Author Topic: What type of computer do you have?  (Read 21287 times)

Jags4186

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What type of computer do you have?
« on: June 23, 2015, 04:42:16 PM »
I have a 2010 model year Macbook Air which I bought for about $1200 almost 5 years ago.  I don't do much other than surf the web, play some retro games (Sim City 2000 type games), watch a video every now and then, stream music, and download torrents.  I have no need to replace it other than the battery life isn't great--it works snappy.

What are you using?

forummm

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #1 on: June 23, 2015, 04:56:28 PM »
2010 Dell laptop. It was about $400. Works great. The HD was failing a while back so I cloned it (so I didn't have to reinstall everything) and swapped in a much larger one. That's the only fix so far.

2Saving4Life

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #2 on: June 23, 2015, 07:50:05 PM »
2008 Dell Studio XPS 435mt with Windows Vista.  $1200ish? Had to replace the power supply a couple years ago but other than that it runs like a champ. It's all connected with a 58in monitor and surround sound w/blu-ray player and has a bluetooth keyboard and mouse.  We got rid of cable shortly after setting this up back in 2008.  Glad I got it back then, I doubt I could justify those large costs anymore. It's still and awesome setup in my opinion but if I had to do it again I would probably get a laptop.

r3dt4rget

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #3 on: June 23, 2015, 08:11:26 PM »
Custom build PC. Probably less than $500 cost for specs you would pay double for from a store. They make it so easy to build a computer that every PC user should consider building over buying. I used to have a laptop but didn't feel the need to replace it after it died. Between my desktop and smartphone I am covered.

Syonyk

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #4 on: June 23, 2015, 08:20:55 PM »
Computer, singular? :p

I work in tech so I've got quite a few.  Most of which are tax deductions because they're business expenses.

This is being posted from a Chromebook Pixel LS that's replaced a few other machines (little dev laptops with 16GB RAM are hard to find, and I run Crouton to have a full Linux environment available).

alsoknownasDean

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #5 on: June 23, 2015, 09:00:05 PM »
I've got a late-2008 15" unibody MacBook Pro. I've had it since April 2009.

Since I bought it I've replaced the battery, upgraded the RAM to 8GB, and installed an SSD.

These days I'd rather something smaller with better battery life (13" retina MBP is what I'm after). I've decided that once the battery starts to fail on this laptop, I'll replace the thing. Six years has been a pretty good run.

jsternitzky

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #6 on: June 23, 2015, 09:16:11 PM »
2012 Mac book Pro Retina display $2300 ish with my specs.

Absolutely love it!

I also have a 2012 Dell somethingoranother that work gave me. Again, good computer but it is hard to beat the speed of a SSD like the Mac.

Taran Wanderer

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #7 on: June 24, 2015, 12:24:09 AM »
2007 Dell XPS.  Rock solid for all these years, and it has lived through upgrades from WindowsME to Vista to Windows 7.  But it's slow as snot and needs to be replaced. Really want to try the Apple route, but I think I'll end up with another Dell because I can get a laptop, docking station, and a huge screen for half the cost of just the MacBook I would otherwise get.
« Last Edit: June 24, 2015, 01:03:54 AM by FlatWave »

E16sean

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #8 on: June 24, 2015, 12:38:11 AM »
A 2007 Mac mini with 1gb ram running xubuntu. It's operational but definitely time for its retirement.

kpd905

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #9 on: June 24, 2015, 06:03:30 AM »
Lenovo Thinkpad X201.  A $700 computer that my grad school made me pay $2,000 for because they had "essential programs" on it that I never used.

It is 4.5 years old, the battery lasts about a minute now, and I think a fan is shot because it overheats if I don't have it on a cooling pad.

ender

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #10 on: June 24, 2015, 06:11:20 AM »
I have a 2010 model year Macbook Air which I bought for about $1200 almost 5 years ago.  I don't do much other than surf the web, play some retro games (Sim City 2000 type games), watch a video every now and then, stream music, and download torrents.  I have no need to replace it other than the battery life isn't great--it works snappy.

