Laptop Recommendation

rickyjb · 21-09-2012 10:16am #1

I'm getting a laptop for somebody else, he's returning to college to do computer programming and wants something with good processing power that's also reasonably future proof.

Any recommendations for something with a 3rd gen i5 processor and 8gb of RAM? Preferrably something fairly durable with a ~15" screen and decent battery life. Windows Pro would be a bonus but not essential.Won't be used for gaming so a graphics card is not needed, on-board should be fine.

Ones I've seen so far have been 550-650 but I know he wouldn't mind stretching a little more if it was justified, to 800 max probably.

Thanks.

rickyjb · 21-09-2012 10:56am

Any thoughts on either of these:

http://www.komplett.ie/Komplett/product/15_16_inch/80007712/lenovo_15_6_z580_m81ezmh_i7_3520_6gb_750gb/details.aspx

http://www.komplett.ie/Komplett/product/15_16_inch/80007711/lenovo_15_6_g580_mbbf2mh_i5_3210_6gb_750gb/details.aspx

Is the quad-core i7 3520 chip even any better than the i5 3210, will it decrease the battery life unnecessarily?

And finally would 6gb RAM be fine for the forseeable future or should I try and get 8 if at all possible?

Torqay · 21-09-2012 11:24am

rickyjb wrote: »

Is the quad-core i7 3520 chip even any better than the i5 3210

About 20% faster.

rickyjb wrote: »

will it decrease the battery life unnecessarily?

No, both are dual core CPUs with the same TDP, max 35W.

rickyjb wrote: »

And finally would 6gb RAM be fine for the forseeable future or should I try and get 8 if at all possible?

You can always upgrade the memory later, e.g. replace the 2GB chip with 4 GB.

P.S. Both links are for the same laptop.

rickyjb · 21-09-2012 11:42am

Torqay wrote: »

About 20% faster.

No, both are dual core CPUs with the same TDP, max 35W.

You can always upgrade the memory later, e.g. replace the 2GB chip with 4 GB.

P.S. Both links are for the same laptop.

My mistake, I thought all i7 chips were quad core.

Came across this from another thread on here for almost exactly the same price as the i7 laptop above, which would you go for out of the two?

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

Torqay · 21-09-2012 11:44am

rickyjb wrote: »

something with good processing power that's also reasonably future proof... something fairly durable with a ~15" screen and decent battery life.

Ones I've seen so far have been 550-650 but I know he wouldn't mind stretching a little more if it was justified, to 800 max probably.

I recommend the Thinkpad Edge 530 with a Core i7 3612QM. €730 at the Lenovo shop.

A quad core processor, specified at a TDP of only 35 Watt but a lot faster than the dual core chips. Memory upgrade to 6 or 8 GB should be still within the budget. And it's build like tank.

Torqay · 21-09-2012 11:51am

rickyjb wrote: »

My mistake, I thought all i7 chips were quad core.

If the model no ends with M or U, they're dual core chips, quad core ends with QM.

rickyjb wrote: »

Came across this from another thread on here for almost exactly the same price as the i7 laptop above, which would you go for out of the two?

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

It depends, if your friend wants to play games (at low or medium settings), he'd be better off with the Core i5 / GT 630M combo.

Torqay · 21-09-2012 11:58am

A comparison between the 3 processors:

rickyjb · 21-09-2012 12:02pm

Torqay wrote: »

I recommend the Thinkpad Edge 530 with a Core i7 3612QM. €730 at the Lenovo shop.

A quad core processor, specified at a TDP of only 35 Watt but a lot faster than the dual core chips. Memory upgrade to 6 or 8 GB should be still within the budget. And it's build like tank.

Thanks, I'll check it out.

Torqay wrote: »

If the model no ends with M or U, they're dual core chips, quad core ends with QM.

I see, thanks for clearing it up.

It depends, if your friend wants to play games (at low or medium settings), he'd be better off with the Core i5 / GT 630M combo.

He wouldn't have any interest in playing games I don't think.

Thanks for your replies, very helpful info.

rickyjb · 21-09-2012 12:13pm

Torqay wrote: »

I recommend the Thinkpad Edge 530 with a Core i7 3612QM. €730 at the Lenovo shop.

A quad core processor, specified at a TDP of only 35 Watt but a lot faster than the dual core chips. Memory upgrade to 6 or 8 GB should be still within the budget. And it's build like tank.

It's pricy enough with 8 GB memory, over €900. Even with 6 GB it's 800. Big jump from the 2 €680 models I was looking at. Do the figures you posted below really mean that the processor is almost twice as quick??

Any idea what the battery life would be like on the edge model you mentioned in comparison to the Z model on Komplett that I linked, would the extra power drain it quicker?

rickyjb · 21-09-2012 12:29pm

Torqay wrote: »

A comparison between the 3 processors:

Interesting discussion here about the 2 i7 chips above, seems to be a lot of debate about which is better. Hardly worth the extra €120 in that case?

I know virtualbox is something that he'll be using a lot (to run Ubuntu from Windows), would dual core or quad core suit better for that do you think?

Torqay · 21-09-2012 12:56pm

rickyjb wrote: »

It's pricy enough with 8 GB memory, over €900. Even with 6 GB it's 800. Big jump from the 2 €680 models I was looking at.

