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Original poster

Laptop recommendations

4 replies

User65412 · 15/12/2022 11:04

Hi,
I've not ever bought a laptop or computer myself (used the library at uni and then supplied one at work for the last 10 years) but my dh is getting me one for xmas as there's a a few things that have come up lately that I need one for.
Mainly:
Microsoft Office for working at home (teacher working evenings and weekends). Multiple word documents and spreadsheets open at once.
Email (multiple windows open usually).
Teams, zoom etc.
No gaming but using some online designs apps for diy kitchen design etc (home reno) but nothing too advanced.
Internet browsing.

I have no clue about computers. I use a dell latitude at work but am now unable to bring it home and can't do any personal stuff on it anyway. Can anyone give me a basic list of criteria in terms of memory, ram, processors etc that would meet my requirements? Budget is only about £300 but I've been looking at reconditioned ones on back market etc - are these a legit option?
I did consider a desktop but I think I am quite keen on sitting on the sofa to work in the evenings!

Any advice gratefully received!

OP posts:
DogInATent · 15/12/2022 11:14

Dell do their own refurbished laptops through Dell Outlet
outlet.euro.dell.com/Online/InventorySearch.aspx?brandId=7&c=uk&cs=ukdfh1&l=en&s=dfh&dgc=IR&cid=296386&lid=5667687

I've used Dell for decades, mostly because I was used to them through work. Nothing you're proposing is going to be too taxing on a laptop.

Wibble128 · 15/12/2022 11:26

I have bought laptops from www.mycheaplaptop.co.uk/
great service and prices, always go for the a Solid State Drive (SSD) with maximum RAM and a WINPRO upgrades it makes running and maintenance easier. I like Lenovo devices add the Office pro 2016 Lifetime license if you can afford to add it. The first one I bought would not function correctly, excellent service swap out with replacement delivered when they collected the defective device.

Tzimi · 24/09/2023 20:32

I've got a 14" HP one with an i5 processor, & a 250GB SSD. It doesn't seem to have a particular model number, unfortunately, so I can't point you to the exact same one! Anyway, It runs Windows 11, and generally seems to work very well. It cost about £400 from Currys, so it's a bit over budget, but I can genuinely say I havn't had any problems with it! It's fast, has an SDHC socket for your camera card, 2xUSB A, a USBC socket, & an HDMI socket to connect to an external monitor. It's got a 14" monitor which is compact, but big enough to do Word documents & spreadsheets easily. It has a built-in camera & microphone so you can use it for Zoom calls. I can thoroughly recommend this computer!

Tzimi · 24/09/2023 20:42

Tzimi · 24/09/2023 20:32

I've got a 14" HP one with an i5 processor, & a 250GB SSD. It doesn't seem to have a particular model number, unfortunately, so I can't point you to the exact same one! Anyway, It runs Windows 11, and generally seems to work very well. It cost about £400 from Currys, so it's a bit over budget, but I can genuinely say I havn't had any problems with it! It's fast, has an SDHC socket for your camera card, 2xUSB A, a USBC socket, & an HDMI socket to connect to an external monitor. It's got a 14" monitor which is compact, but big enough to do Word documents & spreadsheets easily. It has a built-in camera & microphone so you can use it for Zoom calls. I can thoroughly recommend this computer!

Oh, and 8GB of RAM!

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