Looking for advice - Not a Novice!

Lash_Alert

Hey guys,

Basically looking at laptops at the minute for a mate. He wants to spend between 500 - 600, but wouldnt mind paying a bit extra for quality if needed. Heres the kind of specs we're looking at....

Atleast 4 Gb Ram
320 - 500 gb hard drive
Icore i5 Processer( this is one of my main questions)


This laptop is going to be used for mostly basic stuff, but want a laptop thats more than able to do this, and anything else should i need it to in the future.

For example, i got a laptop for college 4 years back, but instead of getting a basic dell i got an XPS - 4gb ram, 2.4 ghz T8300 15 inch laptop. Serious piece of machinary. My mate is the same kind of mind frame. Reason im asking advice is that i aint looked at laptops in a few years so not sure on the current processers, which is best, which is gonna be replaced soon bla bla bla.

Which processor is better, the i3 core, or the i5?

So bascially any advice appreciated.

At the minute hes looking at Acers 5750, but i have my reservations - This is the kind of model hes looking at

http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/Acer_Aspire_5750G_1053008.html

But id prefer something like this -

http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/ASUS_B53F-SO160X_1054166.html

What are peoples opinions??

Thanks

Myself, id much rather a Asus

DjFlin

As far as your Processor question goes, a Core i5 is better than an i3, and an i7 is the best.

I've no personal experience with Acer, but I've been told by friends that they're not great.

Asus are great, and I've had a Dell Studio for two years now and its still running smooth.

Theres my two cents.

Lash_Alert

I had assumed as much, but been seeing people talk about the "new generation" "sandy........"(whatever its called) icore i5. So whats the story with this like, how do i know if the laptop i buy has it?

Thanks for your help. Not a big fan of Acer myself. Love my XPS though and like the looks of ASUS

Calraigh B

All the 2nd gen (or 'Sandybridge' as they're called) processors all start with 2.

So look for processors like i3 2310, i5 2410, i7 2630. All the quad cores are i7, the dual cores are i5.

Last years processors, or the previous gen, are in some cases the same price if not more as this years and 2nd gen are considerably faster, so it's worth checking the model.


I'm in no way an expert, I just informed myself in the everlasting hunt for a laptop after getting burned badly by PCWorld and HP. A perfect storm, if ever there was one.

Just bought an ASUS myself and it's yet to be delivered but it sounds great. Fingers crossed! Everybody (and I mean everybody) I've talked to has great things to say about them. You might have to compromise here and there on looks or keyboards or whatever but every repair shop I've been into has consistently said they never get them in.

Just my 2 cent as the man said!

Lash_Alert

Thanks for that. Yea that seems to be what im hearing too. Well all the models ive been loking at have bee....2 bla bla bla so thats good to know!

Do you have a link to the laptop you ordered by any chance?

Calraigh B

This is the one I've ordered but there's a great selection on that site (Komplett) and it's free shipping at the moment. Best selection I've seen around t'internets.

Best of luck!

Lash_Alert

thanks for your help!

Looking at the Lenovo g570 now

http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/Lenovo_G570_1076390.html

What do people think, the specs are very impressive, keyboard seems impressive and has a blueray driver....So what am i missing?

Calraigh B

I had a look at that too but the screen was a dealbreaker. On a 15''6 screen, you need something higher resolution than 1366x768. Blu-rays would look **** on it for example. And the graphics could be better. If you can live with that though, it's a really good deal. It's hard to better the specs on it at that price.

Hal Emmerich

Calraigh B wrote: »

I had a look at that too but the screen was a dealbreaker. On a 15''6 screen, you need something higher resolution than 1366x768. Blu-rays would look **** on it for example. And the graphics could be better. If you can live with that though, it's a really good deal. It's hard to better the specs on it at that price.

I'd imagine 1080p would be overkill on a 15 inch laptop.

Calraigh B

Well, you say that but this screen in particular is closer to 16'' in the first place and secondly I just don't agree. Anything less than than full hd displays most of the video I'll be working with horrifically.
Different strokes?

Lash_Alert

Thing is, dont think he'll be using the laptop as a blueray display itself, if hes using the blueray, id say he'll be using it as a player, and using his tv as the display (42 inch hd), through the HDMI, which would get rid of this worry no?

What are lenovo like as a brand?

Thanks again

DjFlin

Calraigh B wrote: »

This is the one I've ordered but there's a great selection on that site (Komplett) and it's free shipping at the moment. Best selection I've seen around t'internets.

Best of luck!

I'd just like to add that I love Komplett, I buy all my computer stuff from them, and have never had a problem. Superfast delivery too.

Lash_Alert wrote: »

Thing is, dont think he'll be using the laptop as a blueray display itself, if hes using the blueray, id say he'll be using it as a player, and using his tv as the display (42 inch hd), through the HDMI, which would get rid of this worry no?

What are lenovo like as a brand?

Thanks again

It might be worth his while looking into getting a seperate BluRay player. I know someone who got a Sony Vaio with BR, and he hates it. Apparently the video stutters, plus he hasnt got a remote.
Bluray players are quite cheap now, so it might be a good idea to price them separately.

Calraigh B

DjFlin wrote: »

I'd just like to add that I love Komplett, I buy all my computer stuff from them, and have never had a problem. Superfast delivery too.



Have you ever had anything delivered to the pick-up point? Just wondering about how much time that shaves off the actual processing?

Calraigh B

Lash_Alert wrote: »

Thing is, dont think he'll be using the laptop as a blueray display itself, if hes using the blueray, id say he'll be using it as a player, and using his tv as the display (42 inch hd), through the HDMI, which would get rid of this worry no?

What are lenovo like as a brand?

Thanks again

Good point. Lenovo are fantastic- they're essentially IBM machines, although they're chinese owned now. They're built like tanks, and are one of the most reliable brands on the market. The Thinkpads are renowned for being ultra-reliable. They're a little bit retro looking (although the EDGE series aren't, they're similar to everything thin and light on the market) and I suppose that turns a lot of people off. I think they look great though, kind of industrial.
For the same spec though, they're way out of the OP's price range.
That G570 is a really good deal though, I think.

Calraigh B

DjFlin wrote: »

I'd just like to add that I love Komplett, I buy all my computer stuff from them, and have never had a problem. Superfast delivery too.

Have you ever had anything delivered to the pick-up point? Just wondering about how much time that shaves off the actual processing?

DjFlin

Calraigh B wrote: »

Have you ever had anything delivered to the pick-up point? Just wondering about how much time that shaves off the actual processing?

Nope, I dont have a car, so its easier for me to get stuff delivered.

Generally my orders arrive within 3 days, and shipping has always been free for me.

Calraigh B

That's pretty great. I ordered yesterday to the p-up so I guess I'm looking at next week. Ah well