I.T Illiterate (1 Viewer)

[jenze]

Ok so I’ll admit I’m definitely I.T illiterate. I can work a computer; however have no idea when it comes to RAMS, Gb's etc.
So that's why I need your help I looking to purchase my own computer for schooling purposes. I was thinking maybe a Lap-top or computer. Heres the problem I don't have too much money to spend, so I was thinking maybe a 2nd computer. But I don't know what would be suitable, which brands are ideal and how much storage/ speed I need. I won’t be using it to access the internet. I was wondering where the best place to purchase second hand computer. Do Stores like Harvey Norman sell ex-released computers? I only want to spend about $500 or less. I saw this computer on the 'deals direct' website this refurbished ACER Travel Mate 270 laptop is in ‘tip top working condition’. It’s been cleaned, refurbished and ready for use

FEATURES: its features. Do you think it’s worth it? How much would it be worth new?

acer273X

Intel M-1.4

256mb RAM

20GB HDD

Cd-rom + Floppy

WinXP Home

14 inch screen

Used Carry Bag

AC adaptor

Australian power cord

Boxed with manual

Note: This laptop has been tested, cleaned and refurbished. It is an ex-lease model and still functioning impeccably. Whilst it may have the odd scuff mark, this laptop is offered with 14 days DOA warranty as it should be in complete working order. (That’s what it said)

Or do you think I could find something better and cheaper?
I’d really appreciate ANY replies.

 

[pete_mate]

i sell laptop's part time at jb hifi

i cant really judge it in terms of value because it's second hand and im not aware of pricing for that.

However, it is worse than the cheapest new laptops we sell, at $799 which come with a 1 year manufacturers warranty.

with that laptop you get 0 warranty, and the battery may already be at 80% of its useful life, (batteries only last 1-2 years depending on how much you use them)
Warranties themselves are about $100-150 a year, so adding these up you're at $800, and considering the fact that the specs are much worse than the cheapest new laptops being sold i would say that it isn't good value.

a new battery costs $150 at least, so that's worth considering. It is quite cheap, but it's worth looking 2 or 3 years ahead, in terms of cost potential.

if you live near warringah mall i can do a deal for you on our cheapest model if you'd like, or you could negotiate a warranty/new battery with them.

 

[rnitya_25]

i would definately not buy that laptop.

firstly, get more info on the graphics...and what pentium it is.

20 gig hard drive..that's really crap. memory is ok i guess, and xp home is useless. you may as well pay a bit more for a better one. i definately wouldn't go for this.

 

[LukeRam]

FEATURES: its features. Do you think it’s worth it? How much would it be worth new?

acer273X

Intel M-1.4 (1.4 is quite slow and poor quality, these days processors are between 2.0 - 4.0)

256mb RAM (this will allow you to run like 2 programs, you would be better off with a minimum of 512mb ram)

20GB HDD (this will save jack all of anything, atleast a 50-60Gb hard drive)

Cd-rom + Floppy (CdRom only? Might want to find a cd burner. Floppy is old technology, waste of space)

WAustralian power cord (you'd hope so!)

Boxed with manual (just shows they stored it somewhere)

XP Home (xp pro is far better and allows for far better usability.)

14 inch screen (this is very small, but handy for portability)

Used Carry Bag (may be unusable)

My suggestion is that this would be worth....$400 these days, its pretty much useless. Might find that it will work for a few months. The warranty garuntee doesnt mean much if 6 months of it is them finding a replacement. It was ex-lease so people had generally no care for it at all.
Don't buy it, look else-where. Ex-lease is a bad idea

 

[DooGseY]

There is nothing wrong with the laptop you listed, considering what you are probably going to be using it for. Sure, its probably 3 years old, but it sounds like all you're going to be doing is word processing and not much else anyway, so buying something newer would be wasteful. This laptop is definetly not "useless" as LukeRam says, and I really doubt you're going to need more than a 20GB hard drive.

If all you have is $500, then I would suggest you get something second hand from an individual seller at a computer fair, the trading post, ebay or anywhere else other than from a company like harvey norman, because they're always going to take a cut which means you're paying more for less, but that applies to anything you buy.

As for what speed/space requirements you will need, tell us exactly what you're going to be using the computer for and we can tell you if this laptop will get it done.

 

[Forbidden.]

I can run Microsoft Excel and Word 2000 on a 233MHz machine.
If the laptop will actually be used for schooling purposes, any laptop no less than 5 years old is more than powerful enough to serve your needs.
So LukeRam's machine specs are good enough.

