Spec me a laptop

jellyellie · 30 Mar 2006 at 12:43

Hi guys, your help is needed!

I have £300-£400 to spend on a basic laptop. It will be used for word processing, internet browsing, MSN, the occasional iTunes and Excel sorta thing.

Things I'd like:
• Built-in WiFi
• At least 40Gb HDD
• At least 256Mb (I'd upgrade it to 512)
• 1 Firewire port & minimum of 2 USB ports
• At least 14" screen, res. of 1280x768
• Easily obtainable replacement parts
• Contrary to the sig, I want to run XP on it.
• Any processor - 1.2Ghz minimum, Celery, Athlon, P-m, whatever
• Not bothered about graphics

So if you have any suggestions, let's see 'em!

Cheers

wesley · 30 Mar 2006 at 12:54

gonna be very very hard to find one for £300 to £400, maybe one of the laptop from dell outlet with 30 days warranty.

tbh, i dont know a lot about cheapie lappy, spent £1,600 on lappy few months ago :/

jellyellie · 30 Mar 2006 at 13:14

Thanks for your reply wesley.

There are a few around at that spec for that price, quite a few on eBay, I just don't have any personal experience or recommendations so that's what I'm after here.

Also, I'm happy to buy a second hand one, if people have a particular model they recommend.

jellybeard999 · 30 Mar 2006 at 13:39

on the brand new front, wont do much better than the top model here :

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatalog/Dell_Notebooks.html

but id say 2nd hand is the way to go

get a refurb, or a nearly new 2nd hand P4-M, 512, 60gb etc... should be about 400 i should think

GuruJockStrap · 30 Mar 2006 at 14:57

I Got a Dell Inpsiron 630M delivered today from the Dell Outlet Factory.

Managed to get:

Pentium M 740 (1.73GHz, 2MB Cache)
2 x 256MB DDR2 533MHz RAM
40GB 5,400RPM HD
DVD/RW+R Drive
Intel Pro Wireless 2200 82.11b/g Wireless
14.1 WXGA screen
XP Media Centre Edition 2005
1 Year Warranty

All for £470.

Was worried about the condition of the laptop as it was from the outlet store but its virtually brand spanking new. No marks, no scratch, nothing.

Only problem with Dell is the amount of useless software they install.

Upon first boot there was around 59 running processes! :eek:

I kind you not!

jellyellie · 30 Mar 2006 at 17:42

Thanks for your replies guys.

jellybeard, I have been considering that one. You can get it for about £320 new on eBay from reputable sellers. Only thing that put me off is the fact it looks a bit like a brick, but I can't really be that picky at that price!

Guru, that's really interesting thanks. I was considering the 630m too but the size of it and 14" (not 15") screen put me off. What's the screen like? Is it bright, nice and sharp picture, etc? Also, how big is the laptop? It seemed to me like it was more of a desktop replacement than a notebook?

This whole looking process is starting to really annoy me now, I just want to buy one. Companies, I want to give you money!! Give me something worth buying

GuruJockStrap · 30 Mar 2006 at 18:46

jellyellie said:
Guru, that's really interesting thanks. I was considering the 630m too but the size of it and 14" (not 15") screen put me off. What's the screen like? Is it bright, nice and sharp picture, etc? Also, how big is the laptop? It seemed to me like it was more of a desktop replacement than a notebook?

I've only used it for a few minutes (busy doing uni assignment

) but I'm pleased with it.

Virtually silent and I've got no complaints with the screen. There is some backlight bleed at the bottom of the screen but in Windows its completely un-noticable.

Size wise I'd say its inbetween the ultra compact 12" laptops and the 15" desktop replacements. I wanted something portable but at the same time not too compact so that its uncomfortable with my large hands.

Would get some photo's up but currently a bit busy.

Heres a review of the Inspiron 630M: http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=2671&review=XPS+M140+and+Inspiron+630m

Also a review of the budget Inspiron 1300 you can get for under £400: http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=2738

jellyellie · 30 Mar 2006 at 19:40

Thanks again guru, some useful information and great links.

I've narrowed it down to three options now:

• Go for dirt cheap basic option - Dell Inspiron 1300 brand new for £325 on auction site
• Go for nice Toshiba Satellite L20 which I like the look of and is a nice brand name - special deal at £385 inc. free bag and laptop mouse
• Pay a bit more and get something like the Dell 630m for about £550, and look at other laptops in this price range.

At the moment I'm seriously swaying for the Tosh L20. I love the look of this laptop, I've found it for an excellent price, has all the features I'm after except FireWire which I can live without, and a pretty poor battery (1.5hours) which I'm not too bothered about. I'll need to spend £30 on some more RAM.

Does anybody have any experience with the L20, or any advice as to which option I should go for?