Laptop or notebook

GT60

Hi our son is starting college and has asked for a laptop.
So what do we get him a lappy or the smaller version notebook and what is the diffence?
what spec would he need? can some one recomend one to buy.
Dont what to spend too much say a max of £300 or less we have all the office pro etc.
Thanks

Hammyman

You can get a netbook from Currys for £169 however I would get the Samsung they sell for £210 as it has more than twice the battery life.

scheming_gypsy

Laptops and notebooks are effectively the same thing; then after them you've got the netbooks which are ideal for children or goblins with little tiny fingers. I personally hate the things and their teeny tiny keys and poncy 10inch screen

marvell-kid

A Laptop and Notebook are the same thing (just said differently, especially since some places stopped calling them laptops due to them overheating on your laps) usually 13' screen or bigger, where as a netbook (which I believe is what you are meaning by a notebook) is something that normally has a 10' screen.

Really it depends on what your son will be using the Laptop/Netbook for.
If it will be for surfing the web and taking notes in lectures then I would suggest a Netbook. This is because typing for long periods of time is a pain due to the small screen and because it wont be able to cope with large programs or too many programs at once.

If he wants to watch online TV (such as iplayer, 4od, etc), writing 2,000 word essays, surfing the web then I would suggest a Laptop. It will give him more power and a bigger screen, but he will lose battery life and 'portability'.

There are many differences between the two, but the major ones are:
Screen Size: (Netbook) 10' & (Laptop) ~15'
Keyboard: About 70% the size & 100% size
Speed: Quick for simple things & Quick all the time
Hard Disk: Very similar
Battery Life: 5-10 Hours & 2-4 Hours

I my self have both and will be going into my 3rd year at Derby Uni. In my first year I used my laptop for all my work, games, watching TV (*please note if he wants to watch live TV he will need his own TV license) and surfing the web. I used my netbook for lecture notes and taking with me everywhere.

Look in the 'Sub-£350 powerful laptops discussion' thread.
Thread ID = 1147017
*sorry cant post links*

My preference is in HP (my own laptop), Samsung (my own Netbook), Acer, Lenovo, eMachines and Asus, but others might disagree.

GT60

I have found this http://www.johnlewis.com/Electricals/Laptops+and+Netbooks/Laptops+and+Netbooks/Laptops/398/ProductCategory.aspx#&&/wEXAgURU2VhcmNoRXZlbnRUYXJnZXQFOmN0cmxGaWx0ZXJMSE4xX3JwdEZpbHRlcnNfY3RsMDFfY3RybExpc3RGaWx0ZXJfdXBkVmlld0xlc3MFE1NlYXJjaEV2ZW50QXJndW1lbnQFbEZJTC9FbGVjdHJpY2Fscy9MYXB0b3BzK18yNitOZXRib29rcy9MYXB0b3BzK18yNitOZXRib29rcy9MYXB0b3BzLzM5OC8xLzEvUHJvZHVjdENhdGVnb3J5LmFzcHg/YT00MjcwLTQzOS45OU3RScRtKU2owG1zDPaukh5aHSaU

But cannot find you thread number unless this is it https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/1147017
Thanks

marvell-kid

Unfortunately the JL website uses the link to direct to a laptop selection screen and not the individual product.

That is the correct thread, just go to the last couple of pages, other posters have posted cheap deals and others have said whether they are good or not.

GT60

Hi I thought about one of the toshiba's laptops or maybe someone would advice on a few
I have read the last few pages thats how i picked up on this.
Netbooks are now out of the running do to he will be doing lots of typing
Thanks again

marvell-kid

The problem will be, next year the laptop will be out of date as they are always releasing new ones.
Use Reevoo to see what other users of products think about them. PCworld has them on most of their products, but read the reviews rather than just the scores

pogofish

You should maybe check out what the Uni's policy/IT people have to say - It should be on the website. Due to the various supply contracts, the Uni I have dealings with will provide a reasonable amount of support for students with Dell or Toshiba machines. Owners of other makes only get the most basic software help.

Also depends what course he is doing - For some science courses, both a laptop/notebook and a netbook/tablet seems to be essential - with the smaller device becoming a sort of datalogger.

Personally, I'm always minded to consider netbook issues for any software I specify/advise them on.

Kernel_Sanders

marvell-kid wrote: »

... and because it wont be able to cope with large programs or too many programs at once.

Many netbooks are being offered with 2GB of RAM to improve this. This Argos refurbishment doesn't, but it does have a dual-core processor and 8 hours battery life for well under £200 delivered. For that price, you could afford to upgrade the RAM if he finds he needs it.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ACER-D255-8-HOUR-DUAL-CORE-NETBOOK-BLACK-/360375838514?pt=UK_Computing_Laptops_EH&hash=item53e812e732#ht_2566wt_928

GunJack

...and don't forget very few if any netbooks DON'T have a DVD/CD drive....stick with a well-built laptop