Could anyone give me an opinion on these laptops?

[Yes]

I'll be in college next year so I'd like to get a laptop, but I've got a few questions -

15" or 17"? I'd like having the larger screen resolution with a 17", and they also seem to have better specs for the same price as a 15" laptop. The only downside is some people think they're a little unwieldy. Can anyone weigh in on that?

Are there any brands I should really be avoiding? I've found two good looking 17" laptops, one is a Gateway and one is an Acer, and then I've found a few good Lenovo and Asus 15" laptops. I know Lenovo Thinkpads are supposed to be outstanding, but they're much more expensive and lack the graphics capability I'd really like (ideally I'd like to be able to play Modern Warfare 2). Would a Gateway, Acer, or Asus really be that much worse?

Any thoughts would be much appreciated!

[Frogs Hair]

You could post links to the laptops your interested in .

[NightwishFan]

My laptop is an ASUS and I am quite pleased with it. The hardware has all open source drivers. My particular model would be a bit underpowered for your specs though.

I have a 15inch screen, it is great and still has good battery life. Make sure you take battery into consideration.

[Yes]

Yeah, here are the 15" laptops I'm looking at - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834146613, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834220725, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834146719, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834220724, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834220732. And the 17" laptops - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834115763, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834101222. So I haven't really narrowed it down much...

I'm fairly certain they all have a similar battery life of ~3 hours regular use. Battery life isn't too big of a deal, most of my classes and the library will have outlets available.

[Legendary_Bibo]

Don't get a 17 inch laptop if you're going to be carrying it to classes, it really adds a lot of weigtht. Get a netbook. I have a 17 inch laptop and taking it to classes to take notes is not fun.

[kspncr]

I would definitely go with this one http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834146613

Great specs for the price.

[formaldehyde_spoon]

I'll be in college next year so I'd like to get a laptop, but I've got a few questions -

15'' or 17''? I'd like having the larger screen resolution with a 17'', and they also seem to have better specs for the same price as a 15'' laptop. The only downside is some people think they're a little unwieldy. Can anyone weigh in on that?

Are there any brands I should really be avoiding? I've found two good looking 17'' laptops, one is a Gateway and one is an Acer, and then I've found a few good Lenovo and Asus 15'' laptops. I know Lenovo Thinkpads are supposed to be outstanding, but they're much more expensive and lack the graphics capability I'd really like (ideally I'd like to be able to play Modern Warfare 2). Would a Gateway, Acer, or Asus really be that much worse?

Any thoughts would be much appreciated!

Speaking from the point of view of a laptop owner currently attending university, IMHO you will very quickly tire of carrying even a 15'' to class.

I own an 11.6'' laptop and haven't taken it to class since the first week, it's just too unwieldy and heavy.

I recommend a desktop at home, and a netbook (with a massive battery life) for class.

[kaldor]

Speaking from the point of view of a laptop owner currently attending university, IMHO you will very quickly tire of carrying even a 15'' to class.

I own an 11.6'' laptop and haven't taken it to class since the first week, it's just too unwieldy and heavy.

I recommend a desktop at home, and a netbook (with a massive battery life) for class.

Carrying this 13 inch to class is also horrible. I concur with the netbook thing, unless you plan to use the laptop for gaming in any way.

A friend of mine has a 17 inch Toshiba... it's just gross. Very clunky and heavy and overheats too much. You'd hate carrying it with you, trust me on that. I hate the 13 inch enough.

[98cwitr]

I would go with the 15" if you're gonna carry it to class

Acer == Gateway

Lenovo Thinkpads are by far the best non-Mac laptop on the market.

If you're looking to stay on a budget and still get a good laptop, I'd recommend HP.

COD-MW2 on a laptop...you must be joking...

[samalex]

I can't speak highly enough about System76. Despite what some say their costs are pretty much in line if not cheaper than other mainstream manufacturers, plus Linux works outta the box which is nice. I bought a Pangolin laptop last summer (Model PanP5) and it's been a great system! Plus the latest model (PanP7) is more than powerful enough to do what you're wanting.

http://www.system76.com/product_info...roducts_id=100

Also you can't beat the support and Ubuntu Forums hosts their support group so you can mingle and chat with other System76 owners or folks from System76 if problems or questions come-up.

Sam