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Laptop for the mammy and daddy
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08-12-2010 2:02pm#1
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I hope you're not trying to imply i'm a PC world salesman!mbiking123 wrote: »Sales men may ask how much you want to spend and will try to sell you one for that price or push you.
In PC World I notice sales men ask what you want and in fairness tell you whats on special and what is best value.
OP, it's easy to ask someone for what they want. They want everything. But then they see the price of what they want, and it's simply too much for them. I'd be concerned for anyone getting mislead by sales people in this way. I'm not saying all sales people are like this, but i simply do not trust them. Sorry!
Therefore, it's always in my own policy to ask for someones max budget. That way they know from the start the maximum they will spend, and i'll hunt for the best hardware at that price.
This is why i gave a number of sites in my last post. You should take a look at them, play with customisation on dell, compare prices across sites. When you have a better feel for the cost of the hardware you think you need, you're less likely to be fooled by sales people.
Now, mbiking recommends toshiba. They're grand, but i've never liked them (i am fussy though :P ). My best mate loves toshiba though. He got his in micropro in nutgrove, think they have sales going on a lot with toshiba laptops. I have a personal preference for HP or lenovo. When i went to Oz last year, i gave my dad a lenovo n200, it has a dual core centrino processor, 2gigs of ram, wireless & a built in camera. It runs windows 7 perfectly and he loves it. Price will be your only barrier, but you will get a decent laptop/netbook, but you're looking at €300-€500 range, possible under 300 if you find a bargain.
example: http://www.misco.ie/Product/172334/Lenovo_ThinkPad_SL510_Intel_Pentium_Dual_Core_T4500_15_6inch_2GB_320GB_DVDRW_Windows_7_Home_Premium_Laptop_Notebook
there are not a huge amount of laptop bargains in the last year imho.0 -
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OP,
One thing you shouldnt do is buy them a netbook. I know all above mean well and netbooks have their uses. But from experience they are too small. Especially for parents.
i bought one for my mother (she aint a granny) and to be honest the screen is too dam small. They keys are large because of the design (its a HP) model eludes me at the moment but they keys are a great size.
Touch pad is also too small.
I can guarantee they will not thank you for straining with the screen size and typing closer together than a standard laptop. My advice would be to stick to 15.4 screens and above. Stay clear of netbooks they are not for the age bracket or half computer literate. I am sure you want them to have a comforatable conversation with you from the kitchen table
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listermint wrote: »OP,
One thing you shouldnt do is buy them a netbook. I know all above mean well and netbooks have their uses. But from experience they are too small. Especially for parents.
i bought one for my mother (she aint a granny) and to be honest the screen is too dam small. They keys are large because of the design (its a HP) model eludes me at the moment but they keys are a great size.
Touch pad is also too small.
I can guarantee they will not thank you for straining with the screen size and typing closer together than a standard laptop. My advice would be to stick to 15.4 screens and above. Stay clear of netbooks they are not for the age bracket or half computer literate. I am sure you want them to have a comforatable conversation with you from the kitchen table
Oh dear me what a rant. The OP is looking for an inexpensive computer for his parents to do some surfing and Skype. A netbook fills this bill nicely. That fact that your not-so-old mammy has problems may be down to other issues. Many older people are quite at ease with computers and can hanle the small size adequately. Spectacles are useful... Are there daily newspapers with large type?
The keypad on a netbook is similar in size to a normal keyboard. At least mine is!0 -
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Oh dear me what a rant. The OP is looking for an inexpensive computer for his parents to do some surfing and Skype. A netbook fills this bill nicely. That fact that your not-so-old mammy has problems may be down to other issues. Many older people are quite at ease with computers and can hanle the small size adequately. Spectacles are useful... Are there daily newspapers with large type?
The keypad on a netbook is similar in size to a normal keyboard. At least mine is!
Its not a rant, and oh dear me if he wants his parents to comfortable chat to him over skype with Video call, A netbook is a poor method to do this. So your claims that it is are not warranted.
