If anyones got a suggestion for a good desktop, I'd be grateful. I've got an acer at the moment, and it's got a problem with elock management, which won't let me access the dvd drive.
[cite]Posted By: bingaddick[/cite]I've just got a second hand Dell Latitude D410 for £155 squids incl delivery. Bloody brilliant it is with XP not that sh*te Vista. Goes like sh*t off a shovel. No DVD drive but no problems as I have a USB one already. Very lightweight and just what I want for everyday use.
Right !!!
Sorry, didn't understand a word of that !
;-)
Sorry, I recently purchased a small (14") Screen Laptop made by Dell called the Latitude D410 for £155. The operating system (Windows) is the previous popular version known as WIndows XP rather than the oft criticised, largely ignored and soon to be replaced, Windows Vista.
Because the Laptop is very thin and light, thus small, there is no room for a built in DVD drive which can be used to install software and play games and DVD films. This is not a problem for me for a number of reasons,
1. I don't want it loaded up with too much software because I mainly need it for surfing the net and sending and receiving E mails
2. I don't want to play games on it
3. I have an external DVD drive which attaches to the Laptop by a USB cable, so I can watch films or install software if I need to.
Does this help?
By the way, beware the "free broadband" internet deals. If you want a decent package I really recommend you look at the Utility Warehouse link. In addition to the "best buy" bundles, if you take four of their services you get free calls to UK landlines 24/7, you can take out their Cashback "prepaid debit card" which for a quid or so a month, can save you 5% on all purchases made at Sainsburys, Boots, Argos, Comet, Debenhams, and about 20 or so other high street stores. I am saving somewhere between £20 and £30 per month on average. That could pay for your broadband!
Paul - in terms of the Broadband, the speed you can get is largely determined by how far you live from your telephone exchange. Unless you are paying over the top for "super-fast" broadband (that you probably don't need), they will all be much of a muchness in terms of performance (laws of physics). The price you pay and how easy they are to deal with is probably most important. "Free" isn't usually free - they make their money up elsewhere. Depending on how much you spend per month on your BT landline, it might be cheaper for you to get them to change it out for Broadband and take a fixed price for calls. The other thing to bear in mind is that changing services is a nightmare. They all drag their feet and mess you around and the Customer Service from all of them is poor. You will need to take deep breaths and be ready to persevere. The other thing to consider is getting a broadband connection via a USB dongle (like a memory stick). If you get the right package it will give you internet access outside of the home as well - just depends on how useful that might be. I wouldn't normally recommend talking to the egits at PC World, but if you can resist the hard-sell, you would get some reasonable advice on this. If you still have a choice on the laptop, it's worth considering a "netbook." They are the smaller, thinner versions and, as Bing says, usually come without built-in disc drives etc. They are a bit cheaper and are that bit more comfortable to use on your lap. I much prefer mine to my laptop.
One thing to bear in mind with netbooks is the size of the keyboard and monitor. I've got quite small hands, so I don't find typing much of a problem on my Eee ('s a type of netbook, for the technologically confused) but my dad has what are affectionately known as "pork sausage fingers", so he finds it a nightmare. With the smaller screens you sometimes find that web and software designers have made unwarranted assumptions about screen sizes, so you occasionally get dialogue boxes that have the bit you need to click about an inch below the bottom of your screen. It's worth going to PC World or similar to get a feel for whether they suit your needs, even if you end up actually getting a better price online.
I have Virgin broadband, which has been good, better than Telewest! Point is they are desperate to get punters as Sky have some excellent offers at the moment. You may find you can get Setanta at a very low cost, which is useful for saturday evening footie. Sony Vaio is an excellent laptop.
i'm on my second Sony, apart from the case is it really any better than a Dell or an Acer?
The next one I get I will have to pay for myself. It wont be anything as dear as a Sony.
Right.
Thanks again y'all for the advice.
Pretty certain we/they're going for a Toshiba with SkyBroadband.
Anyone out there got the same combination ?
And, which SkyBroadband (there are 4 apparently) do I need ?
sky package is a good deal if you must be with sky, sky talk as well phone thing - there customer service leaves a lot to be desired tho. Think you need to have a BT landline though, and negotiate contract lengths etc, and get everything in writing before agreeing.
What sort of downloading are you likely to do? If your just surfing and emailing you can get away with a fairly low monthly limit say 3 or 4 Gb. If your doing a lot (lots of music and film downloads), you'd be better to go for a high limit or and unlimted package. Is your exchange LLU enabled? If it is you can usually get more bandwidth for less money.
They design it so that Millwall season ticket holders can get it going within an hour, three phone calls to the helpline and a whack with a spanner, so you should have no problem.
Errrrm BDL...knowing P as I do that won't be too difficult....I know a tad more about pooters than him but between the two of us we could put our entire knowledge on a postage stamp.....I know how he feels!
Comments
Sorry, I recently purchased a small (14") Screen Laptop made by Dell called the Latitude D410 for £155. The operating system (Windows) is the previous popular version known as WIndows XP rather than the oft criticised, largely ignored and soon to be replaced, Windows Vista.
Because the Laptop is very thin and light, thus small, there is no room for a built in DVD drive which can be used to install software and play games and DVD films. This is not a problem for me for a number of reasons,
1. I don't want it loaded up with too much software because I mainly need it for surfing the net and sending and receiving E mails
2. I don't want to play games on it
3. I have an external DVD drive which attaches to the Laptop by a USB cable, so I can watch films or install software if I need to.
Does this help?
By the way, beware the "free broadband" internet deals. If you want a decent package I really recommend you look at the Utility Warehouse link. In addition to the "best buy" bundles, if you take four of their services you get free calls to UK landlines 24/7, you can take out their Cashback "prepaid debit card" which for a quid or so a month, can save you 5% on all purchases made at Sainsburys, Boots, Argos, Comet, Debenhams, and about 20 or so other high street stores. I am saving somewhere between £20 and £30 per month on average. That could pay for your broadband!
That actually makes some sense to me.
P.
Sony Vaio is an excellent laptop.
The next one I get I will have to pay for myself. It wont be anything as dear as a Sony.
Thanks again y'all for the advice.
Pretty certain we/they're going for a Toshiba with SkyBroadband.
Anyone out there got the same combination ?
And, which SkyBroadband (there are 4 apparently) do I need ?
Just brought one of these
Check out LLU availablity Link
To see whether it's available for your exchange.
Thanks again all.
Think we're going for a Toshiba / SkyBroadband.
Now, which printer..............
One with Ink ??
Do you really need a printer?
Prob crap but its only a tenner.
;-)
Once again, thanks again for your help.
Final got one yesterday;
"Acer Extensa EX5230E" and gone with the 8-16 SkyBroadBand (though they can't switch that on til May 6th !?!).
Cheers y'all.
Just had abit of a panic,
Ordered Broadband from Sky; Didn't say I've got a laptop.
Does this matter- are there 2 different "modems" ?
Finally got around to setting up my new sky internet pack and laptop last night moggy.
Piece of pish mate.got the base pack and it's working fine for me mate.
Ahhh, you don't know me and electronics !!!
;-)
P...don't forget you'll need to get a dongle............................................. I think!
LOL!!!
http://snipurl.com/h43na