laptop for college

ianofitz

Hi,
I know this question has probably been asked a million times but sure ill make it a million and one.
Basically I'm looking for a laptop for college. So one that will last me 4-5 years and that is easy to do assignments, etc on. Ive been looking at the Acer V5-571P and I think it looks pretty shlick. But I dont really know. I dont want to go Mac because theyre ridicuously expensive and I wont use half the features on it and Im also used to the windows set up.

I dont really have a budget either because Ive never bought one before but I though 850 was a good price for the Acer. But if any of you guys have a cheaper suggestion, fire away.

It should probably have:
An I7 processor
Around 8gb RAM
700gb+ hard drive
And a good battery life: maybe 5 or 6hrs?

Thats only a guideline so if any of yous have a starting point that would be great!

Thanks, Ian

Torqay

The UltraNote 15 with the FHD IPS display costs €826 in the following configuration:



Personally I'd rather order a solid state drive (and use an external HDD as storage if required). I have seen a few of these laptops, they're very slim and not too heavy. The IPS display is brilliant and well worth the extra cost.

They claim up 7 hrs battery life which might be possible but with all the "bells 'n' whistles" (WiFi on, full display brightness, etc) it's more like 5 hours.

You can choose between Windows 7 and Windows 8 (for which you will receive an installation DVD) or save the "Windows Tax" (€95) if you already have an operating system.

ianofitz

That looks like a good deal. Where did you find that? What do you mean by a solid state drive?

ianofitz

Also what is the IPS screen exactly?

TommyTheGun

i'm thinking of this: works out @ €740ish

http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/LENOVO-Z500-_MBYJTUK_1477490.html

it may suit your needs Ianofitz

(sorry for hijacking your thread, I'm pretty confused as to what to get)

Torqay

A solid state drive is using flash memory as opposed to metal platters in hard disk drives. SSDs are much faster than conventional HDDs and since there are no moving parts involved they're shock proof. But the speed and robustness comes at a price, though 128GB and even 256GB SSDs are not that expensive anymore.

IPS displays offer crisper picture and better viewing angels than backlit LED displays.

TommyTheGun

Torqay wrote: »

A solid state drive is using flash memory as opposed to metal platters in hard disk drives. SSDs are much faster than conventional HDDs and since there are no moving parts involved they're shock proof. But the speed and robustness comes at a price, though 128GB and even 256GB SSDs are not that expensive anymore.

IPS displays offer crisper picture and better viewing angels than backlit LED displays.

Torqay, could you recommend a laptop similar to the one you've posted from that website above for around the €750 mark which would be either similar or better than that one i've linked ?
( http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/LENOVO-Z500-_MBYJTUK_1477490.html )

I'm pushing a budget at that already

or... if you think that one i've linked is a good choice

Thanks for your help

Torqay

The Lenovo has a dedicated graphics card but only a standard 1366x768 display. If that's good enough for you, then go for it. IIRC, you mentioned design work in your other thread, for me the 1366x768 resolution wouldn't cut it.

TommyTheGun

Torqay wrote: »

The Lenovo has a dedicated graphics card but only a standard 1366x768 display. If that's good enough for you, then go for it. IIRC, you mentioned design work in your other thread, for me the 1366x768 resolution wouldn't cut it.

is the image quality really that different?

i'm presuming that watching movies through HDMI on my tv, the higher resolution would count towards that?

or am i mistaken

Torqay

TommyTheGun wrote: »

is the image quality really that different?

Yes, the difference of the image quality between IPS and backlit LED displays is very much noticable. As for full HD and 1366x768, go to some computer store and see for yourself.

ianofitz

@TommyTheGun thats anicely specced laptop actually and 750s not bad. @Torqay, thanks sonmuch for your help. Ill keep you posted

ianofitz

@TommyTheGun thats anicely specced laptop actually and 750s not bad. @Torqay, thanks sonmuch for your help. Ill keep you posted

TommyTheGun

ianofitz wrote: »

@TommyTheGun thats anicely specced laptop actually and 750s not bad. @Torqay, thanks sonmuch for your help. Ill keep you posted

The only thing that's stopping me press the BUY button is i'm not quite sure if the keyboard is backlit. the £579 touch model in the best sellers :
http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/LENOVO-Z500-59367136_1357423.html

, says it has a backlit one yet when you look at the specs, it just says the same as the £629 model : Keyboard Type : Laptop Keyboard

Anyway I'm thinking i'll go for this. I'd have bought off lenovo website with the 15% discount but theres none in stock

ianofitz

TommyTheGun wrote: »

The only thing that's stopping me press the BUY button is i'm not quite sure if the keyboard is backlit. the £579 touch model in the best sellers :
http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/LENOVO-Z500-59367136_1357423.html

, says it has a backlit one yet when you look at the specs, it just says the same as the £629 model : Keyboard Type : Laptop Keyboard

Anyway I'm thinking i'll go for this. I'd have bought off lenovo website with the 15% discount but theres none in stock[/QUOTE

Im seeing "Backlit Keyboard: With" for the £579 model. I'd say go for it. I'm gonna do a bit more research.

TommyTheGun

[/QUOTE] Im seeing "Backlit Keyboard: With" for the £579 model. I'd say go for it. I'm gonna do a bit more research.[/QUOTE]

The £579 model isn't as good as the £629 model, and i don't need a touch

heres a review for the £629 model:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Lenovo-IdeaPad-Z500-Notebook.91520.0.html