Laptop recommendations?

RaniDart70 said
I go with HP or dell .....usually HP because a lot of their products are assembled in the USA

http://www.cnet.com/news/hp-to-apple-hey-we-already-make-pcs-in-the-u-s/

I like the flexibility of Dell because you can custom order whatever you want or don't want on your computer. When I order a new laptop I always make sure it has a web camera delete. and I get rid of a lot items that will slow it down that I don't use anyways. I always option out the smaller harddrive and use an external for storage. Keeping a hard drive simple and empty really keeps it fast. Small hard drive and max amount of RAM that can be ordered. Last time I even went cd rom delete. I used to spend 6-700 on computers and they lasted a long time but now I think simple is the way to go.

I have to agree with this.
Been getting some pretty nice Win7 HP 17" widescreen from Sams Club for right at $450 out the door (with manufacturers warantee, as well as extended if wanted)
Walmart online has a wide variety also, and the Acer and Emachine laptops are pretty decent machines for a few hundred.
It's getting where computers are being used and built as throw aways, so why spend a bunch of money on one.
Get a decent amount of RAM (8-12 gig) and an external drive to keep your stuff on, and always have two copies on separate storage devices. (Laptop and external, or external and USB thumb drives.)

And a program called Classic Shell works well for making Win8 a lot more friendly, so the touch screen part isn't a big deal.
After this they look and work like Win7. (menu's and all)