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I am on a tight budget, have had a Laptop for the past 7 years which is on its last legs.
I am considering getting either a Laptop or Chromebook.
I
Here are my needs:
Must Have:
1. Decent speed for web browsing and writing emails, watching youtube webinars
2. Easy Access to Word and works well with word, since I plan to do some very very heavy writing.
3. Decently works with powerpoint and Excel since I get the very couple times a year ocasional freelance consulting assignment that uses these programs.
4. Some basic video editing software since I plan to do a few youtube interview videos.
5. Decent speed for filing out online job applications since I am trying to change careers.
6. Not to expensive
Nice to have:
1. Lightweight, since I may take it to networking meetings and to relatives on the other coast where I may have new career opportunities.
2. Decently sized keys.
3. Decent boot up speed. I don't want to have to when I am going over my resume and web presence with a networking contact at Starbucks to look slow and unprofessional when my laptop takes 4 minutes to boot up and another 3 minutes till my emails and docs show up.
Unimportant:
1. Ability to use heavy enterprise software.
2. Coding. Unlikely to change my career to programing.
3. Gaming capacity. I am a ultra retro gamer whose gaming is restricted to things like Chessmaster 2000 or Dragon Quest One on my smartphone, so I make do with much weaker gaming capacities then what many users call gaming.
To summarize, I need something that is good for basic web browsing, heavy writing, and all the stuff that is involved in looking for a better job: editing resumes, networking emails, etc.
My questions are:
1. Should I get a Chromebook or Laptop?
2. If so, what model of laptop is low cost, but meets my needs?
RE: Brand & OS: Your first decision is Apple vs Everything else.
That should be based on your previous experience with hardware and operating systems.
Choose one over the other if it has a strong advantage in supporting the software you wish to run.
You don't buy a tool, then look for a job, you let the job define which tools you should get and considering your previous experience with those tools. IE: This probably isn't the time to get your first Apple.
RE: Software: Office, video editing, etc. Since you will be providing these, your hardware choice should be based on their ability to support what you intend to load in them. Since it appears you want to use really-standard stuff, supported by pretty much all machines, this actually won't effect your hardware decision.
Form Factor: Size, shape, weight, keyboard size and layout - these are all subjective preferences. You'll not get a usable response from strangers. They (we) don't know what 'feels good' to you. You need to go into a retail store and lift a few, bang on a few keyboards, etc. Best Buy is good for this.
Running Speed: What you describe is well below the 'top-end' specifications, so any new laptop will suffice. Likewise ability to use Office components, browse, video edit.
Boot Up Speed: If this was extra important to you, then you should pay the extra to get a Solid State hard Drive (SSD). But that's expensive. Since it sounds like you'd need this only occasionally, then just plan on setting the computer beforehand to 'sleep' mode rather than 'off'. It will awaken in one or two seconds.
Cost: I'd look at the very top end units, then shop at the units that are two steps below. That typically is the mid-range for pricing and capabilities. Usually 1-2 years old models.
One suggestion: You mentioned video editing. That does tend to take resources (CPU speed and RAM capacity) that is greater than what an 'average, mid-level' computer has, and will probably take significant time to process. If this is something you intend to do often, or speed of editing is important, than you should invest in getting the above computer, but paying a bit more for a faster CPU, and more internal RAM. Also, reconsider getting the SSD.
Except he said inexpensive, which pretty much rules out Apple.
Video editing and cheap don't really go together though, so there's that. Other than that I'd just get a core i3 with 8gb of RAM and a decent screen (1920x1080 resolution). You can get that for $500 or so easily. For video editing you'd probably want to step up to a Core i7, 16 gigs of RAM, and a 1050 or 960m which would be more around $1,000.
Can we get a budget? Why do people not give a budget? Inexpensive to me is $650. I'm not wasting time trying to help you if you can't give a budget. A Chromebook is not going to work for your needs. Honestly, if you are looking for sub-$300, don't. You are asking a lot out of a "cheap laptop" with your requirements.
Last edited by Peregrine; 04-24-2017 at 09:02 AM..
Is $600 for an early 2015 i7 Mac Air with 256 Gb ssd expensive? I got this used deal at a Pawn Shop last year! If I bought it new at that time it would have been around $1400 after tax.
Peruse some pawn shops or craigslist for used deals. Then upgrade and fix laptops yourself.
Or sacrifice $$ and buy a good quality new laptop with a warranty.
Not knowing what your budget is nor the model of your old laptop .... but since you're on a tight budget, have you considered upgrading your laptop?
Rather than buying a Chromebook or a cheap laptop for $300 or so, clean up your old hard drive, then upgrade with a new SSD, add more RAM, and if you have money left over, maybe even replace the battery. That should speed up your old laptop. Then when you do get that job, ask your employer for a new HP Spectre or Macbook.
I "inherited" an old Dell Vostro 1520 (circa 2009, I think). I cleaned up the hard drive, then cloned 32-bit Windows 7 and Microsoft Office from the hard drive onto the replacement 500 GB SSD that I got on sale at Amazon ($149, I think). Did not upgrade RAM but kept it at the stock 3GB RAM. Then Dual-booted it with Ubuntu Studio LTS (for Video and Audio editing and Libreoffice). Secure erased the old 160 GB hard drive and sold it on Craigslist for $25.
Total cost = $149 for the 500 GB SSD and some personal time and labor. This almost 10-year old laptop is pretty fast! Both Windows and Linux sides.
Is $600 for an early 2015 i7 Mac Air with 256 Gb ssd expensive? I got this used deal at a Pawn Shop last year! If I bought it new at that time it would have been around $1400 after tax.
Not an awful price, but I think I did a bit better going with Windows: I got a brand new Windows laptop, i7, 8 GB Ram, 256 SSD, touch screen convertible laptop on sale for $650.
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