 

[pete_mate]

im sorry, but did everyone just ignore me? i sell this shit 4 days a week.

"xp pro is far better and allows for far better usability." what like the administration settings, like partitioning hard drives, or the remote assistance feature. yeah, real "usability" increase.

"1.4 is quite slow and poor quality, these days processors are between 2.0 - 4.0"
this is absolute bs, it's an intel M, not a celeron. (unless she didnt specify) in which case it has more onboard cache, and has all round better performance, irrespective of the megahertz. megahertz doesnt mean much at all nowadays, because you can get a dual core processor that is only 1.6ghz, yet is only seen in the top notebooks.

Also, an amd 64 at 2.5ghz will beat the shit out of a pentium 4 at 2.5ghz, that's why they dont even specify chips based on megaherts anymore.

essentially the problem is the lack of dvd rom and or cd/dvd burner, the 20gb hard drive, (40gb would be nice) and possibly the ram.

and of course the warranty and the battery being aged 76 in human years.

get him to give you an extended warranty for free, or knock off $100 off the price at least.

 

[gtvwill]

im sorry, but did everyone just ignore me? i sell this shit 4 days a week.

"xp pro is far better and allows for far better usability." what like the administration settings, like partitioning hard drives, or the remote assistance feature. yeah, real "usability" increase.

"1.4 is quite slow and poor quality, these days processors are between 2.0 - 4.0"
this is absolute bs, it's an intel M, not a celeron. (unless she didnt specify) in which case it has more onboard cache, and has all round better performance, irrespective of the megahertz. megahertz doesnt mean much at all nowadays, because you can get a dual core processor that is only 1.6ghz, yet is only seen in the top notebooks.

Also, an amd 64 at 2.5ghz will beat the shit out of a pentium 4 at 2.5ghz, that's why they dont even specify chips based on megaherts anymore.

essentially the problem is the lack of dvd rom and or cd/dvd burner, the 20gb hard drive, (40gb would be nice) and possibly the ram.

and of course the warranty and the battery being aged 76 in human years.

get him to give you an extended warranty for free, or knock off $100 off the price at least.

Yeah but you see...you sell it. which means....BIAS! *head explodes*

 

[jenze]

Hi this was my first post on the boredofstudies website and i was really suprised with how quick and helpful the feedback was. Thanks for your help, it's definetly altered my disicison into not buying this computer. I had no idea that you have to continue to purchuse New batteries. Does that count if your just using power from a power point? Sorry but i really am not too informed, as proir told on computer 'mechanics'. Sorry I don't live near warringah, i don't even know where it's at. The closet Jb HiF is Campbelltown. I was thinking of now just buying a computer from the trading post. Do you think if i post other computer features from prospective computers you could tell me if ther're functionable. Thanks again you've definetly been stax of help.

 

[B35tY]

If you just want the basics, I'd recommend:

Pentium M 1.5Ghz or more

256MB Ram, (512 would be good)

30-40gb hard drive (allows you to store a few movies, some music etc)

DVD if you want to view movies, otherwise CD drive is fine

XP home is ok

Make sure it has a couple of USB 2.0 ports (charge your mp3, connect a mouse, printer etc... very useful)

Yeah and get a battery and warranty.

However, if you basically want a glorified typewriter, this might not all be necessary.

 

[AntiHyper]

I had no idea that you have to continue to purchuse New batteries. Does that count if your just using power from a power point?

If you're just using power from a power point, then better to buy a desktop.

A laptop really only pays off its higher cost compared to desktops if you travel around with it.

 

[Collin]

Specs-wise I don't see anything terribly wrong with that laptop. A 1.4GHz Banias should be quite sufficient for what many students would need it for. I would consider upping the amount of RAM from 256MB to 512MB+ if feasible - however reflecting on the time when this laptop would of been sold as new, I wouldn't be surprised if both RAM slots are already occupied. That should bring you a considerably better experience under Windows XP. In general however, I advise you to exercise caution when dealing with second-hand computers. The best advice I could probably give you right now though is to ignore half of LukeRam's post.

pete_mate: I've been to the Warringah Mall store and a few times I've noticed this gay-sounding douche doing the PA calls.

 

[pete_mate]

pete_mate: I've been to the Warringah Mall store and a few times I've noticed this gay-sounding douche doing the PA calls.

yeah, the counter-ppl get bored so they pretend they're the host of a late night tv show.

 

[daza|ex]

god damn..

XP Home (xp pro is far better and allows for far better usability.)

funniest thing I've read at this site. well done