HP computers now banned from our household

Even though this is our home, it feels more like a small office. Amoungst our family of five, we have nine computers -- 11, when you include computer-like smartphone devices.

To make it easier for me, I standardize on hardware, because I am the IT guy. That way, there are fewer device drivers and user interfaces to work with. For example, all keyboards and mice are from Logitech, all printers and nearly all computers from HP.

But as of last week, HP is off the approved list for household computer acquistions. That's because I've finally clued in that they have approximate lifetimes of 18 months. And then they go boom.

The final two straws were (a) my son's less-than-a-year-old HP notebook computer's LCD screen gone blank; and (b) my daughter-in-Europe's HP notebook's screen flickering. My son now attaches his notebook to his 40" TV ("I use it has a media center," he reports); my daughter reports her's is OK for now.

Last summer, I had already switched to an Acer desktop after my two-year-old HP desktop gave up the ghost. I got the Acer, because it was cheaper, better spec'ed, and better looking than equivalent HPs. My faith in HP's quality first broke with the tx1000-scandal, their line of convertable notebooks whose Nvidia chips overheat the motherboard. After several years of dithering, HP and Nvidia have so far accepted blame only for a small segment of tx1000s; my specific model so far is excluded.

From now on, I think we'll go with Asian brands. My netbook from LG is now two years old, and continues to perform as a dual-boot Linux Mint and Windows XP computer. My primary computer these days is Samsung's Galaxy S Vibrant running Android. One of the local independent computer shops says he only sells mid- to high-end ASUS notebooks, which come with two-year warranties.

Update

I should make clear that it is not just 3 or 4 HP computers that have broken down. Since 2004, when our first child got his own computer (an HP  notebook for college), I had to replace six more HPs after they wore out. This is why it's time for a change.

Comments

[Alex]

All consumer notebooks are like this nowadays. Competition is fearsome and manufacturers try to slash costs everywhere. One more thing two year old LG and LG of 2010 might be totally different is quality, so be careful. If you need quality you probably should buy business grade notebooks like Thinkpad or HP's Powerbook Series. Also s 3 year warranty is recommended :)

[Dave Ault]

I think Alex has a good point. Looking at Dell for instance in the small business section the "commercial" grade pcs come with a 3 year NBD warranty. I have had problems with their homeowner lines but the business workstations, desktops and laptops have been very good. I am typing this to you on a 3.5 year old M90 that I would love to have an excuse to replace because I have new CPU envy but really can't justify doing so because it still does what it was bought for just fine on this years software. I think Dell and others put more care into quality and warranties for businesses than they do for homeowners and would not buy any other way.

[Tony]

Another vote for business laptops. Their quality really is better. It's always worthwhile to checkout the company outlet stores such as Dell and Lenovo (although some, such as Apple and HP, don't give you much of a discount).

I've been very happy with our two Thinkpads.

[DF]

If Ralph's new criteria for laptops is build quality (rather than widgets or bargain-basement prices) then, obviously, a MacBook Pro (though I'd love to try a ThinkPad for comparison).

[Tony]

I haven't used a MBP (other than playing at the store); Apple build quality does seem high, but IMHO, their keyboards suck (especially the MBA).

The Thinkpads aren't as stylish, but build quality is top notch, and the keyboards are the best laptop keyboards I've used (better than most desktop keyboards). And Lenovo's outlet offers much better deals than Apple does on refurbs.

[Gerry]

I too prefer to purchase commercial-grade PC's for home use. They are only slightly more expensive, and last tremendously longer, and have better documentation. But there is another big advantage: No crapware. On consumer PC's, I commonly spend an extra 3-6 hours to remove demo/trial software and "vendor utilities" before I can attempt to configure to my liking.

[Jeff K]

I second the comment from Dave Ault about Business grade lines from Dell. My M65 is still going strong, and I'm still running pro/E on it. I did upgrade to windows 7 (Which was a good thing). We have several of the M series laptops (about 6) in my small business and they all perform well, and when we needed to replace the keyboard last year on my M65 (I tend to really hammer the keys...), Dell was really fast to fix. The Dell desktops (about 10) have all been really good too, only one hard drive went bad prematurely, replaced in about 24 hrs. (BTW our office is in Shenzhen, so Dell service is good even here. Also, we have three Dell servers running flawlessly as well.

Hopefully my praise here will incur the wrath of computer gremlins to spite me!

Jeff

[Don]

As an former employee of HP/Compaq/Digital via mergers, I might be able to offer a bit better insight since I was a Corp.Business PC rep for the company in all three entities. The business class of notebook is built to be more consistent in the build since companies need to be able to load their corporate software image over a long time without changes. Consumer laptops are built with the lowest possible selling price as the most important factor 1st, 2nd and 3rd. So the motherboard and components can change very often given the market pricing of same. Business class means more stable components so less problems. I feel HP has as good or better quality than others, but you can't pay for a Chevy Aveo and expect a Cadillac STS performance. Larger players like HP/Dell have different lines for different needs. You get what you pay for with the business class even if they aren't as pretty.

[Ashton]

you can now ban it forever as you may already know that HP is spinning their pc division.