Netbooks were designed to be used on the go. While its a perfectly acceptable purchase for the OP as they are 'traveling' it has little to gift in operation for his parents. So I am unsure as to why you are recommending it for solely home use
very confused. 0 -
woolymammoth wrote: »meh?
Specifications
Product Description Lenovo ThinkPad SL510 Notebook PC
Processor Intel Pentium T4500 (2.30GHz)
Hard Drive 320GB/5400rpm
Networking Network adapter - Ethernet
Fast Ethernet
Gigabit Ethernet
Bluetooth
IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, IEEE 802.11n
RAM 2GB (installed) - DDR3 SDRAM - 1066 MHz
Graphics Controller Mobile Intel GMA 4500MHD (GM45, 384MB)
Built-in Devices Stereo speakers,
wireless LAN aerial
Bluetooth aerial
Notebook Camera Integrated
Display 15.6' HD AntiGlare
Optical Storage DVD±RW DL - integrated
Card Reader 7-in-1 (MMC/MS/MS Pro/SD/SDHC/XD/XD Type H), Express Card
OS Provided Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit
Dimensions (WxDxH) 29.5cm x 21cm x 2.87cm
Weight 1.1 kg
Manufacturer Warranty 1 year warranty
Oppsie 0 -
listermint wrote: »Its not a rant, and oh dear me if he wants his parents to comfortable chat to him over skype with Video call, A netbook is a poor method to do this. So your claims that it is are not warranted.
Netbooks were designed to be used on the go. While its a perfectly acceptable purchase for the OP as they are 'traveling' it has little to gift in operation for his parents. So I am unsure as to why you are recommending it for solely home use very confused.
The message I got from the OP is that he wants a small machine so that his parents can do a little surfing and Skpe. They are not going into computer science or anything major. For that a netbook is ideal. I use one without any great difficulty and I'm not a youngster any more.
Perhaps your mother is prone to technophobia! If the parents of the OP want a bigger machine and will not be travelling then a better buy would be a desktop or tower with a big screen which would still be cheaper than a laptop!
I can't subscribe to your argument above as Skype will be adequate for sound with the benefit of the webcam which will show a decent sized image 12 x 19.5 cm to be precise! Beats a phone any day!0 -
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Netbooks are great. But they like marmite, people either like them or hate them! Pesonally, I wouldn't buy one, but i still think they're good for different people or situations. HP have some lovely little netbooks with larger screens.I'm liking the idea of a netbook! I know what some are saying about the small screen etc, but im thinking of my mam sitting in front of the tv with it on her knee and not feeling it being there (if that makes sense!)
yeah, like i said before, look up some of the specs online. You don't have to understand the numbers, just get a feel for what speed numbers, and memory numbers, and screen size numbers that you can get for the price numbersI was a bit afraid of going into a shop to buy it coz I dont want to be cajoled into buying something they dont necessarily need because it has so many gigs of this or that!
I always like to see people looking after the parents in this way. I set my dad up with a laptop when i went to Oz first. emigration is a tough thing to do, so it's a great way to keep in touch, especially with the video. You're more likely to get good value online, but if you're in dublin city centre at all, I'd be more than happy to go along to the shop & help you talk to the sales guys!0 -
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Do! And go into the shops for a look & feel at them. You don't have to talk to the sales guys, just tell them you're fine, or let them think you gonna buy and say you want to have a poke at the laptops/netbooks. You don't have to buy it, obviously, then you can compare to reviews online, compare what you felt with teh netbook to bigger laptops.. Netbooks are a market unto themselves. They're popular for a reason, that being that they suit lots of people. If you're going to be doing graphic design, or architectural engineering, or gaming, obviously a netbook just won't cut it!Seems netbook really divide the nation...ill research some more online and try come up with something.!
HP do some lovely little netbooks with bigger screens;
http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/HP_Mini-Note_PC/prod.asp (these ones are all identical hardware-wise)
Anyone who tries the 'too small for skype' argument clearly has never used skype before, and hasn't a clue what they're talking about. You can maximise the video to full screen. Can you imagine having a video phone with a 10 inch screen? It's feckin plenty big enough! feel free to ask here or pm any other questions on it! 0
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