Author Topic: New laptop advice  (Read 169560 times)

Offline JongWK

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #520 on: April 3, 2014, 10:24:37 pm »
Thanks very much for the answer!

The SDD seems indeed quite cheap on Amazon, though I'm quite clueless about these things! Basically, I'll buy it and install in my laptop replacing the HDD, that from there on could be just left as an external driver to store things I don't use that often?

Yes, you can use the HDD in an external case as additional storage.

Some SDDs come with a transfer kit that basically mirrors the data you have in your old HDD (including the OS, if I remember correctly, otherwise you need to reinstall the OS in the SDD).
"I look at him doing all sorts of crazy shit and mostly I burst out laughing at his insane genius.
I mean, if his first reaction to a ball bouncing in front of him 40 yards from goal is 'I'm going to whack this into the net from here', you just have to laugh at the sheer improbability of it all."
~~Ray K, on Luis Suarez (Liverpool 5 - Norwich 1)

Offline KennyDaggers

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #521 on: April 3, 2014, 10:49:17 pm »
I'm after a new lap top for work. Linking to my office via a VPN connection, storing loads of data & just the general office type of stuff. It may sound stupid but I'm after something with flat keys as I find it easier to type quicker with them.

I have no limit to my budget but would prefer something for around 500-750.

I have had a Sony Vaio for about 4 years and it's been an outstanding lap top but the amount if data on it now has gone through the roof and it's slowing down.

Offline Lucas21

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #522 on: April 10, 2014, 09:58:34 pm »
Can anyone give me advice on Lenovo laptaps? Are they decent in general? Much appreciated

Offline Johnny B. Goode

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #523 on: April 15, 2014, 03:50:56 pm »
Fuck it. Went all in and bought a MacBook Pro.

It's beautiful.  ;D
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Offline JongWK

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #524 on: April 15, 2014, 04:12:19 pm »
Can anyone give me advice on Lenovo laptaps? Are they decent in general? Much appreciated

They offer good bang for the buck, in my experience. Just don't expect them to be perfect or anything close to that.
"I look at him doing all sorts of crazy shit and mostly I burst out laughing at his insane genius.
I mean, if his first reaction to a ball bouncing in front of him 40 yards from goal is 'I'm going to whack this into the net from here', you just have to laugh at the sheer improbability of it all."
~~Ray K, on Luis Suarez (Liverpool 5 - Norwich 1)

Offline Lucas21

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #525 on: April 15, 2014, 06:14:25 pm »
They offer good bang for the buck, in my experience. Just don't expect them to be perfect or anything close to that.

Thanks, have my eye on one for a while. Previously had a COMPAQ and a HP, which were both solid but  after 2 years they seem to pack it in

Offline buzzing

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #526 on: April 15, 2014, 06:35:51 pm »
Looking at the yoga pro 2....want something that's thin with a good screen
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Offline AB LFC

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #527 on: April 29, 2014, 09:15:29 pm »
Anyone know where I can get a laptop protective sheet from but one that'll also darken the screen a bit? Get too many headaches when on laptop at night even on lowest brightness

Offline SP

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #528 on: April 30, 2014, 02:18:10 pm »
Anyone know where I can get a laptop protective sheet from but one that'll also darken the screen a bit? Get too many headaches when on laptop at night even on lowest brightness


Try a software solution:
https://justgetflux.com/


Or a privacy filter may (at a price) do the job.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/3M-Privacy-Filter-Widescreen-PF15-6W/dp/B002IE4TVW




Offline Gili Gulu

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #529 on: April 30, 2014, 02:27:23 pm »
Anyone know where I can get a laptop protective sheet from but one that'll also darken the screen a bit? Get too many headaches when on laptop at night even on lowest brightness

How about a pair of computer glasses.
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Offline Chronic

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #530 on: May 1, 2014, 11:18:22 pm »

Need a new laptop for browsing the net and playing the odd game of fm etc, it has to be from Littlewoods as i have store credit there.

Which is the best option for under 4 ton ?

