Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler replacing an aging laptop

I lost my pretty good laptop to my 13 year old daughter. I got stuck with a really old Compaq Pentium unit that doesn't have enough power to run the OS let alone any apps. I need a new one.

I don't want to spend myself broke, but it makes little sense to underbuy. I saw a 17" HP i5-7200 that looks to have pretty decent specs for $700. For $900 there is an Acer 15.6" i7-8550 that has almost double the cpu power, but loses some of the bluetooth and usb features but a higher res screen, but bit more money.

Would it make more sense to buy up in power with the idea that I generally keep a laptop for 4-5 years. I am going to be using it for doing my podcasts, DJ parties, bit of surfing.

The thought that the 17" screen gives more real estate so my really bad eyesight might welcome that. The smaller screen however will be easier to lug around.

Also I do realize that laptops come up on sale all the time so it's not like i am getting a stellar great deal just because it is around boxing day.

Hi Matman
The I7-8500 is a powerful processor but the I5-7200 is no slouch. IMO , given that you plan to use it for media streaming/processing I would be looking more at the Ram and Vid card/Sound card specs. In the home environment, an external monitor can always be used to give your eyesight some assistance so the screen size may only be a concern when used portable.The superior USB and Bluetooth features etc. could be important given that laptops don't lend themselves to upgrades as easily as do desktops.There are so many choices out there that it can be mind boggling.Probably best to take the same approach to the laptop purchase as you would your audio gear and you wont be disappointed
Ken.

For what you're looking for most prefer Mac products.
Know a couple DJs that swear by them, plus if you go to hip hop shows that's what they all have lately.{MACBOOK}

My self have used HP products since the I series release with no problems, currently I7. To which as long as you have a decent soundcard you know it should be good to go.
Unless you plan to go full DJ of course.

I have a Hercules P8 dj mixer that has dual soundcards inside of it. But the software will work with any sound output card you define. for the backyard parties, I was planning on using my M3 computer speakers as they can get pretty loud with the 75watt amp onside of them. It's not like I am doing a concert level rager.

As for my podcasts, they are all audio ones, so it's not like any real video processing is taking place. I have an 27" iMac retina with an i7 for that.

But both of the computers I was looking at are now sold out so I guess I will just wait for a while longer and see if there is anything else that catches my eye. Hope that procrastination was my friend.

fwiw i have a HP Envy Core i7 17 inch and i am quite happy with it,has been trouble free. I use it mostly for dirac and REW which is why i bought it. I use a bit when sitting in bed though it is quite heavy and cumbersome for that purpose. My main reason for buying it is becasue i cant stand the matt screens most computers come with, i prefer glossy.I have 2 HP monitors both with the gloss screen. This lappy has beats speakers system in it but tbh its not very good ,but hey its a laptop so yeah its to be expected. I got mine at staples, they usually have pretty good deals , i think i paid around a grand.

I went out yesterday to HomeDepot to buy a new filtered water system, sheet of mdf and some lightbulbs. Turns out they don't sell complete water filter systems anymore, so you are stuck buying all the individual components separately. Nor do they sell mdf in the thickness I need. The bulbs were $38 for 6 as they only sell led in the size i needed and someone wants to make a big profit.

So I left in disgust and just happened to notice a Bestbuy across the street. Needless to say, HomeDepot didn't make any sale and BestBuy did.

I ended up with a 15.6" Acer i7 with 12gb ram and an SSD. I sort of sucks that it has two usb2 and only a single usb3 but it does have a usbc as well but I don't have anything that works with those. It is about the same size as one of the older macbookpro (circa 2014). it doesn't have a CD/DVD drive but I was told by Apple that those are now obsolete.

It is rather cool that you can get from powered off to fully loaded in about 2-3 seconds. who needs sleep mode. And it is really light.

Sounds like you scored exactly what you were looking for, congrats. Honestly your right, an optical drive really isnt needed anymore, mine has a bd drive and the only time its been open is when i pick up the laptop the wrong way and it pops open.Hopefully it has an HDMI out, those are very handy to have especially for REW if you ever get the urge.You have chosen well grasshopper.

I'm running a 486 with Win3.1. I browse with Telnet using HTTP commands. vsav and msaf are all I use for AV. Sometimes I use my Commodore64 with Hyperlink 2.5e.

i remember the day we moved from a 300baud modem to 1200. it was lightning fast and we were in heaven.

yes the laptop does have an HDMI output and even supports the full hdcp compliance. The laptop is pretty thin and i sort of dislike the way they made the RJ45 network port. it has sort of a hinge on it that opens up to allow the plug in. i know it looks like it will break any moment if it gets used on a regular basis. Sort of sucks but the Wireless AC has moved to a point now that it is pretty rock stable and gives close to the same bandwidth as a copper cable network connection.

Sounds like it has everythign you need and should give you years of great service. I have had a few acers and they are solid imho. I always keep mine blown out and dust free, bedding and what not really plugs up the fan, that and the dog .

I avoid sticking my mattress and duvet into my laptop.

what is wrong with u man

Don't answer its a rhetorical question.

You're asking me? Aren't you the one who stuffs bedding into his laptop?

Note this was not an answer but rather two questions.

Todays chuckle...

:))

i cant believe i am even responding , is there no level i wont stoop to. Tell me you have never sat in bed with a laptop on your lap which is why they call it a laptop, i hope i havent lost you yet. Now because the design of laptops is quite stupid being as they are put on your lap the air inlets are not located in a sensible location and tend to draw in dirty air. Having a pet does not enhance the situation. There now your up to speed

Holy mother of Mary Queen of Scots...no wonder you have problems!

