[canŵio]

(Original post by Iqbal007)
What are you doing at uni?
What are you exactly looking to do? Any pc editing or gaming, etc

Cos getting an i7 under £800 is easy.
Also the new processors from Intel are being released slowly.

i don't do anything hard with my laptop - i'm not really into gaming or anything. i'll be doing biology at uni, so no long essays - just research etc, pretty basic stuff. i just want it to be fast! what other specs do i need to look for?

[Intriguing Alias]

(Original post by canŵio)
Help me

so I'm looking into buying a laptop for uni... I'm starting in September.

I've had a few rubbish laptops - my last one being a low-spec Acer Aspire which broke within a year and now won't even turn on. Right now I'm using my brother's laptop - A HP Pavilion dv7 with beats audio, i7 processor etc. I'm loving the speed of this machine, but I don't think it's really going to be within my price range.

I'm looking for preferably at least an i5 processor, i don't really understand much about laptops but i usually like to do lots of things at the same time - itunes, multiple internet pages, word processor, etc. i really hate slow computers! i don't have that many photos or anything, just a bit of music.

so please help me, there are waaaay to many choices! I'm looking to spend <£800 and i don't want a netbook.

edit: i have seen a version of my brother's laptop here; http://h40059.www4.hp.com/uk/homelap...dex.php?sort=h
But i'm not sure what the difference is between my brother's and this one. it seems like a fairly good price, what do you think?

Either the second to last or last on the right of this page:

http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/c...97&action=init

They were like £70 cheaper (discount code) a couple of weeks ago and will probably go back to that price again at some point in the coming weeks if you're willing to wait.

[Iqbal007]

(Original post by canŵio)
i don't do anything hard with my laptop - i'm not really into gaming or anything. i'll be doing biology at uni, so no long essays - just research etc, pretty basic stuff. i just want it to be fast! what other specs do i need to look for?

Well a basic i3 meets your demands in all honesty and would be decently quick.
But do you really want a really good laptop spec for which you'll barely use?
Considering that you could save the money for when you'll actually need something better?

[Gofre]

(Original post by canŵio)
i'll be doing biology at uni, so no long essays

If your biology degree is anything like the one I'm doing, you're in for a bit of a rude awakening!

But yeah, as said above a standard Sandybridge i3 machine will suit you fine for around the £350 mark.

[canŵio]

(Original post by Iqbal007)
Well a basic i3 meets your demands in all honesty and would be decently quick.
But do you really want a really good laptop spec for which you'll barely use?
Considering that you could save the money for when you'll actually need something better?

(Original post by Gofre)
If your biology degree is anything like the one I'm doing, you're in for a bit of a rude awakening!

But yeah, as said above a standard Sandybridge i3 machine will suit you fine for around the £350 mark.

i don't really understand why different processors make a difference, i just know that my brother's i7 works much better than my mum's i3... but maybe that's down to the other specs?

i don't really mind what i have but honestly i've been there, done that with £350 computers and it's never gone well. i want to spend a reasonable amount of money on something that's going to be working just as well when i finish my degree in 4 years and not break.

[Iqbal007]

(Original post by canŵio)
i don't really understand why different processors make a difference, i just know that my brother's i7 works much better than my mum's i3... but maybe that's down to the other specs?

i don't really mind what i have but honestly i've been there, done that with £350 computers and it's never gone well. i want to spend a reasonable amount of money on something that's going to be working just as well when i finish my degree in 4 years and not break.

Well if you really want something thats just fast regardless of your needs, Hassi94 has linked you a good one,though a few weeks ago it was £500 with an i7

Plus getting an i7 is relatively cheap with a good amount of ram, decent graphics card and more than enough for more than general use.

[canŵio]

(Original post by Iqbal007)
Well if you really want something thats just fast regardless of your needs, Hassi94 has linked you a good one,though a few weeks ago it was £500 with an i7

Plus getting an i7 is relatively cheap with a good amount of ram, decent graphics card and more than enough for more than general use.

cool thanks, i'll keep a look out, i'm sure the offers vary!

