Netbook - Laptop - Pc -- Help On Getting Back Into Contact With You&#3

[AnneLine]

Hi, Everyone,

I sure miss being on PhatMass! As many of you know, my mother-in-law is very ill with back problems that cause her great pain, and also has been diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer. The doctors are still talking about trying to start chemo on Friday, so things are going to get worse before they get better for her. Please keep her in your prayers... and the caregivers (mostly me!) in your prayers!

But I need help with some practical questions... and you all have the expertise to help me!

MIL does NOT have any internet or computer access in her home, and the general consensus of the caregivers is we need it because we all are spending a lot of our time there, and need to be able to get stuff done while we are there....and cause I want to connect with you all!!!!)

So, the whole family is looking at getting either a laptop or PC for the house, and my husband and I are also exploring either a second laptop or a netbook for me (so I can keep my own stuff with me)....

I'd love any ideas and feedback you have about these topics -- most of you are more tech-saavy than I am!

1) How do you get internet away from your home? Just use hot spots (that won't be an option as her home is anything but 'hot') - or do you have some kind of a distance plan? how does it work for you?

2) How abot PC vs Desktop, which would you get and why? Any models to suggest?

3) Also, do you have any experience with netbook vs laptop? Any models to suggest?

I like the netbooks, but worry that they may not have the power I need. For that machine, all I will really need is to get on internet and use basic word & possibly a little excel. Maybe watch some YouTube clips? Probably NOT a watch a full movie.... Thoughts? One big factor for me is size & weight and fragility... I don't drive and it is a 1 mile WALK to my nearest bus stop - down a big hill. So, I need something light and NOT fragile!!! A little slow would be OK.. .but super slow would be a pain. BUT money is also a factor don't want to spend more than we have to.... but want to spend what we need to get the right stuff.

4) Has anyone used a wireless keyboard/mouse with either a netbook or a laptop? I hate the feel of the laptop, but realize I am going to have to get used to it because I need the portability at this point. But for longer typing jobs, I'll want to use a normal keyboard & mouse. How have these worked for people? Can you use them with more than one devise, or would we need one for both the laptop and netbook/2nd lap top?

Any other ideas? Thank you!

Love you all and miss you all & praying for you!

[arfink]

Well, for what you describe a typical netbook will be OK for you, but if you are very attached to Microsoft products you will want to make sure it runs MS Windows. Many netbooks come with Linux installed on them these days, but you can get them with Windows instead.

A netbook brand that I would heartily recommend for you would be ASUS, their hardware is pretty simple and very reliable. If you are going to be running Win 7 you absolutely MUST have at least 4GB of RAM to get acceptable performance. The other specs are not as important.

Also, netbooks are smaller and have less moving parts than most laptops, so they can actually be more durable in the long run than regular laptops are. The hinges tend to last longer, and with no optical drive (and in the case of a solid-state disk drive, no hard disk platters) they have less to go wrong on them. They also tend to consume less power, so their batteries last a bit longer.

I have never had to get internet away from home before, but if I did I would probably go with a Sprint 4G unlimited plan mobile hotspot. If you already have a cellphone carrier you may be able to get an inexpensive mobile data bundle on your existing plan and they can give you a hotspot device, which is a small box roughly the size of a large cell phone that can broadcast a working WIFI signal for your devices.

As for wireless keyboards and mice, they work fine and are quite inexpensive. I prefer mine attached to cords so I don't have to think about batteries all the time, but otherwise they are basically the exact same as their wired counterparts in terms of performance. At least for normal people- some hardcore gamers prefer wired controls because they have less latency and higher input resolution, but you wouldn't need to worry about that at all.

If you don't like the idea of having batteries all the time for your wireless keyboard and mouse, you can get them with retractable USB cords so they are very portable. In fact, that reminds me you should only be getting keyboards and mice with USB cords, since almost no new computers have PS2 ports anymore.

