What do you think of this laptop?
Discussion
I'm getting to the point where a modest laptop could be useful - principally to help showcase my photography but I'm sure I'd find other uses as well. I need a medium-size good res screen, medium-size HD and 0.5+ Gb RAM - ie roughly the same spec as my full-size PC. It will need to run Photoshop and Word but that's about it. And hopefully look nice and wizzy, eg silver, slim etc. I don't want Vista.
One of my 'PC gurus' has recommended this:
www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Aspire_510
It looks just the job, but I'm a bit concerned by the 'pre-delivery check', almost as though if you don't go for it, they'll send you a second-grade machine. Also, can anyone tell me if the top is silver too?
Ta
One of my 'PC gurus' has recommended this:
www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Aspire_510
It looks just the job, but I'm a bit concerned by the 'pre-delivery check', almost as though if you don't go for it, they'll send you a second-grade machine. Also, can anyone tell me if the top is silver too?
Ta
Photoshop.... in that case put more RAM in it (they are offering a double memory deal so that's 1GB... enough for basics assuming your not going yampy with image size and filters ).
Looks like a good little laptop. Probably a Mitac under the branding (you'd be amazed how many Aspire, Novatech, A N Other cheapy laptops are Mitac) so parts will be plentiful.
I'd take them up on the waranty extension though because A) why not? B) It's electronic you can bet your bottom dollar that in 13 months time something will go 'ping'
). Looks like a good little laptop. Probably a Mitac under the branding (you'd be amazed how many Aspire, Novatech, A N Other cheapy laptops are Mitac) so parts will be plentiful.
I'd take them up on the waranty extension though because A) why not? B) It's electronic you can bet your bottom dollar that in 13 months time something will go 'ping'
Err.. try one of the second user T41 ibms from our place... (blatant advertising here)
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Tier-1-Onlin
bomb proof laptop with a reasonable spec, Tell the sales team Adrian sent you and see what sort of a deal you can get out of them.
Most of the outer case is made from metal covered in matt black rubber but a custom paint job wouldn't be too expensive.
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Tier-1-Onlin
bomb proof laptop with a reasonable spec, Tell the sales team Adrian sent you and see what sort of a deal you can get out of them.
Most of the outer case is made from metal covered in matt black rubber but a custom paint job wouldn't be too expensive.
Edited by rebuilda on Tuesday 17th April 02:31
Edited by rebuilda on Tuesday 17th April 02:34
Thanks for the help. I think I'll pass on the T41 - great price but doesn't have the zing factor.
It's not going to get loads of use so I don't want to spend loads, but then again, the devil on my other shoulder is saying 'if you get one, get a good one'. And then I found this:
www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Sony_Vaio_
1Gb RAM (whilst my main PC has 0.5Gb I understand that spec for spec laptops are slower) and a top image as well.
I've been suggested the Inspiron 6400 from Dell with 1G Ram and 1 year warranty - £410 delivered. Similar spec otherwise but with XP Pro, not Media Centre (= clutter) and no camera (un-needed gadget!).
But that Vaio does look nice, and I know they have excellent glossy black screen that make photos look great.
I think I need to go and fondle some in the shops!
(NB Damn, just noticed it's got Vista)
It's not going to get loads of use so I don't want to spend loads, but then again, the devil on my other shoulder is saying 'if you get one, get a good one'. And then I found this:
www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Sony_Vaio_
1Gb RAM (whilst my main PC has 0.5Gb I understand that spec for spec laptops are slower) and a top image as well.
I've been suggested the Inspiron 6400 from Dell with 1G Ram and 1 year warranty - £410 delivered. Similar spec otherwise but with XP Pro, not Media Centre (= clutter) and no camera (un-needed gadget!).
But that Vaio does look nice, and I know they have excellent glossy black screen that make photos look great.
I think I need to go and fondle some in the shops!
(NB Damn, just noticed it's got Vista)
Edited by simpo two on Tuesday 17th April 10:12
I'm almost reluctant to say this, but if it's just Photoshop and Word have you considered a MacBook Pro?
