Best & Worst Laptop Brands 2015

[iladelf]

I tell my customers to stay away from HP laptops; seems like I still see them all the time with that "video chip overheating" issue that apparently has never been fixed. Other than that, I've rarely had to work on very many other laptops, and my customers have always had good luck with Dell (laptop-wise), and so have I.

Are the HPs still having the overheating "de-soldering" issue? I'd like to see others chime in on that.

 

[Choppie]

Without a doubt, from a repair techs perspective, HP makes some of the worst laptops out there.

I could not agree with you more!!! On par with Acer! GARBAGE!

I have two CF-51 which I have replaced the drives with SSDs...they kick ass! Have dropped them on concrete.....still work perfectly and they are going on 5 years old. I bang on them all day. Not one problem... only thing is they are a bit expensive...

 

[sapphirescales]

You get what you pay for. If you go to Walmart and you see an HP and an Acer with the same specs but one is more expensive than the other, buy the more expensive one.

But if you really want a good quality laptop, skip Walmart altogether and go with a business class Dell or Lenovo. HP business class is better than the home class crap, but their quality has gone down a bit over the years. I personally wouldn't buy an HP business class laptop today.

 

[mbrooks67]

All laptops in the world are made in Singapore by six different companies, and every computer company uses all six companies. One makes the cases (notice they all kinda look alike?) one makes the boards etc. Laptops are disposable consumer goods, dont expect too from them. If they last a year thats great. If you have to be mobile you need one. But if not, get a pc, it can breath and last forever. If you buy a laptop and dont need to be mobile, your asking for it. Apple, they have sensitive wifi adapters, thats all. The OS reminds me of Win 98, it hangs, reboot etc. My 10 year old son said "Dad, Apples are status items." Yes son, if you pay $2000 for a crappy laptop, you have status issues, or more money than brains. Which I never figured out how that works.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

All laptops in the world are made in Singapore by six different companies, and every computer company uses all six companies. .

"Most of the laptops in the world..." are made by those ODMs in China (such as Quanta, Foxconn, Compal, ..I forget the others.... Asus used to be one of the bigger ones until they got out of the ODM market a couple of years ago and sold direct.

But not "all laptops". There are a few domestic niche brands gaining traction here in the US...and some larger brands, such as Lenovo, have started building some biz laptop models domestically. Also some industrial/ruggedized brands/models are made domestically. And the percentage is growing..and growing..

 

[frase]

All laptops in the world are made in Singapore by six different companies, and every computer company uses all six companies. One makes the cases (notice they all kinda look alike?) one makes the boards etc. Laptops are disposable consumer goods, dont expect too from them. If they last a year thats great. If you have to be mobile you need one. But if not, get a pc, it can breath and last forever. If you buy a laptop and dont need to be mobile, your asking for it. Apple, they have sensitive wifi adapters, thats all. The OS reminds me of Win 98, it hangs, reboot etc. My 10 year old son said "Dad, Apples are status items." Yes son, if you pay $2000 for a crappy laptop, you have status issues, or more money than brains. Which I never figured out how that works.

No the cases don't look alike at all for a reason..
They are not disposable - maybe just your generation of thought..
A pc will not last forever, unless regularly serviced or updated with modern hardware to keep up with OS

It is the build design of a laptop which is the key not the components, as in heat transfer and dispersion. Along with hinge design and durability which I personally find are key to a perfect laptop. The rest of the component are superfluous as they are much the same.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

Laptops are disposable consumer goods, dont expect too from them. If they last a year thats great. If you have to be mobile you need one. But if not, get a pc, it can breath and last forever. If you buy a laptop and dont need to be mobile, your asking for it..

Haven't had much experience with good business grade models eh? Thinkpad T and X series for example. I'm brutal has hell on mine every day. Last years I took a pile of computer junk from home to the dump, still had some Thinkad T20 models....which worked, Windows 98 and 2K COAs on them.

 

[gunslinger]

Unbelievable that Dell is rated higher than Apple. Come on, really? What a crock. HP just under? Are you freakin' kidding me? Does the hate for Apple really run so deep that people actually think that? A 10 year old kid could pick and HP a Dell and an Apple laptop up and immediately tell you which one was higher quality before even powering it on. Its threads like this that make me ashamed to be a computer tech on this forum.

