Computer peeps, new laptop advice

IMO, it's less about cheapening out and more about trying to satisfy the consumer's desire for lighter/thinner devices.

CD/DVD media is on its way out, anyway.
I doubt very much the former, it's nice you think they actually care that much about the consumer though. I certainly do not think my HP laptop without a drive as much of an upgrade. It is a bit thinner but I can't say that makes a difference even in traveling...

And to an extent I agree on the media point. But they are still here for the time being and provide much greater flexibility depending on what you want to use it for. I like my lossless music and the agility to edit and transfer it...and it is certainly more secure as an archive than a "cloud'...
 
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My dad is a retired attorney and had his own general practice law firm.
I don't recommended going cheap. Security is an issue of concern. Say if she loses possession of her laptop.
You want something with better security. She should have something with a TPM. That will be lacking on some laptops people are recommending to you here.

Agreed. I do IT consulting on the side with a bunch of law firms (main job is IT too) and the laptop should have TPM. HP does this by default in all their business/professional laptops (ProBook, ZBook, Elitebook). I'm not sure if Dell and Lenovo do the same for their business class but I know they're optioned.

I doubt very much the former, it's nice you think they actually care that much about the consumer though. I certainly do not think my HP laptop without a drive as much of an upgrade. It is a bit thinner but I can't say that makes a difference even in traveling...

And to an extent I agree on the media point. But they are still here for the time being and provide much greater flexibility depending on what you want to use it for. I like my lossless music and the agility to edit and transfer it...and it is certainly more secure as an archive than a "cloud'...

Consumer-grade laptops still have the option of them because of the larger+thicker chassis. Business/professional class laptops just can't fit an optical drive in the chassis. Even HP got rid of the optical drives in their Probooks some 4 years ago and removed them from the Elitebooks 7 years ago. The USB-attached optical drive I keep at work for an office of 70 gets used maybe once every other month.
 
Agreed. I do IT consulting on the side with a bunch of law firms (main job is IT too) and the laptop should have TPM. HP does this by default in all their business/professional laptops (ProBook, ZBook, Elitebook). I'm not sure if Dell and Lenovo do the same for their business class but I know they're optioned.



Consumer-grade laptops still have the option of them because of the larger+thicker chassis. Business/professional class laptops just can't fit an optical drive in the chassis. Even HP got rid of the optical drives in their Probooks some 4 years ago and removed them from the Elitebooks 7 years ago. The USB-attached optical drive I keep at work for an office of 70 gets used maybe once every other month.
Thanks for the advice. I can count on one hand the amount of times I’ve needed a CD/DVD drive in the last five years. We do have an external one when the need arises. Usually for her dvd workouts etc
 
If looking at Dell laptops then Latitude 5510 series is a good and reasonably priced option for a business use laptop if the size and weight aren't too much. Personally I'd never go lower than 14" screen but I often work off of laptop itself.
 
Well she couldn’t go any longer without a computer to get back to work so we ended up in Costco today. Based on some suggestions a 13” Dell XPS caught my attention and even though more expensive than I was hoping to spend it’ll treat her well for many years and her business can pay us back as soon as she gets some income coming in. Already have multiple clients on contract. I’m actually pretty jealous. Was 1800 plus tax.
i7-1185G7 processor
16gb ram
1tb SSD
 
Well she couldn’t go any longer without a computer to get back to work so we ended up in Costco today. Based on some suggestions a 13” Dell XPS caught my attention and even though more expensive than I was hoping to spend it’ll treat her well for many years and her business can pay us back as soon as she gets some income coming in. Already have multiple clients on contract. I’m actually pretty jealous. Was 1800 plus tax.
i7-1185G7 processor
16gb ram
1tb SSD
Well done. That's a lotta computer. If I needed a super portable workhorse, that Dell Ultrabook would be on top of my list.
That Infinite Screen is gorgeous.
 
Well done. That's a lotta computer. If I needed a super portable workhorse, that Dell Ultrabook would be on top of my list.
That Infinite Screen is gorgeous.
Thanks I was really going off your suggestion when I saw it. As I’m sure you know time is money and she needed back to work so even though they didn’t have a ton of selection in store we don’t have time to buy something online. Ideally I probably would’ve gone with a smaller SSD to save a few bucks as 1tb is way more than she needs but oh well. We’re happy and excited to put it to work!
Also I must say the packaging was top notch. Reminded me of unboxing a new iPhone
 
I've used Lenovo, HP, and Dell at "work" in the past, they are all good and bad depends on which grade you get.

