Where to buy a laptop with XP?

I've posted here recently regarding affordable laptops but they all run Vista. I "m not hearing good things about Vista and , since I'm not looking a high end laptop , can anyone recommend where to buy a notebook with XP installed ? Thanks

 

Hello JetstreamJim,

http://www.velocitymicro.com/wizard.php?iid=85 link to their least expensive laptop.

XP Pro available with it.

Regards - Charles

 

JetstreamJim: Dell offfers an array of laptops with the XP OS.

http://www.dell.com/content/topics/segtopic.aspx/winxp_inspn?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~ck=anavml

You might consider them, too.

 

Thanks for those links ! Bobbo , what are the disadvantages of owning a D ell laptop? My fear is that ,with the more frequent problems that laptops appear to have coupled with the mounting evidence that Dell has poor customer service after the sale , I'll end up with a device that will be difficult to service. Gracias !

 

Its kind of like a love/hate relationship - lets call it a Hillaryism - either you do or you don't want to dance with "the girl ".

Personally, I think Dell is very over-rated but there are just as many others who will tell you that's the way to go. I'd suggest you look at all of the individual components, including the processor and memory before making a decision. Don't buy because of the brand - just because its a Chevy doesn't mean its a Corvette - it could just as easily be a Vega. Too many people get hoodwinked because they don't take the time to look "under the hood ".

Take your time and do your research. At the expense of offending some, I'm inclined to advise against buying a Dell. There are better options available which represent better value. Then again, you can do a lot worse too.

 

JetstreamJim: Anecdotal judgments of computer brands -- mine or anyone else's -- probably aren't a reliable way to pick which one. (My Dell desktop and my wife's Dell laptop have both provided good service. Two friends bought Dell laptops after their Compaqs' monitors failed, and both are pleased so far.) More reliable sources of opinion would be the computer magazines and "Consumer Reports," all of which publish issues containing tests of units as well as reports on owners' evaluations of reliability and service. A public library should have the issues you need.

After you've checked them out, then the trick will be to find a brand you like that sells a model you like for a price you like and that's available with Windows XP. Hopefully, other members will add more brands for you to investigate.

 

Hi, JetstreamJim.

You might find what you want at Newegg. I have purchased computer hardware from Newegg on several occasions and I was always pleased with their prompt shipment. However, customer/technical support might be more difficult to obtain as opposed to purchasing from a local retailer. At least you can browse what's available and perhaps get a better idea of what you want.

I searched Newegg for laptops with "XP Professional " and got 196 results.

I searched Newegg for laptops with "XP Home " and got 8 results.

If you click on a model's description, you will get a page that provides more details such as customer reviews and hardware specifications. (Click on the "CUSTOMER REVIEWS" or "SPECIFICATIONS" tabs.)

A few years ago a relative of mine worked for a company which supplied and serviced laptops for clients. She was impressed with the IBM (now Lenovo) ThinkPad. She said ThinkPads tended to come back least often for hardware repairs.

 

I would totally agree with this statement. In defense of my own Non-Anecdotal opinion, I have repaired quite a few Dell laptops and am quite comfortable in advising as I have.

The following is an excerpt from my customer notes (while still under warranty) on one of the worst laptops I ever encountered - it shipped with XP home and 128 MB of memory and yes, this was a couple few years ago when Dell enjoyed a much higher customer rating.

Dell Inspiron 2650
Service Tag - XXXXXXX Express Service Code – XXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXX-XXXXX-XXX-XXXX Rev – AO7
Model PPO4L
Dell LBL P/N 5N169 AO2
Call Dell Tech Support 800-822-8965

Some 20,000 Inspiron 2650 Notebook computers manufactured in November and December of 2002 have been recalled for defective motherboards. Dell is supposed to send an on-site technician to replace these motherboards. It might not be a bad idea to push for a replacement and then voice concern to the repair technician that it is running very slow.

Note: It is possible that this is software related but after considerable time spent analyzing your computer, I believe it is strictly a hardware issue. Adding 256MB of memory will certainly help and I have ordered the memory (Friday delivery), however, I will hold judgment until I have seen the machine’s performance after the memory installation.

I found it a little odd that the owner was never contacted re: this recall. Fortuntely, I investigated this when the owner couldn't and was able to get the owner some relief before they sold the machine and bought something else. As a cautionary note, this was just one machine and is not necessarily indicitive of all machines. It would be very naive to base an opinion or make any kind of a statement without considerably more experience and a much broader sample.

All I'm saying is "check under the hood" and don't be too quick to buy into the "Brand" because of "Effective Branding ". Just because its a Compaq or an HP or a Dell doesn't mean its a good Compaq, HP or Dell. (same comment applies to most other brands too.) On the flip side, it doesn't mean its a bad Compaq, HP or Dell either.

 

Thanks for all the input ! Bestbuy has an Acer for $400 right now but with Celeron M . I'm told to wait until nearer to back to school time by someone who used to work there . I'm not in a hurry for one anyway .

 

That Acer represents a pretty good value. Its no speed demon but its not a bad buy for $400. I set one up for an individual last week. What is going on here is that they (Best Buy) are liquidating older architecture equipment for the manufacturer.

 

Well , I finally got a laptop. Its an Acer Aspire 5610 with the Intel core duo processer t2350 , 160 gb harddrive , and 1 gig of ram for $500. I'm glad I waited because I think this is a much better value than the one for $400 a couple of weeks ago . Of course it does have Vista but for this price I really hadn't seen any deals around anywhere that could match what Bestbuy was offering here - interest free and no shipping charges either . Now if I could just get it to connect to a wireless network !