Nemo: My Little Orange Lenovo

My macbook pro has been on the way out for about 3 years now. Sometime before I left for Peace Corps in 2010, its battery died (has it really been five years since I came to Bulgaria!?!), but it lasted through my service. About a month before I left Bulgaria, it decided to simply not start up. Luckily, with a thorough cleaning and some new fans it was able to keep running. I installed a fan booster and got an external cooling pad to help keep the temperature manageable. Then, in Turkey, I Frankensteined its power cable and had to do another deep cleaning of it. Its graphics card blew, and I replaced it. But a few weeks ago, when I noticed that it could barely run skype anymore, I decided it was finally time to get a new computer. My first new laptop ever (the macbook had been used).

I wavered between the ASUS Transformer flip book and the Lenovo Yoga 2. The ASUS was a bit more affordable and had greater potential for upgrades, but the Yoga was just a bit more sleek.

I often have a difficult time making decisions when it comes to large purchases, especially electronics, which I know very little about. My last two decisions for electronics were quite terrible, and so I was nervous about this one. I fear that I drove Nikola a little towards insanity with all of my back and forth and obsessive comparisons. When I read that ASUS considers their warranty void when you open the back cover to install the upgrades I would have made upon purchase, I decided to go with the Yoga. So far, I think it was a great choice.

I got the 13″, Yoga 2. Not the pro, which is about 400 more dollars. (Although it was tempting, it was not something I really needed. I did get the version with 8GB RAM and a 128 SSD (I wanted 256, but they don’t have a 256 in the basic model). It is a touch screen, convertible laptop/tablet. I somehow doubt that I will use it in tablet mode very often, but I have already found stand mode great for watching videos. It is my first full-HD screen, and the keyboard and casing is beautiful to touch. It is just so dang sleek 🙂

It already inspired me to start writing a bit more. I transferred my files from one of my novels into yWriter, which I have been eyeing ever since I considered switching to windows. I love it as a program. It breaks the book down into short scenes rather than chapters, which I might actually be able to work on if Peatuk ever decides he wants to take a nap again. (For the moment, he has decided that sleep is the most evil thing ever and he will never sleep again, and I am going rather ragged over it).

I also tried skype. I can actually run skype, have a conversation, and still check out other programs on my computer. So, you know, I can look something up while talking to someone! My old laptop had gotten so slow that I had no control over anything else if I was in skype. Or if a web page was loading. Or, whatever.

I also find that my work is a little bit faster, probably because I am so excited about the laptop and none of my keys on my keyboard stick in the least.

I had a difficult time treating myself to a large purchase ($1000 on my current income is quite a chunk of change), especially because Nikola’s new laptop, which he codes on, was about $100 cheaper than mine. Does a writer really need a fancier toy than a programmer? Perhaps not, but I am ecstatic about it at the moment!

Ohhhh- and I got the little convertible blue tooth mouse that goes with the yogas. It is amazing. Very responsive and a pleasure to touch. AND- no cables for Peatuk to play with. Win!