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New Laptop/PC- Help Needed

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MSCCG

MSCCG

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Posted
To be fair, the OP probably assumed it was common knowledge that there were multitudes of laptops on the market that are faster and cheaper than a Mac Book Air ? if weight / battery life are important, take a look at ultrabooks ... if it's performance, well, you have literally hundreds to choose from.

I went to look for a good comparison of ultrabook class computers and you're spot on.

http://www.ultrabookreview.com/177-ultrabooks-macbook-air-good-great/

It looks like the MacBook air is at least competitive in terms of price and specs so it does defy the common knowledge regarding Apple products, but you'll have more choices going for a windows ultrabook especially if you need a high resolution screen.

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MontyUK

MontyUK

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I went to look for a good comparison of ultrabook class computers and you're spot on.

http://www.ultrabookreview.com/177-ultrabooks-macbook-air-good-great/

It looks like the MacBook air is at least competitive in terms of price and specs so it does defy the common knowledge regarding Apple products, but you'll have more choices going for a windows ultrabook especially if you need a high resolution screen.

It doesn't really defy the common knowledge though does it ... only if size / weight is the most important factor can the MacBook really compete at all on price (I for one am strong enough to carry an extra half a pound or so around without issue). If you look at performance you'll find machine's for hundreds of pounds less that are at least on a par.

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Smurf

Smurf

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No, you've misunderstood how this works Eugene.

The 8Gb SSD will not be utilised as a separate drive ... it will be acting as the cache for the HDD in 'hybrid' mode. Think of it as one drive, but with better performance than a single standard HDD. General system performance will be improved, disk reads / writes etc, including loading / saving FM15 (but just not as quick as a full dedicated SSD).

In a situation where the main use of the laptop is to play FM15, it's likely that the game files / saves will be often be cached on the SSD, so the performance benefit should be noticeable (at least for loading / saving). The OS files will also likely be cached, so boot times should also be improved.

They give faster application open and shut down - under benchmarking they not perform at the same speed or faster than a normal SSD.

In short, it's faster than a HDD and slower than SSD - you get a slight improvement in application open and shutdown - that's about it.

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Smurf

Smurf

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That's the common wisdom among Windows users, but if it were that easy to find a better laptop (lighter, faster, better battery life) then surely you would have given a few examples? Otherwise I would have to assume that you are disagreeing out of principle. I'm not a Mac user, so I am keen to hear about laptops that are comparable to the MacBook Air but are cheaper.

There ya go

13.3" Glossy Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920 x 1080)

Intel® Core™i7 Dual Core Processor i7-4510U (2.00GHz, 3.1GHz Turbo)

8GB KINGSTON SODIMM DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 8GB)

480GB KINGSTON V300 SSD, SATA 6 Gb (450MB/R, 450MB/W)

USB Options

1 x USB 3.0 PORT + 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS AS STANDARD

€1,002.00

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MSCCG

MSCCG

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There ya go

13.3" Glossy Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920 x 1080)

Intel® Core™i7 Dual Core Processor i7-4510U (2.00GHz, 3.1GHz Turbo)

8GB KINGSTON SODIMM DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 8GB)

480GB KINGSTON V300 SSD, SATA 6 Gb (450MB/R, 450MB/W)

USB Options

1 x USB 3.0 PORT + 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS AS STANDARD

€1,002.00

Not that I dont believe you (that's a reasonable price) but can we get a link please? As you know, those were not the specs we are discussing in terms of ultrabook usage (otherwise you're being ripped off here). By the way, the MacBook air costs less than that depending on the configuration.

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MSCCG

MSCCG

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It doesn't really defy the common knowledge though does it ... only if size / weight is the most important factor can the MacBook really compete at all on price (I for one am strong enough to carry an extra half a pound or so around without issue). If you look at performance you'll find machine's for hundreds of pounds less that are at least on a par.

