Laptop recommendations please!

[Devonfox1884]

I’m sure there’s been a thread like this before but I couldn’t find it easily.

 

Looking for laptop recommendations please. Not looking for anything special, just a strong computer for word processing and document creation. Looking at a maximum of £400 ish.

 

Pretty important that it runs quiet. My current laptop is a pile of shite and sounds like a jet engine a lot of the time. Speaking of which, I’d preferably not a want a HP again.

 

Thanks  

[PegguyArphexad]

I would recommend this site: https://www.tier1online.com/

 

You can get a piece of very high end refurbed kit from here (they also sell new). In my opinion, the refurb stuff is preferable to a new cheaper laptop. 

[twoleftfeet]

Just go for an i5 processor or i7 not an i3 get one with an ssd rather than a spinning drive the capacity of the disk will be lower but performance will be improved . The company i work for buy lenovo they are ok but avoid the t440 as it is limited to max  8gb of ram where the model before it and after it can both be upgraded to 16gb. Whilst a touch screen seems like a good idea they make replacinv the screen more expensive than a standard one.

[The Fox Covert]

I go by the keyboard test. Press down hard and if the body flexes it won't be any good. It needs to be pretty much rigid. Every time it flexes the electronic components below are also flexed and eventually they get stressed and will fail.

A laptop needs to be pretty strongly built if it is to be carried around, opened up and maybe accidentally dropped once or twice in its life.

HP and Lenovo laptops generally pass this test. Dell as well, although they generally cater for the bulk business buyer and they don't usually have the best spec.

The new Acer supplied by my work seems pretty good (TravelMate with a core i5).

When I started working for myself a few years ago I bought a Toshiba. The only thing in favour of it was it was £100 cheaper than the Lenovo I really wanted. When work was coming in only intermittently and I was fighting an expensive divorce case the money counted. Good screen but made with flimsy and creaky plastics like a French car. Now it is just about done and within a year or so I think it will end up in the bin.

 

[Kopic]

I recently bought a cheap Acer refurb off Tesco's ebay account for my girlfriend. Cost £150. Nothing special, but extremely happy with it. She only uses it for a bit of office work and many hours of solid Sims 4 gaming, and its been fine. No lag, quiet, pretty much perfect for what she wanted. May be worth a look, when I was looking they had some decent spec ones at pretty good prices. Tbh if I'd received this one without knowing it was a refurb I would've assumed it was brand new.

 

http://www.ebaystores.co.uk/tescooutlet?_fsub=1374384014&

[z-layrex]

The single most important factor of any laptop is that it has an SSD. I've put them in old laptops and it's like a new computer after.

[joachim1965]

36 minutes ago, z-layrex said:

The single most important factor of any laptop is that it has an SSD. I've put them in old laptops and it's like a new computer after.

This.

I put one in my old laptop and it now runs at a decent speed.

Starts up in under 10 seconds.

[rachhere]

On 15/09/2019 at 14:11, The Fox Covert said:

I go by the keyboard test. Press down hard and if the body flexes it won't be any good. It needs to be pretty much rigid. Every time it flexes the electronic components below are also flexed and eventually they get stressed and will fail.

A laptop needs to be pretty strongly built if it is to be carried around, opened up and maybe accidentally dropped once or twice in its life.

HP and Lenovo laptops generally pass this test. Dell as well, although they generally cater for the bulk business buyer and they don't usually have the best spec.

The new Acer supplied by my work seems pretty good (TravelMate with a core i5).

When I started working for myself a few years ago I bought a Toshiba. The only thing in favour of it was it was £100 cheaper than the Lenovo I really wanted. When work was coming in only intermittently and I was fighting an expensive divorce case the money counted. Good screen but made with flimsy and creaky plastics like a French car. Now it is just about done and within a year or so I think it will end up in the bin.

 

I have an Acer TravelMate through work as well - easily the best laptop I have ever had! I think I am due a new one now, but not raising it as they are giving out this awful Dell laptop at the moment (not that Dell are necessarily bad in general, but the one they are giving out is causing people problems). 

[Rusko187]

8 hours ago, z-layrex said:

The single most important factor of any laptop is that it has an SSD. I've put them in old laptops and it's like a new computer after.

Well..... it's up there, I'd argue CPU is the most important. 

You can upgrade to SSD and increase RAM, CPU though you're locked in. SSD can make a massive difference though.

[twoleftfeet]

The thing about the best laptop is deciding what you are going to be using it for. Its a bit like which is the best car a Ferrari or a landrover both are best at what they do but neither are much good for everday use. What ever you buy microsoft office is expensive you could take a look at open office and set it to save writer (equivalent to word) to save doc in the word firmat so if you email it to somebody they can easily open it.