What kind of laptop should I buy? - 1

I'm a junior high school student whose laptop since 6th grade just broke down. I have never owned another laptop and neither has anyone in my household, so I know nothing about them. I need something thats not too bulky but will last me through college.

What I'm looking for is a laptop that has/is:

-A LOT of storage for pictures
-Good with downloading things from the internet like games/documents/photos
-Runs aforementioned games really well (I use Steam a lot for my games and other times I don't, I want something that won't lag)
-Great with loading and running youtube videos or extraneous links to videos like for movies or tv shows and stuff
-Can run Mozilla AND Chrome
-Can easily run two programs at once but above all SKYPE. I live on Skype I need a laptop that won't give me problems so therefore has a decent camera and a GOOD built-in mic.
-If at all possible I'd like a CD drive but USB plugs are a must
-DOES NOT HAVE WINDOWS 8
-Is not a Toshiba or Lenovo
-Preferably under $400 please? My budget is around $450 and I have a little extra if I need to but I'd really like to spend as little as possible.

It's really specific I know I'm sorry if this is nearly impossible to find but any credible or valid answers would help in my search, thank you so much!

Guest

You are going to have trouble with the Windows 8 restriction.
It's basically the same as windows 7, and you can make it do exactly the same thing. You could always do a dual boot with windows 7.
If you want something inexpensive but good, Asus is good.
http://www.bestbuy.com/...id=7288011
DVDrw and has HDMI connection for attaching to high definition television. You could afford it and a retail copy of windows 7. If you need to know where or how, email me, or ask and someone can walk you through it. I do that with all my laptops, just to get rid of all the branded trash. Toshiba laptops aren't bad, once a clean retail operating system is installed.

There are lot's of good used Dells available.
Or go to ebay and check what's available there.
http://www.ebay.com/...nal-laptop

Tiger

Sorry but for all that you are going to look at a price rang around 600+ considering you don't windows 8. I can't give any leads other than the obvious. Goodluck with your search. If you find what you are looking for for that price, update us.

Edward Ponce

Most laptops can do most of the things you require, however, game performance is going to be your most difficult requirement to meet, particularly in your budget.

Go to Newegg and get to their laptops page and go down the left column, choosing your requirements to filter things out, such as Windows 7, size of hard drive, etc.

Windows laptop mfg ratings:
Lenovo is the number one, followed by Asus, HP, Dell, and Samsung.
At the bottom of the pile are, from the bottom up, Sony, Acer/Gateway, and Toshiba.

Purchasing a laptop is a highly personal decision. You need to decide what type of keyboard you want: do you want a full sized keyboard or are you okay with something smaller? Do you like or despise the chicklet keyboards like apple uses? Do you want a backlit keyboard? Do you want a numeric keypad? Do you want a touchpad and/or point stick? Do you want 2 mouse buttons or 3? Do you want them above or below the touchpad? How large a screen: 13"? 14"? 15.6"? 17"? If you are highly mobile, then smaller is lighter. If you don't move around much then bigger means heavier but a much more visible screen. These are all things to ponder which have a significant impact on how happy you are with your laptop experience.

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