What are you using?

2010 Macbook Pro.

Works great, still multihour battery life (with AppleCare they spontaneously replaced the battery since it failed a test once when I brought it in for an unrelated issue ~3 years ago).

Part of me hopes it dies so I have an excuse for a new machine. Part of me realizes I will want another Mac and that's a hit on the savings rate to say the least :)  December might be the time to do that since it'll be the last time I will be able to get the educational pricing + no sales tax combo, which saves quite a few dollars on Mac's.

2Birds1Stone

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #11 on: June 24, 2015, 06:40:35 AM »
2010 15" Macbook Pro
Friend works at Apple and she was nice enough to give me her annual laptop discount of 20 or 25%.

psinguine

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #12 on: June 24, 2015, 06:41:51 AM »
I've got a 2010 era Acer Aspire One netbook. It cost me about $250 when I got it, and you can get them for under $200 now, but I also snapped it up back when they came with an actual hard drive. A 150GB optical drive beats out an 8GB SSD when it comes to space no matter how you cut it.

I've used it mostly for low spec games and miscellaneous browsing over the years, so I could never justify an upgrade. Of course last year Microsoft cut support for Windows XP so that got me looking, not very seriously but looking, for something new. Luckily I discovered The Way Of The Mustache in the interm and put that idea on the baxk burner while I sorted out some more pressing issues.

In the end I decided that although my computer was bogged down and bloated it didn't necessarily need to be replaced. The hardware was fine, it just needed new life. So I took a few hours out of my evening, made a Xubuntu boot disk, and went to Linux. So far no complaints. And I don't anticipate any, considering I'm making a concerted effort to be more serious with my computer time (blogging, working, research) than I used to (gaming, frittering about, assorted foolishness).

Scandium

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #13 on: June 24, 2015, 06:49:16 AM »
hmm. You can have only one?

2009 custom built i7-920 desktop, with upgraded GPU and SSD (anti-MMM splurge with my 1st job)
$300 HP laptop (2011-12?) with linux mint
custom built ubuntu server. 4TB,  AMD chip, maybe ~$300 (photo backup, stream music to phone, and media to:
Custom HTPC. 2010ish. AMD dual core. again ~$250 in parts.
and
Wife's 2009 24" iMac. Getting slow, but holycrap Macs are expensive!

edit; listing it out like this makes me think I may have a problem..
I didn't even count my Raspberry pi!
« Last Edit: June 24, 2015, 06:53:29 AM by Scandium »

superone!

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #14 on: June 24, 2015, 07:38:09 AM »
2007 Black Macbook.

I've upgraded it to a solid state drive, and replaced the battery and charger a few times, but it's still limping along... Thinking about getting a chromebook for portability/less heat/battery life, but having trouble justifying the expense, since the macbook is still working.

Nannooskeeska

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #15 on: June 24, 2015, 07:39:40 AM »
I've got two: a custom-built desktop and a MacBook Pro.

The desktop cost me about $800 two years ago, and definitely needs some upgrades. At some point I'm going to replace the PSU, CPU, and GPU, but I barely have enough money to pay for school right now much less computer supplies :P

I also have an old Chromebook but I almost never use it nowadays.

OttoVonBisquick

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #16 on: June 24, 2015, 10:42:37 AM »
Custom build desktop PC, about $1500 in retail parts, got them for about $800 after rebates and promotions. Built for top-line gaming and running multiple virtual machine instances and programming processes for classwork/work, along with two 26" monitors to program and read googled problems side-by-side.

Way too much? Definitely. Worth every penny for the maximum enjoyment in game-playing and the utility of two screens? Also definitely.

I recently sold my xbox 360 and all those games since I've moved on from those, but I doubt I'll ever find a justifiable reason to sell my desktop.

