Looking for a nice laptop for uni...

apeZ

apeZ

apeZ

Soldato
Joined
22 Sep 2008
Posts
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Location
Kent, England
A bit of background:

I currently have a Samsung NC10, and while it is still going strong, there are signs of wear and tear and it could be a bit faster. Amazing machine though, nearly 2 years old!

As I'm off to university in September, I'm currently looking for a new laptop. However, I want quite a good one, that won't slow down and should be able to handle multitasking. It won't be running anything particularly demanding, but I may put some games on it, and I will be doing word processing, powerpoints and the like. Ideally it should be able to play HD video too, as that is something my NC10 is not capable of doing.

So, with a budget around £600-700, I've only taken a look at two real candidates so far:

- Standard Macbook 13.3" - bit over budget, but meh...
- Sony Vaio 13.3"
- Sony Vaio 15.4"

I'm really keen on the Vaio laptops, they look smart and the specs are good. However, the 13" models seem to be more expensive, and the 15.4" cites a 3.5hr battery which is a bit unacceptable. I'd prefer 5hr+. I like the i3/i5 though...

Macbooks are nice, but a bit expensive and my budget limits me to the entry level whitebook, which I don't know an awful lot about.

I'm looking for:

13.3" screen, maybe 15" if battery life isn't sacrified
5 hours+ battery with normal web browsing, nothing intensive
Dedicated graphics so I can play some games and watch high-def videos
Nice design with abundance of outputs/inputs
Good screen

If you could make any suggestions, I'd be grateful to hear them. I realise I don't need to spend that much, but I'd like to splash out and get something nice. Not in a hurry either!

Thanks :)
 
All I can say is if you get a sony, reinstall windows as soon as you get it and get rid of all the bloat... :)
 
Go with a macbook. A mac works faster and is less likely to crash/die and lose all of your hard work.

They also look best :P
 
No point going down the Mac root if your not planning on using OSX imo.

Would maybe have a look at the 3820TG, the build quality isn't that bad but some people have issues with the screen.
 
mm, my main gripe with Macbooks is the Apple 'premium' - it looks a little underpowered compared to the 4GB RAM, and better cpu/gpu in the Vaios. However the screen and build quality is second to none...and it has OSX, which I quite like.

Difficult decision. I'll take a look at that model too Rapier, thanks :)
 
Hi there

OcUK has some good Sony deals arriving tomorrow, so keep an eye on the laptop section. :)
 
Thanks Gibbo, I'll keep an eye out :)

Also, I believe Apple offer a rebate for free iPod Touch when buying a macbook, so I could possibly save even more money by selling that too, as I don't need one.
 
They do

apeZ said:
Thanks Gibbo, I'll keep an eye out :)

Also, I believe Apple offer a rebate for free iPod Touch when buying a macbook, so I could possibly save even more money by selling that too, as I don't need one.
Click to expand...

Although it doesn't work out compeltely free as you pay the VAT - so it is a extra "discount" if you sell it.
 
the macbook is a lovely machine and so is OSX however I ll chose linux any day over it...yes fine boots very quick

but its seems to want to control you and I hate that in a OS.
 
Still searching.

Sony Vaio E Series 15.4" is perfect in terms of specs, but battery life is absolutely dire. Anyone know of a similar model, maybe 13.3" with 5+ hours battery? Willing to compromise on graphics a bit, although I really like the Vaio spec.

The Vaio Z series is perfect, but waaaaaaaay out of my budget!

I like the Macbook, but the specs are just not impressive when you are expected to shell out £730. I expect more than 2GB RAM, an old dual core and 250GB hdd for that sort of money :/

Maybe I'll pop into an Applestore and have a play, I know they run well with their spec, so we'll see... Other thing that makes the Macbook desirable is the fantastic screen quality and battery life.
 
It's an impossible task at the moment. There is no decent mobility notebook with a i3/i5, dedicated GPU worth a dime, and good battery life. I have hopes that the Acer 3820TG will surface with a 5650, but it's just not coming out. It's still not bad with a 5470 though. Sony should really look to improve their weak battery life on their E 14'', and then they'll have winners. The 1215N sounds like it could be decent (dual core atom, Ion2), but still weak.

The next gen fusion chips should provide good all-rounder notebooks, that's at least 12-18 months away. Optimus / switchable graphics looks like a band-aid solution.

So really, either get something low power, mobile and cheap (I love my UL30A in that respect, but Acer offers similar notebooks), and a desktop / gaming laptop for the rest.

The only true notebooks that can really offer mobility and power are the Vaio Z, and the Alienware M11x. And then the Apples of course.
 
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