Sub-£350 powerful laptops discussion

tonymc

As our desktop appears to be on it's last legs, I am looking to replace it. We already have a fairly new Acer 15.6" laptop, and I was considering buying a netbook for DD to Facebook etc, and to use when we are travelling, as the Acer is a fairly heavy beasty. We would then use the Acer as our "main" PC.

However, reading through some posts on the Techie Forum relating to netbooks, it does seem that they have a couple of downsides, one of which being the lack of RAM and ability to run MS Office applications at a reasonable speed. I would like to have MS Office on any replacement as we all tend to use one or more of the applications fairly frequently, and have found having two copies available extremely useful.

Having also noticed a couple of on-line stores that appear in this thread, I have come across this machine from comparelaptops.co.uk. It is the Packard Bell Dot M which has an 11.6" screen, but more importantly comes with 3GB RAM and a 250GB hard drive, and weighs 1.35kg. Spec is as follows:

Processor
Intel® Celeron® (ULV 743, 1.3Ghz processor, 1MB L2 cache, 800MHz FSB)
Screen
11.6" (HD, 1366 x 768, WXGA LED)
Operating System
Windows 7 Home Premium Edition 64-bit
RAM
3GB
Hard Drive
250GB
Graphics
Integrated (Intel® GMA X4500MHD Graphics with up to 1277MB Shared Memory)
Wireless LAN
Wireless (802.11b/g/n Wireless)
Network Card
10/100Mbps Fast Ethernet
Integrated Webcam
Integrated Webcam with Microphone
Card Reader
5-in-1 card reader (SD//MS/MS-Pro/MMC/xD-Picture card™)
USB Ports
3x USB 2.0 ports
Speakers
Integrated Stereo Speakers
VGA Port
1 External VGA Port
Kensington Lock
Kensington lock slot
Charge Time
2.5 Hours
HDMI
1x HDMI Port
Warranty
1 Year Packard Bell Warranty
Battery Life
6-7 Hours (up to 7 hours with power management)
Weight
1-2 Kg (This Model 1.35 Kg)

Just wondering if anyone has experience of this model as it does seem to meet our requirements fairly well, and the price is not much more than a 1GB/250GB netbook. Any feedback gratefully received, either on this or alternatives.

Thanks.

RussJK

tonymc wrote: »

Intel® Celeron® (ULV 743, 1.3Ghz processor, 1MB L2 cache, 800MHz FSB)
Screen
11.6" (HD, 1366 x 768, WXGA LED)

It'll be a decent machine, faster than the average netbook with a decent screen size, and lighter than the average laptop.

12" (or 11.6) really is the minimum screen size IMO, and it'll look sharp.

It's a good buy. See if code PBRED still works (IIRC).

slowfish6873

what do folk think of this.....

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270778075324

closed

tonymc wrote: »

As our desktop appears to be on it's last legs.

If that means slow - it's fixable, post a hijackthis log and installed ram in a new thread

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2436849

tonymc

closed wrote: »

If that means slow - it's fixable, post a hijackthis log and installed ram in a new thread

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2436849

Thanks for that - I have previously done this a few months ago, and have tried the resolution to the commit charge yesterday without any noticeable increase in speed. Will post another hijackthis log to see if there is anything else that (in my admittedly little knowledge of all things computer related!!) I have overlooked.

grumpycrab

tonymc wrote: »

...
Having also noticed a couple of on-line stores that appear in this thread, I have come across this machine from comparelaptops.co.uk...

This one's better http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/toshiba-satellite-l655-1em-refurbished-laptop-08616507-pdt.html?srcid=369&xtor=AL-11
Great processor. Its a refurb but unusually has 12months warranty. Reasonable 3 year extension too (£89)

tonymc

closed wrote: »

If that means slow - it's fixable, post a hijackthis log and installed ram in a new thread

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2436849

Thanks to Closed, desktop is now running much, much faster and the need for a new laptop now questionable (fortunately did not mention this to my daughter - phew!!).

davidshads

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120745787360&category=177&_trksid=p5197.c0.m619

What do you think of this

grumpycrab

davidshads wrote: »

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120745787360&category=177&_trksid=p5197.c0.m619

What do you think of this

Expensive for Grade A. Cannot see any warranty details. The above Toshiba (PCWorld) is a great deal.

poly1

grumpycrab wrote: »

This one's better http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/toshiba-satellite-l655-1em-refurbished-laptop-08616507-pdt.html?srcid=369&xtor=AL-11
Great processor. Its a refurb but unusually has 12months warranty. Reasonable 3 year extension too (£89)

Is the 3 year extension any good? It states on their website this:
We’ll come to you
If we can’t fix your problem over the phone, we can visit you within 2 working days after your call (in most places in the UK).
When we repair kitchen appliances, we carry parts on the van so we should be able to repair on our first visit.
For computers and TVs, if we can’t solve the problem in your home, we’ll pick it up and take it to our specialist lab to repair.

But gives no indication of how long it may be at their specialist repair centre, does any one have any experience of this (it is called WHATEVER HAPPENS).