Dell XPS M1330 laptop
The above picture is my Dell laptop complete with missing quotation key. Notice that the keys are a silver color and the color ON the key denoting its function is a somewhat darker grey; they are not lit in any way and so at night I need to have an overhead light shining down on the keyboard or I have to move the monitor part of the laptop such that its light shines on the keys so I can hunt down a particular key — fortunately I’m a touch typist so I don’t have to do this often, but nonetheless, to see the keys at night takes some work. Further, what you can’t see in this picture is that the print on the E, R, N, and M key has worn off – again, it’s a good thing I’m a touch typist. Now to add insult to injury, the power cord works intermittently and when this particular laptop goes into battery mode, the screen lighting fades to where you can hardly see the screen at all. Add to this the issues with the Vista operating system and you may understand where I am today. In computer Hades.
In simpler terms, I hate this laptop with every fiber of my being. This is my third Dell; my second Dell laptop. This one was recommended by my IT guru and I don’t blame him for the fact that this particular machine is a gigantic piece of computer crap — maybe in his capable hands it would have worked like a charm. All I know is I paid a tremendous amount of money 2 years ago for this; the warranty has run out, and I’m ready to chuck it out the window.
Now I use my computer every day, especially in the pursuit of my degree and also when writing this and my other blog. The keyboard gets quite a workout so it has to be functioning well to suit my needs. I can always order a new power cord;it’s not cheap. There is absolutely nothing I can do about the broken quotation key except to pound my finger on the spot where the key once was which results in a series of quotation marks and I simply backspace until I have what I want. Oh, I can replace this keyboard for about $250 but that doesn’t include installation/labor. Pitiful, isn’t it?
So I have decided I need to find the money to buy a new laptop in the next 6 months. The one nice feature of this laptop is it’s small and very lightweight – it’s only 12 1/2 inches wide and 8 1/2 inches deep and it weighs hardly anything at all so I can easily take it with me and I’m not lugging around 10 lbs of computer stuff on my shoulder. That is its one saving grace – the portability. It also has good memory and it only crashes once every week or so now.
I don’t think I’m asking too much to buy a computer that isn’t going to crash at all – ESPECIALLY when I’m trying to complete an online timed school quiz. Gah….talk about frustrating — I’m on question 18 of a 20 question test with 15 minutes left and the computer crashes.
So…do I completely change my focus and try out a Mac? Or should I stick with a PC and simply ditch Dell in favor of maybe HP? I need some input from readers please. I really want to know — what do you use and what would you all recommend I buy? I really don’t need alot of bells and whistles; I’m not into gaming – I basically want this for school and to surf and play on Twitter and on my blogs, and to collect my pictures of EmmaLou and Devoted Spouse.
Help me please – send comments on what you like and don’t like about what you use and if I have any Mac laptop users out there please give me comments on what laptop is best for students? I’ve heard bad stuff about the new Mac Air. It’s getting to the point I don’t know which reviews to believe anymore and I’m just not a techhead at all! So give me your valuable recommendations please!!
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