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Laptop Replacement/Suggestions Thread: Bring out yer dead laptops!

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Posts

  • H3KnucklesH3Knuckles But we decide which is right and which is an illusion.Registered User regular
    edited September 2020
    Gonna cross-post this from the Steam thread. I tend to forget this subforum isn't just for tech support, so it didn't occur to me there'd be a general-purpose laptop recommendation thread:
    H3Knuckles wrote: »
    Hi everyone, my sister & brother-in-law were thinking about giving my soon-to-be-9 nephew a gaming laptop for his birthday, and asked me for recommendations. I don't really know much about PC hardware, and even less when it comes to laptops, so I figured I'd ask you fine folks for suggestions? All I could think of was the following:
    1. Get him a Windows machine (they're an Apple household for the most part, but I figure better safe than sorry on compatibility issues)
    2. Get a separate mouse (they let him get into Fortnite against my advice, and IIRC in 3D shooters you're still handicapping yourself trying to use a gamepad or touchpad against other PC gamers)
    3. Lock down internet access, & start teaching him about good web-safety practices
    4. Make sure they've got parental controls on Steam and any other digital storefront/launcher they let him install
    5. Don't save credit card or purchasing information on Steam, etc. I don't know the whole story, but my nephew's already done the "I bought it by accident, honest" thing once with an in-game shop for Roblox or Fortnite or something (I forget which).

    My sister doesn't play games for the most part, and while my brother in law plays a lot of console games, he never got into PC gaming, so my concern is that he's only thinking of it as buying a new console and not considering everything else he's opening the door to.

    H3Knuckles on
    If you're curious about my icon; it's an update of the early Lego Castle theme's "Black Falcons" faction.
    camo_sig2-400.png
  • BlazeFireBlazeFire Registered User regular
    edited September 2020
    BlazeFire wrote: »
    Looking for some troubleshooting help. We got that HP Envy x360 for my wife a couple months ago. We've run into a problem with the USB-C port on it though. It doesn't recognize anything plugged in there. We've tried a Vantec dock as well as my Pixel phone to no avail. In Device Manager, I've noticed that under "USB Connection Managers", there is a device listed, UCM-USCI ASCP Device". After a reboot it looks ok, but once we plug in a USB-C device, it gets the yellow exclamation/triangle symbol and the device status is "Windows has stopped this device because it reported problems (Code 43)".

    Windows updates are all complete, searching for new drivers reports that the best drivers are already installed. Google hasn't been much help. The only tech forum responses I've seen point to an HP support article saying to install a cumulative update for Windows 10 1809 but the laptop is on 2004.

    Does anyone have suggestions?

    To close the loop on this, the solution came in two parts. First, HP had her reinstall Windows which resolved the Code 43 problem. I hadn't seen Noggin'sGilgaron's response so we never tried it. The second part is that we were using a cable that did not support DP Alt Mode.

    BlazeFire on
  • NogginNoggin Registered User regular
    I think you mean Mugsley and/or Gilgaron? That’s good that your issue resolved though :+1:

    For mine, some people on reddit made it sound like Asus is aware of the fan issue at least. I’ve just been using it anyway and it’s been fine, but still hoping they fix it so I don’t have to worry about it.

    Battletag: Noggin#1936
  • BlazeFireBlazeFire Registered User regular
    Noggin wrote: »
    I think you mean Mugsley and/or Gilgaron? That’s good that your issue resolved though :+1:

    For mine, some people on reddit made it sound like Asus is aware of the fan issue at least. I’ve just been using it anyway and it’s been fine, but still hoping they fix it so I don’t have to worry about it.

    Yup, had the wrong name. Thanks!

  • MugsleyMugsley DelawareRegistered User regular
    @H3Knuckles Their definition of "gaming" will need to be explained. Both of my daughters (9 and 11) have used/refurbished Dell E-series laptops with integrated graphics. They can play Roblox and Minecraft just fine, but lately they have been playing those games on tablets instead.

    I believe one has a 4th-Gen Intel chip and the other maybe has a 3rd gen? I'll have to check.

    I threw in two new SSDs and used their licenses to upgrade Windows 10. One of them has a bad battery (I'm not surprised) but otherwise they work just fine for the kids.

    If they are looking for something new, I'll poke around a bit. My wife got a decent deal on a Dell 15" laptop around this time last year, but it was still ~$700 so they need to be prepared for that cost.

