Members UstadKhanAli Posted September 5, 2007 Members Share Posted September 5, 2007 I'm going to probably buy a laptop this weekend, something like the Toshiba Satellite or HP Business. Now here's the stupid question. They don't appear to have wi-fi. Is that easy to add on afterwards? I literally know NOTHING about laptops. Thanks! ~~~~~ P.S. I'm not using this computer for any studio or audio stuff, just basically to get online, maybe for the website a little later. It doesn't have to be the latest-greatest...just cheap and reliable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ultravibe Posted September 5, 2007 Members Share Posted September 5, 2007 The Toshiba does (integrated 802.11g) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Frantag Posted September 5, 2007 Members Share Posted September 5, 2007 In those ads they both have wireless as a standard feature. Where are you getting them without? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ultravibe Posted September 5, 2007 Members Share Posted September 5, 2007 Actually, so does the HP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted September 5, 2007 Author Members Share Posted September 5, 2007 Sorry, if it were a snake, it woulda bit me. I circled back to this thread, about to announce that they did in fact have wi-fi. I did promise in the subject header a stupid question, did I not? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Anderton Posted September 5, 2007 Members Share Posted September 5, 2007 TC doesn't recommend the Satellite for FireWire devices, might want to check into that aspect a bit further. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted September 5, 2007 Author Members Share Posted September 5, 2007 TC Electronics? Okay, thanks. Not a problem since I won't be using this for audio anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members John Sayers Posted September 5, 2007 Members Share Posted September 5, 2007 I have a Compac Presario (HP) and it also won't work with my Onyx firewire because you can't allocate IRQs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members deanmass Posted September 6, 2007 Members Share Posted September 6, 2007 i am betting everything on the shelves has WiFi. What you wanna look for is Wireless N compatibility. That is the newest fastest. The Hp stuff around 1K is really nice, but generally heavy. Without knowing your intended use, I shoot for an NVidia graphics chipset as well. Depending on budget, since you travel a lot, I would also look into the Panasonic Toughbook. I have an old one, and it is 2.1 lbs, and a tank. Got it used off eBay for $400. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted September 6, 2007 Author Members Share Posted September 6, 2007 I hadn't thought of the traveling part, but yeah, maybe I should look into that. I wouldn't take a laptop overseas on one of my backpacking trips, but maybe on some of the trips to see relatives in New York or West Virginia. My intended use is simply to have another computer around the house, partially to replace or augment this wheezy old Dell that I'm typing on right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author MikeRivers Posted September 6, 2007 CMS Author Share Posted September 6, 2007 I'm going to probably buy a laptop this weekendNow here's the stupid question. They don't appear to have wi-fi. Is that easy to add on afterwards? I literally know NOTHING about laptops. It's easy enough to add afterwards, either with a PCMCIA/PC-Card/CardBus card or USB adapter. But it's a rare laptop these days that doesn't have an integrated wireless setup. What a lot of PCs still don't have is a Firewire port, and other than maybe one or two custom assembled by/for one of the companies that make computers for audio applications, they don't have 6-pin Firewire ports. It may be old Netlore, but recent (two years or so back) Toshiba laptops have been reported to have more problems with audio applications than other brands. What seems to be (or at least was at the time) the suspicious part is the battery charging system. But you won't really know about that until you try it. Or maybe it doesn't matter if you're just looking for a travel computer that you won't be doing any serious work on. When I bought a new laptop about a year and a half ago, I ended up with an IBM (Lenovo) for two reasons. First, I hadn't heard anything bad about it, and second, it had a real parallel port, probably the last laptop made with one. Since I have this old version of Sequoia which uses a parallel port dongle and costs too much to update for the little I use it, I didn't want to risk losing it if the dongle didn't work through a USB adapter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members russrags Posted September 6, 2007 Members Share Posted September 6, 2007 Hey Ken, I just bought my wife an Accer for $400. She needed something to get on-line to check e-mails from remote places, plug her flash card in, watch a DVD ... we're really having fun with it. We have a No Tax Day once a year just before school, so I jumped on it and surprized her with it. "Vista" is something to get used to !@#$%^& I'll probably use it on trips to dump my memory card into from my camera, the screen has a really good picture. I'm not going to put Pro Tools on it, but hey Good luck, Russ Nashville Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members angstwulf Posted September 6, 2007 Members Share Posted September 6, 2007 TC Electronics? Okay, thanks. Not a problem since I won't be using this for audio anyway. You will, my friend, you will... It's very surprising what even an entry level laptop can handle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Lee Flier Posted September 6, 2007 Members Share Posted September 6, 2007 I got an HP laptop a few months ago and, apart from the fact that it came with Vista which I really didn't want , I'm very pleased with it. It's got all the bells and whistles I need. The battery life sucks, but considering I wanted excellent graphics and quite a lot of horsepower, it'd be kinda tough to make one with a long battery life that doesn't weigh a ton. But I mostly use it in places where I can plug in, anyhow. My old laptop, which I still have, is an Acer. It was made more for business use with very run of the mill graphics/media capability, but the battery life is nearly 5 hours. Kinda nice for working out on the patio. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bbach Posted September 6, 2007 Members Share Posted September 6, 2007 I'm pretty happy with my Dell Inspiron I bought a couple months ago. I upgraded the wifi to the next generation. Pretty fast. I be happy. For now. I agree with Lee. I did not want Vista, but it was not an option on the Inspiron. They do allow you to go with XP or Vista on their XPS series. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeff Leites Posted September 6, 2007 Members Share Posted September 6, 2007 I'm pretty happy with my Dell Inspiron I bought a couple months ago. I upgraded the wifi to the next generation. Pretty fast. I be happy. For now. I agree with Lee. I did not want Vista, but it was not an option on the Inspiron. They do allow you to go with XP or Vista on their XPS series. Yeah, I got a notebook last month. I got a Dell (Vostro 1500) from their small business division so that I could get XP. I haven't done anything with it except set it up with the programs I'll want to use when I take a trip.... but I haven't gone anywhere yet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members John Sayers Posted September 6, 2007 Members Share Posted September 6, 2007 May I recommend yet again that you take out the warranty offer on laptops - if your screen goes it will cost as much as a new one to replace it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted September 7, 2007 Author Members Share Posted September 7, 2007 Thanks for the advice!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members deanmass Posted September 7, 2007 Members Share Posted September 7, 2007 I second the warranty idea...I know many people don't think it is worth it, but the screens are usually 3-5 hundred...Office Depot sells theirs for $69-$99 per unit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members deanmass Posted September 7, 2007 Members Share Posted September 7, 2007 Oh..and the thing with the toughbooks is, these are EXACTLY the type of laptop you can take in a backpack. These are the things they put in tanks and cop cars....everything is shock mounted and dust sealed....If you are patient and watch, you can find some of the older ones cheap...Mine is a 800 mghz Centrino with 256 megs of RAM and is SMOKES my Gateway, which has 4 times as much ram. There is something to be said for component quality. Everytime I think I about selling it, I just can't do it. Honestly, I wish Apple made a ruggedized Powerbook. That would be my choice to go with one machine. Whil eI am at it, a Firewire flash stick that allows me to dual boot osx/XP too.. and a $299 iPod with no phone...wait..got that yesterday ( as I predecicted:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author MikeRivers Posted September 7, 2007 CMS Author Share Posted September 7, 2007 May I recommend yet again that you take out the warranty offer on laptops - if your screen goes it will cost as much as a new one to replace it. Chances are, though, that unless you're very unlucky and the screen fails just a couple of months after the standard warranty period, you'll already be thinking that the computer is getting a little old and needs replacement. Unless you're an old fuddy-duddly like me who drives computers until the wheels fall off, the only reason to get an "obsolete" one repaired is to preserve all of your software installations, data files, and setup tweaks. When you send a computer in to Dell for warranty repair (at least when I inquired a couple of years back) they wipe out whatever you have on your disk and restore it to the factory setup, leaving you with a big patch-up job. It doesn't matter that they don't NEED to reformat the disk when replacing the LCD, it's part of their standard test procedure. You could ask your local service shop not to mess with your software and they might comply, but Dell is too big and process-driven for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted September 7, 2007 Author Members Share Posted September 7, 2007 I'm not an old fuddy-duddy, but I tend to drive my computers until the wheels fall off. I purchased the computer I use for audio in my studio in spring 2001. Works great!! Not one person has said, "I'd enjoy the sound of my CD even more if you would have upgraded your operating system." The Dell I use for websites and online stuff is probably about 4-5 years old. If it works, great. I'll keep using it. I can't stand fiddling with computers, upgrading, and wasting my money replacing something that still works fine, as many people on this forum can tell you...I've gotten the "geeez, why are you still using that?" comment several times!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeff Leites Posted September 7, 2007 Members Share Posted September 7, 2007 I'm not an old fuddy-duddy, but I tend to drive my computers until the wheels fall off. Not one person has said, "I'd enjoy the sound of my CD even more if you would have upgraded your operating system." Everyone knows that the audio recorded with a vintage computer sounds better . But it must get hot in your studio considering the number of tubes it uses . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members pbognar Posted September 7, 2007 Members Share Posted September 7, 2007 Yeah, I got a notebook last month. I got a Dell (Vostro 1500) from their small business division so that I could get XP. I haven't done anything with it except set it up with the programs I'll want to use when I take a trip.... but I haven't gone anywhere yet That Dell is a great looking machine if you can still get it for $599. For another $100 you can upgrade to the 7100 (I think) core 2 duo cpu. Intel has information on the various versions of the core 2 duo cpu's and this one would give you a nice kick in the pants. Also, you get a discrete graphics system instead of an integrated one. Down the road you can swap out the memory and put in 2 1G sticks, and install Vista when it's really ready. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dahkter Posted September 7, 2007 Members Share Posted September 7, 2007 My friend picked up an HP refurb laptop with XP, 17" screen for $899 at J&R about four months ago.THey don't have it anymore, however it is a real sweet machine.Built in firewire, although it's the mini firewire, not the standard size... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.