Cheap Laptops

[Vince Massi]

The problem with mid-range laptops.

Loosely speaking, a mid-range laptop can do everything that people expect a laptop to do, but it does so with cheap parts. But there is a problem defining mid-range laptop, and some budget laptops are listed as "mid-range." When people shell out extra money, they expect a laptop that does everything they want. They don't realize that at that price, a laptop can't possibly do everything they want, but the manufacturer can fake it.

On another forum, there were several complaints about a laptop that literally could do everything for $800. The problem was that it was packed with cheap parts and quickly developed hardware problems. Do you want a laptop with a really sharp screen? The rest of the machine is cheapened up to absorb the cost. In other words, for $800, something had to go, but then people wouldn't buy the machine. So something had to be cheapened up.

Some mid-range laptops have poor battery life. By saving costs there, the laptop can have better, longer-lasting parts elsewhere. But since you lose mobility, why not buy a much more powerful desktop instead?

 

[Jake B]

Well battery life isn't the best qualtiy to detemin if the laptop is low, mid or high range. Mainly because batteries aren that much different. It's the component that the battery powers the have more to say with battery life. A $2000 laptop with 4th generation Intel Processor, SLI Nvidia 980 graphics and a tb HD with get way less battery life than a $1200 with 6th generation Intel U processor with intgrated graphics only and a 256 GB SSD.

 

[Vince Massi]

People don't realize that many mid-range laptops are bought for students. Whether high school or college, they want to play high-end games on their machine. And so you're paying for the ability to play high-end games on a machine that shouldn't be doing that, because the high temperatures will wear it out sooner. The costly graphics card won't do much to improve your web-surfing, but the manufacturer cheapened up other hardware to make up for the cost.

 

[Vince Massi]

In order to do everything that people expect for $800, laptops have to sacrifice something. Often, they use cheap parts to hold their costs down. A couple of years ago, on another forum, an upset poster told about his desktop replacement laptop (a laptop with a large screen). It was a $500 laptop with a 17.3" screen and four gigs of RAM.

Professional reviewers marveled at how they had fit so much into a low-cost machine. They mentioned that the screen was only mediocre quality, the cheap graphics card couldn't play high-tech games, and it was slow. And then the customer reviews came pouring in. One enraged purchaser after another described different parts that broke down a few months after purchase.

How did the manufacturer do so much for such a low price? He used cheap parts.

 

[Vince Massi]

Despite my best efforts, I cannot define the price level of a high-end laptop. However, I can define the phrase itself. A high-end laptop does everything a laptop can do, plus it has high-quality parts. The rugged keyboard actually feels good, the powerful video card will still be above average years from now, the case is made of high-quality material, you can actually drop it (don't do it) without breaking it, its screen gives bright graphics so powerful that your eye can't see much of it, it has more RAM than it will ever use, and it goes on the internet at the highest possible speed. The more you spend, the more rugged the parts will be, but your computing experience will not improve much. However, the appearance will get steadily better if you spend more.

If you insist on buying such a machine (and I advise you not to), let me give you a word of advice: Get one with a separate installation DVD, and with a separate DVD that contains the drivers. Many desktops include these two DVDs, while many laptops have them on the hard drive. In the next few days, I'll explain why you want these on two separate DVDs.

 

[Vince Massi]

I had told people about folks who had bought a $5,000 XP laptop (The Ferrari 5000) that is now less powerful than a cheap laptop. And then one owner wrote in on a forum. His $5,000, single-core, 32 bit XP machine only had two gigs of RAM, with a maximum of four. The screen was broken and the hard drive dead. He had sold it to someone and years later, after breaking it, they gave it back. But this monster of a bygone day could easily connect to a TV set. He installed a new hard drive with a copy of XP from another computer, connected it to a TV, and was enjoying internet videos.

Suddenly, a message from Microsoft appeared, telling him that his copy of XP was illegal, and they shut it down. He had no way to get the original key, and we couldn't help him. The best we could advise was for him to buy a legal copy of XP somewhere.

 

[Vince Massi]

This post was written almost three years ago, and the advent of Windows 10 has made it obsolete. But the principle still holds:


And now, having bought an expensive, $2,000, high-end laptop, here is the biography of your machine. I am projecting 2013 prices, without adjusting for inflation, into the future. A high-level laptop costs about $2,000. The top of the line models are about $3,000. Beyond that, the only improvements are custom designing.

18 months: The power of computers has doubled, and you are about as powerful as a mid-level machine that costs about 40% as much as you did.

2 years: It might be possible to install the new Windows Operating System. You have enough excess RAM to handle it, but you will have a problem with the drivers. They are very specific, and they might not work with a new OS.

3 years: The power of computers has quadrupled. You are in the range of bottom-level laptops that cost 1/10 what you paid. But your superior video card and abundance of RAM are keeping you in the ring.

4 years: You probably cannot install the newest version of Windows. But there are still enough older programs around for you to do anything except play the latest high-tech games. And for only $200, you can be replaced by a much-better laptop.