Also a $650 Dell laptop as a gift for doing stuff on the go.

Jeremy E.

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #17 on: June 24, 2015, 11:31:20 AM »
Custom Built,
ASUS Sabertooth Z77 motherboard
Intel i5 3570K Ivy Bridge CPU
AMD Firepro V5900 Workstation Graphics card
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series (2x8GB) RAM
Corsair 650W Power Supply
2 ASUS 21.5" LED Monitors
WD 500GB Hard Drive
Cooler Master HAF 912 Case
Plextor Drive
Windows 7
Total Price: $1450 bought 3 years ago

Jeremy E.

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #18 on: June 24, 2015, 11:33:59 AM »
in my defense of my computer, I used it for some side gigs and recouped the cost, although I know longer do side gigs with it, I'm considering buying an SSD for it, just for my OS, but haven't been able to pull the trigger yet.

Syonyk

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #19 on: June 24, 2015, 11:35:42 AM »
I have no particular need to defend my computer choices.  It's my field, and I make money with them.  I'm not going to dink along on a 10 year old laptop with 5 second battery life and a Linux LiveCD when I can afford something modern.

stlbrah

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #20 on: June 24, 2015, 11:50:42 AM »
I have 3 servers that are all from recycled parts from work in the past, not from my current corporate job, i would get in trouble for that lol.

Laptop is an hp with an i5 and 4gb ram. Picked this up for about $350 as an open-box item from Microcenter. It has debian with gnome-desktop running.

JLee

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #21 on: June 24, 2015, 11:52:06 AM »
I built my desktop and have upgraded it over the years. No idea how much is into it now, but I won't have to worry about anything for a while.  My laptop was a $350 special that I bought about three years ago and then put an SSD and more RAM in.

mlejw6

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #22 on: June 24, 2015, 12:14:57 PM »
I have two:

A 2007 era home built PC. I can't remember how much it was total. I wanna say <$1000, but not sure how much less. Since then, I've only updated the RAM and the OS. I'd like to maybe update RAM again and get an SSD and a GPU, but have yet to commit to these purchases as it works just fine without them.

A 2010 Toshiba something laptop that was ~$400. I got it when I was travelling a lot for work. Now, I never use it because the desktop is so much more convenient.

MakingSenseofCents

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #23 on: June 24, 2015, 12:30:39 PM »
I have a MacAir that I bought for $950 last year, I believe. I work online and it works fantastic!

gillstone

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #24 on: June 24, 2015, 12:41:04 PM »
Custom build from portatech.com built about 5 years ago.  It was cheaper than a similarly built Dell (even with my employer discount) and didn't have the bloatware and extra crap. 

My plan for the next time something dies is to keep the PC and replace whatever part failed rather than buying a whole new one. 

jeromedawg

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #25 on: June 24, 2015, 01:13:18 PM »
2013 Macbook Air 13" that was around $926 and came with Parallels and LoJack. Kept LoJack but sold Parallels for around $40 so just shy of $900. I had gotten an MBA 11" upon signing up for continuing education/certification course through work - flipped that for around $825 or so after shipping and fees I think. Was planning to 'upgrade' to the 13" so I technically I spent under $100 for it...
My wife and I share it. Prior to this, we each had our own laptops: I was using a Dell XPS 13 that lasted about 5-6 years and she had a crappy HP Pavilion that broke down after a year. I also tried out a Chromebook just to see how it was but ended up flipping it not long after. The MBA is sufficient for our needs. I've played games on it like Left 4 Dead 2 and Bioshock Infinite and it gets a little hot after that or opening up a ton of tabs but handles just fine. Otherwise, we mostly use it for web browsing and light other usage. I don't think we need another laptop at this point.
I also have a Mac Mini (2010 I think) that my dad gave to me (or is letting me "borrow" ha). I upgraded the HD to an SSD and threw in more RAM, and now it functions as a decent HTPC w/ low power consumption for recording stuff or for light browsing if the laptop is fully occupied. It's pretty laggy but it does a good job in general. I'm dual-booting it with Windows 7 and run WMC + HDHomerun for recording shows. I have my old power-hog of an HTPC sitting around currently decommissioned. I should probably strip the parts out and sell on Amazon/Ebay soon. 
« Last Edit: June 24, 2015, 01:16:29 PM by jplee3 »

