Laptop Under £380

cazkins

Hello all,

I was just looking for thoughts/opinions on a new laptop. Mine has died & attempted fixing hasn't worked. I'm looking for something I can get delivered/collect fairly quickly.

Laptop needs to be able to store enough files, music, films etc so at least 500MB. Good processor and quick, mostly Internet browser multi-tasking, word etc. No games, no video editing. Weight not much of an issue as it's mostly for use at home, personal & work. I'm not considering Acer as my current laptop has put me off! Ditto Asus.

I'm thinking around £380 or less if possible. Needs a decent keyboard and touchpad as I do a lot of typing. I've been to Currys to check a few out so I could look at the keyboards but they didn't have much and I must admit I haven't been too impressed by HP touchpads or general quality. I'm thinking perhaps Toshiba.

Any thoughts on the following? Or thoughts on AMD over i3? I've never gone AMD before even though GHz are often better, so the only thing I can see as a downside is the increased power use and potential for overheating. There's also a Pentium N3700.

Toshiba Satellite L50-B-1HW Core i3-4005U 8GB 1B 1.7GHz ( http://www.debenhamsplus.com/de_toshiba_notebook_10106906/version.asp )

Toshiba L50 D-B-13P AMD A8-6410 Quad-Core 2GHz, 8Gb RAM, 1Tb. ( http://www.very.co.uk/toshiba-l50-d-b-13p-amd-a8-processor-8gb-ram-1tb-hard-drive-wi-fi-156-inch-laptop-with-optional-microsoft-office-365-personal-red/1436927297.prd?_requestid=228124 )

Toshiba Satellite L50-C-19Q Laptop, Intel Pentium N3700, 4GB, 1TB 2/4GHz ( http://www.coopelectricalshop.co.uk/Toshiba-Satellite-L50-C-19Q-Laptop-Intel-Pentium-N3700-4GB-1TB-Windows-8-1/id-TOS-LAP-L50_C_19Q-R#sthash.QLN1XWHO.dpuf )

Or the HP at Currys HP Pavilion 15-p246sa 8GB 1TB i3-5010U

Any thoughts on these, anything at all, would be much appreciated! I'm going crazy going through so many of them as I want something decent within budget and need to get it ordered today if possible to use for work. Thank you kindly, any opinions much appreciated

Double_V

Have you looked on Dell UK website.
Their Inspiron range is brilliant. Very sleek, fast and on great offers.

I would recommend Dell. I been using Dell from ages. And no problem at all.
I still have Dell laptop from 2003 running XP. (which is discontinued).
So that laptop is now only used as music source in kitchen.

Fightsback

For those kind of prices, I'd be expecting at least an i5 and nothing less. Don't worry if a machine comes with 4GB ram as it can easily and cheaply be upgraded to 8gb ram, see here for what you can get:

You can always change the HDD and RAM but you can't change the CPU and graphics.

http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/nav/pb/05/processor/intelcorei5/type/laptops/0

cazkins

Double V - I was considering Dell but the 15 5000 range on the website says it will ship in a few days rather than being immediately in stock, so it may not be received for over a week. May be worth giving them a call to enquire perhaps.

There's this one on Amazon but not 100% confident on the seller.http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B006S487N4/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3OZSJLY4T2GCP

NiftyDigits

If you like the Toshiba in your link:

Toshiba Satellite L50-B-1HX £239.99 Black

With 4GB of RAM instead of 8GB.

Toshiba Satellite L50-B-1NM £199.99 Though only available in Purple or White now.

If a bigger screen is better:

Toshiba Satellite L70-B-119 £309.99

NiftyDigits

cazkins wrote: »

Double V - I was considering Dell but the 15 5000 range on the website says it will ship in a few days rather than being immediately in stock, so it may not be received for over a week. May be worth giving them a call to enquire perhaps.

There's this one on Amazon but not 100% confident on the seller.http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B006S487N4/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3OZSJLY4T2GCP

Old stock. Second Gen i3. So from 2011 or perhaps 2012.

cazkins

I'm not considering return this time around, especially after my last purchase via Argos eBay, but thank you for the links

Right, so that Dell may not be the best bet then. Shame you can't find decent deals for the new 15 5000 elsewhere as Dell direct is a better buy but lengthier wait.

Double_V

Dell actually ships from Ireland.
Their average delivery time is 3-5 business days. But if you want the items quicker you can pay premium postage can get it delivered sooner.

I done that last year during xmas when I ordered my Dell Optiplex 9020.

I high recommend Dell. And worth the wait.

cazkins

Just gave them a call and the earliest they can deliver is 17th August... That's a no unfortunately.
If all else fails, the Toshiba still looks reasonable at £350 for an AMD A8-7410, 4GB and 1TB.

NiftyDigits

cazkins wrote: »

I'm not considering return this time around, especially after my last purchase via Argos eBay, but thank you for the links

Right, so that Dell may not be the best bet then. Shame you can't find decent deals for the new 15 5000 elsewhere as Dell direct is a better buy but lengthier wait.

I'm still using the laptop that I bought from Argos Outlet six years ago.
What has occurred with your current laptop?

cazkins

The first time I ordered from the Argos outlet they sent me a very similar laptop to what I'd ordered but totally the wrong spec. Return was fairly straight-forward, however. Next one about 5 different faults.
My current laptop (Acer E1-570) wouldn't turn on - the fan started, but sounded almost tired like it kept trying to rev up, and the blue lights came on, but the screen was completely black. Tried everything I could think of and Google-d the issue. The first 2 times it happened, a hard reset (taking battery out, holding down power, F12) worked. The third time nothing happened and I've not been able to rectify it. Have checked HD and memory cards, cleaned vents, no image when connecting to another screen.