Which laptop would you go for? « Economics Job Market Rumors

5 years - 98 posts - Latest - RSS
Thread: 60 Goods vs 29 No Goods

Economics Job Market Rumors » Off Topic » Technology

Which laptop would you go for?

Economist
3796

I am an macro-economist (I do theory, calibrations, and empirical work).

I am going to buy a new laptop and my budget is around $2300. After some research I narrowed my final choices into two:

1) the brand new Surface Laptop ($2200)
i7-7600U (dual core)
16 GB RAM
512 GB SSD
comes with built-in touchscreen

2) Dell XPS 15 - with touchscreen ($2124)
i7-7700HQ (quad core)
16 GB RAM
512 SSD

The XPS is more powerful given the quad core but the Surface laptop is way prettier, lighter and still powerful.

Which device do you guys recommend out of these two?
P.S: i do not like MAC and not a huge Thinkpad fan

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 2 Vlad !
Uhura
Rep: 143

I would strongly advise against the XPS 15 because if it's terrible keyboard. I had one for about a year and could not bear to use it without plugging in an external keyboard because it would miss letters, give me double letters, and generally be unbearable to use. It's a shame because everything else about that laptop is sensational.

I haven't seen the surface laptop yet, but I have owned all the surface Pro's and also a Surface Book, so I'm guessing it will be as quality as any of those. The main shortcoming is that it only has a single USB port, kind of like the original MacBook Air.

I probably would not recommend the Surface Book because with the CPU attached to the screen and gets really hot and the fan blows all the time. Moreover the Surface Pro is really hard to use in your lap.

I ended up going with a high-end 15-inch ThinkPad, which has a sensational keyboard and incredible storage and memory capacity, but it is a real brick at nearly six pounds.

I might suggest that you check out the HP Spectre X-360, which is a 15 inch laptop that can take lots of memory and disk space and is quite pretty. I think it is limited to a dual-core processor, but maybe you will be okay with that. I would have bought one but I really really need the quad core processor.

Good luck.

5 years ago # QUOTE 10 Volod 0 Vlad !
Economist
3796

I would strongly advise against the XPS 15 because if it's terrible keyboard. I had one for about a year and could not bear to use it without plugging in an external keyboard because it would miss letters, give me double letters, and generally be unbearable to use. It's a shame because everything else about that laptop is sensational.
I haven't seen the surface laptop yet, but I have owned all the surface Pro's and also a Surface Book, so I'm guessing it will be as quality as any of those. The main shortcoming is that it only has a single USB port, kind of like the original MacBook Air.
I probably would not recommend the Surface Book because with the CPU attached to the screen and gets really hot and the fan blows all the time. Moreover the Surface Pro is really hard to use in your lap.
I ended up going with a high-end 15-inch ThinkPad, which has a sensational keyboard and incredible storage and memory capacity, but it is a real brick at nearly six pounds.
I might suggest that you check out the HP Spectre X-360, which is a 15 inch laptop that can take lots of memory and disk space and is quite pretty. I think it is limited to a dual-core processor, but maybe you will be okay with that. I would have bought one but I really really need the quad core processor.
Good luck.

Which Thinkpad model do you own?

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 0 Vlad !
Uhura
Rep: 143

It's the p50. And Incredibly capable machine with 64 gig of memory, dual 1-terabyte SSDs, and room for a third disk drive. The keyboard is an absolute dream, and it also has a number pad. I also love the trackpoint, so I never have to use the touchpad or Mouse, the that is an acquired taste for some. It also runs much cooler than the XPS 15 because it's a larger chassis so the heat dissipation Works quite better.

Only problem is that it is a real brick at 5.8 lbs. By comparison the XPS 15 is like four and a half pounds, and the high-end MacBook is 4. Of course the MacBook is limited to 16 gig memory, so that's a non-starter for me. If you like the XPS 15 keyboard, and some people do, I would absolutely get the new version of that which has a 97 MaH battery. I used to get eight or nine hours of battery life with my XPS 15, so it is probably now 10 hours with a bigger battery and new CPu. But go to Best Buy and try the keyboard first.

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 0 Vlad !
Economist
3796

What kind of research do you do Uhura to need 64 GB?

It's the p50. And Incredibly capable machine with 64 gig of memory, dual 1-terabyte SSDs, and room for a third disk drive. The keyboard is an absolute dream, and it also has a number pad. I also love the trackpoint, so I never have to use the touchpad or Mouse, the that is an acquired taste for some. It also runs much cooler than the XPS 15 because it's a larger chassis so the heat dissipation Works quite better.
Only problem is that it is a real brick at 5.8 lbs. By comparison the XPS 15 is like four and a half pounds, and the high-end MacBook is 4. Of course the MacBook is limited to 16 gig memory, so that's a non-starter for me. If you like the XPS 15 keyboard, and some people do, I would absolutely get the new version of that which has a 97 MaH battery. I used to get eight or nine hours of battery life with my XPS 15, so it is probably now 10 hours with a bigger battery and new CPu. But go to Best Buy and try the keyboard first.

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 0 Vlad !
Uhura
Rep: 143

Just a typical regmonkey, crunching large data sets

The Assembly of the data sets typically takes more memory than actually running regressions

5 years ago # QUOTE 1 Volod 0 Vlad !
Economist
6195

Buy MBP

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 1 Vlad !
Economist
3796

I'm not that rich bruh

Buy MBP

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 1 Vlad !
Uhura
Rep: 143

Buy MBP

MBP is a fine choice if you can live with 16G of memory and don't mind macos. They nicely package a quad-core CPU and up to a 2T SSD in a 4-pound chassis. I don't know whether the CPU is throttled to keep it from overheating.

