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Topic: Laptops v Chromebooks????

Bob61

13/6/2016 at 7:56pm
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I am sort of toying with the idea of buying a new laptop as mine has seen better days although still working reasonably well at 9 years old.

I can't afford a lot...possibly around the £230 mark. Asus do one at £229 with 4mb memory and 1tb hard drive with Windows 10 installed but quite a few reviews say it's not very fast. I don't know why because mine has only 2mb memory and only 260gb hard drive and is fairly fast so I am getting a bit confused. It seems a minefield out there.

I have just looked at Chromebooks for about the same price which may be the answer. Am I right in believing that everything is stored online and therefore you don't need a big hard drive and that they are fast. If so, why does anyone bother with Windows any more? Can I still access everything online and use my existing hotmail email address if I buy a Chromebook?

Totally confused so any help/advice gratefully received.

chr4

13/6/2016 at 8:29pm
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Depends what you intend to use it for. Some people stick with windows because applications they need are either not available on chromebooks or are very limited e.g. skype, office apps, etc

OldRex

13/6/2016 at 8:38pm
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First, the comments about the ASUS not being that fast are comparing it to its peers. It will still be considerably faster than your current laptop.

Yes, chromebooks are cheaper because they do not use Windows, so don't need such powerful components. And yes, cheaper chromebooks do expect you to store files "in the cloud" (i.e. Google Drive). Remember you only get 15Gb of Google Drive for free.

I use a whole variety of operating systems depending on the machine I am using - Windows, Android, Linux and Chrome. And yes, Windows has lost a lot of market share.

Anything you currently do using your web browser you will still be able to do using chrome. Any other programs you use will be a different story. For example you will not have MS Office, but will have Google Docs instead.

Personally, I would think about saving some cash and converting my current laptop to use Chrome...

Gram

13/6/2016 at 8:53pm
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Two discussions re laptops vs Chromebooks - here and here (this one about two years old)...
But for me, the deciding factor is and always will be - Chromebooks to a great degree rely on internet connection to access the programs or "apps" - what if/when you are unable to get online (service failure/not at home/etc) - will it be possible to write a letter/modify photos/videos etc?
As to "...a few reviews say it's not very fast..." - if it's the X540 with an Intel n3700 processor - that apparently is a quad-core running at up to 2.4GHz - my laptop is a twin-core running at 1.8 GHz, at it seems fast enough for everything I need...
I just regularly run CCleaner and Wise Care 365 (both FREE) to keep things clean, and this laptop is still serving me well - so "how fast is fast"?

(And I will never rely on storing my files on the internet - that totally depends on others to maintain that storage - mine are on my machine and on my backup external drive...)

Gram

Post last edited on 13/06/2016 20:57:38

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mikegalagher

13/6/2016 at 9:11pm
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So long as no-one breaks in and steals the machine and the external drive. Or some other thing happens in the home.

I back up locally but also to the cloud. That way I'm not reliant on one or the other.

Anyhow, Bob's always saying his internet is slow. Personally I'd look at a cheap windows machine.

Post last edited on 13/06/2016 21:16:57

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Bob61

13/6/2016 at 9:39pm
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Thanks for the comments. I have just been reading up on Chromebooks online and understand them a little better but still not sure I could get by with one. I think it said that some programs aren't supported on a Chromebook which means that there could occasionally be conflicts with websites that use those programs. If I understood it correctly, you can't play DVD's on a Chromebook. I assume that also means CD's, and you can't print directly from them either.

Most of what I use my laptop for is online, such as forums, Utube, shopping, banking etc. I can't think of anything important that I actually store on my laptop and therefore probably wouldn't want to store anything online either. I tend to transfer things like photos onto a memory stick so I assume they could still be viewed offline on a Chromebook.

The Asus Windows laptop I was looking at was the X540 15.6" screen at £229 and there was a similar Chromebook costing the same price (Acer CB5-571 15.6" Chromebook). I am thinking that the Windows one would be the better value for money since there won't be anything it can't do.

Post last edited on 13/06/2016 22:23:44

Gram

13/6/2016 at 10:53pm
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So long as you keep your machine and the external drive together

- and so long as the cloud isn't hacked, or "ransome-wared", or the storage company doesn't go belly-up, or.....

"Don't store floppy disks/tapes near strong magnetic sources; don't store writeable CD's near/in hot surroundings..." - the list is endless...

