Buying a Laptop

[jabberwock95]

Soon, I will be leaving the boredom of school and entering the wonderfull world of college. What better tool of learning than a new laptop? Part parent paid for of course.

So, does anyone have any good tips for finding a decent laptop? Maybe desktop computing has set my standards too high, but any laptops in my price range (up to £600) seem rubbish.

What can I do? Or rather, what can you do to help me. I would appreciate any little gems of laptop knowledge, like what processor is the best (fastest, cheapest, most reliable)? What brands can I count on and which should I avoid? And most importantly, is it possible to find a good laptop on eBay?

 

[Maxi]

Well... laptops aren't really used for gaming, so you shouldn't be thinking on the lines of a gaming computer. If you're gonna use it at school etc, you'd only need one that would be fast enough to use word and stuff... right?

 

[Shimoneous]

I recently helped purchased a laptop for my GF for the same reason, i dont know wheter your planning on using yours for video editing, gaming purposes though. Because my gilrfriends is only for documentation stuff, therefor only ended up havin to get a 1.5 MegHz Celeron with a 40gig HDD and 256meg of ram.. Which can all be added to ofcoarse. The celerons dont have as much power as the Centrino/Pentiums/Apples but have better power consumption.

So it really depends on what your gonna use it for??

CAtch

 

[Maxi]

Oh, remember, centrino is just a fancy name for a computer with an integrated Wlan card with a higher price tag, so try to avoid centrino.

 

[jabberwock95]

Thanks for the info. I guess I had fallen into the trap of thinking like a gaming computer.

Does having a 'mobile' processor make much difference?

 

[Asus]

It makes a big difference in battery life. They also don't put out as much heat as the other chips.

An athlon 64 laptop would be probably the better option for a desktop replacement type of laptop over The P4. The P4's are ok but they are just too hot and take too much power IMO. Athlon XP's are ok as well.
Just plain Celerons (not Celeron M) are of course poor beyond just basic tasks.

Of course I'm thinking for beyond note taking and paper writing. Otherwise any will do. You might not want a hot laptop though as it might be in your lap.

And if it says Moble Pentium 4, that's still a desktop replacement chip and not a moble chip. Pentium M or Celeron M are moble chips that conserve battery life while giving great performance. If you are looking at a gaming laptop then you can overlook the CPU more and focus on the GFX card. You will be paying a lot more by the way.

I personally really like certain models of Toshiba. HP and Compaq laptops are pretty good and so are some Dell models. I guess you would have to think of how you will be using it. Will you be carring it a lot or will it be sitting on a desk for awhile? Personally, I don't mind smaller screens since I like thin laptops that are more portable.

I know some people have said they got laptops from ibuypower.com but I'm not sure they ship to the UK.

 

[jabberwock95]

Thanks for the advice, I will have a lot to think about. Lots of people have said that any laptop will be fine for word-processing or internet use, but I still want one that starts quickly, doesn't crash often, and can stay useful at basic tasks for quite a while.

It looks like I will be going for a major brand, as they are more reliable and replacement parts are easier to find. Battery life is quite important to me, there wont be many power sockets around if I feel like taking notes during a class. But I can always buy a spare battery if I need it.

Im still looking for bargains on eBay, but I have lowered my expectations slightly to look at cheap laptops from major retailers. I am usually prone to spending too much on features I wont need, so I will try and avoid it this time. Why look at a 2800+ Athlon XP when you only use word processing?

Thanks again for all the advice, keep it coming!

 

[jabberwock95]

What do you think of this?

http://www.comet.co.uk/comet/html/cache/320_220884.html

Just about in my price range, with a widescreen display (a plus), good HDD, well-known brand, and I like the look of it.

Only downside is the 1.5Ghz Celeron that powers the thing. I know its not too bad, but I kindof wanted a mobile processor.

There is a laptop for £20 more with a 1.4Ghz Celeron-M, but no widescreen. Is it worth sacrificing a wide display and £20 for a mobile processor? Or would it be better spent on a spare battery? Lets here some opinion!

 

[oldagerocker]

I personally wouldnt go with Comet, Dixons, PC World or Curry's, they'll rip you off. Go for the brands Asus mentioned, they are really decent, a cheap brand will not last as long and you wont be getting any technical support from a large chain of stores like Comet.

Im going to try and find a nice laptop for £600 with tax now...


http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/prod...2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X292ZXJ2aWV3&product_uid=63903

http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/prod...2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X292ZXJ2aWV3&product_uid=78913

http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/prod...2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X292ZXJ2aWV3&product_uid=47563

These are alittle over budget, but are decent spec machines.

http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/prod...2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X292ZXJ2aWV3&product_uid=82069
This one is £30 over but is in the sale and very nice Samsung are a good make, you'd be hard-pressed to find a nice samsung on a £600 budget.

 

[oldagerocker]

Sorry to double post but i found another site that does some good laptops somewhat cheaper than the others.

http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/asp/...cat=78&ph=&keywords=&recor=&SearchFor=&PT_ID=

Click around on here, you might find something you like... although i've never gone with them to buy anything, make sure they are a decent company first

 

[jabberwock95]

Hmmm, the Samsung you mentioned looks nice but other than the brand it only offers a mobile processor (so more battery life) to seperate it from the Acer model I was looking at. Seems a small difference to pay an extra £90 for.

I notice you say that a cheap brand will not last as long, but you suggested another Acer to me :cheese:. So whats the difference?

Sorry to be picky, but I really only need the laptop for basic office and internet tasks (or a sneaky game of HL during class). I have a desktop machine that knows its place, so im not looking for a replacement, just a more mobile supplement (although id like to watch DVDs on it)

Edit: Newsflash

Ok, now im really confused. The website Oldagerocker mentioned has EXACTLY the same laptop that I was looking at on the Comet website, but for £80 more!!

The model: Acer TravelMate 2303Wlmi
Comet says it has a Celeron processor, but Laptops Direct say all travelmates have Celeron-M's. Other than that, no difference. See for yourselfs.

Comet: http://www.comet.co.uk/comet/html/cache/320_220884.html
Laptops Direct: http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/asp/spec.asp?V_ID=1852

Wierd, huh?

 

[jabberwock95]

Well, everywhere I have looked says that the Acer TravelMate 2303Wlmi has a Celeron-M processor, making it a better deal than Comet makes out. So, it could be the one, even with Comets horrible record.

 

[Maxi]

Go check the laptop "live" to see if it really has a celeron-M or a celeron. Could be their marketing team that thought putting the -M after would only confuse their less intelligent customers, which frankly are the bulk of their customers. I'd go check it out, perhaps ask the personell, have a look at the box or something. It should say what processor it has if you rightclick on my computer and select properties.

 

[jabberwock95]

Thats exactly what I was planning. Go and check it out (maybe not ask the salesman in case he finds out and jacks up the price!).

From what i've seen, the only way it could have a non-mobile processor is if it isnt the standard model. So maybe, maybe not. If it does have a mobile processor it will definately be the best deal ive seen so far.