I can't find an area where this question would be really appropriate, but I guess I'm asking which collection of hardware that forms a laptop would be the best to buy. I am off to college next year (sixth form college, not University) and I will be travelling at the very least two hours a day on the bus. Seeing as a lot of schoolwork is done on computers nowadays I thought a laptop would be useful, but I don't have plenty of cash so I need a practical, durable, reasonable specification and inexpensive laptop that could last me a good few years (preferably not outdated before 4 years after purchase). I've searched around a bit, but I don't like to trust the reviews on some sites and I don't really want to buy second hand. Something new but under £1000 would be ideal. If you think I'm being lazy and don't wish to do my work for me, which I can fully understand, then if there's any site where you can enter how long you'll be using a laptop each day and the type of specs. you want and then a laptop is found for you, that would be very useful. Thanks for the help.

Michael,

That kind of budget puts you into the lightweight "frequent traveller" market and there's some nice kit out there for that kind of price. If you want something to last you 4 years, then you don't want to get the cheapest laptop that you can find (which, incidentally, will be the heaviest) but, on the other hand, you don't want to spend too much on something that is far better than you need. You shouldn't need to spend £1000 unless your 6th form courses will involve using CAD or graphic design packages.

Go to the Dell web site (www.dell.co.uk) and have a look at the Latitude D410, which is their small "frequent traveller" version. Go for the cheapest processor that they offer on that model but choose the option to upgrade it to 1GB of RAM (memory). See what price they come up with.

While you're there, also take a look at the Inspiron 630M, which will be a bit faster but cheaper, as it's a bigger unit that's a bit heavier. These are still suitable for most guys to carry around but tend to be a bit heavy for girls. The main reason that I'm pointing out that model is that there is a certain configuration that I could supply to you at around £125 off of the price on their web site (limited stocks available).

I can also supply laptops from various other manufacturers and probably save you something off the list price. If you take a look at my auctions on the D-A-L Trader, you'll see some examples of how I can supply you with software at far less than the typical retail price. If you're interested, send me a PM (Private Message) with your phone number and I'll give you a call

The Inspiron definitely seems the best option so far as it is so much cheaper. I didn't know how much RAM I should have on that though, I left it at 256mb, but is that too little? Sadly I am told I am too young to use DAL trader, but I could ask my mum to set up an account or something. She's the one with a PayPal account as well. The Latitude looked good, but when I put in all the information and included no protection or accessories but had the 1GB of RAM, it put the price at £1029 which is too much I'm afraid. Thanks for the help though, I will certainly use the Dell site again seeing as you can customize it and when eventually I do choose to buy one, I would be interested in your discount thing. I don't think I'll be able to get one any time soon though, as it really depends on my parents erm, 'funding'. Thanks again though and if you have any other recommendations I'll be happy to hear them.

No problem - glad to help

The Latitude D410s do work out to be quite expensive because you're paying for it to be small and light. For the amount that you're going to spend, you should be looking for 512Mb RAM or more. The particular configuration of Inspiron 630M that I have available at the moment is £579.99 including delivery, compared to just over £700 on the Dell web site. But, as I said, there are only limited stocks and they will be gone soon. I'm sure that I'll have other deals available when you're ready though. Keep a note of the web site address in my signature

You might also want to take a look at Acer laptops, which are generally a bit cheaper than Dells. Acer is more of a "value" brand than Dell but, when they started out, laptops were all they made and they've been getting it right for a long time now.

I wouldn't recommend going too far down into the "value" market. Companies such as Hi-Grade and some of the others may seem significantly cheaper and offer big "bundle" packages and claims of 5-year warranties, etc but, in reality, they won't last as long as you'd hope if you're looking for a fairly long-term investment. I've been caught out by one of these cheaper companies before - I bought eight PCs in one go and the company went into liquidation a few weeks later so the 5-year warranty wasn't worth the paper it was written on!

If you'd like any more free and unbiased advice and opinions on choosing the right laptop, there are plenty of us here on D-A-L.com that are happy to help

Thanks again for the help. I certainly hope you do have some good deals available when I'm ready to buy. Would you recommend having a look on D-A-L trader? I can get my mum to set up an account if you think it would save me money. My dad says he should get a laptop first so I've got to wait for him to get one, grrrr. Oh well, at least now I know where to start and the sort of prices I should be expecting for what I need. Just before I go I want to say how useful this site has been to me and that I hope it remains free forever.