Laptop help please

mac-n-me

Hi all,

I would like to get my 13 year old daughter a laptop for christmas. I would appreciate some help on what would be a good choice. The budget is about £200 to £300, all the family are chipping in. She would use it for school work and to surf the internet. I don't really know where to start and where and what to look for so I'm really hoping someone can point me in the right direction.

Thanks for your help!!

Laura

aliEnRIK

You might struggle to find something decent for that price

Id recommend something like this ~
http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Toshiba_Satellite_Pro_L300-2CJ_Laptop_PSLB9E-05G035EN/version.asp?PID=1049
With vista you need 2gig of RAM or more. A dual core would be nice but for that money I doubt youd find a decent one (This one is a 2.2Ghz single core)
250 gig hardrive is more than enough

Donnie

aliEnRIK wrote: »

You might struggle to find something decent for that price

Id recommend something like this ~
http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Toshiba_Satellite_Pro_L300-2CJ_Laptop_PSLB9E-05G035EN/version.asp?PID=1049
With vista you need 2gig of RAM or more. A dual core would be nice but for that money I doubt youd find a decent one (This one is a 2.2Ghz single core)
250 gig hardrive is more than enough

That laptop costs £368. Well over budget and not great value for money. Yes, it does have cash back, but you still have to pay £368 for the machine and then later claim the £50 back.
Apologies for the confusing edit.

I suggest the best value for your money is to go for an Argos return.
My recommendations: This Toshiba Satellite L300-2CW for £295 or if she would prefer an even bigger screen; this Satellite L350-21Q for £311. You can also buy it from Amazon UK for £337.

If your budget is strictly below £300, then choose from the Satellite L300-2CW for £295 or this Fujitsu AMILO Notebook LI 3710 V3 for £274.

All come with a 12 month warranty and a full returns policy.

Both are nice machines with webcam and well worth the money. Round off the purchase with this tiny Bluetooth USB Dongle for less than £2. For a full house she may need a Card Reader £2.

Most everything she is likely to need for under £300. Plus you have your Dual-Core.

You can peruse the specification and take a closer look at the products using these links: L300-2CW ; Li3710.

aidso

Hopefully this link works , but try the Dell Outlet. Its basically an area of the Dell site where people have ordered a computer with a DVD Writer and it comes with a CD Writer. They return it and Dell issue a brand new machine. Technically the product is second hand and they cant sell it for brand new money...so it gets put here. Some have wrong parts or some have minor scratches. There are quite a few under £300 (Windows XP or Ubuntu) and some Windows Vista (if you can be bothered) with minor scratches:

http://outlet.euro.dell.com/topics/global.aspx/arb/online/en/InventorySearch?c=uk&cs=ukdfh1&l=en&s=dfh

Donnie

aidso wrote: »

Hopefully this link works , but try the Dell Outlet. Its basically an area of the Dell site where people have ordered a computer with a DVD Writer and it comes with a CD Writer. They return it and Dell issue a brand new machine. Technically the product is second hand and they cant sell it for brand new money...so it gets put here. Some have wrong parts or some have minor scratches. There are quite a few under £300 (Windows XP or Ubuntu) and some Windows Vista (if you can be bothered) with minor scratches:

http://outlet.euro.dell.com/topics/global.aspx/arb/online/en/InventorySearch?c=uk&cs=ukdfh1&l=en&s=dfh

It does, but you have to modify the search to indicate 'Notebooks'.

You won't find better value than the laptops in my post, you'll find the likes of a Dell 1545 for £278, but it will be lacking a webcam, 56k modem should you have use for such a thing(I do sometimes), card reader(as in the Fujitsu), spill proof keyboard(as in the Fujitsu) etc So no real advantage in this case.

eevie

I found this on on the Dell outlet. What do you think?

Inspiron 1545 Pentium Dual Core T4200 (2.0GHz,800MHz,1MB)
Windows Vista® Home Premium
Optical Drive 8X DVD + - RW Drive including software
160GB (5,400 rpm)
Camera Integrated 1.3 Mega Pixel Camera
3072MB (1x2048 + 1X1024) 800MHz DDR2
Display 15.6in Widescreen WXGA with TrueLife CCFL
£251.47 all inc

Would this be comparable to the Toshiba Satellite L300-2CW, it seems the main difference is the processor. Not sure which is better to get.

mac-n-me

Thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. Some definate food for thought there and will be looking into, what sounds like some excellent suggestions. Thanks again.

Laura

Donnie

eevie wrote: »

I found this on on the Dell outlet. What do you think?

Inspiron 1545 Pentium Dual Core T4200 (2.0GHz,800MHz,1MB)
Windows Vista® Home Premium
Optical Drive 8X DVD + - RW Drive including software
160GB (5,400 rpm)
Camera Integrated 1.3 Mega Pixel Camera
3072MB (1x2048 + 1X1024) 800MHz DDR2
Display 15.6in Widescreen WXGA with TrueLife CCFL
£251.47 all inc

Would this be comparable to the Toshiba Satellite L300-2CW, it seems the main difference is the processor. Not sure which is better to get.

The Dell looks good if you are happy with it. Can't go wrong at that price...dependent on the condition. It states 'Scratch & Dent'. Which colour? It is the Flamingo Pink? :eek:

eevie

Which colour? It is the Flamingo Pink?

How did you guess that?

Donnie

Have taken a longer look at availability on Dell Outlet, there are some decent value basic laptops there. Especially if you don't need add-ons.

It fits the spec. I guess that's why they are available with webcam at that price, together with ''Scratch & Dent'.

eevie

It's for my daughter at uni. I've been looking at the outlet for a few weeks and they do seem to have got cheaper. I think I'll take the plunge!