NathanP

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #26 on: June 24, 2015, 01:28:07 PM »
2012 vintage Samsung Series 9 Ultrabook
SSD, high-res screen, backlit keys
~2.5 lbs
$700 (great deal since the new model was just released at the time of purchase)

I typically buy a new laptop every 3 years, but this ultrabook is fantastic. I don't play games, so the CPU/GPU are still more than satisfactory. The SSD is still very quick.

The only real improvement I have noticed with the newer machines is that their SSDs are larger and slightly faster, and the new processors allow for the laptops to be fanless. This is appealing to me, but the fan on my current laptop is so quiet that I cannot hear it.

LadyStache in Baja

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #27 on: June 24, 2015, 01:30:58 PM »
No chromebooks?  They're so cheap, I'm surprised no one has posted on here about them.  Mine was $139 refurbished, works really great, and has an 8 hour battery life.  I had to install Linux on it to be able to run YNAB, which I just barely figured out, but I did.  And yes, you can use it offline.

Tester

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #28 on: June 24, 2015, 01:34:38 PM »
Lenovo T500.
My work laptop which I bought after it was out of "life".
I think it is 6-7 years old?
Bought it for 50 USD.
I had to buy a new battery (generic one), 25 USD>
Unfortunately I burned it's dedicated video card in Starcraft 2 before I learned you have to limit the framerate in the menu.
So now it works with it's integrated graphics card.
Also, it's DVD reader/writer does not read anymore...
It works very fine besides those problems, I am sorry to think about replacing it.
One things that bothers me is that I have Vista on it - this is the license it got -  and it does not recognize the integrated camera.
While I was using it for work it had Windows 7 and it worked perfectly.
I also had Ubuntu on it and Ubuntu had drivers for the camera...

Now I am thinking on building a desktop to be able to play Stacraft 2 once a week, I am waiting to find good used components at good prices.
Or if I can find a motherboard for the laptop I am thinking of replacing the existing one.
I tried reviving the broken graphics card but the computer shop did a reboil and they told me they would not guarantee anything (they told me this before doing it :) ).
After two weeks it went bad again - without playing games/looking at HD movies.

By the way, if you can point me to some information on if I should do it or go for building a desktop please let me know.
« Last Edit: June 24, 2015, 01:36:29 PM by Tester »

Ricky

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #29 on: June 24, 2015, 01:41:31 PM »
No chromebooks?  They're so cheap, I'm surprised no one has posted on here about them.  Mine was $139 refurbished, works really great, and has an 8 hour battery life.  I had to install Linux on it to be able to run YNAB, which I just barely figured out, but I did.  And yes, you can use it offline.

At least 2 people mentioned owning Chromebooks before your post. I don't know, I've just never understood making the compromise that is necessary with a Chromebook. It's really not lighter than your average laptop, and much less capable. Price is generally irrelevant on a computer that you can use to get work done and improves the quality of your life.

MoneyCat

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #30 on: June 24, 2015, 01:42:32 PM »
I have a 2011 Dell Inspiron laptop that I bought for about $400 after my Discover card cashback.  It's a really cheap laptop but it works like a champ.  I have used it for all media and even used it attached to a projector in my classroom because I didn't have a school-issued laptop.  It gets a little slow every once in a while so I use iolo System Mechanic to optimize the hard drive when necessary.

