Looking for a first laptop for around $750

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Thomas18b

13 posts

Geek

#175086 16-Jun-2015 20:10

Looking for a decent laptop that can be used for all functions such as fast browsing, Microsoft office, and medium intensity games. I have a budget of $750 but I may be able to stretch it to $800. I know I'm probably expecting too much on the gaming front. It has to be a laptop as I will most likely need to use it for school. Also what do you recommend as the best screen size for daily use.

Thanks for any help you can give.

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#1326053 16-Jun-2015 20:13

Microsoft Surface 3? Might be a bit small but seems to be quite practical with great build quality for the price. I'm sure Nathan can give you some more in depth info. From what I'm heard its just like a smaller version of the SP3 which I have which is awesome.

-Ben

freitasm

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Geekzone

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#1326055 16-Jun-2015 20:14

I would consider a Surface 3. Pretty snappy - you will need to either use a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse or buy the Microsoft keyboard though. Surface 3 review here.

Thomas18b

13 posts

Geek

#1326056 16-Jun-2015 20:17

Thanks for the quick answer, I'm new to the forum. I will sure look into the surface.

Thanks Thomas

Thomas18b

13 posts

Geek

#1326096 16-Jun-2015 21:21

Would any of you recomend the HP Pavilion 15-P005TU Silver Notebook which is on sale at warehouse stationary. It is on sale for $699 down from $1049.

littleheaven

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#1326186 16-Jun-2015 22:56

Thomas18b: Would any of you recomend the HP Pavilion 15-P005TU Silver Notebook which is on sale at warehouse stationary. It is on sale for $699 down from $1049.

Hmmm, it seems a bit light on RAM, at 4GB, though you can probably upgrade. They also have an HP 15-G210AX Notebook. It's an AMD A8 quad core rather than an i5 but has double the RAM and dedicated 2GB graphics card. On sale at the same price but more heavily discounted. Not sure if the better RAM/graphics would outweigh the lesser processor overall.

My son has a Lenovo ThinkPad with a slightly poorer spec to the G210AX (AMD A4 quad core with 8GB RAM and without the dedicated graphics) and we've installed Steam on it and he's been running several mid-level games without issue.

You'd probably want a 13 or 15 inch screen for day to day use. I have an HP Pavilion i7 that I edit video on. Nice machine and the 15.6 inch screen is big enough for editing, if I'm away from my external monitor.

Geek girl. Freelance copywriter and editor at Unmistakable.co.nz.

Thomas18b

13 posts

Geek

#1326232 17-Jun-2015 07:14

How about the Acer Aspire E5-571 15.6 Inch i5-5200U 2.2Ghz 4GB RAM 1TB HDD Laptop with Windows 8.1
Specifications:

* Operating System: Windows 8.1 64-bit
* Screen: 15.6" LED 1366 x 768 CineCrystal Display

* Processor: Intel Core i5-5200U 2.2GHz up to 2.7GHz
* Memory: 4 GB DDR3L RAM (no RAM trap door)

* Storage: 1TB hard drive
* Optical Drive: DVD-Writer

* Graphics: Intel HD 4400 Graphics 128MB
* Interface: HDMI, 3 x USB, VGA, RJ-45

* Network & Connectivity: 802.11b/g/ac + Bluetooth
* Memory Card Supported: Yes, Secure Digital (SD) Card

* Dimensions (W x D x H): 381.6 x 256 x 32.65mm
* Weight: 2.5kg

Upgrade option :

* +$49 to upgrade to 8GB Memory
* +$9.95 to get BullGuard 1 Year Anti-Virus
* +$24.95 to get Rapoo X1800 Wireless Keyboard & Mouse Bundle

Once again any help you can give would be greatly appreciated.

Xeon

302 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1326239 17-Jun-2015 08:03

Thomas18b: How about the Acer Aspire E5-571 15.6 Inch i5-5200U 2.2Ghz 4GB RAM 1TB HDD Laptop with Windows 8.1
Specifications:

snip

Once again any help you can give would be greatly appreciated.

For what price?

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Thomas18b

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#1326247 17-Jun-2015 08:29

$729

littleheaven

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#1326287 17-Jun-2015 09:33

Personally I wouldn't go any less than 8GB of RAM. If you could find an i5 with that (or easily upgradable to it) and a dedicated graphics card within your budget, then you'd be sweet.

Geek girl. Freelance copywriter and editor at Unmistakable.co.nz.

kiwipeter

211 posts

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#1326297 17-Jun-2015 09:37

Thomas18b: $729

Picked one up for my wife - $687 at Harvey Norman. Seems like a nice machine.

http://www.harveynorman.co.nz/event/half-yearly-clearance/acer-aspire-e5-571-57gc-laptop.html

gzt

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#1326603 17-Jun-2015 15:48

If weight is not an issue to you there are many to consider.those are all in the 2.5kg area. Surface is approx 1kg. If you walk a lot big difference. If the machine is at home 3 or 4 days a week then no issue. Stick some weight in your bag to get a feel for it : )

Thomas18b

13 posts

Geek

#1326701 17-Jun-2015 17:09

Would the acer be able to play games that have these requirements:

OS: Windows Vista SP2, 7, 8, 8.1
Processor: AMD Athlon X2 2.8 GHZ, Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHZ
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Graphics: DirectX 10.1 (AMD Radeon HD 6450, Nvidia GeForce GTX 460)
DirectX: Version 11
Network: Broadband Internet connection
Hard Drive: 15 GB available space
Sound Card: Integrated

Or:

Thomas18b

13 posts

Geek

#1326702 17-Jun-2015 17:10

Or:

CPU: Dual-core processor with at least 2 Ghz clock speed
RAM: 4GB
GPU: Something better than integrated graphics (at least 512MB Video RAM)
Windows 7/8 (32bit or 64bit)

Thanks.