New laptop from Aldi - good buy or not?

dixiefly

I was wondering what people think of this specification for the money. The problem I have with the laptops from Aldi/ Lidl is that you cant try it out and get the feel of the keyboard etc, which is a pretty big deal for such an expensive purchase.
On the other hand there is a great 3 year warranty and their electronic stuff is generally of a high quality.

What does everyone think?

http://www.aldi.ie/ie/html/print/58_8082.htm

Medion® Akoya® E6210
only €589.99 *

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Performance designed for life on the go

Intel® Pentium® Dual-Core processor T3400 (2.16 GHz, 1 MB L2 cache, 667 MHz FSB) has proved a particularly powerful system. Increase your efficiency by the simultaneous execution of multiple applications: Edit a video and download music simultaneously from the Internet or use sound business applications, while security tasks are executed.

Intel® Pentium® Dual-Core technology
with Intel® Pentium® Dual-Core processor T3400 (2,16 GHz, 1 MB L2 cache, FSB 667 MHz)

Massive storage
250 GB Western Digital hard disk for storing more than 50,000 music tracks/photos*

Huge memory
3GB DDR2 SDRAM

Home cinema experience in 16:9
16" TFT widescreen display with HD resolution (1366 × 768 pixels)

Crystal clear graphics
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 4500 MHD based on PCI-Express technology incl. digital HDMI audio/video output

High speed wireless connections
Wireless LAN 802.11 b/g Draft-n with up to 300 Mbit/s. 802.11 b/g compatible**

Battery life
Powerful 8 cell Li-ion rechargeable battery

Burn CDs and DVDs
LG 8× multi-standard DVD/CD Burner with DVD-RAM and Dual Layer support***

Stay connected
Gigabit Ethernet LAN (10/100/1000 Mbit/s.) on board

Convenient extended keyboard
Integrated numeric key pad

Ports and connections

4in1 Multicard reader**** for SD, MMC, MS & MS Pro
1 × Express Card Slot 54
3 × USB 2.0
1 × eSATA/USB 2.0
1 × HDMI Out
1 × VGA Out
1 × LAN (RJ45)
1 × Mic In
1 × Line In
1 × Line Out
6 Channel Audio Out (analogue & S/P-DIF)


Connect this notebook to a HD-Ready TV via the HDMI port to experience brilliant colours and picture perfect clarity with pure digital surround sound. The ultimate high definition digital cinema experience.

Huge Software Package (OEM Versions)
pre-installed and/or on CD/DVD and recovery DVD or CD

Windows Vista® Home Premium with new Media Centre user interface incl. Service Pack 1
Microsoft® Works® 9.0 incl. Office Home and Student Trial Version 60 days test version (Internet connection required for activation). After 60 days you have to purchase a licence if you want to continue using the product.
Nero essentials (Nero Burning ROM 8, Nero Recode 3, Nero Express 8, Nero Vision 5)***
Corel®Draw Essentials 3 + Corel® MediaOne™
BullGuard Internet Security Pack Incl. 90 days update (free registration required) via Internet. After 90 days you have to purchase a licence if you want to receive ongoing updates.
System Recovery powered by Symantec www.symantec.com

Accessories included

Notebook carry bag
AC-adaptor
Li-ion high capacity battery
USB scroll mouse
Windows Vista® Home Premium recovery DVD

All the support you need
36 month manufacturer’s warranty. MEDION offer a telephone support hotline charged at National Rates and a return to manufacturer service for repair.

R3al

dixiefly wrote: »

On the other hand there is a great 3 year warranty and their electronic stuff is generally of a high quality.


Medion® Akoya® E6210
only €589.99 *

---

Performance designed for life on the go

Intel® Pentium® Dual-Core processor T3400 (2.16 GHz, 1 MB L2 cache, 667 MHz FSB) has proved a particularly powerful system.
Intel® Pentium® Dual-Core technology
with Intel® Pentium® Dual-Core processor T3400 (2,16 GHz, 1 MB L2 cache, FSB 667 MHz)

Massive storage
250 GB Western Digital hard disk for storing more than 50,000 music tracks/photos*

Huge memory
3GB DDR2 SDRAM

I am not familiar with medion so cant comment on the brand, the most important factor is the after sales support if something goes wrong, can you take it back to Aldi?