  • H3KnucklesH3Knuckles But we decide which is right and which is an illusion.Registered User regular
    edited September 2020
    @Mugsley To be honest, I'm not entirely sure. They have a Nintendo Switch, an XBOne, & the nephew in question has a basic tablet he uses to play Roblox and some other mobile stuff. Also a 2DS which pretty much only got used for Pokemon Moon & Ultra Sun, near as I can tell. My brother in law is going to get an Xbox Series X, as well. My nephew plays a lot of Fortnite over XBox Live with a friend of his, a Plants vs Zombies spin-off based on Team Fortress 2, and Minecraft. Also basically anything Nintendo puts out on Switch, particularly Breath of the Wild & Splatoon 2. When they come over to my house he usually wants to play Steam games I have, but mostly older stuff with couch co-op like Portal 2, Castle Crashers, & Assault Android Cactus.

    One obvious benefit would be that I could play online with him then (I don't have a Nintendo subscription currently, though I do plan to get one eventually). But as far as games he's expressed an interest in, there's not a lot that couldn't be covered by one of their other platforms. I'm going over tomorrow for a bit in the evening, so I'll see if I can get a clearer picture.

    H3Knuckles on
    If you're curious about my icon; it's an update of the early Lego Castle theme's "Black Falcons" faction.
    camo_sig2-400.png
  • H3KnucklesH3Knuckles But we decide which is right and which is an illusion.Registered User regular
    Sorry, forgot to update last night.

    So yeah, they're only looking at what they called "entry-level" laptops, ie under US$1,000. And this is more about him wanting to play Fortnite with a mouse, try some of the oddball games streamers he watches play, etc. They're not thinking about him using it to play more triple-A games as he gets older, so it doesn't need to be cutting edge.

    Anyway, any recommendations for brands or specific models would be appreciated.

    If you're curious about my icon; it's an update of the early Lego Castle theme's "Black Falcons" faction.
    camo_sig2-400.png
  • BahamutZEROBahamutZERO Registered User regular
    edited October 2020
    Hey so I need recommendations for cheap gaming laptops for a friend, if anyone has useful advice. Her budget is under CAD $1000, so literally only the lowest end ones.
    Was looking at https://www.newegg.ca/tuf506-fortress-gray-asus-tuf-gaming-tuf506ih-rs53-gaming-entertainment/p/N82E16834235404?Item=N82E16834235404 but it sold out and I'm kicking myself for not telling her to jump on it because I suspect it was clearing out old stock so it's not coming back. The other stuff in that price range has a way worse processor, but if that's all she can afford it's all she can afford.
    Anything bad to be aware of with the ASUS TUF line other than its tacky aesthetics?
    Also does it seem like that laptop I linked might get restocked or is it probably gone forever

    BahamutZERO on
    BahamutZERO.gif
  • NogginNoggin Registered User regular
    Hey so I need recommendations for cheap gaming laptops for a friend, if anyone has useful advice. Her budget is under CAD $1000, so literally only the lowest end ones.
    Was looking at https://www.newegg.ca/tuf506-fortress-gray-asus-tuf-gaming-tuf506ih-rs53-gaming-entertainment/p/N82E16834235404?Item=N82E16834235404 but it sold out and I'm kicking myself for not telling her to jump on it because I suspect it was clearing out old stock so it's not coming back. The other stuff in that price range has a way worse processor, but if that's all she can afford it's all she can afford.
    Anything bad to be aware of with the ASUS TUF line other than its tacky aesthetics?
    Also does it seem like that laptop I linked might get restocked or is it probably gone forever

    That’s basically the AMD version of what I have, which has been more than fine for path of exile, diablo 3, hades, and XCOM chimera squad. So likewise from the previous page, that’s also the line having the firmware issue where the fans restart every 5 minutes.

    It’s annoying, but the temp monitoring has been ok anyway. Other than that I’ve been really enjoying it!

    Battletag: Noggin#1936
  • BahamutZEROBahamutZERO Registered User regular
    hopefully ASUS patches that BIOS issue, sounds annoying

    BahamutZERO.gif
  • BahamutZEROBahamutZERO Registered User regular
    she ended up going with an Acer on sale with similar specs, cheers

    BahamutZERO.gif
  • Trajan45Trajan45 Registered User regular
    BlazeFire wrote: »
    BlazeFire wrote: »
    Looking for some troubleshooting help. We got that HP Envy x360 for my wife a couple months ago. We've run into a problem with the USB-C port on it though. It doesn't recognize anything plugged in there. We've tried a Vantec dock as well as my Pixel phone to no avail. In Device Manager, I've noticed that under "USB Connection Managers", there is a device listed, UCM-USCI ASCP Device". After a reboot it looks ok, but once we plug in a USB-C device, it gets the yellow exclamation/triangle symbol and the device status is "Windows has stopped this device because it reported problems (Code 43)".

