Study Laptop around $500?

[marsbarsz]

Hi guys, I am looking to purchase a laptop purely for studies and convenient to bring to school for projects etc. so I'm more concern with the processing, battery life and weight.
My budget is around 500ish but i'm not sure if the 300ish laptops are powerful enough for studies?

I am looking at DELL series laptops as I've been using it for sometime and it didn't fail me. Maybe the LATITUDE 3000 or VOSTRON 3000 series? Or any other brands you guys would recommend that is more value for money?

Where would be a good place to buy these laptops though, Courts and Harvey Norman? Will they be able to offer discounts and freebies like PC shows? Hoping to get one before 29 July so as to take advantage of the free windows 10 upgrade to upgrade any Windows 7 OS

I understand that there are university laptop fairs around as well. Do I need to be a student for that particular school in order to purchase at the discounted price? I'm from unisim

Alternatively is it advisable to purchase a second hand laptop?

Thanks!

 

[Magickiller9]

Hi guys, I am looking to purchase a laptop purely for studies and convenient to bring to school for projects etc. so I'm more concern with the processing, battery life and weight.
My budget is around 500ish but i'm not sure if the 300ish laptops are powerful enough for studies?

I am looking at DELL series laptops as I've been using it for sometime and it didn't fail me. Maybe the LATITUDE 3000 or VOSTRON 3000 series? Or any other brands you guys would recommend that is more value for money?

Where would be a good place to buy these laptops though, Courts and Harvey Norman? Will they be able to offer discounts and freebies like PC shows? Hoping to get one before 29 July so as to take advantage of the free windows 10 upgrade to upgrade any Windows 7 OS

I understand that there are university laptop fairs around as well. Do I need to be a student for that particular school in order to purchase at the discounted price? I'm from unisim

Alternatively is it advisable to purchase a second hand laptop?

Thanks!

I think you should Consider second hand laptop. And university fair isn't for you lol cause those laptop cost 1.2k minimum.

 

[marsbarsz]

I think you should Consider second hand laptop. And university fair isn't for you lol cause those laptop cost 1.2k minimum.

Thanks for your reply. Where would you recommend to purchase brand new laptops though?

 

[ykgoh]

Depending on your needs.

I am not sure what you're studying and if you're a tertiary student, whether you need to run certain special software that are heavyweight. For example some engineering, media design, IT and science students need to run special software and you're well advised to have at least a Core i5 processor with 8 gb ram.

For normal coursework mostly just doing Microsoft Office, emails, Internet access, I guess even a laptop with 4 Gb ram and Intel Celeron or Pentium processor may suffice. These low end laptop probably can be found at $500 pricing.

 

[ykgoh]

Thanks for your reply. Where would you recommend to purchase brand new laptops though?

Sim Lim Square for the variety options and price but you need to be a savvy consumer. Funan is already closed.

Otherwise, stick to reputable retailers like Harvey Normans or Courts.

If you're looking for low end laptops around $500, some hypermarkets like NTUC Fairprice Xtra and Giant may have some models from Acer or Lenovo. You can shop around see which one gives you the best deal for $500.

Also COMEX will be coming between September 8 - 11 September at Suntec. If you can wait till September, probably can get some good deals.

 

[marsbarsz]

Depending on your needs.

I am not sure what you're studying and if you're a tertiary student, whether you need to run certain special software that are heavyweight. For example some engineering, media design, IT and science students need to run special software and you're well advised to have at least a Core i5 processor with 8 gb ram.

For normal coursework mostly just doing Microsoft Office, emails, Internet access, I guess even a laptop with 4 Gb ram and Intel Celeron or Pentium processor may suffice. These low end laptop probably can be found at $500 pricing.

Thanks ykgoh. I am taking accountancy so just mainly need it for word processing, presentations, online research, maybe some accounting programs (though i don't think the accounting programs require alot from th system) and able to watch youtube videos as well.

Sim Lim Square for the variety options and price but you need to be a savvy consumer. Funan is already closed.

Otherwise, stick to reputable retailers like Harvey Normans or Courts.

If you're looking for low end laptops around $500, some hypermarkets like NTUC Fairprice Xtra and Giant may have some models from Acer or Lenovo. You can shop around see which one gives you the best deal for $500.

Also COMEX will be coming between September 8 - 11 September at Suntec. If you can wait till September, probably can get some good deals.

Went to SLS before and saw lots of outlets selling laptop, but I also have abit of fear knowing the reputation of SLS..

