Best all-in-one PCs for students at uni? (Or laptops? Anybody got a Lenovo?)

So second year is approaching and I do not want to be stuck stressing the days before a big assignment is due because my laptop is freezing when it has word and more than 2 chrome tabs open.

I currently have a Sony vaio vgn-n385e laptop that I've had atleast 4 years and was given to me secondhand. It was completely wiped and restored to start uni but significantly slowed down after office was reinstalled.

I am looking into updating its hardware but I don't think it will make that much of a difference, so I think I might want to go for a all in one PC, as I reckon I might be able to get more for my money in terms of memory/performance/nice screen size versus a laptop?

Until I get back to uni I don't know if I can extend my budget a little, but at the moment it's £400 max.

Some advice / recommendations / personal experience with all in one pcs would be great!

Some points:

- I do like having two documents or a document and internet window open side by side as I work, so smaller screens (<15.5") don't work for me, I also like having multiple program's up at once so it must be good at multitasking
- I write notes by hand in lecture, so it doesn't need to go into uni with me
- I do have an iPad mini so again portability not big issue ( but don't want something that weighs a ton and is difficult to move about room either)
- I'm not a gamer, but I did get the sims for PC that my laptop just couldn't support and it would be nice if my PC could handle uni life and the sims....
- Im a science student and need to use program's such as graph pad prism etc, and I also enjoyed using program's such as adobe elements or cs to draw before I went to uni. So as you can see I like/need big program's.....

Any advice is much appreciated. I've been looking at Lenovo computers so far.... The c260, c340 and c365

Thanks!

I have a Lenovo All-in-One Desktop and I love it.

I prefer it to laptops, as it doesn't overheat and has a webcam for Skype. Mouse and keyboard are comfortable to use as well.

It handles the Sims 3 brilliantly, and you can download the Sims 2 which works great as well.

I write up all my essays with a breeze and the desktop itself doesn't take up much room on my desk.

Lenovo PCs also come with apps, like free live TV streaming, cloud storage, weather, music and with Windows 8 you get Xbox Music for 6 months.

It looks classy and organised.

Totally recommended.

Lenovos are decent computers, they are one of the major computer manufacturers of the world and also manufacture many computers for other companies. Their better range would be the Think series which are highly dependable but also cost more. Their lesser priced range are no different from any other manufacturers.

I was looking at AIOs as well. Finally opted for the Apple iMac instead.

At your budget and requirements do look out for an Asus or HP as you can get some good ones with 21" display and fairly good specification at that. I'd personally wouldn't buy any with a touchscreen though.

Proper geeks who are impervious to brand names and advertising absolutely love Lenovo. They really work as advertised, are good value for money, reliable and for those who appreciate proper quality - really cool. You can't go wrong with any of their stuff. (ideal for Linux users as well).

Thanks for the reply! I'll check out the asus/hp as well then. Do you know anybody with one/ any model recommendations?

These ones made it to my shortlist that was under 500 quid :-

http://www.amazon.co.uk/HP-Desktop-1-4GHz-Graphics-Windows/dp/B00IG540PW/ref=sr_1_20?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1406811963&sr=1-20&keywords=all+in+one+pc

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lenovo-IdeaCentre-Desktop-i3-2310M-External/dp/B005COIYP2/ref=sr_1_23?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1406812033&sr=1-23&keywords=all+in+one+pc

We have the HP at the office right now for evaluation purposes. If we weren't buying Apple then we'd definitely go for the HP.

If you are a uni student do check with your university whether they have any access to student discounts on computing hardware, usually someone at the library or IT centre should be able to help. You might be able to get something at a better price.

These ones made it to my shortlist that was under 500 quid :-

http://www.amazon.co.uk/HP-Desktop-1-4GHz-Graphics-Windows/dp/B00IG540PW/ref=sr_1_20?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1406811963&sr=1-20&keywords=all+in+one+pc

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lenovo-IdeaCentre-Desktop-i3-2310M-External/dp/B005COIYP2/ref=sr_1_23?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1406812033&sr=1-23&keywords=all+in+one+pc

We have the HP at the office right now for evaluation purposes. If we weren't buying Apple then we'd definitely go for the HP.

If you are a uni student do check with your university whether they have any access to student discounts on computing hardware, usually someone at the library or IT centre should be able to help. You might be able to get something at a better price.

The Lenovo seems to have quite a few reviews saying it has trouble with the wifi and the keyboard looses connection. Does anybody know anybody with one? Is that a common problem or are the reviews not representative?

Almost every Lenovo does tend to have weak Wifi reception. That is indeed true.

The Lenovo that we had on loan for a trial didn't have issues with the keyboard. It did however have an issue with the power adapter.

Either way if there is a problem with it usually the problem happens straight out of the box, they are generally very quick and efficient when it comes to warranty and services in UK.

x

Despite all the glowing praise for lenovo I'd recommend avoiding their cheaper thinkpad edge models - I has one which has fallen to bits, although the regular think pads do have a good reputation (not sure about their other stuff)

At £400 it may make more sense to get a laptop.

Anything you get now will probably be much better than the old laptop, and why still use an old laptop when you are out and about?

There are quite a few pretty good choices for laptops below £400. They are much better than the <£400 AIWs. Though of course the screen is smaller (which is probably why there's a price difference).

http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/laptops-netbooks/laptops/laptops/703_7006_70006_xx_xx/xx-criteria.html

I have a Lenovo laptop ( http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00F93MBSC?ie=UTF8&camp=213733&creative=393177&creativeASIN=B00F93MBSC&linkCode=shr&tag=animonanno-21 this except I got it for just under £600 ) and it is wonderful

I haven't found any issues with WiFi or things like that, there was 1 problem involving screen brightness caused by Windows 8.1 but that was easily fixed by downloading updated drivers so all in all it is still working like the day I got it.

So basically, I would say buying a Lenovo is a good idea

Ok thanks for advice. I'll look into some laptops aswell then. Do you have any other recommendations (or avoid at all cost warnings?)

Sorry I can't really recommend any specific model. I have a MacBook Pro and love it, but it's more than twice your budget :P.

Maybe this will help? http://www.squaretrade.com/htm/pdf/SquareTrade_laptop_reliability_1109.pdf

Statistically speaking, it looks like Asus, Toshiba, and Sony have the lowest failure rates. Lenovos are a little on the high side.

That said, the study was from 2009, so things may have changed.

I would recommend getting something with an Intel Haswell CPU (ix-4xxx), since they are power efficient. Maybe 8GB RAM if you multitask a lot (or use a lot of Chrome tabs, like 40+). Nothing else really matter much.

Battery life may be worth looking at if you don't want to be plugged in all the time, and also weight. 15" laptops won't be terribly light unfortunately, especially at this price range. But yeah, 15" is so much nicer to look at.