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Thread ID: 94801	2008-11-12 14:44:00	Repairers which laptops do you see least?	Robinz (9362)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
719846	2008-11-12 14:44:00	Looking at buying my first laptop in the $1500-$2000 range to replace a desktop and having an interesting time trying to find the most reliable brand . Looking around the laptop forums you'll see this . . . Acer is the best . . . . Don't buy Acer . . . . HP is the best . . . I hate HP etc etc . There doesn't seem to be any consensus, as different people seem to have different experiences in different countries and whether they are a corporate customer or retail . I liked the look of the Acer 6930g but Acer seemed to get the most negative responses . So then I thought maybe the Dell studio 15 even though I hate the idea of not going to confront a salesman face to face if something went wrong and got the distinct impression that there out of warranty backup was non existent . But of course in NZ this may be totally inaccurate . The only brand that seemed to get (almost) universal acclaim was Toshiba . Went into JB HiFi and the salesperson there reckoned of the brands they sell HP come back the most, which I was surprised at as many voted them highly . So here i am, flummoxed! I guess a lot of peoples opinions are based on old history and that some of the worst to deal with company's may have picked up there act . So I'd like to hear from Laptop repairers as to which brands they least see, of conversely see the most relative to their sales if it's known and which company/s are the best to deal with and get parts for . I realise Dell handle there own but you still might get them in . You are probably asking why don't I just go out and buy a Toshiba . Well i probably will, but that over glossy fingerprint attracting black look is just butt ugly plus I thought it might help others looking! :-)	Robinz (9362)
719847	2008-11-12 18:14:00	You'll find that most of the techs and experienced users here will recommend Asus and Toshiba. Most will also say "Stay away from Acer & Dell"	CYaBro (73)
719848	2008-11-12 18:55:00	Most of the problem ones I see are HP's with the odd Toshiba- Hardware, NOT software as software can corrupt on any PC/ Laptop. As for the Acer / Dells etc - personally I hardly see any, my own Acer is 5 years old and never missed a beat, all that its had done to it in that time hardware wise is more RAM added. A lot has to do with the way they are handled as well - often I see people dumping them down on the tables/beds, car seats etc which is no good for any brand.	wainuitech (129)
719849	2008-11-12 19:36:00	It's a tough decision deciding which laptop to buy. Bit like geting a new car. My advice would be, get the one that is best suited to your needs & price range. All the specs & pictures are available on the net. Of the laptops I have repaired, all the problems have been caused by the users & could have happened with any make or model.	Driftwood (5551)
719850	2008-11-12 20:19:00	Most of the problem ones I see are HP's with the odd Toshiba- Hardware, NOT software as software can corrupt on any PC/ Laptop . As for the Acer / Dells etc - personally I hardly see any, my own Acer is 5 years old and never missed a beat, all that its had done to it in that time hardware wise is more RAM added . A lot has to do with the way they are handled as well - often I see people dumping them down on the tables/beds, car seats etc which is no good for any brand . I agree with that but if I said Acer's are OK then I'd get my head bitten off . :( My family & I all have an Acer laptop, 4 in all, and none have ever had a problem .	CYaBro (73)
719851	2008-11-12 20:25:00	Going purely by hardware failures: WORST Acer Packard Bell HP in that order. Ok, Packard Bell don't make laptops but I thought I'd add that in anyway. Oldest laptops I see with no problems: Toshiba ASUS The reason these arguments come about is because any hardware can have a problem, I've had faulty Corsair RAM for instance, and a dead Enermax PSU. And as the people who own "bad" brands say, they haven't had a problem. So its not that if you buy Acer you will 100% get a problem. Some have lasted. But the percentage is what I go by. The percentage is low on good stuff and high on bad stuff. Anything over 5% I avoid. Now remember I judge that on 100's of them. Not just in my years of running a repair business, but my total observation over my IT career. Worked for loads of places that used all sorts of hardware. At one, RMA was what I did, so I compiled lots of reports which among other things noted what came back most often. You can't judge it on a few you have owned personally. And remember warranties vary considerably. The Toshibas I see that last are the "business" models, with 3 yr warranties. You can check it (even if long expired) on their Warranty Checker part on their website.	pctek (84)
719852	2008-11-12 20:29:00	Going purely by hardware failures: WORST Acer Packard Bell HP in that order . Ok, Packard Bell don't make laptops but I thought I'd add that in anyway . Oldest laptops I see with no problems: Toshiba ASUS The reason these arguments come about is because any hardware can have a problem, I've had faulty Corsair RAM for instance, and a dead Enermax PSU . And as the people who own "bad" brands say, they haven't had a problem . So its not that if you buy Acer you will 100% get a problem . Some have lasted . But the percentage is what I go by . The percentage is low on good stuff and high on bad stuff . Anything over 5% I avoid . Now remember I judge that on 100's of them . Not just in my years of running a repair business, but my total observation over my IT career . Worked for loads of places that used all sorts of hardware . At one, RMA was what I did, so I compiled lots of reports which among other things noted what came back most often . You can't judge it on a few you have owned personally . And remember warranties vary considerably . The Toshibas I see that last are the "business" models, with 3 yr warranties . You can check it (even if long expired) on their Warranty Checker part on their website . I agree 100% with what pctek just said . Exactly the same for me .	wratterus (105)
719853	2008-11-12 21:13:00	I'd have thought HP, Lenovo, Toshiba and Dell would have been the 'best' because they are commonly used by businesses? Or perhaps it is only their business lines... I have the impression Lenovo are one of the best available, but they aren't very common among the normal consumer since they are more aimed at corporate users. Also as far as I am aware, only Dell lets you customise each part of the notebook. Not as much as a desktop PC, but more than any other manufacturer. Are there other notebook manufacturers which let you customise the ram, hdd, graphics etc? But Dell require a proprietary dongle for SPDIF output, so I'm not a huge fan of that...	utopian201 (6245)
719854	2008-11-12 21:21:00	I'd have thought HP, Lenovo, Toshiba and Dell would have been the 'best' because they are commonly used by businesses? I have the impression Lenovo are one of the best available, Whats that got to do with it? Businesses generally haven't got a clue whats good or not and decisions are often made by the bean-counters not IT staff . And I forgot about Lenovo . Add them to my hate list . Chinese s*** .	pctek (84)
719855	2008-11-12 21:59:00	And I forgot about Lenovo. Add them to my hate list. Chinese s***. Do you just hate Chinese or Lenovo specifically? Just because an old Brand X is still running doesn't tell you anything about new ones.	PaulD (232)
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