EDIT:

I almost forgot to comment on desktop PCs:

Desktops have the obvious disadvantage of being much less portable, but they are the least expensive way to get a computer these days. I got my latest PC for a little under $300, and that kind of money will buy you a LOT of computing power these days. A quick glance at Tiger Direct and New Egg indicates that for the $300 price range you can get something with at least 8GB of RAM, a nice fat 1TB hard drive, a CPU with at least 2 cores clocked at just over 2Ghz, a basic GPU with 1GB or video RAM, and a basic motherboard and case, a combination which would rival many new laptops in all aspects except portability.

For my $300 I spent two years ago I got 4GB of RAM, a 1TB hard drive, an AMD Black Edition dual core at 2.3Ghz, a 1GB Nvidia graphics card, and a massive 22" LCD monitor. I'm sure you could do much better than that nowadays for the same amount of money.

Edited July 18, 2012 by arfink

[arfink]

Take for example, this monster of a PC. It's a kit machine, so you'd need to assemble the pieces, but the price for that kind of power is unbelievable.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=3466047&sku=B69-0581

It has:
An AMD Phenom II [b]SIX CORE[/b] processor clocked at 2.7Ghz.
4 GB of RAM
A case, a PSU, and a matching motherboard.

You would need to add a hard drive ($50 to $90 depending on how big you wanted it to be) and if you wanted to get crazy, a cheap GPU ($50) and maybe an extra 4GB RAM stick for a total of 8GB of RAM.

It would come to well under $300, and all you'd need to do is supply a monitor, keyboard and mouse, which if you already have a desktop at home you already have.

[AnneLine]

Wow. ARFink, you do know your stuff..... This is HELPFUL HELPFUL HELPFUL, but I am not sure I understand all the words. (I'm just an old phogey who likes to use the computers, not assemble them....)

I will PM you for more info.... and congrats on that job lead!

Anyone else have ideas/thoughts?

[dUSt]

Buy this:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006TI443G/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B006TI443G&linkCode=as2&tag=phatmasscom-20

And then get one of these:
[url="http://www.virginmobileusa.com/mobile-broadband/broadband2go.html"]http://www.virginmobileusa.com/mobile-broadband/broadband2go.html[/url]

[AnneLine]

OK, dUSt, thanks for that input... and will look at the computer & it's specs more carefully, and also see if the one ARFink suggested could come thru the Phatlink... .good idea!

Does one need a VirginMobile phone do go with the hotspot? Right now we have verizon... .and I think they have one of those things, too. Anyone know if either of those is more helpful?

If I end up going with the netbook (still not sure which would be better), will the VirginMobile hotspot and/or Verizon hotspot work with both devices?

Anyone actually used either of them?

[Groo the Wanderer]

plus with arf's computer, you won't need a space heater! (AMD processors run hot - i close the vent in my office in the winter)

PC/Desktop:
expandable and upgradable
not portable
can use larger and multiple monitors

laptop/netbook:
not upgradeable or expandable
more fragile
very portable

really depends on what you need/want it to do. remember that a computer is a tool. get one that works for you, not one you have to work to use.

last tip: if you get a laptop, keep to 15" or smaller screen if you ever want to use it on an airplane. wifey laughs at me with my 17" widescreen laptop...doesn;t fit on the tray table...oops

[Papist]

Get an iPad.

[MissyP89]

Would it be worth it for you guys to get internet at the house? That way, everyone who is there can use internet, whether you're there or not.

[AnneLine]

Groo... those are great thoughts! I love the image of the giant laptop on the itty bitty table..... ARFink could draw us a picture... but the one in my head works just fine! I am worried about fragility... not so much expansion; I figure there are are peripherals if I needed something I don't have......

Question - If I had a netbook/laptop, and decided I wanted to say, watch a movie or use a CD, can I use an external drive with those things?

ARFink.... thanks for the feedback about the plug-in rather than wireless mice & keyboard.... MUCH better idea. Would they work with both netbook and laptop?


Papist - I don't know much about those.... how do they work for keyboarding? I can see surfing & stuff like that, but (lordy I feel lost in 1970 about now....) Help, PhatMassers... bring me into the 21st Century! What are you using & what do you like about them?