I'm thinking this maybe simply due to the 6gb RAM ?

http://www.littlewoods.com/lenovo-g500-intelreg-coretrade-i3-processor-6gb-ram-1tb-hard-drive-wi-fi-156-inch-laptop-black/1354381268.prd

Here's the rest

http://www.littlewoods.com/electricals/laptops/e/b/1225,4873.end?sort=highestrated,0

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Offline Smudgester

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #531 on: May 4, 2014, 01:36:59 pm »
Looking for a laptop for the in-laws; just needed for email, net surfing and basic home Office stuff. Budget is £250.

Any recommendations?

Offline JongWK

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #532 on: May 4, 2014, 03:17:51 pm »
Looking for a laptop for the in-laws; just needed for email, net surfing and basic home Office stuff. Budget is £250.

Any recommendations?

Does screen size matter for them? I see a couple of ASUS models on Amazon.co.uk, but they are have 10-inch screens.

Also, can they go to £300? There are more options at that range.
"I look at him doing all sorts of crazy shit and mostly I burst out laughing at his insane genius.
I mean, if his first reaction to a ball bouncing in front of him 40 yards from goal is 'I'm going to whack this into the net from here', you just have to laugh at the sheer improbability of it all."
~~Ray K, on Luis Suarez (Liverpool 5 - Norwich 1)

Offline Smudgester

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #533 on: May 4, 2014, 04:06:33 pm »
Screen size is fairly important. Went for a Lenovo G505 (15" screen, 4GB RAM, 1TB HDD and AMD E-series CPU) for £259 from Tescos. Should be more than enough for their needs.

Offline red mongoose

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #534 on: May 4, 2014, 04:14:56 pm »
I'll tell you what lads, I just bought a new laptop and am using Windows 8 for the first time. It is a donkey's c*nt. I can't advise much about the hardware, but give this pile of shit latest Windows a wide swerve. It seems that they built the whole fucking thing for touch screens, where you can swipe to open a fucking menu (which I am doing accidentally with my touch pad constantly), ignoring the fact that most people don't have touch screens on their home machines/laptops yet - it is at least a generation too soon. If they wanted to slurp the cocks of tablet users, they should have just developed a tablet-specific operating system.

Sorry for the unmitigated rage and bad language, but fuck's sake, it is really terrible. Carry on.
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Offline MBL?

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #535 on: May 4, 2014, 05:32:04 pm »
I'll tell you what lads, I just bought a new laptop and am using Windows 8 for the first time. It is a donkey's c*nt. I can't advise much about the hardware, but give this pile of shit latest Windows a wide swerve. It seems that they built the whole fucking thing for touch screens, where you can swipe to open a fucking menu (which I am doing accidentally with my touch pad constantly), ignoring the fact that most people don't have touch screens on their home machines/laptops yet - it is at least a generation too soon. If they wanted to slurp the cocks of tablet users, they should have just developed a tablet-specific operating system.

Sorry for the unmitigated rage and bad language, but fuck's sake, it is really terrible. Carry on.
Don't use windows 8 but as far as I know you can change it to the old style if you don't want the poxy tablet look.

Offline JongWK

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #536 on: May 4, 2014, 05:46:24 pm »
I'll tell you what lads, I just bought a new laptop and am using Windows 8 for the first time. It is a donkey's c*nt. I can't advise much about the hardware, but give this pile of shit latest Windows a wide swerve. It seems that they built the whole fucking thing for touch screens, where you can swipe to open a fucking menu (which I am doing accidentally with my touch pad constantly), ignoring the fact that most people don't have touch screens on their home machines/laptops yet - it is at least a generation too soon. If they wanted to slurp the cocks of tablet users, they should have just developed a tablet-specific operating system.

Sorry for the unmitigated rage and bad language, but fuck's sake, it is really terrible. Carry on.

The upcoming update to Windows addresses a lot of the problems. Seems someone finally figured out most people are using the system without touch screens...  :butt
"I look at him doing all sorts of crazy shit and mostly I burst out laughing at his insane genius.
I mean, if his first reaction to a ball bouncing in front of him 40 yards from goal is 'I'm going to whack this into the net from here', you just have to laugh at the sheer improbability of it all."
~~Ray K, on Luis Suarez (Liverpool 5 - Norwich 1)

Offline Phil M

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #537 on: August 5, 2014, 01:21:43 am »
Managed to smash the screen on my Asus which has served me well. Not under warranty anymore and fancy a new machine anyway.