4 1/2 years: Computers are eight times more powerful than they were. But for slower internet usage and running legacy software, you're still a good rig. The newest RAM chips cannot be installed in your motherboard, but you have enough of the obsolete chips to get by.

5 years and beyond: With good care, you should last at least two more years. I have seen three operating laptops that are ten years old and are useful for charity work. Hopefully, they will donate you to an orphanage or some other charity.

 

[Jake B]

A warranty is a warranty no matter if you buy a 2000 laptop or a 400 laptop. If you buy a laptop from Newegg with an extended warrenty the warranty company isn't even the OEM.

 

[Vince Massi]

Right you are, Jake. But warranties aren't written by the government; they're written by legal experts paid to protect the company. Newegg, Wal-Mart, and other reputable stores will honor their return policies, but they aren't the manufacturer. Before buying any computer, you need to check the store's return policy.

And now--what about buying a used cheap laptop? Specifically, we're talking about a pawnshop.

The employees probably know little about the laptop, but they know if their pawnshop has a no-return policy. Write down the model number and GO HOME. Check it out on the web. Years ago, it was said that "People who know what they're doing don't buy Celeron chips." Why not? Today it costs $50 more to get a Pentium chip; a machine with a Celeron chip probably is packed with other cheap parts as well.

But some laptops are assembled with a blend of left-over, unused, high-quality parts. Bought cheap because they are obsolete, these might be rugged parts that will last a long time. How long? Long enough to justify the low price you should be paying for the laptop.

What was the original operating system? What do you want to use it for? If you only want to go on the web, you don't need to upgrade the OS. And you shouldn't be playing high-tech games on a laptop anyway.

The low-end Mexican laptop I bought for $60 US is compiled from left-over parts, including a Celeron chip. Designed for Windows 8, it upgraded easily to 10 and plays low-level games and surfs the web well enough to justify its low price.

 

[Vince Massi]

Okay, time for some Mickey Mouse Diagnostics. Mickey doesn't have the brains to fix your laptop, but he can at least figure out what's wrong.

The next time you turn on your laptop, look at the blinking lights. Learn what they do when your laptop is working. Later, if your laptop won't start up, look at the blinking lights. If they flash normally, your Power On Button, power cord, and internal power supply are working.

 

[Jake B]

Right you are, Jake. But warranties aren't written by the government; they're written by legal experts paid to protect the company. Newegg, Wal-Mart, and other reputable stores will honor their return policies, but they aren't the manufacturer. Before buying any computer, you need to check the store's return policy.

And now--what about buying a used cheap laptop? Specifically, we're talking about a pawnshop.

The employees probably know little about the laptop, but they know if their pawnshop has a no-return policy. Write down the model number and GO HOME. Check it out on the web. Years ago, it was said that "People who know what they're doing don't buy Celeron chips." Why not? Today it costs $50 more to get a Pentium chip; a machine with a Celeron chip probably is packed with other cheap parts as well.

But some laptops are assembled with a blend of left-over, unused, high-quality parts. Bought cheap because they are obsolete, these might be rugged parts that will last a long time. How long? Long enough to justify the low price you should be paying for the laptop.

What was the original operating system? What do you want to use it for? If you only want to go on the web, you don't need to upgrade the OS. And you shouldn't be playing high-tech games on a laptop anyway.

The low-end Mexican laptop I bought for $60 US is compiled from left-over parts, including a Celeron chip. Designed for Windows 8, it upgraded easily to 10 and plays low-level games and surfs the web well enough to justify its low price.

Yes they are paid to protect but following consumers protection laws help protect the company. The legal teams have to consider consumer protection laws to protect the compnay financially. I've purchased laptops from Dell, HP Best Buy, Comp USA, Sager and Best Buy. The all were different but mostly all good experiences but only one was in the cheap price range.

I bought an Acer AS8950G from Newegg with a 1 year extended warranty. I was on travel in Ohio and the screen went blank. I connected it to an external screen and it displayed so I knew it wasn't the graphics card. I figured it was a cable. I contacted the warranty company and the sent me a box and I shipped it back. It took almost a week to fix and I was returning to Florida so I had them ship it home. I worked fine and is still working 4 years later.

I bought an Alienware and one day it would turn on and i chatted with a dell tech in a chat session online and tried some things and nothing work so they set me up to return for warrnaty repairs. The box I received the next day and I shipped Fedex and I got notice Dell received the next day. They gave me a like to follow the status. It turned out to be the motherboard and graphics card. They fixed and shipped the next day. It was fast and the repair worked and is still working 1.5 years later.

Last I bought a Surface Book and when I did the first firmware update the screen wouldn't come on. It was the week before Thanksgiving and I want to work with it over the 4 day weekend. Ok so they sent box and again I sent Fedex overnight to and it arrived the next day to i believe Texas. The estimate return was 7 to 10 business days. I was praying for getting before Thanksgiving. MS also had a site to track the progress. So actually I recieved a notice from Fedex on Thanksgiving night that it would be delivered Friday. I changed from delivery to picking up at Fedex so I was at Fedex at 9 AM and picked up the Surface Book. The new one survived the same firmware upgrade and 2 or 3 more after and is working fine today. So I've never had any warranty issues but I haven't needed it for most of the laptop's i've purchased.

