Replace battery or buy a new laptop?

[Mr Crackers]

Hey all,

My Sony Vaio (discontinued) is a little over 5 years old and I'm about to head off to university for engineering. The problem is that my battery charge lasts for about an hour (Everything else is still pretty speedy for a 5 year old laptop). The battery (VGP-BPS26) wasn't great in the first place, is nearly impossible to obtain, and if I were to try to, it would cost me nearly $100 CAD (From my research). I should add that these batteries have been recalled for many Vaio models, but not mine.

I have my eye on a deal for a higher end HP laptop which I could acquire for $750 CAD.

I don't have a lot of money to spend, and I'm wondering if anyone has any insight.

Thanks!

 

[hang-the-9]

If you don't have a lot of money to spend and the laptop is fine for your aside from the battery, clearly the battery is the best thing to get instead of a new laptop for over 7 times the cost.

 

[Prostar Computer]

Vaios are good machines, although buying a new system will give you a warranty and, consequently, a bit of peace of mind should anything fail while you're at university.

Your budget is the main thing, though. Maybe a good middle ground would be to buy a machine that's a bit cheaper + the battery for your Vaio, keeping your budget within $750 between the two and holding onto your Vaio as a backup system.

 

[budgy]

If you're using the heck out of the computer, especially in an engineering background, invest in a new fast computer. My sister went to University studying biomechanical engineering. She used her ancient MacBook for the first 3 years. She bought a new MacBook Pro on her 4th year of university and she said her life was so much better!!!