Opinions on this laptop please?

ION08

Hi all,

I think its a bout time to upgrade my current HP laptop which ive had since '05.

Ive had a look at the stickied buying guide thread which i found very usefull.

I'll mainly be using it for internet, college work (Word, Powerpoint etc) and iTunes.

I need it to boot up quickly and be relatively fast, so im going for an i3 processor, which seems to be the right choice.

This seems to fit the bill perfectly, the only issue is that 4Gb RAM seems to the be the standard nowdays, whereas this one is only 3GB , should i let this put me off?

Are there any better laptops to be had for around this price range?

http://www.harveynorman.ie/hp-g62-b18sa-laptop.html


Thanks for any opinions!

Dr_Phil

Go for it..

In fairness anything on the market will be fine for what you need.

johnmcdnl

4gb of ram isn't going to do anything extra for you especially for what you want it to do - 3gb is more than enough for anyone that isn't doing any high end work basically...

go for it i say

ION08

Ok great thanks.

So are HP a reliable brand, or would a Toshiba be a safer bet?

I've heard that HP have a bad reputation?

GarRo247

ION08 wrote: »

Ok great thanks.

So are HP a reliable brand, or would a Toshiba be a safer bet?

I've heard that HP have a bad reputation?

Toshiba are fairly constantly reliable, but HP can vary, all the DV series, DV6000 ect are very unreliable, but some HP models have lasted people years. The DV600 was recalled because the wireless card went in nearly every one of them, and a few of the various DV9000 models have been recalled.

EDIT: As far as I know the model you are looking at is fairly reliable. I looked up the model number on the server in our repair shop and we have only seen one of them and that was for a screen replacement after it was stood on, so not a manufacturers fault. We repair 50 to 100 laptops a week so not seeing it is a good thing, but this model hasn't been around for long, so as it may not have known short term problems, it may have long term problems. HP are usually fairly good with dealing with these problems though.

ION08

yeah my current one is a HP pavilion DV1000

The screen illumination went within the first year, which i got fixed under warranty but laptop came back with a dodgy ESC key and a big scratch :rolleyes:

The charger broke aswell, admittedly after 3 years.

Battery wont hold a charge. for more than 15 mins

And the fan is very noisy and seems to constantly be blowing full speed. It over-heats way too easily (have to keeep it perched up on one side)


Theoretically this should put me off buying a HP again, but it doesnt, mainly because it has never caused me any other headaches with regards to running performance! It boots up quickly and opens up programmes within 30 seconds of switching it on, never freezes or crashes etc. so this is primarily what im looking for.

GarRo247

ION08 wrote: »

Battery wont hold a charge. for more than 15 mins

The average battery life on a laptop where the battery is regularly used is 2 to 3 years so the battery not holding a charge wouldn't surprise me in most laptops, its kinda expected after a few years, its the same as any rechargeable battery.

Dr_Phil

ION08 wrote: »

Ok great thanks.

So are HP a reliable brand, or would a Toshiba be a safer bet?

I've heard that HP have a bad reputation?

I personally prefer Dell. But these days it's all really a commercial market, they are pretty much the same. You will always find people who tell you that one brand is better/worse than the other. It's really a personal experience and preference. I believe that both HP and Toshiba are made in China of the same components, in similar factories. If you like the laptop and the specs cover your needs - just buy it and enjoy.

GarRo247

Dr_Phil wrote: »

I personally prefer Dell. But these days it's all really a commercial market, they are pretty much the same. You will always find people who tell you that one brand is better/worse than the other. It's really a personal experience and preference. I believe that both HP and Toshiba are made in China of the same components, in similar factories. If you like the laptop and the specs cover your needs - just buy it and enjoy.

I would agree, Dell, Sony, Toshiba or Apple, would usually be my first choice though. The only reason I mentioned Toshiba was because the op asked about it. From what I can tell I think both brands are made by the same company in the Philippines. The designers are different though, and how the laptop is designed would have a big impact on reliability.

ION08

GarRo247 wrote: »

I would agree, Dell, Sony, Toshiba or Apple, would usually be my first choice though. The only reason I mentioned Toshiba was because the op asked about it. From what I can tell I think both brands are made by the same company in the Philippines. The designers are different though, and how the laptop is designed would have a big impact on reliability.

So would you recommend coughing up another €129 and goin for this one instead??

http://www.harveynorman.ie/sony-laptop-vpceb3j1e-bq.html

ION08

Hey all thanks for your advice so far.

Ill be hoping to keep this laptop for another 5 years hopefully so for the sake of another €180 i've changed my mind and decided to go for this Sony one instad

From what ive heard SONY are meant to be very reliable
It has 4gb RAM as opposed to the HP which has 3gb
And it has a 14" screen, which i prefer, in comparison to a 15.5"
It looks quite sleek too (I'll be getting it in black)

So you reckon this is a good buy?

http://www.harveynorman.ie/sony-laptop-vpcea3m1el.html

Thanks

GarRo247

ION08 wrote: »

So would you recommend coughing up another €129 and goin for this one instead??

http://www.harveynorman.ie/sony-laptop-vpceb3j1e-bq.html

If you are definitely going to keep it for 5 years I'd say the Sony is more likely to last that time. If your buying a Sony try going to your nearest Sony centre, they have a vat back policy going on now so you will get the vat back off it, its unlikely but it could work out cheaper than harvey norman. and its always better to shop around.

Another option would be to get a cheeper but decent laptop for maybe 300 - 350 and replace it in 2 to 3 years, Sony's are often over priced for the spec, if you think about it, other then reliability your only getting an extra gig of ram for €129.

Overall if your looking to get a laptop that has to last 5 years the Sony looks like a good choice.

GarRo247

ION08 wrote: »

Hey all thanks for your advice so far.

Ill be hoping to keep this laptop for another 5 years hopefully so for the sake of another €180 i've changed my mind and decided to go for this Sony one instad

From what ive heard SONY are meant to be very reliable
It has 4gb RAM as opposed to the HP which has 3gb
And it has a 14" screen, which i prefer, in comparison to a 15.5"
It looks quite sleek too (I'll be getting it in black)

So you reckon this is a good buy?

http://www.harveynorman.ie/sony-laptop-vpcea3m1el.html

Thanks

I didn't notice that this has a HD screen and a lot better graphics card than the other two and 512mb of graphics ram. The other two share the regular ram with graphics card the and use it as graphics ram too which reduces performance nd appearence. this is fairly good value for money considering its a Sony. The picture quality on this will be a lot clearer than the HP or the 15.5 inch Sony. Also the graphics card will mean it should still be more up to date in 5 years where the HP and Sony will be more outdated.

ION08

Thats great, cheers for your advice GarRo247

Just wanted to make sure i'm buying something decent if i'm gonna be spending just shy of 800 quid.

I think i'll hold off buying for another few days in the hope that prices come down after Christmas!

Jonny7

As with anything, check reviews on google or owner forums for people who've had actual hands on -

I almost got a small Dell laptop until I read online that no one could stand the awful trackpad.. I steered well clear