I dont know about all the "massive"s and huge"s as the specs seem fairly standard these days

There is quite a large range of notebooks available in the EUR600 price range nowadays so it might be an idea to do a keep sweep of the web and see if you can find any comparable deals.

The 3 year warranty seems good as long as there is no small print

madmik

a lotta the software is garbage that will slow ur pc to a crawl

i have heard bad things about medions warranty because even though they do fix it it theres no time frame they have to fix it by and repairs can drag on past 4 weeks

the specs are good though for that money

its a fairly competent laptop and definately not the worst buy on the market

u might not even need to use the warranty

art

madmik wrote: »

a lotta the software is garbage that will slow ur pc to a crawl

Don't know what you mean by that: MS Works won't do anything like that and is useful, the Office trial won't, Corel Draw won't and is useful, Nero shouldn't and is useful and Bullguard is recognised as having one of the lowest overheads of all Internet Security packages so can't see the problem there either?

Mmcd

16" TFT widescreen display with HD resolution (1366 × 768 pixels)

No blu-ray drive though!

allthedoyles

At € 589 , i reckon you best to go for an equilivent Sony/Toshiba /HP/Compaq

projectmayhem

Girlfriend bought a similar deal about 2 years ago from Aldi. It took 5 months of sending it back to manufacturers in Germany before it came back in working order. Nightmare of a machine, and it's giving up the ghost now.

For the price you can get a similar (or better) machine in normal computer retailers, or even better - online.

.Bob

well i can say medion laptops are very good, ive mine almost 3 years now, only gave up when i decided to mess with it too much. but i found it very reliable and good sturdy laptop and medion always give good batterys aswell.

the only thing is that they always gives you heaps of crap software, uninstall it all, get rid of microsoft works as its only a trial and get open office.

id say go for it. but get up at 8am to q outside aldi if its only a promo!

dixiefly

.Bob wrote: »

well i can say medion laptops are very good, ive mine almost 3 years now, only gave up when i decided to mess with it too much. but i found it very reliable and good sturdy laptop and medion always give good batterys aswell.

the only thing is that they always gives you heaps of crap software, uninstall it all, get rid of microsoft works as its only a trial and get open office.

id say go for it. but get up at 8am to q outside aldi if its only a promo!

Thanks but I really dont think the the deal is sufficiently good to queue as the nearest Aldi is about 40 mins away. I may buy it as I am in the market for a laptop but not going to panic either way about this one.

art

There's a similarly specced laptop for sale in Dabs (online) at the moment which might interest you:

http://www.dabs.ie/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=5C6T&CategorySelectedId=11012&SearchTerms=5C6N+56CV+5C6T+5C71+5C74+5C75+5C37+58M4+58M5+58M6&PageMode=3&SearchKey=P_Quicklinx&SearchMode=any&NavigationKey=11012

Not sure which processor exactly is being used there but the processor in the Medion one was quite old too anyway. But otherwise, I thought the Aldi one quite decent, good to get the laptop bag and software etc all included in the price.

dixiefly

Thanks,
Actually I bit the bullet and bought the following for £551 stg on ebay. I know its a little risky but the vendor says its new in the box sealed.

Not a massive bargain in ebay terms as there are others that have been sold cheaper but good value compared to normal proces here.

Sony Vaio VGN-FW21L PC Notebook


Intel Core 2 Duo processor T5800, Processor speed 2.00 GHz

16.4" WXGA++(1600*900)LCD

3GB DDR2 SDRAM (1*2GB + 1*1GB) (800MHz)

250GB hard drive

ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3470

Blu-ray Disc Combo Drive

(BD ROM/DVD RW/R DL/RAM DRIVE)

Memory Stick Slot(standard/ Duo size, Magicgate, Memory stick pro compatible) and SD memory card slot

Wireless LAN 802.11A/B/G/N, Ethernet, Moderm, Bluetooth and Camera

3 Hi-Speed USB 2.0 ports

wandatowell

madmik wrote: »

i have heard bad things about medions warranty because even though they do fix it it theres no time frame they have to fix it by and repairs can drag on past 4 weeks

More than enough of a reason for me not to buy one,

cheers

art

wandatowell wrote: »

More than enough of a reason for me not to buy one,

cheers

You've obviously little experience of returning things to be fixed to any major retailers so, dragging on for four weeks is par for the course

lassykk

I bought this laptop just before christmas and I'm delighted with it.

