Best laptop for my father for under £300

[strath44]

Hi folks, my father is needing a new laptop primarily for using with a projector at various clubs he goes to.

Wondering is anyone has seen any good deals with ok spec for around £250 to £300.

The projector connection is HDMI.

Other than that it needs to do a bit of word, excel and power point and maybe his older version of Photoshop.

I can provide a bonafide version of a Microsft OS again if it has an OS all the better!.

It has to have at least a 15.6 inch screen and ideally a DVD drive as lot of his stuff is on disc (worst case I suppose a usb drive could be added but realistically the fewer points for error the better).

Any suggestions appreciated.

[sgrimshaw]

That's a tight budget for new (personally I'd rather not buy refurbed)

Just a few options from Laptopsdirect ...

https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/nav/pt/laptops/scr...

Of the six, I'd got for this Lenovo, more RAM, Full HD screen and SSD.

https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/lenovo-v145-amd-a9...

[parabolica]

A couple of options here on the dell outlet

Most have an optical drive but also most are celeron-based processors. Ideally you'd want an i3 but it would be hard to find in your budget, and a celeron would do ok for what he needs.

ETA: actually there is a HP AMD3 machine listed in sgrimshaw's post that I would probably go for - seems like a decent spec for the money (although on a 768 screen).

Edited by parabolica on Wednesday 24th July 12:11

[strath44]

Thanks for the replies and help. I've suggested the Hp on Laptops Direct that seems pretty good value the x768 res won't be an issue I don't think, theres a Lenovo there as well that is good.

https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/hp-255-g7-adm-ryze...

Yes it is a tight budget but for what its getting used for there is no point in spending any more money!

[ZesPak]

I don't know what he is projecting, but at that price point I'd only consider Chromebooks tbh.

[parabolica]

ZesPak said:

I don't know what he is projecting, but at that price point I'd only consider Chromebooks tbh.

Chromebooks don't come with dvd drives, although usb-connected drives are 10 a penny now a days.

[imck]

I have bought a few Refurb Laptops (Typing this on 11 Year old Lenovo X220 upgraded to SSD)

The Business Machines are much better quality than the Home Kit.
And Parts are easily available. Keyboards, Screens, Batteries.

Lenovo T540 would be ideal if you want a 15.6". Make sure it has SSD.
Quick look on Ebay £225 with 1 Year Warranty.
Mini Display Port but HDMi Converter cheap.

[strath44]

ZesPak said:

I don't know what he is projecting, but at that price point I'd only consider Chromebooks tbh.

I don’t really see an issue with the budget he’s not gaming or doing video editing!

I thought chrome books could only run Microsoft office whilst online?

[ZesPak]

strath44 said:

ZesPak said:

I don't know what he is projecting, but at that price point I'd only consider Chromebooks tbh.

I don’t really see an issue with the budget he’s not gaming or doing video editing!

I thought chrome books could only run Microsoft office whilst online?

Yes, and yes.

You're right, in terms of performance, every laptop these days will do what he needs and then some.
The main issue I find is that laptops are a package. A cheap laptop means a cheap housing, cheap screen, cheap keyboard.
I've seen a number of chromebooks that break that mold.

[CubanPete]

I'd spend an extra £100, you should scrape into an i5 processor and upgrade ram and to an ssd at a later date if required.

Sub £300 will be slow from the word go and will be struggling once a few updates have presenteded themselves. As already suggested, for this money I'd look at a chrome book.