Should I buy my kids laptops? Or do you have another suggestion?

For Christmas we thought we'd get the boys their own laptops. Maybe halfway thinking too that it would ease the pain of finding out The Truth of where they come from.

They are 11½ and 13 this month. They aren't boisterous. Have a good track record for keeping their toys in tact. They use our desk top and laptop for surfing Bakugan and Lego sites. Aren't the least interested in FaceBook or Youtube. And they do use ours for homework. Regularly lately.

Is a computer a good way to go? I don't know anything about net books, Are they worth looking in to? I've priced the iPads. That ain't happening.

When we first got this grand idea, it was to get one for each...now I'm thinking get one to share if we get one a tall. Am I being pre-scrooge?

 

I'd pass on the netbook for homework. They may not be into Facebook or Youtube now but they will be. Just make sure you lock it down the best you can.

 

I bought ACER D250 Netbooks for girls two years ago. They have held up well and the kids love them. I somewhat agree with Cowboy though in that they aren't very powerful. They will run Word and Excel, but it takes a few seconds to load, but it works. They can do most everything they want to do.
The one negative I can think of is that they don't come with a CD/DVD Rom drive so I bought them each a USB drive to watch movies, etc.

 

DS12 has had one for a couple years and uses it for homework and Scouts as well as some gaming. I will check with DH on what it was, honestly, it's the nicest computer in our house.

I would also avoid the netbooks, my nieces have some and they are always having issues.

We got one heck of a deal on it at Office Depot, watch the ads, there should be some great deals out during the holidays.

 

I am doing laptops or netbooks this year too. My head hurts reading and pricing and figuring out what's the best one. They facebook, youTube, iTunes and homework. So it would just need to be basic. they have a great deal on a laptop at WalMartS on Black Friday for $249....but I am scared of that. So I am hoping to find a comparable deal on Cyber Monday.:mrgreen:

and just for the record, I know mine 'know the real deal' but we just don't talk about it. They know if they don't 'believe' they will come up empty handed. 8)

 

Ok. Thanks. No net books. DH can get a discount through work on Toshiba but a lot of people recommend the Acer. I'll do some pricing and review checking.

I'm doing this really not wanting to. I don't like the feeling of becoming so media oriented in my house. I let the cat out of the bag just the other day that they could connect the wii to the net because of wifi. Now they're all about the demo games they can download and connecting the DS to the wii. ... a drop in the bucket. They say we have 3 computers now....which I guess technically... ..ugh.

 

check out the laptop on the first page HP for $248 and on pg. 2 (click at the top for pages) a Compaq laptop for $198.


http://bfads.net/Ad/Walmart-2011

both excellent deals.

 

My 2p

Go ahead and get them laptops. However, because of their ages, make sure they understand that they can only use them where they have full view by you (or their Dad). In other words, not locked away in their bedrooms.

I'm a firm believer that kids should have their own computers as soon as they can accurately move a mouse. But I also know there are a lot of nefarious people out there, so kids need a guiding hand, and an eye over their shoulder. Make sure you know where they're going, who they're conversing with, and what information they are passing along.

 

I've owned 3 Toshiba laptops and all have performed well. If I were buying for my kids, it'd be about the cheapest thing out there Toshiba has.

 

i don't have a Toshiba but i do know when DS bought a new laptop last year that is what he went with saying it was the best and computers are his career so i do know when i am in the market again i will be looking at Toshiba.

 

Alienware is the best (ask him, I'm sure he'll agree), but they are also pretty pricey (which is why he went with Toshiba instead, I'll bet).

 

My laptop is a Toshiba, it's been pretty bullet proof. I think it is 4 or 5 years old and I am not the least bit kind to it and it's still going fine.

 

Words of advice: Make sure you go over the Rules of Handling a Laptop with them, maybe even make a printed version to tape to the front :lol:, you can even use some humor to help them remember the do's and don'ts as long as they know you're serious...I'm not talking about where they can use it and what they can look at, I'm talking about things like no eating or drinking over the keyboard, no laying it on the floor, no slamming the lid shut when mom or dad tells you to get off of it, no leaving it buried and running underneath piles of blankets or clothes...or wet towels, being gentle with cords/cables that are attached...those are the issues we have had with our kids. Recently, our oldest thought someone hacked an account for something because the password wouldn't work. Turns out, our teenager had eaten cookies over the keyboard and there was a crumb under the "R" key that was keeping it from working. Thankfully dh was able to take it apart to figure this out but still ended up having to buy a new keyboard for it.

 

I've had 3 Toshibas over the last 10+ years. My husband has had 2. They've been great. I'm not nearly as impressed though with Windows 7 :ack:

I'm not a computer guru but do know we had issues with our children's games running slow on laptops...not sure if that is the memory or RAM. We ended up switching them back to desk tops to have a better capacity for all the graphics, etc...

 

My 2 cents...

I have an Acer Aspire, and while it was priced right when I bought it, I'm not sure I'd buy another one as it has had a lot of stability issues. I use it for Office apps, web surfing, and online courses - I'm not into gaming or watching movies on it.

Dealnews.com is a good website to review - it checks around for prices for you.

This website might also help: http://www.pcworld.com/article/2110...ng_guide_shopping_for_the_right_notebook.html

Also, not sure if you're familiar with Clark Howard, but he advocates that buying an extended warranty is NEVER a good idea. Pay with a credit card and that will most likely extend the manufacturer's warranty. (clarkhoward.com)

I've noticed no one has mentioned a MAC - any thoughts there?

 

Do they still make those? :jester:

 

Solid Hardware and better operating system than Windows....... expensive though.

A HP for $198 is pretty good. Put linux on it and it should be solid.

 

Ok, now i am really confused on the Clark Howard thing, i thought he did not advocate credit cards at all

 

The Toshiba I had must have been one of those made the day before or after a holiday. Not inclined to try again.

 

For the most part there isn't any different between the inner components of a Mac vs. PC