You'd be surprised at those extra couple of pounds. It's not just the weight though, it's also the thinness and battery life. Watching my brother slip it into his bag like it was a thin folder (without needing his charger, which is another thing that most laptops need) when he refused to carry his old laptop around every day (it was technically only slightly heavier) tells me that portability and battery life are much more important than people realise.

Of course, I'm a bit hypocritical here looking at the computer that I use, but I can't help but get the feeling that we as windows centric users are at least a little biased against Macs. That's ok, but recommending against them for the wrong reasons is misleading. Like how the user from the last page had to justify the cost of one without having even made the important comparisons.

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Smurf

Smurf

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Not that I dont believe you (that's a reasonable price) but can we get a link please? As you know, those were not the specs we are discussing in terms of ultrabook usage (otherwise you're being ripped off here). By the way, the MacBook air costs less than that depending on the configuration.

Build your own on PC Specialist.co.uk

I went a bit extreme. My price is in Euro not Pounds - the conversion would be £794.58

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Smurf

Smurf

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You'd be surprised at those extra couple of pounds. It's not just the weight though, it's also the thinness and battery life. Watching my brother slip it into his bag like it was a thin folder (without needing his charger, which is another thing that most laptops need) when he refused to carry his old laptop around every day (it was technically only slightly heavier) tells me that portability and battery life are much more important than people realise.

Of course, I'm a bit hypocritical here looking at the computer that I use, but I can't help but get the feeling that we as windows centric users are at least a little biased against Macs. That's ok, but recommending against them for the wrong reasons is misleading. Like how the user from the last page had to justify the cost of one without having even made the important comparisons.

Macs are great computers. And MacBook Airs are light and fluffy which is great.

If that suits you can you can afford one then get one.

But if weight is not an issue with the laptop, then I suggest investing that money you would put into a MacBook air into a decent ultrabook Windows laptop, might be a bit heavier, who knows - completely depends on the configuration, but if you stuck to the components just in the MacBook Air and put that into a laptop - it would be the exact same and cheaper to build.

If you're happy with Mac and want one get one.

If you're not happy with spending all that money on a Mac and want to get more for your money then build your own laptop from scratch.

Failing that - you can find a very decent computer online - they're off the shelf and there's great configurations and bargains out there.

The important thing that we do here is listen to what an OP wants and what they can afford.

It's only the very odd time I see anyone with a budget above £800 - which means they are buying under £800 (mostly the people here are on a budget of £600 or less!)

So it's important we find the best option we can for their price.

If often look at the computer they find online and add £50 to the budget and go looking for something that is a better spec than what they found.

90% of the time I find something which I consider to be better.

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Wizard boy

Wizard boy

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Looking for laptop for fm. I've seen this. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lenovo-Z50-70-15-6-inch-Notebook-Silver/dp/B00O8SDYJY/ref=sr_1_17?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1418405078&sr=1-17&keywords=laptops but because its ulv proccessor been told its not great. Budget is around 600. Wouldn't mind one with bigger screen but realise that will push the price up but if it was still under 700 I might consider it. Also one with separate graphics card so I can upgrade unless that can still with integrated ones.

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MSCCG

MSCCG

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Looking for laptop for fm. I've seen this. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lenovo-Z50-70-15-6-inch-Notebook-Silver/dp/B00O8SDYJY/ref=sr_1_17?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1418405078&sr=1-17&keywords=laptops but because its ulv proccessor been told its not great. Budget is around 600. Wouldn't mind one with bigger screen but realise that will push the price up but if it was still under 700 I might consider it. Also one with separate graphics card so I can upgrade unless that can still with integrated ones.

You could probably find one with a larger screen, but 15.6" with full HD display should be plenty. Else you could plug in a large monitor. It is unlikely that you can upgrade the graphics card on a laptop even if it is dedicated, simply because manufacturers do not tend to make graphics cards for laptops unless they are actually putting it into a laptop.

