Which laptop for £550?

Conrad11

Conrad11

Conrad11

Soldato
Joined
12 Jun 2005
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Hi there,

A couple of weeks ago i asked about laptops, but now i actually have the money together and want to buy. I was recommended a xps 13" model last time.

If I had a budget of £550, which laptop would you get.

Also, same question for a budget of £750.

Thanks.
 
At the moment, the M1330 (i think), or the Vostro 1500's.

Can get very good specs for your money on both, and definitely in them price ranges.
 
Whats the different between the XPS and the vostro range?

Can get the Vostro range like this for £739

BASE Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor T7500 (2.20 GHz, 800 MHz FSB, 4 MB L2-cache) edit
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows Vista® Business - English edit
SUPPORT SERVICES 1Yr Basic Warranty - Next Business Day Included - No Upgrade Selected edit
LCD 17.0" UltraSharp™ Wide Screen WUXGA (1920x1200) TFT Display with TrueLife™ edit
INTEGRATED WEBCAM Matte Jet Black with 2.0 mega pixel camera edit
MEMORY 3072MB 667MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM (1x1024 + 1x2048 MB) edit
HARD DRIVE 250GB (5400RPM) SATA Hard Drive edit
GRAPHICS CARD 256MB nVidia® GeForce® 8600M GT edit
OPTICAL DRIVE Fixed Internal 8X DVD+/-RW Drive including Software edit
PRIMARY BATTERY Primary 6-cell Lithium-Ion Battery (56 WHr) edit
Click to expand...
 
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I like the look of the XPS laptops and the fact they have integrated HDMI means a lot to me.

What do you think of this for the M1530 range, its pushing my budget but i think i might be able to manage it:

BASE Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor T7250 (2.00 GHz, 800 MHz FSB, 2 MB L2-cache) edit
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium - English edit
HARDWARE SUPPORT Base Warranty - 1 Year Hardware Support, Next Business Day edit
COLOUR CHOICE 2.0 mega pixel Camera & Crimson Red for CCFL Display edit
LCD 15.4" Widescreen WXGA+ (1440x900) TFT Display with TrueLife™ edit
BIOMETRIC IDENTIFICATION Biometric Fingerprint Reader with BLACK accent edit
MEMORY 2048MB 667MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM [2x1024] edit
HARD DRIVE 80GB (5400rpm) SATA Hard Drive edit
GRAPHICS CARD NVIDIA® GeForce™ Go 8600M GT with 256MB dedicated graphic memory edit
OPTICAL DRIVE Fixed 8x DVD+/-RW Slim Slot Load drive, including SW edit
PRIMARY BATTERY Primary 6-cell Lithium-Ion Battery (56 WHr) edit
Click to expand...

Thats for £760.

The only thing that bothers me is the hard drive. Space wise its fine, but is it too slow? Also doesn't have wireless-n or bluetooth :(
 
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Conrad11 said:
I like the look of the XPS laptops and the fact they have integrated HDMI means a lot to me.

What do you think of this for the M1530 range, its pushing my budget but i think i might be able to manage it:



Thats for £760.

The only thing that bothers me is the hard drive. Space wise its fine, but is it too slow? Also doesn't have wireless-n or bluetooth :(
Click to expand...


For that price it should have HDMI though i thought only a few had it? Seems to me from looking at the Dell range is that youpay more for th XPs range and there doesn't seem to be so much one them as some of the Vostro's?



Vostro 1700 i'm looking at which looks good for the price.

BASE Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor T7250 (2.00 GHz, 800 MHz FSB, 2 MB L2-cache) edit
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium - English edit
SUPPORT SERVICES 1Yr Basic Warranty - Next Business Day Included - No Upgrade Selected edit
LCD 17" Wide Screen WXGA+ (1440 x 900) Display with TrueLife™ edit
INTEGRATED WEBCAM Matte Jet Black with 2.0 mega pixel camera edit
MEMORY 3072MB 667MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM (1x1024 + 1x2048 MB) edit
HARD DRIVE 320 GB (5400rpm) SATA Dual Hard Drive (2x 160GB) edit
GRAPHICS CARD 128MB nVidia® GeForce® 8400M GS edit
OPTICAL DRIVE Fixed Internal 8X DVD+/-RW Drive including Software edit
PRIMARY BATTERY Primary 6-cell Lithium-Ion Battery (56 WHr) edit
Services & Software
MOBILITY Declined CompleteCare edit
SECURITY SOFTWARE No Security/Anti-Virus Protection - English edit
Accessories
MICROSOFT SOFTWARE Microsoft® Works 8.0 - English edit
CARRY CASES No Carry Case edit
BLUETOOTH Dell™ Wireless 355 Bluetooth 2.0 Module (up to 3Mbps) with Enhanced Data Rate edit
WIRELESS CONNECTIVITY Intel® Pro Wireless 3945 802.11a/b/g Mini-Card - Europe edit

Subtotal £574.00
Ex. VAT & Shipping
Click to expand...
 