Nope...never. The bedroom is for sleeping only. Nothing else happens there; not even reading and especially not writing or arithmetic. And all other fun (nudge nudge wink wink) happens EVERYWHERE but the bedroom.

Is laptoping in bed a Whitehorse tradition?

Where is a sensible location for the air intake so as not to suck in dirty air? Maybe you need an air intake scoop routed to your nearest window.

The air intake is always on the bottom and exhaust on the side. Any other design would be turdish (TM). Air is pulled in from the large opening in the bottom, which offers a minimum restriction and naturally cools the bottom, and travels to a narrower portion where, by the magic described by Bernoulli, moves faster and hence carries away heat more efficiently.

If you just use your bedroom for sleeping, you will get a much better rest. The only thing you should think about when you enter your bedroom is sleep; no other distractions. Your laptop will last longer and perform better as well because you won't be clogging the air intake with your knotty thigh hair.

...yet another discussion of sucking and blowing on the Axiom forum! Isn't this supposed to be about audio or something??

We're at the Water Cooler. Everything's fair game.

I am with socketman in I have in the past used the laptop in bed. It is not that I purposefully decide that I am going to work in bed, but when his with the bouts of genius insomnia where you wake at 2:30am with a sudden stroke of brilliance, you have to work it through or else I can't get back to sleep as it festers in my head for hours then i finally drift off but can only remember that i had thought of something in the morning but no idea what it was.

My solution to the laptop cooling problem was to get a cooling pad that comes with a mesh pre-filter for a fan. I know that heat is the laptops worst enemy. The laptop I have doesn't have a hard drive, rather an SSD. the i7 is 15-25w heat, that is a small fraction of what any of my laptops in the past were, so it barely gets warm. The one downside with the laptop that I didn't notice as the marketing literature sort of hides it, is the battery inside the laptop in non-removable like the Apple laptops. so it has the bonus of keeping the unit slim but you are stuck if the battery craps out.

You and Socketman are the only dudes on planet earth who take laptops to bed, man. No wonder you have insomnia.

I'd agree, a little too much nad talk, sucking etc.
Lol.

Get used to 'nad talk. 'nad tickling is now a feature in Axiom subs as shown in the top left of the following image.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BxTe-z9ctC7NR0tfTFZoejh5VGdncmtiLXlrdVE5bnplRF9N

JESUS man its already a sausage fest around here dont start gayin it up

Ahahaha!

Sausages are fine. We need to spice these boards up. Some of my friends (the girls) are now reading these boards and even though they're not into audio, they want to buy speakers because apparently they are so much fun.

I have not met many ladies that were into audio though my ex liked the bangin in the van.

How the hell did you get a picture of my van. Are you one of them there haxzors

I know more about you than you know about yourself.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1y6j4M_KozOcYVwk8faYaNYYIoHb0H1bo

I know for example you really like this.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BxTe-z9ctC7NQzNQenptNkNHT2M

And this...

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BxTe-z9ctC7NVEtLdEtuZHN2ZWs

...and you might ask what this had to do with audio, but check out how much space I have for LFR1100s all around surrounded by EP800s.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BxTe-z9ctC7NcWlTTFJSWHcwR2c

Thats all cool but i dont see a BMG 50 or a Desert Eagle .

I can't carry a 50 cal across my chest. The Desert Eagle is too unreliable so I traded it in for one of these:

http://www.springfield-armory.com/products/xdm-4-5-45-acp/

I want a DE just for a decoration on my wall, no firing pin. my kid and i went to a range in BC and rented some guns and i shot the DE and i really like it. My boss went down a few month later and it was out for repairs so yeah maybe it is unreliable idk. The BMG50 was sick, really revitalized my love of firearm for sport. My dad had a sporting good store when i was kid and i had a few guns but only have a rifle now, its 25/06 falling block collectors edition with octagonal barrel. too many wants and too much month at the end of the money.

Ahhhhh...a little Socketman you had, did you?

Laptop burns

Good thing nobody actually puts laptops in their laps.

I swore back in 2005 that I will NEVER EVER buy an HP anything again. I had an HP desktop and two HP laptops all different models and they were constantly overheating. The runaround with HP was completely frustrating. I eventually got all my money back after a year and a half of wrangling.

Socketman and bobblehead, you got all this? Not only should you not attempt to store your bedding in your laptop, keep it off your laps to avoid ignited sausages and evaporated 'nads.

everytime you think your a winner someone reminds you your a loser . I really think its a good laptop, will have to check the battery thing out though.

Wednesday morning the weather was too bad to play golf. I was bored with nothing to do.


Suddenly there was a knock on the door.
I opened it to find a young, well dressed man standing there who said:

"Hello sir, I'm a Jehovah's Witness."


So I said, "Come in and sit down."


I offered him a fresh cup of coffee and asked, "What do you want to talk about?"


He said, "Beats the shit out of me. Nobody's ever let me in before.."

Ha most wont answer the door for JoHo's.
So you probably really scared him.

HP Envy here. 15". I swapped out the hard drive for a SS drive. It's been me proof for two years now. Suler fast and stable. I use it for studies (working on an MBA), vehicle tuning, full Office Suite and MS Projects, video calibration.

If I can't break it, no one can.

Micheal did you download the battery test app from HP to make sure yours isnt on the recall list. I did and mine passed, thankfully.

No. First I've heard about it....... Can you elaborate?

Check out this website - https://batteryprogram687.ext.hp.com/

I had not heard about it until someone posted something earlier in this thread, i think bridgeman . Worth the 10 minutes to do the test.

Thanks guys!