Advice needed: TV, laptop, phone

I am soliciting technology recommendations and advice

Computing I will be retiring my desktop PC (ancient: Windows 7) soon, and have already retired my laptop some time ago. I do mathematical modeling (but runs > 1 hour are rare) and occasionally do gaming on my PC.

Is there any reason in 2019 to prefer a desktop/tower to a laptop?

Are so-called gaming computers principally distinguished by high-end graphics packages? Is speed a non-issue now?

What laptop brands do you recommend? Any features that you recommend?

TV I have an ancient 720p 55" TV. I just spent an hour looking at 4K and 8K televisions but I can't figure out what content I could watch on them. I don't currently do gaming on PS4s or other gaming systems.

Is there any justification for getting 2K, 4K or 8K TVs? Is there anything to watch?

I have heard of some lines of TVs having image burn-in problems, such as OLEDs. Anybody have any experience with this? Any other issues?

Mobile phone I have an ancient I-phone.

What phone do you use? What would you personally recommend? Why?

Can you recommend an internet site with sincere reviews of technology, i.e., no 'sponsored' reviews?

CNET is the site I use to check tech reviews.

Just a walk through WalMart and you can find ideas on 4K TV's for a low price before tariffs affect them substantially. I bought a couple Vizios 3 years ago for someone else, the last ones that had push button remotes. The last TV I bought for myself for $700 ten years ago is desperately in need of replacement, but I don't have room for a 70" TV for $700 now. Probably have to get the same 43" size I've got now for $298. If you live in an area with over the air TV stations, they may be switching to 4K next year, so new TV's will need 4K tuners for them (may be sold separately). Cable companies could start switching around for 4K, but they're way too resistant. People get their 4K Roku for content nowadays.

Just looking at https://www.pcmag.com/roundup/355217/the-best-graphics-cards and 1440p monitors and cards seems to be where the gamers are this year.

A desktop computer can sometimes be upgraded after 5 years; a laptop, not so much unless you hit the right model. You'd buy more RAM, bigger hard drives, a new video card, and new USB interfaces among other things during an upgrade. I upgraded a 10 year old desktop last year, but it's still too damn slow and unresponsive with Windows 10 a year in. Best Buy told me they don't want anything to do with computers older than 3 years old. Windows 10 upgrade/updates have wiped my computers several times now so I suggest getting Acronis and backing stuff up. There's a new Windows 10 upgrade coming very shortly.

PS5 comes out a year from now, so I'll skip the PS4 craze and keep using my PS3 to play Blu-rays from Redbox. The local video rental stores are gone. Video games are going to be download only, and GameStop is hurtling towards going out of business. 4K video games are going to hurt people battling an ISP download cap of say 1 TB per month. Each game download is over 100 GB. So maybe shop at Amazon for games or is that download only too?

I prefer Dell and HP computers, but my knowledge of new computers is out of date. If I could find a model like what I have 7 years on, what's the chance of that? Other models that are more expensive can be used for editing 4K video from iPhones. So the iPhone 11 just came out. What price do you want? Is price an object? The iPhone 5 needs an update today or it won't connect to the internet anymore.

I don't know anything about computers or TVs.

I like Blu phones. They are pretty cheap they come unlocked and they have good cameras.

Quote: ChumpChange

I prefer Dell and HP computers, but my knowledge of new computers is out of date.

I maintained / supported laptops and desktops at work. High end Dell laptops had a habit of having major defects in their first couple of years. Dead pixels, dead motherboards, defective keys and mouse pads etc. Literally 50% of the high end Dells needed major hardware repairs or were scrapped within 3 years.
High end and mid range HP's were far, far more reliable and were worthy of upgrades to keep them in service for many years.

The Dells did boast better specs though.

Dell towers were workhorses and much more reliable that HP towers.

Don't get me started on Apple devices $:o)

Computer
Get a Lenovo laptop. Specifically I would recommend anything from the T400 series. We buy literally thousands of these at my work and the very rarely break, and routinely last 7-10 years. Even the ones that are heavily traveled to construction sites don’t have issues.

Get 16GB memory and an SSD and you will not need another PC for many years.

You can also get a docking station from Lenovo for it, which turns it into a desktop. You get the best of both words.

