Buying a Laptp!

therewillbe

Hi,I need a new Laptop.I dont play games on it.I need 15" or bigger.Reliable Usual standard bits and pieces.My budget is E500.Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance.

Run_to_da_hills

Not bad and good specs.

http://www.maxburns.ie/?ECProduct=3456

therewillbe

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

Not bad and good specs.

http://www.maxburns.ie/?ECProduct=3456

The Asus! Never heard of them.Any good? Thanks

bobbytables

Asus are grand.

http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/ASUS_K53E-SX962V_Windows_7_Laptop_K53E-SX962V/version.asp

For what it sounds like you need your budget is quite good. At that level you can get an i5 processor or 6GB of RAM. I also highly recommend you get rid of Windows & replace with Ubuntu. You won't suffer the same "slowdowns" within weeks/months of purchase. If you primarily use the machine for web browsing/mail/etc, then Linux/Ubuntu is a far superior & freely available

partyatmygaff

You would do much better with the likes of a Dell Outlet Vostro 3750. They call it refurbished but in reality they're new.

Seeing as you can't buy direct from Dell Outlet here in Ireland you'll have to buy off an Ebay reseller. Not really a problem anyway.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Dell-Vostro-3750-i5-2410M-2-3GHz-320GB-4GB-Wireless-N-Bluetooth-3-Year-Warranty-/130628808123?pt=UK_Computing_Laptops_EH&hash=item1e6a156dbb

Vostro 3750
17" 900P Screen (Higher resolution than the ASUS)
i5-2410M (Better CPU than the ASUS)
4GB RAM
320GB 7200RPM HDD (Possibly faster than the ASUS if the ASUS only has a 5400RPM CPU)
Dell's excellent three year next business day onsite warranty

The main advantages it has over the ASUS is the warranty and the CPU.

As for operating system, I see no reason to install Ubuntu unless you absolutely need a UNIX environment. Most people don't.

therewillbe

Thanks for the Info.I have just ordered a Toshiba .Plain and simple for me.Thanks again.

bobbytables

partyatmygaff wrote: »

As for operating system, I see no reason to install Ubuntu unless you absolutely need a UNIX environment. Most people don't.

Most people don't because most people have yet to experience the benefits of moving away from the stock OS that came bundled with their machine. Anyone that is simply using a machine to browse the web, mail, etc, Ubuntu is a far more reliable, secure choice than Windows.

My own mother doesn't use Ubuntu because she needs a UNIX environment, she uses it because she no longer wanted to suffer the common performance degradation issues associated with Windows over time. The same 'ol tune up, use for a few months, "will you take a look at my laptop because it's gotten awful slow" cycle.

I've installed Linux on hundreds of machines over the years, many of them for people that know very little about computers and just want a machine they can use and not have to worry about being vulnerable to attack so easily.

bobbytables

therewillbe wrote: »

Thanks for the Info.I have just ordered a Toshiba .Plain and simple for me.Thanks again.

Toshiba's generally have excellent build quality.

Enjoy

partyatmygaff

bobbytables wrote: »

Most people don't because most people have yet to experience the benefits of moving away from the stock OS that came bundled with their machine. Anyone that is simply using a machine to browse the web, mail, etc, Ubuntu is a far more reliable, secure choice than Windows.

I frequently use Ubuntu for doing particular tasks that can only be done in a *nix environment (Usually related to Android or rarely WebOS) and have in the past used CentOS in a server environment. Linux is a great OS but it really isn't suitable for "typical" home use if you've got a Windows licence.

So far i've been running Windows 7 on numerous machines in my house since launch. I haven't seen a single BSOD yet (Except on a desktop with an undervolted CPU that I then fixed...) and have had no security issues to date with any of them. It's a very good OS.

My own mother doesn't use Ubuntu because she needs a UNIX environment, she uses it because she no longer wanted to suffer the common performance degradation issues associated with Windows over time. The same 'ol tune up, use for a few months, "will you take a look at my laptop because it's gotten awful slow" cycle.

I haven't had any "common performance degradation" issues since the days of XP and Windows ME. Even my old Windows Vista desktop has been running on the same install for three years and it still performs just as well as it did on the day I built it.

These performance issues are only apparent on computers with low end hardware such as netbooks or the usual suspects such as entry level Celeron CPUs or laptops with only 1GB RAM.

I've installed Linux on hundreds of machines over the years, many of them for people that know very little about computers and just want a machine they can use and not have to worry about being vulnerable to attack so easily.

Windows is not vulnerable to attack. People make Windows vulnerable to attack. If you spend your time careening around the internet visiting dodgy sites and installing toolbars then you only have yourself to blame.

bobbytables

You just confirmed the reasons why Ubuntu is a better choice in certain scenarios. For starters you (like me) know how to maintain/build/etc computers & keep Windows ticking over. Many people don't & couldn't care less about hardware specs or maintenance & if installing a toolbar in the moment looks enticing they'll do it. Of course they get upset if their machine gets infected, but for them it's like walking across a mine field and acquiring the ability to traverse safely just seems like too much effort so they just take their chances.

A lot of computer users are like this. There are much less native vulnerabilities & exploits available on Linux, so for those without an ability to "detect mines" it's less troublesome.

Also considering such users go in to shops & are more likely to choose a machine based on "the package" as opposed to the core hardware spec it's likely they'll come home with a machine that will show signs of performance degredation trying to carry all the muck gathered over time.

This is my rationale. I am not just pushing Linux for the sake of it. I can think of plenty of scenarios where it wouldn't be appropriate.