Replacement Parts or New Laptop?

[Piemaster]

I use a mouse. I detest touch pads.
I may be beyond redemption.

Touch pads are so dated. Touchscreens are the future.

Actually having a laptop with one I'm not that convinced. Ok for a bit of browsing on the sofa in tablet mode, but using an on-screen keyboard isn't for me and leaves horrible greasy fingerprints on the screen for when I actually want to use the keyboard for typing on.

 

[Cycleops]

When looking for a new machine I would suggest one of the convertible laptop/tablets. You can still have a keyboard. Microsoft Surfaces are good but pricey, there are lots of alternatives out there. They won’t have a mechanical hard drive but a SSD which means they’ll be way faster. Look for reviews on YouTube.

 

[Crackle]

This is what I'm considering as a possible replacement:

http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/comput...5-5000-15-6-laptop-fog-grey-10152551-pdt.html

There's not much choice in the 5 to 600-ish pound price bracket with the spec that I want. Anything cheaper and I'd be making compromises. Funny how it goes, a few months ago there was a lot more choice at this screen size / spec / price point...

Dell are not the company they once were. I'd be looking towards Lenovo, Asus and Acer these days and I would be looking for one with an SSD drive. The other thing to consider is buying a slightly more portable size and pairing it with a docking station and larger monitor when you need it.

 

[Milkfloat]

How does this work?

It doesn't, well not for long. Generally people pay about £5 for a 'license for life'. You pay your money and get sent an email with a new email address and a password to tag onto someones volume Office 365 license. These are designed for big corporations so the seller is breaking all sorts of copyright. Also, at any moment they or Microsoft could pull the plug. Ok, you are just a few quid down but then you need to go through the rigmarole again.

 

[Crackle]

How does this work?

It depends on who you go to but you will find people like these https://softwaregeeks.co.uk/ selling oem copies of software which they've acquired genuinely, rather than some dodgy copy or license. I've used them twice with absolutely no issues.

 

[slowmotion]

It doesn't, well not for long. Generally people pay about £5 for a 'license for life'. You pay your money and get sent an email with a new email address and a password to tag onto someones volume Office 365 license. These are designed for big corporations so the seller is breaking all sorts of copyright. Also, at any moment they or Microsoft could pull the plug. Ok, you are just a few quid down but then you need to go through the rigmarole again.

That's not my experience. I bought Office 2013 from a seller on eBay. They send you a link to a download site and email you a licence key. You download the software and activate it with the key. It works, at least in my case anyway.

 

[Reynard]

When looking for a new machine I would suggest one of the convertible laptop/tablets. You can still have a keyboard. Microsoft Surfaces are good but pricey, there are lots of alternatives out there. They won’t have a mechanical hard drive but a SSD which means they’ll be way faster. Look for reviews on YouTube.

The screens are too small on those, alas. I do a lot of photo editing, so I really do need to see what I'm doing. Plus they don't have a DVD drive, which is something else that I use a lot. They're a good idea, but I'd get frustrated with one very quickly.

 

[Reynard]

The other thing to consider is buying a slightly more portable size and pairing it with a docking station and larger monitor when you need it.

In theory, that might work, in practice not so well. One, I do move around a lot and two, when I've got loads of camera gear with me, the last thing I need is yet more stuff to carry around. That's why I'm being pretty specific in terms of what I need.

 

[Reynard]

Touch pads are so dated. Touchscreens are the future.

Actually having a laptop with one I'm not that convinced. Ok for a bit of browsing on the sofa in tablet mode, but using an on-screen keyboard isn't for me and leaves horrible greasy fingerprints on the screen for when I actually want to use the keyboard for typing on.

I'm of a similar mind, having already had a poke and prod of a few. I do a lot of typing, so that would also drive me nuts.

 

[oldfatfool]

For new take a look at cclonline, tend to be a tad cheaper than currys for better spec.

 

[Reynard]

Brain's been catching up with me this afternoon...

If I ditch the built-in DVD drive and buy an external USB one (they're around £25 from what I can see and can slide into a bag), I get a whole lot more choice. This may be a better option, because otherwise, I'm sort of stuck with the Dell by default, and if I don't like it, then that could be a problem.

Anyone got any thought about processors? Ditching the DVD drive means there's AMD, then Intels, variously Celeron, Pentium (N & Gold) & Core... Is there anything that I should really avoid?

 

[Reynard]

Been pondering...

I plan on sitting tight for the moment with the generic power cable and see if I can get a good deal in the pre-xmas sales. Gives me the chance to go and poke & prod, ask questions and generally not rush into anything.

Wouldn't mind some advice re processors as asked above.

But cheers ears for the advice folks.

 

[simon the viking]

Don't buy a 6.99 one off ebay/amazon I bought one that looked like a genuine Toshiba one and it killed the laptop. Popped some expensive transformer thingy inside and scrapped the laptop

 

[Reynard]

I already have a couple of generic power packs courtesy of Maplin Useful when you're in the habit of not always remembering one's cables LOL