Family Laptop

[Reg]

Hello all,
I am looking at getting a Laptop for my daughter(10) and the rest of the family(not buying her an expensive laptop all for herself )

I already have a 'decent' spec desktop which i bought from pcs last year so am really asking for sme assistance in config please. it will be used for the usual day to day stuff possibly a bit of gaming etc. don't want to buy something that to basic but don't need to be all singing all dancing either- middle of the road then i guess also want a decent size/quality screen so would that be 15-17ish?
did a quick config myself but not sure if i gone ott??????
also the other thing is we have a tax efficient scheme in work that is running for another week where get pc's etc at lower prices by not paying the tax(yes it is legal) and they have prebuilt laptops. i will also post the spec of a couple of those with prices to help compare the pro's and con's etc
thanks in advance.



Chassis & Display
Optimus Series: 17.3" Matte Full HD LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-3610QM (2.30GHz) 6MB
Memory (RAM)
8GB SAMSUNG 1333MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 660M - 2.0GB DDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 11
Memory - Hard Disk
500GB WD SCORPIO BLACK WD5000BPKT, SATA 3 Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (7200 rpm)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
SONY BC-5550H 4x BLURAY COMBO DRIVE & CYBERLINK SOFTWARE
Memory Card Reader
Internal 9 in 1 Card Reader (MMC/RSMMC/SD: Mini, XC & HC/MS: Pro & Duo)
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND (£9)
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® ADVANCED-N 6235 (300Mbps) + BLUETOOTH
USB Options
3 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT AS STANDARD
Battery
Optimus Series 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (5,200 mAh/76.96WH)
Power Lead & Adaptor
1 x UK Power Lead & 120W AC Adaptor
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
BULLGUARD INTERNET SECURITY - FREE 90 DAY TRIAL
Keyboard Language
INTEGRATED UK KEYBOARD WITH NUMBER PAD
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 2.0 MEGAPIXEL WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Dead Pixel Guarantee
1 Year Dead Pixel Guarantee Inc. Labour & Carriage Costs (£19)
Insurance
1 Month Free Laptop Insurance inc. Accidental Damage & Theft
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 8 to 10 working days
£897 inc VAT and Delivery

 

[Reg]

here are a couple of examples from our scheme

HP Pavilion DV6
■AMD Quad-Core A6-3430MX processor
■6GB DDR3 RAM
■750GB SATA Hard Disk Drive
■AMD Radeon HD 6520G + 7670 dual dedicated 1GB
MD Quad-Core A6-3430MX processor (1.7GHz, 4MB L2 cache)
•Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
•6GB DDR3 RAM
•750GB SATA Hard Disk Drive (5400 rpm)
•15.6-inch High-Definition LED HP BrightView Display
•Display Resolution: 1366 x 768 pixels
•AMD Radeon HD 6520G + 7670 dual dedicated 1GB DDR3 graphics card

•SuperMulti DVDR/RW with Double Layer Support
•802.11 b/g/n Wireless LAN
•10/100/1000 Ethernet LAN
•Bluetooth
•Integrated fingerprint reader

•Multi-Format Digital Media Card Reader

•HP TrueVision HD Webcam with integrated Digital Microphone(low-light)
•Internal Speakers and Audio playback with Beats Audio

•Full size keyboard with integrated numeric keypad
•TouchPad supporting Multi-Touch gestures with On/Off button
•2 x USB 3.0, 2 x USB 2.0, 1 x VGA, 1 x HDMI, 2 x headphone-out, 1 x mic-in, 1 x RJ45

•6-cell Lithium-Ion battery
•Colour: Steel Grey, Metal Finish

•Weight: 2.91Kg (approx)
•Dimensions: 37.8cm (W) x 24.68cm (L) x 3.52cm (H)

Extras Included:

•36 months Care Pack 'Pick Up and Return' Warranty
•Internet Security with free updates for 36 months - Protection from Viruses and Spyware, Spam-Blocker, Data Theft Protection, Parental Controls and more

•Backup My PC software - for complete data protection
•WipeDrive software - for secure erasing of data

•Free delivery to your home address at your convenience

£630.72

 

[Reg]

and 1 more

Samsung Series 5 550P
■Intel Core i7-3610QM Quad-Core Processor
■6GB DDR3 RAM
■17.3-inch HD+ LED Anti-Reflective Display (1600 x 900 pixels resolution)
■NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M dedicated 2GB GDDR3 graphics
•Intel Core i7-3610QM Quad-Core Processor (2.3GHz, 6MB L3 Smart Cache)
•Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
•6GB DDR3 RAM
•1TB (1000GB) SATA Hard Disk Drive (5400 rpm)
•17.3-inch HD+ LED Anti-Reflective Display (1600 x 900 pixels resolution)
•NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M dedicated 2GB GDDR3 graphics card with Optimus technology
•Blu-ray Disc player / SuperMulti DVDR/RW drive
•802.11 b/g/n Wireless LAN
•10/100/1000 Ethernet LAN
•Bluetooth 4.0
•WiDi (Intel Wireless Display) - TV adapter required
•Multi-Format 4-in-1 Digital Media Card Reader for SD and MMC cards
•1.3MP HD Webcam
•Internal microphone
•3 x JBL speakers with subwoofer
•Soundalive Sound Effect
•HD Audio
•Island-style keyboard with integrated numeric keypad
•ClickPad
•2 x USB 3.0, 2 x USB 2.0 (Sleep-and-Charge), 1 x HDMI, 1 x VGA, 1 x headphone-out, 1 x mic-in, 1 x RJ45
•6-cell Lithium-Ion battery
•Colour: Black / Silver
•Weight: 3.05Kg (approx)
•Dimensions: 40.67cm (W) x 26.89cm (D) x 2.92-3.22cm (H)

Extras Included:

•36 months Care Pack 'Pick Up and Return' Warranty
•Internet Security with free updates for 36 months - Protection from Viruses and Spyware, Spam-Blocker, Data Theft Protection, Parental Controls and more

•Backup My PC software - for complete data protection
•WipeDrive software - for secure erasing of data

•Free delivery to your home address at your convenience

£892.80

 

[tom6561]

I'd say that what you're looking at is overkill for "day to day stuff possibly a bit of gaming". I think the Genesis IV would be more suited, upgrade the graphics card because it'll perform a lot better than integrated, and I'd definitely upgrade to the full HD screen. That is one thing I'd say about both the ones from your work - their screens are low resolution and will be of a lower quality than the PCS ones.

 

[Reg]

thanks for the info, would you leave the base processor in there as i wouldnt want to buy one that can't do much even simple stuff like photoshop etc

 

[Reg]

anyone else add anything to the advice already given??

 

[tom6561]

I'd probably upgrade to either one of the i3 or i5 processors. With the budget you have I'd suggest getting an SSD if you can afford it, it'll make the laptop seem a lot faster.

 

[Reg]

thanks for the replies tom, i will have another look and see what looks best. Thought there night have been some more suggestions/advice from others but nevermind.