Better specs than the aldi one for less money

http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/Acer_Aspire_5920G_Laptop_LX.AQB0X.612/version.asp

As for software I wouldn't be looking for anything like MS works or corel draw so they wouldn't add value for me in a purchase

gerrymadden1

The spec on the Medion is pretty impressive and looks like great value... UNTIL... you log on to the Aldi UK site and see the same item for £450.00 which equals €481.00 as of 16:30 exchange rates.

Thats €110.00 cheaper for UK customers.

Doesn't look such a bargain buy anymore!!!

manafana

thats pretty precise exchange rates you got add 10% on top costs in irish shops much higher than uk along with exchange charges.

gerrymadden1

... come on... let's get real here... even allowing for a 10 per cent difference between UK & Irish overheads, it's still €60 euro cheaper in the UK. And as far as I understand, Aldi pay rates in the UK are not 10% lower than here.

€110 euro cheaper for an identical item is simply not acceptable.

It's just another case of being ripped off.

Rob_l

OP simply no its not good value you can get another laptop for a similiar price too many things to complain about, i have a previous medion laptop which had an issues sure i did get it repaired but dealing with the support was a nightmare and for that alone i wouldn't recommend to anyone, the laptop now runs fine, but most of the software they talk about is trial version crap and the laptop does really need a re-install just to clear the junk from it. If you have no problem these laptops are fine and the three year support seems to good to be true because it is their support is brutal and will only leave you frustrated should you have to deal with it.

Gran Hermano

gerrymadden1 wrote: »

... come on... let's get real here... even allowing for a 10 per cent difference between UK & Irish overheads, it's still €60 euro cheaper in the UK. And as far as I understand, Aldi pay rates in the UK are not 10% lower than here.

€110 euro cheaper for an identical item is simply not acceptable.

It's just another case of being ripped off.

Have you examined differences in:
- UK VAT compared to Irish VAT
- Minimum wage in Ireland compared to UK
- Wee charge in Ireland

Yes there is a price difference but it's not like there is a major rip-off going on.

pwd

Mmcd wrote: »

16" TFT widescreen display with HD resolution (1366 × 768 pixels)

No blu-ray drive though!

768 is normal dvd resolution. blu ray films would usually be 1080 so they wouldn't look any better on the laptop screen than dvds. You'd have to connect it to an external display with the hdmi for there to be any point wanting blu ray with that laptop

tonyboy247

thanks for the detail my friend but lets face it ...if you have a decent system for sale would you let aldi retail it for you?????now your talking...when you want fruit and veg do you go to the computer shop...no....same rules really ....oh and who the hell is medion???...sounds like a travel agent or racehorse...i suspect you will be in for a long hard ride on this one.;)

Paulu

Dont buy Medion. They are great when working but if they need to be returned to Medion it is a disaster. I returned one 2 months ago and I still have not got it repaired. In my opinion DONT BUY MEDION

Jarren

What was the problem with your laptop, any warranty left ?

longhalloween

3 years after this thread was created, I doubt there's any warranty left.

Jarren

longhalloween wrote: »

3 years after this thread was created, I doubt there's any warranty left.

The thread is maybe three years old but was bumped just yesterday.

Paulu

Yes still under warranty.

The computer is not charging when plugged in. Medion claim it needs a new mother board. They have agreed to fix it under warranty but returned it last time and did not fix the problem. I have returned it again to Medion and its now with them over a month and still trying to get it from them. promised last week it would be with me yesterday or today latest.

Jarren

well if they didn't fix the problem first time you may have case

If you purchased laptop from Aldi/lidl


Repair
If you request a repair of a faulty product instead of rejecting it, it should be a permanent repair. If the same fault occurs again, then you should be entitled to a replacement or refund. If you are not happy with the retailer’s offer to repair the item, you can reject it. But if you do this, you may have to use the Small Claims process if you want to take the matter further.

Remember, the retailer may charge you for the repair if you have been responsible for the damage to the product.

http://www.nca.ie/nca/faulty-goods

Send a registered letter to a retailer where you bought your laptop outlining your consumer rights and ask for a money refund or replacement.

If they say no the next step should be the small claims court.

Paulu

I eventually got my Laptop last week after nearly 3 months since I first send it. My advise is do not buy a Medion Laptop

ED E

A friend went through 4 of their desktops with mobo failings.

The only thing going for them is that they're not eMachines, and they're not much better anyways.