non windows laptop?

HillStreetBlues

If OP finds Windows is slow performance wise, that seems to rule out a Mac, cost wise.

ididgetwhereiamtoday

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82115964#Comment_82115964

why?

A quality used Mac can be very affordable.

zagubov

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82116019#Comment_82116019

And with their lengthier working life they can be better value in the long run. Avoids the "Buy cheap, buy twice" scenario you get with other systems.

GDB2222

I don’t know about Mac’s but my Windows PC is running fine still. It was built in 2012/13. It’s not W11 compatible of course but it runs W10 pretty briskly.

However, there’s a good reason to phase it out prematurely, namely the electricity usage, as a more modern processor will use around 50 watts less. So, that’s a potential saving of £100+ a year. I expect that similar arguments apply to elderly Mac's, running on similar processors.

MyRealNameToo

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82116312#Comment_82116312

On the old intel CPUs then the draw from the CPU was identical irrespective of it ran MacOS or Windows. On a like for like laptop then Mac overall tended to be a little lower power consumption for various reasons but not night and day difference.

An old windows machine however could have been notably more power efficient by having a low resolution/brightness screen or a fatter case allowing better thermals as macs always were the higher end, thinner materials etc.

When mac first moved to ARM there was a night and day difference with macs getting several hours more from the same battery and performance than a windows machine. Intel have certainly upped their game now but mac with its vertical integration and RISC architecture remain ahead of intel windows machines in power efficiency… windows though arent limited to x86 any more too though and a snapdragon CPU windows machine is very close to a mac for power efficency given it too is a RISC architecture

finbaar

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82115100#Comment_82115100

There's nothing special or magical about Apple Macs, and certainly nothing that makes life easier compared to other operating systems. Nothing. If a Apple Mac works for you then that's great. But the are other options that would be just as good. I personally don't use an Apply Mac as the OS isn't intuitive to me and I find it ugly to look at, but when you get into the browser most of that goes away. However, there's no "Apple Magic" in any of their products.

HillStreetBlues

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82116019#Comment_82116019

What's affordable to one, can be unaffordable to another.

TheComputerGuru

For What it's worth.

I have an aging Linx 12X64 tablet PC

I have installed Linux Mint on it with success follwing the tutorial here.

Installing Linux on a Linx 12x64 Tablet

Linux Mint takes a bit of getting used to being a ingrained windows user, since V3.11 (Windows for Workgroups).

MyRealNameToo

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82116445#Comment_82116445

Depends what you define as "Magic" and certainly various EU court ruling demanding Apple opens up several features to non-Apple devices would suggest judges disagree with you.

Apple are never first to market with stuff, they didnt invent the smart phone or the tablet or the mp3 player but what they have done many times is take an existing product and make it significantly better and more desirable. Often others copy it after, sometimes after mocking it when it first comes out.

MacOS itself, personally I would say it's simply different rather than better than another OS. There are elements that I like, having the ability to tab between windows of the same application independently of tabbing through all applications windows and being able to select and copy text from within any image natively, there are others that are more frustrating like not having a simple one click button to maximise a window without it being full screen.

Apples main strength though is the vertical integration, the make all the hardware and all the OS so you dont have all the compatibility and pairing issues you'd have if you have a Dell laptop, an Acer desktop, an Android phone and a Apple Tablet.

Google have got some of the way there with their Fast Pair, but your limited to a Chromebook and there is no desktop option. Samsung not quite as close plus is something running on top of Android/Windows not native support as they dont own the OS

My business runs on Macs, about half our clients insist on us using their Windows devices. We end up raising at least 10 tickets for IT problems on the Windows machines compared to our Macs. Currently we have Microsoft Surface 8 laptops with Ultra 5 CPUs and they are terrible despite the £2,100 price tag

ididgetwhereiamtoday

If £300 to £400 is unaffordable then they can’t really afford a new laptop.
Used is their best optoon. But a used windows laptop is fraught with potential headaches.
I had a 2015 MacBook Air i7 8gb ram 256 gb SD from Amazon renewed several years ago, I think a I paid £320 for it, it was only a cup of tv spilt over it that killed the WiF/bluetooth card. I would still be using it now if I could even though it’s technically out of support as it is still suitable for basic computing. Much nicer than any new alternative for the money.
a similar machine is available from CEX for around £140 and comes with a 5 year warranty. I would have now hesitation in recommending this to anyone on a very tight budget.