For general web browsing, (multi tabs open) storing and playing audio and video files, (streaming videos etc) photos and other general kind of stuff what should I be looking for in terms of spec?

I need decent storage but in terms of processors and Ram and the like, not really up to speed on the latest.

Quite like the look of this as Toshiba served me well before...

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/1478710.htm

Decent screen size, 1 TB of storage etc.

That's about all I'd like to budget right now. Thoughts??
« Last Edit: August 5, 2014, 01:25:08 am by Phil M »
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Offline AshbourneRed

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #538 on: August 23, 2014, 10:02:13 pm »
What do people make of this? Don't really need it for much. Just browsing, Netflix and streaming the odd game. Nothing else really. 350 euro for it.

http://www.lidl.ie/en/Offers.htm?id=259

Offline JongWK

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #539 on: August 24, 2014, 01:02:30 am »
What do people make of this? Don't really need it for much. Just browsing, Netflix and streaming the odd game. Nothing else really. 350 euro for it.

http://www.lidl.ie/en/Offers.htm?id=259

It's an Atom processor, not a Core one. Don't expect playing any games except very old ones. I have no idea how well would it play Netflix.
"I look at him doing all sorts of crazy shit and mostly I burst out laughing at his insane genius.
I mean, if his first reaction to a ball bouncing in front of him 40 yards from goal is 'I'm going to whack this into the net from here', you just have to laugh at the sheer improbability of it all."
~~Ray K, on Luis Suarez (Liverpool 5 - Norwich 1)

Offline GiorgosCarraGoonies

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #540 on: August 24, 2014, 05:04:18 pm »
Can't see any issues with Netflix on that.

I got the missus a Chromebook last year for £220.  She only uses it for browsing the web and watching Netflix and it works fine, cheap as chips, very fast start-up (has an SSD and a very basic OS - it goes from Off to the desktop in 7 seconds).

Not for games though, it both lacks the grunt and doesn't use Windows.

Offline WAQS

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #541 on: August 24, 2014, 08:41:24 pm »
Picked up an acer e5-571 from Argos for £340.

1.7ghz i5 which can run at 2.7ghz. 4gb ram and 1TB hard drive with windows 8.1

Offline CornerFlag

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #542 on: August 25, 2014, 12:40:57 am »
Managed to smash the screen on my Asus which has served me well. Not under warranty anymore and fancy a new machine anyway.

For general web browsing, (multi tabs open) storing and playing audio and video files, (streaming videos etc) photos and other general kind of stuff what should I be looking for in terms of spec?

I need decent storage but in terms of processors and Ram and the like, not really up to speed on the latest.

Quite like the look of this as Toshiba served me well before...

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/1478710.htm

Decent screen size, 1 TB of storage etc.

That's about all I'd like to budget right now. Thoughts??
Just seen this, would you not consider replacing the screen?  It'd be much more cost-effective than replacing your system if there's nothing wrong with the rest of it.
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Offline UntouchableLuis

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #543 on: August 26, 2014, 07:34:22 pm »
Got a HP Laptop yesterday, Intel Core i3, 8GB RAM, 1TB, 15.6 - £379.

Does everything I require and really fast (plus it's red ;)) - not really too sure how to use Windows 8 so just sticking to the old style desktop for now!
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Offline JongWK

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #544 on: August 27, 2014, 01:18:24 pm »
Got a HP Laptop yesterday, Intel Core i3, 8GB RAM, 1TB, 15.6 - £379.

Does everything I require and really fast (plus it's red ;)) - not really too sure how to use Windows 8 so just sticking to the old style desktop for now!

You can upgrade it for free to Windows 8.1 (don't install all the updates in one go, though: do it manually and in batches, or it will fail and you'll have to do it all over again).
"I look at him doing all sorts of crazy shit and mostly I burst out laughing at his insane genius.
I mean, if his first reaction to a ball bouncing in front of him 40 yards from goal is 'I'm going to whack this into the net from here', you just have to laugh at the sheer improbability of it all."
~~Ray K, on Luis Suarez (Liverpool 5 - Norwich 1)

Offline AshbourneRed

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #545 on: August 30, 2014, 11:45:29 pm »
I think Ashbourne Red meant watching our matches when he said 'games' as opposed to playing them.

