Looking for recommendations for a reliable laptop around the $800 mark. Just want it for basic use, not into gaming but do enjoy photography as a hobby.
I'm definitely not up to date with the latest computer lingo, so please dumb it down for me!
Ideally nothing less than a 15" screen
Laptop under $800. Not up to Date with Computer Lingo So Please Dumb It down for Me!
pollycat on 03/05/2020 - 08:47
Last edited 03/05/2020 - 09:46
Last edited 03/05/2020 - 09:46
Comments
I think the potential for shipping delays in the EOFY sales should also be added to the potential/likely wait time. Lenovo seem to have delays at the moment and others might too.
How portable do you need it to be?
There's the really portable "under-arm" ones at the 12.0 inch size.
The regular sized laptop is 13.3 inch (or 14inch with reduced bezels).
The large laptop size is 15.6 inch (or 16inch with reduced bezels).
….and laptops that are in the 17 inch category aren't meant to be portable, they're like gaming units or ones that you set on a desk and never move them.Second question, do you care about it being "Brand New" versus "Used" ?
And last question, are you disgusted with Dongle-Life or simply don't care about having less features?
Definitely need 15", couldn't handle any smaller.
Prefer brand new
Am so out of touch that I have no idea what you mean by dongle-life
If you want to plug in a USB mouse, or hook it up to a TV or monitor, etc etc…
…do you want to have to carry an extra accessory dock in your pocket (or backpack) at all times just to plug it in?Think of Apple removing the Headphone Jack from the iPhones…. that is "dongle life".
At 16 inches, there should be laptops with the usual ports, but yeah OEMs have been slowly removing features since 2015.
And "Brand New" for $800 isn't going to get you much, especially with our current dollar value.As others said, you don't necessarily need a dGPU, but the screen and touchpad is going to be important for photography reasons.
But again, the good screens aren't in your price range. Not unless you consider going for Used.I am going to dumb down the dongle-life even more for you.
Until the last few years, most things you plug into a computer had a plug that looked like this
In quite a few newer laptops you can't plug in those things anymore. The new plug looks like this
If you want to still use the old plug type you need one of these (aka dongle-life)
This offer from Dell would be a great choice for under $800.
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/53421215.6" Full HD screen gives you enough screen size to work with.
Good sized and fast SSD. Looks like it has an extra slot so can be expanded easily in the future.
8GB should be enough RAM but seems like it's easily expandable to 16GB by adding another if you need.
CPU is fast enough for the tasks you want.
I couldn't find any mentions that the screen is IPS.
If OP is doing photography, the screen must be IPS! You don't want washed out colors of a cheapo LCD screen!It's a TN display. IPS is generally only found in more expensive laptops.
It's fine for hobby photography at this budget.
No, I insist OP gets IPS display in 2020 AND they are interested in photography. Even if it is a bit more expensive.
You should be happy with a TN display only if you do document work.@Blue Cat: If you insist then care to provide an example of a suitable laptop with a decent IPS screen for only a bit more expensive?
Oops, only a 14" screen. Still great value but doesn't meet the OPs criteria.
This is the 15.6" version for only slightly more https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/392776467834
I've gone with this one. I've done enough over-thinking for a Sunday!
Hello, buy a Dell from jb hifi.
Thanks for your help everyone. Ended up putting an end to my over-thinking & made a decision
great.
Can i ask you ended up getting?Nice.
Looks good
Enjoy!Good choice! Enjoy your new laptop.
Might be worth waiting for a few weeks for EOFY deals to start appearing. If you're into photography you'd probably want to prioritise a decent screen. Given your usage habits most other aspects aren't so important, unless you are going to port it around a lot of the time. Then size, weight and battery might come in to play. But it won't matter much how powerful it is. For e.g. a $500 phone is powerful enough to do what you want.
So I'd wait a few weeks and then set up an alert for laptop deals, then engage in the comments section about suitability for your specific needs if you can wait that long.