I’m a Mac guy generally but I find myself needing a Winders machine for astronomy software.

Processing imagery is a prime memory hog so I’ll need a large amount of memory and storage. I won’t need cutting edge processor and graphics card because I’m patient. But I don’t want to fossilize while waiting, eother. So likely some modest, mid-range processor will be ok.

Also, I’ll be using it outside at night so dim-able (Red would be better) keys and display that can dim would be good.

Don’t need a big display. Need batteries with respectable time to recharge.

Weight and size not an issue. Need several ports, nothing especially fast.

Got opinions/advice? Please guide me. I haven’t used a Windows laptop in nearly three years.

Yeah, I could ask on a computer website but I know you guys as being very hands-on in general and will have opinions more in the realm of reality. I don’t need a big gaming box. Just something with lots of memory and oh yeah, RELIABILITY.

Thanks, and let the games begin!

I like the Lenovo T series... I think the latest is T495. Best compromise for light weight and features. The thing about Lenovo is that they’ve always been good with spares, so you can keep them going forever. And they have track points which I much prefer to trackpads.

Thanks, I will take a look.

Dell computers has a smokin' gaming laptop series. The hardware/keyboard looks to be bullet proof. They have advanced graphics (which for astronomy might be useful) and most important to me, the cooling system looks far better than most laptops.

Laptops, by design, suffer cooling issues and cooling fans are what keeps the chips/processors running nice and cool. The dell gaming laptop comes with thunderbolt/USB-C connectors. Yes, the dell gaming laptop cost a few nickels more than other laptops but if I were going to buy a windows machine this would be the one:

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/dell-g5-15-6-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i7-16gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-gtx-1660-ti-max-q-1tb-hdd-256gb-ssd-deep-space-black/6350874.p?skuId=6350874

Best Buy offers extended warranties as well which I believe is a no brainer.

Only complaint I could find on the dell gaming laptop is apparently the cooling fans are a bit louder than most. No problem here, again, you want the chips and circuitry to be nice and cool. If you live near a Best Buy, do yourself a favor and go look at one. I'm in the market for a laptop right now and I've found going to take an actual look at the machine tells a far different story than online photos/descriptions.

My experience is that Dell sells the computer of the week. If you need a new part a year out, you're SOL. When I bought them on a corporate level, we had to pay extra for a standard design, so that we could have a uniform inventory.

I have been buying used Dell corporate laptops based on my experience at work. The ones I used were very reliable in harsh conditions like on the hood of a truck in 90 deg weather and outside when snowing. The parts are unlimited and cheap. The E6410/6420 are solid machines. I have been running Win10 on a used D630 for about 5 years.

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Tony H
W111 280SE 3.5 Coupe
Manual transmission

Past cars:
Porsche 914 2.0
'64 Jaguar XKE Roadster
'57 Oval Window VW
'71 Toyota Hilux Pickup Truck-Dad bought new
'73 Toyota Celica GT

I use an 11" tablet as a travelling auxiliary computer for my Red Cross field activities. It does everything I need with a few limitations and at a slower pace. The best part is that it costs just a little over $100.

Another vote for the Lenovo Thinkpad/T-series. Having worked in IT and run a private computer service, nothing in the Wintel world stands up better or lasts longer (without going into a purpose-built hard-use machine like the Panasonic Toughbook). They're in the same league as Apple as far as the build quality and longevity goes, not to mention spare parts are available long after production ends since they're very popular with corporate users (due to their durability).

Dell tends to get a lot of praise from people who don't have to service them. They're not well built, they don't perform well, they don't last as long as their competition, and the hardware is often inferior or "dumbed down" out of the box. You'll pay more money for a lesser machine.

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Current stable:
1995 E320 149K (Nancy)
1983 500SL 120K (SLoL)

Black Sheep:
1985 524TD 167K (TotalDumpster™)

Gone but not forgotten:
1986 300SDL (RIP)
1991 350SD
1991 560SEL
1990 560SEL
1986 500SEL Euro (Rusted to nothing at 47K!)

I have a Lenovo X1 Carbon that I am very happy with.

In my 10 year corporate world they have always been IBM/Lenovo thinkpads. And have stood up well from anything the office could throw at it, and then anyplace I needed to bring it in the warehouse, conveyor repair or power plant spaces (but only briefly)
Panasonic toughbooks come with a good reputation, but not sure where the money is - Id imagine they are expensive.
There are 'rugged' and 'semi-rugged' toughbooks as - we have a lot of semi-ruggeds around the power plants and they do hold up well (to dirt, dust, drops etc. The semi-ruggeds arent submersible, but otherwise hold up well.

Do you need help with processor/RAM numbers ? that is a different world ("is a 5th generation i3 better than a 2nd generation i5 ?") that no one here has addressed yet.

-John

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2009 Kia Sedona
2009 Honda Odyssey EX-L
12006 Jetta Pumpe Duse
(insert Mercedes here)

Husband, Father, sometimes friend =)

Get a 10th Gen processor. Don’t cheap out on that, i5 might be all you need, but always go with the latest generation processor that meets your needs. And get 16 Gigs of RAM.

Oh, and buy it with a credit card that extends the warranty.

My daughter went back to school to be a PA, so I bought her a new macbook air. I had her order the i5 with 16 Gigs of RAM and the 512 SSD. I told her to sign up for a credit card with extended warranty, and this one gave $200 cash back if you spend X amount of dollars, etc.

If you laptop, you pretty much need a new one every few years. That’s why I like my desktop: I can just swap in new components at will. The case never needs replacement, I have hard drives all over the place for back ups. I always go with the latest processor, mb, and extra ram to future-proof the rig. I stopped gaming, so the old video card still works for my light-duty use; nothing more than the stripped down Photoshop Elements.

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All lives won’t matter until Black Lives Matter too. Along with Asian lives as well.

“No, I don’t take responsibility at all.” - Don Trump

“The buck stops here.” - Harry Truman

Black Votes Matter.

You could install Windows on a Mac laptop if you already own one or alternatively use Parallels or another VM that allow you to run Windows programs within MacOS if you don't need to connect to external devices.

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Watch him go!!! link

#dontdealwithkahlil

i like my Lenovo unit from work.....not a big fan of HP or Dell at this point....ok when they work but seem to be poorly made,
maybe because i buy low-end units usually, as i don't have the need for anything 'better'......

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0o==o0

James 4:8

"...let us put aside the blindness of mind of those who can conceive of nothing higher than what is known through the senses"
-Saint Gregory Palamas, ---Discourse on the Holy Transfiguration of Our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ


Centrally located in North East Central Pa.

Well. You are getting into it aren't you Bot. I agree with the idea of Lenovo. Years ago I'd have said HP but now I think Lenovo might have it. I agree about Dell. We have had so much trouble with them at work that we just recently dumped them for Lenovo. YMMV of course.

- Peter.

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2021 Chevrolet Spark
Formerly...
2000 GMC Sonoma
1981 240D 4spd stick. 347000 miles. Deceased Feb 14 2021
2002 Kia Rio. Worst crap on four wheels
1981 240D 4spd stick. 389000 miles.
1984 123 200
1979 116 280S
1972 Cadillac Sedan DeVille
1971 108 280S