ohioskinsfan Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 Just out of curiosity, I was wondering if anyone has ever purchased store exclusive electronics because this seems like a great price for this machine: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Toshiba+-+Satellite+Laptop+/+Intel%26%23174%3B+Core%26%23153%3B+i3+Processor+/+15.6%22+Display+/+4GB+Memory+/+500GB+Hard+Drive+-+Black/1974715.p?id=1218303652901&skuId=1974715 It is a Best Buy exclusive...I've only ever owned Dells. However, it is inexpensive with some decent specs. It would be used for normal purposes. Thanks for any assistance you can provide. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conn Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 Screens rather small, but I like it otherwise. I've got a Toshiba that was a special promo directly from the company, and only sold through Best Buy, and I jumped on it because looking at the specs, it was a very, very good price. Almost comparable to yours, actually. I'm loving it. Had to drive an hour and a half to get the last one in Connecticut though, as they weren't being sold online, and were almost sold out, and it was a one-time model. Looks like yours is being sold online, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chipwhich Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 Store exclusive to me always meant cheaper parts. Walmart used to be king at "exclusive" electronics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PokerPacker Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 since when is a 15.6" screen rather small? Isn't that about as average a screen size as it gets? Personally, I prefer a smaller, more portable 11.6" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IONTOP Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 Typing this on a 19" CompUSA Black Friday special Laptop... Bought this thing on BF '06... About 6 months ago became a "below average" laptop... Yet I can still run everything I want to after I added RAM and an external hard drive... Spent ~1k on it when I bought it.... Not sure what your needs are, but if you're one who values "value" then save up until black friday and get a great laptop/desktop and have it last for years, rather than just get one that will last you until you can afford another... BTW I'd go for a laptop with a better video card... That and the processor are 2 things you CANNOT reasonably upgrade so you'd have to replace rather than upgrade... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PokerPacker Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 Honestly, I'm not a big fan of that machine, even at that price. For less than that, you could get a Lenovo x120e, which has an AMD Fusion E350 Zacate dual-core processor and ATI Mobility Radion HD6310 (anything ATI or Nvidia is better than Intel) graphics. the x120e is ultraportable with its 11.6 inch screen and a low power-consumption will give you some pretty good battery-life (depending on the size of your battery). http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/web/LenovoPortal/en_US/builder.workflow:Enter?sb=%3A00000025%3A00002D05%3A&smid=C63BB22720313B14F5906FFA72CB90D5 Choose the E350 processor. Personally, I'd go with 2GBs RAM and buy another 2GBs later on and install (you can get it for $25 or less on newegg versus the $80 or so they'd charge you if you ordered it that way). Windows 7 64-bit is a free upgrade over 32 bit, so I'd take that, too. Bluetooth is up to you, it depends on if you have a use for it. Its not that expensive of a feature at $20. with the E350 and the bluetooth, that would take the price to $460. Enter coupon code USPAMAZON or GOOGLESHOP to take 10% off and the price would come out $413. Better, more portable, and cheaper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homercles82 Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 The best advice in this thread is don't shortchange yourself on processor and graphics card when you buy the machine. RAM is an easy upgrade after the fact, and easy to do. Do your research on processors before buying. Avoid Celeron processors at all costs. Not sure what the AMD equivelent though I believe they call it Phenom? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohioskinsfan Posted March 16, 2011 Author Share Posted March 16, 2011 Thanks for the suggestions so far. I checked out the Lenovo. Doesn't look too bad, just a little concerned about the size at 11.6. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.