Solved! Which laptop should I buy for word processing/Excel Spreadsheets?

[Juju Goes]

Nurse working from home-I have a list of specs from IT folks at the company I just got hired for but I am not familiar with many of the tech terms. I need at least i5, preferably more recent generation, preferably 16 GB RAM, Microsoft OS (no Macs whatsoever), 1.6 GHz or faster, 2 core but pref 2GHz. Hard disk-SSD of 256 GB or more. 1280X768 resolution and would need an additional monitor, preferably one that can swivel to portrait mode? Most confused by Graphics--need DirectX9 or later with WDDM 2.0 or higher for Windows 10. 128 MBgraphics memory and 32 bit per pixel capable format. Also confused esp by .NET version--I need 4.6 or higher for Microsoft Teams which we will use extensively. I am throwing myself on your mercy because I know how very irritating posts from complete newbs must be! I have a Lenovo ThinkPad T460 with docking station and 2 large monitors already set up for my full time day job (also a nurse, work from home position but need multiple browsers open--I keep the laptop closed on the docking station and just use an external keyboard and the 2 big monitors). The only other thing I'd be doing with this new laptop would be checking my email, maybe watching a youtube video occasionally and checking Facebook (the only social media I use). I do some online shopping, mostly Chewy and Amazon as well. So I don't really need a super powerful laptop-not a gamer and don't use all the functionality available. But I will need to have a very good antiviral program installed also and I have to get Windows latest version. I thank you in advance for any suggestions for laptop, antivirus and monitor. I plan to take your suggestions to Amazon to purchase what is needed and again--thank you all in advance! I plan to learn how to use Excel on University of YouTube (hey, it got me through my stats class when I went back for my bachelor's degree). Please, if I've offended anyone or somehow traipsed in with a violation of conduct or something, I ask your forgiveness and forbearance and if you must slap, please do so gently! Thank you again.
Judy

 

[hang-the-9]

Nurse working from home-I have a list of specs from IT folks at the company I just got hired for but I am not familiar with many of the tech terms. I need at least i5, preferably more recent generation, preferably 16 GB RAM, Microsoft OS (no Macs whatsoever), 1.6 GHz or faster, 2 core but pref 2GHz. Hard disk-SSD of 256 GB or more. 1280X768 resolution and would need an additional monitor, preferably one that can swivel to portrait mode? Most confused by Graphics--need DirectX9 or later with WDDM 2.0 or higher for Windows 10. 128 MBgraphics memory and 32 bit per pixel capable format. Also confused esp by .NET version--I need 4.6 or higher for Microsoft Teams which we will use extensively. I am throwing myself on your mercy because I know how very irritating posts from complete newbs must be! I have a Lenovo ThinkPad T460 with docking station and 2 large monitors already set up for my full time day job (also a nurse, work from home position but need multiple browsers open--I keep the laptop closed on the docking station and just use an external keyboard and the 2 big monitors). The only other thing I'd be doing with this new laptop would be checking my email, maybe watching a youtube video occasionally and checking Facebook (the only social media I use). I do some online shopping, mostly Chewy and Amazon as well. So I don't really need a super powerful laptop-not a gamer and don't use all the functionality available. But I will need to have a very good antiviral program installed also and I have to get Windows latest version. I thank you in advance for any suggestions for laptop, antivirus and monitor. I plan to take your suggestions to Amazon to purchase what is needed and again--thank you all in advance! I plan to learn how to use Excel on University of YouTube (hey, it got me through my stats class when I went back for my bachelor's degree). Please, if I've offended anyone or somehow traipsed in with a violation of conduct or something, I ask your forgiveness and forbearance and if you must slap, please do so gently! Thank you again.
Judy

Don't worry about graphics or .NET version, .NET you would install yourself or it may get installed during the Teams setup and any modern system has all the video support you need.

I suggest against a 768 screen, get a 1080 one.

This Lenovo is good for home use for basic tasks and is plenty fast to handle video calls https://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-IdeaP...jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

 

[Juju Goes]

Thank you so much, Hang-the-9! I love the lower price of this laptop for sure but I was so confused by the specs their IT guy gave me. I mean, from what I understand, we'll be having to read case files and write narrative reports along with reading and probably creating Excel spreadsheets. They said preferably 16GB RAM--this one has only 8. They suggested i5 or higher but this is AMD Ryzen? I'm not sure what those differences are and my google search yielded tech speak I don't understand. It seems like they wanted me using Intel instead? and at least 256 GB SSD. I guess they want me using 2 monitors because that's what they do in the office but this is a remote job from home and I know another nurse doing the same job on her HP (unsure of her specs) and said she has done fine without another monitor. This is a side job, so I'm not wanting to break the bank for it--I already have a Toshiba Chromebook that's a few yrs old and has performed very well for what I need and I didn't have to load any antivirus or anything--I click all over the place and have never had a virus. But they want us on Windows OS which means I guess I have to buy at least Windows 10? And need Office 365? I'll have to figure out where to buy them from and I have no clue as to which antiviral program is the best. Meanwhile, I have an old Mac Lion desktop that's obsolete--several years old. Do you think that can be sold? I mean, would anyone even buy it? It's in great shape, just old. So I realize these are questions within questions, but I appreciate you so much for responding and helping me! I do know I want 1920X1080 resolution for sure. Thanks!~
Judy

 

[hang-the-9]

Thank you so much, Hang-the-9! I love the lower price of this laptop for sure but I was so confused by the specs their IT guy gave me. I mean, from what I understand, we'll be having to read case files and write narrative reports along with reading and probably creating Excel spreadsheets. They said preferably 16GB RAM--this one has only 8. They suggested i5 or higher but this is AMD Ryzen? I'm not sure what those differences are and my google search yielded tech speak I don't understand. It seems like they wanted me using Intel instead? and at least 256 GB SSD. I guess they want me using 2 monitors because that's what they do in the office but this is a remote job from home and I know another nurse doing the same job on her HP (unsure of her specs) and said she has done fine without another monitor. This is a side job, so I'm not wanting to break the bank for it--I already have a Toshiba Chromebook that's a few yrs old and has performed very well for what I need and I didn't have to load any antivirus or anything--I click all over the place and have never had a virus. But they want us on Windows OS which means I guess I have to buy at least Windows 10? And need Office 365? I'll have to figure out where to buy them from and I have no clue as to which antiviral program is the best. Meanwhile, I have an old Mac Lion desktop that's obsolete--several years old. Do you think that can be sold? I mean, would anyone even buy it? It's in great shape, just old. So I realize these are questions within questions, but I appreciate you so much for responding and helping me! I do know I want 1920X1080 resolution for sure. Thanks!~
Judy

Unless you are opening several very large Excel files at the same time (in the hundreds of MB range or more), 8 gb is fine, the Ryzen CPU is comparable to the i5 in speed.

You can still use dual screens, the laptop one and the other monitor over HDMI even without a docking station.

Check ebay and local sites like craigslist for prices for your old Mac, a lot of them still sell decently, depends on the exact model and specs.