Havard Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Looking for a good computer for my daughter. This one seems to have a higher spec than most in it's price bracket. http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/sol/shop/technology/computing/120897748_compaq_cq56_112sa_amd_v140_3gb_320gb_156_laptop_black.html?hnav=4294960198&source=PHD After a disaster with a Fajitsu Siemens laptop bought a couple of years ago I am looking for something mega reliable that she will get a few years out of without it falling to bits..!! Opinions would be welcomed. She is 15, will be doing school work, browsing the net and storing shit loads of photos if her old laptop was anything to go by..!! If you had £350 to spend, what would you go for at the moment? Thanks H. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Any way of stretching the budget mate? The only reason I ask is I would go for nothing less than an i3 processor now. For budget AMD is the right choice, I am not a fan of Compaq. In saying that I am a really big fan of Acer and they seem to get a bit of a bad name. 5 Acers in the family and the only trouble we have had is 2 powerpack failures... under warranty.... which IS a common fault. IMO Acer is the best bang for your buck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_jza80 Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Any way of stretching the budget mate? The only reason I ask is I would go for nothing less than an i3 processor now. For budget AMD is the right choice, I am not a fan of Compaq. In saying that I am a really big fan of Acer and they seem to get a bit of a bad name. 5 Acers in the family and the only trouble we have had is 2 powerpack failures... under warranty.... which IS a common fault. IMO Acer is the best bang for your buck. The disc drive packed in on my Acer the week I bought it. I have a Compaq now that has been utterly reliable. My housemate (who's a technician) recommends Dell as apparently they're very reliable. Sony ones seem popular at Uni, though I suspect much of that will be the image (As with Macs) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 The disc drive packed in on my Acer the week I bought it. I have a Compaq now that has been utterly reliable. My housemate (who's a technician) recommends Dell as apparently they're very reliable. Sony ones seem popular at Uni, though I suspect much of that will be the image (As with Macs) First I have ever in my life heard anyone in the industry say that. Anyone who knows anything about the inside of a laptop knows to steer clear of all these manufacturers now. When it comes to laptops IBM are generally bulletproof. Everything else is a gamble depending on your budget. Lower end big brand laptops are generally rubbish. The modern day Acers/Toshibas/Samsungs are better for that kind of laptop.... IMO of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaveriK Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 First I have ever in my life heard anyone in the industry say that. Anyone who knows anything about the inside of a laptop knows to steer clear of all these manufacturers now. When it comes to laptops IBM are generally bulletproof. Everything else is a gamble depending on your budget. Lower end big brand laptops are generally rubbish. The modern day Acers/Toshibas/Samsungs are better for that kind of laptop.... IMO of course. I like Dell as well so you can make that twice now. My customer base are moving across onto them, no hitches so far. And buying through the Outlet store saves quite a bit of cash Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monsween Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Im thinking about this one for my lass http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/acer-aspire-5736-red-laptop-07706777-pdt.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaveriK Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Forgot to mention that i would rather slam my manhood into a rusty shed door than buy a Samsung. We bought them a few years back but the laptop and support, even though it was a corperate package, were just shocking. IMO of course Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaveriK Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Hope this link works. I have asked it to only show i3 i5 i7 laptops with 3Gb or more. You can narrow it down even more if you wish http://outlet.euro.dell.com/Online/InventorySearch.aspx?brandId=7&c=uk&cs=ukdfh1&l=en&s=dfh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monsween Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 I have a works dell and its terrible, hate the thing. Used it for 3 years and its painfull. Stupidly bought my sister a dell 2 years ago and its shat itself twice so far. I won't be making that mistake again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havard Posted December 7, 2010 Author Share Posted December 7, 2010 I have a Dell for work and won't be going there. Come to think of it, I started this thread and I have never had a good laptop. Maybe they are all kack then? Thanks for the replies but I am still not finding anything that people agree is reliable..!! Are HP and Compaq the same company? H. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevie_b Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Are HP and Compaq the same company? Yes, same parent company. That doesn't mean they share the same manufacturing processes and quality control though. IIRC IBM and Lenovo are also the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havard Posted December 7, 2010 Author Share Posted December 7, 2010 R e l i a b l e L a p t o p W a n t e d Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevie_b Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Yeah ok, we got the message earlier on in the thread H! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havard Posted December 7, 2010 Author Share Posted December 7, 2010 Yeah ok, we got the message earlier on in the thread H! Are Compaq decent then. On other threads people mention HP laptops are good. Is the HP, Hewlett Packard, Compaq, Packard Bell, Graham Bell, Bell End, End Of The World, War Of The Worlds, Jeff Wayne, Bruce Wayne, Bruce Lee, Lee Evans, Good Heavens..and so on!! FFS this is giving me a headache..!! H. