Should I buy this, are there any better out there? (UK)

[Kusky]

I was originally buying a laptop for the CPU only, so was looking for i7 7th gen or i5 8th gen. But I came across a laptop with an i7 and a 950m for only £680. Plus it doesn’t look like a crazy gaming laptop which is big plus. I’ve looked around and most are higher priced than this, so I’m just double checking on here if people know of any cheaper priced ones in the U.K that are similar specced.

https/www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-pavilion-power-15-bc350sa-15-6-gaming-laptop-black-10169248-pdt.html

 

[jaslion]

I was originally buying a laptop for the CPU only, so was looking for i7 7th gen or i5 8th gen. But I came across a laptop with an i7 and a 950m for only £680. Plus it doesn’t look like a crazy gaming laptop which is big plus. I’ve looked around and most are higher priced than this, so I’m just double checking on here if people know of any cheaper priced ones in the U.K that are similar specced.

https/www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-pavilion-power-15-bc350sa-15-6-gaming-laptop-black-10169248-pdt.html

What does it need to do?

 

[GreyCatz]

As indicated by jaslion we're going to need some more information from you, e.g.:

- Purpose,
- Screen size,
- Budget.

As it is I'd say you're looking for a capable multi-tasker - not at an all-out gaming rig. Your HP is down £220 so it's very difficult to find "apples-to-apples" rivals. It is also a bit odd featuring a 4GB GPU but running a dual-core CPU. With battery life listed at around 11 hours, it offers all the benefits of a capable and stylish multi-tasker. I made a quick run-down of John Lewis, saveonlaptops, and Amazon UK and couldn't find any laptop that matched your £680 HP.

But let's assume your budget is somewhere between £700 and £1,000.

1. If you're serious about gaming (Tomb Raider, Metal Gear Solid V, GTA V and similar AAA titles), John Lewis have this Lenovo Legion Y520, priced at £1,000:
https/www.johnlewis.com/lenovo-legion-y520-laptop-intel-core-i7-8gb-ram-1tb-hdd-128ssd-nvidia-gtx1050-15-6-full-hd-black/p3260960

You get a nice 2K IPS panel, a quad-core i7-7700HQ CPU and a 4GB GTX1050 GPU. This is slated as a gaming laptop and battery life is a virtually symbolic 4 hours (and even that may be overly optimistic). But you will be able to play most of the sophisticated gaming titles currently on offer. Its gaming design is a far cry from the discreet-looking HP.

2. If you want a capable productivity machine, this ASUS from saveonlaptops is worth looking at:
https/www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/S510UQ-BQ204T-ASUS-Vivobook-S510UQ-BQ204T-in-Gold_2156766.html

A bit more 'in your face' but still a very stylish overall design. Same CPU as in the HP, but it comes with the smaller 2GB GTX940 card, which somehow makes more sense. It also offers a 256GB SSD instead of a (large) mechanical HDD. Battery life is marginally less than the HP's, but it is significantly lighter at 1.5kg.

There's nothing wrong with the HP in your link - in fact I'd say with its huge discount it's a bargain really. Just don't try any kind of heavy gaming on it.

Best of luck,
GreyCatz.