Here is a very recent review of the best 25 cheap laptops on the UK market. Might be useful:

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/test-centre/laptop/3214583/25-best-budget-laptops-of-2014/

Thanks for all the responses guys. Will have a look at that list on the link above. And ye, I meant Liverpool matches. Thanks again.

Offline AB LFC

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #546 on: October 9, 2014, 02:23:33 pm »
Anyone own a netbook? Thinking of buying an Acer Aspire One just for internet and Youtube but heard they can be painfully slow?
« Last Edit: October 9, 2014, 03:51:22 pm by Ali Bomaye »

Offline Swissgaz

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #547 on: October 11, 2014, 09:53:24 pm »
Anyone own a netbook? Thinking of buying an Acer Aspire One just for internet and Youtube but heard they can be painfully slow?

If all your looking for is internet and youtube then go for a tablet.  Tesco Hudl 2 is only £129 and will be more than sufficient. 
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Offline AB LFC

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #548 on: October 27, 2014, 11:24:31 am »
Got an iPad, just can't get used to it. Prefer laptops to be honest. Sold that aswell so back in the market for a laptop, any suggestions? Budget is £350, need something quick and fairly thin and light aswell. HP laptops are good but far too heavy.

Offline Claire.

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #549 on: October 27, 2014, 12:17:36 pm »
Immediate thought was a Macbook Air, you might be able to get one for £350. If you're not bothered about storage then a chromebook might be a good option.

Offline 'Mondzz'

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #550 on: October 27, 2014, 12:20:50 pm »
Looking for a laptop on behalf of the mother, im on a macbook myself so dont really have a clue where the best value laptops are at the minute.

She's just looking for one to use for netflix, music and browse the internet really and has a budget of £200. Anyone know of any websites where i can get a half decent one for that amount?
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Offline 'Mondzz'

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #551 on: October 28, 2014, 11:46:15 am »
Why not just attach a keyboard thingy to the iPad?

She's not too keen on touch screen and iphones/ipads. Likes to just get it going through the TV through a HDMI aswell.

Been looking on PC World and found a few basic ones for around £220, might just end up popping down there.
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Offline Zend...en the clowns

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #552 on: October 29, 2014, 07:51:54 pm »
Just managed to get an apple PowerBook g4 off eBay for 70 quid.

Looks in very good condition and only intend to use it for business, word, excel etc.

Decent bargain? Are they still worthwhile machines now?
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Offline weebroalan

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #553 on: November 11, 2014, 11:32:38 pm »
I'm looking for a new laptop for work and have whittled it down to 3 - it needs to be portable and powerful to deal with large macro and data table laden spreadsheets and have a decent batteries:

HP ZBook 14
Lenovo Thinkpad X1 Carbon
Apple MacBook Air

I'm assuming an i7 processor and 8GB ram and preferably an SSD with 256GB - budget is c£1,500

So just wondering if any of you guys have experience of any of these laptops?

Offline Swissgaz

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #554 on: November 12, 2014, 12:04:39 am »
I'm looking for a new laptop for work and have whittled it down to 3 - it needs to be portable and powerful to deal with large macro and data table laden spreadsheets and have a decent batteries:

HP ZBook 14
Lenovo Thinkpad X1 Carbon
Apple MacBook Air

I'm assuming an i7 processor and 8GB ram and preferably an SSD with 256GB - budget is c£1,500

So just wondering if any of you guys have experience of any of these laptops?

We use the HP ZBook 14 at work for CAD, 3D modelling loaded with 16GB RAM and an SSD.  Not an ultra portable and It's quite heavy if you have to carry it round all day. Battery life won't be as good as the other two.

Can't comment on the Lenovo but it is an ultra portable and should be able to handle your spreadsheets.

The MacBook Air is great machine but you cannot upgrade the RAM later.  The processor is an i5 with no option to upgrade to an i7. The base model comes with 4GB of RAM which you can upgrade to 8GB at the time of purchase as a built to order option.  You should be able to upgrade the SSD later but there aren't any upgrades available for the 2014 model at the moment. You should get 8-9 hours out of the battery.

