Sub £400 laptop

[DanielJames]

My grandad phoned me, wanting to buy a brand new laptop, sub £400 for my grans (70th :| ) Birthday.

So all she will be using it for is Facebook and Farmville.

So far I've found this acer:
http://www.ebuyer.com/271895-acer-aspire-5733-laptop-lx-rn502-020

I'm a little sceptical about Acer Reliability but at this price range I think they will all be about the same.

Only other problem with that is I don't think it's "SandyBridge" processor which I guess I may as well get, I presume that i3 in the Acer is an original i3?

I can get a Fujitsu here: http://www.ebuyer.com/285944-fujitsu-ah531-laptop-vfy-ah531mrsc2gb with a SandyBridge, but that gloss design looks awful.

There is also an Asus at this price range which I prefer but I don't think she does.


Thoughts? Input?

Just off to have a look on the Dell website now.

 

[Gareth]

Lenovos ( IBM ) are bomb-proof I've yet to see one with a failure, whether you can get one with a comparable spec I doubt.

 

[sbridgey]

Have to agree with the above comment, if i didn't buy a mac i would have almost certainly bought a lenovo.

 

[Nickson]

Lenovos ( IBM ) are bomb-proof I've yet to see one with a failure, whether you can get one with a comparable spec I doubt.

I managed to kill my old x61

But I have to agree!

Reliability and build quality are second to none!

 

[Revels]

If that's all she's going to use it for, get an iPad.

 

[DanielJames]

Lenovo, we have a ton of old R60e's at work and to be honest yes they refuse to die. Build quality is a bit shite but most things are at this budget you could say!

iPad, really? What makes you say that Revels?

 

[shanedavison28]

I have a simlilar acer to that but with slightly lower specs but I did get mine about 2 years ago.

For the specs that seems a good price. I'd go for the acer.

My battery has started to run low quite quickly when not plugged in recently but it is 2 years old now.

 

[.Adam.]

Agree with Revels, much more user friendly and cheaper.

Can get Facebook and Farmville apps.

 

[DanielJames]

Might mention the iPad tonight then, I doubt that's what she'll want to go for (quite stubborn)

 

[Revels]

iPad, really? What makes you say that Revels?

It's under budget. It's battery is great. It's light. It's very easy to use. There's facebook and farmville apps.

You don't need a computer to sync with. It'll work out the box and backup anything to iCloud.

I think if you take her to a shop and she uses an iPad, she'll change her mind.

 

[sbridgey]

for older people ipads are brilliant, so easy to use no faffing with antivirus software etc.

just connect to wifi and charge occasionaly

 

[.Adam.]

Your gran is hardcore being on FB and playing Farmville at 70 years of age LOL!

 

[DanielJames]

It's under budget. It's battery is great. It's light. It's very easy to use. There's facebook and farmville apps.

You don't need a computer to sync with. It'll work out the box and backup anything to iCloud.

I think if you take her to a shop and she uses an iPad, she'll change her mind.

It's a good idea, I'll fill her in.

 

[DanielJames]

Your gran is hardcore being on FB and playing Farmville at 70 years of age LOL!

lol, she puts a good 6-8 hours a day into farmville, everyday :|

 

[.Adam.]

PMSL! Amazing.

 

[Ronnie R]

I'd say iPad.

My mum has one, she's not technical what so ever yet she's becoming a pro!

 

[DanielJames]

Just phoned her, she has arthritis and a touchpad is hard enough to use never mind a touchscreen phone (I remember we bought her one last christmas and had to give it to someone else)

So iPad is out the window, shame really as I would've liked to use it.

 

[James28]

Your gran is hardcore being on FB and playing Farmville at 70 years of age LOL!

LOL, exactly what I was thinking when I read the OP!
What a hero!

 

[DanielJames]

I'll let her know

Had to delete her off my Facebook though, shes one of the types that shares everything, so you get 100's of farmville things on everyday (due to her being on it non-stop) and when people put them daft statuses up like "PLEASE SHARE OR FACEBOOK WILL START TO COST £20 A MONTH" she shares it so many times haha.

thanks for all the help.

I've narrowed it down to that Acer for value, an Asus for the reliability, and a Dell for the build quality.

 

[.Adam.]

My whole family have Dell and have never put a foot wrong.

I had an Acer beforehand which lasted me well, I wouldn't have a problem buying another.

 

[Gouldy]

I've had a Toshiba for years, I'd recommend one tbh. Mine hasn't put a foot wrong in the 4 years I have had it, it's around your price range too.

 

[Ronnie R]

Just phoned her, she has arthritis and a touchpad is hard enough to use never mind a touchscreen phone (I remember we bought her one last christmas and had to give it to someone else)

So iPad is out the window, shame really as I would've liked to use it.

I think you should get her to try one... surely a iPad is less strange on your hands than a laptop keyboard/mouse...?

 

[Martin_172]

Lenovo all the way, my daily machine i use on the move/at work etc is a little 12.5" Thinkpad X220 with an i7 2.7GHz and 8GB of ram, i only use it for web etc but went overkill lol

my sister is a disaster brakes everything so bought her an old 2nd hand Thinkpad T41, stuck a few upgrades in it and shes not managed to kill it yet in over a year!