Let's talk computers, please
 

I have a 17" screen on my HP ENVY TouchSmart m& Notebook PC. The monitor is in the lid and the keyboard sits on my table. I prefer to use a mouse to move around and not the touch pad. It will not take pictures. I do not have a Kindle. My cell phone will take pictures except I do not use it to take pictures. Hope this information helps.

Not an expert by any means, but if you like your Kindle and want to take pictures, why not check out the Amazon Fire Tablets, specifically the 10" size. You can take pictures with it as well as use it just like a Kindle only with a bigger screen. It will also allow you to surf the internet, email, play music, this forum :), play games, shop, etc. So depending on how you use a computer, a tablet may be just what you need. The tablets don't cost as much as a laptop but they don't do all the same things either and most do not have the storage capacity of a computer. The Fire 10 inch is about $150 now and there may be a better deal during the holiday shopping season.
Something to consider..... Good luck in your shopping

These devices have different uses. I have all of my Kindle content on my laptop and can read or study my books that way. I have a Kindle Fire and can do my email with it. However, typing on it is similar to the phone. I don't do that often because of how slow it is. I can, but don't take pictures with it. I do have a smart phone that crosses all of these platforms. I can put a couple of Kindle books on it at a time so I can read when I wait at various places. I can do email, etc. I like its features but I am not firmly attached to my phone at all times. I like my combination of devices but some functions are just better on specific ones.

I have an HP Probook. Got it about 6 months ago and it has all of the bells and whistles I need and some I don't. The touch screen will add $150 or more to the cost of what ever you buy. My work laptop had a touch screen and I was sure I could not live without it. Now that I have gone 6 months without it, I am just fine. I use my laptop for communication, saving quilt patterns :o, some minor social media, work (I have retired and now work only part-time), and listen to audio books, Pandora and the like.

I got the largest screen I could because I planned on using this as my only computer. It is working out well. I can sit at a table and work or I can easily carry it from room to room to listen to my books. I did not purchase my computer through HP but a secondary seller. My son-in-law is a tech expert (it is his job) and he helped me search, compare and purchase. If I can find the name of the company I purchased from I will post it here. Something with "egg" in the name. :o Hope my 2 cents is of value.

I have a HP 17" laptop with an added mouse. It doesn't take photos. It is my only computer. Since it has the Zoom feature, I can increase or decrease the font to any size I need. I've had it for several years and there have been no problems.

My hb taught computers in schools and our three children learned at an early age, then have college degrees in engineering and building computers. Since we retired 13 years ago, computers have advanced more, so we ask our children when we have questions; they can come on line and work on our computers from a distance. I was thee one who first computerized a school library in Corpus Christi, Tx., who had 35 elementary schools, 13 junior high schools and 5 high schools...serving at a junior high school library. (Re-did the library to three different systems to please the district so we could all have the same program district wide...the first one was the best system)

As to price you want to pay and tasks you want it to do, do a google search for Dell, Newegg, and Lenovo. Buy from a company, if you can or Best Buy on their respectfully specials. Better if you can get hands on, to see how it functions for you. I don't have Kindle experience, dh does have a tablet on which he collects books and reads on it. Amazon keeps charging him for books he does not order on his account.

I too have the 17" Envy and love it. It is nice too if you like to watch movies etc. on it.

I have an HP Pavillion laptop from Costco and love it. 15" monitor, touch screen, has a camera, all the things you mentioned. My mom just got one too.

Cari

i have always been a desktop person ..with many terabytes of space for photo editing software, eq, etcetcetc. but with worsening back situation & being unable to sit upright for very long, my son suggested ipad for web reading etc. it takes beautiful large format photos, has built in photo editing. then he loaded kindle onto my ipad and enrolled he & i into kindleunlimited, which i love love love!! i have my sewing, knitting & crochet patterns in ibook now with capability to print off if i want, and with all the apps i can download for cross stitch, quilt designing ...anyway, i'm seriously considering if i even need a computer per sé anymore. ipad works for all & he even gave me a wireless keyboard to go with it if i want, but i don't use it.

I have an HP 17" that stays on my desk. I purchased a refurbished 12-13" Lenovo from Newegg. Big mistake. Return period was 60 days, at about 75 it started doing things on its own. It would mark emails delete if I hovered over them. My sister in law, a client & a friend all told me to check out a Mac. I went to the Mac store in town. I purchased a used Macbook Pro that was used in school, it is 5 yrs old & they have completely updated it. Ir was 1/2 the price of new & I can go to the store with any questions. 1 of the store owners said Lenovo is not the same after IBM sold it. Kind of like new/old Singers.

You really should go to a couple of stores and check them out, try out the different fonts and check out what comes with it. Some laptops have DVD drives in them, some take pictures, and different size screens. I have a 15 in and 17in and I have the Samsung tablet, two different sizes. Sometimes reading things on the one that has internet its a 7.3 in is challenging. I pulled my 10 in out the other day and it was much better but on it I have to have wifi connections, which I don't have in my house. only on my tablet. Just go check them out and decide what you want or might want in the future. Remember, if you want something to download software to, a tablet isn't the way to go and you can also get 10 in laptops and then I bought a portable DVD drive.

I like a laptop with microsoft operating system, I also have a chrome operating system and have trouble with printers and software.

If you are near Toucson there are several Costco outlets. They have free service and will help you with any questions or how to hook up any devices. also free software advice. Warrantees for 2 years

Mim

I have a 15" MacBookPro laptop and I love it. Easiest computer I've ever owned or used. No extra security programs required (i.e. Norton, McAfee etc) Plus I love that it is interactive with my iPhone. Photo's go straight to the computer etc. My EQ8 works perfectly w/the system.

I have a “reconditioned” (much cheaper, and who cares if the outside in a little scratched up, just be sure your seller has good reviews) IPad Air2 that I bought off Amazon for not so much, but cheaper than a laptop. I put gorilla glass and a “croc” type material cover for children which gives it a handle (bonus) because I am clumsy. I have a touch screen, can make words as big as the whole screen, a large on screen keyboard, no need for a mouse, and no stylus to lose. I can use it to read books, and with the right apps, I can design quilts, Bluetooth to my printer, and have never taken such beautiful photos before. It has the built in edit for photos so I can crop or edit my photos for posting here.
Below is an actual photo of my fuzzy blanket, taken in natural sunlight, with no flash, and again redone in black and white as an example. It also weighs less to carry or move, and I can take it portable easier than a laptop.

Wow! So much to take in plus sticker shock!!!!LOL...........but I've found places to start. We have a Costco close so I will go there to get info too.
I appreciate all your info and suggestions. This is not going to be an overnight decision.

I love the camera feature on my Kindle Fire, it also does videos. Highly recommend it.

We have had numerous Dell computers. they have mailings they will send if you like to shop at home. They are good to call and go through what machine is best for your needs.
They have good Pro-Support also; not expensive. they gave me 4 yrs. of it with our new computer a few years ago.
They have a business dept. if you have been in business, and the regular if not.
Good luck!
Mariah

What you are describing is not really a laptop but more of an advanced tablet. A good laptop will have disk player built in, camera, ability to install programs like photo editing, EQ software, Office, save and print pdfs, upload to cloud and use touch or mouse, and have a full good typing keyboard. My favorite one is this one because it has all the features I want and doesn't cost much at all.
[h=1]HP 15.6" Laptop, AMD A6-9220 Dual-Core Processor 2.50GHz, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD, AMD Radeon R4 Graphics, DVD-RW, HDMI, Bluetooth, HDMI, Webcam, Windows 10[/h]$290 on Amazon now.