I need help choosing a netbook (formerly a new laptop)

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Tommi

Tommi

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Hi all,

My 5 year old acer laptop can no longer cope with what I need it for and appears to be on its way out too. Thanks to ridiculous car insurance prices my budget is quite small (No Macbook then) and i'm not particually computer savvy so I need your help to prevent me from making the wrong decision.

Requirements:

  • Fast - I don't want a computer that's going to freeze and lag when I run several programs (3GB+ RAM? :confused:)
  • Windows 7 Home Premium Operating System
  • Minimum 200GB Hard Drive
  • Cost no more than £350. However I may go up to £400 if I can't get anything appropriate within my initial budget.
  • (Links to my first requirement) Easily cope with internet browsing, listening to music and occasionally photoshop
  • NOT a netbook

I've seen a couple that seem suitable.

Dell Inspiron M101z (either version)

Packard Bell TJ67-AU-60 (Bit pricier at £429.99) - I was recommended this by an employee of Comet.


Thanks:)

 
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Toronado
You would be better off stick to ones 13 inches and under with a budget like that, as an FYI.
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Ah, I didn't really want to go any smaller than what i've got now (15.4 inches) that's why I ruled out netbooks, but if it's the best way to get the performance and features I need for the budget i've got, I could probably cope with a smaller screen size.
 
The Packard Bell TJ67 is essentially my one, but a older model. And you've seen my one in person so :) Also IIRC the Packard Bell may well come with a Photoshop built in, well, mine did anyway so it should be able to run it. 320GB would be plenty too, I'm running a 250GB and I have well over 60GB worth of music (Thank you very much DJ'ing :() and over 32GB of Photo's. Which is a lot. Like several thousand photographs.

But perhaps look into the slightly smaller screen stuff, if your not doing much with Photo's or graphic design work then a smaller screen could work out better in the long run.

And cheaper ;)
 
Step away from the Packard Bell, they're no good. Dell are good computers, but may I recommend an ASUS? I bought one and I love it. Most of them come with 4GB of RAM and upgradable to 8GB. Samsung also have a nice range of laptops, matching my ASUS but cheaper. If you do decide to enlarge your budget go for an ASUS G-model laptop and you'll be good for many years to come. The thing is insanely powerful.
 
Bram Turismo
Step away from the Packard Bell, they're no good. Dell are good computers, but may I recommend an ASUS? I bought one and I love it. Most of them come with 4GB of RAM and upgradable to 8GB. Samsung also have a nice range of laptops, matching my ASUS but cheaper. If you do decide to enlarge your budget go for an ASUS G-model laptop and you'll be good for many years to come. The thing is insanely powerful.
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Wow, I see what you mean!.👍 I'd love one of those G series laptops but unfortunately my budget won't stretch that far.:(

I've taken a good look at the offerings from both ASUS and Samsung, most of them are too expensive, but I did come across the ASUS K50IJ and Samsung R530. The ASUS has got the best specs i've seen so far on a laptop that's within my budget and the Samsung is good value too. At the moment i'm leaning towards the ASUS.

Thanks for the help:)
 
I can help out if I knew some UK sites that sell computers.

EDIT: Nevermind I found a site. I have found this one for 453.98 euros with the VAT(or is your price limit without considering the VAT?) if you can stretch your budget a little. It has a AMD Athlon II - Duel core processor with ATi HD 4200 mobile graphics and a 320GB hard drive. Which means it should take regular activities well and let you run photoshop with some programs in the background. From the specs I can see it playing some of today's games but only in the low graphics and if you are lucky you can adjust it to medium graphics in a game. Windows 7 is 64-bit so you should be able to make full ue of the CPU and the graphics.
 
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Tommi
Wow, I see what you mean!.👍 I'd love one of those G series laptops but unfortunately my budget won't stretch that far.:(
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I hear ya. I didn't want to spend a huge budget as well, but since I got my N-series for 10% less I just had to take the bait :P

My friend is considering an ASUS G-series. He wants a Macbook but he realized that he can get a system 3x as fast for the same money. I just wish my N-series would have a lit keyboard like the G-series. But then again, it would contribute to a worse battery life and I require some sort of mobility from a laptop.
 
It seems to be indeed. Although my model wasn't available in that size (mine is a 16" HD screen). Personally I don't like 13" screens, and 17.4" or even 18" is way too big. So yeah, 15.6 is probably still the best choice.
 
I found the ASUS that I have mentioned before for 427 euros including the VAT tax. Which is a great deal compared to where the HP laptop gives you the same hardware but with only 2GB of RAM and I don't know if the price includes the VAT. I did find the ASUS for a lower price here but I don't know if the website is creditable. They do have a facebook account which would make me believe that they are real.
 
nick09
I found the ASUS that I have mentioned before for 427 euros including the VAT tax. Which is a great deal compared to where the HP laptop gives you the same hardware but with only 2GB of RAM and I don't know if the price includes the VAT. I did find the ASUS for a lower price here but I don't know if the website is creditable. They do have a facebook account which would make me believe that they are real.
Click to expand...