You've not mentioned any Windows-only stuff, so might be worth a look.
edit to add that I'm not some sort of Apple nazi - my business (and my preference) is Windows systems, it's just that I replaced my Vaio with a MBP principally to run Vista but I find OSX is fine for day-to-day stuff. And it's a nice-looking laptop, too.
You've not mentioned any Windows-only stuff, so might be worth a look.
edit to add that I'm not some sort of Apple nazi - my business (and my preference) is Windows systems, it's just that I replaced my Vaio with a MBP principally to run Vista but I find OSX is fine for day-to-day stuff. And it's a nice-looking laptop, too.
Edited by jamieboy on Tuesday 17th April 10:19
jamieboy said:
I'm almost reluctant to say this, but if it's just Photoshop and Word have you considered a MacBook Pro?
You've not mentioned any Windows-only stuff, so might be worth a look.
edit to add that I'm not some sort of Apple nazi - my business (and my preference) is Windows systems, it's just that I replaced my Vaio with a MBP principally to run Vista but I find OSX is fine for day-to-day stuff. And it's a nice-looking laptop, too.
You've not mentioned any Windows-only stuff, so might be worth a look.
edit to add that I'm not some sort of Apple nazi - my business (and my preference) is Windows systems, it's just that I replaced my Vaio with a MBP principally to run Vista but I find OSX is fine for day-to-day stuff. And it's a nice-looking laptop, too.
Edited by jamieboy on Tuesday 17th April 10:19
I am with you. I definately use and need windows, but just got a mac book pro and blown away by how good it is. Running VMWare fusion for anything that needs XP/Vista (have both vm's) but I find 90% of what I use personally I can do on OSX and just use the windows stuff for business.
Boot camp is easy, but I am finding the virtual stuff just as handy and I get the best of both worlds, because I can hibernate windows. only have experienc of MBP, but thinking of getting a macbook as I have to share the mbp with the other half and neither of us are using the windows laptop!! She of course always wins.....
Edited by maddog-uk on Tuesday 17th April 10:45
roop said:
How easy is it to get a MBP or a regular MB for that matter to dual boot OSX and Vista/XP...? Tempted as they seem good spec for the price, unlike Macs of old...
It's very easy - under OSX you download and install a thing called Bootcamp from the Apple website. When you run it, it lets you re-partition your disk so you've got an OSX partition and a Windows partition, and it lets you create a CD of drivers. Next, boot from your Windows installation CD and off you go - exactly like any other Windows install process. Thing to bear in mind is that Bootcamp is still a beta product until the next version of OSX launches (September or October, I think) so there's no support. I use it with Vista, and the only notable things that aren't right are the keyboard mapping (instead of " you get an umlaut) and the external monitor port doesn't work - although it detects the make and model of external monitor, the monitor stays on power-save all the time.
You can buy a copy here www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=487054 of xp for £89. I think vista is around £87 to £115. I would go ultimate. But to be honest I think I prefer XP!
VMWare Fusion is free for now, and I dont know the pricing but I have heard its going to be very keen.
VMWare Fusion is free for now, and I dont know the pricing but I have heard its going to be very keen.
if you're going down the "may as well get a good one" road:
www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Asus_Lamborghini_Laptops/prod.asp
www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Asus_Lamborghini_Laptops/prod.asp
I'm not concerned by Macs - my main machine is XP and I'd rather have two that talk the same language and that I know how to use.
I've just come back from a tour of my local computer shops and was very disappointed in the Vaio - it looks very cheap in the flesh with a silver bottom and white plastic top that feels cheap. Almost looks like the original top got broken off and they only had a white one left to replace it with!
My favourite - a combination of looks and feel - is the HP Pavilion range, which Comet have from £500-£650. The equivalent Asus Inspire is £600 - comparing notes, it has an Intel Core 2 Duo T5500 1.6GHz rather than an AMD Turion 64 X2 1.6GHz, a 120Gb HD rather than 80Gb (not a big deal) and 256Mb ATI Radeon graphics rather than Intel Graphics Accelerator 950 (no idea about that).
Can't see a Dell in the flesh so can't compare.