[Iqbal007]

(Original post by canŵio)
cool thanks, i'll keep a look out, i'm sure the offers vary!

They do vary, but that Lenovo one comes with the latest Ivy bridge processor........plus don't go PC world or anywhere similar

[marianne93]

Hi I hope someone can help me!
I'm looking for a new laptop, pretty much for uni, and have had my heart set on this one http://www8.hp.com/uk/en/campaign/eb...hpr_r1002_uken (A HP folio ultrabook) for ages, I need it to be light and have a long battery life thats why I like this one... But also people have been telling me I should just get a Macbook.

but then I realised the ultrabook doesn't have a disc drive, which I'll need to watch films... and my dad told me it might not have enough memory to hold my iTunes library (I have about 2000 songs plus apps and films etc.) Is this true?

I will be using the laptop only for really basic stuff like browsing the internet, writing essays, checking emails and itunes... I won't be using it for any gaming or graphics or anything. That's why I don't know if its worth me getting a Macbook.

By the way my current laptop is a HP Pavilion dv6000 which is shockingly slow and unbearably heavy and freezes all the time.

I'd be really grateful for any advice i.e. whether I should get the ultrabook, or a mac or anything else!!

[Iqbal007]

(Original post by marianne93)
Hi I hope someone can help me!
I'm looking for a new laptop, pretty much for uni, and have had my heart set on this one http://www8.hp.com/uk/en/campaign/eb...hpr_r1002_uken (A HP folio ultrabook) for ages, I need it to be light and have a long battery life thats why I like this one... But also people have been telling me I should just get a Macbook.

but then I realised the ultrabook doesn't have a disc drive, which I'll need to watch films... and my dad told me it might not have enough memory to hold my iTunes library (I have about 2000 songs plus apps and films etc.) Is this true?

I will be using the laptop only for really basic stuff like browsing the internet, writing essays, checking emails and itunes... I won't be using it for any gaming or graphics or anything. That's why I don't know if its worth me getting a Macbook.

By the way my current laptop is a HP Pavilion dv6000 which is shockingly slow and unbearably heavy and freezes all the time.

I'd be really grateful for any advice i.e. whether I should get the ultrabook, or a mac or anything else!!

You can always buy an external dvd drive and use it like that.
Depends how much space that takes up..........the laptop has only 128gb, but it's SSD meaning it's really quick compared to a standard hard drive.

If your doing basic stuff, a basic i3 processor, 4gb ram+, 320gb+ hard drive and on board graphics more than meets your needs. Don't see why you need anything more like a Macbook, when you aren't even going to push it.

http://www.ebuyer.com/342418-toshiba...sc1me-01n00ken

Toshiba Satellite Pro C660-2JR Laptop
- Intel Core i3 2350M 2.3GHz
- 640GB HDD + 6GB RAM
- 15.6" HD + DVDRW
- Webcam
- Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
£360

Weight 2.54kg
Run Time Up to 6.5 hour(s)


If you want an ultra book than with the extra power unnecessarily, than ask and i'll have a look around, so far there around £700........though I would hold off as the new laptop range with the new processors are being slowly released.

[sparklysparkles]

Hi,

I've been operating on an ASUS 1005HA eeepc for a year now (didn't want to buy a new laptop before my year abroad and sold my desktop on to a family member rather than leave it mouldering for 9 months), but now I'm back and would like to get a laptop. (Sidenote: apart from anything else this netbook's now being really slow, I don't have much stuff stored on it or programmes installed cclean it every fortnight and defrag from time to time; if anyone has bright ideas on how to get it to speed up then I'm all ears!)

I'm not sure exactly what to look for in a new laptop now, I like the look of the ultrabooks but looking to pay at the £600-£800 maximum mark. I can also wait up until mid-late August if necessary, I'd like a proper screen by the time hefty-dissertation work kicks in but I've coped on 10" for quite a while now so a few more weeks won't kill me.

