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Mom
14th August 2009, 19:10
Hi guys

I would have to be the furtherest thing from a computer guru that exists and I need some help.

I want to buy a laptop. What I want it for is to have internet access to view my bebo/facebook profile and talk shit on there. I want to be able to download music via I-tunes, and maybe send the odd email. My step Mom reckons having some word processing ability would be a bonus, what do I need?

I dont have a lot of money to throw around, and I dont want to buy a heap of technology I wont use and dont need, all I want is something that will do the above, and not cost me the earth. What should I ask for?

Thanks...

Boob Johnson
14th August 2009, 19:12
You need a Benny basic LT Mom, nothing fancy just so long as it has at least 1GB of RAM (if it has Vista on it) & Wifi. Question is are you expecting brand new or 2nd hand?

Trudes
14th August 2009, 19:17
One word...... iPhone.;)

Leyton
14th August 2009, 19:21
What should I ask for?


Decent warrenty, new or 2nd hand. Cover yourself for as long as you want to keep the laptop, Usally 3 years does it.

Buying 2nd hand is not a good idea, as batterys are usally well dead by year 3. Or atleast completely pack it in at 3 years and 1 week. Also laptop hardware repairs can be expensive if you need a new screen for example.. if you have a broken mainboard.. I would not even go their to replace the mainboard.. or even the screen really.

I would buy a cheap new laptop with a decent warrenty. If you are not a gamer, you do not need a high end laptop for Facebook, I-Tunes and basic internet dutys.

Your looking at spending no less then $1500 and no more than $2000 in todays market.

Blackshear
14th August 2009, 19:23
Some single core beast 2nd hand.

Short of that, maybe an EEE thing?

Mom
14th August 2009, 19:31
Buying 2nd hand is not a good idea, as batterys are usally well dead by year 3. I would buy a cheap new laptop with a decent warrenty. If you are not a gamer, you do not need a high end laptop for Facebook, I-Tunes and basic internet dutys.

Your looking at spending no less then $1500 and no more than $2000 in todays market.

Thanks, proably not important that the battery is not good, this will more than likely be plugged in most of the time. Being mobile is not what a lap top is all about in this case. What is not high end? What are the specs, I dont want to be sucked in to buying something speced way over my needs.


Some single core beast 2nd hand.

Short of that, maybe an EEE thing?

An EEE thing? Please speak english.

Mom
14th August 2009, 19:32
You need a Benny basic LT Mom, nothing fancy just so long as it has at least 1GB of RAM (if it has Vista on it) & Wifi. Question is are you expecting brand new or 2nd hand?

Dont care, good value, something that will not crap out 10 mins after I get it home.

vindy500
14th August 2009, 19:35
if buying new, go to shop, look at laptops. they will all do the job fine

Boob Johnson
14th August 2009, 19:35
Dont care, good value, something that will not crap out 10 mins after I get it home.
here's an easier question, what's ya budget?

Cajun
14th August 2009, 19:38
Well mom, first thing i would ask, is how much you want to spend
under $1000?
$1000?
$1500?
$2000?
-----

Since you can get good laptops in all these budgets, like anything cheaper you get the short time it will last before needing an upgrade.

At a minum buying a new laptop

You should be wanting
100GB+ Hard Drive
2Gb Ram
Screen = personal prefernce, 17"+ good for movies and like, but ad extra weight. compared to 14-15" screens.
Stay away from anything that says cerelon as a processor.

The other thing, is are you wanting a laptop cause you want to take it away with you? Or more just be able to use it in lounge surfing net (wifi connection)

next question is plan to take it away on bike etc etc.



Something out of left field is you could get one of those micro laptops, ones with 10" screens etc, they are good for basic web surfing, and like. They are small, light, not super face/powerful, but good for basic use, and net surfing suit your needs. and can be carryed very easy on a laptop, and with a telecom/vodafone datacard, you can use that and laptop to surf net from anywhere that has a cellphone recpeition

Leyton
14th August 2009, 19:41
I will paste you a link of a couple around the ballpark..

http://www.dse.co.nz/dse.shop/4a85139e002ea11a273fc0a87f3b06bc/Product/View/XC4359 <-- That one is acually fairly grunty

If you see Pentium Dual Core it generaly means grunter, but this machine is far from high end :)

http://www.dse.co.nz/dse.shop/4a85139e002ea11a273fc0a87f3b06bc/Product/View/XC4362 <-- This is a Aspire One E-Pc. Or Netbook as they call them.

