Microsoft bloatware, no gaming, fast, some streaming, €1200, fits Ryanair

Louche Lad

Current laptops all old, want new one in next month or two. My requirements:

Physical things:

• Battery (time between recharges): not all that important as I'd only be away from electrical sockets for 2-3 hours at most.
• Usual ports for usual peripherals, including multiple monitors.
• Size: Large as possible, but must fit in Ryanair cabin bag.
• Durability: I'd mostly use it at home and other places I stay (in normal times I travel a lot), but occasionally in coffee shops, trains etc. Needs to withstand 4-5 hours' use per day plus travelling with it once a week.
• Weight: Shouldn't weigh all that much, perhaps up to 2kg.

Budget: up to around £1k (I'll be buying it in the UK). New, not used. Don't want warranty.

RAM: I suppose more is usually better for speed. Can have 10-20 browser tabs plus 4-5 Windows apps open.

Processor: I have no idea which CPUs are better.

OS and software: Windows, with MS Office, Visual Studio, plus similar bloatware, Zoom. No gaming.

Disk: Don't need much disk space other than bloatware mentioned above, so no films etc. Assuming SSD is best taking into account need for speed. 500 GB probably fine.

Speed: Speed in use is very important. Boot speed is a nice-to-have. I suppose these things are dependent on RAM, processor and type of disk.

Audio/video: Good video and audio for Zoom and similar. Will also stream some TV and YouTube. Would like colours on screen to be accurate.

Any suggestions?

for bigger 15.6 laptop there is this from Dell (inspiron plus 7501 model)

the highest end model in the list here ->

https://www.dell.com/en-uk/shop/laptops/inspiron-15-plus-laptop/spd/inspiron-15-7501-laptop#configurations_section

metal build and looks decent

under 2kg

colour accurate 100 sRGB screen with enough brightness

6-core i7 H (high power) cpu - plenty for all mentioned tasks

1650 4gb graphics card

512gb ssd

16gb ram

looks pretty smart

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNOXRdSrONk

Another option is the 16 inch magicbook pro 4600h

https://hihonor.com/unitedkingdom/product/honor-magicbook-pro/

Comes in at £850

Lighter than the Dell in weight despite bigger screen

Screen is colour accurate

The 4600h would actually outperform the i7 in the Dell but there is no discrete graphics card but your uses don't really need that so much

The webcam position is a bit odd but I'd recommend a usb webcam in general for better quality anyways

Solid laptop

Louche Lad

Thanks glasso.

Louche Lad

glasso wrote: »

Another option is the 16 inch magicbook pro 4600h

https://hihonor.com/unitedkingdom/product/honor-magicbook-pro/

Comes in at £850

Lighter than the Dell in weight despite bigger screen

Screen is colour accurate

The 4600h would actually outperform the i7 in the Dell but there is no discrete graphics card but your uses don't really need that so much

The webcam position is a bit odd but I'd recommend a usb webcam in general for better quality anyways

Solid laptop

Thanks again glasso. I was about to ask you where the webcam was because I just could not see it but I Googled and came across this very good video and it was suddenly clear. But about webcams: I often seem to be in the dark in Zoom and WhatsApp meetings (I mean, my face is not lit up) unlike other participants, and I don't know why, despite arranging table lamps around my desk. Should I get one of those ring light things with my webcam?

ring light worth buying yes and maybe a usb wide angle 1080p auto focus webcam

there are decent no-brand webcams with these features on amazon for not too much (<30) - just check the reviews

Louche Lad

I was going to get the Honor Magicbook Pro suggested above but then I had to suddenly rush off to France. And now I'm ready again to buy something like that, I find that laptop's no longer available.

Any recommendations for something else that fits my spec?