mykeyb Posted June 14, 2013 Share Posted June 14, 2013 Found out my old Samsung NC10 and stuck Chromium OS on it. Yes its blindingly quick for browsing the internet but from the very little I have played with it I cannot see what else I would use it for........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Condimentalist Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 I know some of you know your tech so I hope you don't mind my putting in a request for help. I'm not as up on this kind of thing as some, and the internet seems to be full of mixed messages... I'm in the market for a new laptop. Max budget £600 (preferably less). Will be mostly for home use so don't mind if it's bulky and would prefer a larger screen. I'm not really gaming on it but I will be running DJ software through it amongst other things so would like reasonable performance and decent hard-drive memory. HDMI connectivity is a must as well because I don't have a TV aerial at my house. Any ideas??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tegis Posted June 25, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted June 25, 2013 (edited) I know some of you know your tech so I hope you don't mind my putting in a request for help. I'm not as up on this kind of thing as some, and the internet seems to be full of mixed messages... I'm in the market for a new laptop. Max budget £600 (preferably less). Will be mostly for home use so don't mind if it's bulky and would prefer a larger screen. I'm not really gaming on it but I will be running DJ software through it amongst other things so would like reasonable performance and decent hard-drive memory. HDMI connectivity is a must as well because I don't have a TV aerial at my house. Any ideas??? In that price-range you have loads to pick from. I'd consider getting a SSD in it and sacrifice internal storage though. The speed-difference is worth it every time. And if it's mainly for home use, get a external drive to handle the large storage if needed. PCspecialist The "15.6" UltraNote" looks like a good starting-point for your needs. Just change the processor to a i5 and the drive to a SSD and add memory. Maybe even remove the windows-license and save a bit more Edited June 25, 2013 by Tegis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CVByrne Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 Do you really need a laptop then? If you will mainly be using it indoors you could be better served by something like Intels NUC or similar. Basically it's a laptop in a small box that you can hook up to your monitor or tv etc.. via HDMI. It's both portable and a good value. But if you do want a laptop i'd suggest getting one on a deal in the next month or so as the new Haswell Intel processors are out and they will mean some good deals in the older generation Ivy Bridge ones. Haswell's big gain is in batterylife so performance is pretty much on par with last gen Ivy Bridge. Key things to focus on, 1 is having an SSD. It's a must and then use an external drive for your bulk storage a SSD gives big performance gains. I'd also look at having an i5 or i7 processor and maybe more than 4gb of RAM. for £600 I'd look to get some deals for sure. You can get a very good 15 inch laptop for that price on a deal with the specs mentioned above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Rev Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 (edited) You really don't need an i7 processor unless you are rendering large amounts of video or audio. It's not even worth stumping up the extra to get an i7 for a gaming desktop PC, in a laptop it's a complete waste of money. Edited June 25, 2013 by The_Rev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Condimentalist Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 (edited) Thanks very much chaps. I will consider an SSD, though not at all costs. The external HD issue is still a bore IMO and is probably more inconvenient than waiting a few seconds longer for a programme to load. I've realised that Windows 8 is a no go for me as well as I can't run Serato through it... I can see the advantages of a custom laptop, but from the brands it seems Acer pack their machines with high-spec for the price - but there is some talk of them being unreliable. Is this true? Edited June 26, 2013 by PatrickCousens Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tegis Posted June 26, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted June 26, 2013 I can see the advantages of a custom laptop, but from the brands it seems Acer pack their machines with high-spec for the price - but there is some talk of them being unreliable. Is this true? The consumer segment of laptops are always a gamble, regardless of it being a Dell, HP, Sony, LG, Lenovo. They pack them with the components they can get the best deal on at that particular moment. Sometimes you get one that will be faultless and other times it will fall apart 6 times within a year. HP have been the worst offenders in my neck of the woods but they shift a fair few as well which might play into the equation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Condimentalist Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 (edited) Plumped for this one in the end. Cheers for your input. Edited July 10, 2013 by PatrickCousens 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodgyknees Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 Is this any good? http://www.argos.co.uk/m/static/Product/partNumber/5089514.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
limpid Posted July 11, 2013 Administrator Share Posted July 11, 2013 For what? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CVByrne Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 Intel Pentium Dual Core didn't they stop making them in 2008? How the hell are Argos trying to get £400 for that piece of junk? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
limpid Posted July 11, 2013 Administrator Share Posted July 11, 2013 It would make a good, but large, door stop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Rev Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 Dell Factory Outlet. Always my first port of call when looking for a laptop. You will have to click through yourself because the site doesn't let you link to individual laptops, but you can get something like that for £400. Refurbished, but basically new. Comes with the same guarantee as if you were buying new too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodgyknees Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 (edited) For what? I can get one for £100 nearly new, for my partner. She would word process, play Sims and other games similar. Edited July 12, 2013 by dodgyknees Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
limpid Posted July 12, 2013 Administrator Share Posted July 12, 2013 I don't know the requirements for Sims, but it'll run a browser so she will certainly be able to use Google Docs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CVByrne Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Still can think that a 5 year old laptop would even be worth anything let alone £100 I'm someone who would think if a job is worth doing, it's worth doing properly. So if you're gonna get a laptop. Make sure it's at least half decent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodgyknees Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 You mean the specs are 5 years old... ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tegis Posted July 12, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted July 12, 2013 (edited) You mean the specs are 5 years old... ? No, but the Processor is at the very bottom of the barrel that intel makes. Look at the link Rev put up. There are fantastic laptops in there. The Inspiron 14z and 15 Ultrabooks is a excellent entry for your needs. A hybrid SSD-drive is a pretty fast compromise. Edited July 12, 2013 by Tegis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodgyknees Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 I will have a look but don't want to spend more than £150. Out of interest, is this any good: Interl Core i5 CPU, M430 @2.27ghz RAM 4.0 500gb hd Is that better than the above? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
limpid Posted July 12, 2013 Administrator Share Posted July 12, 2013 You can get a reasonable second hand chromebook for that kind of money. That has the advantage of no AV or any slowdowns from cruft, but has the downside that it only plays browser based games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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