Help - New Laptop Purchase

mimi1234

Ended up relenting and buying one from Argos today.  I've noticed a huge crack on the old one near where the USB port is!  

I got this one and hopefully it will last me a very long time https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9421563?clickPR=plp:1:61

Thanks for your help and advice.

ann_droid

Good Choice.

mimi1234

The new laptop I have had for about 10 months and the fan is beginning to whir a lot.  If it's still under warranty, would they check it for me or is whirring just a part of using a laptop?  

I've not got lots of documents and folders on it so it's not like there is little storage left. 

Neil_Jones

The laptop link you posted from Argos has expired, so what model did you buy?

If it was a budget unit then your problem is almost certainly being caused by dust build-up.  If it came from Argos it's probably using one of these to vent out air:

https://www.canstockphoto.co.uk/laptop-ventilation-cooling-system-78533597.html

These are cheap but the main problem with them is there is a big void between the fan and the outer vent.  Which gets blocked up with dust coming in.  Hot air can't get pushed out so the fan continues to run trying to push out air that can't be shifted because of the dust bunnies.

On the one hand this isn't a warranty issue because dust ends up being part of the air for various reasons and was always going to get drawn into that void.  but on the other hand it is a warranty issue because ideally that void shouldn't be able to be filled with dust (however it that was the case there wouldn't be any ability to push out the hot air so the laptop would just whirr the fan constantly).  However it hasn't caused the fan to fail so its not a warranty job.

Get a can or two of compressed air and spray it into the vents from the outside.  It won't solve the problem long term but it will probably help push out the smaller particles which should free up space which will allow hot air out which will stop the fan from running all the time.

When your warranty is out you can take the bottom off most likely and clean it out properly, which will fix the issue for another 18 months or so.

mimi1234

@Neil_Jones - it was this one I got - https://www.currys.co.uk/products/asus-vivobook-x515ja-15.6-laptop-intel-core-i7-512-gb-ssd-silver-10234424.html?istCompanyId=bec25c7e-cbcd-460d-81d5-a25372d2e3d7&istFeedId=4d7eb93e-055f-499d-8ee5-1cdcc50d67d1&istItemId=pqtlwiwxq&istBid=tztx&srcid=198&cmpid=ppc~gg~1011 (Shopping Ads) Laptops - Top SKUs Generic NEW~wk4~Exact~71700000087177219~&mctag=gg_goog_7904&kwid=GOOGLE&device=c&ds_kids=92700071353770586&tgtid=1011 (Shopping Ads) Laptops - Top SKUs Generic NEW&gclid=CjwKCAjwkMeUBhBuEiwA4hpqEIQ3FBOrltkmkSxXkSICEuq2lzfI-mjXRwZEUE2ROmKPZM_cOmzRthoCZKgQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Neil_Jones

Yep, as I thought:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/393958413792

Not quite the same design I was prattling on about earlier but the concept is the same.  Notice the 4th picture and the whole area around the blades of the fan under the aluminium shielding.  Classic hiding space for dust build-up.  On that laptop it looks like it blows out the bottom, and heat from the processor goes out a vent away from that so its not the usual cheap two in one job.

Compressed air will help in the first instance.

petegreenfield

Late to the party and I see you've bought already. But for anyone else, the M1 Apple MacBook Air is a great choice and you'll just about get one for £600 on Apple's Store, if you can find the refurbished page (hidden away in the text at the bottom). After various Windows laptops and desktops going to pieces every couple of years, I bought a MacBook Pro in 2013 and it's still going strong. The M1 Air is super powerful and there's a new model on the horizon, so maybe bargains to be had...

mimi1234

@Neil_Jones - I will be completely honest with you, the fan vent thing you mentioned is going right over my head.  Someone suggested it to me in the past but it made no sense to me at all.

@petegreenfield - does your Apple one whirr or not?  I'm happy to splash out as long as it doesn't whirr. 

petegreenfield

mimi1234 said:

@petegreenfield - does your Apple one whirr or not?  I'm happy to splash out as long as it doesn't whirr. 

Hi Mimi,

The Air model doesn’t have a fan. Just make absolutely certain you buy one with the new M1 ‘Apple Silicon’ processor. Super efficient and very powerful. Avoid the Intel processor models, which you might see going refurbished.

I actually have the M1 Mac Mini. It has a fan, but I’ve rarely heard it, despite using high end video and audio software on it. The chips are unreal. 

If you don’t need a laptop, the minis are worth a look, especially if you have a usb keyboard, mouse and HDMI screen already. They’re just the base unit.

[Deleted User]

petegreenfield said:

Late to the party and I see you've bought already. But for anyone else, the M1 Apple MacBook Air is a great choice and you'll just about get one for £600 on Apple's Store, if you can find the refurbished page (hidden away in the text at the bottom). After various Windows laptops and desktops going to pieces every couple of years, I bought a MacBook Pro in 2013 and it's still going strong. The M1 Air is super powerful and there's a new model on the horizon, so maybe bargains to be had...

I haven’t seen any Mac book Airs anywhere near as low as £600 on the apple refurb page. Can you link to one?