This model is acually supprisingly grunty. This unit comes out on Windows XP, they are super light, easy to just throw in a bag and go. They are the best out of the E-PC Series imo due to the screen, It is a small screen, but they are crystal clear and are quite usable.

The only thing I do not like about the Aspire One is the touch pad, it is small and a pain to use, So get a mouse with it. This unit will give you 3 hours of battery life. And you may be able to.. and I am not sure if you can do it through retail stores is upgrade to a 7 hour battery if you so desire.... . I have a few schools where these machines are used by students, thrashed day in and day out and survive and do well!

Hope your getting a better picture.

Just get a long warrenty!!

Leyton
14th August 2009, 19:43
Something out of left field is you could get one of those micro laptops, ones with 10" screens etc, they are good for basic web surfing, and like. They are small, light, not super face/powerful, but good for basic use, and net surfing suit your needs. and can be carryed very easy on a laptop, and with a telecom/vodafone datacard, you can use that and laptop to surf net from anywhere that has a cellphone recpeition

Also known as an E-Pc or Netbook :) And as Cajun describes them very well :)

James Deuce
14th August 2009, 19:44
As Cajun says a Netbook would be a good option. Combine it with Google Apps and all your Word Processing and Spreadsheet requirements are sorted, however you will need to have Internet access to do Word Processing or any other sort of work requiring a specific application.

Google Apps are free by the way.

You can hook some Netbooks up to a screen for when you are using it at home so you won't need to squint or use the reading glasses.

Something like this (but not necessarily exactly like it)

http://www.dse.co.nz/dse.shop/en/product/XC4899?utm_medium=email&utm_source=2degrees

Warr
14th August 2009, 19:45
If you do decide to go new ... which is a good plan ...
It could equally be a good idea to hold off for a couple of months ?? and wait for something with Windows7 on it.
Have been using it on my HP Laptop for couple of weeks and very cool and not quite the same slug as Vista. So gets my tick :)

Slicksta
14th August 2009, 19:46
Well mom, first thing i would ask, is how much you want to spend
under $1000?
$1000?
$1500?
$2000?
-----

Since you can get good laptops in all these budgets, like anything cheaper you get the short time it will last before needing an upgrade.

At a minum buying a new laptop

You should be wanting
100GB+ Hard Drive
2Gb Ram
Screen = personal prefernce, 17"+ good for movies and like, but ad extra weight. compared to 14-15" screens.
Stay away from anything that says cerelon as a processor.

The other thing, is are you wanting a laptop cause you want to take it away with you? Or more just be able to use it in lounge surfing net (wifi connection)

next question is plan to take it away on bike etc etc.



Something out of left field is you could get one of those micro laptops, ones with 10" screens etc, they are good for basic web surfing, and like. They are small, light, not super face/powerful, but good for basic use, and net surfing suit your needs. and can be carryed very easy on a laptop, and with a telecom/vodafone datacard, you can use that and laptop to surf net from anywhere that has a cellphone recpeition

1+ 10 char

Leyton
14th August 2009, 19:46
if buying new, go to shop, look at laptops. they will all do the job fine

I agree.

For what you are asking of a computer, we were doing that 7 years ago and happy with the performance, so anything you get will indeed do the job.

Oh, NEC Branded laptops and Asus are your cheapys :), they are generaly not good. But someone here might have a different opinion.

Cajun
14th August 2009, 19:47
Also known as an E-Pc or Netbook :) And as Cajun describes them very well :)

yeah most people know them as mini/micro/little laptops, gotta be able to talk non-geek you know.

Leyton
14th August 2009, 19:49
Oh, And if you do not want mobility. Do not get a laptop.. get a desktop PC. They can be repaired mostly with generic parts in the future. Laptops have custom sized components in them usally with the acception of hard disks and optical drives, making them expensive to repair.