I actually plan to get it by july so i'm able to get the free windows upgrade. Also, if i'm not wrong, IT shows such as COMEX will usually push to sell those laptops that are 1k over and only have 1 or 2 of those lower end model. So it's better to just get from other places which may carry more variety of the lower end models right?

 

[Magickiller9]

Thanks for your reply. Where would you recommend to purchase brand new laptops though?

Go Lenovo online education store register a education account saw some 400-500 plus de.

 

[Intrinion]

Hi guys, I am looking to purchase a laptop purely for studies and convenient to bring to school for projects etc. so I'm more concern with the processing, battery life and weight.
My budget is around 500ish but i'm not sure if the 300ish laptops are powerful enough for studies?

I am looking at DELL series laptops as I've been using it for sometime and it didn't fail me. Maybe the LATITUDE 3000 or VOSTRON 3000 series? Or any other brands you guys would recommend that is more value for money?

Where would be a good place to buy these laptops though, Courts and Harvey Norman? Will they be able to offer discounts and freebies like PC shows? Hoping to get one before 29 July so as to take advantage of the free windows 10 upgrade to upgrade any Windows 7 OS

I understand that there are university laptop fairs around as well. Do I need to be a student for that particular school in order to purchase at the discounted price? I'm from unisim

Alternatively is it advisable to purchase a second hand laptop?

Thanks!

Good Morning!

Do you have any course requirements / what course would you be reading in University. Maybe we can better advice you if it's suitable for your needs.

With regards to University laptop fairs, it's the same as the Polytechnic's where you would have to be a student for the particular tertiary institution (as prices and offers are done through a tendering process) to be entitled to the perks.

I do believe that Unisim should have some sort of fairs etc. (You may want to check with the school on that!)

Having said that, there are deals available to students regardless of institutions such as the

Lenovo Education Store

or

Apple Education Store

They do offer quite good discounts off so you may get a better deal.

Most new laptops would be pre loaded with Windows 10 nowadays so you won't have to worry much! Refurbished laptops depending on the model and specs would generally have higher specs for your budget - however you will have to note on:

1. its age (they are generally 2 - 3 years and up)

2. Warranty periods and terms are not that long - could be 7 days or a month - so should you encounter hardware failure after, there is potential that it maybe beyond economic repair and /or lose important data in your studies.

3. Which vendor / shop you would be getting from - there are plenty out there but it's hard to know who is reputable who is not, how have they been tested on top of all the other aspects of physical condition, claimed battery life etc.

So maybe these are some points that you may want to take note!

Do post links on laptops that fit your price range and we will take a look at it!

- Intrinion!

 

[ykgoh]

Thanks ykgoh. I am taking accountancy so just mainly need it for word processing, presentations, online research, maybe some accounting programs (though i don't think the accounting programs require alot from th system) and able to watch youtube videos as well.

Accounting software is not heavyweight afaik. They are perfectly usable with a lower spec laptop, though they may still take a few seconds to load. Just don't expect them to start in split second like some Core i7 laptops with SSD storage.

Went to SLS before and saw lots of outlets selling laptop, but I also have abit of fear knowing the reputation of SLS.

Then you better avoid shopping in SLS. You have to be savvy and street smart there. There are good shops there no doubt, but there are also less reputable ones with salesmen who size up a customer to see if they can shortchange him/her in small or bigger ways. So you will be taking a risk if you are not familiar with the shops there. You won't know if you're in a safe shop or a more shady one.

I actually plan to get it by july so i'm able to get the free windows upgrade. Also, if i'm not wrong, IT shows such as COMEX will usually push to sell those laptops that are 1k over and only have 1 or 2 of those lower end model. So it's better to just get from other places which may carry more variety of the lower end models right?

If you're buying a new laptop, as well get one that comes with Windows 10 already installed from the factory. Unless you see an old Windows 8.1 laptop model you like going for cheap today, by all means buy it today and do the free Windows upgrade from Windows 8.1.

COMEX will sell whatever excess stocks they have. You get high end to low end models though for low end models, there's nothing much more to cut from the already slim profit margin. Perhaps you can get $20 to $50 off the usual price at most, or same price but with more free gifts? But for a $500-$600 laptop it is already 5% to 10% discount, so we can't argue much.

 

[deepblue_82]

I seen last it show laptops going for 599 or lower.. But they are heavy...

 

[PC_Dreams]

Why not check these 2 units out?

Both are brand new sealed in box with 1 year warranty.
Traded in from corporate customers who make their orders wrongly.
Marked down from the original purchase price by huge percentage.