Laptop info needed

[brother chris]

Hi,
I plan on swapping a 1989 Mazda 323, worth around $500, for a laptop computer.
I just have a question about laptops. What kind of laptop should I trade for. Minimum requirements is what I mean. Eg: I need it to be wireless. I'm just wondering about the ram and hard drive stuff, etc...
How do I tell if the OS is legit?
Any help would be appreciated. I have the guy on hold and told him I would get back to him later on today. He has a "2 acer laptop", but has yet to mention anything else about it.
Thanks,
B.C.

 

[Xcusme]

Re: Laptop info needed

I would get the Make-Model and build number of the laptop(label on underside) and get the full specs for it. Of course you'd want the fastest CPU, the more Ram the better and hardware features etc. Depending on what it turns out to be, you may be better off selling it to him for 500.00 and buying the best laptop for that amount on your own.

 

[brother chris]

Re: Laptop info needed

Thanks Xcusme,
I was thinking about just selling the car. I just thought I might be able to get a better deal if I swap it.
I wanted to swap it for an 9.9 hp outboard motor, but this guy emailed me about his laptop. I'll see if I can get the make/model/build # of it

 

[i386]

Re: Laptop info needed

A good rule of thumb to see if the OS is legit is to look for the Windows (I assume) product ID sticker on the bottom. Just look for that and see if the installed OS jives with the sticker. To check your Windows version just click Start -> Run, Type winver and click ok.

Assuming all that checks out, if you want to have a clean OS install (recommended) just locate the correct Windows cd for your version and use the serial number on the sticker.

 

[dsstephens]

Re: Laptop info needed

agree with the first post. you can get a pretty darn good laptop for 2-300 dollars - especially refurbs and open box. I'm using my wife's Compaq that we got from microcenter for 240 bucks (plus another 60 for more ram). I like it better than my 2500 dollar lenovo.

that being said, if the guy getting it from you just doesn't have the 500 bucks, then I'd probably put the car on craigslist. Now, of course, if the guy is a friend of yours and you are really just doing him a favor and getting something back for it (ie he needs a car, you are giving him one, and you get a so-so laptop in return) then take the laptop and use til you find a good refurb deal at the local microcenter or other computer shop.

Remember this about computers: No matter what you get and how you get it, you won't be happy with it in 3 months.

to specific points:

OS - not much you can do here - normally laptop will have the OEM key on a green/white label on the bottom. As long as you have a license key to go with the OS version that you have on the laptop, you are fine - legally speaking. Past that, ye takes your chances, but really - do you really think they want you for buying a laptop with a copy on it? they want the guy that made the copy
RAM - as much as he has. if he has 2 laptops, tell him you want the extra ram out of the other one too and fill up all the slots you have available.
HDD - get the one with the biggest drive - or be prepared to spend 100 bucks on an external or a replacement drive
screen - whatever it comes with - you can always add an external LCD later for home use
network - you can get a good USB wireless card for 30 bucks, don't fret if the laptop doesn't have a wireless card built in

For productivity, download free openoffice. easy to use and nearly full compatibility with MS Office.

 

[mscher]

Re: Laptop info needed

I agree with xcuseme. It may be better to get the money.

Some notebooks that are only a few years old, might as well be 100 years old, concerning performance speed, features (especially wireless) and capacity.

If it is not a "top end" model, it was probably not that fast in the first place, it may struggle with XP or worse, Vista. Since used notebook values plummet pretty quick, it may not be worth the money.

Get an exact model number with features and search the Internet, for prices and product reviews.

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Laptop info needed

Consider also you can catch a new Dell on sale for around 500 with a warranty.I would never spend that much on a used machine but thats just me..
Call the guy up and have him right click on the "my computer" icon then click on properties and see what CPU and how much ram is in it at least.
Does he also have a partitioned hard drive with a back up image?

 

[brother chris]

Re: Laptop info needed

Thanks guys. Go figure, the guy bailed and never showed up! That's Craigslist for ya!
And after reading all the replies, I think I am best off if I just sell the car for $500 and buy a used laptop from a dealer.
Although if he does show up tonight, before I go to bed, I'll see what kind it is and if it is worth it.

 

[dolluper]

Re: Laptop info needed

A neat little utitity cpuid {fits on a floppy} will give you all the computer info ,ram,board and so on,since he didn't show up maybe he hasn't borrowed it from the store or someones house yet ....you get my drift

 

[Nandy]

Re: Laptop info needed

If you can sell your vehicle for $500.00 or more you can buy a new laptop.

 

[jameskb2]

Re: Laptop info needed

A good rule of thumb to see if the OS is legit is to look for the Windows (I assume) product ID sticker on the bottom. Just look for that and see if the installed OS jives with the sticker. To check your Windows version just click Start -> Run, Type winver and click ok.

Assuming all that checks out, if you want to have a clean OS install (recommended) just locate the correct Windows cd for your version and use the serial number on the sticker.

Although that's a good idea, it is possible that the serial number on the authentication sticker is NOT the same as the installed OS. Legit too.

Why? Because mass producers like Acer, Dell, Gateway and the like, will purchase VLK (volume license key) and create a "clean" install for the machine. Then, they create an image of the hard drive, burn it to a master, and have hundreds of these sent out with the machines. It's the "restore" disk you get with a new laptop or even desktop.

Do you really think each one of the restoration CD's is custom? They're not, that is why the volume license key is used.

It's a little known truth.....

 

[jameskb2]

Re: Laptop info needed

If you can sell your vehicle for $500.00 or more you can buy a new laptop.

That's true. Dell runs specials all the time for 499 or 549.

 

[Nandy]

Re: Laptop info needed

I had a friend ask me to help get a laptop. Went from store to store looking at the used stock. I said, forget it. used laptops years old are sold for over $500.00 and you can get one from this year in Best Buy for that... We went to BB and came out with an brand new laptop, warrante, support, new battery that will not die every 30 minutes, all the cables, software... You name it... unless you are paying $100 or less I say buy it new...

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Laptop info needed

True Nandy,Buy it online thru Dell or NewEgg you can get much better machines for that price.Remember all the new stuff is Vista and 1 gig of ram is the very least you would want.Vista is a ram hog!
I got my HP laptop with the Centrino Duo Core chip and 2 gigs of ram and Vista runs about the speed of XP on my older machine.

 

[Nandy]

Re: Laptop info needed

Then when you get that laptop with the 1 gig load xp on it... It will run faster that vista and in reality you dont need vista unless you just want to have it. XP is still plenty for an average user.