Laptop
I am posting this from my back yard. With the death of our hard drive, I decided we needed a laptop anyway. Our desk computer is now fixed and we will get it back this weekend, but in the meantime I have been using the laptop.
It’s an HP Pavilion. I forget the model number, and the paperwork is inside. And I am (did I mention?) in my backyard
It has a 17″ “widescreen” screen. I like that.
I don’t know if we’ll keep it. It was kind of a hasty purchase to meet immediate needs, so we didn’t do much research. What do you laptop experts think? Should I keep it? I need it mostly for Internet surfing, watching DVDs, and running CD-ROMs with sheet music (you prop the laptop on the piano stand and read music directly off the screen, obviating the need to print out the music).
But it’s cool to post from the back yard.
Actually a little too cool. We haven’t gotten a heat lamp yet. And it’s getting a little chilly.
P.S. I have noticed that I make more typos and other mistakes with this thing. I’m not sure why that is.
Keep it! You can’t beat the convenience of reading Patterico (et al) from the comfort of the sofa, backyard, front porch.
Wife & I use the laptop now more than the desktop. With file sharing, I can access my desktop and printer remotely.
ManlyDad (d81438) — 5/4/2006 @ 7:40 pmThe new LG laptops rock.
Top-end all the way. Came from nowhere to top of the review charts.
LG provides great support too because they are selling their OWN components, they’re not making laptops for someone else anymore that you buy under that other brand name.
They’re not cheap… they are best of breed and you can only buy them through selected sellers because they’re keeping control of their supply chain so they can service it properly and to keep margins up… however, they are beautiful designs and quality.
LG is a funny company… they make wicked optical drives and other computer hardware… and crappy cell phones. Cute, but just not good at all.
It’s a large Korean conglomerate and “Life’s Good” Electronics is one of my favourites for computers. For laptops, they are number one.
In a perfect world, you want a laptop with a built in 128MB video card, minimum 512MB RAM (should really consider 1GB nowadays, you’ll never regret having it). LG only uses good low voltage processors.
Chris from Victoria, BC (5d90a2) — 5/4/2006 @ 7:45 pm17″ widescreen, eh? Is it in the same series as the laptop I brought to the election night party?
The Angry Clam (a7c6b1) — 5/4/2006 @ 8:01 pmOh, yeah. Keep it. We have only had IBM ThinkPads for the last seven years. (When we upgrade, my wife gets the new one and I get her previous one.) I use my old desktop only as a word processor these days and only because it has Word Perfect 5.1, probably the best word processing program ever written. Look, if it does the job, the monitor suits your eyes, and the price fits your pocketbook … .
nk (41da82) — 5/4/2006 @ 8:11 pmKeep it.
Typos? The ‘flat’ keyboard takes some getting used to, but once you use it for a while the ‘tall’ (desktop) keyboard will be almost impossible to use. Just saying from experience, as a laptop only user for 7 years.
Oh and I have to say it, get a Mac.
🙂
Scott B (d76bb9) — 5/4/2006 @ 11:00 pmI wouldn’t get a Mac. The reason is here.
I think “Raybay” has nailed it.
Chris from Victoria, BC (5d90a2) — 5/4/2006 @ 11:39 pmI hope your joking, Mr. P, otherwise that’s some pretty unethical behavior. Did your retailer know they were providing you with a loaner while your desktop was down? Are they in the business of subsidising your blogging? It’s not their problem that you walked in and grabbed the closest laptop. There doesn’t seem to be any problem with the computer, so it stinks if you make them eat several hundred dollars in laptop value just for your convenience.
[Calm down. I didn’t say it was a “loaner,” just that I made the purchase with little research. Yes, the retailer’s policy does not require that there be something wrong with it. I got it from that retailer precisely because they have a good return policy: you are allowed to return things if you simply don’t like them. I believe they understand the risks of such a policy and believe it will make them money in the long run, because people will buy from them and not another store. They probably made money off me in just this way, so it was a good gamble for them. But thanks for carelessly tossing around accusations of unethical behavior. — P]]
Dean (11794f) — 5/4/2006 @ 11:51 pmKeep it, Patrick. HPs are great.
In fact, I’m posting this from my own brand-new 17″ HP Pavilion.
Paul (c169e9) — 5/4/2006 @ 11:58 pmHPs are good – I’ve had a good experience with them. Their laptops, anyway. I’m still partial to LGs if I was to buy a brand new one today.
Chris from Victoria, BC (5d90a2) — 5/5/2006 @ 12:14 amYou make more typos and errors because it’s a smaller keyboard, duh, positioned in a somewhat different way and you’re not used to it.
