Looking for a notebook for school, any suggestions?

I am thinking about purchasing the MacBook Pro 13 inch entry level version. My question is it worth it to purchase the extended warranty? Apple sells theirs for $349 but from what I understand it covers phone support and any defects to the Mac. Bestbuy is selling there 3 year extended and replacement warranty for $349 as well. The main difference is that Bestbuys 3 year extended warranty covers for external damage (i.e. power surge, drops, spills, etc) and is also includes replacement which to me is much better than Apples.

The ultimate question is it worth it to invest in this extended warranty???

Ps - I also saw the Apple promotion where if you buy a Macbook Pro that you get a free Ipod Touch. BestBuy stated they would match that promotion.

 

Here is what I did last week:

Bought the upgraded 2.53ghz MacBook Pro 13inch from BestBuy.
It retails at Apple for $1,499- but if you buy it at Apple you get $100 off for education discount, a free iPod Touch after rebate, and a free P.O.S. printer after rebate.

I talked to a manager at BestBuy and... convinced him to do this:
MacBook Pro : $1,499
iPod Touch: $229
BestBuy Black Tie Warranty: $100
- $100 Education Price Match
- $300 iPod Discount (I convinced the cashier to accidently give me the additional $80 off... sue me if you don't like it!)
- $100 Returned the Black Tie warranty at another Best Buy on my way home

Total for MBP (2.53ghz) + iPod Touch= $1,319 out the door (no rebates)

 

Sounds like an excellent deal. I have the same model and it is pretty slick. Just need a memory upgrade and you'll be good to go.

 

Won't be good for gaming, but you probably aren't using it for gaming anyway. The price is great, and Lenovo can last for a while. Yup, need to upgrade that RAM, but that's cheap to do.

 

Just make sure you the memory is one dimm. Otherwise you will have to throw away memory to upgrade.

 

Get the MacBook... I just got this late last week... bad ass computer... don't settle for those crappy computers that these fools are listing to you.

Snow Leopard comes out in September... you get a Mac now.. you get Snow Leopard for 10 bucks instead of 30.

 

Agreed.

 

Get a netbook. I love mine, the beauty part is, unlike a macbook it's expendable. You drop it, break it, spill anything on it, who cares, you only paid $200.

Realistically, 1/3 of laptop failure is HUMAN error, 1/3 is also bad parts (which happens across the board regardless of brand). The beauty of a netbook is, if you have an external hard drive, your data is secure and if your netbook dies who gives an eff. Plus, if you buy a notebook with Vista you can get a reduced or even completely free upgrade to 7 when it hits shelves.

I can do things with my Acer on 7 that other people running Vista or XP can't do. Netbook!

Netbook!

 

big screens are nice for using PowerPoint

 

If you're in the market for a notebook, do yourself a favor and check out http://www.notebookreview.com/ It has very detailed reviews from users, and the forums are second to none.

 

i'm currently using the Acer Aspire 1 notebook, not exactly powerful buyt if all you need if for basic word processor programs (MS office), this would do.........

Specs N270 Processor, 1.97 Duo Core, 1 Gig Ram, 80GB hard drive, with lan, wifi........


its only $300 when i bought it last december

 

DON'T GET A DELL

 

I'm stuck STILL using the worst piece of **** device I have ever bought. And it's a Sony. Who would have guessed?

I bought it at Best Buy back in '04 (yes, 2004) for college, had the 3 year warranty, and then made the mistake of getting the extended Geek Squad warranty. Unfortunately when I smashed my screen last September (out of pure anger since the wireless decided to blue screen repeatedly; I eventually figure out the problem), Geek Squad says their service does not cover screens. So it would be around $300 to fix this crap, which I can basically only view in the lower right hand quadrant (see pic below!):



If I'm going to spend $300 I might as well get a new computer. Ideally a Macbook would be preferable, but I don't NEED it. When I have spending money I will probably get one.

So I've learned to 1.) never purchase a Sony product again, and 2.) that I can get a useful computer (Lenovo, HP, Gateway, etc.) for $500 or less that will be FAR superior than my current piece of crap.

If anyone can recommend one that won't break down and last a couple of years (I would use it for Internet, MS Office, chat, webcam sex, music, movies, and the occasional Photoshop). Since I would get a "premium" laptop/desktop later in a couple of years (like a Mac), I could probably be more than happy with anything that is Core 2 or Athlon (versus a quad core). Plus Windows 7 would be a free upgrade regardless.

 

i hate dell but its just me.

i love my lenovo. my friends love lenovo. buy lenovo/ibm.

but my brother swears by his apple macbook.

 

Ya, thats why the emerging market of netbooks is so promising?

Or Why apple is trying so hard to actually develop a line of touchscreen netbooks?

Most users only want internet, word, and the occasional YouTube video. Netbooks can do all that. Currently, on my Acer I'm on Clutchfans, D2L, Pandora, Facebook, Adobe Acrobat and Powerpoint. I don't know what more I could want to do? Got any suggestions? Maybe I should also throw down Hulu. My netbook can handle that... All at once mind you...