 

[Digital Sage]

ASUS all the way. That chart above is ridiculous. HP at number 3? Forget it. HP = Huge Piece of (silent C) Crap

 

[Digital Sage]

All laptops in the world are made in Singapore by six different companies, and every computer company uses all six companies. One makes the cases (notice they all kinda look alike?) one makes the boards etc. Laptops are disposable consumer goods, dont expect too from them. If they last a year thats great. If you have to be mobile you need one. But if not, get a pc, it can breath and last forever. If you buy a laptop and dont need to be mobile, your asking for it. Apple, they have sensitive wifi adapters, thats all. The OS reminds me of Win 98, it hangs, reboot etc. My 10 year old son said "Dad, Apples are status items." Yes son, if you pay $2000 for a crappy laptop, you have status issues, or more money than brains. Which I never figured out how that works.

I've owned 6 Apple Laptops, serviced countless Apple laptops, and i have no idea where you get your information from. It's certainly not real life experience. I've never had to restart a Apple / OSX based machine because of hangs. Their machines are made in China since 2007, and i've met many clients who are basic, down to earth types, who couldn't care less about status.

Try again.

 

[TechLady]

Lenovo Yogas are nice, but are outside a lot of my clients' budgets. If money is a concern and they really, really need something cheap and problem-free I steer them to Chromebooks. Or an iPad.

 

[Slaters Kustum Machines]

I've owned 6 Apple Laptops, serviced countless Apple laptops, and i have no idea where you get your information from. It's certainly not real life experience. I've never had to restart a Apple / OSX based machine because of hangs. Their machines are made in China since 2007, and i've met many clients who are basic, down to earth types, who couldn't care less about status.

Try again.

My FTJ has a global presence and in the location I work in there are 2000 employees we have an 80/20 split of Windows/Mac machines. I have certainly had to reboot Macs because of hangs. These aren't simple home use machines and I wouldn't rule out user caused issues by any means, but none the less we see malware and hangs/odd issues on the Macs, just like we do with Windows. No OS is perfect.

 

[gunslinger]

I'm not saying Macs don't have issues. Of course they do. All computers do. I have a Macbook Pro sitting here on the bench right now with hard drive failure. But to have their quality just above HP? Seriously WTAF. There is zero real objectivity here. As stated, a small child could tell you there is an obvious difference in quality. Are we talking about top brands as in who sells the most? If thats the case then HP and Dell are at the very top. If we are talking quality, Apple wins by a huge margin, followed by Lenovo, and the rest dragging up. HP should be at the very bottom.

 

[Slaters Kustum Machines]

I would agree that HP should be at the bottom. I really should test out a Lenovo, never worked with one as of yet.

 

[brandonkick]

Unbelievable that Dell is rated higher than Apple. Come on, really? What a crock. HP just under? Are you freakin' kidding me? Does the hate for Apple really run so deep that people actually think that? A 10 year old kid could pick and HP a Dell and an Apple laptop up and immediately tell you which one was higher quality before even powering it on. Its threads like this that make me ashamed to be a computer tech on this forum.

Look, you REALLY have a love for apple products. We all get that. It's also fine and dandy... Apple does make a very nice product.

You seem to be placing a higher emphasis on the quality of material then what really should be. For example, if you were to ask the entire population of the town you live, what the the top automobile manufactures, do you think your going to get a lot of Ferrari, BMW, Porsche, Lamborghini and so on? I bet your going to get a whole lot more Fords and Chevys. Why? More goes into the consideration then just highest quality or even whether or not the product is superior to the others. No one could argue that Ford makes "better" cars then BMW or Ferrari... but how many can afford to drive them? Even those who can, could buy a much more reasonably priced vehicle without sacrificing all that much.

Apple laptops really are quite nice machines, but a $2500 laptop is a hard sell when a machine that is just as capable can be purchased for $500-$700. Will it have that super high pixel density Apple display? No. Will it have that fit and finish, the sleek appearance? No. Will most people care? No.

That's what pushes Lenovo and Dell up there with, and beyond Apple. Lenovo and Dell aren't necessarily making superior products, they are just WAY more affordable. It comes down to "bang for your buck" and Apple fails miserably there, and it's one of the very few things they do fail at. But it's enough.

If I had a choice between a Lenovo for $700 and a Mac Book Pro for $700 I'd probably buy the Mac Book Pro. Add $1800 to the price of the Mac Pro and all of a sudden my choice becomes much easier.

About the HP thing.. .I don't know about that though. Joke/Prank/Troll voting? Must be.

 

[Digital Sage]

Look, you REALLY have a love for apple products. We all get that. It's also fine and dandy... Apple does make a very nice product.