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Wizard boy

Wizard boy

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Someone has just found this. Doesn't look bad.http://go.redirectingat.com/?id=127X1068766&site=forums.digitalspy.co.uk&xs=1&isjs=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.johnlewis.com%2Flenovo-g710-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-ram-1tb-17-3-black%2Fp1741062&xguid=741297ce838c281e25f2532776ec8245&xcreo=0&xed=0&sref=http%3A%2F%2Fforums.digitalspy.co.uk%2Fshowthread.php%3Fp%3D76000289%23post76000289&pref=http%3A%2F%2Fforums.digitalspy.co.uk%2Fforumdisplay.php%3Ff%3D40&xtz=0

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jimski

jimski

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Posted
Ok this is more in your price range http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/NX.MG7EK.003-Acer-Aspire-E1-771_1558089.html

Granted it has 4gb RAM but it's a better processor.

You can buy an additional 4gb RAM (depending on the configuration - contact the computer company with model no. and they can tell you) and this will bring you up to 8gb RAM.

You may have to buy 2x4gb sticks but RAM is quite cheap.

Changing the RAM is simple, locate the diagrams of the computer on the internet, there's a screw under the laptop to remove the cover, and remove the RAM (rub your hands on radiator to remove any static electricity from your hands and don't wear your favourite wolly jumper!)

This will work fine for you - just need to upgrade the RAM.

Choice is yours of course.

Fantastic. Cheers for the advice - much appreciated!

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Lufaku

Lufaku

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Hi all

I've been reading this thread for a while, and I am looking to get a new laptop for FM15 mostly. I have an Acer Aspire at the moment and it really isn't great. Overheats far too quickly, and I usually only have 1 nation loaded on a large database (think it's 14,000 players).

On a new laptop, I've a budget of £400, but can stretch to £450 if need be.

Reading up, am I right in thinking in terms of processor, an AMD one is the worst of the bunch? (sorry, I'm not great with laptops:lol: )

I saw this linked a page or two back, and I don't think it looks bad but it is AMD? http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/59414955-Lenovo-G505s_1691531.html

Some others I have seen/bookmarked:

http://www.johnlewis.com/lenovo-g710-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-ram-1tb-17-3-black/p1741062 <- Lenovo G710

http://www.johnlewis.com/lenovo-g510-laptop-intel-core-i3-4gb-ram-500gb-15-6-black/p1745712?kpid=1745712&s_kenid=3eb23915-77cb-17c9-6397-000018c2f7be&s_kwcid=7x2963385&tmad=c&tmcampid=52 <- Lenovo G510

Any help would be really appreciated! Thanks.

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Smurf

Smurf

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Hi all

I've been reading this thread for a while, and I am looking to get a new laptop for FM15 mostly. I have an Acer Aspire at the moment and it really isn't great. Overheats far too quickly, and I usually only have 1 nation loaded on a large database (think it's 14,000 players).

On a new laptop, I've a budget of £400, but can stretch to £450 if need be.

Reading up, am I right in thinking in terms of processor, an AMD one is the worst of the bunch? (sorry, I'm not great with laptops:lol: )

I saw this linked a page or two back, and I don't think it looks bad but it is AMD? http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/59414955-Lenovo-G505s_1691531.html

Some others I have seen/bookmarked:

http://www.johnlewis.com/lenovo-g710-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-ram-1tb-17-3-black/p1741062 <- Lenovo G710

http://www.johnlewis.com/lenovo-g510-laptop-intel-core-i3-4gb-ram-500gb-15-6-black/p1745712?kpid=1745712&s_kenid=3eb23915-77cb-17c9-6397-000018c2f7be&s_kwcid=7x2963385&tmad=c&tmcampid=52 <- Lenovo G510

Any help would be really appreciated! Thanks.

The one I emboldened there is the best of the bunch of your links.

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MontyUK

MontyUK

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You'd be surprised at those extra couple of pounds. It's not just the weight though, it's also the thinness and battery life. Watching my brother slip it into his bag like it was a thin folder (without needing his charger, which is another thing that most laptops need) when he refused to carry his old laptop around every day (it was technically only slightly heavier) tells me that portability and battery life are much more important than people realise.

