[Technology] XtraPc

[Easy 10]

Just bin off your old laptop and buy a Chromebook. Wish I'd done it years ago. Quick, easy, lightweight, solid state build so no fans constantly running, no hard drive to deteriorate. I'll never have a Windows laptop ever again.

 

[LamieRobertson]

Just bin off your old laptop and buy a Chromebook. Wish I'd done it years ago. Quick, easy, lightweight, solid state build so no fans constantly running, no hard drive to deteriorate. I'll never have a Windows laptop ever again.

Nailed

 

[Nottseagull]

solid state build so no fans constantly running, no hard drive to deteriorate.

You could achieve that by swapping your HDD for an SSD. They start at about £17 delivered.

I don't think there is anything wrong with BG's hardware. I suspect it is full of junk files and PUPs, and a good clean out would bring it back up to speed.

 

[Easy 10]

You could achieve that by swapping your HDD for an SSD. They start at about £17 delivered.

If you're desperate to stick with Windows for some reason I suppose. I don't miss it a jot though, and the battery life on this thing is ridiculous. I've watched entire movies after spending half the evening browsing and pissing about on it, and it barely makes a dent. Its the larger 15:6 screen as well.

Chromebooks are just so, so slick, quick and easy to use, and an absolute doddle to set up. I got this one I'm using in January, and its a total revelation to me. It boots up in less than 5 seconds ffs, and shuts down even quicker. They are just brilliant bits of kit IMO. No going back now.

 

[Nottseagull]

I've read that they're a bugger to connect a printer to, although that was a few months after they first came out. Also, you're expected to have pricey broadband aren't you, because your files are in 'The Cloud'?

 

[Easy 10]

I don't have a printer because I'm tight and do all my printing at work, although its apparently straightforward enough to connect over wifi. Nor do I store loads of files, its primarily just used as a web browser so the 4GB RAM isn't really an issue for me. You get 100GB free Google Drive storage for a year, then I think its $1.99 a month if needed. Which I won't. I've not switched my broadband ISP since binning off the WIndows laptop though, so there's no difference ?

 

[Nottseagull]

Nor do I store loads of files, its primarily just used as a web browser so the 4GB RAM isn't really an issue for me.

I do hope you haven't been using your RAM for storage

What's it like for BBC iPlayer for example? Probably not enough room to store loads of recordings (32GB SSD?), but does it stream properly?

 

[Beanstalk]

Just bin off your old laptop and buy a Chromebook. Wish I'd done it years ago. Quick, easy, lightweight, solid state build so no fans constantly running, no hard drive to deteriorate. I'll never have a Windows laptop ever again.

This really. I actually love my Windows 10 Dell Laptop, and my work HP Elitebook is pretty ridiculous but you should only buy the laptop that you need.

If you are on a low-budget with your only needs being web, word processing and emails a chromebook is the answer. To be honest, with Stadia on the way, it's going to be pretty hard to beat.

 

[Easy 10]

I do hope you haven't been using your RAM for storage

What's it like for BBC iPlayer for example? Probably not enough room to store loads of recordings (32GB SSD?), but does it stream properly?

Sorry yes, exactly right, 32GB SSD.

BBC iPlayer works perfectly on it, streams flawlessly. Funnily enough I've just been using it, as I wanted to watch the BBC news while I was outside on the patio (yeah I know, rock n' roll). Went into iPlayer at 10.15ish, hit 'restart programme' and watched the 10pm news from the start (then a bit of This Country afterwards). I've been ploughing through Peaky Blinders on it upstairs as well, while she has her soap shite on.

I can see it may not be the perfect device for everyone as any major storage will have to be done in the cloud. Its probably not great for any serious gaming either. But for what I use it for (web browsing, emails, YouTube, iPlayer, general filth and a bit of casual online stalking), its absolutely ideal. Just love the speed of it. I also bring up my baseball streams and cast it to the big TV when I'm feeling feisty. Everything just....works.

 

[Easy 10]

This really. I actually love my Windows 10 Dell Laptop, and my work HP Elitebook is pretty ridiculous but you should only buy the laptop that you need.

If you are on a low-budget with your only needs being web, word processing and emails a chromebook is the answer. To be honest, with Stadia on the way, it's going to be pretty hard to beat.

Whats Stadia ?

 

[Nottseagull]

I have heard they boot up faster than an Android phone. Storage restrictions aside, are there things that just don't work on them? I'm thinking about dodgy football streaming sites and things that still run using Flash. Also, what about OS updates, security patches and the like?

Whats Stadia ?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Stadia

 

[Easy 10]

I have heard they boot up faster than an Android phone. Storage restrictions aside, are there things that just don't work on them? I'm thinking about dodgy football streaming sites and things that still run using Flash. Also, what about OS updates, security patches and the like?

I've not had any issues running dodgy football streams. Watched the Birmingham friendly on Saturday with no issues, and several BHA away games last season (although usually wished I hadn't bothered). Just like most streams they can be hit and miss, sometimes they work seamlessly and sometimes they break up all over the shop, but thats not because of the Chromebook. And because nobody over here gives a shit about baseball, I can always find a very reliable and stable HD stream to follow the Twins game.

All the OS updates are done automatically. Often when I log in it'll tell me its done one and I just need to restart as and when. Google sort the antivirus with these updates, so there's apparently no need to install antivirus software, which is a major plus.

https://www.internetsecuritycentral.com/do-i-need-an-antivirus-for-my-chromebook/

 

[Nottseagull]

Now you're getting me interested! I've read all the Chrome OS article on that link, so do you do banking on it? I'm presuming no bank actually produces an app compatible with it.

