[Durham Giant]

Buying a laptop : Wed Sep 04, 2013 1:18 pm  

I was going to put this on the tech thread but not so many go on there so i put it here.

It looks like i am going to be going away to work In Norfolk ( spending at least three nights in a hotel).
I was wanting to buy a laptop and have been researching things on tinternet and look at reviews etc but none of them are set at a level they help me. Things like Widows 8 is difficult or i cannot read my adobe files is of no use to me.

I am not very computer literate i can only send texts and make calls with my phone. I dont even know how to set it up for internet connection so you realise how technologically limited i am.

I want to buy a laptop that can do the following things

1/ Send recieve emails
2/ Be able to write word documents reports etc
3/ search the internet
4/ watch sky sports on (I player etc).
5/ play Dvds

I dont do games on it, i dont want loads of apps and programmes i dont want to photoshop on it etc.

I want a simple , easy to use machine which has wifi on it, somewhere i can attach a mouse and a keyboard ( i cannot use those built in mouse things) which can do all of the above.

Battery life and weight may come into the equation but are not deal breakers as i can always charge it in the hotel room.

I was looking at spending about £300 to £350

anyone got any recommendations or can give any help would be very appreciated.

Re: Buying a laptop : Wed Sep 04, 2013 1:47 pm  

You should have no problems doing everything you want to do with a bog standard basic laptop.

I recently purchased a Toshiba c855 laptop from argos's ebay outlet for £280, And that came with a 1tb hard drive, 8gb ram and a pentium b960 CPU which is more than adequate so you should have no problems getting something in that price range. Off course my laptop was a refurb from the outlet but it still comes with guarantee's and warrantys. I'd normally stay away from the likes of pc world or currys as generally I feel they have inflated prices but if you go instore and have a look you may see an older model being sold a bit cheaper.

Re: Buying a laptop : Wed Sep 04, 2013 3:37 pm  

If that's genuinely all you are after pretty much any named laptop in Tesco/Asda/Sainsburys etc would suffice. I genuinely wouldn't worry about specs, just go into the store of your choice and buy the colour/design that takes your fancy within your budget. If it's a laptop on sale now by a brand you've heard of, it'll do all the things listed.

You don't need Windows 8 as you are unlikely to get a touchscreen laptop for that price yet, but it's not a problem if you do buy a Windows 8 non touchscreen as you are only one mouse click away from your normal desktop anyway. Steer away from netbooks (The small 10inch laptops) as they are unlikely to have a DVD drive.

Re: Buying a laptop : Thu Sep 05, 2013 1:36 am  

Might be worth looking for dead stock new/unused laptops that run windows 7, I haven't used 8 much but when I have it hasn't been fun. Could get a bargain too for what you're looking for.

Re: Buying a laptop : Thu Sep 05, 2013 7:38 am  

Durham Giant wrote:

... I am not very computer literate i can only send texts and make calls with my phone. I dont even know how to set it up for internet connection so you realise how technologically limited i am...

Don't forget that you will need either broadband (or a dongle) to use your laptop to access the internet at home.

Re: Buying a laptop : Sun Sep 08, 2013 1:13 pm  

What everyone else has said, but with the added advice that Windows 8 is a big, steaming dog turd of an OS that should be avoided like you would avoid a dinner party to which Janet Street-Porter was invited.