Free Computer & Internet Access for Children aged 7-14 of Low Income Families

fazeypie

ianando64 wrote: »

Probably a contentious point but if ordering from comet ,delivery or click and collect , there is quidco of £15.84 .

this could be looked at as money towards the electricity that the laptop will use

UN17ED

wazza wrote: »

Do you know the make and model of the laptop? If so then pay a visit to crucial.com website and find out how much a 1Gb memory will cost. Be aware some laptops which have 1Gb memory actually have two 512Mb memory cards taking up 2 slots. So if you order a 1Gb you have to remove one card so in effect you will have a machine that has 1.5Gb.

Bought one for a friend for £40 and fitted it for her. If you are new to laptop etc might as well fork out and pay the extra £10 and have it fitted by the supplier.

Thanks for the reply, but I was thinking of going for this one - http://www.cihomeaccess.co.uk/12129/samsung-r519--2gb/ but as I said you pay £50 more.

wazza

UN17ED wrote: »

Thanks for the reply, but I was thinking of going for this one - http://www.cihomeaccess.co.uk/12129/samsung-r519--2gb/ but as I said you pay £50 more.

Bottom line can you afford the extra £50?

I heard that with Vista software it was power hungry and Windows 7 isn't so you can get away with just 1Gb. If kids plan to play games etc or watch movies then i guess it will be better with 2Gb memory. Then again it all depends what internet connection you have. If you have cable like virgin then it is ok, if through a 3 dongle then the speed can be slower.

Don't forget that the laptop will hopefully serve you for 5 years or more so best to pay a bit extra if fund allows that will cater for increase in use as kids get to know the web better

The techno minded will correct me if i am wrong.

looby75

UN17ED wrote: »

Thanks for the reply, but I was thinking of going for this one - http://www.cihomeaccess.co.uk/12129/samsung-r519--2gb/ but as I said you pay £50 more.

thats strange it you go for the device only laptop from them it's only £30 more for the upgrade https://www.cihomeaccess.co.uk/12128/samsung-r519--2gb/

NOWSE

I know that what I'm about to say isn't going to be popular but I'm going to say it anyway.

With the country in the economic mess that it's in we really can't afford this scheme.

I work in Oldham, where the pilot took place, and so have been able to see the scheme at close hand. If you "loose" your laptop it will be replaced (but only once). The majority of children, when given access to a computer, just play games or chat on them. The idea behind the scheme is to provide access to a computer where the household is so poor that they wouldn't already own one. As can be seen from posts in this thread, some of the applicants already have computers in their household. There are many parents who would love to be able provide their children with a separate computer but they can't afford it (& they won't qualify under this scheme) so they share their computer. I wonder how many of these laptops will end up on ebay?

lucinad

looby75 wrote: »

thats strange it you go for the device only laptop from them it's only £30 more for the upgrade https://www.cihomeaccess.co.uk/12128/samsung-r519--2gb/

you get a copy of office which doesnt come with the 1gb laptop as well as an extra 1gb.

bestpud

lucinad wrote: »

you get a copy of office which doesnt come with the 1gb laptop as well as an extra 1gb.

I thought they all come with at least Open Office so the 1GB should have it as well... [I miss the confused smiley!]

lucinad

bestpud wrote: »

I thought they all come with at least Open Office so the 1GB should have it as well... [I miss the confused smiley!]

yeah they do all come with open office i think but i was under the impression this came with microsoft office (however it doesnt specify it just says office), could be mistaken tho my 1gb samsung came with open office

bestpud

lucinad wrote: »

yeah they do all come with open office i think but i was under the impression this came with microsoft office (however it doesnt specify it just says office), could be mistaken tho my 1gb samsung came with open office

Not clear is it? There has to be some resason for the difference in price for the upgrade. I wonder if it may be something to do with the tech support being more for it?

On a different note, is it the netbook or the notebook you have?

I've just been told the samsung netbooks (that is the little one isn't it?) are very good - and that came from someone who maintains a network of computers...

lucinad

i got the samsung r519 http://www.homeaccessgrant.com/index.php?p=home&option=com_ixxocart&Itemid=55/index.php?option=com_ixxocart&Itemid=55&p=product&id=2&parent=6&vid=0
it is really good my daughter loves it she thinks it is great although i keep dusting it after she has used it cos she leave finger marks all over the glossy black cover! i was thinking about upgrading to the 2gb too but we decided we couldnt really afford it and also we can alway add more to it at a later date if we need to
the only disappointment i have is that the 3 dongle we got has a sticker on the front saying it has a usage of 2gb per month, where as misco, bli and centerprise are all 3gb a month. wish i had enquired about it before i bought it as it doesnt say anywhere on positive it what the spec of the dongle are