Philociraptor

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #31 on: June 24, 2015, 01:44:45 PM »
Desktop that I originally built in 2009, rebuilt in 2014. $800 first build, $600 for second. I also have a 2009 MBP, but it's unhappy right now and I haven't taken the time to take it to an apple store.

ketchup

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #32 on: June 24, 2015, 02:00:40 PM »
Built my desktop PC in 2008 for about $700 total in parts.  Probably have done about $300 in upgrades since then (including a replacement of mobo/CPU/RAM in late 2011 along with sale of old CPU).  Win7 license I got from school in 2009.  Should be good for another few years minimum without upgrades.  Currently an Intel i5 2500K with 16GB of RAM, with an nVidia 9600GT video card from 2007 (it still plays most games through Skyrim, which was the last new game I bought; will need to up that if either of us ever get around to playing current games).

Acer Aspire One D250 netbook from 2009.  Paid $168 on Black Friday 2009 from Newegg.  Still mostly useful, has Linux on it for now since XP went end-of-life.  Currently letting my girlfriend's sister use it for her um... fledgling webcam services business.

Dell E5520 (I think...) laptop supplied by work, used sometimes for work.  Pretty nice laptop.  Dell's business class stuff is quite good (their cheapie laptops are trash).

My girlfriend and I share my desktop, and she also has a (2010/2011ish) Thinkpad T510 that we got for ~$280 about a year ago.  Solid machine.

Despite being a "computer guy" I truly have not spent much on computery junk at all in the past few years.

Syonyk

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #33 on: June 24, 2015, 02:35:45 PM »
No chromebooks?  They're so cheap, I'm surprised no one has posted on here about them.  Mine was $139 refurbished, works really great, and has an 8 hour battery life.  I had to install Linux on it to be able to run YNAB, which I just barely figured out, but I did.  And yes, you can use it offline.

They're not all cheap.  I <3 my Pixel LS.  And <3 my last gen Pixel.  The keyboard, trackpad, and screen are amazing on both, and with Crouton, it's a full on development laptop for me.  Broadwell i7, 16GB RAM, 64GB SSD, 8-12 hours real world battery life.  But $1400 shipped.  *shrug*  There's really nothing else out there with a comparable screen for less.

cschx

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #34 on: June 24, 2015, 02:56:31 PM »
2007 Black Macbook.

I've upgraded it to a solid state drive, and replaced the battery and charger a few times, but it's still limping along... Thinking about getting a chromebook for portability/less heat/battery life, but having trouble justifying the expense, since the macbook is still working.

This is my current laptop, minus the SSD (I did upgrade the RAM to the maximum 3gb). Actually I think mine's a 2006.

It has a cracked screen, busted optical drive and the CPU fan is making a noise like a wounded mallard duck. But it still works, so I'm still using it.

Acknowledging the imminent need for a replacement, though, I finally splurged and bought one of these:

http://www.nobetterdeal.com/shop/en/nbd/-cwf-01722--1

Spork

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #35 on: June 24, 2015, 03:25:15 PM »
Mine shows a combination of computer nerd & cheap bastard.

2 laptops (wife and me) -- both are newish Lenovo mid range Z series boxes running Linux Mint.  The only reason they're new is: her previous laptop was 9 years old and beginning to hit performance challenges.  Mine -- I'm retiring next week and turning in my work laptop.

1 "server", which really isn't server hardware at all, but about a 5 year old mid range Lenovo desktop running Ubuntu. 

superone!

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #36 on: June 24, 2015, 03:31:49 PM »
2007 Black Macbook.

I've upgraded it to a solid state drive, and replaced the battery and charger a few times, but it's still limping along... Thinking about getting a chromebook for portability/less heat/battery life, but having trouble justifying the expense, since the macbook is still working.

This is my current laptop, minus the SSD (I did upgrade the RAM to the maximum 3gb). Actually I think mine's a 2006.

It has a cracked screen, busted optical drive and the CPU fan is making a noise like a wounded mallard duck. But it still works, so I'm still using it.

