In view of the fact that Microsoft is ready to pull the plug on its Windows XP this coming April, I chose I needed to buy a new computer. They have made it clear that it is not vacant to be safe to surf the Internet and do online transactions once WIN XP is no longer updated. Instead of a traditional desktop tower, I chose to give myself more mobility and place flexibility by buying a laptop.

My computer needs are pretty basic: Internet surfing, word processing, light photo editing and the rare DVD watching. The Lenovo B590 has so far fulfilled all those needs pretty well. This laptop has a plastic case and a matte end that means I don’t have to be worried of leaving unsightly fingerprints or oil marks all over it. But, I have to admit that the Lenovo B590 is not the sexiest or most exciting-looking laptop either. It’s really rather plain looking. It weighs a small over 5 lbs. and if you plot to buy one of those tight sleeves to protect it, make sure the sleeve stretches to at least 1 1/2″ to accommodate the laptop thickness. What you get in the box is the laptop, the battery pack, power cord, and ac power adapter and a sheet of paper with the early setup directions and an illustration of the controls and indicators of the laptop. If you want a manual or user guide, you have to download it from the Lenovo website.

Background up the laptop was simple. I had no problems configuring WIN 7. I just followed the directions on the screen. The laptop had no difficulty identifying and connecting to my wi-fi home network. Until I get a wireless mouse, I’ve plugged a USB-corded mouse to the laptop and it’s working fine along with the touch pad. This laptop comes preloaded with Adobe Reader X, Nitro Pro 8, Evernote installer, Skype, Lenovo tool suites to manage and check for updates from the maker, a free trial of McAfee Internet Security and a limited-time free subscription to Lenovo Cloud Storage. It doesn’t come with any Office starter but there’s a quick link if you’re attracted in purchasing it or in trying Office 365 free for a limited time. In view of the fact that MS Office is so expensive, I’ve downloaded the free, open source LibreOffice suite instead and it fits my word processing needs for the time being. The battery lasts me about 4 or 4 and half hours. The laptop gets warm underneath but not hot. My brother really complimented the keyboard of the Lenovo. He said it was better designed than his Toshiba laptop. The tray for the DVD seemed fragile to me. I was worried it was vacant to come off completely when I was pulling it further out to place the DVD in it. The speakers didn’t seem impressive to me. The camera is suitable for Skyping. The only things that have annoyed me so far are the McAfee pop ups to remind me to buy the their services before the trial period is over; Lenovo’s ones, encouraging me to install their Small Business Solution (I’d like to know more about it before doing it) and MS Windows updates that are configured before I even had a chance to sign on to the computer. As I don’t use this laptop to play games, I can’t tell its performance in that respect. Additional than those pop ups, I’m pleased with the B590 laptop. It works well for my basic computer needs.

I had a desktop and I had no room on my desk to place anything else but the computer but with this laptop I can push it back and have plenty of room. I was recommended to get a Lenovo Laptop and my husband was recommended to get a Lenovo desktop by our computer guru and so far they have been very excellent. No problem with them at all. I had never heard of Lenovo in my life till our computer man vastly recommended it and we looked on the Consumer Report guide and it was rated very high so we bought the two of them.

For the price meets alacrity, core i3 intel processor, and excellent all around surfing and business requirements. The 4Gb RAM and 500 GB HDD round it out nicely.