Discussion
Hi all, my son is looking for his first laptop and I was thinking a Chromebook might be best.
Other than a decent sized HD screen (is the biggest 15.6?) is there anything else I should look out for? I mean it won't be used for much other than youtube/docs/sheets and maybe the odd Android game.
The prices vary enormously, is there any merit in buying new vs a year or 2 old one?
Thanks in advance.
Other than a decent sized HD screen (is the biggest 15.6?) is there anything else I should look out for? I mean it won't be used for much other than youtube/docs/sheets and maybe the odd Android game.
The prices vary enormously, is there any merit in buying new vs a year or 2 old one?
Thanks in advance.
If you buy a new machine launched in 2020 it'll receive 8-9 years of OS updates, dependent on the specific model.
Buy a used machine and it will likely only have 3 years of updates remaining as they came with 5 years of updates originally.
After that the price increasing generally means better build quality with better keyboards, trackpads, speakers, chassis etc Although there are still some great offerings at affordable price points too. I'm just not sure what the full range of models is available to the UK market right now.
My one stipulation would be to buy one with an Intel chip rather than an ARM chip, for future options and flexibility. Be sure it's an N4000 series at the absolute minimum, or an i3/M3 chip. Avoid any N3000 series chips. 4GB RAM works fine for most people, but 8GB is definitely a current sweet spot.
Buy a used machine and it will likely only have 3 years of updates remaining as they came with 5 years of updates originally.
After that the price increasing generally means better build quality with better keyboards, trackpads, speakers, chassis etc Although there are still some great offerings at affordable price points too. I'm just not sure what the full range of models is available to the UK market right now.
My one stipulation would be to buy one with an Intel chip rather than an ARM chip, for future options and flexibility. Be sure it's an N4000 series at the absolute minimum, or an i3/M3 chip. Avoid any N3000 series chips. 4GB RAM works fine for most people, but 8GB is definitely a current sweet spot.
Chromebook is definitely the way to go unless you are a Windows Guru and prepared to be constantly trying to fix it. I'm pretty good tech wise and also Wifey is an IT manager but even then I got sick and tired of constantly trying to maintain peak performance due to Windows problems.
I ended up going way over the top (for peace of mind and having no knowledge of Chromebooks) and bought my Asus C436 and love it. Too much money if compared to the Asus C43 but hey-ho!
I ended up going way over the top (for peace of mind and having no knowledge of Chromebooks) and bought my Asus C436 and love it. Too much money if compared to the Asus C43 but hey-ho!
If your son is a clumsy teenager you can get an education spec one which is much more rugged, and designed so you can easily change parts.
They have much better drop resistance and are water resistant so are far more likely to survive the 'cable around the ankle' scenario that will inevitably send it flying across the room
They have much better drop resistance and are water resistant so are far more likely to survive the 'cable around the ankle' scenario that will inevitably send it flying across the room
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