I need computer advice

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  • I need computer advice

    I'm going to buy a computer and am leaning towards a netbook. I will just be using it for email, microsoft office and chess. I'm looking for the cheapest machine that will do the job. I have been using chessbase light premium and fritz 12 but I may try chessbase 11 and fritz 13. I have picked out a computer (link below) and I was wondering if anyone could look at the link below and tell me if I'm making a mistake or if I will have any regrets before it's too late.

    Thanks!
    Chris

    http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/produ...771cc6c453en02

  • #2
    Re: I need computer advice

    Originally posted by Chris White View Post
    I have picked out a computer (link below) and I was wondering if anyone could look at the link below and tell me if I'm making a mistake or if I will have any regrets before it's too late.
    Find out what Aris is using and buy something else. :p

    I had an ACER a few years ago and its battery life was terrible, which is a problem if you're using the chess engine for analysis since it will run at 100%, requiring the cooling fan to run too. I have no idea if Acer has improved their batteries since then, but I'd look into that before buying one.
    Last edited by John Upper; Tuesday, 21st February, 2012, 01:16 AM.

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    • #3
      Re: I need computer advice

      Download Houdini + get ICC account + run the program there - it's a beast and for me, it doesn't lag at all when I analyze.
      Shameless self-promotion on display here
      http://www.youtube.com/user/Barkyducky?feature=mhee

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      • #4
        Re: I need computer advice

        Chris:

        I have worked in a computer repair shop for the past 11 years
        (Right Stop Computer Shop in Ottawa).
        I cannot with good conscience recommend buying an Acer as they are built with inferior motherboards and often die within two years.
        The ACER laptops and their AC adapters often come in for overheating issues.
        Acer is the most common brand we get in our shop for repairs followed closely by HP/Compaq and ASUS.

        The most solidly built laptops we find are:
        1. Toshiba 2. IBM/Lenovo 3. Dell

        However, you will always find a difference of opinion due to 'luck of the draw' or 'poor user handling'. You may hear from someone who had that one in a thousand lemon of a Toshiba.

        Also, remember that Future Shop employees are on commission and tend to try to 'up sell' especially with extended warranties. Best Buy employees are not on commisssion and usually sell the same units.
        I am partial to purchasing from 'Mom and Pop' shops to support the local small businesses. Unfortunately, we do not sell netbooks, but we do sell the external optical drives required for netbooks so you can load software.

        Hope this helps a little bit. Happy hunting.
        Last edited by Billy Carroll; Tuesday, 21st February, 2012, 04:14 AM. Reason: typo

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        • #5
          Re: I need computer advice

          Originally posted by Chris White View Post
          I'm going to buy a computer and am leaning towards a netbook. I will just be using it for email, microsoft office and chess. I'm looking for the cheapest machine that will do the job. I have been using chessbase light premium and fritz 12 but I may try chessbase 11 and fritz 13. I have picked out a computer (link below) and I was wondering if anyone could look at the link below and tell me if I'm making a mistake or if I will have any regrets before it's too late.

          Thanks!
          Chris

          http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/produ...771cc6c453en02
          What you're looking at isn't really a netbook. Those are usually built using an Atom CPU. As a class of computer, netbooks are rather underpowered and a bit useless. Video playback on a netbook is pretty poor. Using the AMD C 60 APU, video playback on the computer you're considering will be much better than with a netbook but it won't be awesome by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, the computer you're looking at will be a bit of a turtle overall. The CPU is somewhere around 10 times slower than an Intel Core i5.

          Will the computer you're looking at work with ChessBase and Fritz? Yes. But the overall performance of the computer will feel very slow. The lack of speed will likely become frustrating. I would suggest looking for a computer based on an Intel i3 or i5 or an AMD Phenom II. Stay away from computers built with the AMD Bulldozer (FX series CPUs). The Bulldozer supersedes the Phenom series but is a disaster (which is putting AMD in a very bad position financially). Be sure to get 4GB of RAM for whatever you buy (more is OK but not strictly necessary, less is bad news).

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          • #6
            Re: I need computer advice

            I have the Intel i7 chip and I like it. The only problem with my laptop is it's a 17 inch and really too big to cart around, but good for what I use it. I've always liked the Intel chip.

            The problem is getting a low end computer which will do the job. Maybe something like a Dell with an i3 chip.
            Gary Ruben
            CC - IA and SIM

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            • #7
              Re: I need computer advice

              Originally posted by Billy Carroll View Post
              The most solidly built laptops we find are:
              1. Toshiba 2. IBM/Lenovo 3. Dell

              However, you will always find a difference of opinion due to 'luck of the draw' or 'poor user handling'. You may hear from someone who had that one in a thousand lemon of a Toshiba.
              I have a Toshiba laptop that I bought a little over four years ago when I first got back into chess and also later a Toshiba netbook that I use for the chess lectures that I do and will probably update them with another Toshiba at some point. I added solid state hard drives to both of them which delayed their obsolescence a bit but have the drawback of being a bit small but very fast. I use external hard drives to make up for the reduced local storage.

              When I was looking for a netbook my good experience with the Toshiba laptop convinced me to pay four hundred dollars for the Toshiba versus the Acer and HP units which were selling for a lot less. The tipping point was the feel of the touchpad mouse which was bearable on the HP but quite responsive on the Toshiba. The Acer touchpad was slightly annoying to me for some reason.

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