Laptops

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25th July 2016, 07:44 PM
Bytemrk

Quote:

Originally Posted by LandyAndy

Mark.
I mainly use it for internet browsing,Utube clips,music and photo storage.
Now the internet is faster would watch movies etc too.
Andrew

As I suspected... so as AK83 said, don't waste your money chasing an i7 over and i5 - if you happen to find a great deal that has an i7 that may still be the right buy... but just keep in mind for what you are using it for, you simply wont use - or see the extra grunt.

SSD's ( Solid state hard drives) are great and make the machine feel fast and snappy - however most SSD's in laptops are reasonably small - so depending how many photos and movies you want to store that could be an issue - SSD's also tend to die very suddenly when they go - so everything I have on SSD's is well backed up elsewhere.

Memory is cheap now days and if you open multiple browsers and multitask a bit, more is better. That said with most laptops , it's not a big deal to add more later.

You'll also find that a large number of laptops now days don't have an optical drive (CD or DVD).... so for you that might also be something you have a preference for which could help narrow the choice.

Good luck hunting....yell out if we can help or confuse you any more :D :p
25th July 2016, 08:23 PM
LandyAndy

Just been looking at EBay.Plenty of Toshys on there:cool::cool::cool:
Saw this monster:):):):):):)
16GB 2TB Full HD Toshiba Satellite S70 B PRO Quad I7 ATI R9 Video 17 3" Laptop | eBay
Andrew
25th July 2016, 08:23 PM
Disco-tastic

Hey Andy,

I too am a mac user. I used to agree that they were overpriced for what they are but, apart from batteries and chargers failing i have had no problems with mine.

I currently have a 2011 15inch macbook pro i picked up 2nd hand in 2013 for $1300. Best bang for buck i have bought computer wise.

I have found that the performance of my mac has not changed over the years, unlike the windows machines i have owned and used. For general web browsing and youtube, a mac will generally stay just as snappy as when you bought it.

Something like this would probably suit (except for maybe a bigger screen) and, like the seller says, adding an ssd will make it fly. These days SSD's cost under 50c/GB.

If you're sold on windows then i would recommend an i5 processor with 4-8GB ram and an ssd. You can always upgrade the ram and hard drive, but if you want one that works out of the box spend a little extra at purchase. For what you use it for the SSD will make the single biggest difference to start up and general speeds.
Have fun shopping!

Cheers

Dan
25th July 2016, 08:35 PM
Bytemrk

Just to add to the confusion Andy... I do agree with Dan about MACs...

if you can find one in your budget - take a close look.

Unlike most MAC people I am not a total Mac evangelist - I look after a reasonably large windows environment so I can't live in a MAC only world...

However both my kids have hand me down from Dad highly specced Macbook Pros that would have to have been the best Laptop hardware I've ever owned...
25th July 2016, 08:43 PM
LandyAndy

I think I will stick with windows,I had problems using my mums apple,only just getting my head around a samsung smart phone and tablet at the moment.I can only take so much re-training.
The other use of the laptop would be to be a TV/entertainment unit in the camper trailer whilst travelling,assuming I complete it.
Do newer laptops take a sim card like tablets do,or would I use the tablet as a wifi hot spot for the laptop when travelling????
Andrew
25th July 2016, 09:02 PM
LandyAndy

Another upcoming use.
I may be taking over running the traffic counters for the boss.
Rather than go into the office and use somebody elses puter there I will use mine at home and be able to claim depreciation/home office expenses,seeing my bean counter on friday to get my tax done and sort out how I go about it.I wouldnt think the traffic counters take up alot of processing,you bring the unit to the puter and download its recordings.I already deploy the units and collect them from time to time,just dont do the paperwork.
Andrew
25th July 2016, 09:16 PM
Grentarc

Some laptops take a sim card, others don't. You can usually get a data sharing sim from your mobile provider for a usb modem that uses the data plan of your mobile/tablet , or you can do the hotspot option, whether it is via wifi, Bluetooth or cable connection.

I would expect any computer that can run general office applications should run your counter software, as most commercial/industrial logging software I have come across will work on older generation (windows XP type era) machines.
25th July 2016, 09:16 PM
carlschmid2002

Quote:

Originally Posted by LandyAndy

Another upcoming use.
I may be taking over running the traffic counters for the boss.
Rather than go into the office and use somebody elses puter there I will use mine at home and be able to claim depreciation/home office expenses,seeing my bean counter on friday to get my tax done and sort out how I go about it.I wouldnt think the traffic counters take up alot of processing,you bring the unit to the puter and download its recordings.I already deploy the units and collect them from time to time,just dont do the paperwork.
Andrew

I am no computer guru, but even though I love my Mac some silly little tasks like this are designed to work on Bill Gates' products only.
25th July 2016, 09:17 PM
SBD4

Andrew, Also consider how long you keep your equipment for. The current lappy is 10 years old, if you plan on doing that again you should be aiming to get the best spec that you can afford - O/S and S/W is only going to get more CPU intensive and memory hungry.

PS I use Lenovo - as said previously, they manufactured for IBM and then bought the business from them. Very good equipment. You can order it online, choose your base laptop that suits your budget then modify to your spec.
25th July 2016, 09:27 PM
Bytemrk

Quote:

Originally Posted by LandyAndy

Another upcoming use.
I may be taking over running the traffic counters for the boss.
Rather than go into the office and use somebody elses puter there I will use mine at home and be able to claim depreciation/home office expenses,seeing my bean counter on friday to get my tax done and sort out how I go about it.I wouldnt think the traffic counters take up alot of processing,you bring the unit to the puter and download its recordings.I already deploy the units and collect them from time to time,just dont do the paperwork.
Andrew

How do the counters connect to the computer?... USB or something else like serial? (9 pin plug)

There are adapters available to get around it..but be aware very few PC's now come with serial ports ;)

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