Solved Finding the right laptop

Hazel123 said:

That's just answered my question really - it depends how much photo editing I end up doing in future. Don't need 16gb at the moment - but I might need it and couldn't upgrade....

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If you don't have the physical RAM, then photo editing will use virtual memory. It will obviously be slower with a swapfile being in use, but would still work if you only need to do it occasionally. I can do photo editing on my 4GB machine, but it's faster on my machines with more RAM.

My example of running virtual machines however is one case that requires real physical RAM to be available.

Think I'm going for option 2. Option 3 - price didn't include VAT so is actually £860. I can always get an old used laptop just for photo editing if necessary.

Bree said:

Do you have a Currys branch near you? They have them in stock (not at such good prices though). But as you value the feel and touch as much as (if not more than) the specs, you could check for stock at your local store, then go an actually type on one before you decide....

ASUS VivoBook X415JA 14" Laptop - Intel® Core™ i7, 512 GB SSD, Silver

Free Upgrade to Windows 11; Intel® Core™ i7-1065G7 Processor; RAM: 8 GB / Storage: 512 GB SSD; Full HD screen; Battery life: Up to 6 hours

www.currys.co.uk

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Thanks. Good idea. We're actually still a shielding household unfortunately so haven't been going to shops. But in that case I need to buy it from somewhere that accepts returns! Just in case. I like the look of the ergonomics though. Just don't like not having the option to upgrade ram later! But there you go.

Is Intel Optane worth having? There are various different models with different sellers. All 8gb ram and varying ssd sizes - some have 32gb Intel Optane. Don't know much about that other than it's memory on the ssd? Wondered if that would benefit when only 8gb ram. On the other hand, if upgrading the SSD to a bigger one you'd then lose the intel optane memory presumably.

Decided against optane after reading this about it. And not much point if intending to upgrade the ssd.


But again models vary from different sellers - some have wifi 5, some have wifi 6. Some have 10th gen processors, some 11.

By the way, thanks all for putting up with my long winded decision making process :). I am also recognising an end to a bit of a lifestyle of upgrading and fixing old laptops. Haven't done much since the pandemic started but it seems the opportunity to carry on with that will be dying off in the next few years. It was a pin money sideline/hobby. Won't be good for business for people who sell ram chips either (crucial etc).

My hobby started when my first EEE pc stopped working. Decided to pull it to bits - and found there wasn't much inside lol. Just needed the operating system reinstalling. Found they were cheap as chips on ebay, used, so bought a few more and did the same and sold them on and had a cupboard full of spare parts for mine. I still have one - it'll only run linux now though. Then progressed onto fixing peoples laptops and reinstalling their software without any technical nouse whatsoever about computers - just about reinstalling software and upgrading ram and hard drives. Lol. My other half is a complete technophobe - just uses his phone - so I sort all the IT in the house.

And it does remind me of the frustration people had then with the first 4gb ssd model - when you couldn't replace or upgrade the ssd. The later models you could. Mine has a 64gb ssd in it and was running Windows 7 for a while. Just great for being a netbook and surfing.

Now if they could just make one of those again with a faster processor and m2 I wouldn't mind soldered ram. 7" was great. Literally carried it round the house - you could take that anywhere - and it wasn't thin!

Sounding old now lol.

The reason there are so many similar models at such hugely varying prices, depends on whether it's 10th generation or 11th generation processor. Some with wifi 6. While it would be nice to have an 11th generation processor, it adds £150 to the cost of the laptop! Either that or the 10th gen are discounted. I bet its wifi 5 that ends being the next thing to make laptops obsolete . Think it'll still be around for a while though.

A bit late but thinking about models and funds :). i5 11th generation costs about the same as i7 10th generation (and according to a benchmark I looked at i5 11th is faster than i7 10th). Either would be fine for me. I manage minor video editing fine on my old slower i5. So while it would be nice to make a saving on getting a 10th generation processor, just thinking maybe 11th gen are designed to go hand in hand with Windows 11 - which no doubt will keep getting more resource hungry over time. Anyway - will plump for one or the other. Neither have wifi 6.

