Laptop recommendation please Mr Geek

[marinyork]

I disagree with the point about graphics as even though the programs may become more graphic intensive it won't seriously affect the performance of the laptop, for tasks that the OP is listing, and so long as the laptop is not used for graphic intensive purposes then there is no real issue. The slowness is can also be taken account by bad maintenance of the computer, often just reinstalling the OS will increase it's speed.

That's what everyone always says. People usually find a way to defy this. Trivially the other stuff.As I said on both I'd be looking into the warranties.

 

[swee'pea99]

Avoid ANYTHING made by Fujitsu-Siemens (or Fushitsu as it is more commonly known).
I work for a Siemens company and we are forced to use them at work.

We got two of their desktops for our two man office. BIG mistake. They were neck and neck for 'worst pc I ever came across'. Absolute crap. BSD 10 times a day. Ran their downloadable diagnostic software, which confirmed that everything was absolutely fine. Just finished running when it crashed. Junked both within 2 years. Never again. (Replaced mine with a £35 Dell off ebay - old, not pretty, but bullet-proof. It's true I did have to replace the graphics card (after 3 months - £10 off ebay) and the HD after 6 (£10 off ebay) but since then it hasn't missed a beat. Must be 2 1/2 years now, and it's never crashed once.)

 

[Red Light]

using a VAIO bought 4 years ago this xmas. was 650.00 but haggled down to 400.00 in comet its a NS10L model. casing looks like duct tape and its amazing hasnt skipped a beat running win7 now faultlessly. highly recommend a vaio if u can afford one in your budget. wouldnt touch anything other than intel either, unless you want lag and burning legs, AMD run hot.

+1 for Vaios. I've had three over the years which have all had hard use and are still going fine with batteries almost as good as new with one almost ten years old. Both my daughters Dells had dead batteries after a year, fell apart after two years and then died terminally after three. The fact they did all three in synchronism indicates a systemic problem. I replaced them with Vaios which are going strong.

 

[Gixxerman]

Sounds about right.
Please have pity on me though as I have no choice, I have to use them it is company policy.
I will try to demand a different PC when this one inevitably goes tits up, but I suspect that I might be dissapointed.
Our IT sevices are supplied through a third party (not part of Siemens) and they refused point-blank to use Siemens PC even though Siemens offered them at rock bottom prices. That in itself speaks volumes.

 

[SavageHoutkop]

Odd isn't it? I've had years of good service out of a Fujitsu Siemens laptop; and love my little Acer (which they don't make anymore) - the Acer, bless its little socks, has even survived a tea spill. I wouldn't go near a Toshiba, just rescued the HDD on one for a friend and another friend doesn't like theirs at all.

When I was looking to buy my Acer (which needed to be portable) I came to the conclusion you HAVE to try and google the model number. One of the Dells was in my size/weight range; and so was one of the Samsungs; and while both of those brands have made some excellent laptops, they have also made some real messups.

The problem with this is that there are so many blinking letters on the end of most models, which otherwise would be identical, I think purely to beat the 'price comparisons' - "Ah! You were looking at a FEIOU34297R4; this here is a FEIOU34297R4T"

 

[henshaw11]

I bought an Asus about a year ago - on grounds of reliability, warranty (2yrs included, can extend it to 3) and price/performance/features (tho' on that basis it is pretty much a desktop replacement)

 

[Andrew_P]

I bought an Asus about a year ago - on grounds of reliability, warranty (2yrs included, can extend it to 3) and price/performance/features (tho' on that basis it is pretty much a desktop replacement)

+1 For Asus I bought mine from here. https://www.simplyasus.com/ASUS_K52F-EX962V_1034138.html

 

[monnet]

I bought an Asus yesterday (the model below LOCO's I think), before reading this thread. Reassuring that you guys like them. I bought mine on the grounds that the spec was better than I was expecting for the same price I was expecting to pay. I've been impressed so far (but then it replaced a 5 year old Packard Bell, so I'd have been disappointed if it hadn't!). It seems pretty good and was streaming Eurosport beautifully yesterday afternoon.

 

[Gixxerman]

Odd isn't it? I've had years of good service out of a Fujitsu Siemens laptop;

A reliable Fujitsu-Siemens computer?!
You should get it to auction. Something as rare as that will be worth a mint.

 

[The_Wheelhouse]

The processor and the graphics are worse than the acer, so the laptop is going to feel more sluggish. In short you are spending more for something less.

 

[The_Wheelhouse]

[QUOTE 1454106"]
Toshiba?
Samsung?
[/quote]

Spec wise they are both similar, personally i would go with the Toshiba as its cheaper but that shouldn't put you off the Samsung if you have other criteria that the Samsung addresses.

 

[SavageHoutkop]

I'd go to a PC world and have a look at the models on display. That'll give you an idea of whether or not it's likely to be kid-proof and also to test the keyboard. The two you've linked to are pretty even on spec although the Toshiba has a bigger HDD.

 

[Proto]

Opinions on Lenovo?

I bought a Lenovo Z560 a few months back for #1 daughter. Did quite a bit of homework before buying. Very happy with it, particularly the build quality (looks and 'feel'), so wanted to buy another for #3 daughter but it seems to have been replaced with the Z570. Very similar machine but graphics now integrated. Should I steer clear or will it not be an issue?

The new one will be a student machine, essay writing, web browsing, DVD and iPlayer watching, Skype, but not gaming or any serious image (and no video) editing.


http://www.saveonlap...70_1072555.html


PS The first laptop I bought was a Toshiba Satellite Pro something or other, for #2 daughter. This has worked perfectly but the appearance and 'feel' is not a patch on the Lenovo. Ugly styling and a bit 'plasticky'.

PPS The screen is LED backlit. Is this a significant improvement in terms of viewing quality or durability or just another marketing tool?

 

[Proto]

Too late, I've ordered it!