Everything in the shops has Vista. Will I be able to plug the two machines togther and transfer files? Both the HP and Aspire have 'wireless' - I know nothing about this - how long will it take to move 1Gb of image files?
More pondering required!
I've just come back from a tour of my local computer shops and was very disappointed in the Vaio - it looks very cheap in the flesh with a silver bottom and white plastic top that feels cheap. Almost looks like the original top got broken off and they only had a white one left to replace it with!
My favourite - a combination of looks and feel - is the HP Pavilion range, which Comet have from £500-£650. The equivalent Asus Inspire is £600 - comparing notes, it has an Intel Core 2 Duo T5500 1.6GHz rather than an AMD Turion 64 X2 1.6GHz, a 120Gb HD rather than 80Gb (not a big deal) and 256Mb ATI Radeon graphics rather than Intel Graphics Accelerator 950 (no idea about that).
Can't see a Dell in the flesh so can't compare.
Everything in the shops has Vista. Will I be able to plug the two machines togther and transfer files? Both the HP and Aspire have 'wireless' - I know nothing about this - how long will it take to move 1Gb of image files?
More pondering required!
depending on your budget, I can recommend Acer travel mates & HP's (not the pavillion home machines - I've no experience of them) Dells are cheap & cheerful but err on the side of cheap.
A grand gets you a top spec HP 6400 (Core 2 duo) or there are some deals on the AMD HP's (63xx) at the moment which put them down at 400 quid! Until recently I had an acer travel mate 800, but the plastics around the screen are shot & I can't get replacements from anywhere so it'll have to be junked (the screen just flops around & needs a new HDD) it's a shame as it's been round the world with me about 10 times in the last 3 years - literally. So it's had a fair amount of abuse & come through it all lol.
A grand gets you a top spec HP 6400 (Core 2 duo) or there are some deals on the AMD HP's (63xx) at the moment which put them down at 400 quid! Until recently I had an acer travel mate 800, but the plastics around the screen are shot & I can't get replacements from anywhere so it'll have to be junked (the screen just flops around & needs a new HDD) it's a shame as it's been round the world with me about 10 times in the last 3 years - literally. So it's had a fair amount of abuse & come through it all lol.
There are some cracking deals on acer at the moment. This one looks good. www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?rb=26956955420&action=c2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X3NwZWNpZmljYXRpb25z&product_uid=123120
cheers
Simon
cheers
Simon
I'd avoid a Vaio personally (and no I'm not bringing my unbridled hatred of Sony along for the ride ). They look very nice but the modern units I've seen tended to be as plasticy as a Dell (just very curvy) and were nothing special in terms of screen, performance or features. For what they are, they tend to be a bit on the expensive side for no apparent reason.
They also tend to be both a swine and expensive to get parts for (Sony wanted £110+VAT for a laptop CD-ROM drive that had their fascia on it... last year).
). They look very nice but the modern units I've seen tended to be as plasticy as a Dell (just very curvy) and were nothing special in terms of screen, performance or features. For what they are, they tend to be a bit on the expensive side for no apparent reason. They also tend to be both a swine and expensive to get parts for (Sony wanted £110+VAT for a laptop CD-ROM drive that had their fascia on it... last year).
ThePassenger said:
I'd avoid a Vaio personally (and no I'm not bringing my unbridled hatred of Sony along for the ride ). They look very nice but the modern units I've seen tended to be as plasticy
). They look very nice but the modern units I've seen tended to be as plasticyMy thoughts exactly. I wonder if there's a 'laptop chooser' anywhere where I can punch in the features I want and it gives me a list? It all gets very confusing as each model of laptop has several specs which are not clearly distinguished.
I have a Sony Vaio Laptop and it has been battered to death and still works. They seem to last a while the one i have is 3.5 years old and still ok for most work but strugles with large photoshop images.
My Works laptop is a HP NC6120 with 1gig ram which is more than match for a entry level desktop and can be had for £500.
Steve
My Works laptop is a HP NC6120 with 1gig ram which is more than match for a entry level desktop and can be had for £500.
Steve
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