 

[Beanstalk]

Whats Stadia ?

A Google cloud gaming service - streaming directly from Google rather than your own hardware. This means that basically any device that can receive a high-speed internet connection (and run Google Chrome) will be able to play high-end games.

Essentially, it's console gaming without the need for a console. They use some really old, low-end PCs to show what can be done - a Chromebook would work perfectly (light and portable) and should become a replacement for the traditional console market.

Currently the line-up of release titles includes AAA franchises such as Assassin's Creed, Watchdogs and Wolfenstein, with a special mention for Football Manager - where you'll finally be able to play anywhere (a good 3G or 4G connection should allow you 720p streaming).

 

[Nottseagull]

A Google cloud gaming service - streaming directly from Google rather than your own hardware. This means that basically any device that can receive a high-speed internet connection (and run Google Chrome) will be able to play high-end games.

Essentially, it's console gaming without the need for a console. They use some really old, low-end PCs to show what can be done - a Chromebook would work perfectly (light and portable) and should become a replacement for the traditional console market.

Currently the line-up of release titles includes AAA franchises such as Assassin's Creed, Watchdogs and Wolfenstein, with a special mention for Football Manager - where you'll finally be able to play anywhere (a good 3G or 4G connection should allow you 720p streaming).

Are you saying you no longer need expensive PCs with huge CPUs and 16GB of RAM? I know very little about gaming but that surely would be a game changer!

 

[Easy 10]

Now you're getting me interested! I've read all the Chrome OS article on that link, so do you do banking on it? I'm presuming no bank actually produces an app compatible with it.

I actually don't do banking on it, but thats not because I have any particular concerns with Chromebook, I'd be confident its secure. I have the Lloyds app installed on my android phone, which has several layers of security (password, plus fingerprint). I could probably install that same app on my chromebook easy enough through the Playstore if I wanted to, but I have no real need to as it works so well on my phone, so I figure....why bother ? Pretty much any app on my phone I can have on the chromebook, but the banking one works so well on my mobile that I don't feel the need to add it to any other device. I didn't bother online banking with Windows either for the same reason. The app is really good on the phone.

I do have the Amazon app on my chromebook, which obviously retains bank details. No different or more risky than accessing it via Windows web browsers though.

 

[Easy 10]

A Google cloud gaming service - streaming directly from Google rather than your own hardware. This means that basically any device that can receive a high-speed internet connection (and run Google Chrome) will be able to play high-end games.

Essentially, it's console gaming without the need for a console. They use some really old, low-end PCs to show what can be done - a Chromebook would work perfectly (light and portable) and should become a replacement for the traditional console market.

Currently the line-up of release titles includes AAA franchises such as Assassin's Creed, Watchdogs and Wolfenstein, with a special mention for Football Manager - where you'll finally be able to play anywhere (a good 3G or 4G connection should allow you 720p streaming).

Wow. Like Notts, I'm not a big gamer as such (I do like my PS4 for the odd GTA V or Red Dead session now and then), but this sounds like it could be a major new player in the market. But then I do like my faithful PS4 for playing blu-rays and Netflix on the main TV, so I don't think Stadia will be replacing anything in my household.

Da kidz will be all over it though.

 

[Nottseagull]

I'm not a gamer full stop! Does this mean that those beloved Xboxes/Gameboys of 'Da kidz' will soon be obsolete, Beanstalk?

 

[Beanstalk]

Wow. Like Notts, I'm not a big gamer as such (I do like my PS4 for the odd GTA V or Red Dead session now and then), but this sounds like it could be a major new player in the market. But then I do like my faithful PS4 for playing blu-rays and Netflix on the main TV, so I don't think Stadia will be replacing anything in my household.

Da kidz will be all over it though.

Your PS4 (sooner rather than later) will be obsolete for anything other than playing Blu-Rays - if you were to upgrade to a 4K TV for example a Chromecast Ultra would set you back £70 and cover all your streaming/Stadia needs (and not depreciate in terms of hardware - because you don't own the hardware)

I'm not a gamer full stop! Does this mean that those beloved Xboxes/Gameboys of 'Da kidz' will soon be obsolete, Beanstalk?

Not at all. Just the loud physical boxes that have previously cost an absolute fortune. The trend for everyone but Sony seems to be a frictionless experience between consoles however so for example; if you had Microsoft's streaming service and that same game was also available on [MENTION=21064]easy[/MENTION]10's Google Stadia you could play together online.

The reality is Microsoft/Sony (and arguably Nintendo) are never going to give up a huge amount of market space. The kidz will all still be playing Xbox, just via the cloud instead of from a box.

 

[SUIYHP]

Are you saying you no longer need expensive PCs with huge CPUs and 16GB of RAM? I know very little about gaming but that surely would be a game changer!

That's what google is hoping, but the gaming community are cynical. Many are concerned by the idea that you would never get to keep the games if google stadia failed, but the big one is input delay and video quality. Because the PC that is actually processing the video games is miles and miles away, there could be a significant time gap between the moment you press the button on your controller from when you see the response on the screen. Some journalists who have already tried out Stadia have already mentioned that games feel 'slow' and 'sluggish' and google haven't been particuarly open about how bad this delay could be. It's not so bad for some games, such as football manager, but for a fast paced shooter game, such as DOOM...that would be the deal breaker for most. That isn't even mentioning multiplayer games...I can guarantee you that if a person on stadia was to go against a person playing a PC on a online game such as call of duty or fortnite, the person on the PC would win every time.

I'm not trying to be negative, I just think it's important to stress that the reaction to Stadia hasn't been as hyped as google would have hoped.