Best place to buy a new laptop pc

[AndyB]

Daughter is going to Uni at the end of the month and needs a laptop do do her work on. Where is the best place to go. Dell seem to have some reasonable offers on at the moment, but can I do better else where?

Andrew.

 

[Wizard]

Just got an Acer for a very good price off www.cclcomputers.co.uk

 

[bikermike]

Have you tried e-buyer perhaps????

 

[Droopy Dick]

This place did me proud when I bought two for lads last year.

http://www.europc.co.uk/

Good prices and extraordinary service.

 

[boundless]

You don't really buy a laptop. You amortise it's cost monthly over the period that runs from purchase to the point at which it won't/can't run the upgraded versions of the software you'd like to use (or speak to your new peripherals). (About 36 months max IMHO).

So futureproofing is key. Buy as close behind the bleeding edge as you can find a blood free surface to cling to.

Dell is the place to get value in this respect....Evesham Micros come a close second. Sony looks sexy but isn't.

And this is where the wise go to buy Dell.

 

[Fanum]

These people are pretty good, though not the cheapest.
http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/

For the best Dell deals, check this out;

http://www.hotukdeals.com/Category28-All.phtml

hth

 

[wessie]

You don't really buy a laptop. You amortise it's cost monthly over the period that runs from purchase to the point at which it won't/can't run the upgraded versions of the software you'd like to use (or speak to your new peripherals). (About 36 months max IMHO).

I agree with this. I bought a mid-priced laptop at the start of my 3 year course. It only just made it to the end. I used it as a portable desktop i.e. it was always on in one of 2 locations. Over the course of time it got slower and less reliable. I suspect that progressive heat damage reduces the life of the components. My housemate had a similar experience.

Unless your daughter really needs a portable (for a design course for example) then get a desktop with discrete components rather than everything on the motherboard. At least you can replace/upgrade bits as they become redundant or fail.

 

[AndyB]

My reasons for the laptop choice was based more on the amount of space she will have available to her in the halls. Typically it is one small room with a bed, wardrobe and table. I have an old Win 95 one at the moment but feel it is not man enough for the job, especially as it does not support usb. Thanks for the replies on different places to look - much appreciated.

Andrew.

 

[GSmonkey]

I've bought an IBM T23 Thinkpad off e-bay. 1.1GHz P3, 256MB RAM. Not impressive statistics, but it runs XP Pro + Office with no problems at all. For £220, I had it surfing wirelessly. You can spend more obviously, but if you want a sturdy cheap laptop which does everything except games, you can't go wrong. The Thinkpads are as tough as old boots. Spares readily available on ebay as well. Just my 2p

 

[unshift]

Just a thought, most uni's have a computer shop which sell hardware and software to students at a discount so investigate that option too, it will also be handy as she will be able to go back there for advice or if anything goes wrong - and remember hardware cost is the smallest part in the total cost of ownership