Laptop and wi-fi connection

[TIME]

Hi all

I am looking for some advice, I need to buy a Laptop and I will need to use it to send emails and use the internet whilst abroad and store photo's.

Could someone please give me some suggestions on

Lap top make to buy which includes wi-fi I think, I only need it for photo's, email and internet use while on the move.

Which is best

Should I use wi-fi connection abroad? Is it expensive?

Or should I get a data card for use abroad? Is this the best option?

I am not the brightest when it comes to computers so please bear with me, I use windows at the moment and would like to stick with this.

Thanks for you help.

Nick

[ATG]

quick question ... when you say you need to be able to use e-mail, are you talking about a web based service like Hotmail, or do you need to be able to access your office's e-mail server?

[TIME]

Hi ATG

Thanks for the reply, I need to access web based email.

Nick.

[Mr E]

TIME said:

Should I use wi-fi connection abroad? Is it expensive?

You are aware that you will need to be in a WiFi 'hotspot' for the wifi to work. And yes, some places will charge a not inconsiderable sum (airports etc).

However, a data card will be slower and hugely more expensive.

[TIME]

Hi Mr E

Thanks for that, so if I get a data card from vodaphone and only use this when I need to, I have looked on the internet and found google give you a map of wi-fi hotspots, I just need to make sure its not an airport one then.

Any advice of which would be the best value laptop for ther job?

Thanks Nick.

[tinman0]

if you want a cheap and cheerful laptop with a decent built wifi aerial try the Toshiba Satellite L20s. got one a few weeks ago and it does what it says on the tin quite nicely.

[r988]

TIME said:

Hi Mr E Thanks for that, so if I get a data card from vodaphone and only use this when I need to, I have looked on the internet and found google give you a map of wi-fi hotspots, I just need to make sure its not an airport one then. Any advice of which would be the best value laptop for ther job? Thanks Nick.

I would get the smallest lightest one you can afford preferably one with a 12" screen or smaller, otherwise they are a little big to be comfortably portable for a long time. You don't really need to worry about performance from the sounds of it, pretty much any computer will do what you need, so you can get a cheap low spec version, perhaps a centrino chip which has inbuilt wireless and an efficient chip for low battery consumption. Wireless is inbuilt on most laptops these days (keep in mind using wireless can tend to suck a lot of battery power) and you can get a 3G data card as a well more maximum flexibility.

Wireless can vary from free in some places to hugely expensive, most places will tend to be expensive. I would type your emails out first in word or notepad then go to a wireless cafe for a quick check of your hotmail while having a coffee and sending your message by cutting and pasting. If you want to upload a lot of photos I actually prepare them on the laptop then burn them to a CD and go to a cheap internet cafe with CDROM drive (most of them these days) which will upload faster and be much cheaper (but less convenient).

Dell are usually cheap with a large range and ability to spec the machine online, they aren't the best quality and the support line is supposed to be dire but other than that I guess they seem to be fine for most people.
IBM/Lenovo, Sony and Apple make some very good laptops but they also very expensive ones.

Toshiba, Acer, HP etc have some good middle of the road ones, then there are some cheaper ones that can vary in quality, probably best to stick with a known brand and read up on consumer reviews on that model to see if it has any problems or issues. This site might have some useful info (but american prices) http://reviews.cnet.com/Notebooks/200

[TIME]

Thanks r988 and tinman0, I agree with you I only need a basic laptop for what I need with very occasional data card use to save costs and use the cafe's for downloads or wifi hotspots.

The feature I do need is long battery life for on the move, ability to burn cd's and wifi, but the cheaper end of the brand name laptops will be my choice.

The link is useful as well, I like the Escort r988 very cool, I used to own a MK2 1300 sport and my father used to rally MK1 & 2's and anything else he could get his hands on.

Nick

[mel]

Quick tip when buying a new laptop double check it has a PCMCIA slot to take a date card, I never thought to ask as I wrongly assumed they all had them, bought a new Dell which even looked like it had one until you take the cover off and try the card to discover a PCI ?? card, phoned Orange nope never heard of it and the data cards aren't avaliable in that format, phoned Dell and got yes we know but they'll be the next big thing trust us you'll get a data card in a couple of years. So I ended up having to use a USB adapter that cost £70 and is the size of a palm!!!! Oh yes and mine doesn't do 3G roaming for some reason but I must get round to phoning Orange to find out if it should