Laptop is Failing–Buying Advice Needed

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My trusty Windows laptop, several years old, is failing.  I must now make buying decisions.

What are your recommendations regarding features and capabilities, given what is happening with Windows 11?

 

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Main advice I have is, don’t buy Asus. You have plenty of choices.

Mine had a bad battery, wouldn’t hold a charge, and I suspect was just undersized for the model – 555Q series. They took it, supposedly replaced the battery, but still won’t hold a charge.

Happy hunting.

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kstephens43

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Wasn’t my experience at all.  My Asus Vivobook is the best laptop I’ve ever had.  This was the model I bought and it is more than enough for my basic needs:  “ASUS – VivoBook S15 15.6″ Laptop – Intel Core i5 – 8GB Memory – 256GB Solid State Drive – Gun Metal Gray”.  I love everything about this laptop, from being lightweight, backlit, ergonomic keyboard (which I like much better than I would have thought), and lots of other stuff.  Absolutely no problem with the battery.

My needs are basic:  I surf, work on the laptop using LibreOffice, and emails.  I’m not out there trying to be the biggest baddest computer geek on the block because I’d have no idea where to begin.  Besides, I have lots of other interests and leave it to people light years better than me.

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Get something with at least 16GB RAM. Many people recommend 32 GB. IMO, 16 GB is sufficient for most. If you have extremely large spreadsheets or graphics files then more RAM is better.

Make sure it has an SSD sufficiently big to hold all your current data plus some amount of future growth. The price of SSDs has come down significantly. Invest in an external SSD or HDD for image backups (preferably more than one to rotate backups).

Unless you are into gaming or graphics a full HD screen is probably sufficient. Check out the difference in screen resolution at a local store. A higher resolution screen will drive the cost up significantly. Again, unless you are into gaming or graphics the built-in graphics card will be fine.

I have had good luck with the Dell XPS line. Others I know, have had good luck with the HP Spectre x360 line. Screen size is personal preference.

 

 

--Joe

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kstephens43

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Good list.

lenovo currently off my list because of a small issue – backlit keyboard. Lenovo has one but it automatically turns off after ~10 seconds without hitting a key. Then you have to press any key to turn it back on. What’s the use of a backlight that doesn’t stay on? Not much imho. Otherwise the Lenovo Flex is an excellent machine.

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Microsoft just published details of 15 laptops they recommend for Windows 11 (along with their October 5 release date announcement):

Ready to elevate to 11? There’s never been a better time to purchase a new PC

Windows 11 Pro version 22H2 build 22621.1483 + Microsoft 365 + Edge

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kstephens43

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Can’t recommend a laptop not knowing what you have now and you use it for. Video, graphic editing ? gaming ? just browsing, mail, office..? Maybe a Chromebook or an iPad would suit your needs.

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I recently purchased an LG Gram (which surprised me) and still suprises me every day.   Size, weight, battery life and performance…It’s been a great “everyday” laptop.

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I, too, recently got an LG Gram laptop. Mine is from Costco, expensive still ($1850), but came tricked out with 32GB RAM and 1.0 TB SSD. I LOVE it! And only 3 #? Amazing. I so appreciate that the 17″ screen makes it much more usable than prior laptops (less scrolling with its aspect ratio!).

It’s driving 2 big external monitors, and the only thing that would slightly improve it for me would be discrete graphics (but that’s a very minor complaint – I only notice this “shortcoming” when I move a window from one monitor to another and it’s just not smooth at all).

I went with Dell for years, but this is the best laptop I’ve ever had 🙂

Cedar

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I love my Asus Zenbook. Small, light, powerful. Only downside is the key lettering colour – pale orange.

As Joe said, 16GB and an SSD. After that, whatever fits your budget and don’t worry about W11 – 90% of us won’t be able to run it according to MS.

cheers, Paul

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Perhaps now would be the time to properly work out what’s bugging the old laptop and possibly extend its use, as in a few months there will probably be an increasing number of Windows 8.1 laptops which won’t update to Windows 11, or possibly even Windows 10, and the sales pitch next year will be Windows 8.1 leaves support in 2023 so you need a new machine because the new shiny thing is always better.. and not everyone trades the old machine in.

It could be as simple as factory defaulting an old crate to get Windows 8 working, activating by phone (to avoid all the virus nastiness) and then installing 10 from USB as a lot of old optical drives are just less reliable.

Also I guess a few of the wider public are going to be aware of the Windows 11 offering, and wont want to do the work to get it if Microsoft says no initially, so likely will buy a replacement for the end of year celebrations.. and probably want to get something for the old one.. based on Microsoft’s first opinion of it being not a lot of good.. so if a forum were to compile a list of machines where TPM needed to be enabled, or BIOS upgraded, or whatever, in order to get Windows 11 that could be a useful shopping list for techies later on..

Alternatively if the cash is tight, and you can live with a scratch, or doing your own software or maybe fault finding, Dell factory outlet and similar (recyclops in the UK, remanufactured units) might be helpful.

Says the guy typing on his ten tear old Mini ITX Intel board I3 desktop with an 18″ TV as a monitor so I don’t have speakers cluttering up the desk . (The PC is bolted to the TV vesa mounting..)

 

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Dell Latitudes are sturdy corporate models, and can often be obtained as refurbs with warranties and a refreshed OS.

Unfortunately, I have learned that the Win 10 Pro refurb that I bought last year won’t make the cut for Win 11 hardware compatibility. So I will continue to run Win 10 until October 14, 2025. It is a very reliable machine with everything else that I need, and quite similar to my work computer.

So when shopping for a refurb, keep in mind the Win 11 requirements, and the other suggestions here for an SSD drive and 16GB memory. Screen size is not a big deal unless you only plan to use the built in screen. I usually “dock” mine with a large monitor at home (old eyes). 🙂

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You’d be very unfortunate for a modern machine not to do Windows 11 – what exactly did Microsoft indicate was the problem?  Alternatively might be worth checking through here for a second opinion, or perhaps if buying a refurb for Windows 11:

https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-uk/000187485/dell-computers-tested-for-upgrade-to-windows-11#Latitude-W11

 

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oldguy wrote:

You’d be very unfortunate for a modern machine not to do Windows 11 – what exactly did Microsoft indicate was the problem?  Alternatively might be worth checking through here for a second opinion, or perhaps if buying a refurb for Windows 11:

https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-uk/000187485/dell-computers-tested-for-upgrade-to-windows-11#Latitude-W11

 

I thought that 5th Gen Intel was still fairly “modern” last year when I placed the order. And that was long before Windows 11 requirements were even being discussed, much less the soon to be reality of an actual upcoming Windows 11. But I’m not too worried, as I should still get another 4-5 years out of it running Win 10. Not too bad for $350. 🙂

I was just cautioning anyone else shopping for a refurb now, to be aware of the Win 11 hardware requirements. Not all refurbs are last year’s model. Some corporate laptop models can be several generations older… but are usually much higher build quality than your average off-the-shelf consumer model.

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