On Wed, 29 Sep 2010, Martina Dankova wrote: < < Hi there, < < Does anyone know where to find and buy a laptop with following specifications? < < # 11.6 - 13.3” screen < # internal optical drive ESSENTIAL < # 2 - 4 GB RAM < # 250 -3 20 GB hard drive < # min. 5 hour battery life < # weight 1 - 1.8kg < # preferably linux (installation) friendly, though I will have to keep MS as I have trouble to listen/work/watch my Open University CDROMS on my current notebook (ubuntu). < < No HP due to bad experience in the past with their “customer” service. < < I've searched the internet but I haven't been successful - might be due to my low budget £550. Martina, Your specifications are pretty demanding. It would probably be better if you elaborated further on the intended uses, so that folks can suggest what you might sacrifice to meet your budget. ----------- However, let me venture to suggest a few ideas (I just helped my partner choose a netbook and she had similar initial demands). First, an optical drive on such a small machine is a waste of space and money. If you really need an optical drive, consider an external usb one. They are cheap and really quite compact, so if you need to, you can put it in your rucksack. But more likely, you will want to watch in a comfortable location at home on a bigger monitor. Second, consider buying an older, used machine. I just bought a 14" Thinkpad T43 off ebay for <50, put 2Gb ram in it for 40, a 320Gb hdd (50), and a sata adpataer for the hdd (15). Combined with a 60 quid repair, I got a really nice machine that runs great (and will do so for >3 years) for under 250. Finally, I would suggest Thinkpads. They tend to be quite expensive new, but there is a very healthy used market, (meaning they hold value or you can get good working used machines) and an extremely lively user base (forum.thinkpads.com & www.thinkwiki.com), which is far more helpful than any customer support. Although Lenovo is not particularly Linux friendly, Thinkpads are well-supported and you can even buy Thinkpads with Linux pre-installed (www.linuxemporium.co.uk). I own 3 Thinkpads in total (all bought used), and my partner just bought her first (a new one) after her HP died. She bought a x100e, but the 13" edge was a close second. Like you, she needs to watch cd/dvds for work, but she was willing to forego an optical drive to save weight and money. She spent some of the savings on a 17" monitor for her home office. Leo -- The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336. - ---------------------------------------------------------------------- You can find the EdLUG mailing list FAQ list at: http://www.edlug.org.uk/list_faq.html
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