Non-negotiable:

• Below 2.5kg
• Min. 13.3" screen, would quite like 15ish but not sure if it'll make much difference
• Win 7 (I use Office so Ubuntu's not much use)
• 4.5 hours + battery

Preferences:

• Disk drive
• 8 hours + battery
• Below 2kg

Other than that I'm not quite sure what else I should be looking for. £600-£800 represents quite an investment for me in a computer (previously I've been more around £300-£400!), so ideally it'd be as future-proof as possible, set to last at least 4-5 years. I am on my computer a lot, and online for most of that time. When I have a big enough screen I often have Chrome (with lots of tabs) + Spotify/iTunes + lots of documents + a movie / tv show all running at the same time, so though I don't game and don't need great graphics I still manage to be quite heavy on my computer's resources.

Thanks in advance if you've got any pointers about

• when to buy
• what to look for (processor, hard drive, memory)
• advice on brands (I'm prejudiced about HP for no good reason, and also heard bad stories about Acer and Dell, so probably rather not them)
• any tips for good deals

[bytail]

I'm looking for a laptop I can play MMORPGs and simple games like bfme on, will this be okay so I can have good graphics?
http://www.tesco.com/direct/acer-asp...185&pageLevel=

[Iqbal007]

(Original post by sparklysparkles)
Hi,

I've been operating on an ASUS 1005HA eeepc for a year now (didn't want to buy a new laptop before my year abroad and sold my desktop on to a family member rather than leave it mouldering for 9 months), but now I'm back and would like to get a laptop. (Sidenote: apart from anything else this netbook's now being really slow, I don't have much stuff stored on it or programmes installed cclean it every fortnight and defrag from time to time; if anyone has bright ideas on how to get it to speed up then I'm all ears!)

I'm not sure exactly what to look for in a new laptop now, I like the look of the ultrabooks but looking to pay at the £600-£800 maximum mark. I can also wait up until mid-late August if necessary, I'd like a proper screen by the time hefty-dissertation work kicks in but I've coped on 10" for quite a while now so a few more weeks won't kill me.

Non-negotiable:

• Below 2.5kg
• Min. 13.3" screen, would quite like 15ish but not sure if it'll make much difference
• Win 7 (I use Office so Ubuntu's not much use)
• 4.5 hours + battery

Preferences:

• Disk drive
• 8 hours + battery
• Below 2kg

Other than that I'm not quite sure what else I should be looking for. £600-£800 represents quite an investment for me in a computer (previously I've been more around £300-£400!), so ideally it'd be as future-proof as possible, set to last at least 4-5 years. I am on my computer a lot, and online for most of that time. When I have a big enough screen I often have Chrome (with lots of tabs) + Spotify/iTunes + lots of documents + a movie / tv show all running at the same time, so though I don't game and don't need great graphics I still manage to be quite heavy on my computer's resources.

Thanks in advance if you've got any pointers about

• when to buy
• what to look for (processor, hard drive, memory)
• advice on brands (I'm prejudiced about HP for no good reason, and also heard bad stories about Acer and Dell, so probably rather not them)
• any tips for good deals

This is the same advice I gave the other person:

http://www.ebuyer.com/342418-toshiba...sc1me-01n00ken

Toshiba Satellite Pro C660-2JR Laptop
- Intel Core i3 2350M 2.3GHz
- 640GB HDD + 6GB RAM
- 15.6" HD + DVDRW
- Webcam
- Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
£360

Weight 2.54kg
Run Time Up to 6.5 hour(s)


At moment there's kind of sale, as sellers are trying to sell their stock off as the new ivy bridge processors are coming into laptops. So the sandy bridge processors are going pretty cheaply.

Processor: Depends entirely what your looking to do, all basic needs are met by get an i3 processor.
i5 more multitasking and will perform well for gaming purposes and some editing, while an i7 is for the higher end multimedia stuff like proper smooth video editing, etc.

Also at the current moment Intel processors are doing far better performance wise than AMD currently.

Ram: All laptops today come with 4gb worth of ram which is enough for most usage.