Might be a late contender. Am finding it nice to type on and I currently have / am coming from a ThinkPad E570 that won't transition (easily). Minor gripe is some have remarked about the keyboard illumination, it is angle and light level dependent, YMMV. It does have 3 distinct levels using the F7 hotkey, I personally find it really okay.

Hazel123 said:

A bit late but thinking about models and funds :). i5 11th generation costs about the same as i7 10th generation (and according to a benchmark I looked at i5 11th is faster than i7 10th). Either would be fine for me. I manage minor video editing fine on my old slower i5. So while it would be nice to make a saving on getting a 10th generation processor, just thinking maybe 11th gen are designed to go hand in hand with Windows 11 - which no doubt will keep getting more resource hungry over time. Anyway - will plump for one or the other. Neither have wifi 6.

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I am very happy with my i5 11th generation (see my specs) laptop that I bought 9 months and a half ago at 599 Euros. 8GB of RAM may seem too little in the eyes of many, but it is enough for everything I do, and the memory is upgradable anyway whereas many laptops I saw were priced several hundreds more, yet the memory in them was soldered to their motherboard so not upgradable, and they all typically had only 3 USB ports (whereas I have 4). Downsides are that the SSD is M.2 SATA instead of NVMe, that the battery runs out faster than average, and that the picture quality of the screen is only medium-level. But none of these were dealbreakers for me because the SSD is still fast enough for everything I do, the battery charges exceptionally fast, and, I use this laptop mainly as a desktop replacement so, both the battery and the built-in screen get used only very rarely. As for WiFi 6, yes, I have it (Intel AX201) and I can use it at its max capable speeds because I also bought an Asus RT-AX92U 2 Pack not too long ago, and yes, it certainly is fast like a fox and stable as a rock, especially since I have paired these 2 wireless routers with the Wired Backhaul option and Asus have finally ironed the big wrinkles out of their firmware (which they have done rather well I must add), but I still prefer to use my Uni 3-port USB 3.0 hub that comes with a built-in Realtek GbE Family Ethernet Controller to hook it up via a wired ethernet connection. It's always reassuring to know that I can still hook it up wirelessly in the possible event that the cable breaks.

clam1952 said:

SSDs From a quick look

1TB Crucial BX 500 £69.99 or better MX500 £79.99 on Amazon.
or if it's an M.2
1TB Crucial M.2 (2280) PCIe 3.0 (x4) NVMe SSD £59.99 on Overclockers.

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Hi there

Just a note of caution --

Unlike some older laptops it's not easy replacing SSD's on some more modern laptops --especially if fitted with the NVme type of SSD's.

Cheers
jimbo

Yep - needs a torque screwdriver and removing the back of a brand new computer - and then the battery (watched a tear down video). Probably invalidates the warranty!

JacksonS said:

S513EA-BN697T, ASUS VivoBook 15 Intel Core i5 16GB | Box.co.uk

www.box.co.uk

Might be a late contender. Am finding it nice to type on and I currently have / am coming from a ThinkPad E570 that won't transition (easily). Minor gripe is some have remarked about the keyboard illumination, it is angle and light level dependent, YMMV. It does have 3 distinct levels using the F7 hotkey, I personally find it really okay.

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Cheers - yes the 15” has better options for the price. I wanted the 14” though :). Partly for size but also because the touchpad is in the middle (which I have a thing about). Can’t be doing with touchpad off centre to the left. Which rules out most 15” laptops. 14” is just right for me anyway. Although the latest ones actually seem to be smaller than 14”! HP and Asus 14” say 32.5 cm wide! So why call it a 14”? Why not call it a 13”!

I think my main gripe is I’m used to having a home based sturdy upgradable laptop, well powered, as my main computer - and don’t need something portable as still have a 10” netbook running windows 10 very well (for travel - not that travel is much of an issue since the pandemic?) with a Firefox sync account. Which will have it’s time span when W10 stops being supported. But like to keep to two separate functions. Wouldn’t want to take all my years worth of files on a laptop if travelling. A small cheap celeron laptop would do for that.

