Another What Laptop thread!

[markstephenhall]

What is your budget?

£400-£550

What size laptop do you want?
(In terms of screen size)
Netbooks are usually less than 11"
Ultraportable laptops are usually 11" to 13"
Standard laptops are usually 14" to 16"
Desktop Replacements are usually over 17"

13" - 16"

Do you have resolution requirements?
For example "must display 1080"

Higher the better.

Do you prefer a matte or glossy (reflective) screen?
Please note matte screens are harder to find these days, so may not be in budget.

Either.

What will you be using the laptop for?
For example, Browsing, Gaming, Word Processing, Video Editing, Web/Graphic Design

A bit of everything.


If you will be gaming, what games do you need to play?

Strategy/simulation

How long does the battery need to last?

3 hours

Does it need to be portable?

Portable around the house. Will rarely leave the house apart from odd work trips away as it will be used for a small home business too.

Do you require Blu-Ray?

No.

Do you require HDMI output?

Not essential but would be nice to use external tv/monitor.

Do you have a preferred brand?
For example Dell, HP, Acer

Dell/Samsung/Lenovo/Acer/Asus

Are there brands you would prefer to avoid?

HP/Packard Bell/Sony/Medion

Would you be happy with a refurbished laptop?

If it offered a good spec for less price. Have been watching Dell Outlet but not got anything so far.

Any other details you feel necessary... Colour; Webcam; Good quality speakers; general spec: CPU, RAM, HDD space, SSD; Operating System or anything else you can think of.

Decent webcam. i5/i7 CPU, 8gb Ram, Min 500gb Hd unless ultrabool with SSD, i can take os from old laptop if it is worth it. USB 3.0 port.

My last laptop lasted from 2005 as it was a top spec configured Dell Inspiron so would like its replacement to do the same if possible!

Thanks guys

 

[markstephenhall]

I have been looking at the Lenovo Z580 and Dell Inspiron 15R SE and they seem to fit my needs perfectly but over budget!

 

[EndlessWaves]

You might be asking too much there, an i7 CPU if half your budget on it's own and you want durability comparable to a £1000-1500 machine.

The Dell 15R SE is within budget, the base model is currently £520 after discounts: Dell Inspiron 15 Deals, Evalue Codes, Discounts and Coupons Only 4GB memory but for £30 you can upgrade it to 8GB yourself.

 

[markstephenhall]

Thanks for the reply.

That site looks handy for comparing Dell specs. Are the chips in those systems Sandy or Ivy Bridge. I want the latter to futureproof as much as possible (although I am aware how fast this sector develops!)

Does anybody have any experience of the following system?

http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/Lenovo_Z580_1206320.html

Seems like a top spec for the money?? Any obvious setbacks I am missing?

 

[EndlessWaves]

The 3000 chips are Ivy Bridge, 2000 are Sandy Bridge. The difference is speed (CPU and Quicksync) rather than features for future proofing though (expect PCI-E 3.0 I suppose, but that doesn't matter on a laptop).

 

[markstephenhall]

Champion cheers.

The Lenovo Z580 is looking like a winner unless someone can convince me otherwise??

 

[Zaichik]

Just got a white Lenovo Z580 (i5 version) for my wife and it looks like a good buy from the play I had with it yesterday.

 

[MandyAW92]

You should follow what alot of people have already said and get a Lenovo, Z580's are good devices but the G580s are the same spec and price but i've had both and never had an issue with my G580