Harddrive: These days again most come with around 500gb storage as standard, which is more than enough for most people.

Your right about them, quite a few issues..........Lenovo, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba and Asus are generally good.

For under £400 you can also get an i5 but with less ram and storage.

[Iqbal007]

(Original post by bytail)
I'm looking for a laptop I can play MMORPGs and simple games like bfme on, will this be okay so i can have good graphics?
http://www.tesco.com/direct/acer-asp...185&pageLevel=

Processors quite bad, poor battery life, Acer poor make at the moment with overheating issues.

It'll play MMORPG's not sure about bfme as it's integrated graphics, though as it's quite old, it should play it fine.

Have a look through here for a better laptop http://search.laptopsdirect.co.uk/la...ounds/page.asp
or http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/produ...ibuteselection

[sparklysparkles]

(Original post by Iqbal007)
This is the same advice I gave the other person:

http://www.ebuyer.com/342418-toshiba...sc1me-01n00ken

Toshiba Satellite Pro C660-2JR Laptop
- Intel Core i3 2350M 2.3GHz
- 640GB HDD + 6GB RAM
- 15.6" HD + DVDRW
- Webcam
- Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
£360

Weight 2.54kg
Run Time Up to 6.5 hour(s)


At moment there's kind of sale, as sellers are trying to sell their stock off as the new ivy bridge processors are coming into laptops. So the sandy bridge processors are going pretty cheaply.

Processor: Depends entirely what your looking to do, all basic needs are met by get an i3 processor.
i5 more multitasking and will perform well for gaming purposes and some editing, while an i7 is for the higher end multimedia stuff like proper smooth video editing, etc.

Also at the current moment Intel processors are doing far better performance wise than AMD currently.

Ram: All laptops today come with 4gb worth of ram which is enough for most usage.

Harddrive: These days again most come with around 500gb storage as standard, which is more than enough for most people.

Your right about them, quite a few issues..........Lenovo, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba and Asus are generally good.

For under £400 you can also get an i5 but with less ram and storage.

Thanks for that, you reckon it's not worth waiting for ivy bridge then?
Hard-drive, I guess my question was more if SSD is worth it... But then I suppose I need to reconcile in my head whether I want something to replace my netbook's portability or just continue with the 2 computers, might be worth just paying less now and 2/3 years down the line getting an ultrabook to replace the two.
I've done some further digging around based on what you've told me and made the following table (hopefully it'll show up ok on the post), if not dropbox link= https://www.dropbox.com/s/vdvhj1yf8b...mparisons.xlsx:


The most obvious question arising from it is how much of a difference will more RAM and an i5 vs i3 processor make - for the Lenovo G570, all varieties are available, from i3+6GB for £380 to i5+8GB for £440. £60 would be a small price to pay if my laptop kept running well for another year or two! I've also not heard much of Lenovo before, meant to be good you say?
Sorry for all the questions, I'm actually the most "tech-minded" of most of my friends and family so don't have anyone to turn to irl!

[southcoaststudent]

Read your great advice... complete technophobe and not sure if this is the right place to post a question..
I have about £450 to spend on a Laptop - think I want about 4GB & 500 , not a gamer but lots of A level work coming up, so internet, Windows 7 and good for photos and music - completely lost as to what to go for - any recommendations? Thanks!

[Iqbal007]

(Original post by sparklysparkles)
Thanks for that, you reckon it's not worth waiting for ivy bridge then?
Hard-drive, I guess my question was more if SSD is worth it... But then I suppose I need to reconcile in my head whether I want something to replace my netbook's portability or just continue with the 2 computers, might be worth just paying less now and 2/3 years down the line getting an ultrabook to replace the two.
I've done some further digging around based on what you've told me and made the following table (hopefully it'll show up ok on the post):


The most obvious question arising from it is how much of a difference will more RAM and an i5 vs i3 processor make - for the Lenovo G570, all varieties are available, from i3+6GB for £380 to i5+8GB for £440. £60 would be a small price to pay if my laptop kept running well for another year or two! I've also not heard much of Lenovo before, meant to be good you say?
Sorry for all the questions, I'm actually the most "tech-minded" of most of my friends and family so don't have anyone to turn to irl!

