Laptop to replace my Desktop-PC and for studying

[asdewq99]

Hey all!

here are the "Buying a new Laptop"-Questions. Thank you so much for helping me out:

1. What is your budget?
about 800€/$/£ a little bit flexibel with that, but the cheaper the better.

2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
13"-14" I need to carry it around all day and 15" are to big for that (except the XPS 15 but thats too expensive..). So its more about the overall size and less about the screen size

3. What screen resolution do you want?
FullHD

4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
Desktop Replacement.
My current Desktop Pc has a i7 2600 with an Nvidia GTX 280 and 6 GB Ram. Would be nice if the performance will be about this, since I'm used to it. I don't need a graphics card though since I won't be gaming with the laptop.

5. How much battery life do you need?
Would be nice to last at about 4-5 hours with normal use (Word/Powerpoint/Programming/Internet) the more the better!

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. (Low,Medium or High)?
no, if so low would be enough for casual gaming

7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)?
General office use (Word/Excel/PowerPoint), Programming.
I want to keep my 2 screens, keyboard and mouse at home and plug them into the laptop when I'm home. So it needs to be capable to handle 2 extern screens (if that's possible?)

8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?
at least 200GB, should be SSD

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?
Would be nice, if it would last a few years, maybe 3 to 4 years.

11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
nothing

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 don't care about the brand as long as its a solid choice. Lenovo has some pretty nice offers for students, so this is probably the best choice.

13. What country do you live in?
Germany

14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.
I don't need an OS preinstalled.

With my own research a came to the conclusion that the ThinkPads would be the best choice. But there are 3 different version to consider for me (E, L and T) and I'm not sure if I should go for the performace (E version) or the durability (T version) (all for about the same price).

So the Laptops I can't decide are:

898€ Lenovo ThinkPad T460 - Intel Core i5-6200U Dual-Core (2.3 - 2.8 GHz, 3 MB Cache) - 8 GB RAM - 256 GB SSD (OPAL 2.0) - 14.0" Full-HD IPS (1920 x 1080) - Intel HD 520

719€ Lenovo ThinkPad L460 - Intel Core i5-6200U Dual-Core (2.3 - 2.8 GHz) - 8 GB RAM - 256 GB SSD - 14.0" Full-HD IPS (1920 x 1080) - Intel HD 520

679€ Lenovo ThinkPad E470 - Intel Core i5-7200U Dual-Core (2.5 - 3.1 GHz) - 8 GB RAM - 256 GB SSD - 14.0" Full-HD IPS (1920 x 1080) - NVIDIA GeForce 940MX


The E470 is far cheaper (there is even an i7, 16Gb Ram version for 799€!) and even has a dedicated graphics card. Are the extra costs for the L or the T version worth it (keep in mind, that I will be carrying this laptop with me everyday, so it should be very durable!)? If so, which should I choose? Each of these should have the option of a Lenovo Docking station (only the L and T version can be used with the non-cable dock), so i can connect the 2 screens.

Would it be better to go for a older ThinkPad like the T440p with a quad core cpu (which seems to be availiby for maybe 700€ used or as refurbished)?

Are there any other laptops to consider?


I'm very grateful for every hint in the right direction!
Thank you!

 

[GreyCatz]

It 's funny, even before I reached the end of your post I thought to myself: ThinkPad. And there you are!

I'm not really going to offer a conclusive answer, but here are a few things to consider about ThinkPads today.

Just like all other mainstream brands, ThinkPads are also "segmented", meaning there can be considerable differences in build quality and upgradability between low-tier models (E and L series) and upper-tier models (T and P series). Low-tier ThinkPads aren't crappy, but they're certainly not better than their rivals, either - just more expensive! T series models generally offer a better balance between price and build quality/solidity, although that price is still fairly steep.

Personally, I think the T460 on your list is a very hot candidate, but do solicit some more opinions.

Cheers,
GreyCatz.

 

[asdewq99]

It 's funny, even before I reached the end of your post I thought to myself: ThinkPad. And there you are!

I'm not really going to offer a conclusive answer, but here are a few things to consider about ThinkPads today.

Just like all other mainstream brands, ThinkPads are also "segmented", meaning there can be considerable differences in build quality and upgradability between low-tier models (E and L series) and upper-tier models (T and P series). Low-tier ThinkPads aren't crappy, but they're certainly not better than their rivals, either - just more expensive! T series models generally offer a better balance between price and build quality/solidity, although that price is still fairly steep.

Personally, I think the T460 on your list is a very hot candidate, but do solicit some more opinions.

Cheers,
GreyCatz.

thank you for your input!
After some more google-ing I'm pretty sure I want a ThinkPad T Version, just not sure if I want to pay the price for them... but that's another problem.
If anyone has some negative sides of the T version or a much cheaper alternative just let me know.
Thanks!