Got quite a bit to spend on Computer stuff-need help.

Idiophreak

4743hudsonj wrote: »

well for reliability in laptops mac sony and toshiba seem to top the charts and surveys,

Seriously? gf has had two sonys, both died a death within 18 months, very poor.

[Deleted User]

I think I'm going to go back on the below and suggest a couple of Dell machines:

Deleted_User wrote: »

Desktop:

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/158768
Zoostorm SLI Gaming Desktop PC,
Core 2 Quad Q9400 2.66GHz
4GB RAM
1TB HDD
2 x nVidia GTS 250 Graphics Cards
£892.67

http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/topics/segtopic.aspx/minicat/services_D046203?c=uk&cs=ukdhs1&l=en&s=dhs
XPSTM 625
With 4 Year Premium Support
£1,388

Deleted_User wrote: »

Laptop:

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/151380
Sony Vaio Z11MN/B Laptop
Core 2 Duo P8400 2.4GHz
4GB RAM
200GB HDD
13.1" WXGA
£1293.27

http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/topics/segtopic.aspx/minicat/services_N04X5304?c=uk&cs=ukdhs1&l=en&s=dhs
XPSTM M1530
With 4 Year Premium Support
£878

4743hudsonj

Idiophreak wrote: »

Seriously? gf has had two sonys, both died a death within 18 months, very poor.

yep they seem to be catching up with mac on all fronts, except the os of choice of course

esuhl

From what I've read Acer laptops are generally cheaper, but not as well-built as other brands. Probably fine if you aren't going to be lugging them around all the time.

Just a thought, but if you really must spend that much money, you could get a router, broadband connection, year's supply of printer ink/toner, web filtering software, external hard drive (for backups)...

clickclash

Idiophreak wrote: »

Bit confused - if tons of childrens are going to be using them, couldn't you get
tons of computers?

Could get a good 3 of 4 laptops for that budget, on top of the desktop and other stuff...

Actually, I think this is the best idea so far, buy 2 or 3 mid range laptops instead of blowing all the money on some powerhouse desktop you dont need.

esuhl wrote: »

From what I've read Acer laptops are generally cheaper, but not as well-built as other brands. Probably fine if you aren't going to be lugging them around all the time.

Just a thought, but if you really must spend that much money, you could get a router, broadband connection, year's supply of printer ink/toner, web filtering software, external hard drive (for backups)...

I use a Acer desktop at work, they are cheap and pretty damn good, might be worth looking into their offers.

Marty_J

£2,800, eh?

Oh how I love spending other people's money!

Might I suggest:

24-inch Apple iMac with 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4 GB of RAM, 640 GB HDD for £1,199.

and

15-inch Apple MacBook Pro with 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 2 GB RAM, 250 GB HDD for £1,369.00.

That brings the total to £2568, leaving you £232 to buy a printer and some headphones and speakers. Both the above computers are extremely well put together and made out of metal, so they can withstand knocks and bumps. Both feature bluetooth and 802.11n wireless internet as standard, and both come with iLife, a suite of excellent productivity apps including photo software, movie making software, music recording software, and DVD authoring software.

They also both come with Mac OS X, which is extremely easy to use, and immune to every Windows virus out there, so there's less of a worry about one of the kids clicking on something they shouldn't.

judderman62

I'm with Marty on this one :beer:

Money_Grabber13579

Are you an MP or something?! I thought only they could manage expense claims at that level and still be above board! lol

sharkie

Could you also buy a projector for 'presentations'

hc25036

Fascinating thread and you'll get plenty of advice for sure. Just had a thought though - do you need to get the software as well in the £2800? If so, you need to think about what the computers will be used for - is the aim to teach the children to use mainstream software (so budget for MS Office, maybe Photoshop Elements if they are using digital photography and so on), or are they a resource for homework etc in which case you might manage with open source (free) equivalents.