I wouldn't be surprised at the 'extra couple of pounds', because the difference in weight between is not even close to that ... Standard laptops do not generally weigh 4 pounds !

I say again ... if weight / thickness are the primary consideration, and money is no object. then a MacBook may well be a good choice. If you need to use specific apps that run on MacOS, then likewise. For performance / gaming / value for money, I'd personally look elsewhere.

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MontyUK

MontyUK

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I've ordered the lenovo 710. How many leagues would I be able to run on it?

As many as you like, with the obvious caveat that the more you add the slower the game will process stuff ... only you can decide what you find acceptable really. I occasionally play my game on my old Core 2 Duo laptop, circa 25 leagues ... it's 'slow', but fine for me for those times I want to sit on the sofa and watch TV etc. An i5 will be significantly quicker.

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Smurf

Smurf

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I've ordered the lenovo 710. How many leagues would I be able to run on it?
As many as you like

Yes - a very ambiguous question.

Also depends if you want a journeyman save or if you're just interested in doing 10 seasons and starting over again. Everyone plays differently, so it's a question of finding a balance for yourself.

If you're hoping to run 25 nations and 200 leagues then think again.

But if you run 5-7 nations and 60 leagues...

just an example.

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MontyUK

MontyUK

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Yes - a very ambiguous question.

Also depends if you want a journeyman save or if you're just interested in doing 10 seasons and starting over again. Everyone plays differently, so it's a question of finding a balance for yourself.

interesting Eugene, I'd never considered this ... does the game get 'slower' as you progress through multiple seasons then ? Due to increased numbers of players (more regens than retirements etc) ? If so I may have to stop playing on my old laptop at some point !! :)

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MontyUK

MontyUK

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If you want to continue your save on your better computer then you can by copying the file.

I'm cloud saving already in order to continue the same game on both machines, so no issue there ... thanks for the info on longer games though, I'd genuinely never given that any thought.

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kroshot

kroshot

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Posted

after my desktop went tits up,i`m now using the mrs laptop its a HP pavilion dv6500 notebook 2gb ram ,AMD athlon 64x2 duel core processor 1.8ghz ,32 bit operating system,nowv i only play the english leagues with players from top division clubs in europe and a large database giving me around 60k players do you think i could get a long term going with this set up i`m planning on being one club and playing a lot of seasons

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Smurf

Smurf

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after my desktop went tits up,i`m now using the mrs laptop its a HP pavilion dv6500 notebook 2gb ram ,AMD athlon 64x2 duel core processor 1.8ghz ,32 bit operating system,nowv i only play the english leagues with players from top division clubs in europe and a large database giving me around 60k players do you think i could get a long term going with this set up i`m planning on being one club and playing a lot of seasons

Impossible to know - you could try it and see how it goes?

It's not a great laptop so maybe reduce to a medium database.

Reason being is that with a large database and so few clubs you'll find a lot of really good players unattached, as there aren't enough clubs to go to - so you're just generating players that will never be used.

Even with such a small league setup you could try a small database, makes it even harder as there will be less good players in the world, so the richest clubs will probably end up with all the best players.

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spooner

spooner

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Posted

Hi Eugene, i have been reading through the last couple of pages on 'new laptop for fm15' it seems to me you know what your talking about. I was getting nowhere with trying to compare the different laptops that people had posted about. I was wondering if you could recommend a couple of laptops in the £400-£500 bracket that would run fm15 with no problems.

As you can probably tell i know nothing about computers!!

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Smurf

Smurf

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Posted

Problem with that is that we don't know the processor model.

It looks fine though - you get what you pay for so don't expect to play a lot of leagues with a huge data base on high graphics.

Expect more like a small-medium leagues/clubs setup with a small-medium database and keep graphics on low.

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dirkTLB

dirkTLB

Posted
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Hi guys, I was wondering if you could help me?

I currently looking at replacing my old desktop with a laptop, my main uses will be FM and streaming films and such to my TV (so a HDMI output would be handy).