You seem to be placing a higher emphasis on the quality of material then what really should be. For example, if you were to ask the entire population of the town you live, what the the top automobile manufactures, do you think your going to get a lot of Ferrari, BMW, Porsche, Lamborghini and so on? I bet your going to get a whole lot more Fords and Chevys. Why? More goes into the consideration then just highest quality or even whether or not the product is superior to the others. No one could argue that Ford makes "better" cars then BMW or Ferrari... but how many can afford to drive them? Even those who can, could buy a much more reasonably priced vehicle without sacrificing all that much.

Apple laptops really are quite nice machines, but a $2500 laptop is a hard sell when a machine that is just as capable can be purchased for $500-$700. Will it have that super high pixel density Apple display? No. Will it have that fit and finish, the sleek appearance? No. Will most people care? No.

That's what pushes Lenovo and Dell up there with, and beyond Apple. Lenovo and Dell aren't necessarily making superior products, they are just WAY more affordable. It comes down to "bang for your buck" and Apple fails miserably there, and it's one of the very few things they do fail at. But it's enough.

If I had a choice between a Lenovo for $700 and a Mac Book Pro for $700 I'd probably buy the Mac Book Pro. Add $1800 to the price of the Mac Pro and all of a sudden my choice becomes much easier.

About the HP thing.. .I don't know about that though. Joke/Prank/Troll voting? Must be.

You might want to go to apple.com and check the price of their current offerings. $2500 is top end, 512 SSD, Retina display, 15", 16GB RAM Macbook Pro.

 

[brandonkick]

You might want to go to apple.com and check the price of their current offerings. $2500 is top end, 512 SSD, Retina display, 15", 16GB RAM Macbook Pro.

I have.

Nothing but the Macbook Pro is available with anything larger than a 13" display.

The 14" screen on my Lenovo Thinkpad T420 is honestly too small, and an upgrade
to 15.6" T520 would be IMO a bare minimum. A 13" screen is too small, for me anyway,
to do anything other then the basic things you'd do with a smart phone.

My smart phone is usually used to make calls and texts, the once in a blue moon email
and an even rarer youtube session. Everything else gets done on my desktop, which has
two 24" monitors.

The cheapest 15" Macbook Pro is $1999 stock.

 

[Digital Sage]

I have.

Nothing but the Macbook Pro is available with anything larger than a 13" display.

The 14" screen on my Lenovo Thinkpad T420 is honestly too small, and an upgrade
to 15.6" T520 would be IMO a bare minimum. A 13" screen is too small, for me anyway,
to do anything other then the basic things you'd do with a smart phone.

My smart phone is usually used to make calls and texts, the once in a blue moon email
and an even rarer youtube session. Everything else gets done on my desktop, which has
two 24" monitors.

The cheapest 15" Macbook Pro is $1999 stock.

Fair enough!

yeah they do kill their offerings that way. If you're after a 15" screen it's a premium.

I've only bought one mac new, and that was a good price. All others are second hand, off eBay.

New Mac's are expensive, i'll give you that.

Run a Mac Mini for my office, cost $650 and has never skipped a beat. Drives dual monitors. Dual HDD with a SSD for main and secondary 1TB. Quiet as all, small, compact, and fast!

 

[brandonkick]

Fair enough!

yeah they do kill their offerings that way. If you're after a 15" screen it's a premium.

I've only bought one mac new, and that was a good price. All others are second hand, off eBay.

New Mac's are expensive, i'll give you that.

Run a Mac Mini for my office, cost $650 and has never skipped a beat. Drives dual monitors. Dual HDD with a SSD for main and secondary 1TB. Quiet as all, small, compact, and fast!

It's just the small screen size and the lack of a ethernet port that really kill it for me.

I do a fair bit more than most people do with their desktops / laptops (as I'd assume most on this
forum do) and the small screen and lack of that port on all but the Mac Book Pro models make them
all but useless to me. They'd be for entertainment mostly, and that's a lot of coin to spend on entertainment.

I'm not a Mac hater though. As you've said, your mac mini has done very well for you. I was actually looking at buying
a second hand mac mini. One of the nice things about that is you have the freedom to supply your own screen, and I could
pair it up with a nice 24-27" model. That's something I'd use. I'm honestly surprised they don't at least go to 15" with their
Mac Book Air offerings.

 

[glennd]

i can't imagine anything less than 15 inch on a laptop and even that is too small. When I'm at work it's always plugged into an external screen for additional real estate.