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Been shopping around a bit and i came across this for £665, it seems pretty decent

Its an Acer Aspire 5920G:

# Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo processor T7300 2.0GHz
# Memory:2GB
# HD Capacity: 250 Gb
# Display: 15.4"
# Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GS
# Operating System: Vista Home Premium
# Optical Drive: HD-DVD
# Networking: GLAN, WiFi (N)
# Size (WxDxH): 344 (W) x 246 (D) x 37/42 (H) mm
# Weight: 3.36kg
# Full Specifications:
# Operating System: Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium
# Chipset: Mobile Mobile Intel PM965 Express Chipset
# CPU Section:
# Microprocessor Full Name:Intel Core 2 Duo processor T7300
# Microprocessor Manufacturer:Intel
# Microprocessor Speed (GHz):2.0
# L2 Cache (KB):4 Mb
# Frontside Bus (MHz):800
# Memory:
# Memory Speed (MHz):667
# Memory Type:DDR2
# Memory Size (MB):2048 Mb
# Max Memory Size:4Gb
# Hard Disk Drive:
# Hard Drive Capacity (GB):250 Gb
# Hard Drive Type:S-ATA
# Optical Drive:
# Optical Drive Type:1X HD DVD drive
# Optical Drive Fitting:Built In
# Optical Drive Speed Read:24X CD-ROM, 24X CD-R, 24X CD-RW, 8X DVD-ROM, 8X DVD-R, 8X DVD+R, 6X DVD-ROM DL (double-layer), 4X DVD-R DL (double-layer), 4X DVD+R DL (double-layer), 4X DVD-RW, 4X DVD+RW, 3X DVD-RAM, 1X HD DVD-ROM, 1X HD DVD-R, 1X HD DVD-RW, 1X HD DVD-ROM DL (double-layer), 1X HD DVD-R DL (double-layer), 1X HD DVD-RW DL (double-layer)
# Optical Drive Speed Write:16X CD-R, 10X CD-RW, 4X DVD-R, 4X DVD+R, 4X DVD-RW, 4X DVD+RW, 3X DVD-RAM, 2.4X DVD+R DL (double-layer), 2X DVD-R DL (double-layer)
# Display:
# Display Type:Acer Crystalbrite
# Diagonal Size (in):15.4"
# Resolution Format:1280 x 800
# Resolution Type:WXGA
# Graphics:
# Graphic Card Full Name:NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GS
# Memory:256Mb VRAM, with up to 1024MB
# Interfaces:
# 4 Pin i.LINK (IEEE1394), 400 Mbps:YES
# DC in:YES
# Card reader:5-in-1 card reader (SD, MMC, MS, MS PRO, xD)
# Audio out:YES
# Audio out Type:Headphone/speaker/line-out jack
# Microphone Jack:YES
# RJ-11 Direct Port (Modem):YES
# RJ-45 Direct Port (Network):YES
# USB Port (quantity):4
# VGA Connector for Monitor:YES
# Express Card Slot:YES
# Express Card Type:ExpressCard/54
# Battery:
# Battery Type:44 W 4000 mAh Li-ion battery pack (6-cell) - 2.5 hour battery life
# Connectivity
# Built-in Modem: YES, 56K ITU V.92 with PTT approval8, Wake-on-Ring ready
# Integrated Wireless LAN:YES, Intel Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN (dual-band quad-mode 802.11a/b/g/Draft-N)
# Ethernet network:Gigabit Ethernet, Wake-on-LAN ready
# Camera: YES Crystal Eye 0.3 MP
# Multimedia:
# Intel High Definition Audio compatible:YES
# Built-in Stereo Speakers:YES
# 3D Surround:Dolby Digital Live
# Windows Sound System Compatible:YES
# Features:
# Special Buttons:Empowering Key, Easy-launch buttons: WLAN, Internet, email, Acer Arcade, Acer MediaTouch keys: play/pause, stop, previous, next, record keys
# Supplied Accessories
# AC Adaptor:Yes
# Battery:Yes
# Power Cord:Yes
# Warranty:1 year manufacturer warranty
Click to expand...

Has HDMI output too, only problem i can see if the resolution might be too small :(....it doesn't have bluetooth either.
 
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It doesn't explicitly say on the acer website, but i am sure it can do up to 1080p with a 8600m gs graphics card?

Is there a big difference between gs and gt graphics?
 
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