Buying a New Laptop, Need advice!! Mainly on good/bad brands...

[allister]

Hey guys! I am in the market for a new laptop and am having a really, really hard time finding what I need. I'll try to keep this quick and tell you exactly what I'm looking for

-17"+ screen (I'm a designer)
-Windows , I guess 10 (if 7 is an option, I might go with that because then I'll know for sure all my current softwares will work with it)
-4 USB Ports (critical I have 4, most seem to come with only 3)
-CD Drive (I find it annoying that a lot of them seem to not come with these now)
-Quad Core processor
-Budget upto $2500

Right now I have a Dell XPS with quad core processor. It gets the job done but it's about 5 years old, and I would like to upgrade this year to start the process of getting things transferred over. The new XPS's don't come with 17" screens and nothing else they offer seem to come with both that screen size, and 4 usb's with a cd drive.

I am not familiar with other brands, what's good and not good. I appreciate any advice/experience with other brands and any help to get me in the right direction. Thanks in advance!!!

 

[ON D BIT]

Is it a true mobile computer or do you just design at home or your offices.

The reason I ask is I would go with a smaller notebook and hook up one or two monitors 23+ at home or office when you work. See better than the 17 screen and so lighter to lug around.

 

[Gary Macomber]

If I were in the market, I would probably get a razer. They don't have 4 USB ports though, you can easily get a USB hub to fix that problem with any laptop.

 

[allister]

Is it a true mobile computer or do you just design at home or your offices.

The reason I ask is I would go with a smaller notebook and hook up one or two monitors 23+ at home or office when you work. See better than the 17 screen and so lighter to lug around.

I move during the day between different work stations and travel, so doing that wouldn't be feasible in my situation although a good idea. I wish I could just get a desktop and call it a day but really have to get something close to I have now.

Been looking at the Lenovo's they might fit the bill IDK if they are good brand or not though

 

[CobraBob]

I was going to recommend the Razer Blade Pro (HD, not the uber expensive 4K version), but the Amazon reviews aren't good, especially for support.

I would Google 'best 17" business laptops 2017' and spend some time reviewing the various recommendations. Yeah, it's gonna take some time, but you'll probably end up with a laptop that you believe will best meet your needs. Just be sure to search out reviews on your short list. Amazon is good for those. CNET tends to gloss over issues that typical users might raise.

 

[VegasMichael]

I had one built to spec by Falcon Northwest and have not looked back. https://www.falcon-nw.com/

 

[Logan@Lethal]

I have a XPS17, XPS15 and a SP4. We're talking thousands of dollars in laptops... guess which one I only use? SP4.
The versatility with this laptop is second to none.. I went the "fully loaded" route and it is awesome, still. I know lots of people use this laptop for design, although its a smaller screen.

 

[bglf83]

http://www8.hp.com/us/en/products/laptops/product-detail.html?oid=11623738#!tab=specs

Get the quad core config and the thunderbolt docking station. When at home use the dock to drive dual external monitors and peripherials ( desktop). Travel, just take the computer.

 

[allister]

I had one built to spec by Falcon Northwest and have not looked back. https://www.falcon-nw.com/

Thanks for your comment! I actually have been eyeballing the SP's for awhile now. I was thinking about getting a 17" for at home and a SP for when I travel. I talked myself out of it because I have an Ipad but I still also have to bring my computer and don't need all the USB's when traveling.

I'm really nervous about adding USB ports via docking stations. I feel like I'll run into troubles with connectivity and data transferring? IDK why but doing that makes me nervous. Plus not really ideal having a whole other device to plug in everyday.

Still learning towards the Lenovo. Anyone have any good or bad experience with them?

 

[ON D BIT]

Lenovo purchased ibm personal computers which is why you see the Lenovo think pad.

Their customer service does not seem to be very favorable though.
https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/lenovo-brand-rating

 

[SVTdreamin04]

I move during the day between different work stations and travel, so doing that wouldn't be feasible in my situation although a good idea. I wish I could just get a desktop and call it a day but really have to get something close to I have now.

Been looking at the Lenovo's they might fit the bill IDK if they are good brand or not though

I am a pretty big fan of Lenovo. I currently have a T560 that is Work supplied to me. I run design software for machine development involving ladder logic and HMI development. It is lacking some of the things you are wanting, I can’t remember exactly all the things you wanted, but Lenovo makes some great hardware.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[RDJ]

take a look at this one: http://outlet.us.dell.com/ArbOnlineSales/Online/SecondaryInventorySearch.aspx?c=us&cs=28&l=en&s=dfb&sign=PXhcOSHtr1T4IOw/PR7UddLH/t2qbH1YKpsjhjmpw1dWX5TcrChargwWM0PzWVbmKFuA/XR8Zvf9VSmiaqpnhSTX+7BW6wnUZapNXELt/9S2UNrrpdLDcXwIhSZ5c+T2zkWaczrorj/6qxQ/UU+4wI/66jlRsa2ZyPdt6EBjMTvz0GVpLfJ1dgnkL0Nh6Zqu

no dog in this hunt. I wouldn't touch a lenovo with my worst enemy's wallet. but that is another discussion.

 

[bglf83]

We call them LenoNo at work.....

 

[lucheski]

I have a 17" msi apache pro, great machine

 

[ViciousJay]

Get a Surface or HP