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 2 Vlad !
Economist
31e1

I wonder if it's worth to get a better laptop given the same specs. For example, I got a Dell Inspiron with i7-7600hq, 32gb ram (ddr3l), 512 SSD M2(SATA, no PCIe), nvidia gtx 960(which honestly was unnecessary for me). For $700.

When I bought it I was considering the Thinkpad P50 with i7-7600hq, 32gb (ddr4), 256 ssd, NVIDIA Quadro M1000M and this is PCIe compatible which is attractive when you work with data but apparently is not easy to upgrade after purchase. This was around $1500 with a coupon.

So, I, being a cheap ass, went for the Dell and I'm completely satisfied with it. I wonder if I'm missing anything from the P50. No doubt it's a better laptop and it'll last longer, I just wonder where do you see the difference. The construction of the P50 is better and the keyboard and trackpad are without doubt superior but not worth the price difference nor it'll make a significant difference in my productivity. My old laptop was a Thinkpad T420, which I love and still use once in a while. The P50's construction and keyboard are not even close to the T420's.

So, what's your take on this? Not trying to criticize anyone just curious for future reference. If money wasn't an issue I'd have bought the P50. I had the budget for it, I just didn't consider it necessary for my needs or tastes.

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 0 Vlad !
Economist
cab8

P50? Can you waterboard it?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ig3xI8dUdm0

5 years ago # QUOTE 1 Volod 0 Vlad !
Economist
a713

Why do you care to have an i7? I would go for i5 and save a bit of battery life. Are you going to do really intensive stuff on your laptop? Then maybe you should consider a desktop?

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 1 Vlad !
Economist
cab8

BTW, this Rossman guy is an extremely specialized macbook repairman (micro soldering, chip replacement, basically any kind of really weird repair... even soldering random wires in shady way around the motherboard to try and to get the macbook to start). BUT, he is one of the biggest macbook haters that you will ever find and he's kind of an asshole.

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 0 Vlad !
Economist
31e1

<iframe class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="430" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ig3xI8dUdm0" "="" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>P50? Can you waterboard it?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ig3xI8dUdm0

That kind of accidents seem unlikely given my working environment but even if that ever happens I could buy a second Dell and It'll still be cheaper at the end. Durability is a plus but considering how fast improvements in hardware are coming, you'll be looking for a new laptop before the premium for durability pays off. Anyway, I don't doubt that the P50 is a great machine, I just wonder what are the benefits besides durability and the keyboard over other laptops given similar specs. I just want to read some opinions from other users working on the same field.

Why do you care to have an i7? I would go for i5 and save a bit of battery life. Are you going to do really intensive stuff on your laptop? Then maybe you should consider a desktop?

You're right but the price difference wasn't that big. I do have a desktop and most of the time I use aws or my university's servers, depending on the task and my budget. However, Internet connection is not always good when I'm on my laptop. Even for a test run you it makes a difference to have those extra threads, in particular when you have to keep using your computer for other tasks.

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 0 Vlad !
Economist
5738

After touching the keyboard of a Thinkpad during my visit to my uncle, who is a NASA scientist, I went home and immediately put my Macbook Pro on Ebay and two weeks later bought a Thinkpad T42. Since then, I have bought Thinkpad T410s, 440p, just buying new models while keeping old ones only. Never regret it.

Even the keyboard of the high-end Macbook Pro is just like crap as compared to a Thinkpad, not to mention those of Dell XPS, HP or Toshiba.

I'm serious, dead serious!

5 years ago # QUOTE 3 Volod 0 Vlad !
Economist
e6a1

I'm waiting for quint core

5 years ago # QUOTE 1 Volod 0 Vlad !
Uhura
Rep: 143

After touching the keyboard of a Thinkpad during my visit to my uncle, who is a NASA scientist, I went home and immediately put my Macbook Pro on Ebay and two weeks later bought a Thinkpad T42. Since then, I have bought Thinkpad T410s, 440p, just buying new models while keeping old ones only. Never regret it.
Even the keyboard of the high-end Macbook Pro is just like crap as compared to a Thinkpad, not to mention those of Dell XPS, HP or Toshiba.
I'm serious, dead serious!

I thought mac keyboards were decent? well at least until the most recent refresh.

but once you've tried the Trackpoint there is no going back to the touchpad. i haven't really used the touchpad on my current thinkpad and might switch it off.

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 0 Vlad !
Economist
810a

Bump

5 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 0 Vlad !
Economist
d34b

Bump

4 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 0 Vlad !
Economist
f013

https://www.costco.com/Dell-XPS-15-Touchscreen-Laptop---Intel-Core-i7---4K-Ultra-HD---4GB-NVIDIA-Graphics.product.100336318.html

Double the ram and memory of OP's for the same price

No brainer if you don't want a mac and budget isn't an issue.

Apple customer service has done me well though so I am a slave ...

4 years ago # QUOTE 0 Volod 0 Vlad !

12…5 Next »

Recently Announced

Upcoming

Economics

Job Market

Off Topic

Job Market Wiki

Job Market Candidates

Updates

Which laptop would you go for?

Reply »