There is quite a difference in the build quality between a Thinkpad (business) and an Ideapad (consumer) and that comes at a price but you were asking for durability.

Upgrade the memory yourself, it's is a lot cheaper (8 GB kit, 30 Sterling).

If the budget allows for 800 Euro, the Thinkpad with the Core i7-3612QM is a no brainer.

rickyjb wrote: »

Do the figures you posted below really mean that the processor is almost twice as quick??

Pretty much so, yes. At least as far as raw processing power is concerned.

rickyjb wrote: »

IAny idea what the battery life would be like on the edge model you mentioned in comparison to the Z model on Komplett that I linked, would the extra power drain it quicker?

No, the i7 3612QM is a low power processor, specified at the same TDP as the two dual core chips, 35W TDP max.

According to this review, the battery life can be up to 7.5 hrs, tested with a Core i3 (35W TDP max as well) and the optional 62 Whrs battery (+ €12)

Torqay · 21-09-2012 1:12pm

If you don't mind the Core i5 Processor, the Thinkpad E530 with a Core i5 3210M, 2 GB RAM and 62 Whr battery costs 640 yoyos, upgrade the RAM, and you're just outside your minimum budget. And you get the same build quality.

rickyjb · 21-09-2012 1:29pm

Torqay wrote: »

There is quite a difference in the build quality between a Thinkpad (business) and an Ideapad (consumer) and that comes at a price but you were asking for durability.

Upgrade the memory yourself, it's is a lot cheaper (8 GB kit, 30 Sterling).

If the budget allows for 800 Euro, the Thinkpad with the Core i7-3612QM is a no brainer.

Pretty much so, yes. At least as far as raw processing power is concerned.

No, the i7 3612QM is a low power processor, specified at the same TDP as the two dual core chips, 35W TDP max.

According to this review, the battery life can be up to 7.5 hrs, tested with a Core i3 (35W TDP max as well) and the optional 62 Whrs battery (+ €12)

Review link doesn't work.

Edit: Quote from a different review "The overall build quality of the ThinkPad Edge isn't great, and our test model creaked a lot at the front where the bottom and top pieces of the chassis come together. Furthermore, the side that has the optical drive bends a lot and clicks can be heard when the notebook is picked up from this side; these clicks are the chassis colliding with the front bezel of the DVD burner. Basically, it feels like a budget computer system, despite the modern, cutting-edge CPU that it houses."

Read more: http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/reviews/laptop/3357967/lenovo-thinkpad-edge-e530-review/#ixzz276iTgM1k

I didn't realise it was so cheap to add more memory, is it easy to do?

Might go for the i7 3612QM with 4GB memory and the slightly better battery so.

Are there other brands besides Lenovo I should be considering or have they got it wrapped up at this performance/price point, anybody else?

Torqay · 21-09-2012 2:14pm

rickyjb wrote: »

Review link doesn't work.

Fixed that link.

rickyjb wrote: »

I didn't realise it was so cheap to add more memory, is it easy to do?

Yes, just open the service hatch at the bottom, there's a clip at each side of the memory modules.

This upgrade tutorial also covers a HDD/SSD replacement.

rickyjb wrote: »

Might go for the i7 3612QM with 4GB memory and the slightly better battery so.

That's what I would do.

The build quality is better than your average consumer product but certainly not up there with the Thinkpad T.

rickyjb · 22-09-2012 9:33pm

So I've recommended the Lenovo E530 with 3612QM processor and 4GB memory. Found a 10% off coupon online so it came to 682 euros, which I thought was cheap given the processor. I'll upgrade the memory seperately, much cheaper. Looks very straightforward.

Thanks for the advice Torqay.

rickyjb · 26-09-2012 8:46pm

Just bought a Lenovo E530 with a core i7 3612QM chip and 4GB RAM for 567 euros from the Lenovo website, pretty good deal I thought. Found a 10% voucher online.

I can upgrade the memory to 8GB for an extra 30 quid or so (would've cost 150 to include in the order) so for around 600 I would say that's a decent laptop.

CJIRL1630SEP is the discount code if anyone's interested, i assume it's valid until the end of the month.

breadmonster · 29-09-2012 5:12pm

rickyjb wrote: »

Just bought a Lenovo E530 with a core i7 3612QM chip and 4GB RAM for 567 euros from the Lenovo website, pretty good deal I thought. Found a 10% voucher online.

I can upgrade the memory to 8GB for an extra 30 quid or so (would've cost 150 to include in the order) so for around 600 I would say that's a decent laptop.

CJIRL1630SEP is the discount code if anyone's interested, i assume it's valid until the end of the month.

what site did you use? i got quoted 918 euro for that spec
http://shop.lenovo.com/ieweb/ie/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad-edge/e530

rickyjb · 03-10-2012 6:32pm

breadmonster wrote: »

what site did you use? i got quoted 918 euro for that spec
http://shop.lenovo.com/ieweb/ie/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad-edge/e530

The Lenovo website, the base price was only 6something when I bought it, think it might have been a mistake:D

Actually hang on, I see what's happened they've added in a GT635M graphics card that you can't remove from the configuration.

Still would've been 700 approx. with the voucher (with 500gb HDD and slightly better battery), how are you getting 918?

Voucher looks to be expired, 10% off T series Thinkpads now.

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