New laptop / all in one computer

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ian103
ian103 Posts: 883 Forumite
in Techie Stuff
I'm in the process of replacing my laptop an HP Pavilion 15, current spec is an i5 4200 1.6GHz, 8GB of RAM and 1TB harddrive.


I think the laptop was purchased late 2013 / early 2014. It was a PC World special offer.


Can any one recommend a laptop or all in one / supplier (never used ebuyer or AO but they seem to have some decent deals) I dont want to spend too much as its used for simple office applications / browsing the net / watching videos etc.
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  • missile
    missile Posts: 11,689 Forumite
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    John Lewis have a good range and their after sales is far better than PC World.
    "A nation's greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members." ~ Mahatma Gandhi
    Ride hard or stay home :iloveyou:
  • psychic_teabag
    psychic_teabag Posts: 2,865 Forumite
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    What aspect of your current laptop experience is letting you down ?

    Sounds like it ought to be capable of doing the things you are asking for (and better specced that what I'm using).
  • AndyPix
    AndyPix Posts: 4,847 Forumite
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    I wont get involved in recommending consumer laptops as there are others on here that are better than me at it ..
    But i will say , dont get an AIO - you WILL be dissapointed and they are notoriously hard to repair/upgrade
  • ian103
    ian103 Posts: 883 Forumite
    edited 7 August 2018 at 10:49AM
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    The case is cracked in a few places from clumbsy handling and the battery life is now quite poor, says 3 hrs but it struggles to get much past an hour. Ive just had a look to see if a replacement battery is a viable option - HP no longer offer this as a spare (Im guessing its an old style). I am very wary of generic batteries as Ive had very poor experiences in the past.
  • EveryWhere
    EveryWhere Posts: 3,249 Forumite
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    ian103 wrote: »
    I'm in the process of replacing my laptop an HP Pavilion 15, current spec is an i5 4200 1.6GHz, 8GB of RAM and 1TB harddrive.


    I think the laptop was purchased late 2013 / early 2014. It was a PC World special offer.


    Can any one recommend a laptop or all in one / supplier (never used ebuyer or AO but they seem to have some decent deals) I dont want to spend too much as its used for simple office applications / browsing the net / watching videos etc.

    Was it a refurb at £265 when purchased or did you pay full price, £400 to £430?

    What's your budget now?

    I think people are gently trying to suggest that you bought carp before and you shouldn't do it again, by purchasing an AIO or a plasticky consumer quality machine if you are going to spend £400.
  • ian103
    ian103 Posts: 883 Forumite
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    Mid 300s from memory, in fairness its been fine, the damage is by abuse rather than poor quality, I have an acer for work (sold as a buiness machine - and that is carp) The HP isnt as good as the one it replaced but for the money / lifespan Im not complaining.



    The AIO desktop was just an idea as its a larger screenand I could have video playing whilst at my desk etc. A laptop probably works better for me as I can use whilst in the living room etc.



    Budget isnt fixed, its a balance of specification / build quality / what people recommend. I tend to only look when my current machine starts to show its age so I dont really knwo whats on the market or what represents the best buy (Intel vs AMD etc)



    Living in Cornwall limits the number of outlets I can visit to see what they stock. The local PC World is not the best. So it will have to be mail order.
  • toshi
    toshi Posts: 308 Forumite
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    ian103 wrote: »
    The case is cracked in a few places from clumbsy handling

    Because you have got a consumer grade computer, then avoid the same mistake. (Andypix mentioned about AIO - typical disposable consumer grade C**P )

    Option 1)
    Get a business grade (refurbished) computer, (avoid consumer grade computers, the build quality is different)
    https://www.encore-pc.co.uk/

    The above is the only suggestion but you can get some ideas on business grade computers, please do your own research. Other MSE members will assist to find a better deal.
    ian103 wrote: »
    the battery life is now quite poor, says 3 hrs but it struggles to get much past an hour. Ive just had a look to see if a replacement battery is a viable option - HP no longer offer this as a spare (Im guessing its an old style). I am very wary of generic batteries as Ive had very poor experiences in the past.

    Option 2)
    Upgrading the existing one.Here is the money saving site, I want to add the upgrade option as well.

    I can find a genuine or high quality 3rd party battery at £ 30-40. Yes, I agree with you, eBay £15 batteries are FAKE FAKE FAKE. (30% less capacity at least and works only 6 months ?)
    In addition, just replace the hard disk with an SSD. 250GB £55 or 500GB £ 83 (Crucial MX500 5 year warranty) if you install the SSD by yourself, you can get the 5 years warranty from the manufacturer directly.

    Crucial® MX500 SSD - Make Your Computer Faster
    (MX500 is my preference, of course you can choose other brand as well)

    Happy computing :)
  • prowla
    prowla Posts: 13,163 Forumite
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    I don't quite "get" AIOs, unless you are a neatness obsessive; a separate monitor & case gives you more flexibility and (i) reduces the impact of a failure & (ii) allows you to upgrade separately.


    I'm currently on a Dell 3020 micro, for which you can get a VESA housing to attach it to the back of the monitor to effectively make it an AIO (but I have it attached to the underside of a shelf instead). The Dell micro models (mine is older) are really easy to access to upgrade/replace parts.


    Alternatively, for laptops, it may be an option to replace the bodyshell - my son's HP laptop's hinge failed earlier in the year, so we got a new upper deck for it on ebay and swapped all the gubbins over to it.
  • ian103
    ian103 Posts: 883 Forumite
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    Toshi, thanks for that link - I may try and see if I can nurse my currect laptop along for a few weeks - we will be up near their offices shortly so I may call in.



    In fairness the AIO was literally for neatness as it can sit on the edge of my desk. With the link toshi provided I may even be able to stretch to a laptop and a AIO.
  • EveryWhere
    EveryWhere Posts: 3,249 Forumite
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    ian103 wrote: »
    Toshi, thanks for that link - I may try and see if I can nurse my currect laptop along for a few weeks - we will be up near their offices shortly so I may call in.



    In fairness the AIO was literally for neatness as it can sit on the edge of my desk. With the link toshi provided I may even be able to stretch to a laptop and a AIO.

    Hold that thought. HP consumer laptops often have an unfriendly design, so to change the HDD to SSD is more fiddly than it needs to be; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vd5FdeF3PP8

    These are things you need to consider before buying shiny carp with specification simply to impress the novice.
    You don't need the latest and greatest. My current laptop is nine years old. I can use multiple browser with a multiple of tabs open at the same time, whilst at the same time play music and find the YouTube video for you.
    That is with a nine year old Celeron processor, though with an SSD fitted.
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