Like the Asus L210. Seems bonkers that they think everyone wants a fully soecced laptop that’s portable.

Also kind of bugs me that none of the models I’m looking at have WiFi 6. Wondering if the WiFi card is upgradable (have a WiFi 6 router).

According to this teardown article, there is a dedicated space for a sata drive. Which would be handy, as I currently have a 1tb 2.5 sata drive. But I read in a review somewhere, that there is no connector for the sata drive installed. Could you buy a connector or it would it need soldering to the motherboard? Seems strange to have a sata drive slot and no way to connect the drive. Unless that's just the internal rig from another laptop which does have a sata connector and they just used the same one in this laptop.

Looks like you can add another stick of ram as well. Although the models may vary.

Hazel123 said:

According to this teardown article, there is a dedicated space for a sata drive. Which would be handy, as I currently have a 1tb 2.5 sata drive. But I read in a review somewhere, that there is no connector for the sata drive installed. Could you buy a connector or it would it need soldering to the motherboard? Seems strange to have a sata drive slot and no way to connect the drive. Unless that's just the internal rig from another laptop which does have a sata connector and they just used the same one in this laptop.

Looks like you can add another stick of ram as well. Although the models may vary.

Inside ASUS VivoBook S14 S430 – disassembly and upgrade options

ASUS VivoBook S14 S430 is a budget-friendly multimedia notebook that comes in a good variety of configurations aimed to please almost every need. In addition to that it is fairly easy to get inside…

laptopmedia.com

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ASUS specify the sata drive as an option. Either the SATA or M.2 slot is filled. Then go on to say:

Expansion Slots (includes used)
1x DDR4 SO-DIMM slot
1x M.2 2280 PCIe 3.0x4
1x STD 2.5” SATA HDD

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So I understand that the expansion slot should still be available (physically and electronically), even if it is not used by ASUS.
Personally, I could not find any article online saying the S14 has "no connector" so I would be interested in the link you found. Nevertheless, I found dozens of "SATA cable connector for ASUS Vivo S14" on Amazon and Ebay. So, perhaps "no connector" is shorthand for "no cable connector", meaning the cable is not supplied as an accessory with the device - so you would need buy your own cable.

iko22 said:

So, perhaps "no connector" is shorthand for "no cable connector", meaning the cable is not supplied as an accessory with the device - so you would need buy your own cable.

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Yes, it is common practice for OEMs that offer a choice of a Sata HDD or m2 ssd for a particular model to only supply the required Sata connecting cable if you order it with the HDD option (and often there's also a 2.5" HDD mounting bracket that would be needed too). Dell do the same.

Thanks. I just watched a video where someone installed a 2.5 ssd (although it was the 15" model) and he just used one of these. On the teardown pics it does show a small connector near the 2.5 bay that one of these would attach to. Only thing is the S14 is the £850 model that already has 1tb! I was looking at the standard 14 which only has 250gb or 500gb. But might not also have the 2.5 space inside. Won't know till look I guess.

iko22 said:

ASUS specify the sata drive as an option. Either the SATA or M.2 slot is filled. Then go on to say:

So I understand that the expansion slot should still be available (physically and electronically), even if it is not used by ASUS.
Personally, I could not find any article online saying the S14 has "no connector" so I would be interested in the link you found. Nevertheless, I found dozens of "SATA cable connector for ASUS Vivo S14" on Amazon and Ebay. So, perhaps "no connector" is shorthand for "no cable connector", meaning the cable is not supplied as an accessory with the device - so you would need buy your own cable.

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Can't remember where I read it now :) It might have been one of the Amazon reviews for one of the models. And yes it seems you do need to supply your own ribbon cable (see above). Does anyone know the technical name for that kind of sata connector/cable? Ebay calls it a "stable cable". But googling that only brings up the ebay listing.