New Laptop time

[gary1968]

Howdy,

As my old Lappy is getting a bit long in the tooth now and slow for internet stuff and murderously slow when image processing I am thinking of getting a new Lap Top. The old one will be retired and used purely for controlling my astro kit while outside, all other software will be removed. It is set up for this running XP and has been faultless for this purpose since I started.

The new one will be for everyday use, chatting to folks on here and other forums, browsing the web and image processing using PS.

So, as I said, its new laptop time and I was thinking of either of these 2....

ACER Aspire 5551 at cheap prices | PC World

ACER Aspire 5732Z at cheap prices | PC World

Looking at the specs these are very similar, the main difference I can see is 1 runs 64bit Win7 and the other 32bit Win7, one has a 320Gb HD and the other a 250Gb HD.

What do you guys think of these, or can you suggest something else. I'd prefer not to go far Dell as I like to go into shops and 'feel' these things before I buy.

Budget is £400.

Thanks in advance.......

Gary

OOOO, just noticed PC World do Dell lappy's as well, I thought they were mail order only..... http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/dell-inspiron-1545-black-04927996-pdt.html

[Gadget]

hi gary

the dell is a great buy for the money fast cpu big memory and huge hard drive, I got a new laptop a few months back i bought a ACER at first and was not really happy with it because it just felt flimsy and not well built lucky i bought from tesco and refund no problem i ended up buying a HP from pc world which i am really pleased with its tough feels solid and well built everything the ACER was not im sure the DELL would be of the same standerd and dont think you can go wrong at that price

all the best

Kev

[Psychobilly]

They only problem with some of the Dells is they use "strange" power supply connectors which means your stuck when it coems to getting a cheap 12V input Laptop powersupply if ever your going to use it away from mains...

My mates Dell Laptop PSU packed up a few weeks ago (it is less than 2 years old) and Dell cant get him a replacement for it before an estimated 4-6 weeks...

I must admit i like HP or Toshiba Satellite Pro's... cant stand acers

But I am getting far more use out of my Samsung Netbook... stupidly long battery life and runs the DMK and the DSLR's like a dream... but I needed an ultra portable setup...

Peter...

[brantuk]

Get a Tosh

[m.tweedy]

how about the one Aldi are bringing out on thursday

http://www.aldi.co.uk/uk/html/offers/special_buys3_14476.htm

I have one of their desktop computers and the specs are great for the price.

Just over budget just depends how flexible the budget is.

[gary1968]

Cheers guys, unforunately the Maedion at Aldi is too much over budget just now. But I did find this one..... ACER Aspire 5741 at low prices | Dixons

This is the prefered option just now but am still open to suggestions.

I have been told though that I should be aiming for a Intel Core II processor as it has 3Mb L2 cache, whatever that is, as opposed to 1Mb on most laptop processors.

Gary

[Rossco72]

In the past I have found Acers to be VERY power hungry and often fail to live up to the type of performance you would expect from the spec. Maybe i've just been unlucky!!

My Lenovo Thinkpad is pretty bulletproof and my Sony Vaio is ultra portable. The Lenovo also came with a Cigarette lighter type power supply, so result there!

I'm not really adressing your core question, but my experience of Acer is pretty poor.

[Earl]

I have a Acer i got free with a mobile contract, its a good spec and i have had no issues with it, but they do come with loads of pre installed junk on them.

[lukebl]

Go for as much RAM as possible (4MB +). I recently got a Toshiba satellite with 4MB RAM for £400 from PCWorld and you certainly notice the extra speed.

[Neil27]

Hi Gary,

I have a permanent obs setup and I went through this dilemma a few years ago. I looked at acers from pc world and whatever anyone says "you always get what you pay for" rings very true when speaking of laptops.

I was lucky and 'won' a HP laptop at work, talk about jammy! However before that I bought an acer, the specs looked good and the price was very good. Took it home unpacked it and the screen was f**ked wouldn't switch on (apparently a common problem).

Went back got a replacement and this worked fine, now I bought mine in the winter and it was being used in....cough.....quite adverse conditions, below freezing. Yes you guessed it the hard drive failed. Took it back and in the end (after a lot of grief) said look its the second one I've had, not fit for purpose I want my money back - refunded and I used my macbook running windoze until I won the HP.

Now the HP is a different world away, better built, decent screen size and loads of ram - 2gb and 500gb hard drive, used in all weathers from sunnny days at 30 degrees plus (solar viewing) to well below freezing -10 some nights. All without a hitch.

So what I 'm trying to say is spend a little more for a lot less hassle. What may look cheap from the outset could give you grief in the long run.

I look at it this way. We try not to spend our hard earned money on Rubbish optics or poorly made mounts as we know they will be sh*t, so why scrimp on the laptop, an equally important part of the 'jigsaw'.

And yes I did buy from Rubbish world, never again though. I'd rather build my own than use those jokers again. Just my opinion and my dealings with them.

Good luck,

Neil.

[Ogri]

I used to be very anti-Acer (only because they weren't any good), but credit where it is due, the last year or so they have really got their act together.

Sis bought one of their 13" Netbooks (the 1810 like this Acer Aspire Timeline 1810T Netbook | Laptop Reviews UK ) and I was gobsmacked at what a good bit of kit it is.

You can get a similar build from Dell on their website (go for the 2gb and add more memory cheap from Ebay).

The biggest factor with computers, to me, having built them for a lot of years now, is avoid anything with AMD in it, like the plague.

Not because of the CPU's themselves (with some exceptions, they are fine), but because of the generally rubbish motherboard chipsets and pretty awful BIOS's, they tend to have to live with.

If I was buying a laptop, the first priority would be full dual core (no Celerons), and not worry too much about the amount of on CPU cache (I built quite a few cheap gaming machines using the E2140 processors, in good Intel chipset motherboards [always a chipset that's been out for at least 6 months so all the drivers are sorted], when Age of Conan came out, and they handled that load with no problem at all).

Then, Intel graphics (4500 or later).

Then, later, fill it with the max memory.

Then later, add a 7,200 rpm big hard drive with a decent cache on it.

Max memory and a fast hard drive, can have an incredible effect on laptop performance.

Oh another tip - never use a laptop for graphics intensive gaming! They have tiny fans with tiny air vents, tend to overheat badly, and heat + laptop = a short and unreliable life.

If you want to game, build a dedicated gaming rig with good cooling, and it doesn't have to be expensive.

[david o]

Two of three laptops I've had have been Acer and both have been good'uns

The first was unbadged, from a specialist builder, made from Acer components. It still goes well after five years, as does my father's, despite being out-speced by modern kit.

The other is a TravelMate, copes with everything I throw at it. Nice and robust with its alloy body and plenty of connectivity too, including useful legacy stuff.

If you do go for Acer, avoid the Aspire or Extensa models and go for a TravelMate.