TV
Go to https://www.rtings.com/ and pick whatever they say is the best for your needs and price range. They are fantastic objective testers/reviewers.

TCL is a great budget brand

Phone
I probably prefer android but I have an iPhone for several reason.

I think they are mostly equal at this point. You’ll be happy with either.

Quote: gamerfreak

Computer

Get 16GB memory and an SSD and you will not need another PC for many years.

Gamefreak is right, do not get a computer with a mechanical hard drive. Definitely get a SSD drive as it is much faster and only costs a little bit more.

I guess you should figured out your price range and go from there.

I don't really like desktop computers since I want to be able to travel with my computer and take it to different rooms or outside on the patio.

I have always liked HP Laptops, unfortunately, I had two go out recently, one a few months back and another one yesterday. I'm sure both can be fixed but who knows. I wanted this but I wanted a 17 inch screen. Also with tax and a good protection plan it would be over 3k. Had it been a 17" screen, I would have bought and felt very guilty about buying something that frivolous since I'm not a gamer and I don't use any power hungry programs.

I prefer not to get Dell's, but I don't really have an issues with Dell. Since they seem to be the only company offering a 17" 2 in 1 laptop and 10th gen, I was convince to go with this I just bought today(it's still in the box).

New Inspiron 17 7000 2-in-1 Laptop

10th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-10510U Processor (8MB Cache, up to 4.9 GHz)

Windows 10 Home 64bit English

NVIDIA® GeForce® MX250 with 2GB GDDR5 graphics memory

16GB 2x8GB DDR4 2666MHz

Intel Optane Memory H10 32GB with 512GB Solid State Storage
$1,199.99. with tax and a 3 year accidental replacement plan it was close to $1700.

Sounds like a good machine to play at the online ph casino

Quote: GWAE

Sounds like a good machine to play at the online ph casino

Almost certain they don't allow american citizens, unless you know something I don't.

Shopping for a new LT now. Going to go with a Lenovo. Thanks freak.

It is a little confusing, as many times the more expensive ones seem to have worse specs to my limited understanding. Even with the same manufacturer, 2 laptops will look the same. One has a 500gig hard drive, the other has 250 and costs more.

I also got a phone recently and it occured to me: I literally don't know why people pay $1000 or more for phones.

TVs: I think it's silly, yet I get that some models have superior pictures, are larger, have some sort of gadgets I don't understand where they can link to your smart fridge and shower or whatever.

Computers: You need fancy computers to fritter away your life playing children's games, or to do things like make movies.

Phones: I have no idea. My $250 phone takes photos that are almost too detailed. Every app works fine. Texts and calls. Decent sized screen. Can watch video. What else would you use a phone for?

Doesn't even make much sense as a status symbol. You can't really tell what type of phone another person has beyond the basics.

Quote: Rigondeaux

Shopping for a new LT now. Going to go with a Lenovo. Thanks freak.

It is a little confusing, as many times the more expensive ones seem to have worse specs to my limited understanding. Even with the same manufacturer, 2 laptops will look the same. One has a 500gig hard drive, the other has 250 and costs more.

I also got a phone recently and it occured to me: I literally don't know why people pay $1000 or more for phones.

TVs: I think it's silly, yet I get that some models have superior pictures, are larger, have some sort of gadgets I don't understand where they can link to your smart fridge and shower or whatever.

Computers: You need fancy computers to fritter away your life playing children's games, or to do things like make movies.

Phones: I have no idea. My $250 phone takes photos that are almost too detailed. Every app works fine. Texts and calls. Decent sized screen. Can watch video. What else would you use a phone for?

Doesn't even make much sense as a status symbol. You can't really tell what type of phone another person has beyond the basics.

The 500GB HDD will be mechanical spinning media.
The more expensive 250GB device will be an SSD.

Quote: gordonm888

I am soliciting technology recommendations and advice

Computing I will be retiring my desktop PC (ancient: Windows 7) soon, and have already retired my laptop some time ago. I do mathematical modeling (but runs > 1 hour are rare) and occasionally do gaming on my PC.

Is there any reason in 2019 to prefer a desktop/tower to a laptop?

Are so-called gaming computers principally distinguished by high-end graphics packages? Is speed a non-issue now?

What laptop brands do you recommend? Any features that you recommend?

