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I am in need of a decent laptop for writing (a lot), and for producing high quality documents, along with some web work. The thing is, I can’t afford a new one.
I had tried going the cheap route in the past, and bought a lovely-looking colourful HP something-or-other from Tesco. Now, to its credit, it still works (I gave it to my son), but the chassis always felt flimsy (I think it was all plastic) and the trackpad drove my flipping crazy.
Bearing in mind that I don’t know anything about current processor options, nor even how much RAM is standard in a decent PC, can you suggest a laptop that should serve me well even if it’s a couple of years old from eBay?
Otherwise, do you have a different suggestion?
I don’t really have a budget, but let’s pretend I couldn’t spend beyond £350 for starters....
By high quality do you mean the content of the docs? Or are you using some specific publishing software?
£350 would get you a basic dell and a keyboard, you want one of those if your going to be doing a lot of typing really and a mouse and probably a decent big screen!!
Whats your portability requirement?
Acer Aspire 3 or 5, Lenovo IdeaPad are good solid kit, Argos eBay usually has a bargain or two, but check prices against google shopping anyway. i3/4GB/128GB SSD should be your start point. Some laptops (I know Aspire 5 does) have room for an M2 SSD drive and a conventional hard drive at the same time, which is nice. No point in going less than full HD 1920x1080 on the screen these days.
Is that Acer Aspire 5 15.6 Inch Intel i5 1.6GHz 8GB 256GB any cop btw i know nothing about computers I just need a replacement for my one that's about 15 years old thanks
This is one isn’t bad.
7th Gen i3, 4GB of RAM and 128GB SSD means it’ll be quick enough for browsing, Office Suite stuff etc.
Downsides:
8GB is the norm these days, but without checking you can probably upgrade down the road if it becomes a chore.
128GB will leave you about half that with Windows and Office suite on it. 60GB-70GB is a lot of word docs, pics etc, but not a lot of video or extra programs.
If you need more storage it can be cheaper to buy a model with a standard 500GB HDD and upgrade, 240GB SSDs are only about £40 now, but can be a bit of a faf to upgrade if you’re not too computer savvy.
No idea about 2nd hand costs, but i've always found the keyboards on lenovos to be pretty good.
you get a nubbin as well as a trackpad on some of them too!
you get a nubbin as well as a trackpad on some of them too!
But it's OK if you already have a mouse...
Apple have a refurb store on their site, and I can vouch for them: we've had two from there and they've been as new.
I don’t really have a budget, but let’s pretend I couldn’t spend beyond £350 for starters….
but
Apple have a refurb store on their site,
LOL what vintage is for £350?
Decent Inspirons in a modern I3 for under 350 - there is a 12% discount for students - you are an academic? Just looks like a code to enter
just buy a keyboard and mouse for your existing HP?
In reality the processor doesn't really matter for producing 'high quality documents' as your brain is doing the work there. Also cheap machines tend to have shit keyboards. It's something that isn't reviewed and the number of people who limit their ability to get stuff out of their brain and into their machines but not learning to type is shocking
So, spend the money on an external keyboard and mouse. Both Microsoft and Cherry make decent external keyboards IMHO but this is one of those cases where it is worth going into a shop and actually trying one. Nowadays I'm pretty comfy with anything external from those brands but built in laptop keyboards can be very random
And buy a wireless keyboard and mouse. Just get over the battery thing
edit: and as above, lenovo keyboards are not too bad either
Ok it’s £399 but you’ll not beat this.
Lenovo ThinkPad T430 i5-3320M 2.6GHz 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD DVDRW 14.1 WXGA++ 1600x900 Webcam Windows 10 Pro 64 bit WiFi Grade A (Certified Refurbished) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01C6WNEL6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_CiaNBbWN1AP4C
The think pad? that's a 3rd gen I5 from 2012 yep it's got an ssd but lower res screen?
7th Gen I3 (will be faster) 8gb ram
7th gen I5
Only 4gb but upgradable
I got the next one up, great little machine if it lasts as long as the other dells I'll be using it in 5 years time
LOL what vintage is for £350?
Yeah okay maybe not a recent Mac then, didn't notice that! I bet you can get some reasonable ones on eBay for that though.
We've got one of those and it's absolutely fine.
We’ve got one of those and it’s absolutely fine.
Trying to avoid a fanboi debate....
If you want to pay £350 for a 7 year old bit of electronics then go for it, the dells etc above (which will be new or a month old) will do 5-6 years easy from today, it will be faster and compatible with modern stuff with a 12 month warranty and support and have a higher screen res screen that is bigger.
It's very much worth checking out the generation of the I3/5/7 as modern I3's are faster than the older 5's and 7's
Does it have to be a laptop?
If you are writing then you'd want to focus on peripherals .. A good screen and keyboard..
So a desktop PC base unit would be better ... Pretty much anything from the last 7 years will be absolutely fine. But do get something with an SSD drive .. As said above, they are cheap at the moment, a 120gb drive can be had for £25. £40-50 for a 240gb drive..
I get the impression a a good quality large monitor and full size keyboard should be a major consideration which you won't get with a laptop without spending silly money..