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I do a bit of work for the exam board,I have to check markers work on line now. I will not be playing games/watching video etc and will be using PDF etc,so what does anybody rate? I am tempted to buy a second hand macbook, just because it is a macbook. Would I be better served buying a Dell?
It will be cheaper have a warranty and work just fine. I'm letting my 3 year old i3 latitude cool down after smashing excel through it all day long, it traveled and been my work machine for that time and it's never been a problem. Look at the outlet store for better deals.
Dang! Not what I wanted to hear 😆
Macboor Air.
...there you go. Plus if you work in education, you'll get a discount and the 3 year Applecare thrown in.
Edu Pricing:
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Regular pricing:
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Lenovo are a good shout I've got one at work and one at home and they'd work fine for what you need.
If it's only reading PDF's etc. TBH you could probably get any old cheap rubbish and it would work.
But for all your doing its probably overkill. Pdf and a bit of Web? Probably chrombook territory and a new groupset with the change.
For your arduous requirements, whatever you can get cheapest. I'd suggest a s/h Windows machine from one of the usual places. Some recommendations here: http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/laptops-5 - Lenovos as mentioned by a couple of people there tend to be solid and reliable. I have one and will buy another.
(I expect you could also try http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/laptops-4 http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/laptops-3 etc.)
Usability v portability is usually the biggest consideration.
I move around a lot for work and my last few laptops have been lightweight/small screen ones. But, I hate working from a small screen and usually regret my decision instantly. Carrying around a bigger screen laptop, while much nicer to work on, is a PITA to carry around or use on a plane/train etc. I can't seem to win!
I would not want to be doing any work on a 13" screen, unless I needed the laptop to be very portable and I had decidedly limp wrists.
Get a 15" Windows/Lenovo laptop and do something useful with the money left over from not buying a Macbook.
A 13" MacBook has a higher resolution and more screenspace than most 15" windows laptops.
But I've just bought this for my daughter for Crimbo/Birthday (the blue is in stock)...
http://www.johnlewis.com/hp-15-laptop-intel-core-i3-8gb-ram-1tb-15-6-/p1583344?colour=Flyer%20Red
...seemed a decent spec and you get a 2nd years warranty free.
If your only requirements are "open PDFs" and "view a web page" you'd have to try particularly hard to find a laptop that didn't fit the bill.
For half the price of a Macbook Air you could get a laptop from Converters and a second one as a spare in case the first one breaks. Sure, it won't be Teh Shinyz, but you won't be having your pants pulled down for the tune of £150 for a hard disk upgrade worth about £40 either.
Having played with the new generation of tiny screens and really high resolution all it means is to get all that text on the screen it has to be really small.
OTOH - I have a massive IMac gathering dust as I spend all my time on a 13" Air. if you're OK with the Mac OS and don't mind spending a few extra quid on form over function, then go for the Macbook.
As peterfile says it's a usability vs portability tradeoff. I made the mistake of buying a fairly hi res small screened laptop, it mainly stays at home, wish I'd gone for something with a bigger screen, Dell have got some nice 17.3 inchers but they're over 3kgs
you won't be having your pants pulled down for the tune of £150 for a hard disk upgrade worth about £40 either.
In fact, I just checked; it'd actually be cheaper to buy the 120Gb model, buy your own 250Gb SSD separately and throw the 120 in the bin.
I get that Apple make reliable, desirable kit, but the price hikes they factor in are just contemptuous. An iPhone 6 128Gb is £160 more than a £16Gb model, and the same in a 6+ costs an extra £170. Do me a quaver.
Sure, it won't be Teh Shinyz,
Oh Cougar..... *shakes head*
Clearly preferences vary - I'm typing on a 11.6" Lenovo which I love, and much prefer over the 15" laptop (but then I do have very good eyesight, so not bothered by a small screen).
I am using a HP Probook and it's pretty decent. Very robust and has a decent keyboard.
Chromebook if you want to save money.