Shop or Internet buy

sloppydrunk

Ok here goes.....

im lookin to buy a laptop and want a bit of an all round package, for using internet, downloading, storing music, a bit of gaming and so on..

anyway i tried out a couple of computor shops and compared their prices to laptops.direct over the net

the internet seems a better deal but still im a bit confused by the models as i cant see the exact same ones to compare... for example:

i saw the "Toshiba Sattellite A200-298 FOR 799euro in the shops compared to the Toshiba Satellite L350 FOR 587euro on the net

shop specs:

Intel Core 2 duo T5550 processor 1.83hZ
3072 MB DDR2 RAM 200GBHDD
15.4" Wide XGA CSV
ATI HD 2400 128MB dedicateed Vram
DVD Super Multi

campared to internet
Processor - AMD Turion 64 X2 mobile technology TL-60 ( Dual-Core )
RAM - 2 GB DDR II SDRAM ( 2 x 1 GB )
Hard Drive - 250 GB - Serial ATA-150 - 5400 rpm
Operating System - Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium
Screen - 15.4' TFT 1280 x 800 ( WXGA ) - BrightView
Optical Drive - DVD±RW (±R DL) / DVD-RAM with LightScribe Technology
Graphics - NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS - 256 MB
Bluetooth - No
Notebook Camera - Integrated
Warranty - 1 year warranty

i also lokked at HP Pavillion DV6910EA in shop compared to
HP Pavillion DV6820EA on net

Shop specs:
Intel Core 2 Duo T5750 Processor 2 ghZ
3072 MB DDR2 RAM 250GB HDD
15.4 "
Nvidia GEForce 8400M 256mb Dedicated
DVD Super Multi

internet specs:
Processor - AMD Turion 64 X2 mobile technology TL-60 ( Dual-Core )
RAM - 2 GB DDR II SDRAM ( 2 x 1 GB )
Hard Drive - 250 GB - Serial ATA-150 - 5400 rpm
Operating System - Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium
Screen - 15.4' TFT 1280 x 800 ( WXGA ) - BrightView
Optical Drive - DVD±RW (±R DL) / DVD-RAM with LightScribe Technology
Graphics - NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS - 256 MB
Bluetooth - No
Notebook Camera - Integrated
Warranty - 1 year warranty

im pretty confused by this,, the ones in the shops seem better but do they warranty such a difference in price????

id be grateful for any opinions

cheers

ytareh

Dont buy anything new with an AMD processor !(OK maybe a bit oversimplistic but they are so far behind Intel Core2Duos etc they are dead in the water -Exception -old 'Pentium Ds-Dual Core' are useless also)

AlmightyCushion

ytareh wrote: »

Dont buy anything new with an AMD processor !(OK maybe a bit oversimplistic but they are so far behind Intel Core2Duos etc they are dead in the water -Exception -old 'Pentium Ds-Dual Core' are useless also)

Sorry, that's just wrong. Amd processors can't really compete at the high end but they still offer quite good bang for your buck. The pentium dual cores are basically core 2 duos with half the cache so there is nothing wrong with them either. Considering the vast majority of people only use their laptops for internet/email/office applications, an amd or pentium processor are perfect for this especially seeing as they are generally cheaper.

The shop laptops are better. They have more ram and a faster processor. The second shop laptop is the best of the lot. For gaming all those laptops would perform similarly (graphics card is the main thing to be looking at here) although the first shop laptop would likely be the worst (only 128MB compared to the 8400 with 256MB). The two internet laptops are more or less the same.

If you have the money go with the second shop laptop, if you're on a budget go with either of the internet laptops.

bbtex

AMD OFFERS OLD TECHNOLGY, ITS NOT ONLY PROCESSORS BUT MOTHERBOARD ASWELL. THEY ARE 18MONTS BEHIND INTEL SO WHEN U BUY ONE OF LAPTOP U GET 1,5 YEAR OLD MACHINE WITH WARRENTY. I'M NOT SAYING THAT U R MAKING AN MISTAKE. COMPARE PRICES AND PERFORMANCE.

Alanstrainor

No need for all that caps there btex. Its very annoying.

Tom Dunne

ytareh wrote: »

Dont buy anything new with an AMD processor !(OK maybe a bit oversimplistic but they are so far behind Intel Core2Duos etc they are dead in the water -Exception -old 'Pentium Ds-Dual Core' are useless also)

Silly talk and I am saying that as an ex-intel employee.

It all depends on what the end user wants. Price might be the over-riding factor, therefore AMD might suit.

bbtex wrote: »

AMD OFFERS OLD TECHNOLGY, ITS NOT ONLY PROCESSORS BUT MOTHERBOARD ASWELL. THEY ARE 18MONTS BEHIND INTEL SO WHEN U BUY ONE OF LAPTOP U GET 1,5 YEAR OLD MACHINE WITH WARRENTY. I'M NOT SAYING THAT U R MAKING AN MISTAKE. COMPARE PRICES AND PERFORMANCE.

Stop shouting. And please stop using text speak.

Not everybody wants the latest and greatest technology.

AlmightyCushion

bbtex wrote: »

AMD OFFERS OLD TECHNOLGY,

So do intel. The intel q6600 was released in q1 2007 and is still being sold, this chip is about a year and a half old.

bbtex wrote: »

ITS NOT ONLY PROCESSORS BUT MOTHERBOARD ASWELL.

Amd don't even make motherboards.

bbtex wrote: »

SO WHEN U BUY ONE OF LAPTOP U GET 1,5 YEAR OLD MACHINE WITH WARRENTY.

No you don't, if the machine and the components were made last week then the laptop is 1 week old. Just because a component was released a long time ago doesn't mean that it was manufactured on that date.

bbtex wrote: »

I'M NOT SAYING THAT U R MAKING AN MISTAKE. COMPARE PRICES AND PERFORMANCE.

Amd still offer decent bang for your buck.

Bottom line: If you want bleeding edge and top of the range cpus intel is the way to go, if not then amd still offer good performance.

bbtex

I didnt mean AMD makes mobos but their procs work with old motherboards. If somebody wants save some money then u can buy machine from previous era. AMD procs are 1,5year old from technological development's point of view. I am not big fan of Intel products but I must admitt that their products are better than other makes. If u compare, price, preformance and quality Intel is still better.

ambman

Got one of these in pcworld for 549euro. Smashing laptop.

http://www.pcworld.co.uk/martprd/product/seo/136908#productInformationSection

sloppydrunk

cheers lads very helpful

im pretty sure im gona go for the toshiba in the shop for 799,, although im gona check out a few more shops just in case

seems to me the internet arnt as cheap as they first seem??

anyone know the best place to buy a computor from a real shop,, the one i went to was in maynooth shopping centre,, im gona check out pc world but i have heard ad reports about them... anyone had experience??