In the market for a new (used) laptop mac or PC for my daughter to use with her media and video editing (Adobe etc.) classes this fall.
Her budget is around $350 ish.
She needs minimum, i5 processor, Windows 7 (or mac equivalent), 4G to 6G (+) RAM (probably needs more, I dunno?).
Where should we go to find such an animal?
Thanks, Brad
Keep an eye on www.1saleaday.com They have some good deals on factory refurbs.
Note that things change everyday so keep an eye on it for a week or two.
I bought a refurbished laptop from this company a few years ago. I needed an XP machine to run some legacy programs. Everything went fine. They even had good communication when I had a problem with the XP license not being recognized (it had a downgraded license from Vista to XP).
http://www.laptopcloseout.com/usa/store.html
Dell also has an outlet on their site with referbs and scratch and dent. We just got a great deal on a desktop there. Your $350 pricepoint for an i5 laptop may be a bit low to get a decent machine, another $100 would probably get you there though.
Thanks a lot guys.
A) New Egg Dell i5 4G = $355
B) New Egg Dell i7 4G = $450
C) New Egg Dell i5 6G = $440
D) New Egg Dell i7 6G = $480
E) New Egg Dell i5 8G = $505
F) New Egg Dell i7 8G = $865
All options are Windows 7 Pro (64 bit - whatever that means)
By the way, the desktop PC I have been using for my CADD work & she has been using to edit our home movies this summer is Dell i7 8G Win7 Pro (64), so this is what we are used to, for whatever that is worth.
We are leaning towards (A) (B) or (C) and don't understand the value jumping from i5 to i7 or from 4G to 6G.
Further thoughts?
I don't know about the i5 vs i7, but I'd get all the memory you can. Or at least make sure you can add later id needed.
I believe i5 is dual core processor while i7 is quad, but don't quote me on that. I do know that the i7 is far more capable with more intense programs like Photoshop and AutoCad. So it really depends on how it will be used. As Dave said, more RAM is better. If any one of those models you like has a dedicated video card, I would suggest leaning toward that even if it is an i5. Always go 64-bit if you can.
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> Thanks a lot guys.
>
> A) New Egg Dell i5 4G = $355
>
> B) New Egg Dell i7 4G = $450
>
> C) New Egg Dell i5 6G = $440
>
> D) New Egg Dell i7 6G = $480
>
> E) New Egg Dell i5 8G = $505
>
> F) New Egg Dell i7 8G = $865
>
> All options are Windows 7 Pro (64 bit - whatever that means)
>
> By the way, the desktop PC I have been using for my CADD work & she has been using to edit our home movies this summer is Dell i7 8G Win7 Pro (64), so this is what we are used to, for whatever that is worth.
>
> We are leaning towards (A) (B) or (C) and don't understand the value jumping from i5 to i7 or from 4G to 6G.
>
> Further thoughts?
It's all about speed. More $ = faster. The i7 has more memory built into the chip (cache memory). Both these chips have the graphics built into them. So I think you/she may notice the i5 being slower than your PC with the heavy graphics and such. The i7 will also multi-task better if she likes to surf the web and work at the same time. Beware that some i5 are dual core and some quad core, but I think all i7 are quad core (You want quad). I vote "B", the i7 will make more of a noticeable difference than the 4G vs. 6G on the i5, but check to see if you can and more RAM later if she wants. "D" is pushing your budget, but a good deal also.