Laptop advice

[Bean]

I'm going to buy a laptop in the coming weeks but I've honestly no idea which one to get with all the different ones available.
I want one for general use such as browsing, music, films so it would need to be quick and to have decent screen quality. I've heard the minimum recommended processor is intel core i5, is this true? Budget's around £350. Cheers.

 

[John Byrnes Mullet]

I brought this last week, its fast and nice big memory and a fast processer
and the price a real bargain.
Fujitsu AH530 15.6" Intel Pentium Win7 Laptop | eBay

 

[Super Steve Earle]

Avoid Sony. Last one was a shocker and their after sales support just abysmal.

 

[Bean]

I've also been told to avoid Acer at all costs?

 

[WhingForPresident]

ASUS A54C-SX146S 15.6" Laptop at cheap prices | Pcworld

Recommended this in another thread last week- had it a couple of months now and it has been flawless, and it's Asus, so you know you're buying quality. Unbelievable price as well.

 

[TheJasperCo]

I'm going to buy a laptop in the coming weeks but I've honestly no idea which one to get with all the different ones available.
I want one for general use such as browsing, music, films so it would need to be quick and to have decent screen quality. I've heard the minimum recommended processor is intel core i5, is this true? Budget's around £350. Cheers.

I'm not an expert on technology, but I'm using a Toshiba C660. Bought it from PC World for £350-ish and it has an i3 core processor. It works fine, I've had it since last Christmas to replace an older Toshiba model I bought 3 or 4 years ago. In both cases, I've used the Which? website to help decide what exactly I'm looking for:

Choosing the best laptop interactive guide - Laptop reviews - Computing - Which? Technology

Remember that you will probably have to buy Microsoft Office software, which is usually £80 or so. Oh, and if you do go to PC World to buy your laptop, don't back down when the sales assistant asks "would you like me to back up the hard drive for you?" Just say no to any extra frills and gimmicks that they offer you, otherwise you'll be paying more and more, just so they can have a decent commission.

 

[Bean]

I'm not an expert on technology, but I'm using a Toshiba C660. Bought it from PC World for £350-ish and it has an i3 core processor. It works fine, I've had it since last Christmas to replace an older Toshiba model I bought 3 or 4 years ago. In both cases, I've used the Which? website to help decide what exactly I'm looking for:

Choosing the best laptop interactive guide - Laptop reviews - Computing - Which? Technology

Remember that you will probably have to buy Microsoft Office software, which is usually £80 or so. Oh, and if you do go to PC World to buy your laptop, don't back down when the sales assistant asks "would you like me to back up the hard drive for you?" Just say no to any extra frills and gimmicks that they offer you, otherwise you'll be paying more and more, just so they can have a decent commission.

That's great advice thanks.

 

[northstandnorth]

Argos are selling a pretty decent Toshiba for £399 that comes with(if you "buy"it at the same time)free full version of microsoft office 2012 "worth" £99 and you get a £10 voucher in the deal.
Toshiba were rated as one of the most reliable laptops and my current one is near its 5th birthday.

 

[Bean]

Will i3 be good enough for general use, i.e. films, skype, youtube, multitasking?

 

[thony]

I have an Acer 5750 (core i3) that does all I want it to do, except video editing, for which I use a desktop PC ( AMD AthlonII Quad Core), although I have to admit that the keyboard could be more responsive (a light touch keeps losing you the occasional letter).
If you're not pushing it with things like modern gaming and video editing, then entry-level these days is often good enough, even if the sales assistant tries to persuade you otherwise. You've already said what your priority is: good screen quality and smooth video (which will be more down to the graphics capability and memory than the processor, so i5 is unlikely to give you any noticeable improvement over i3). I'd say go and try out a few at PC-World (watching some of the pre-loaded video), starting with the cheapest and working your way up the price range until you find something that gives the video quality you want. Once you've got that, it sounds as though it'll be up to everything else you want out of it.