You will get the hang of it, but it’ll take a while.
Chris from Victoria, BC (5d90a2) — 5/5/2006 @ 1:05 amBe sure to secure said computer while it is on piano. I was reading from one once and it slipped off….disaster. What type of music do you play?
Johnbeauregard (dc910e) — 5/5/2006 @ 5:06 am[…] Pattycakes says: I am posting this from my back yard. […]
SayUncle » Fun with technology (9b413a) — 5/5/2006 @ 6:00 amChis from Victoria has it right: the reason you are making more typing mistakes is because laptop keyboards and mice suck both thumbs. Even with a 17 in model, which I have, they still went with the condensed keyboard, with the keys in the wrong place, the tiny backspace key, and so on. He may also be right that you will get the hang of it if you keep using it, but I’m not sure it’s worth it. There is a reason why companies that issue laptops also have docking stations for them at the office.
I love mine, and it’s great for traveling, but when I’m at home, I use it like a desktop. I have a real keyboard, a real mouse and a real monitor. Of course, that means you can’t really use it in the back yard. But you will probably find that the backyard is not so conducive to good work, once the novelty wears off.
Keep it. You can use it for a DVD player when you travel if you get a converter. You can take your work with you when you travel. And every household in the industrialized world needs at least one more computer than cars.
Scott (412f3f) — 5/5/2006 @ 7:07 amI’ve got two Pavilions (one for general use, one for field audio recording) and like them a lot. Of course, mine have Athlon 64 chips in them, so I don’t have to worry about getting cold. 🙂
Bill Roper (7a3469) — 5/5/2006 @ 8:35 amDefinitely keep it. Just don’t travel with it (way too heavy). We replaced our home HP destop last summer with a Toshiba 17″ screen laptop and love it, though I will probably get a smaller/lighter laptop for traveling. The speakers are phenomenal if we port it around, but it has a good external speaker setup when on the computer desk. You will definitely get used to the keyboard and the typos will retreat back to the norm. 😉 Regular keyboards don’t feel normal to us anymore because home and work computers are laptops only.
Peg C. (5907f4) — 5/5/2006 @ 9:22 amHP has been my favorite brand of laptop for some time now. At my last job, I had an IBM laptop which I hated. I would also stay away from Dell or Gateway. If you decide to get another laptop from the one you have, I would recommend you stay with HP.
Andy (c055f6) — 5/5/2006 @ 9:30 amAs Scott commented (#13), you can get the best of both worlds by getting a docking station for your new laptop. When you want to use your PC as a regular work station, you just plug the laptop into the docking station, and use a regular keyboard and monitor. And you still retain all the benefits of having a laptop. I have one of those ergonomic (curved) keyboards for my PC when it’s plugged into the docking station, which is great once you get used to it, but then it’s hard to type decently when I’m using the PC as a laptop.
Tim K (7e41e8) — 5/5/2006 @ 9:37 amMr. P, I don’t see any difference between what you are contemplating (and all your commenters are encouraging) and the girl who buys the expensive dress on Friday, wears the dress to the big party on Saturday, and returns the dress on Sunday. Crappy behavior, even if allowed by company policy.
Your defense reminds me of a story an old girlfriend told me about Nordstroms. A woman came to customer service to return a set of tires without a receipt. They gave her a refund, despite the fact that they don’t sell tires. My girlfriend thought this was the most wonderful story about Nordstroms customer service – I thought they were nuts.
[You misread my post, and/or are making unwarranted assumptions. You assume I just wanted a rental. I didn’t say that, and it’s not true. I said we need a laptop anyway. I will end up with a laptop because I want the mobility. The issue is, will it be *this* one? I got this one because I could easily return it if dissatisfied, so I felt more comfortable making a quick purchase based on hasty research. I will probably keep it. The store took a gamble that it could make more money by encouraging people to buy now and return it if unhappy. They’re hoping people will be happy. So far, I am. It was probably a good gamble for the store. — P]
Dean (e2a003) — 5/5/2006 @ 9:44 amI wouldn’t keep the HP, but I would get a laptop. Never been much of a fan of them. But if it works for you… At the very least, you should have a laptop of some form.
Joe V. (3c5285) — 5/5/2006 @ 10:12 amThat depends on “Mr. P’s” intent at the time he bought the laptop. If he bought it with the intent to scam them out of a free rental, then I agree that wasn’t a nice thing to do. But if he bought it with the intent to try it out, see if he likes it, and maybe keep it or maybe not, then what’s wrong with that?
Xrlq (0a29f4) — 5/5/2006 @ 10:20 amDean, a dress is sold upon purchase. Electronics are subject to customer approval, especially after purchase.
