Dear Everyone. I need a new laptop and Marc is gone to Heaven

[Hillbilly]

The reference to the article on SSDs vs HDDs was interesting. "Spinners" as Marc called them are pretty useful and cheap. The HDDs are cheaper. Upkeep is sometimes a pain.
I will keep looking and I think I will come up with something that is not "plasticy" but strong. I have to be sure Marc would approve...I know that the sob is watching this closely....

Thanks and keeps the comments coming...

HB

 

[bigbird]

Our IT guy recommends getting an SSD for lots of reasons, some of which are outlined here;

https://www.pcmag.com/article/358283/why-your-next-pc-should-have-an-ssd.................

I am still partial to this part of that article ............

Also, since HDDs are great for lots of cheap archival space, you can get the best of both worlds by going for an SSD as a boot drive and a larger HDD for extra storage

I have a desktop and a laptop both with a 256Gb SSD and a 1TB HDD. For me perfect setup as i store a LOT of files on my pc.

 

[Matilda]

HB

I am in exactly the same position as you. Marc recommended to me the same model you have, just after you had yours and I love it. Same issues. Keyboard has some keys not working so I have a wireless keyboard which sits on top, has had a new fan and a new hard drive SSD. No battery any more. I am off to the UK so have been in touch with a computer store there and said what I need ( no videos, hardly any games ) and that I wanted to keep all my data so could my hard drive just be put in the new one. Their reply was:

We recomend the Lenovo V330 with: i5 8250U, 256GB M.2 SSD, 8GB DDR4 RAM, Full HD Mate 15.6" Display. It also has a nice keyboard and trackpad, with 2 USB 3.0 and 2 USB Type C, with combo audio/mic port, webcam, mic, ethernet, hdmi, vga and a dvd drive. Oh and it has AC Wireless in duel band.
And that is £600 inc VAT
Office Home & Student 2019 is £119.99 inc VAT
It has a free 2.5" space availiable to fit an extra drive so yes we can put the old on in there.
It will be windows 10. no options for windows 7 now because its getting completely discontinued in jan 2021.
Its voltage is between 100-240 so you will be fine.

I checked it out and the only criticism were it was a bit plasticy and screen resolution not brilliant. Wrote back and reply was:

I recomend it because its just a solid all around laptop. it covers pretty much every aspect quite well and theres not many downsides.

Pros

Its very fast (with it's new i5,8 gb ram & 256gb ssd)

its got very good ports (USB type C is the future)

its very modern (because of the above)
its still got a dvd drive (most dont bother anymore)

its got a full hd screen (most still dont have this)

its got a very good trackpad & keyboard (a nice bonus)


Cons

It's windows 10 (not that you have a choice)

the screen isn't as bright as you might want (but it is still mate, and working indoors wont matter. better to have a full hd screen thats a bit dark then a sub hd screen and it being a 'bit' brighter. sub hd screens are inherently dull anyway, thats why its so cheap).


It's a full plastic chassis (you have to comprimise somewhere, it's still very sturdy in my opinion. fact of the matter though, is back in the day all laptops where sturdy, but not because people wanted it but because they simply couldnt make it smaller, they were big and bulky which makes them automatically sturdy. the more modern something is, the thinner it gets (and by extension less sturdier). Thats reality im afraid.)

It's all about comprismise and realistic expectations. £600 is an incredably good price for something of this spec. thats why i've been recomending this for over 3 months now (that means nothing else has come to my attention that beats it in any meaniful way). If you want it cheaper you have to sacrifice something else. my personal opinion is to care more about performance & features then having a metal chassis or a slightly brighter screen. sure those things are nice, but you pay much more for it and if the machine in question is already OK in the build quality department then just settle for OK and be glad that you have a good performer.

Hope that helps

Matilda

 

[bigbird]

............. and that I wanted to keep all my data so could my hard drive just be put in the new one. Their reply was:


It has a free 2.5" space availiable to fit an extra drive so yes we can put the old on in there............

