Laptops

[Salieri]

Am looking to buy my wife a laptop for Christmas, just wondered if anyone could recommend any sites where I could buy one at a decent price?

I've searched through Google but there are so many sites I don't know where to start.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

[sphericalfox]

depends on what your needs are and budget

[Saxondale]

My advice would be to look for people like Currys and Tesco when they reduce the price of a model. There's usually a few special offers knocking about.

[Salieri]

depends on what your needs are and budget

A few hundred quid I guess, just want something that's a bargain for the price. Doesn't have to be particularly powerful, will be just used for surfing the net really.

[I am Rod Hull]

I was going to post this the other day. Looking for one for my daughter, nowt flash as she`ll only use it in the house for playing movies, youtube, facebook and bollox.

Currys had one for £250 with a £50 voucher included but they`re out of stock in my area.

PC world have 1 or 2 for around £270.

I`v just had a quick look and the cheapest is £299 now....

[sphericalfox]

A few hundred quid I guess, just want something that's a bargain for the price. Doesn't have to be particularly powerful, will be just used for surfing the net really.

Argos, Comet, Tesco's Asda etc all have ebay clearances. You'll get more bang for your buck if you look about

[nuttytimmy]

Don't get a Toshiba, Packard Bell or Advent - the build quality is abysmal.

Tried Dell or the Dell Warehouse site?

[DANGEROUS TIGER]

I have an Acer. Got from Argos for £350 on a special offer. I am very happy with this brand.

[HEGGSY]

If you not to bothered on screen size currys are selling an acer netbook w/ windows 7 for £199

http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/netbooks/316_3048_30048_xx_xx/xx-criteria.html

And an emachines one for £179 all the netbooks are in the above link

[Walkers Wench]

PC world are giving a fifty pound voucher with all laptops at the mo x

[Finnegan]

I'd personally avoid the high street if you want something that's going to perform well at a reasonable price. Specialist retailers or the internet are generally going to get you the best deals for the most powerful models.

If you're not too fussy about performance and just want any old laptop to sit around and surf the internet, do a bit of word processing or listen to music then you should be safe with a Dell, Sony or Samsung and - whilst they used to be remarkably cack budget - Acer have come on leaps and bounds in the last five years.

I'd stay away from HP (and thus Compaq) like the plague. Some nice specs and some smooth models for the value but between myself and a couple of close friends we've had four and all have fallen apart after eighteen odd months - we aren't rough or neglectful users.

Oh and if you've a buck or two to spend (burn) and you want somethin' pimpin' for games:

Come to the nerd side.

[Guest Bilo]

Alienware are disgustingly good, but a little bit pricey for the ordinary user. Extremely good performance and quality though.

I have to agree with Finners that buying on the high street is a bad idea. I bought a Dell from PC World and have had nothing but problems with it, in stark contrast to the Dell I had before that I'd still have now if not for a burglary.

As a manufacturer, it's hard to do much better than Dell in my opinion but you do need to buy direct and tailor it to your requirements. The XPS is a great machine that does everything most users will need very well and is generally a solid, well-built and reliable machine.

[I am Rod Hull]

^ I was looking at a HP earlier. Thanks for the advise Finners.

[Finnegan]

^ I was looking at a HP earlier. Thanks for the advise Finners.

I did love my HP Pavillion, it was cheap at the time at about £800 (fantastic specs) and it was lightweight and pretty. It's just the quality of the manufacture was absolutely shocking. The inbuilt speakers were the first to go, almost the day after the warranty ran out. The on/off button was next meaning I had to power it up using the touch-screen media buttons and going through the DVD player to boot windows. The AC adapter blew, the soldering of the power socket went which cost me a fortune because I ended up having to get a whole new socket. Then, predictably, the touch-screen strip died and it was disabled.

Had it repaired no end of times for no end of money and every time, within weeks, something else had gone again. Gave up in the end and binned it, went back to a shitty tower for eighteen months before buying my Alienware.

A girl I lived with in London, when I got my HP, got an almost identical model (just that hers was something like 17" and mine was about 14") and hers went wayward even before mine. Keyboard buttons stopped responding, similar problems with power socket, loose switches, speakers, et all. Just really, really shoddy build.

Bit like an Alfa Romeo, really, beautiful when it's working. Just, well, you know the rest.