Acknowledging the imminent need for a replacement, though, I finally splurged and bought one of these:

http://www.nobetterdeal.com/shop/en/nbd/-cwf-01722--1

Oh, I forgot to mention that I'd upgraded my RAM to 4GB.

Well, I don't know what has come over me, other than after I wrote this my (3rd replacement) charger for my computer stopped working this morning. So I impulse-bought the chromebook I've been debating over for a while: http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-CB35-B3340-Chromebook-Celeron-HD-Screen/dp/B00N99FXIS

I'll still use my Mac less frequently for needed offline applications, but 99% of my work is already through google drive, so I'm kind of excited. [I'm also inwardly face-punching myself that I'm feeling a little bit of consumer glee...but also looking at the big red patches on my legs/lap from my overheating macbook makes me feel like it wasn't the stupidest choice.]

crazy jane

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #37 on: June 24, 2015, 03:56:44 PM »
Whatever they have at the library. I use some kind of Mac at school during the year.

Rural

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #38 on: June 25, 2015, 06:25:26 AM »
My "primary" is a 2011 Toshiba laptop that ran $350 at the time. The native keyboard and the battery are shot, so it's now a desktop with a USB keyboard. Works fine that way, and my portable is an iPad from work. I back up fairly regularly (continually to the cloud for most things, external hard drive for financials I don't put in the cloud anytime I make a significant change), but so far it's going strong. I'd say this is the machine I use most for working from home, but now that work has installed Word on my iPad, it isn't true anymore. It's the machine I use for spreadsheets at home, but I do more writing these days.


Husband has a 2014 Dell laptop and is still running an XP laptop with issues as an offline gaming machine on his desk. It also runs Corel, which he can't load on the new machine for some reason I can't recall- it may be he can't find his ten-year-old install disk, or it may not run on Windows 8.


Also running is an HP laptop from my work, in good shape and it travels with me when I go to tech conferences or have to make presentations at conferences that don't provide equipment, but otherwise it stays home because it's heavy.


Finally, we've recently refurbed my old Nexus 7 tablet to give him something small and less breakable than his laptop to port around to classes in a backpack with science textbooks.
« Last Edit: June 25, 2015, 06:27:57 AM by Rural »

Killerbrandt

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #39 on: June 25, 2015, 06:38:54 AM »
Custom Built

CoolMaster Haf Case
i7 3770k Processor
Asus Sabertooth Mother board z77
32gb of DDR3 Hyper x Ram
250gb Solid Drive
1TB Hard Drive
980 Nvidia Graphics card
1,100 watt PSU

Total about $1,300, but I use it every single day.

Everyone should build a Computer, if possible. You can save so much money and make sure you get good parts and not stock pieces. People with the iMacs are spending ridiculous amounts for a fraction of Hardware power. The Apple OS is good, but I am betting Windows 10 next month is going to be great!

rae

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #40 on: June 25, 2015, 06:41:02 AM »
2006 Macbook. Ram and OS have been upgraded, battery replaced, but many programs are no longer supported. I'm looking into replacing it in a year or so.

Ricky

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #41 on: June 25, 2015, 06:47:25 AM »
No chromebooks?  They're so cheap, I'm surprised no one has posted on here about them.  Mine was $139 refurbished, works really great, and has an 8 hour battery life.  I had to install Linux on it to be able to run YNAB, which I just barely figured out, but I did.  And yes, you can use it offline.

They're not all cheap.  I <3 my Pixel LS.  And <3 my last gen Pixel.  The keyboard, trackpad, and screen are amazing on both, and with Crouton, it's a full on development laptop for me.  Broadwell i7, 16GB RAM, 64GB SSD, 8-12 hours real world battery life.  But $1400 shipped.  *shrug*  There's really nothing else out there with a comparable screen for less.