If you just have one computer, make it a laptop. It's nice to have a desktop for home working, but again, if you just have one, a laptop is more than enough. You can hook it up to a monitor or your TV at home if you want a larger display. (Get an HDMI cable). (Get a wireless mouse, too).

Brands:
-ASUS is incredibly good build quality. Longest-lived laptop I've had. Only had to replace the battery once.
-Lenovo is also good, but they have SOO many models it's hard to find consistency. Any ThinkPad is unimpeachable. Yoga is great. Their cheaper stuff is hit-or-miss. If you're spending $600+ they are great.
-Acer has really upped their game recently. The Acer Aspire is a TERRIFIC bargain laptop ($300s).
-The new Microsoft Surface is laptop is very good, but it's $1,000+. The Surface Pro 2-in-1's are fantastic as well.
-I don't recommend Dell or HP.

Features: Intel or AMD processor is fine. If Intel, i3/i5/i7 is what you want. AMD I think Ryzen is their best. Don't get Intel Celeron or AMD A6 or A9. Don't skimp on the chip. 8GB of RAM at least. 1080p display or higher is best. I don't worry about gaming specs since I don't game. So I don't know about graphic cards and such.

Quote:

TV I have an ancient 720p 55" TV. I just spent an hour looking at 4K and 8K televisions but I can't figure out what content I could watch on them. I don't currently do gaming on PS4s or other gaming systems.

Is there any justification for getting 2K, 4K or 8K TVs? Is there anything to watch?

I have heard of some lines of TVs having image burn-in problems, such as OLEDs. Anybody have any experience with this? Any other issues?

4K yes, there is *some justification*. 8K is not there yet and not even close. I would just go with a standard 55"+ 4K TV from Samsung or LG. I can't speak to OLED. The prices have gotten incredibly low on some of these displays -- wait until black Friday. I don't see any reason you'd have to spend more than $300-$500 (or less!). Get a soundbar too.
Don't buy anything other than LG or Samsung. I can't emphasize that enough. LG. Samsung. LG. Samsung.

Quote:

Mobile phone I have an ancient I-phone.

What phone do you use? What would you personally recommend? Why?

Can you recommend an internet site with sincere reviews of technology, i.e., no 'sponsored' reviews?

Which model iPhone do you have? I prefer iPhones. I know in my heart and mind that Android makes a better and cheaper device. But I like the iPhone and I started with that. And honestly, if you buy on the secondary market, the price difference isn't that much. I would be a pretty easy "switchee," but am captive to Apple now by inertia only.

Minimum level of iPhone to run basic App Store apps is 6s. I think that's a fine device (it's what I have), but it will be obsolete fairly soon. Regular 7's, 8's and even X's are getting cheaper on the secondary market. Get the Plus size if you like the big screen (I personally don't). The 6s can be had for absolute bargain basement prices now with some searching (Like $100-$125). Incredible deal for a fairly impressive computing power. Not sure of the prices on higher models, but regardless you're not going to be breaking the bank.

Super-good new Android phones can be had for $300-$500. Google Pixel makes great phones. Again, can't really speak to them further.

After unboxing and setting up my 17" 2 in 1 laptop I've come to realize it's way too heavy and awkward to ever use as a tablet.* sigh, think I basically just paid an extra $700 for something I'll probably rarely ever use in the way it was designed.
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teddys,

I can't think of a good reason for the average person to have a desktop when you can easily hook up your laptop to a monitor or television.

Here in Las Vegas there seems to be quite a few Goodwill stores, I would estimate about 10. They are always stocked with monitors that go between 10 and 20 bucks. I picked up a Samsung 27" SyncMaster for $19.99. It actually has an interesting feature I only realized by accident. If you simply wave your hand over the bottom right corner it'll turn off and on. I don't even think it has an on-and-off button.

I found a small black lazy Susan for a couple bucks while I was there. I set the monitor up on the Lazy Susan I can now easily turn the monitor and see from anywhere in the room("hey honey, look at this, I found PokerGrinders new workout video" *quickly swivels monitor around in her Direction.) and easily I can get the perfect angle no matter where I'm at. It almost seems like the Lazy Susan was made just for this monitor as far as style shape, color and Design.

I just realized I spend way too much time on the f****** computers and smartphones.