Advice on purchasing a laptop

orange.organic

Hi,
i want to buy a laptop but would like advice on the type of laptop i should purchase. I really don't want to spend over 800euro and wouldnt mind buying second hand.
The main usage i want out of the laptop is for the internet to d/l music, films, etc. And also i play CS occasionally. I would also like to use Matlab on it if possibe, where it doesnt run ultra slow.
I mainly want to purchase one because i am moving away but i will be using it at an outlet more so than moving around.
I have come across two laptops on my search and would really like some advice on whether i should consider purchasing one of them or if i should look elsewhere.
The specs are below and any help in relation to this would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

Laptop 1
(being sold on ebay, current bid $120 with 4days left)
GATEWAY SOLO 600YG2

Processor
Intel Pentium 4-M 2.0 GHZ
Memory
Installed RAM 512MB
Max Supported RAM 1024MB
Hard Drive
Hard Drive Capacity 40 GB
Optical Drive
DVD/CDRW COMBO

Display
15"7 XGA TFT Active Matrix
Video
ATI Mobility Graphics

Audio
Integrated sound card
Networking
Integrated 10/100 Network CarD

802.1g 54Mbps wireless cardbus adapter

Modem
Integrated 56K ready modem
External Ports
2 USB 2.0, VGA,Parallel,Serial,PS/2,IEEE 1394 (Firewire),Headphone/speaker jack
Mic
Battery
As-is battery(Not sure if it is holding charge)

AC Adapter
Included
Operating System
WinXP installed with COA(No CDs Included)



Laptop 2

Acer Aspira 3000 Laptop for Sale Athlon 3000 Processor with 512Megs of Ram 60Gig HD, Modem, Lan, Wireless, DVD-Writer, 15.4Wide Screen €650.00 XP-Home Licence

majiktripp

There both fairly run of the mill machines,keep an eye out on this ebay shop...
http://stores.ebay.ie/Dell-Outlet
As they have brilliant offers on there from the Dell outlet! You may find a better bargain!

easyontheeye

heres my 2cents...dont get a packard bell! :mad:

majiktripp

^^ I Agree ^^
Packard Bells not the best build around but..I worked on one yesterday and they do look nice I have to admit...the new ones anyways...

orange.organic

i always hear they're not the best but i know someone who has one and he loves it. do they malfunction alot?

majiktripp

Older models do,but the newer ones seem to be a bit better built alright.I hated the older models see through keyboard...looked cheapo and nasty

easyontheeye

my PB is about a year old...it sounds like a harrier jump jet taking off..the fan could suck up all the air on the planet! when i play dvds it....windows media player freezes...after about 10 mins of playing music the sound goes and i have to reboot!

norrie rugger

easyontheeye wrote:

my PB is about a year old...it sounds like a harrier jump jet taking off..the fan could suck up all the air on the planet! when i play dvds it....windows media player freezes...after about 10 mins of playing music the sound goes and i have to reboot!

did you contact them?
their after sales is top notch

i always heard bad things about them but few years ago the parents bought a 1.5ghtz PB desktop (when 1.5 was a huge thing).

1 speaker blew after 2 weeks, phoned them and after 2 days a new sound pack (2 external speakers and sub woofer) arrived

have an easy note laptop (1 year) and have had no trouble with it (untill windows decided to let itself get infested with spyware (think i finally rooted it all out)

outstanding screen on the laptop, fan makes a little noise but not much more than comparable laptops.
only problem i have with the PB is the battery life

rawmish

orange.organic wrote:

I really don't want to spend over 800euro and wouldnt mind buying second hand.
<snip>
The main usage i want out of the laptop is for the internet to d/l music, films, etc. And also i play CS occasionally. I would also like to use Matlab on it if possibe, where it doesnt run ultra slow.
<snip>
i will be using it at an outlet more so than moving around.

These two will do the job, but you're way-overkilling for the intended use.

You did not precise which CS: CS (HL1 engine) or CS (HL2 engine)?

Any early 1.6 Centrino, 256/512 RAM and a decent ATi/nVidia bespoke (not shared) graphics card will do all of the above with ease, and set you back €300-€350 max-max-maximum on eBay... that's with a new battery, bag, restore CDs and plenty of toys.

Prefer DELLs as second-handers, as they and parts are plentiful... therefore cheap. Bear in mind that lappies and FPS are not a match in heaven - trackpads are a pain to use, so budget for an extra mouse/trackball.

Take the battery out while you'll be using it on outlet.