I am more used to the feel of a Dell and Lenovo, but reliability wise I think it really depends on which grade you get, and luck. I've had precision laptop that the power supply circuit fried, HP laptop that keep resetting itself, and Lenovo that crashes repeatedly.

If they make them again, Thinkpad T series is bullet proof, I still like Thinkpad even if they are no longer IBM. They "feel" the most solid, with Latitude E series being a close second.

This is 2020/2021. DVD disk is still stuck at 4.7GB when a USB drive that size is only going to cost you $5 or less. There is no point keeping this little of a size around when 1) You are not supposed to pass document around on a disk when you don't know if other people have an optical drive, and 2) everything is network connected, and 3) you have to update every single copy of the disk instead of relying on the network update in one central location, and 4) it is a security risk passing a disk / USB copy around with no security log in.

I keep an old laptop around with an optical drive and a small USB drive, but I think I never ever used it in the last 3 years.
 
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Bought a used Dell Latitude E6230 with the 13" screen on Ebay 3 years ago for under $200 and have been pretty satisfied with it. Had HP years ago but support was non-existent. Can't really wrap my head around Leveno and how they killed off the IBM brand. I'd go Dell and if I remember, most come with a 3 year warranty.
From what I remember IBM deal include the use of IBM trade mark for a finite number of years only, so Lenovo eventually had to move off the IBM name.
 
Thanks I was really going off your suggestion when I saw it. As I’m sure you know time is money and she needed back to work so even though they didn’t have a ton of selection in store we don’t have time to buy something online. Ideally I probably would’ve gone with a smaller SSD to save a few bucks as 1tb is way more than she needs but oh well. We’re happy and excited to put it to work!
Also I must say the packaging was top notch. Reminded me of unboxing a new iPhone
You never know. I'd recommend 1tb minimum. Don't want to run out of space.
 
Is IBM still relevant today? They seem to have gone off the radar after the turn of the century.
A lot of legacy companies don't want to risk changes, so they just keep using the same stuff with update over the years. Hospitals, government, banks (non trading), etc cannot afford shutdown (I guess except for budget politics).

They don't do much new enterprise stuff though.
 
I bought a Dell then a Lenovo in the past 2 years. The Lenovo runs significantly better than the Dell with practically the same specs.
 
I've used Lenovo, HP, and Dell at "work" in the past, they are all good and bad depends on which grade you get.

I am more used to the feel of a Dell and Lenovo, but reliability wise I think it really depends on which grade you get, and luck. I've had precision laptop that the power supply circuit fried, HP laptop that keep resetting itself, and Lenovo that crashes repeatedly.

If they make them again, Thinkpad T series is bullet proof, I still like Thinkpad even if they are no longer IBM. They "feel" the most solid, with Latitude E series being a close second.

This is 2020/2021. DVD disk is still stuck at 4.7GB when a USB drive that size is only going to cost you $5 or less. There is no point keeping this little of a size around when 1) You are not supposed to pass document around on a disk when you don't know if other people have an optical drive, and 2) everything is network connected, and 3) you have to update every single copy of the disk instead of relying on the network update in one central location, and 4) it is a security risk passing a disk / USB copy around with no security log in.

I keep an old laptop around with an optical drive and a small USB drive, but I think I never ever used it in the last 3 years.
Thanks dude I agree with the drives. I work at a large accounting firm as an accountant and we’re not even allowed to plug in flash drives from clients anymore due to security. Basically the only thing that should be plugged into our computer is the mouse or monitors. Clients are now required to send everything electronically, and it has worked out well so far
 
Do they still make typewriters? Or any office machines for that matter. Calculators, copiers, sorters, folders, etc.
They sold off the printer and copier division and it becomes Lexmark. The HDD division was sold off to become HGST and now part of WDC. I don't think I ever saw an IBM calculator, and I think nobody makes type writers anymore.

Sorter and folders? I've never seen one in an office ever.
 
Clients are now required to send everything electronically, and it has worked out well so far

I wish we could do the same. Illinois and Chicago Department of Transportation still require a CD or USB drive and paper copy of all project reports that they have. We still have CAD drawings before AutoCAD was a thing.
 
I wish we could do the same. Illinois and Chicago Department of Transportation still require a CD or USB drive and paper copy of all project reports that they have. We still have CAD drawings before AutoCAD was a thing.
Ugh that would be really annoying. I do have two clients that send a packet or large binder of their entire year worth of accounting I have to enter in January to get 1099s out in time. So I have to stop by the office to pick that up and bring back home. The rest is done electronically. Not a huge deal though.
If there’s a positive to the virus the rest of my clients are now trained to send everything electronically instead of paper copies that I have to scan in etc even the older ones that don’t like change
 
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