Group test: what's the best budget laptop?

Comments

Nick said: On the whole I'd agree with your opinion. However, I would like to add that I have a VAIO that has had a LOT of use for over 3 years and is only just starting to show signs of exhaustion! I only bought it because of a pricing mistake on a website, which they honoured, and would probably not have got it at full price, as I don't believe in paying for a badge. But I would buy again if I saw a similar bargain!

Adia said: So true its like these laptops are made to last a year ! After one year it loses half its value anyway it's not worth repairing at all !

Aly said: When looking around for a budget laptop, I was specific that it should have an Intel core of i3 (2nd generation) with the maximum RAM possible, at the CHEAPEST price. I found that in HP g6. It's been two weeks so far, and I'm happy that I went for it. I've written a complete review on my blog [with photos] : http://goo.gl/Y1lsv

Vnesbett said: Rubbish! I have a Zoostorm core i3 500 Gb hard disc and 8 Gb of Ram with 1.7 Gb graphics card for £399. It plays my 18 year old's fastest shoot-em-ups!!

Allanbrunner said: In the last 3 years, I've had 3 laptops fail, all due to graphics - 2 Toshibas and 1 HP. In the case of the HP, my repair shop (who are pretty good) said it wasn't worth repairing because in their experience, there would be a 90% chance the graphics would fail again within a year. At 120 pounds a shot, it's not as much as a new laptop but still an outlay. Now back to a trusty desktop. If only someone would invent a graphics card that could be run through a usb!

Mature Mike said: That was very interesting! Gary is apparently a professional repairer and should know what goes wrong. However, users can shorten the life of any elctro/mechanical device, yes? I have used cheap HP printers and three in ones' for more than 20 years. All have performed well and reliably and the 2nd eldest still is with a needier family! I still have my old Mesh matrix now 12 years old that I need for operating my trusty old HP S20 photo/slide/negative scanner for ongoing digital archiving. I have had a Compaq Pressario Laptop which is now beginning to show it's age and play up (possibly due to the many Microsoft updates and 3 service packs bloating it!) - but that is 7 years and after being used in many different locations and being forced to accept and do more than it was designed for. I think that is pretty good going. I also have right now an HP Pavilion quad PC which (dare I say!) has proved very reliable - again despite me working it very hard at times on only a couple of gigs of memory.But I have friends who frequently ring me for advice with other make PC's because they have done silly things and messed up their computers. Sometimes I cannot help and they will end up in a workshop where experts like Gary can help them resolve their problems. When some of them drive me, they are all throttle and brakes, or they sit at lights, on a slope holding the car on the clutch alone! Naturally, their cars need far more repairs than mine which has been Proton's since they were first sold. I find them very reliable! So the users have an effect on computers and I tend to dispute that HP manufacture products not intended to last - although I do wish they could afford to re-issue drivers for new MS Windows versions - to save us all ditching useful equipment and wasting Earth resources! Finally, remember our human "machines" are not guaranteed for any particular lifespan either - it all depends on our genes and how we use them!

ibm laptops said: I really liked your blog quite informative and interesting facts and figures you have discussed on your blog even the comments are very fruitful and helpful in enhancing the knowledge regarding the topic.

Matt Egan - Editor said: The model we received to test had that memory configuration, which is an option to purchase. We can only review products as we find them.

Farkas said: Your review of lenovo ideapad z560 m37afuk specifies 4GB DDR3 memory. All adverts for this model has spec of 2GB. Why the difference ?

Matt Egan - editor said: Hi Derrick. Sorry about this, we're having problems with an advert on the mobile version of the site. This URL will take you direct to the second page and the final two reviews: mobile.pcadvisor.co.uk/news/in...

Derrick said: I am looking at this on my iPad and can't see 2 or 1 please make this

Stan said: Why are these comments from March 2010 included - it's misleading. The oldest laptop review is November 2010. It would be better to write a new page and leave the old pages in history forever so we can go back and see what was good and when.

Mattster said: The mesh is brilliant, for a budget laptop, but how on earth do you get your mitts on one!? There is no point of a good laptop that is virtually gone from everywhere. The acer pc advisor reveiwed is much easier to live with, but not nearly as fast.

Gary Gemmell said: Yes but the real question comes of reliability and longevity - without doubt Ibm and Toshiba always came top in my list although Lenovo has tarnished the old reliable IBM laptop reputation in some areas - I repair laptops for a living and hardly ever see these two Manufacturers in my workshop but Acer, Sony , HP are a nightmare particularly the parts for the Vaios. I would never buy an HP or Sony bloatware laptop. If you want a laptop don't go for features go for reliability. People forget the exorbitant costs for repairing a laptop - in many cases I always advise my customers to buy a new laptop. At £40-60 per hour. £250 for a new screen. £190 for a new motherboard - The manufacturers are making a killing on selling laptops that last a year or two and then need repaired.

Matt Egan - Editor said: Hi Neil. Unlike other magazines who simply test the latest products, here at PC Advisor we appraise the whole market to advise on what products represent the best combination of value and performance. As it happens, our current Budget Laptops chart contains only recently released PCs, but we keep the previous months' charts live because an older product - when you can find it - may offer better value for money for a more cost conscious customer.

Neil said: As ss points out and the review dates show this rehash of reviews features laptops from 2008! What use is that for most people now please

SirMetal said: I bought a HP laptop about a year and a half ago for £480, it had an Intel Core 2 Duo processor @ 2.00Ghz, 3Gb ram, 250Gb HDD and an nVidia GeForce 9200m graphics card... It was a bargain and still would be today.

ss said: no comments