Question Advice on buying new laptop

[ZZNical]

Hello everyone,
I am thinking of buying a new personal laptop.
Right now I own an Asus X75VD and a Lenovo Thinkpad X230 refurbished.
I use the latter for professional purposes and I want to replace the former.
I would prefer for the budget to stay under 500/600euros. I am living in France and in the UK if this matter.
I don't mind for it to be refurbished and I also don't mind making some few adjustments (e.g. upgrade the RAM).

1. What is your budget? <500/600€

2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering? At least 15", 17" preferred

3. What screen resolution do you want? Enough to watch movies in HD

4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop? Desktop replacement laptop (I am not going for a desktop since I am moving home every other year but I don't need to move it often)

5. How much battery life do you need? Doesn't matter

6. Do you want to play games with your laptop? If so then please list the games that you want to with the settings that you want for these games: I would like to play game. Mainly old ones that does not requires much (monkey island, broken sword, fallout...) but also some more recent Fallout 3/New Vegas, Skyrim, the Witcher... Then if I can play even more recent ones it would be better.

7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.) Watching movie/streaming.

8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need? 512Go I would say.

9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links. No

10. How long do you want to keep your laptop? A few years at least

11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc? DVD would be nice, Bluray would be even better

12. Please tell us about the brands that you prefer to buy from them and the brands that you don't like and explain the reasons: I am happy of the recent refurbished Thinkpad I bought, so maybe a Lenovo. But really I am open to any suggestions.

13. What country do you live in? France and UK

14: Other: As I said before I don't mind making some upgrades and I don't mind if the laptop is refurbished.

Thanks for any advice you will be able to provide.

 

[OhGod]

I believe that the reason no has replied as of yet is that your question is much too broad. We all want that "perfect" system, especially at the price you want to pay. Unfortunately, unless you're really lucky (and actually, you CAN be), it is difficult for anyone to specifically name what you're looking for.

The laptops I run now are amazing, but I've kissed a lot of frogs to find these princes. That said, you're on the right path. (In my opinion). ASUS and Lenovo are my FAVORITES. I won't even look at a Dell or HP, mostly because I work with Dells at my office and maybe I'm just burned out on them. I've always wanted an Alienware, and actually lost one at an unbelievable price to a "glitch" with my account on Paypal (/eBay). I was livid. It was a new listing, and it was swept up by someone else between the time I tried to Buy it Now, my payment methods all being rejected, and having to log into PayPal to prove it was me. The one and only Acer I've had was not impressive. I think though that it had to do more with the specs than anything else, but the fact that they FILL their systems up with unneeded BLOATWARE is a huge turnoff. My husband ran an MSI until a while back and gave it to me and I can't say that I love or hate it. I was expecting it to rival the ASUS, but in my opinion I still like the ASUS a bit more. I used to run a bunch of Adobe products/programs on the MSI and now moved a few of my licensing seat over to the ASUS and I'm happy so far. But, we were talking about you, not me.

In terms of what you are looking for, they're out there. Used/pre-owned/refurbished 32GB RAM with 1TB HDD and different size SSDs are popping up fairly often, at the price you are looking at, or lower. But again, you have to look, be patient and snatch it up when you find it. 2TB HDDs with a combination of SSD sizes are, of course, a little higher. Video cards matter too, and always, always, keeping your drivers updated.

As for longevity, I personally think a system can last FOREVER. (KNOCK on wood and pray). I put mine through A LOT - and I have (that I can recall), NEVER had one just up and fail. It has always been something like my puppy spilling coffee on one, me spilling mineral water on another, an ex-boyfriend throwing one across the fence into the street, etc. I have given quite a few away too and I'm pretty certain they went on to long lives after that. Not sure if it is a matter of luck or manufacturer or maintenance, but suspect it is a combination of the three.

Good luck.

 

[ZZNical]

Thank you so much for the reply. I agree that my request may have been a little too broad but the idea was also to get some advice on what to favor and to know what was possible in my budget.
For example is it better to buy a new laptop at full price, buy a new laptop and upgrade it, buy a refurbished laptop? Any advice on website where I can find the latter (I bought my thinkpad on Amazon)?
In any case, I will follow your advice and keep an eye open for good opportunities.

 

[OhGod]

is it better to buy a new laptop at full price, buy a new laptop and upgrade it, buy a refurbished laptop? Any advice on website where I can find the latter (I bought my thinkpad on Amazon)?
In any case, I will follow your advice and keep an eye open for good opportunities.

I understand you completely. It really depends on you, however. For example, I refuse to buy a brand new vehicle off the lot. I favor higher-end, high-performance used and sometimes even classic cars. To me, not only are they (much like laptops - depending on the model and make you're into - ) road-proven, but gorgeous head-turners as well. My best friend however, no matter how many times I extol the virtues of buying "my way" will not buy a used vehicle. What a snob! The way I see it, for less than what you would spend on a new system, you can purchase something with the same specs which has a proven track record as per reviewers, etc. You can THEN turn around and sell it when you are ready to move on, without losing that large sum that comes off the top immediately after the purchase of a new item (instant depreciation). While others may see it differently and can list what is great about buying 'new', I favor used. That again goes to my first response to you, though. Not every used system is great, so use a marketplace that GUARANTEES easy returns just in case. You do find gems.

 

[OhGod]

Any advice on website where I can find the latter (I bought my thinkpad on Amazon)?
In any case, I will follow your advice and keep an eye open for good opportunities.

Oh, and not sure if one is allowed to say, but I use eBay. Trust me, I have a love/hate relationship with them and would not recommend them easily if I were not being honest. My worst experiences with them have been on phones, but they made returning them easy. Or, kind of. The last phone I purchased and which I have been using for almost a year now is a $1k+ iPhone which I purchased for LESS than $500. The problem is that I used a coupon from a previous bad phone purchase which then expired, and I could not return this phone. I needed to return it because although the seller said it was unlocked to the network I needed, it wasn't. It was still financially locked so I had to open an account with that service provider for three months at TRIPLE the cost of what I normally paid with my provider before they could unlock it. As such, it wound up costing me around $100 more. All in all, it was worth it, except for how much time I spent on sorting it all out. With laptops however, I've easily returned a couple and have gotten super lucky more than once. I wish I could say it was because I looked for sellers with high ratings, etc., but really, I think it's just luck and first and foremost KNOWING what you want. For me, it is Lenovo, ASUS and Alienware (which I hope to get soon). Then, KNOW what specs you want. 32GB RAM with at LEAST a 1TB HDD and an SSD (256+) does it for me. Leave a little wiggle room in how much you're willing to pay - but not much. Say $600 and NOT A CENT MORE, but don't lose something great if it is $624 (if that makes sense ). Then again, don't say $600 and then fall in love with the first listing you see that gets your pulse racing at $700. There WILL be more listed - just stay vigilant. Along the same lines, use the "Make Offer" listings and don't be afraid to make a low offer. Some people will not respond if it is too low, but you might just get a deal. Always choose the offer option that expires soonest because it is a commitment if the seller agrees to your offer and you don't want to be tied to it or give them the power to tie you down by not knowing, for any longer than you have to be.