Blackshear
14th August 2009, 19:49
Thanks, proably not important that the battery is not good, this will more than likely be plugged in most of the time. Being mobile is not what a lap top is all about in this case. What is not high end? What are the specs, I dont want to be sucked in to buying something speced way over my needs.



An EEE thing? Please speak english.

It's like a tiny laptop. Good for pretty much all you asked for.
Cheapish, too, but it's not exactly a powerhouse. Battery lifes a good though.

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Computers/Laptops/Laptops/Other/auction-236094447.htm

This has a bit more oomph, bust price reflects it.
http://www.noelleeming.co.nz/computers/notebook-computers/pc-notebook-computers/hp-hpmini110-1006-mini-110-1006tu-notebook/prod12236.html

Leyton
14th August 2009, 19:50
mini/micro/little laptops, gotta be able to talk non-geek you know.

Ok then, Frisbie :P:whistle:

bogan
14th August 2009, 20:01
Oh, NEC Branded laptops and Asus are your cheapys :), they are generaly not good. But someone here might have a different opinion.

Asus are supposed to be quite good (hope so anyway, i just ordered one from the states)

James Deuce
14th August 2009, 20:05
Asus are supposed to be quite good (hope so anyway, i just ordered one from the states)
I've built PCs for years and ASUS componentry product has to be some of the best gear out there. Someone may be getting confused with Acer.

Blackshear
14th August 2009, 20:07
I've built PCs for years and ASUS componentry product has to be some of the best gear out there. Someone may be getting confused with Acer.

What's wrong with a-bit? :whistle:

Squiggles
14th August 2009, 20:09
Buy a macbook.


I dont feel i need to back this up. Oh, and try and wangle it so you get it @ education prices

Blackshear
14th August 2009, 20:14
Buy a macbook.



Ten characters.

Leyton
14th August 2009, 20:15
I guss Asus have improved then. When they first starting making laptops they were full of features for a low price but unreliable, they must have changed :)

NEC is still crap :)

James Deuce
14th August 2009, 20:17
What's wrong with a-bit? :whistle:

Big A-Bit fan too. Best thing about them is they are always one revision behind the latest unstable firmware/driver/software release.

Blackshear
14th August 2009, 20:18
Big A-Bit fan too. Best thing about them is they are always one revision behind the latest unstable firmware/driver/software release.

Make like an A-bit motherboard and stop postinnnnng.

I needs MOAR VAWDKAH!

James Deuce
14th August 2009, 20:19
You stop posting first.

Mom
14th August 2009, 20:21
You guys are awesome. Thank you for all your advice.

SMOKEU
14th August 2009, 20:21
1. Don't buy a Mac
2. Extended warranties are a rip off, they offer no extra protection over the consumer guarantees act

Jonno.
14th August 2009, 20:24
You don't need a two gigs of ram and a duel core for going on the internet.
I'd tell you to get a desktop. You can get one for less then 500 and all you need is the screen. You don't need to spend 2 grand.

Also don't get a macbook. :bash:

Blackshear
14th August 2009, 20:26
You stop posting first.

It was a joke. I think.

BRB Butter Chicken time. :woohoo:

cs363
14th August 2009, 20:34
I've built PCs for years and ASUS componentry product has to be some of the best gear out there. Someone may be getting confused with Acer.

Thanks JD...I saw that and I was thinking WTF?
Likewise I have a reasonable amount to do with computers both PC's and laptops and have always found ASUS to be very good.

ASUS motherboards and components are fairly common inside most popular big brands.

Thinking about it Acer PC's are the only ones I ever had issues with at work.... :)

Street Gerbil
14th August 2009, 20:50
If you are not using itunes to actually burn you money on music, get something second hand that can run ubuntu. Power requirements are nil compared to win7 or vista, and you don't have to pay for software. Ever.
And these days ubuntu is simple to use enough to pass for "the newest version of windows" with old folks :-)

Insanity_rules
14th August 2009, 23:46
Oh, And if you do not want mobility. Do not get a laptop.. get a desktop PC. They can be repaired mostly with generic parts in the future. Laptops have custom sized components in them usally with the acception of hard disks and optical drives, making them expensive to repair.

Bing bing bing bing bing! Correct! Leyton speaks wisdom.