[sphericalfox]

I'm going to be an Apple douche, but I've never had any probs with my old Powerbook, and I bought it 2nd hand, and I most certainly have no problems with my MacBook Pro, bought 2nd hand, near new. I paid £600 for the old one and near £1300 for the other. Yes it's ridiculous money, but the quality is spot on, I don't worry about viruses and it'll not fatigue for years and years to come.

[Finnegan]

I'm going to be an Apple douche, but I've never had any probs with my old Powerbook, and I bought it 2nd hand, and I most certainly have no problems with my MacBook Pro, bought 2nd hand, near new. I paid £600 for the old one and near £1300 for the other. Yes it's ridiculous money, but the quality is spot on, I don't worry about viruses and it'll not fatigue for years and years to come.

My Alienware would eat your flimsy MacBook whole. :cool:

(Edit: It cost me less than £1300, too.)

[MPH]

the internet does indeed find you some absolute bargains but i am always sceptical of places i have not heard of...The main name i trust for buying over the internet is Amazon.co.uk some good deals to be had there....

[Bob Weasel Fox]

ive heard Dell "Inspiron" are quite good value at Tesco and such like

[Finnegan]

the internet does indeed find you some absolute bargains but i am always sceptical of places i have not heard of...The main name i trust for buying over the internet is Amazon.co.uk some good deals to be had there....

I'm not sure if they're still as cheap as they used to be but I can vouch for Micro Anvika, they've got a few stores on Tottenham Court Road if you're London based but otherwise trade online.

Novatech also used to be awesome. You won't find brands on their stuff because they build themselves but they're reliable and I've never had a problem with them, had a few towers from there for great value. They basically duplicate top of the line products by buying their own parts directly from manufacturers and mirroring the specs. Like you might find a Novatech laptop that's basically just their house version of an identical Samsung but it'll be tuned up a little, branded Novatech and will often be a little cheaper.

Edit: **** me, this is nice.

[sphericalfox]

My Alienware would eat your flimsy MacBook whole. :cool:

(Edit: It cost me less than £1300, too.)

Sure it probably would. Yet mine will run plenty of the software I need on a professional level. It doesn't say run games, and isn't updateable chip wise, but that's not what i bought it for. But again, I don't have to deal with shitty windows and the problems it inevitably brings.

[Finnegan]

Sure it probably would. Yet mine will run plenty of the software I need on a professional level. It doesn't say run games, and isn't updateable chip wise, but that's not what i bought it for. But again, I don't have to deal with shitty windows and the problems it inevitably brings.

I don't HAVE to deal with shitty windows. And you don't HAVE to have Apple's OS. Your laptop is just a bunch of chips on which you can install software.

But I have no problems with 7 and generally tend to find most critics of Windows (Vista aside) tend to end up quibbling over the tiniest details in order to justify their bias.

[Samilktray]

Just do yourself a favour and get a MacBook.

You can feel superior to all those commoners without 1 that way.

[sphericalfox]

I don't HAVE to deal with shitty windows. And you don't HAVE to have Apple's OS. Your laptop is just a bunch of chips on which you can install software.

But I have no problems with 7 and generally tend to find most critics of Windows (Vista aside) tend to end up quibbling over the tiniest details in order to justify their bias.

Sorry, that wasn't meant to come across as anti-windows/pro Apple etc. I assumed you might not have used Windows and of course I don't have to use the operating system that comes with my machine. I was more referring to the equipment rather the software, though Apple's operating software has it's bugs, they are nothing like Microsofts attempts to steal Apple's ideas.

Anyway, let's not turn this into a discussion about the pro's and con's of what not.

By the way I don't own one because it's cool or the in thing. I've been an advocate since 1994.

[AoWW]

Just to echo what others have said, really. I'd never buy a Compaq/HP again - had so many niggling faults with them... speakers going, USB ports not working, faulty power connections, etc.

I, and others in my family, have now had several Dells between us - always been more than happy with them but perhaps I've just been lucky. Wouldn't hesitate to recommend them though.

[Ryanside]

My point of view:

Go for a standard laptop around the £300-£400 mark, your gonna get a decent machine for that even if it doesn't have a world beater GFX card, it's gonna be decent.

Mac's are good, but for the price you pay you pay, you get a decent machine and can replace it in another 2-3 years to keep with the times for the same price as a mac.

It really depends on your immediate needs tbh, of you just want to do some photo editing, watch films etc there's no need to spend the money on a mac!