You mention that you will be using large macro's in spreadsheets which I assume will be excel?  The Mac version of Excel (2011) includes VBA6, and macros generally work well. However, as has been the case ever since VBA was added to Office, there are differences between Mac and Windows versions, among them:

WinXL allows ActiveX controls (buttons, etc). ActiveX is currently a Windows-only technology. For compatibility, only Forms controls ("Legacy controls" in XL2007/2010) should be used.
Code that references Windows system routines obviously won't work on Macs
Code that uses the VBA MacScript command will work on Macs, but not in Windows
A very few commands have different syntax (e.g., the GetOpenFileName()'s FileFilter argument)
Code that refers to Win-only features (e.g., PivotCharts) obviously don't work on Macs.
Macs allow only one instance of a running application, so using CreateObject() to start an instance of an application may fail if the application is already running.

Might be an idea to test them on a Mac running Excel 2011 before committing. 
« Last Edit: November 12, 2014, 12:06:50 am by Swissgaz »
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Offline weebroalan

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #555 on: November 12, 2014, 07:23:42 am »
Thanks Gaz that's really helpful - I didn't realise that about the MacBook so yes that would be an issue as I do use excel a lot so I guess it's down to 2!

The reviews all out the ZBook and the MacBook top with the X1 coming in a bit behind on performance - portability is slightly less of an issue in my new job. My old job required lots of financial modelling whilst sat on a train to London or diving in and out of coffee shops in London and even in taxis whilst running late to meetings! So the Lenovos were great because you could drop them and spill coffee over them etc and they didn't care. New job has much less travel and is much less demanding but still some portability required. Having said that the weight is not such an issue and I've just bought a new Swiss Gear backpack which really is the best work bag I've ever had and is pretty comfortable whatever is in it - which is currently a heavy and sluggish HP ProBook which is complaining at me a lot at the minute as I ask it to do the impossible!

I think the screens is better on the ZBook and I do use it as my second screen for email etc so that's also a consideration.
« Last Edit: November 12, 2014, 07:27:38 am by weebroalan »

Offline weebroalan

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #556 on: November 12, 2014, 07:58:13 pm »
Remember that you can always run straight up Windows or just Windows apps (like the Excel version of it) on a Mac. It's a breeze, and I think the other benefits of the mac make it an easy decision.
Thanks mate - Someone did mention that and that's definitely a good option but I'm not sure our IT department would be happy. They are HP through and through and were a bit shocked when I suggested I might prefer a Lenovo or Apple!

They did get me quotes for them all today and I've done a bit more reading reviews etc - there's not a lot in it between the MacBook and the ZBook from what I can see and I don't need an amazing screen because I'm only doing s/sheet work rather than graphics so I think I'll go for the ZBook because I can see our IT guys cocking up the Apple Windows thing. If there was a huge difference to the ZBook then it would be worth the hassle but probably not in this case.

Offline El Phes

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #557 on: November 25, 2014, 09:41:18 am »
Quick couple of Q's please....I think I need to be in the market for a new laptop, but I'm really happy using Windows 7 and a bit fearful of Windows 8. Are there any new laptops out there with Windows 7 still or would they all be Windows 8 now? Am I stupid to continue looking at Windows 7 or should I just bite the bullet and move on? Could I get a custom build with Windows 7 and would that be worth it?

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #558 on: November 25, 2014, 01:45:14 pm »
Quick couple of Q's please....I think I need to be in the market for a new laptop, but I'm really happy using Windows 7 and a bit fearful of Windows 8. Are there any new laptops out there with Windows 7 still or would they all be Windows 8 now? Am I stupid to continue looking at Windows 7 or should I just bite the bullet and move on? Could I get a custom build with Windows 7 and would that be worth it?
I am after a new laptop and been looking at PC world and you can buy win7 machines no problem, not sure if win8 is the way to go as never really used it but I do know they are apps/programs that can help win8 users.

Offline weebroalan

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Re: New laptop advice
« Reply #559 on: November 25, 2014, 09:02:00 pm »
New laptop arrived today and it really is fantastic - ZBook 14, i7 4600, 250GB SSD, 8GB ram

The screen is really good quality and looks great even in natural light and the processing speed is something else compared to the old machine - no more having to F9 in Excel!