Yes there is. 13" Retina MBP for $1299 ($1199 with education discount, which is pretty much available to anyone). A few compromises, but otherwise you're getting a much more capable machine. And one could argue that an i7 with 16GB of ram is pretty unnecessary for a Chromebook.

chesebert

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #42 on: June 25, 2015, 06:48:33 AM »
I got quite a few:

i7 4790k @ 4800Mhz custom built (as in DIY) gaming/photoshop PC powering 2 10yr old LCD

Q6600  @ 3400Mhz custom built gaming/photoshop PC powering living room LCD TV - this one is almost 10yrs old

IBM T60 T7400 laptop (CPU, RAM, Wifi all have been later upgraded) - at least 10yrs old

Lenovo T61 laptop - probably 7-8 yrs old 

HP i5 2450M Laptop - second hand

AMD XP3200 Shuttle mini PC - probably 15yrs old

All computers, except for the AMD and the T61, have SSDs, and to be honest in everyday workload, they all feel fine.

Roland of Gilead

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #43 on: June 25, 2015, 06:53:50 AM »
HP something or another laptop with an I5, made in 2014.   I treat them as consumables and buy the cheapest one every three years.  I think I paid $250 or $299 for this one.  They don't really build them to last if you toss them around and spill food on them constantly :-)

Probably my least mustachian trait but I have accepted the ~$100 a year cost.



stephan

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #44 on: June 25, 2015, 08:15:59 AM »
2009 Asus laptop. After all those years, still works perfect! :)

Killerbrandt

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #45 on: June 25, 2015, 08:32:16 AM »
2009 Asus laptop. After all those years, still works perfect! :)

Asus is one of the best brands for prebuilt computers and for parts.

catccc

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #46 on: June 25, 2015, 08:36:53 AM »
We have a 2010 HP that has issues.

Some of the keys don't work, specifically the spacebar, enter, and backspace key.  I read a tip online that holding down all three for a few seconds resolved the problem, and it did for a few days, but now it's pretty much stuck on broken.  So I got an $8 usb keyboard from ebay, figuring that if I can get it to last for another month, I'm coming out ahead v. buying a new one.  (based on expected cost of a replacement around $400, useful life of about 5 years)  If I can deal with it until Christmas time, I can probably get a parent or in-law to chip in $50 or so towards a new laptop fund for us.  Yes, I have plenty of cash and spending $400 isn't going to kill me, but "chip in for laptop" is a better answer to "what can I get you for christmas" than "NOTHING.  STAAHHHP!  Do we need to christmas this year?!)

I know there are a lot of mac fans out there, but I can't justify the cost for our level of usage, which is pretty basic.

Jeremy E.

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #47 on: June 25, 2015, 08:46:14 AM »
2009 Asus laptop. After all those years, still works perfect! :)

Asus is one of the best brands for prebuilt computers and for parts.
+1 Asus makes the best motherboards

geekette

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #48 on: June 25, 2015, 09:09:06 AM »
I have a 2009 iMac which also runs Windows (via Parallels).

DH has a refurb Dell business laptop with a tiny hard drive.  For those thinking of getting an SSD, he ordered this $70 240gig one from Tiger Direct yesterday.  Fingers crossed it actually works, but the reviews are good.

Syonyk

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Re: What type of computer do you have?
« Reply #49 on: June 25, 2015, 09:15:13 AM »
Yes there is. 13" Retina MBP for $1299 ($1199 with education discount, which is pretty much available to anyone). A few compromises, but otherwise you're getting a much more capable machine. And one could argue that an i7 with 16GB of ram is pretty unnecessary for a Chromebook.

I've got crouton on it, so it's got a full Ubuntu install running in a chroot along side ChromeOS. It's a full on development laptop in that mode, not just a Chromebook.

The 13" rMBP is the other option I was considering, but bringing it to 16GB memory adds $200, and I do run VMs on occasion. Plus, I really like the taller screen aspect ratio on the Pixel. :)