 

[Vince Massi]

Mickey's back, with another diagnostic tool so simple that anyone can understand it. When you start up, the first thing you see on your monitor is the "splash screen." It often contains the company logo or a Windows advertisement. But it's actually a diagnostic tool.

Once your power supply has turned on the flashing lights, it turns on your CPU. The CPU then turns on your BIOS chip. This is actually a ROM (Read Only Memory) chip and IT IS INDEPENDENT OF YOUR WINDOWS OPERATING SYSTEM. The BIOS chip tells your computer how to operate. While your computer can turn it on or off, your rig cannot control the BIOS chip. Anyway, the CPU turns on your BIOS chip, and the BIOS chip turns on your monitor. It then sends the splash screen to the monitor. If the splash screen appears, then your CPU, BIOS chip, monitor cable, and monitor are working.

 

[Vince Massi]

Mickey has some bad news this time. If your splash screen appears, then your Power On Button, power cord, internal power supply, CPU, BIOS chip, monitor cable, and monitor are working. But they usually do.

The most common cause of failure in a laptop is the hard drive, and if the splash screen comes on normally, and then disappears, your hard drive has probably failed. Depending on your model, the BIOS chip might be able to give you some suggestions about getting into Safe Mode. If you can, immediately run your anti-virus program. But the most likely cause is that your hard drive is failing but isn't dead yet. My advice? Back up everything you can.

 

[Vince Massi]

Learning that 22 Mouseketeers are frantically following this thread, Mickey returns with two very valuable free download suggestions.

Many laptop owners have temperature problems. The free CoreTemp program has worked on every computer I have installed it on. You can read your temperatures in Celcius or Fahrenheit, get a list of all your hardware, shrink it to half-size, and a few other functions. I leave it running all the time on my laptop, but you can turn it off or shrink it to the taskbar. I have been able to install other temperature monitors at times, and they always give the same readings as CoreTemp.

The free Win Patrol tells you everything that starts up in your computer, including malware, adware, and bloatware. Don't Delete anything, just Disable it until you're sure it's not needed. Don't interfere with anything from Microsoft or your computer's manufacturer. Stubborn bloatware uses different names to avoid Win Patrol, but it has a tab for all currently-running programs, and you can stop those programs there.

Both programs run well on desktops as well.

 

[Tim Locke]

Opening up and replacing the HDD with an SSD will make a lot of difference to internal temperature. AND the 'cheap laptop' will run faster.

 

[Vince Massi]

Most laptop problems can have multiple causes. When I research the cures, I keep finding one method that pops up for a variety of problems. By my unscientific count, about 10% of the time, the "Universal Laptop Cure" will work. It's free, so here it is:

Turn off your laptop, unplug it, and remove the battery. Hold the Power On Button down for one minute. Put the battery back in, plug it in, and start it up.

Why does this work? It refreshes the BIOS, corrects problems in the battery's software program, and reboots the Start-up program.

 

[Vince Massi]

Time to discuss operating systems. Laptop drivers are so specific that if you upgrade your OS, they will likely not work well with your new OS. The manufacturer's warranty doesn't cover it, and Microsoft isn't to blame. Don't do it! This is why I advise you to buy a cheap laptop. For $120 more than the cost of the upgrade, you can buy a new cheap laptop that has the new system installed.

However, I did successfully upgrade three Windows 8.1 laptops to Windows 10, with no problems of any kind on them. Note that all three were designed for Windows 8 (not Windows 7) and had been previously updated to 8.1.

There actually is a version of Linux written specifically for laptops, and it works well. But some companies buy left-over Windows laptops without an OS, and then install a free version of Linux. This lowers their cost, but you get a laptop that doesn't run well. Before you buy ANY computer, go home and research it on the web.

 

[Vince Massi]

Having trouble reading your monitor? Try taking off your glasses. No joke, even people who are heavily-nearsighted can easily read a monitor at close range.

 

[Vince Massi]

I'm a little off-subject here, but have you ever seen a Polaroid Tablet for sale? These medium-sized touchscreen devices use the Android operating system and are sold at low prices. Reviews are good: they are low-priced, so they are weak and slow. But if you only want to surf the net and run a few simple games, they work fine. They have good monitors, and they are not filled with cheap parts. The free Android Store will have plenty of aps for you. Remember that THEY CANNOT USE DSL. You must have wireless. And one more thing: they are not manufactured by Polaroid. Another company pays to lease the name.

 

[Vince Massi]

I need to explain that the original post was written on August 28,2013.

Folks, I'm a bit frustrated today. On a tech forum, we are dealing with people who bought a laptop, didn't like Windows 8, and installed Windows 7. Some of them have deleted the re-install partition, and all of them have erased the drivers that are designed specifically for their rig plus Windows 8. One guy just bought an $850 laptop, deleted 8, reformatted (thus destroying his re-install partition) and when it didn't work, put in a new hard drive that doesn't work.

DO NOT DOWNGRADE THE OPERATING SYSTEM ON A LAPTOP!

Vince, Aug 28, 2013