Matilda

me likes

 

[jinty05]

Frank

Totally agree that a Surface Pro is really an amazing piece of equipment that you introduced me to for a bargain price.

Thanks a million

 

[wuarhat]

A laptop is subject to forces that HDDs are not equipped to handle. Unless you want to shut it off and wait for the drive to stop spinning every time you move you are risking everything you have stored on it. It might be a rare occurrence, once in about 25 years of laptop use for me, but it was a sad event.

 

[cobraboy]

Some good suggestions so far. One thing I would like to add is beware a lot of the newer laptops only come with a SSD (solid state drive). The reasoning I believe for this is there is an assumption you will be storing your files in the clouds. Personally I am not a big fan of this set-up and much prefer the laptop to have dual drives. A SSD for storing my programs and a HDD for storing my data.

My computer is configured with a 256GB SSD for system and programs (speed, a 30 second boot) and a 1TB 7200rpm HDD for storage with a 4TB personal cloud and 2TB portable drive for redundancy.

 

[windeguy]

sounds good, frank, but do tell where you can get a 27 inch monitor for 115..

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6048866&Sku=40810683

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5951143&CatId=11877

27" at $119 and $129 but I didn't search very hard.

 

[cavok]

It doesn't sound you need anything real fancy(?). I'd say stick with HP. I've had an HP Pavillion dm4 with an i5 processor and 8GB of ram and it's been a great laptop. When I upgrade it'l be to another HP.

4GB will work ok, but I'd go with 8GB minimum. If you need storage like I do(I have a lot of music and foto files), get a 500GB HDD or greater and forget about the SSD - it will cost you hundreds of dollars more - not worth the money IMO.

If watching your laptop boot up 15 seconds faster and programs open 5 second faster is important enough to you to spend the extra money for an SSD, you must have a really hectic and fast paced life.

Also, unless you're really on a tight budget - buy new.

 

[Hillbilly]

My goodness!! ALL of these posts make sense. Matilda, I love your report and Frank, thanks for the Amazon link..I put one in my cart. CB what kind of a rig do you have? sounds potent.
I expect to go to Best Buy and Tiger direct in Florida.
Now my head is full of ideas, all thanks to you folks...

Thanks again. This has been a most enlightening experience.

HB

 

[cobraboy]

My goodness!! ALL of these posts make sense. Matilda, I love your report and Frank, thanks for the Amazon link..I put one in my cart. CB what kind of a rig do you have? sounds potent.
I expect to go to Best Buy and Tiger direct in Florida.
Now my head is full of ideas, all thanks to you folks...

Thanks again. This has been a most enlightening experience.

HB

It's A powerful HP Envy, but I do a lot of heavy video editing, Photoshop and After Effects. You don't need anything like that.

I just bought Mom CB a laptop on Cyber Monday, an ASUS 8th generation i3 machine (she just emails and surfs) I upgraded to a 256 GB SSD, 1TB HDD, 8GB RAM, 15.6" 1080 screen, optic drive and W10 home for around $550. Should be here in a couple of days from an Amazon vendor.

Cavok, SSD's are no longer spendy. The upgrade in my mom's new machine was $70. I will install it myself in the spare M1 slot. The machine can take up to 16GB RAM, but what's the point?

 

[cavok]

It's A powerful HP Envy, but I do a lot of heavy video editing, Photoshop and After Effects. You don't need anything like that.

I just bought Mom CB a laptop on Cyber Monday, an ASUS 8th generation i3 machine (she just emails and surfs) I upgraded to a 256 GB SSD, 1TB HDD, 8GB RAM, 15.6" 1080 screen, optic drive and W10 home for around $550. Should be here in a couple of days from an Amazon vendor.

Cavok, SSD's are no longer spendy. The upgrade in my mom's new machine was $70. I will install it myself in the spare M1 slot. The machine can take up to 16GB RAM, but what's the point?

