Buying a second-hand laptop

Hookah

I'm in the market for a secondhand laptop, as I'm moving to a new place with Wi-fi.

I've never before purchased a computer.

I'll only be using it to browse, download the odd movie etc., so nothing fancy.

Can anyone give me any tips on what to look for and what to avoid?

Thanks in advance.

Skerries

well first of all we would need a budget as you could be looking for anything from a netbook to an Alienware gaming laptop

Consider the size you will want as weight and size will determine how portable it will be
10" is very portable but are usually Netbooks but not that powerful and only really useful for web browsing and light use

12" - 14" is the ideal size for portability as they can be easily carried around and are usually decent spec depending on the make

15.6" - 17" are really suited for use as a desktop replacement at home and not very portable

Do not get Windows Vista, try and get either XP or preferably 7
Make sure it has at least 2gb of ram in order to run everything smoothly
The lowest processor you should go is Intel Core Duo and try and get one of the newer i3, i5 or i7 processors
graphics cards are built in so if you feel like later playing games and its not powerful enough you won't be able to change it, so factor that in
definitely check out adverts.ie and you can usually haggle

Hookah

I want a decent size, if i'm going to watch any movies or stuff, but portable is handy also, so maybe the 12 to 14".

Budget; I'm thinking around the 250 mark.

I'm not a gamer, so the graphics card won't be an issue.

Cheers for the other tips.

coylemj

Hookah wrote: »

I want a decent size, if i'm going to watch any movies or stuff, but portable is handy also, so maybe the 12 to 14".

Budget; I'm thinking around the 250 mark.

I'm not a gamer, so the graphics card won't be an issue.

Cheers for the other tips.

If you can find a reliable brand name (Dell/HP/IBM/Acer/Lenovo) with at least 2GB RAM and Windows XP you should be good. As the earlier poster said, avoid Vista and if you do see a machine with Windows 7 you'd need at least 3GB RAM for decent performance. If you have a choice of 2GB machines with XP or Win7, go for the XP option.

myrscossie

I know this is a 15.6 but it would be worth considering as it’s a half decent spec for the money and it is new.

The processor is a bit low but i think it will be o.k for what you want anyway,
Highlights of the Lenovo G550 Cel T3500 2GB 250GB 15.6" Laptop €300.76

• Intel Celeron Dual Core T3500 2.1GHz
• 2GB RAM
• 250GB HDD
• DVDRW
• Windows 7 Home Premium
• Numeric Keypad
• OneKey Rescue System v7.0 - for quick and easy data recovery and antivirus protection
• VeriFace Facial Recognition technology
• High Quality Stereo Speakers with 3D Surround Sound

http://www.dabs.ie/products/lenovo-g550-cel-t3500-2gb-250gb-15-6--laptop-7GH5.html?refs=54490000-51340000

Hookah

Cheers guys.

I've enough to go on with that.

Capt'n Midnight

There is always the worry with a second hand laptop that it many have dropped or had liquid spills in it's life. Where as a new one will have warranty too.

Also people tend to overvalue second hand laptops compared to an entry level new one.