# Laptop for a Stage Manager: Recommendations?



## lgarrett (Jan 1, 2012)

Wall of Text:

Hi, I am currently a stage manager, about to graduate college with my BFA in Theatre Design and Technology. I have used many "gadgets" as a stage manager with great success in the past, and most if not all have helped in completing the job of stage manager. Now I am in need of a new laptop that will satisfy the demands of a stage manager in the professional world. (I have a desktop so this would primarily be a work computer). I figure I need something light enough to easily carry around or even pass to actors as needed depending on what comes up in the rehearsal process, as well as having decent speakers if some kind of sound or music effect is needed in the rehearsal process. (Or I was wondering if it was simply a better idea to get external speakers). And of course long battery life would be nice for those 10 out of 12's. My budget is no more that $1,500 preferable $1,200 or below. Hopefully I can still take advantage of my student discount with 1 semester left. Durability Is Key. Any help or ideas would be great.

I will update original post with new ideas.

P.S.
I would also like to be able to easily present portfolio presentations for job interviews.

Ideas:

Lenovo Thinkpad (Been used by the business world forever)
Laptop PCs | ThinkPad Professional-Grade Computers | Learn | Lenovo | (US)

Sony Viao: (Heard good things like the idea of a bluray player)
Sony VAIO Laptops Desktops Computers PCs | Sony Store USA

Does anyone know if it's a better idea to buy from the company making the laptop or a retailer like NewEgg? Thank you for your time.


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## Footer (Jan 1, 2012)

There are two strategies here. First, how long do you want to keep the hardware around? My personal strategy is I would rather spend less money and replace more often then spend a lot of money and replace less often. Laptops have become such a commodity product that hardware specs are pretty much meaningless. For what you are going to be doing nearly every laptop on the market will cover your needs. Therefore, I would pick a product based on durability and battery life. 

Thinkpads are great. With sony unfortunately you are really just paying for the name. 

Personally, I buy whatever dell has on sale for 500 bucks from the dell outlet. Lenovo also has an outlet that has some killer deals. I would not spend more then about 750 bucks for a laptop these days. You also might want to take a look at the "ultra-book" computers.


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## Les (Jan 1, 2012)

I agree with Footer on the idea of spending less and planning to replace every few years. Especially in an environment where it is more prone to damage or theft. I'd personally love to have a MacBook, but I don't want to cry if I break my laptop - I'd rather just spend $600 and move on with life.

I have a Sony Vaio (PCG-71912L) that I bought at Walmart for $600 in a pinch [don't judge me  ]. I needed one super quick as my old one had died, and honestly the offerings weren't much better elsewhere (Best Buy, etc). I've had it for 9 months to a year and I haven't had any issues. It feels sturdy for a sub-$1,000 computer, and the software is stable. I'd buy it again if I had it to do over. 

That said, I've also heard that Toshiba makes a good laptop. I had a Gateway once and I'm not sure if I'd buy one again. It was decent for a while, but one of the screen's hinges broke for no apparent reason and soon after the whole thing pretty much fell apart (casing screws came out and all that stuff). I've had mixed experiences with Dell. I had a netbook that developed a bad connection where the screen had to be opened to a certain point or it would flicker out. As time went on, that "sweet spot" because more and more narrow. Then again, I've seen some Dell dinosaurs still up and running. I think that with just about anything, the love it and hate it camp is going to be about the same size for any brand or price range. The main thing is to try not to look at it as an investment, but rather a business expense.


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## lgarrett (Jan 1, 2012)

Footer said:


> There are two strategies here. First, how long do you want to keep the hardware around? My personal strategy is I would rather spend less money and replace more often then spend a lot of money and replace less often. Laptops have become such a commodity product that hardware specs are pretty much meaningless. For what you are going to be doing nearly every laptop on the market will cover your needs. Therefore, I would pick a product based on durability and battery life.
> 
> Thinkpads are great. With sony unfortunately you are really just paying for the name.
> 
> Personally, I buy whatever dell has on sale for 500 bucks from the dell outlet. Lenovo also has an outlet that has some killer deals. I would not spend more then about 750 bucks for a laptop these days. You also might want to take a look at the "ultra-book" computers.



That is a really good point, and I like the advice of the outlet that you were talking about. I will be sure to take a look. Thanks for the advice.

Anyone have any external speakers they particularly like?


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## shiben (Jan 1, 2012)

lgarrett said:


> That is a really good point, and I like the advice of the outlet that you were talking about. I will be sure to take a look. Thanks for the advice.
> 
> Anyone have any external speakers they particularly like?


 
I liked the studio monitors bought surplus from the China Olympics at one of my old jobs, but for home I keep the Logitech Z4s around. Decent sound quality, plenty loud, and I got mine used for under 100 bucks. However, I would see about possibly one or two piece systems for your situation...


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## Les (Jan 1, 2012)

I've heard good reviews for the Logitech systems, especially the 2.1 systems. I am a member of a piano forum (Piano World - Home of the world famous Piano Forums. The most piano information on the Web) and a lot of digital piano players use them as part of their home setups. Pianos have some fairly strict sonic demands and the players are equally demanding, so the fact that they recommend them really says something.


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## MrsFooter (Jan 1, 2012)

lgarrett said:


> Anyone have any external speakers they particularly like?



A road guy recently debuted his Bomb Speaker (seen here: The Bomb Mini Speaker for $12.99 - electronics, speaker - Deals.Woot) and holy hell, it was LOUD! Totally surprising considering how small it was. Sound quality wasn't _steller_; about what you'd get from your standard laptop speaker. But if all you're looking to do is run a piece, it'll definitely do the job. Considering how small, portable, and _cheap_ they are, it might be a nice thing to toss in your SM kit.


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## ruinexplorer (Jan 5, 2012)

I was in the Dell camp about 10 years ago. Now I wouldn't touch them unless I was getting their ultra high end models (XPS especially). The last Dell I bought had many of the screws fall out, two power supplies die, the hard drive die, the monitor mount crack all within the first year of owning it. This was never taken out of the house either. Although I still have my dinosaur of an XPS laptop and it's still chugging along (until Windows XP will no longer be supported as I can't upgrade it any more). 

So then I went to an Asus because of many recommendations for their products. I hated the keyboard so returned it. Don't know how they last, but still have computer geeks who stand by them.

I bought a Toshiba netbook about a year ago and loved it so much that I also bought a Toshiba laptop soon after. I highly recommend them for the casual applications (as in not needing the processing power for video production, etc.) you will be using. 

As for the external speakers, unless you buy a gaming laptop, you probably won't have quality enough speakers built in. Yes, I would have to say Logitech probably has the widest range of speakers available that would be suitable for your use. You can either buy USB speakers so that you do not have to have external power, but this will eat up your battery power much faster. You can also get speakers that use the 1/8" jack for headphones which will require a power supply to operate. Though, recently I have seen a few models made for mp3 players that have a rechargeable battery built in. That's fine as long as your battery doesn't die in the middle of a rehearsal as they often don't work while charging.


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## techieman33 (Jan 5, 2012)

I think one of the new ultra books would be a great option for what you'll be doing with it. As for the speakers I really like my Altec Lansing ultra portable speaker, it sounds great and is easily heard anywhere on stage. The one I have runs off of AAA batteries and has an 1/8" jack that I plug my phone into. For a laptop I think the usb model would be better.
Altec Lansing


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