At the moment all the high end of the ivy-bridge range laptop are coming out, at the moment i5's are coming out, the actual laptop makers are trying to get rid of their current stock before moving ivy-bridge out there as it may impair their sales on those laptops. If your willing to wait than why not, not sure on price though, i3 3rd gen by then should be just £400, though i5 2nd gen will be more available widely on laptops under £400.
SSD actually does make a huge difference, can make up quite a lot of speed on a slow processor. But is quite expensive and with less space. And you won't get an SSD on a laptop under £400, you would have to fit one yourself, at the cost of the current hdd or dvd drive.

The processors on laptops are a bit different.....an i5 on a laptop is 2 cores and 4 threads, an i3 is 2 cores and 2 threads. So an i5 would have greater processing power........if your not doing anything major,just all the basic, 2-4gb is more than enough........having 6gb and 8gb is for heavy programs which require a lot of ram.
Lenovo is very good, they bought IBM's thinkpad range which are also very reputable.

Your better having a decent laptop and getting something a few years down the line. The laptop will last, as long as you aren't gaming or doing editing on an i3 and integrated graphics.

edit:dont have excel im afraid


By the way have a look at this

unless you want more kick than http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Lenov...UK/version.asp

Lenovo G570 2nd Gen Core i5
Processor - Intel Core i5 2430M - 2.4 GHz
RAM - 4 GB
Hard Drive - 500 GB
£400

Has a bit more kick and power to it.................just don't know if you want it as your not doing anything major..........just saw your budget and I'm way under loool You could wait till August new processors should be out fully on laptops by than... prices might not be high if they are with summer or back to school sales

[SweetsAndSugar]

I'm looking to buy a new laptop for uni, and have been looking at a few HP laptops. I've heard mixed views on HP, but my dad has had quite a few laptops and has had no problems with his (it's 3 years old). I'm really tempted to buy this one:

http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/HP_Pr...s_1088358.html

Things I will be using it for are: general web browsing, iplayer / 4od, watching dvds, uni work and downloading music. Will this be ok, or could I be getting a better laptop for the price? I'm looking for something sturdy that isn't bulky, and doesn't need to be charged every 2 or 3 hours.

Also - has anyone ever bought a laptop from this site or heard much from it? There seem to be a lot of reviews from having done a google search, but I just want to make sure.

Thanks.

[Iqbal007]

(Original post by SweetsAndSugar)
I'm looking to buy a new laptop for uni, and have been looking at a few HP laptops. I've heard mixed views on HP, but my dad has had quite a few laptops and has had no problems with his (it's 3 years old). I'm really tempted to buy this one:

http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/HP_Pr...s_1088358.html

Things I will be using it for are: general web browsing, iplayer / 4od, watching dvds, uni work and downloading music. Will this be ok, or could I be getting a better laptop for the price? I'm looking for something sturdy that isn't bulky, and doesn't need to be charged every 2 or 3 hours.

Also - has anyone ever bought a laptop from this site or heard much from it? There seem to be a lot of reviews from having done a google search, but I just want to make sure.

Thanks.

The website is legit as far as I know.
The laptop spec wise offers too little on price.

http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/Lenovo_G570_1258172.html

Under £400 and from a reliable maker, the specs are much better overall, only difference is the dedicated graphics card, but your not playing an games so it's better and cheaper.

[SweetsAndSugar]

(Original post by Iqbal007)
The website is legit as far as I know.
The laptop spec wise offers too little on price.

http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/Lenovo_G570_1258172.html

Under £400 and from a reliable maker, the specs are much better overall, only difference is the dedicated graphics card, but your not playing an games so it's better and cheaper.

I did look at a few of the Lenovo laptops, just not sure if they'll be too bulky to carry around. Think I'll have to go in to a store so I can try them out.
Thanks for the reply.