Missy, Yes, that would be the obvious thing... and we may go there.. .but at least for now MIL doesn't want "THAT THING' in her house and won't let us put it on her phone or her cable. We may be able to get her to reconsider, but need to think about other options.

How much extra will we be paying for NOT using a regular internet connection? I know the Virgin/Verizon box costs, the monthly access costs, and then there is a data plan? Maybe we can argue economics with her?

Good grief! I wanna go back to 1970!!!!!! Except none of you would be around!!!!!

I MISS YOU ALL!!!!! Keep praying for us!

Edited July 18, 2012 by AnneLine

[dUSt]

If you already have Verizon it may be cheaper just to add a mobile hotspot to your current plan. But to answer your question, no, you do not need a phone to get a mobile hotspot. The plan for that can be seperate. The best thing to do would be to get internet at the actual house though, through the local cable or phone company. That way everyone who goes to the house can use it. And it's a lot cheaper.

[Papist]

[quote name='AnneLine' timestamp='1342636344' post='2456805']
Groo... those are great thoughts! I love the image of the giant laptop on the itty bitty table..... ARFink could draw us a picture... but the one in my head works just fine! I am worried about fragility... not so much expansion; I figure there are are peripherals if I needed something I don't have......

Question - If I had a netbook/laptop, and decided I wanted to say, watch a movie or use a CD, can I use an external drive with those things?

ARFink.... thanks for the feedback about the plug-in rather than wireless mice & keyboard.... MUCH better idea. Would they work with both netbook and laptop?


Papist - I don't know much about those.... how do they work for keyboarding? I can see surfing & stuff like that, but (lordy I feel lost in 1970 about now....) Help, PhatMassers... bring me into the 21st Century! What are you using & what do you like about them?

Missy, Yes, that would be the obvious thing... and we may go there.. .but at least for now MIL doesn't want "THAT THING' in her house and won't let us put it on her phone or her cable. We may be able to get her to reconsider, but need to think about other options.

How much extra will we be paying for NOT using a regular internet connection? I know the Virgin/Verizon box costs, the monthly access costs, and then there is a data plan? Maybe we can argue economics with her?

Good grief! I wanna go back to 1970!!!!!! Except none of you would be around!!!!!

I MISS YOU ALL!!!!! Keep praying for us!
[/quote]

If you don't need MS Office applications or the like, but only email and internet browsing, the iPad is the way to go. Also, there are a mess-load of productivity apps available for the iPad. No virus, malware, etc hassles. Extremely portable. The keyboard is on the screen.

[img]http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/4b60937b0000000000985579/ipad-keyboard.jpg[/img]

Edited July 18, 2012 by Papist

[arfink]

I get the feeling Linda is going to be needing a real keyboard though. You can get those for iPads, but they are not compatible with other laptops and netbooks.

Some of your confusion about the various types (netbook/kaptop/desktop) may be unnecessary. With the exception of Apple products, almost all laptops, desktops, and netbooks will be cross-compatible where software and peripherals are concerned. You can get USB-enabled external hard drives, flash memory sticks, keyboards and mice, and even CD/DVD drives, so if you were to get a device which lacked any of those parts built in you could get them as add-ons later.

[fides' Jack]

[quote name='Papist' timestamp='1342635866' post='2456795']
Get an iPad.
[/quote]

You missed the part where she said "a lot of typing". Using a touch-sensitive keyboard probably isn't the way to go at this point. You won't be able to type as fast - guaranteed.

Honestly, I prefer Toshiba laptops myself, but it sounds like you don't need anything more than a netbook. I wouldn't go with a desktop - in your situation you'll regret it later if you do.

Yes, I've used wireless mice, and they're made pretty good these days - very reliable - just may take a little getting used to.

I also prefer Intel chips (rather than AMD) - but I'm biased. I would take a basic I3 over a cheapo AMD any day.

[arfink]

I would take the AMD because you get far more power per dollar, though it is true they run hotter and consume more power.

I also like a desktop because of the added shielding one gets from cosmic rays causing CPU malfunctions, but that's just me being a silly geek again.