How to Pick the Best Laptop Brand

So you’ve decided to buy a new computer – a notebook. Just which brand is the best laptop brand? There are several different companies competing in the notebook computer market today, and it’s hard to say which is best.

Laptops come with their own host of issues and problems – it’s hard to repair and laptop, and sometimes repairs can’t be made in town. It’s good to choose a laptop company with a solid reputation of good customer support (and local support is also nice). Weigh customer support in with your final options.

Here’s an overview of major players in the notebook market – all of which vie to be the best laptop brand:

Gateway / Acer: These two companies have merged together, so your hardware and software combinations are going to be very similar. Both offer notebooks across the line from basic budget to more advanced media centers.

One nice feature about looking at a Gateway or Acer is that you’re going to have lots of options for a full sized keyboard. This is a little harder to find on a laptop, and can be very useful, especially if you’ll be using spreadsheet applications.

Gateway offers decent support on their products, with good turn-around and user documentation. In general, you talk with native English representatives.

Dell: Dell has made a name for itself in a big way through effective (and sometimes annoying) marketing. Dell laptops are made to be portable and they tend to be very solid for business use and for basic home computing. The Latitude line offers one of the slimmest of all laptops. Dell also owns the Alienware brand and manufactures gaming notebooks under that label.

Dell has good customer support for their products – you get help when you need it. If you’ve paid for the highest level of service you’ll get an on-site technician for parts and repairs needed to your computer. With laptops, it’s often worth the hassle.

Asus: Asus is has risen quickly in the ranks of best laptop brand choices. Their notebooks often feature full keyboards and have a sleek, pleasing design. Asus offers some of the most powerful gaming notebooks on the market, with superior graphics cards loaded with 1GB GDDR3 VRAM. Little extras like illuminated keyboard chicklets make Asus the best laptop brand for gaming. Business and regular home use notebooks are also given high ratings for user satisfaction.

Asus customer service is also excellent and gets high ratings from consumers. Their service is based in the United States. Though you do need send your unit for repair, it’s prompt repair with a quick turnaround.

Hewlett-Packard: HP has been a player in the industry for a long time. They build good notebooks for home use that run games respectably well. However, HP notebooks tend to run hot, which may be an issue for you. HP prices are excellent – some of the best in the industry.

HP customer support is effective but at times frustrating. Their call center is staffed by support staff with heavy accents, making it hard to understand at times. The online, live chat support tends to be better.

Sony, Lenova, and Apple are other companies offering notebooks. Each of these brands has benefits and features hard to get with the other brands (Apple offering the only Macbook option, and Sony offering high-end choices). It’s worth considering each brand, and each companies customer support, as you weigh in your choices.