Gram

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mikegalagher

14/6/2016 at 12:03am
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My flavours of cloud are Google, BT, and Dropbox. All accessible on whatever I'm signed in with. Local, main machine plus 2T Samsung drive. More than that, I cannot do. You can only cover your bets. The rest is fate.

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Surfin

14/6/2016 at 9:47am
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Get the Laptop Bob it will be more user friendly than the book.It will be more than fast enough for your needs.Its mostly gamers who compare processor speeds and machines.

I use pen drives for all my temporary storage too before moving files and stuff to a 1 TB external hard drive so hard drives on a machine don't really matter to me.I dont really need speed either.I used to do a lot of video processing but now with modern TV's there is no longer any need to process DVD's i just put my video camera footage onto pendrives and stick them in the telly and press play and do the same with my MP3's too.

Why re-invent the wheel Bob,you already know how to re-install Windows on a laptop if anything goes wrong

Bob61

14/6/2016 at 2:01pm
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Quote: Originally posted by Surfin on 14/6/2016
Get the Laptop Bob it will be more user friendly than the book.It will be more than fast enough for your needs.Its mostly gamers who compare processor speeds and machines.

I use pen drives for all my temporary storage too before moving files and stuff to a 1 TB external hard drive so hard drives on a machine don't really matter to me.I dont really need speed either.I used to do a lot of video processing but now with modern TV's there is no longer any need to process DVD's i just put my video camera footage onto pendrives and stick them in the telly and press play and do the same with my MP3's too.

Why re-invent the wheel Bob,you already know how to re-install Windows on a laptop if anything goes wrong

...er...I am not sure I do know how to reinstall Windows - lol.

I think you are right though...better the system you know than the one you don't. I may have to save a few pennies first before actually going down to Currys. I have been buying a few things lately and the bank manager is a bit stretched.

I might have a go at downloading Windows 10 onto my present laptop which will then give me a chance to try it out before parting with my money...and if I cock it all up it will give me the incentive to go down to Currys and get a new one ready installed.

Surfin

14/6/2016 at 3:43pm
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This page shows you how to do a reinstall of windows from the recovery partition on your laptop.
This Page
Its a reset back to the factory settings,back to the time when you bought your laptop

Sometimes a reinstall is all a desktop/laptop needs to get it back running like new.

Its well worth bookmarking or printing off for future reference

Bob61

14/6/2016 at 5:35pm
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Quote: Originally posted by Surfin on 14/6/2016
This page shows you how to do a reinstall of windows from the recovery partition on your laptop.
This Page
Its a reset back to the factory settings,back to the time when you bought your laptop

Sometimes a reinstall is all a desktop/laptop needs to get it back running like new.

Its well worth bookmarking or printing off for future reference

That is interesting, thanks. I may well give it a go prior to installing Windows 10. I am not sure if mine will have a recovery partition because I didn't create one to begin with. However, my laptop is playing up a bit in other ways. The 'on' switch sometimes doesn't work and takes several attempts to get it to work. There is a loud click inside as the laptop boots up and the fan starts, and the fan sometimes sounds a little noisy. On occasions there is a sort of a hot smell coming from inside. In fact it smells a little bit like deteriorating batteries although the battery block doesn't seem to be leaking and it charges well.

It could well be, after about 9 years, that it needs a blooming good clean out inside although by what I can see through the vents it still looks spotless.

I am expecting it to die at any minute hence the interest in buying a new one. At least it will give me chance to play around with this one and learn a bit more about laptops.

geoffprinter

14/6/2016 at 5:58pm
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Bob I have both. I use the chromebook for general internet use, its just so easy, lift the lid and its there. I dont use it for any banking or buying online. Its a dead handy bit of kit, but as you want a machine to do everything for you, I would go for a laptop. Just watch out at that sort of price that its got a dvd/ cd drive in it. A lot around that price range dont nowadays.

Bob61

14/6/2016 at 11:09pm
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Quote: Originally posted by geoffprinter on 14/6/2016
Bob I have both. I use the chromebook for general internet use, its just so easy, lift the lid and its there. I dont use it for any banking or buying online. Its a dead handy bit of kit, but as you want a machine to do everything for you, I would go for a laptop. Just watch out at that sort of price that its got a dvd/ cd drive in it. A lot around that price range dont nowadays.

Thank you...I think the Asus has a DVD but I will double check.

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