Just bought my new laptop to replace my Powerbook which has had to go back to my previous employers.
I was interested in the Vostros but had to have one for this weekend which wasnt goign to be likely from Dell. I'd have probably ordered one from OCUK if they werent only selling the 3 year warranty versions.
Anyway, firstly I went for the Acer Aspire 5720 Gemstone. Spec was decent enough, Santa Rosa Core 2 Duo 2.0, 120GB HD blah blah all for £599. Brought it home, set it all up, left it a few hours and then it wouldnt reboot. Acer tech support thought the Power board had probably gone :/
No replacements of those in stock (and feeling a bit let down by Acer) I re-evaluated what I wanted out of a laptop. Its never used on the move - its most just used at my home office and taken to clients offices where I freelance. As its my main machine I thought a 17" might be nice, so decided on the Fujitsu Siemens Amilo 1818. The spec is pretty decent:
Core 2 Duo 1.73
2GB Ram
160GB HD
Integrated graphics (dont play any games so not a concern)
17" 1440 x 900 glossy screen
The usual wifi etc.
Vista Home Premium.
And all for the bargain price of £499 inc VAT (Which I'll be claiming back)
I'm really impressed with this machine. It didnt come with any crap installed, and it really zips round Vista with the 2GB, and runs Photoshop CS3 very very quickly (I was worried about the graphics but that must only be poor for 3d) The screen is awesome and the sound is better than the Acer, which is supposedly good on the Gemstones.
Only negative is that its not what you'd call sexy. Its a bit functional looking (probably because its german lol), but at the end of the day you spend your time lookign at the screen anyway.
So yeah, its highly recommended for those looking for a decent spec lappy that you dont want to play games on.
I was interested in the Vostros but had to have one for this weekend which wasnt goign to be likely from Dell. I'd have probably ordered one from OCUK if they werent only selling the 3 year warranty versions.
Anyway, firstly I went for the Acer Aspire 5720 Gemstone. Spec was decent enough, Santa Rosa Core 2 Duo 2.0, 120GB HD blah blah all for £599. Brought it home, set it all up, left it a few hours and then it wouldnt reboot. Acer tech support thought the Power board had probably gone :/
No replacements of those in stock (and feeling a bit let down by Acer) I re-evaluated what I wanted out of a laptop. Its never used on the move - its most just used at my home office and taken to clients offices where I freelance. As its my main machine I thought a 17" might be nice, so decided on the Fujitsu Siemens Amilo 1818. The spec is pretty decent:
Core 2 Duo 1.73
2GB Ram
160GB HD
Integrated graphics (dont play any games so not a concern)
17" 1440 x 900 glossy screen
The usual wifi etc.
Vista Home Premium.
And all for the bargain price of £499 inc VAT (Which I'll be claiming back)
I'm really impressed with this machine. It didnt come with any crap installed, and it really zips round Vista with the 2GB, and runs Photoshop CS3 very very quickly (I was worried about the graphics but that must only be poor for 3d) The screen is awesome and the sound is better than the Acer, which is supposedly good on the Gemstones.
Only negative is that its not what you'd call sexy. Its a bit functional looking (probably because its german lol), but at the end of the day you spend your time lookign at the screen anyway.
So yeah, its highly recommended for those looking for a decent spec lappy that you dont want to play games on.