Need guidance buying a laptop

BryceSmith

Commendable
Jun 23, 2016
1
0
1,510
Hello! I've fallen into a horrible laptop researching hole and I feel that I've become too close to my problem, so I'm looking to you fine people to provide me with some amount of perspective.

My desktop PC finally started dying after years and years of use so, when I thought about getting a replacement, I realized a laptop might actually be better. The mobility of a laptop appeals to me, the freedom of movement and reduced clutter sounds great. In addition to that, my needs are not significant, I mostly write and browse the Internet, never do video editing or games, but I do want something snappy for what I do do. I should mention that I'm a writer so a decent keyboard is important to me but I don't necessarily need thinkpad levels of greatness.

All of this lead me in the direction of a 17 inch laptop, the upside of sreen size outweighed the downsides of less convenient portability. Since I would be mostly transporting it between desks I don't care about having a super sleek machine.

After spending a lot of time researching laptops, the HP probook 470 G3 came out a favorite. It's made for business so it's sturdy, it has a nice FHD display (if notebookcheck.com is to be believed) and it has an SSD option. Thorough maintenance hatches and a good keyboard also factored in. With the options I would get it would cost $1,030 which is about what my budget can handle. So, after this grand preamble my question; Did I screw up somewhere? If you were in my position would you get that laptop? Would you just get a desktop? Burn all your electronics and move to the wilderness? I'm curious to hear any and all perspectives. Also if anyone has experience with that laptop I would love to hear your thoughts because there are only a few reviews online.
Now for the form:



1. What is your budget?
Tops out around 1,000

2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
17 inch
3. What screen resolution do you want?
Full HD at least
4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
Desktop replacement
5. How much battery life do you need?
Upwards of 3 hours is fine
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 games
7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)
Potentially occasional photo editing but not a priority
8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?
Not a lot. Would like an SSD though
9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.
No preference
10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?
5 years
11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
No preference
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.
No preference
13. What country do you live in?
US
14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.