Thanks, the ASUS is probably the way i'll go when it comes to buying one. I say this because luckily i've found a temporary fix that should mean my current laptop will be useable for a bit longer, this coupled with me needing to save for a car (and all the baggage that comes with it) has brought me to the decision that it would be best to put the search on hold for now(unless I can set enough money aside to buy one sooner). Hopefully this laptop will last until after Christmans so I can bag a bargain in the January sale, but i'm also entered into several competitions to win a Macbook so I may not need too.;)

Thank you for all your help guys.👍
 
Oh yeah here's little advise on the laptops that you posted in your first post. The cheaper model only has a single core CPU and the more expensive model has a dual core CPU. Click here for a review of the laptop The Packard Bell has Intel graphics so it won't do much in terms of video games.

Both the ASUS and the Dell have similar graphics, processor, but the ASUS has 3GB of DDR2 RAM over the dell's 2GB DDR3. With your financial situation you don't need to upgrade parts so I would stick to the ASUS for now. Since your laptop has been repaired if you need anymore help don't be afraid to bump this thread. I would be more than happy to help you out.
 
Me
I say this because luckily i've found a temporary fix that should mean my current laptop will be useable for a bit longer...
Click to expand...

And it really was temporary. I can no longer move my laptop from where it is because it will loose it's mains electricity supply and the battery will die in a matter of minutes, so I NEED a new computer. As my budget is so small I am going to get a netbook, mainly because i've realised that they can easily cope with the things I use my current laptop for and i'm willing to sacrifice certain things like screen size and HDD space.
At the moment i'm very close to buying the Acer Aspire One D260, i've heard nothing but great reviews and I can get one for less than £220.

I'd like to know if you think i've made a good decision or if you know of any better ones for £250 or less.👍
 
Yeah that seems like a great budget buy especially when you consider you consider it actually has a decent resolution(1280x800) compared to the annoying 1024x600 resolution that netbooks usually have.
 
I have found this laptop with the N450 cpu, 250GB HDD, 2GB RAM, ION graphics with 512MB dedicated RAM(Does not take RAM from the computer but has it's own to use), B/G/N Wireless, and an 12.1" monitor for 255 pounds. The resolution is not that bad to use since it is 1366 x 768 for a 12.1" monitor. It has HDMI and VGA out and best of all it has Windows 7 Home Premium. From a look at the specs you should be able to play some games on it and watch some good HD videos.

I honestly would jump and get it since it's such a great deal. One of the small negs is that you can't upgrade pass the 2GB RAM but it's just a netbook so you don't need more than that.
 
nick09
I have found this laptop with the N450 cpu, 250GB HDD, 2GB RAM, ION graphics with 512MB dedicated RAM(Does not take RAM from the computer but has it's own to use), B/G/N Wireless, and an 12.1" monitor for 255 pounds. The resolution is not that bad to use since it is 1366 x 768 for a 12.1" monitor. It has HDMI and VGA out and best of all it has Windows 7 Home Premium. From a look at the specs you should be able to play some games on it and watch some good HD videos.

I honestly would jump and get it since it's such a great deal. One of the small negs is that you can't upgrade pass the 2GB RAM but it's just a netbook so you don't need more than that.
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Thanks Nick!, it looks great but I can't seem to find any decent UK sites that sell it, only US ones which after shipping and taxes push the price nearer £400. I'd love to buy that ASUS, so before I put it aside i'll have another look when I get back from work.👍
 
Oh no the site does offer international shipping. Though even then it would be about 287.37 euros. If you can't afford that then this laptop would be a nice little degrade. It has the same hard drive, same RAM, same Windows OS, Wireless G/N, and the same graphics but I'm not sure if it has dedicated RAM for the graphics. The only downside is that it has the N330 CPU and not the N450. Priced at £264.38 including the VAT.
 
nick09
Oh no the site does offer international shipping. Though even then it would be about 287.37 euros. If you can't afford that then this laptop would be a nice little degrade. It has the same hard drive, same RAM, same Windows OS, Wireless G/N, and the same graphics but I'm not sure if it has dedicated RAM for the graphics. The only downside is that it has the N330 CPU and not the N450. Priced at £264.38 including the VAT.
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I think it's between this and the Lenovo that Robin suggested at the moment, I can't find the other ASUS you linked me to at a price within my budget anywhere:grumpy:, but i'm not going to use the netbook for games so I don't mind a small compromise.

Thanks again.👍
 
Ah... I never knew that. I just assumed that higher the number the better performance. And, Tommi, the website that I linked to is a UK based website. They should be able to ship for you.

EDIT: Wait, you just don't trust the website? That's understandable.
 
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The computer I'm currently speaking to you on is an ASUS Eee PC 900HA, decked out. It's got the top of the line Atom processor, 1 gig of ram and 160 GB HDD. I've never felt the need for more ram or hard drive space, even though I'm using it as my main. The processor also seems a hell of a lot faster than 1.66 GHz, it can run tons of stuff.
 
nick09
And, Tommi, the website that I linked to is a UK based website. They should be able to ship for you.

EDIT: Wait, you just don't trust the website? That's understandable.
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Oh no I trust both of those websites, it's just that the bhphotovideo is US based so the shipping costs push the final price way above my budget. I'm going shopping tomorrow so i'll have a look in some of the electronic specialists to see if they have the same or anything else that's decent to offer. 👍
 

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