Maybe not the smaller SSD's, but when comparing two equally similar models in the 500GB range, everything I've seen costs at least $300 more. I haven't seen any laptops with a 500GB SSD for much under a $1000(?). Plenty of laptops with a 500GB HDD in the $500 price range.

 

[cobraboy]

Maybe not the smaller SSD's, but when comparing two equally similar models in the 500GB range, everything I've seen costs at least $300 more. I haven't seen any laptops with a 500GB SSD for much under a $1000(?). Plenty of laptops with a 500GB HDD in the $500 price range.

All I want an SSD for is system and programs for boot speed, so 256GB is plenty. Data can go on a spinning disk, and even 7200rpm is coming down in price.

I remember when RAM was spendy. Times change...

 

[cobraboy]

HB, spec what you want and keep an eye out for deals this holiday season. After Xmas deals may be had. Once you buy the box getting it configured is easy. I can send my tech geek employee your way. He is in Santiago.

 

[JD Jones]

All I want an SSD for is system and programs for boot speed, so 256GB is plenty. Data can go on a spinning disk, and even 7200rpm is coming down in price.

I remember when RAM was spendy. Times change...

I bought a 128 GB micro San disk on Amazon for 23 bucks last week. Bought 4 actually.

256 GB were 50 dollars. Going down isn't the word for it.

Edit: Just checked Amazon now. The 128GB is 20 bucks now.

 

[frank12]

I bought a 128 GB micro San disk on Amazon for 23 bucks last week. Bought 4 actually.

256 GB were 50 dollars. Going down isn't the word for it.

Edit: Just checked Amazon now. The 128GB is 20 bucks now.

I remember buying these things:

1. 1995 Toshiba laptop computer $3,000 dollars, with 900MB hard disc memory.

2. 2009 16GB memory disc stick, $50 dollars.

3. 2013 32Gb Sandisc memory card for Android phone $50.

...and the list goes on.

 

[GuillermoRamon]

There are many factors that determine SSD vs HDD longevity, the below 2 links are good reads


http://www.datarecoveryspecialists.co.uk/blog/the-lifespan-of-hdds-vs-ssds

https://www.howtogeek.com/322856/how-long-do-solid-state-drives-really-last/

 

[josh2203]

Cons

It's windows 10 (not that you have a choice)

I haven't researched this in any way, but bought my last laptop from a German ecommerce site, and there they have many shops where you can actually choose the configuration you want for your laptop. This includes the version of the operating system, or the laptop to be delivered without any OS, so you can install anything you want, and it also reflects rather heavily the pricing. I bought mine early last year, but having had Windows 8 in one laptop, I really disliked how it consumes memory, so I wanted Windows 7, and with 16 GB memory, haven't regretted my decision.

 

[bigbird]

I remember buying these things:

1. 1995 Toshiba laptop computer $3,000 dollars, with 900MB hard disc memory.

2. 2009 16GB memory disc stick, $50 dollars.

3. 2013 32Gb Sandisc memory card for Android phone $50.

...and the list goes on.

Yes on the prices. I remember when HDD were in the price range of $1 per Mb. That is back in the day when you would get Computer Shopper magazine the thickness of a NYC phone book but taller delivered to the house. Oh no typo on the $1 per Mb. A 40Mb HDD was standard on computers then. Dual or triple drives. A was the 5.25 floppy, B was the 3.5 diskette, and C your gigantic 40 Mb HDD.

 

[cobraboy]

I haven't researched this in any way, but bought my last laptop from a German ecommerce site, and there they have many shops where you can actually choose the configuration you want for your laptop. This includes the version of the operating system, or the laptop to be delivered without any OS, so you can install anything you want, and it also reflects rather heavily the pricing. I bought mine early last year, but having had Windows 8 in one laptop, I really disliked how it consumes memory, so I wanted Windows 7, and with 16 GB memory, haven't regretted my decision.

W10 is a fine system but the UI is really clunky coming from W7.

I put an app called Classic Start Menu by IvoSoft that makes a W10 machine *look* like W7 so there is no transition learning curve.