New Laptop help

Shrimply

Hi guys,

Back again, I'm in the market for a new laptop before my current one blows up. Budget is around £500 but probably a little flexible for a bargain.

At the minute I'm running a Dell N5010 with an i3 380M processor. And really I don't have too many issues doing what I need to do. But a little more processing power wouldn't go amiss. I'm not a gamer and I'm not particularly bothered about a touch screen but a good touch pad is a concern as I've used a few lately on various machines and they seem to be pretty rubbish and unresponsive.

In an ideal world I'd like the machine to have, or be able to be fitted with a HDD and SSD. But I think this is asking a bit much, but would prefer an SSD as the main drive, although I'm happy to fit this after I've bought a machine if it makes sense cost wise.

Ideally looking for a 15" screen but also with decent portability, so not too heavy.

I'm a student so always good if I can use that to get a discount that way, I'm more than happy with a machine that comes with windows 7 and also it isn't an issue if the machine has no OS installed.

At the minute one option is this machine I think,

http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/hp-250-g5-intel-core-i5-6200u-8gb-256gb-ssd-dvdsm-windows-7-pro-15.6-inch-f-x0n33ea/version.asp

But if you guys have any suggestions about what would fit my needs better I'd be really happy to hear them.

Thanks

Fightsback

Why not just fit an SSD to your existing machine and while you are at it refresh the OS as you'll find this will give a considerable system speed boost for much less outlay.

The money you have saved can now be wasted down at the SU bar

Shrimply

I could, but I really think the old laptop is on the way out. It's a combination of things, including how bulky and heavy it is that have led me to want to replace it.

The plan for a while has been to upgrade the hard drive but I've come to the conclusion that is not the only thing wrong with it and I don't want to spend money patching holes. It's running incredibly hot, and that's after being taken apart and cleaned. It seems it's a common problem with the machines and it will need the thermal paste replacing. And it would also need a new battery.

All in all, I feel like after 5 and half years of heavy use it's time for a new machine.

Fightsback

If your set on a new machine then consider a model that has both an M2 SATA slot (for SSD) and a HDD SATA slot. If it were me I'd get the machine with a HDD and fit the M2 sata myself.

I'll have a dig around for some suggestions and I'm sure others will come up with some as well.

Just for the record the model you first quoted can be bought cheaper elsewhere, even at HP's own site:

http://store.hp.com/UKStore/Merch/Product.aspx?id=X0N33EA&opt=ABU&sel=NTB

jshm2

Go for the HP 255 G4 instead of that one - better build. If you're working mostly online then maybe take a look at Chromebooks. You'll get a better build quality than a cheap Windows lappy but running ChromeOS instead. Something like the ACER Chromebook R 11

Anyway, you have hybrid machines like the Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 and Asus Transformer Book T100HA that you can look at. Better battery and portability than what you have, though a little less processing power.

Then you've the MICROSOFT Surface 3 which can be picked up for a good price these days as the new models are out. But best bet would be a ASUS ZenBook UX305 All aluminium but light with good battery and speed. But the screen is a tad smaller than 15"

nzxt

I recently purchased a refurbed Thinkpad x220 with a 500GB SSD, 4GB Ram. Its a solid machine with a nice keyboard. I run it in dual boot with Windows and Linux, does everything I need. And was only £250.

Shrimply

Fightsback wrote: »

If your set on a new machine then consider a model that has both an M2 SATA slot (for SSD) and a HDD SATA slot. If it were me I'd get the machine with a HDD and fit the M2 sata myself.

I'll have a dig around for some suggestions and I'm sure others will come up with some as well.

Just for the record the model you first quoted can be bought cheaper elsewhere, even at HP's own site:

http://store.hp.com/UKStore/Merch/Product.aspx?id=X0N33EA&opt=ABU&sel=NTB

That would be great thanks, quite happy to fit drives and things myself. But it's not as easy to know whether it's possible.

It seems some models that have an M2 SATA port and HDD bay then need further connectors when they aren't shipped with both fitted.

And yes, I'm still sort of working out what is likely to be in my price range, not so much focussing on where to get it cheapest until I come to buy.

Thanks for the other responses too. I am very much looking for a laptop that's reasonably portable, not the other way around. Processing power trumps portability. And I really need a windows machine, Chromebooks aren't really an option.

Fightsback

Shrimply wrote: »

It seems some models that have an M2 SATA port and HDD bay then need further connectors when they aren't shipped with both fitted.

Or they have an M2 caddy in place of the HDD rather than a dedicated M2 slot which is the case for the model you quoted earlier, see p56 of service manual here:

HP250 G5 Service Manual

Shrimply

Fightsback wrote: »

Or they have an M2 caddy in place of the HDD rather than a dedicated M2 slot which is the case for the model you quoted earlier, see p56 of service manual here:

HP250 G5 Service Manual

Thanks, yeah I realise that is the case, and I can't find a optical drive caddy for it either. But I haven't had much luck finding any that do have the capacity for both that are any where near my budget.

So a single drive isn't a going to have to be a deal breaker, any suggestions of models that do allow both would be great though.

Shrimply

This was posted on HDUK, not sure if I'm totally happy buying refurbished but it does seem to tick all the boxes and is almost on budget,

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/401191521890?clk_rvr_id=1097227032362&rmvSB=true

Any thoughts?

Fightsback

Shrimply wrote: »

This was posted on HDUK, not sure if I'm totally happy buying refurbished but it does seem to tick all the boxes and is almost on budget,

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/401191521890?clk_rvr_id=1097227032362&rmvSB=true

Any thoughts?

This is an entry level gaming laptop with a discrete video card and thus will not be too great on battery. Given that you don't game it may be more than you need for it's purpose however personally I do prefer a discrete Vcard as it's there if needed but Intel IGPs have come a long way since their seriously underpowered early efforts. It's your choice

Additionally 4gb of ram is board soldered I believe so the max ram you can have will be 12gb, the 12gb will not run in dual channel mode however a total of 8gb (2x4gb) will.

Alternatively keep and eye on this Dell refurb place (or google for others) and see what comes up:

http://mcscom.co.uk/