The Great 'Cheapest Decent Laptop' Hunt

melancholly

bushbaby1103 wrote: »

I do keep going back to look at the 1510 because of the great price (for the one with the Turion processor) but am wary (or snobby!) about the AMD processor. Is there really any noticeable difference for the average user like me? Am I just paying the extra for the 'Intel' brand?

i'm not a laptop expert, but all the people i know who i would consider to be in the expert category on computers use AMD. essentially, you get more for your money because intel advertise more. i wouldn't touch an intel celeron processor with a barge pole - but the PC world adverts make out that they are amazing..... winds OH up everytime he sees the advert!

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bushbaby1103 wrote: »

I do keep going back to look at the 1510 because of the great price (for the one with the Turion processor) but am wary (or snobby!) about the AMD processor. Is there really any noticeable difference for the average user like me? Am I just paying the extra for the 'Intel' brand?

It is true that when it comes to laptops the Intel core duo processors are better but for average users I doubt you would spot the difference.

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melancholly wrote: »

i wouldn't touch an intel celeron processor with a barge pole - but the PC world adverts make out that they are amazing..... winds OH up everytime he sees the advert!

The Celeron-M which is used in laptops is a perfectly good processor. Yes in the past chips with the name Celeron where quite poor and the desktop version was always bottom of the heap. However the Celeron-M was very different as is was essentially a Pentium-M processor and is still perfectly good for average users with little to spend.

deanb_3

I've recently purchased the Dell Inspiron laptop with the AMD processor.

The choice I had was an Intel Core duo 2 (1.73 ghz) with 1gb of RAM or for £40 more an AMD 64 dual core TL-52 (1.6ghz) with 2gb of RAM and a 40gb larger HDD size.

For the extra £40 it was well worth it to go for the AMD, the difference in processor speed is so similar you would never know, and also upgading the Intel machine with the same memory and HDD size would cost a small fortune.

After a long discussion with some nerds at work, they described the AMD chip as technically better, but the Intel chip is the market leader. But to be honest, at the price of the system I was buying, the chip won't make the big difference. it would be like buying a Ferrari but driving on rubble - i.e. you can't drive it fast anyway!

The only haggling I got them to do was upgrade the battery!!!!

lolamancity

Hi Moneysavers

Hoping someone more techy than me can help me out... i know it seems i'm being incredibley lazy but i really am clueless in this area!

Im after a new laptop. My current laptop, a 2 year old Toshiba, is absolutely cack and i now cannot get onto the internet at all through it - partly to do with the crap kit you get with Orange Broadband, and partly to do with the fact that both USB ports on my laptop are knackered, and even if they weren't, the whole thing turns off every half an hour or so because its been damaged by overheating in the past, and still gets overly hot and dies...a lot. It still works, and would probably be easily fixable for someone in the know, but i just can't be bothered with it anymore, to be quite honest!

Anyway, i apologise now for not using technical terms... but what i am after is

Something:

quite small (my current one is reeeally heavy and pretty big and bulky)
bluetooth enabled (built in)
wireless enabled (i need to try and get my broadband/livebox wireless because the connecting leads get sat on a lot by my cats...ridiculous i know!)
something with quite a large memory (i tend to store hundreds of digital pics/videos/music on my laptop)
decent size hard drive
MS Office
Something with a GOOD reputation, because i'm getting a increasingly anoyed with buying reputable kit, then have massive problems with it within months (a la my Toshiba Laptop)

In a nutshell, i need something reputable that can cope with daily internet use, lots of pics and videos, and music/media downloads.

My budget is around £500.

Can anyone point me in the right direction?

HUGE thanks in advance! x

deanb_3

http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/products/features.aspx/notebooks_better?c=uk&cs=ukdhs1&l=en&s=dhs

check out the link. If you can stretch for the extra £50 the Dell Inspiron at £549 is good value. Especially as you get 2gb of memory for this price. Although it says the deal will run out this thursday. I've ordered this, but I wish I'd ordered it the week before as it was £20 cheaper!!

misterthrifty

Hi

I'm planning to ring Dell and see if I can extract some extras from them, does anybody have a standard telephone number rather than 0870 for sales?

TIA

Mr T

[Deleted User]

01344 860456

I just called Dell on this number and then asked switchboard operatoor for UK Sales Dept'

Got the number from SAYNOTO0870com

turkleton

any thoughts on this?

http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/3300162/Sony-Vaio-VGN-N21E-W-Intel-Core-Duo-Processor-1-73GHz-15-4-Laptop-Genuine-Windows-Vista-Home-Premium/Product.html

thanks.

Sammz

When people phone for extras, what do they say? And what should I aim for getting? Should I find something to compare it to from somewhere else?

I'm looking to get the £411 Inspiron 6400.