New laptop for 'granddad'

Moneymaker

Instead of buying a new, cheap as chips laptop that might last a year if you're lucky, why not buy an older, used Apple "MacBook" that will probably last 5 years? All the Intel models are capable of running Windows if required.

NiftyDigits

Moneymaker wrote: »

Instead of buying a new, cheap as chips laptop that might last a year if you're lucky, why not buy an older, used Apple "MacBook" that will probably last 5 years? All the Intel models are capable of running Windows if required.

Bought my Toshiba laptop for £240, more than five years ago.
Also posting right now from my ACER Aspire ZG5, from 2008.
No need for ludicrous statements. It doesn't help your argument.

zagubov

NiftyDigits wrote: »

Bought my Toshiba laptop for £240, more than five years ago.
Also posting right now from my ACER Aspire ZG5, from 2008.
No need for ludicrous statements. It doesn't help your argument.

I'd suggest an older Apple. I'm using a 12-year old PowerPC but it runs Office Neooffice, dropbox, spotify, evernote, safari browser, could run skype. Got my dad similar (he's over 80 now). Found it a piece of cake, no viruses or malware. Never crashes. Got a printer for it from Tesco's a few months back.

Not suggesting you get one that old, but they're really intuitive and an old cheaper one will work well.
The Computing with bifocals site's a mine of information. I reckon they peaked around 2005 and I don't reckon anything's better. They're simple and do the job with no fuss.;)
OTOH, their phones don't seem any better than android.:o

J_B

Thanks for the helpful comments so far

I'm sure he would prefer a 'Microsoft Windows' computer, as he is already familiar with that OS
The same would apply to his 'teacher' ..... that being me

John_Gray

J_B wrote: »

I'm sure he would prefer a 'Microsoft Windows' computer, as he is already familiar with that OS
The same would apply to his 'teacher' ..... that being me

Your comments demonstrate clearly why Macs and the variants of Linux are likely to continue as niche products, because of the sheer amount of effort needed to learn a significantly-different way of doing things.

Only the young, enthusiastic, and time-rich (and in the case of Apple, the money-rich!) will be willing to do this.

So unless Microsoft really puts its foot in it (think Vista, early Windows 8), or prices itself out of the market, the people who have learned how to use Windows are likely to stick with it.

</philosophy>

dealer_wins

My mum who is 78 struggled with using a laptop, but we got her an Ipad last year and she finds it really easy to use.

We were all really surprised just how much she does on it, as she couldnt get to grips with using a laptop at all.

InsideInsurance

John_Gray wrote: »

Your comments demonstrate clearly why Macs and the variants of Linux are likely to continue as niche products, because of the sheer amount of effort needed to learn a significantly-different way of doing things.

Only the young, enthusiastic, and time-rich (and in the case of Apple, the money-rich!) will be willing to do this.

So unless Microsoft really puts its foot in it (think Vista, early Windows 8), or prices itself out of the market, the people who have learned how to use Windows are likely to stick with it.

</philosophy>

First time in a long time I have been called young or enthusiastic and never been considered time rich

The reality is that all OS's have stolen things from each other. The mouse and its pointer were invented by Apple but you dont see any PCs without the capability of both these days (or the last 2 decades). Others then created the multi-button mouse and indeed Apple then adopted support for it.

For the average user who just wants to use office (small O), browse the web etc the actual real world differences between the major operating systems are very small.

The cause is really much more about our innate fear of change than the reality of the differences or because it will take any time to learn the system. Plus our fear of change grows as we get older.

securityguy

"The mouse and its pointer were invented by Apple"

Don't be silly. The mouse as a computer peripheral was developed in the early sixties by Englebart and English, and indeed you can point to the use of similar (both in use and design) devices back to the 1940s. Englebart applied for a patent in 1967.

If you want mice used as we recognise it with windowing and menus as we recognise them, then the core developments were by Xerox at PARC in the early 1970s, leading to the production of the Alto in 1973. Note the mouse by the keyboard of this Alto:



Telefunken were doing similar work, and were shipping product into the process control space by 1968.



Apple licensed the technology from Xerox, which gave rise to the Lisa. None of the basic technology was Apple's. Xerox got something like a million dollars' worth of pre-IPO Apple stock in exchange.

rollon65

Just taken delivery of a Dell Latitude E4300 for my 8-years old grandson from a seller who refurbishes them and sells on Amazon.
Windows 7 Professional 32-bit, new 160Gb hard drive, new 2Gb memory, 2.4GHz Intel Core Duo P9400 and a free carry case - for £119.99.

J_B

Hello again

Just had a quick look on save on laptops, who I've used before and seen this as the cheapest 15" one

Grrr - the link I'm trying to post gets filled with !!!!!!!!!!!!'s

It's
saveonlaptops.co.uk/MCA28UK-Lenovo-B50_1637518.html

Any thoughts?