Laptops: HP v Sony

Steve Mehs

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Oct 22, 2010
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I didnt say it had ANY of what you just listed here.. What I was saying, and you missed it ALL, you said you aren't gaming and you aren't worried about portability; so all that listed spec-babble; show off, "must have, latest and greatest, no need, hoo-haa AINT WORTH $2500 no matter how you slice it. ANY half / less spec'd laptop will do all you mentioned you were going to do AND ALSO game very well (top titles) for near HALF the money you plan on spending.

But again its your hard earned money and if you plan on being separated from it with little need for all the parts you listed (your own plans/word) then move right along and do it; why ask for input really. The value / worth will drop nearly 30% - 45% within 3mos of ownership.

I want the latest and greatest, period. That’s all I care about. Hence why they all have the fastest processor available and 8GB of RAM. Whether or not I take advantage of those specs at this time is irrelevant. What is relevant is I have the money set aside for it but none of the machines are a clear winner so I could continue to wait or pull the trigger now. If mobile quad core processors had been available 3 years ago I would have never bought this desktop. If I get satisfaction out of it, you bet it will be $2500 well spent. Honestly I couldn’t bring myself to consider any other machines then the ones I listed.

And the whole reason I’m asking for input is because none of those three machines are clear cut what I want , so I’m looking for random thoughts that will sway me to one of them, although the Pavilion is all but out due to its lack of a 1080p display, backlit keyboard and no 3D, but I’m still keeping it open for the time being.
 

rockymtnhigh

Hardly Normal
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Apr 14, 2006
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Of the three, the only reluctance I'd have about the cheaper one is the lack of backlit keys. could care less about the 3D. But if you don't have backlit keys now, go for the cheaper one. IF you currently have backlit keys, I'd think it would be hard NOT to have them.

Not a fan of HP or SONY in general, but like SONY better.
 

Steve Mehs

SatelliteGuys Pro
Oct 22, 2010
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Marilla, NY
I've never owned a laptop and my desktops keyboard doesn't have backlit keys :) The thing I find really cool on the Sony is it has an ambient light sensor so the keyboard automatically illuminates once it gets dark enough. Not sure how well that works in reality though.
 

JAG72

SatelliteGuys Master
Feb 16, 2006
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I've never owned a laptop and my desktops keyboard doesn't have backlit keys :) The thing I find really cool on the Sony is it has an ambient light sensor so the keyboard automatically illuminates once it gets dark enough. Not sure how well that works in reality though.

I actually like that feature. Personally, I will never own a laptop without backlit keys again.
 

rockymtnhigh

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Apr 14, 2006
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I've never owned a laptop and my desktops keyboard doesn't have backlit keys :) The thing I find really cool on the Sony is it has an ambient light sensor so the keyboard automatically illuminates once it gets dark enough. Not sure how well that works in reality though.

While you would not be likely to use a desktop in the dark, a laptop in the dark - say in a theater room - is much more usable with backlit keys. My toshiba's lights simply go off when the keys are not being used, but touch it once, and its on. I never had it before this laptop, but won't go without it again.
 

DodgerKing

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Nov 14, 2007
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If I were to buy a laptop based on brand name, I would put Toshiba, Asus, and Sony in my top 3
 
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JAG72

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Feb 16, 2006
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Steve, have you looked into an alienware laptop from Dell? They have some comparable laptops with better graphic cards for around the same pricing.
 

Stargazer

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Sep 7, 2003
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Consumer Reports rates HP/Compaq as the worst in reliability while rating Asus and Toshiba as the best. Sony and Dell are in between. I think from what I read the HP/Compaq had nearly twice the failure rate than the Asus/Toshiba.
 

Steve Mehs

SatelliteGuys Pro
Oct 22, 2010
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Marilla, NY
I have no desire to support any other manufacture besides Sony or HP. I can't say I've ever had a problem with anything I've ever purchased from those two companies. Oh yeah, I had ONE dead pixel on my Compaq (post HP merger) LCD about 8 months after purchase and they sent me a new one.

I think I've made my decision. I'll give HP until April 17th to offer a 7200 RPM hard drive or 160 GB SSD in the Enyy 3D, if they don't then I'll go with the Vaio F. The Pavilion is off the table at this point, this is the year 2011, backlit keyboards and 1080p should be standard. I could never be satisfied with the Pavilion knowing what it lacks.

I’ll have to keep an eye on the reviews of the Envy. The previous generation Envy line had heat issues. I’d like to check out the Sony in person before I buy to see the physical design, but I doubt a place like Best Buy would carry it. The F series doesn’t get released until April 1st.
 

TheForce

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Sony's may be in short supply soon. Their plants are all shut down. I was hoping to buy a Sony 3D camcorder but it looks like that may be delayed as well.
 

DodgerKing

SatelliteGuys Master
Nov 14, 2007
16,776
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SoCal
I can say this. The piece of junk very low quality HP laptops my district provides (Compaq 6730s) us have held up pretty damn well. Been using the thing for hours each day (my main teaching tool), connected to a projector running all kinds of APPs and educational software and the thing is still kicking along.
 

Steve Mehs

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Oct 22, 2010
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Marilla, NY
Really? Last I heard only a handful of Sony manufacturing plants were shutdown and those were ones that made things like batteries and blu rays (not players the discs themselves).
 

Steve Mehs

SatelliteGuys Pro
Oct 22, 2010
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Marilla, NY
Actually there’s another thing wrong with it, it’s Apple. I have no problem spending $3,000 on a laptop, what I do have a problem with is spending $3,000 on a $1,000 laptop. Between an iPhone and 2 iPods I already flushed almost a thousand dollars down the toilet on disappointing overhyped Apple products, that’s enough money for one lifetime.
 

diogen

SatelliteGuys Pro
Apr 16, 2007
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Only one thing wrong with that... No Blu-Ray Disc!
On a laptop?
I believe that's the one option that I'd gladly give up.
I really doubt a 6-cell battery will last to play one full movie!
Making that BD drive a burner is an insanity comparable with buying Apple products...:D

On the desktop that's a different ball game alltogether...

Diogen.
 

Steve Mehs

SatelliteGuys Pro
Oct 22, 2010
962
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Marilla, NY
I cannot comprehend that point. Buying a computer today, desktop or laptop, without a blu ray drive is like buying a computer with only a CD-ROM two years ago. Not every CD you insert is an audio CD, some are data. Not every DVD you insert is a movie, some are data. See the trend here?
 

diogen

SatelliteGuys Pro
Apr 16, 2007
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See the trend here?
I do.
Again, it's personal.
I try to avoid optical drives wherever possible. Any optical drives.
My HTPC doesn't have one, pulls the files from the network and/or attached hard drives.

The drives are loud and eventually flaky. And quite power hungry (important for laptops).
And I see no advantage whatsoever watching a BD movie on a laptop.
Mechanical spinning, AACS/BD+ decoding, 1080p presentation, hidef sound...
A 720p MKV file will offer everything your $3K laptop can offer.
For a quarter of energy use.

Data storage? When have you dealt with data on optical media last time?
I shovel GB of data daily. And everything is on flash...

Diogen.
 
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