Simple pc advice

Dancing_Shoes

Hi, I am looking for a new pc and am so overwhelmed by what is out there that I really need some advice please.

Requirements
I need it for work and my child needs it for homework presentations etc so all the word and excel and PowerPoint etc and be able to save a decent (not huge) amount of files. Also to be able to search the web and that's it.

Any ideas?

Knarf44

Do we assume you mean a laptop or a desktop?

What ever the case you won't need anything more than a fairly basic specification as all would be capable of doing what you have mentioned. That would only change if you needed some specific software other than Microsoft Office for example for your work. If so, check with your Work's IT guy as to what the minimum specification would be and go from there.

The Microsoft office software can be bought from somewhere like Software for Students or you can simply download the free, Microsoft Office compatible, Libre Office.

As to the machine itself, presume you are ok buying online in which case check sites like Amazon, Ebuyer, Aria Technology, Scan and Dell's business outlet.

Specs wise intel i3 or i5 processor, 4 to 8Gb of RAM, 500 to 1TB hard disk and Windows 8.1. No need for separate graphics card unless your child wants to play the latest games which, of course would push the price up.

Find machines you are interested in then link to them on here for more specific advice.

Stooby2

Have a look at this range...

http://www.novatech.co.uk/pc/?s=1

The cheapest end will do what you want, but just. The top end will easily do what you want and be more future-proof.

Garetha

Beware: Novatech machines don't always include an operating system!
This will add another £80

NiftyDigits

What's the budget?


Asus Essentio Desktop CM1735 and a 18.5" Monitor is at the lower end for £229.99

Processor - AMD A4-3420 (HD 6410D Graphics)
Chipset - AMD® A55 FCH
Operating System - Windows 8 64bit
Memory - DDR3 1600MHz 4G
Storage - 500GB SATA Hard Drive (7200RPM)
Keyboard Mouse - USB Keyboard / Mouse
Drive Bay - 1 x 5.25", 2 x 3.5"
SATA - 4 x SATA 3.0Gb/s ports
Card reader - 6 in 1 MS, MS Pro, MMC, SD, SDHC, XD
Expansion Slots - 1 x PCIe 2.0 x 16, 1 x PCI Express 2.0 x 1, 1 x PCI
1 x Headphone
1 x Microphone
2 x USB 2.0"
1 x RJ45 LAN
1 x 8 channel Audio I/O
2 x PS/2(Keyboard/Mouse)
4 x USB 2.0
1 x VGA(D-Sub)-Out"
LAN 10/100/1000Mbps
PSU Peak 350W
Dimension (cm) - 17.3 x 36.0 x 40.0 cm
Weight (Kg) - 7.9kg

as is this HP Compaq 100-010ea for £179.99 without monitor.

Thread is useless without a budget.

giraffe69

If you buy a new computer and it alleges it already has Microsoft Office on it then check it is not(as is likely) a trial version which will expire and require more money to activate it. As said above you can use a free alternative such as Libre Office which will read all your existing office files.

Cisco001

Any modern PC could do that.

Do you want desktop or laptop?
Do you have budget in mind?
Do you need monitor?

Dancing_Shoes

Apologies I have been offline.

It is a laptop, no specific budget would rather something with longevity, current model is a compaq presario cq60 and I have had this for a long time so something similar?

Anne_Marie_2

It would help if you had some kind of a budget, so that folk could at least give you an idea of what is affordable to you. No point in someone suggesting a high end product at over £1000 when you only want to spend £300, or vice versa.

I'm always banging on about this, sorry, but really worth thinking if you want lightweight for portability, or will it be staying within the home.

Dancing_Shoes

I guess my budget would be no more than £500 but obviously as cheap as possible without it being something that is cheap because it won't last. I don't need to use it outside of the home, my job is fairly basic and other than needing to use it for homework and word, PowerPoint etc it doesn't need to do any more than that.

Cisco001

http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/laptops-netbooks/laptops/laptops/acer-aspire-e1-570-15-6-laptop-21732510-pdt.html
http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/laptops-netbooks/laptops/laptops/lenovo-flex-14-touchscreen-laptop-blue-21840974-pdt.htmlhttp://!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!/LENOVO-Z500-59399412_1533701.html
http://outlet.euro.dell.com/Online/InventorySearch.aspx?brandId=3&c=uk&cs=ukdfb1&l=en&s=dfb&dgc=IR&cid=271101&lid=4972222