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Need help from Gurus.

Please guide if the following is the right buy. Need a laptop urgently.

https://www.amazon.in/AGB-ZQ-2501-Ge...=i7+laptop+agb

Or any other as you might suggest.

I have only one suggestion on your choice:

• Go for 8th gen Intel processor. (never heard of AGB, but this one has a 7th gen i7)

I can't comment on any other aspect, may be others will chime in.

Couple of months back, I got the Dell 5370 from Reliance Digital for 58,500 Rs. It's i5 with 8GB (with a spare slot to upgrade to 16GB if needed). It also comes 256GB SSD. It's blazing fast. I also got the extended warranty from Dell directly for 4000 Rs odd.

Guys,

Just wanted to drop a note here. I really don't know if Dell's quality is the same as it was earlier.

1. My 6-month old laptop has already had its motherboard replaced. Was getting BSODs (imagine that in the middle of an official review) and after some diagnosis, the culprit was found to be the motherboard. In comparison, my year 2013 Latitude had like zero issues and is still running flawlessly.

2. Rehaan also bought a high-end XPS which had a display problem within the first month or two, leading to a full laptop replacement.

This is after spending well over 6 figures on each laptop :Frustrati.

Dell of 2015 and beyond isn't the same what it used to be earlier. Both product and service wise. Period.

What I am more concerned about, is your motherboard. Industry norm is to supply factory refurbished spares wherever possible which I am not too fond of for obvious reasons. For commonly used items like Hard discs, motherboards etc, its mostly refurbished. Not blaming Dell here, it's a norm for all OEMs. And refurbished items aren't the same quality wise as a fresh new piece.

Also check your serial number/product number using identification tools on Dell's webpage. We once had a bad experience with our 2012 Inspiron. The mobo conked off, was replaced, but after that the system never recognised itself. For any claim, it was a long and tiring experience to mail them invoice and other details. I was later told that this could have been avoided by properly registering the motherboard which the service guys skipped. Think of it as an ECM replacement for a car, without properly configuring it. lol:

Regards,
Shashi

PS: Glad to know that Rehaan got a new replacement.

Not only the quality of Dell’s laptops have dropped but the service support too has become horrible.

Most of my classmates that are using dell laptops are facing issues both small and big.
Laptop hinge breaking loose, ram slot not malfunctioning, hard drive issues and display issues (xps again)

Being IB diploma students, not having our laptops in working condition with us means piling up work which we anyway don’t get the time to do. Due to this many of them have bought a MacBook as they get a bad taste of Windows and want something reliable.

Dell service centre’s do not help out much with them charging obscene prices for substandard work due to which the laptop has to be resent. This becomes a major issue since our school is in Lonavla and we cannot go home every weekend.

Personally I’ve always used Lenovo laptops and have never had a bad experience with them. My dad is still using his 10 year old Lenovo laptop and claims its working relatively smoothly for his work. This is the reason the 20 odd computers and laptops in our office are Lenovo’s.

Disheartening to hear that. They used to be rather nice. Had high regards for the lenovo thinkpad, but then the Chinese bought it and I didn't follow lenovo since that!

Have 3-latitude laptops at home. One of them has hinges broken recently (dropped on wooden floor two times!). This is about 10-yrs old and still running fine - even after the drop! Had earlier replaced windows OS with Kali Linux.

The 2nd latitude has been heating up more than usual lately. Will need to open it up and given it a thorough clean - next long weekend. This is about 7-yr old. Dual booted Win and Ubuntu.

The newest 3rd latitude is a dirt magnet. Have to give to a good wiping every few days. Haven't changed anything on it yet. OS is still the same. But the battery in this has died and needs replacement. It's not interchangeable with any of the above two.

Luckily haven't had a need to use the Dell service yet.

I have intentionally kept away from their inspiron and xps models since I tend to retain my laptops longer and these other models didn't appear like they were meant for such (based on my digging around).

XPS line always have had issues and among the least reliable models in Dell. I had a 2008 Inspiron which worked well for 7 years with just one battery replacement. With that good will, I bought a low end Inspiron and it's giving problems in just 3 years.

Planning to sell it in some online shops and buy a Mac Air instead.

The reputation of Dell was on prompt service. They were never known for high quality. Of late I but the cheapest there is. Just make sure it is a SS disk. Now even that may be doubtful I saw a 2TB USB 3.0 unit going for under 10,000. Only think the 'Pen' drive is far bigger than what we are used to.I must say I am tempted. Only my lappy is still not USB 3.0.

Of late I have used Lenova Yoga as a second machine. My main unit is now (for almost two years) a Mac with SS-Drive. I still use the Win unit for running Tally, and for various official things like applications etc. I have found a 7.0 processor almost a waste. This is my second or third Lenovo.

Just to add a pointer here, almost all Macs run Windows nicely with the bootcamp assistant. For all those die-hard Windows fans (or those with only Windows-specific softwares) you can buy a Mac and run Windows easily.

I have a 100gb partition on my MacBook Pro with Windows for emergency use of the Win 10 or some trial and error (eg OS specific bugs, etc.). I admit that's its used very infrequently, but whenever I use it, got the same (or better) experience of the Windows OS here.

@blackwasp; I hear that MacOS is going pucca 32-bit. So a lot of our old software (ported fr0m 16-bit Win) becomes obsolete. So the need for bootcomp will increase. Any links for guidance.

I assume you mean MacOS is going pure 64 bit.

I have Dell Inspiron 5370 which bought 3 months back. I am satisfied with it in every way except for the Qualcomm Wifi Adaptor in the laptop - with my previous laptop, I could reach the Wifi Router in the other room with no problems. But the Qualcomm adaptor isn't that good - it still connects but drops every now & then from the other room.

Is there anything I can do about this?

I was facing a similar issue on my Inspiron 5537, after a lot of tinkering I finally changed the WiFi card on my laptop.
The upgrade did solve the issue and I also got Dual Band functionality. :D
There a lot of options available on AliExpress just check the hardware details on your current card and go for an upgrade. You may need to remove the keyboard to install the card.


Dual Band Wireless Wifi Card For Intel AC7260 7260HMW ac Mini PCI-E 2.4G/5Ghz Wlan Bluetooth 4.0 Wifi Card 802.11 ac/a/b/g/n
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/bpqSeW1K

I used this one.

The laptop is under warranty - I don't want to open and tinker with it. Plus your link is broken.

You can buy and install an inexpensive Wifi Repeater/Range Extender so that you can connect from rooms that are far away from your router.