New laptop - what do I need to be looking for?

Grumpy_chap

OP - what is your increased budget now you are going for the larger screen size laptop (17")?
Could you accept a 16" screen?  That is far more common and, hence, offers far more for the money.
Here is an example at £414:
https://outlet.euro.dell.com/GDOOnline/Online/SecondaryInventorySearch?brandId=3&c=uk&cs=ukdfb1&l=en&s=dfb&pFilter=eyJTY3JlZW5TaXplIjpbIjI0NDAwNiIsIjI0NDAwNSJdfQ==&id=ukdfb1:3480:1_4576995_1_4200237_1_4395241_1_4201257_1_3464248_1_4594442_1_3227243_1_2360236_1_4178239_1_4575022_1_3316233_1_244189_1_4529993_:1_1729189_1_3510234_:SD:459.44:541&productid=1_1729189_1_3510234_&productvariant=dell-dc16251-laptop


Do you actually need a laptop? 
Do you need the PC to be portable or are you really using the laptop as a desktop in one fixed place? 
If the latter, you might find an "all-in-one" device suitable and you can then have a bigger screen without taking up any more space than the laptop plus you can lay things out with the separate keyboard to be more ergonomically suitable.
Here is an example at £492:
https://outlet.euro.dell.com/GDOOnline/Online/SecondaryInventorySearch?brandId=2832&c=uk&cs=ukdfb1&l=en&s=dfb&pFilter=eyJGYW1pbHlOYW1lIjpbIjM0ODQiXSwiTWVtb3J5IjpbIjIzMDAwMSJdfQ==&id=ukdfb1:3484:1_4348238_1_4187234_1_4395241_1_4201257_1_3464248_1_2360236_1_3157233_1_4178238_1_3718234_1_2245208_1_4349238_1_4019238_1_244189_1_4375242_:1_914185_:SA:546:636&productid=1_914185_&productvariant=dell-ec24250-aio

Frozen_up_north

Forgot to mention, avoid backlit silver keys, in most lighting white letters on silver is near impossible to see. We have an Asus with silver backlit keys 😡

quickstepqueen74

Thankyou again. So I popped to Curry's to get a feel of 16" screens as opposed to 17" and you're right @Grumpy_chap, 16" is actually just right balancing the viewing with cost. I'm definitely choosing a laptop over a PC as I do tend to move around the house with my laptop. 
With my budget of £400 I'm tempted with the Asus vivobook 16 M1607ka. (With discounts/codes I can purchase this for just under £400, plus possible TCB.) It's got 16gb ram, 512mb, AMD Rayzen 5 so on par I think with the Dell you recommended. Not fussed with co-pilot but it comes with it. It felt easy to use and responsive and at least if I do buy from Curry's and there's a problem I can go back into store.
@Frozen_up_north ..... can you turn the back-lit function off your keyboard.
Thanks again for all the time and effort you have all put into helping me. I do truly appreciate it. Tech is moving at such a pace that's it all so overwhelming.

Frozen_up_north

Yes, you can turn on/off the keyboard illumination, but whether it’s on, or off, the characters are difficult to see when it’s white on silver, except in near total darkness.
16GB RAM, 512GB, and a Ryzen 5 will be fine.

We have a similar Vivobook that’s OK apart from the silver keys…

John Lewis have that Vivobook for £379, with a 2 year warranty. The keys are black/dark grey with white lettering. I don’t think it is backlit, but the price is good.
https://www.johnlewis.com/asus-vivobook-16-laptop-amd-ryzen-5-processor-16gb-ram-512gb-ssd-16-wuxga-silver/p113888113

In Windows 11 Home you can disable Co Pilot, not sure how easy/effective that is. We use Windows 11 Pro and can stop Windows AI sending most of what you type back to Microsoft.

quickstepqueen74

I liked the look of that one, especially as it's from John Lewis with a better guarantee, but sadly it's out of stock.

flaneurs_lobster

quickstepqueen74 said:

I liked the look of that one, especially as it's from John Lewis with a better guarantee, but sadly it's out of stock.

There's 1 left at each of Cardiff and Cribb's Causeway (nope, me neither) stores.

QrizB

flaneurs_lobster said:

quickstepqueen74 said:

I liked the look of that one, especially as it's from John Lewis with a better guarantee, but sadly it's out of stock.

There's 1 left at each of Cardiff and Cribb's Causeway (nope, me neither) stores.

Cribb's Causeway is Bristol, just off the M5 (and not far from the M4/M5 juction).

matelodave

I've got an Asus Vivobook and the computer is really good except that its got silver keys with backlit grey lettering and they are truly awful unless you can get the reading angle just right. I wouldn't get another with silver keys

Black keys with white lettering are infinitely better.

flaneurs_lobster

matelodave said:

I've got an Asus Vivobook and the computer is really good except that its got silver keys with backlit grey lettering and they are truly awful unless you can get the reading angle just right. I wouldn't get another with silver keys

Black keys with white lettering are infinitely better.

That's what's really wrong with the World these days - nobody bothers to learn how to touch type.

Frozen_up_north

I am a trained touch typist, but white markings on silver keys is crazy, I am OK with the letters keys but usually struggle with £ @ * etc. On my desktop I have a HP 405 illuminated wired USB keyboard that is a nice addition, cost was £29.99 from an eBay trader.