Every emergency makes us branch out and become consumers, whether it’s a broken computer, toaster or TV set. Most retailers value the opportunity to provide quality and satisfaction. Electronic purchases can’t be sampled effectively in store.
Vermont Neighbor (a9ae2c) — 5/5/2006 @ 10:44 amI’ve got one of those. HP Pavillion, wide screen. Love it. Using it now. Use it every day. Sometimes from the back yard, too.
rightwingprof (663991) — 5/5/2006 @ 11:47 amOne last time, and then I’ll drop this. My issue is not with returning electronics that don’t work or don’t meet your needs – my issue is with this timeline:
Desktop goes down
Patrick has computing needs
Runs to the store (no research) and buys a laptop
Uses laptop while desktop hard drive is being replaced
Desktop fixed
Patrick blogs, Hey guys, should I keep this laptop? I don’t even know the model number, but it’s got a big screen! Are there better ones?
You are using the retailer – not to try out a laptop, but to provide you with a defacto loaner without their knowledge. That’s not cool.
Dean (279254) — 5/6/2006 @ 7:15 amI have a new Dell Inspiron 17 inch laptop
it has 256k graphics, 1 gig ram, 100 gig drive, tv tuner multimedia, etc for $1350
what did you pay?
windansea (a57b99) — 5/6/2006 @ 8:03 amHP is a perfectly good brand for laptops. IMHO research on laptops matters little as all the “major” brands make capable products. Sure you can get a lemon, but this could happen with any model / brand.
The key to the right laptop is what you like, not what a reviewer might like. Do you like the keyboard (feel and layout), the screen size, the mousepad, the style, etc? If you like it, its the right laptop for you.
Beyond asthetics and usability then come suitability for your mobile needs in terms of battery life and size/weight. These concerns are where you have to tradeoff the big 17″ screen with a smaller form factor.
But, not to repeat myself, pay little attention to the reviews and get what works best for you.
P.S. I’m sure you are using WPA for your wireless security, but if not you need to upgrade your wireless router.
Charlie (22cc32) — 5/6/2006 @ 9:04 amCharlie makes an excellent point about wireless security. An honest neighbor told me he was able to log on to the net using my wireless router. I had carelessly left everything in the default “open” position.
I also agree that there is little difference in brands. Pick the one that has the right screen, keyboard, etc. for you.
Stu707 (18fdc8) — 5/6/2006 @ 9:21 amDean, you made a false assumption about Patterico’s intent when he bought the HP laptop, despite his clear statement othewise – – did you see the second sentence of his original post above, “With the death of our hard drive, I decided we needed a laptop anyway.”? Not a loaner, a new laptop.
Assuming you questioned Patterico’s ethics in good faith based on misunderstanding the above, please now reconsider. However, you may want to be more careful before posting such hasty judgements, as well as your apparently credulous reporting of the false Nortstrom tire-return policy.
Trained Auditor (48264a) — 5/6/2006 @ 11:29 amI spoke with someone very nice in India who helped me set up the router in a secure mode, so that only someone who knows my code can use it.
Patterico (50c3cd) — 5/6/2006 @ 11:42 amDean, if you own an electronics store or retail outlet, I empathize with what you’re saying. No doubt thugs and gang bangers use free equipment and try to outrun the person working the return window. Return policies have really changed in the last year or two, to the point where it’s like a chapter from 1984. (Your name. Your return habits. Your history. Your address.) I believe companies are even set up to handle this new industry.
I still say when someone’s stuff is on the blink, it’s not necessary to do research (although with cars and computers, it’s helpful). But the organic shopping experience should include getting help from qualified associates… even kids. I’m a big supporter of advertising and agree with the economic concept that advertising is information, delivered free. For those who have time.
In this day and age, a broken computer requires immediate attention. It’s a store’s opportunity to win a new customer with product that is routinely under a try it and see policy anyway.
Vermont Neighbor (a9ae2c) — 5/6/2006 @ 2:57 pmNothing works correctly in PV unless its inherited or bought from the trunk of a car in the parking lot at Malaga cove. Something to do with warping of the magnetic field from all the slippage.
Pat Patterson (5b3946) — 5/6/2006 @ 8:00 pmRe: 30
Seriously? The slippage of the land?
Cell connections are certainly close to impossible there.
Vermont Neighbor (a9ae2c) — 5/6/2006 @ 8:51 pmOnly if you live south and east of Calle
Pat Patterson (5b3946) — 5/6/2006 @ 9:29 pmVicente.
Hey, Dean? It’s July 23 and I STILL HAVE THE LAPTOP.
Patterico (50c3cd) — 7/23/2006 @ 10:02 am