A great, affordable upgrade
Written: Sep 19 '00 (Updated Sep 21 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: well designed, had built-in disk-drive, powerful
Cons: sensitive touchpad, software problems
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| igor_iii's Full Review: Compaq Presario 1270 (104722-003) PC Notebook |
I have owned several computers in the past, and even though I used them primarily for word processing, I was truly beginning to need to upgrade to something with some more power than my old 75 MHz desktop and 25 MHz laptop, so I finally broke down about a year ago and went "toy" shopping.
I had plenty of space for a new desktop, and could have gotten a great one (which I have since done), but decided to go the portable route, and have yet to regret it.
I found a Compaq Presario 1270 with 350 MHz K6-2 processor, 32 MB of RAM, a 4.3 GB hard drive, a 24X CD drive, 56K modem, 12.1" TFT screen and Windows 98 for under a grand, so I bought it. It wasn't brand new, but had only been used for a few months, and was still under warranty, so it was close enough. And the money I saved more than made up for any loss of "new computer smell".
As anyone remotely familiar with computers knows, this was a MAJOR
change in speed over my other computers. So, while I always want the biggest and the best, I was not disappointed with the performance at all. Well, maybe just a little, but you'll have to read the Cons for that.
But first, the Pros: The keyboard is well laid-out, including the internet keys and touchpad (which I highly recommend over a trackball or eraser-head!). The screen is large, clear and easy to see -- even from an angle. Compaq customer support was a lot better than I expected them to be (see if I ever buy a Packard Bell again!), and have never kept me waiting on hold for more than 15 minutes. As for the rest of the toys, the CD-ROM is nice and fast, but I'd rather have had a CD-RW (which I've since bought), and the modem is as good as any 56K I've tried. The hard drive had plenty of room for all of the programs I've since stuck on it,
and still has room to grow.
While it seems to be a standard feature of newer laptops, I was thoroughly impressed with the secondary hard drive that stores the operating programs. This leaves a lot more hard drive space to play with than me and other older computer users are used to.
Another feature that I love is the built-in disk drive. So many of the new super-slim laptops take it out, making you carry around a cumbersome external unit just to save an extra 1/2 pound.
Now for the Cons: Occasionally, the keyboard will seem to bog down, and not let me type my regular 60+ words per minute. Whether this is a keyboard problem, or a problem with the pressure sensor for the touchpad (which can be activated when you rest your wrists on the wrist pad), I have yet to figure out, but it's a fairly rare occurrence, and goes away quickly.
I would of course liked more memory to have come with it, but it's got enough to run into very few out of memory problems, and it'll be quite easy to upgrade when I eventually get around to it, so that's not a real problem either.
I did, however, have some problems with the software when I first got it. A lot of the drivers and smaller files were missing. I know that this was pre-owned (via lease), but someone at Compaq should have gave it a better checking-out before sending it out for re-sale.
I also find the speakers to be a bit tinny in sound quality, but it's hard to expect surround-sound quality from built-in speakers that are this small. Another thing I'd have appreciated was having the power transformer built into the laptop rather than be external (just so there'd be less to carry around), but I'm just nit-picking.
Overall, I've found it to be a very reliable laptop computer that has provided me with the easy ability to write, surf the internet or play video games where ever I've wanted to.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
igor_iii
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Member: Robert Polk III
Location: Rapid City, South Dakota
Reviews written: 11
Trusted by: 1 member
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