. Envy's are supposedly pretty good but pretty expensive for what you get.