Topic: Help me choose a laptop (Lenovo Ideapad Y710? Other suggestions?)

[The Mighty Duck]

Adding an anti-glare film is a cheap and easy solution if the glare is that big a deal.  Not an ideal solution, granted, but if the choice is between an Apple + $40 film or a Windows machine, I think the solution is obvious...

Apple has made some pretty big compromises in the new machines.  Hopefully the backlash from the Pro market encourages them to undo some of them in the next revision.  Or maybe the 17" Pro, which hasn't been updated yet, will still offer 2 FireWire ports and a matte display.  That would appease some (though certainly not all) of the complainers.

[SkiBunny]

You had that experience with Lenovo, and you're still encouraging others to buy Lenovos?  Seriously?? 

I've never suggested anyone buy any regular Lenovo.  The thinkpad obviously used to be cream of the crop, until IBM sold it to Lenovo and Lenovo compromised them .  But even though thinkpad quality is worse than before, it's certainly better than the other Lenovos.

[dr_spock]

I have a glossy screen.  It isn't so bad except fingerprints standout.   If you work in a cubicle, you can see who's sneaking up behind you.   

[EV Dan]

I have a glossy screen.  It isn't so bad except fingerprints standout.   If you work in a cubicle, you can see who's sneaking up behind you.   

Thats a bonus. ...or you can go to Crappy and buy two side mirrors for the desk 

[Triple Bob]

I ordered the glossy screen on my latest laptop (Dell), I won't be doing it again... (if I get a choice)

[safristi]

..HI...I'm GLOSSY......and I will haunt yer dream sites....... ....

[mmret]

Yes they appear brighter but they aren't as "true" that's the difference.

But after having both I understand the matte, the matte is easier on the eyes and less of a hassle due to reflections.  I love it.  I don't think PC laptops come with matte screens at all, only the mac's did and was one reason I bought one.  Maybe the matte will return by the time I buy another.

Thinkpads had it. I got one. and other business class machines from Dell Latitude, HP, Fujitsu, Sony, Toshiba, Asus.

Yeah, matte screen ftw.

Can't stand glossy.

[vdk]

i went to take a look at the new mac pro's.. the new design looks better but it's harder to use.. the keys are awkwardly placed and the new clickable touchpad is pretty awful.. other than that... it's the same MBP as the last generation..

[The Mighty Duck]

The new keyboard is the same as the old MacBook keyboard and the aluminum keyboard that's been shipping with iMacs for about a year now.  Some people can't stand it - I absolutely love it, though.  So much so that I bought the external version to go with my MacBook (and to get a numeric keypad...  working with Excel without one is a nightmare!).

Not a fan of the black keys on the aluminum case, though.  Not a particularly nice contrast, would much rather have seen them continue with the colour-matched keys.

[SkiBunny]

Has anyone looked at the stock chart of Apple lately? 
Some chart analysts on CNBC today said Apple (and RIM and Yahoo and GM) are headed to zero and bankruptcy. 

[UmroAyyar]

Has anyone looked at the stock chart of Apple lately? 
Some chart analysts on CNBC today said Apple (and RIM and Yahoo and GM) are headed to zero and bankruptcy. 

Umm...this is CartalkCanada and this thread was about Mitlov's laptop experience.

You are mistaking this for SpeculateStocksCanada. 

btw, Apple's iPhone outsold RIM's blackberry and posted hefty profit. Anyhow, lets leave this thread.

[dr_spock]

Where is Miltov?   Did he get his money back and the restocking fee waived?   

I just bought a brand new USB Lenovo keyboard and mouse for $5 to use on my Wii.   Price seems right.

[The Mighty Duck]

Has anyone looked at the stock chart of Apple lately? 
Some chart analysts on CNBC today said Apple (and RIM and Yahoo and GM) are headed to zero and bankruptcy. 

   My Finance prof's opinion of the "analysts" on the networks is less than rosy, to put it mildly.  Apple just reported one of their best quarters on record, has lots of money in the bank, and no debt.  I think they'll be okay.

Mitlov...  if you haven't bought yet, and you can afford to wait a bit, the new MacBooks will make their way to the Refurb section of Apple's website at substantial savings within a couple months.  The old models are being cleared out at massive discounts, too.

I'm very tempted by the new 13" MacBook, but I'd never pay full retail for it. 

[Brig]

Welcome to the dark side, Mitlov... we have cookies.   

[initial_D]

  I have a better idea ...

[vdk]

The old models are being cleared out at massive discounts, too.
 

[Mitlov]

Where is Miltov?   Did he get his money back and the restocking fee waived?   

I just bought a brand new USB Lenovo keyboard and mouse for $5 to use on my Wii.   Price seems right.

I'm still here.  No, I have not seen a penny back from them.  They've had the computer at their North Carolina return center for a bit over two business days now, and a nice lady in India says that it may be 8-10 more business days before they return my money.  No, they have not yet acknowledge that the laptop was (1) defective, and (2) not built to the specifications I ordered (main hard drive 70 GB too small).  No, they have not been helpful at all.  The returns people (in India) say they can't talk about the defects, and that I have to talk to technical support.  The technical support people (in Atlanta, Georgia) say that they can't do anything without the computer's serial number (which is not included on any of the invoices Lenovo sent me; it's only on the computer itself, which is sitting in the Whitsett, North Carolina return center).  The tech support person just transferred me back to the returns person, and the returns person won't even let me speak with a manager (they say a manager should call me sometime in the next 48 hours, but I'm not holding by breath).  It's been a customer relations disaster, to tell you the truth.

I guess I'll just start a dispute process with Visa if Lenovo hasn't done anything by Monday. 

And Brigitte, that would be "welcome back to the dark side"...I'm typing on a PowerBook G4 right now.

[wing]

Oh geez that reminds me about a refund I never got!

[Mitlov]

I just got ahold of someone official on the Lenovo forum who seems to express at least a passing interest in my predicament.  I guess publicly posting your problems where potential new customers can see them gets their attention better than calling on the phone.

He did explain the hard drive issue.  There IS one 250 gb physical hard drive in the machine.  The thing is, roughly 33 gb is used up with the one-touch recovery system (and so doesn't display as "used hard drive space" when you get info on the hard drive), and the remaining 217 gb is divided into a 187 gb c: partition (which has the installed operating system and software, limiting free space to about 150 gb) and a completely-free 30 gb d: partition.  That's why I thought that they shipped my computer with a hard drive that was too small, and stuck a small second one in the slot.

What this doesn't explain is:

(1)  Everything else that was wrong with my machine,

(2)  Why on earth they would partition a hard drive into c: and d: to begin with (we all know that, for the vast majority of people, one big trunk is a whole lot more useful than two small trunks, right?),

(3)  Why the two separate returns people and one tech support person I've talked to so far did not explain this to me when I described the exact same thing about the hard drive, and

(4)  Why it apparently takes them 2+ weeks from receipt of a returned computer to refund the money (their time estimate).

 

[dr_spock]

I think the reasoning behind a C: and D: is you could move your data from C: to D: in case you need to use the recovery feature to rebuild Windows in the C: partition.  As for being passed around, that's the joy with dealing with a large multinational company.