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Is this a good laptop??

http://www.dabs.com/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=53NG&CategorySelectedId=11105&PageMode=1&NavigationKey=11105,50240,51220000

Originally on the Grabbit board but now only available with 3 yr warranty:
I am on the point of ordering this HP laptop for my son for Christmas - it's for surfing, emailing, a little bit of gaming (he's 12). However, I can't find any info on what kind of warranty the '3 year next business day carepack' actually is. It seems to have quite a good spec for the price apart from lack of 'core 2 duo' processor and no webcam. Any advice is much appreciated. :confused:
ps I don't want to pay any more than this, am I likely to get as good as/ better deal elsewhere?
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Comments

  • Browntoa
    Browntoa Posts: 49,612 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    same item without the 3 year carepack (on site repair but you get 1 year warranty for free with it anyway)

    http://www.shop.bt.com/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=53NFWS

    £286 after £50 cashback

    few people at work have bought these and no complaints , has a trial version of office 2007 on it but you can buy the full thing here

    www.software4students.co.uk

    for about £40

    or download openoffice for free
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  • isofa
    isofa Posts: 6,091 Forumite
    Personally I'd avoid as it has a less powerful Celeron chip.

    Much better to go for a Core Duo or Core 2 Duo chip.

    Have a look at the starter Dell Inspirons, or the deals listed at the third party site: www.dmxdimension.co.uk

    You can get an Inspiron 1525 with Intel Pentium Dual Core 1.86 GHz for £369 from Dell, or a Core 2 Duo 2.0 GHz for £429.
  • I adore buying things of the internet and buy tons of stuff, the only thing i have not bought is a laptop.....The only reason for this is if it has a fault you can take it back form where you bought it.. No postage costs, no hassle e.t.c e.t.c... In the extreme unlikely it does get a fault..

    Different responde! But hope this helps!!!!!
    ..........................
  • isofa
    isofa Posts: 6,091 Forumite
    Just to add, it's fine and powerful enough for your needs, but you might as well get a better processor that'll last longer (for more powerful applications later on) for a similar price in my opinion - as per my above post!
  • buyitall
    buyitall Posts: 3,597 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Browntoa wrote: »
    same item without the 3 year carepack (on site repair but you get 1 year warranty for free with it anyway)

    http://www.shop.bt.com/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=53NFWS

    £286 after £50 cashback

    Thanks, they were out of stock earlier, must have changed status - do you think there's any chance of getting similar spec (ie 17" screen, 2gb ram, 160gb hard drive) PLUS the intel processor for less than £300 before Christmas??? Thanks for all the swift advice xx

    Just checked the link again, and it no longer mentions cashback?
    Double edit: cashback back again now!
  • isofa
    isofa Posts: 6,091 Forumite
    ^ the best I can find at the moment is the £369 mentioned above, you'll get a little back with cashback sites (Quidco etc), but you'll have to seriously shop around for under £300, but you might be lucky. If you wait until the end of the month, you might be able to barter on the phone with companies as they try and finish their money with higher sales figures.

    There are bargains to be had in refurb zones of online stores (Dell included), and all have a full warranty, might be worth a look, bring your budget up by £50 and there is a whole lot more choice.

    http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk might be worth trying but at the moment I can't get it to load!
  • buyitall
    buyitall Posts: 3,597 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Thanks for all the advice, as it comes to under £290 after cashback and quidco, I have decided to order it.
  • Browntoa
    Browntoa Posts: 49,612 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    it's ample for basic surfing and gaming

    I'd get it out of the box when it arrives, charge it up and let Vista sort out it's install , then do the HP restore CD's it lets you do during the initial set up. ALso connect it up to your wireless while its out. Means it will work "out of the box" on Xmas day and you have the security of knowing all the CD's are done just in case
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  • buyitall
    buyitall Posts: 3,597 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Thanks so much for the advice - however we don't actually have wireless yet, so need to get that sorted. Looks like I'll be doing a cable wireless search sometime soon!
  • DCFC79
    DCFC79 Posts: 40,641 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    buyitall wrote: »
    Thanks so much for the advice - however we don't actually have wireless yet, so need to get that sorted. Looks like I'll be doing a cable wireless search sometime soon!

    Well if you get stuck with anything you know where to come
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