Durable and cheap recommendation?

[cormag778]

Hey everyone,

So I'm hunting for a new laptop, I know my specs decently, but money is tight (college kid) and I don't want to make a mistake.

Anyways, my current laptop is breaking because it wasn't very sturdy, the paneling started to chip and now the entire thing is falling apart (wear and tear from just carrying it around on my back constantly. I'm looking for some combination of this

-Some light gaming abilities. I'm not looking for much, but just to run some really easy games when I can (things like Panzer Corp or FTL) the regular Integrated Graphics card is fine. Not the biggest priority, but would like something I can do on the bus etc

-Durable, like I said, my current one is breaking apart at the seems and I haven't done too much to it (not to say I couldn't have treated it more gently, but I haven't dropped it or anything)

-Price range. I don't have a concrete one, but cheaper the better. Like I said, college kid who makes a little above minimum wage.

-decent battery and not being huge would be a plus. But isn't critical.

-If it's on Amazon, that would also be a huge plus, since this thing is gonna die soon.

I know these are all the big points that get repeated. So in short I'm looking for a good utilitarian laptop that runs all the generic college applications. Thanks!■


Old laptop was a Dell Inspiron 15 with an I5-4210 processor.
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[JQB45]

If you want durable look at the laptops offered by Lenovo. Since you have an i5-4210U I'd suggest looking for the i5-7200U or better in your next laptop. If you can find an H or HQ instead of a U model you would get better CPU performance, but at the expense of battery life. If you want so save a little more money then the 6000 series of intel processors while older will still offer very good performance.

In the past I have purchased refurbished laptops for cheap and have felt like I got good deals each time, since you're on a budget its something you should consider.

 

[cormag778]

Thanks for the advice,

If I may ask, what's the reasoning on the I5-7200? It seems like a big jump up. Also, wouldn't the I5 make the laptop a little loud considering the power vs size?

Last edit: Came across a lenovo that's pretty good. For the same price, I could either grab one with 12Gb of ram and an AMD A12-9700 processor, or 8gb and an Intel i5-7200.

I know the AMD is more powerful, but any idea on how tha would hurt the battery life?

Just curious, I'm trying to learn more.

 

[JQB45]

Your best point is to search for reviews of the two laptops you found. More then likely the i5 is more powerful, but the A12-9700 might have better graphics capability. You will have to research that as well.

8GB is enough for everyday use, and light gaming. I'd get the i5.

 

[hang-the-9]

Get a business class laptop, not something you would find at BestBuy with a cheap plastic shell.

Lenovo T models are very sturdy. Any of them will be fine for you. Price is higher than most other laptops but you won't be able to get solid construction without paying for it. Maybe get a good used T430s with a solid state drive, should be about $300 for a good example. Also do not carry your laptop in the same bag as books, even with padding you are going to be bending the case which will create stress fractures in components.