Ideally I want to be able to load all available leagues and a large db to give myself the whole FM world experience. No particular budget in mind but I suppose under £500 would be ideal!!

Thanks in advance

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Smurf

Smurf

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Posted
Hi guys, I was wondering if you could help me?

I currently looking at replacing my old desktop with a laptop, my main uses will be FM and streaming films and such to my TV (so a HDMI output would be handy).

Ideally I want to be able to load all available leagues and a large db to give myself the whole FM world experience. No particular budget in mind but I suppose under £500 would be ideal!!

Thanks in advance

Not going to happen - you won't get a computer to do what you want for that price.

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Kierannn

Kierannn

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Problem with that is that we don't know the processor model.

It looks fine though - you get what you pay for so don't expect to play a lot of leagues with a huge data base on high graphics.

Expect more like a small-medium leagues/clubs setup with a small-medium database and keep graphics on low.

If that's a reply to my question isn't this the processor? http://ark.intel.com/products/75104/Intel-Core-i3-4000M-Processor-3M-Cache-2_40-GHz

Or is there anything else better for around £330

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Mike.83

Mike.83

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I've got a powerful PC that I built in my spare room used for gaming, but am thinking of getting a laptop for use in my livingroom to watch HD video on (through the tv) and a bit of FM on the sofa. I don't know much about laptops, would this be ok for some FM?

http://www.argos.co.uk/m/static/Prod...er/2492898.htm

Needs to be from Argos due to me having a bunch of vouchers.

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Kierannn

Kierannn

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I've got a powerful PC that I built in my spare room used for gaming, but am thinking of getting a laptop for use in my livingroom to watch HD video on (through the tv) and a bit of FM on the sofa. I don't know much about laptops, would this be ok for some FM?

http://www.argos.co.uk/m/static/Prod...er/2492898.htm

Needs to be from Argos due to me having a bunch of vouchers.

From what people have siad on this post don't get a U processor

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Wizard boy

Wizard boy

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Posted
I've got a powerful PC that I built in my spare room used for gaming, but am thinking of getting a laptop for use in my livingroom to watch HD video on (through the tv) and a bit of FM on the sofa. I don't know much about laptops, would this be ok for some FM?

http://www.argos.co.uk/m/static/Prod...er/2492898.htm

Needs to be from Argos due to me having a bunch of vouchers.

Don't know what your budget it is but im getting this and been told by a few that its good.https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&ei=jQiRVIyjMeSC7gaqvYHYBw&url=http://www.johnlewis.com/lenovo-g710-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-ram-1tb-17-3-black/p1741062&ved=0CEQQFjAD&usg=AFQjCNFrIDDlGSOIa2ScaMfB_UPF5Tfxkg

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Smurf

Smurf

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I've got a powerful PC that I built in my spare room used for gaming, but am thinking of getting a laptop for use in my livingroom to watch HD video on (through the tv) and a bit of FM on the sofa. I don't know much about laptops, would this be ok for some FM?

http://www.argos.co.uk/m/static/Prod...er/2492898.htm

Needs to be from Argos due to me having a bunch of vouchers.

This was posted earlier and is quite good imo http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lenovo-G510-15-6-inch-Notebook-Black/dp/B00O8SDRJ6/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

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Matt1887

Matt1887

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Posted

Hey everyone, I'm after some advice on a new laptop as I feel that my current one is on it's last legs with various problems :(

I've had the ASUS X52J for nearly four years and I'm just thinking that my new one should have similiar specs, maybe a little bit more powerful performance for FM?

ASUS X52J Specs:

Intel Core i5 450M (2.4 GHz)

ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5470

4 GB RAM Size

500 GB HDD Capacity

Budget would be between €600-€800 (or £450-£650)

Admittedly I'm clueless with laptops so any advice would be much appreicated :)

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Mike.83

Mike.83

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Posted

I could just about stretch my budget to this one

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/1461428.htm

How does that compare to the first one I posted. Like I said, it needs to be from Argos, as I have £120 of vouchers to spend there.

Cheers.

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