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Are Compaq decent then. On other threads people mention HP laptops are good. Is the HP, Hewlett Packard, Compaq, Packard Bell, Graham Bell, Bell End, End Of The World, War Of The Worlds, Jeff Wayne, Bruce Wayne, Bruce Lee, Lee Evans, Good Heavens..and so on!! FFS this is giving me a headache..!! H. No, they are all shit. I've had 2 HPs, and while they are good laptops at what they do they tend to fry a lot. In the 3 years I owned my top spec one (ZD8181ea) it was back at HP for a grand total of 8 months getting various things fixed. It chewed through 3 motherboards and various other bits and bobs. Thankfully I got it through my work on one of those computer schemes so it was fully covered. If you want the best go with IBM. Best bang for your buck go with a modern Acer (Older ones are rather dodgy). Sony Vaio are OK too but a bit pricey for what you get. All IMO of course Is this for Christmas I take it? Just that money might be an option given the laptop price crashes in the January sales Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monsween Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 No, they are all shit. I've had 2 HPs, and while they are good laptops at what they do they tend to fry a lot. In the 3 years I owned my top spec one (ZD8181ea) it was back at HP for a grand total of 8 months getting various things fixed. It chewed through 3 motherboards and various other bits and bobs. Thankfully I got it through my work on one of those computer schemes so it was fully covered. If you want the best go with IBM. Best bang for your buck go with a modern Acer (Older ones are rather dodgy). Sony Vaio are OK too but a bit pricey for what you get. All IMO of course Is this for Christmas I take it? Just that money might be an option given the laptop price crashes in the January sales Whats your views on the one i posted Scott? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Whats your views on the one i posted Scott? That looks like a bit of a bargain bud. It isn't the newest of technology, hence the price, but it ticks a lot of boxes that I was surprised to see..... the 128mb of dedicated GFX RAM being one of them. I would much rather have an i3 processor if I was buying a new laptop but the budget has to be taken into consideration. A bottom end i3 probably won't have the features that that laptop has. You will find that the model won't be on sale for much longer, they will just be clearing stock for the latest shiney new models. Oh, does it have to come in red? lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevie_b Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Everyone's got different experiences of laptops. My other half has an HP laptop, and for several years now it does exactly what it says on the tin, with no drama. Scott's reply below seems to carry a lot of sense. >>> If you want the best go with IBM. Best bang for your buck go with a modern Acer (Older ones are rather dodgy). Sony Vaio are OK too but a bit pricey for what you get. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DamanC Posted December 8, 2010 Share Posted December 8, 2010 Without entering into a debate. Reliable - HP, Compaq , IBM, Toshiba and up and coming ASUS. Not Reliable - Dells, Samsung, Sony In between - Acer, Fujitsu. Expensive parts - Dell, Samsung, Sony. Shite manufacturer support - Dell, Samsung, Sony, Acer. Cheap parts - HP, Compaq, Fujitsu and to an extent Toshiba. Good manufacturer Support - HP, Compaq, IBM, Toshiba. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thorin Posted December 8, 2010 Share Posted December 8, 2010 I used to like Toshiba laptops, don't know if they're any good still these days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonathanc Posted December 8, 2010 Share Posted December 8, 2010 Yea, I had Fujitsu loooong ago it was reliable but not really upgrade/repair friendly. I have a HP now and even though I've dismantled it and put it back and discovered I've missed some screws It's still working 100%! Parts are cheap as well over eBay. edit: I had temp issues but after dismantling and cleaning all the fans and ducts its fine now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DamanC Posted December 8, 2010 Share Posted December 8, 2010 I used to like Toshiba laptops, don't know if they're any good still these days. Yea, I had Fujitsu loooong ago it was reliable but not really upgrade/repair friendly. I have a HP now and even though I've dismantled it and put it back and discovered I've missed some screws It's still working 100%! Parts are cheap as well over eBay. edit: I had temp issues but after dismantling and cleaning all the fans and ducts its fine now. Forgot them! Post edited! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Posted December 8, 2010 Share Posted December 8, 2010 'Good manufacturer Support: Toshiba' Forget it, got my second Toshiba a few years ago and got the extended warranty, both the laptop and the warranty (with Toshiba) have been crap. Six times or so it's been back, the repair agents that Toshiba use are useless and it even went back to Toshiba themselves and they weren't much better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyson Posted December 8, 2010 Share Posted December 8, 2010 I had an HP Laptop and in the year I had it it needed 2 motherboards, 2 sets of ram, a new screen, 2 new hard drives, a new battery pack, one of the speakers stop working and the web cam just stopped working. I got shut as soon as they sent it me back paid 700 for it got 450 for it a year later not bad going me thinks !! Got a Lenovo thinkpad t400 and have never ever had anything go wrong with not even crashed on me !!! I've had it two years and intend to keep it much longer, the battery still holds 80% charge after two years of constant use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havard Posted December 8, 2010 Author Share Posted December 8, 2010 Thanks for the posts peoples. After Damo's post I think I'll go for the Compaq and be done with it..!! H. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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