    Windows updates are all complete, searching for new drivers reports that the best drivers are already installed. Google hasn't been much help. The only tech forum responses I've seen point to an HP support article saying to install a cumulative update for Windows 10 1809 but the laptop is on 2004.

    Does anyone have suggestions?

    To close the loop on this, the solution came in two parts. First, HP had her reinstall Windows which resolved the Code 43 problem. I hadn't seen Noggin'sGilgaron's response so we never tried it. The second part is that we were using a cable that did not support DP Alt Mode.

    @BlazeFire How do they like the x360 so far? I was looking at that model for my GF's parents. It would be for light productivity and for some light online board gaming with family. Seems like the AMD innate card would work well for that.

    Origin ID\ Steam ID: Warder45
  • BlazeFireBlazeFire Registered User regular
    She is using it for grad school (meetings, productivity) and she is really liking it. She is finding use out of the tablet mode for taking notes on slides during lectures as well.

  • CantidoCantido Registered User regular
    edited October 2020
    XoticPC gets a thumbs up from me on service. When my laptop wouldn't stay turned on, I sent it to them out of warranty (I was putting this off for a year because I busted a USB port on it as well.)

    They not only replaced the fans, they also replaced the thermal paste and fixed the USB port (which merely had a chunk of some USB devise stuck in it. Then they offered me some upgrade options. They couldn't change the 1060 on it, but they were able to replace the two SSDs on it for some that were larger.

    EDIT - To be clear, I paid for the fan repairs and upgrade service. But they reupped the paste and fixed the USB on their own, the prices were great and they shipped it back relatively quick at no extra cost to me.

    Cantido on
    3DS Friendcode 5413-1311-3767
  • AdventAdvent Registered User regular
    Casually looking at the Zephyrus G14 (2060 max q), as I’ll be be doing some extended traveling for work. Mostly playing Division 2 and Rocket League, so nothing terribly crazy. Replacing an MSI GT72S Dragon (GTX 980) which is kind of a beast to move anywhere. O.o Anything to watch out for, or reasons to wait? Thanks!

  • Trajan45Trajan45 Registered User regular
    Cantido wrote: »
    XoticPC gets a thumbs up from me on service. When my laptop wouldn't stay turned on, I sent it to them out of warranty (I was putting this off for a year because I busted a USB port on it as well.)

    They not only replaced the fans, they also replaced the thermal paste and fixed the USB port (which merely had a chunk of some USB devise stuck in it. Then they offered me some upgrade options. They couldn't change the 1060 on it, but they were able to replace the two SSDs on it for some that were larger.

    EDIT - To be clear, I paid for the fan repairs and upgrade service. But they reupped the paste and fixed the USB on their own, the prices were great and they shipped it back relatively quick at no extra cost to me.

    My brother has an XoticPC laptop and they were pretty great through the whole build.

    Origin ID\ Steam ID: Warder45
  • TamTam Registered User regular
    Hello
    I’m helping someone who wants to start a vlog-style YouTube channel
    What would be a decent laptop to handle basic video editing?
    Firm price cap of 1100 USD

  • WezoinWezoin Registered User regular
    Trajan45 wrote: »
    BlazeFire wrote: »
    BlazeFire wrote: »
    Looking for some troubleshooting help. We got that HP Envy x360 for my wife a couple months ago. We've run into a problem with the USB-C port on it though. It doesn't recognize anything plugged in there. We've tried a Vantec dock as well as my Pixel phone to no avail. In Device Manager, I've noticed that under "USB Connection Managers", there is a device listed, UCM-USCI ASCP Device". After a reboot it looks ok, but once we plug in a USB-C device, it gets the yellow exclamation/triangle symbol and the device status is "Windows has stopped this device because it reported problems (Code 43)".

    Windows updates are all complete, searching for new drivers reports that the best drivers are already installed. Google hasn't been much help. The only tech forum responses I've seen point to an HP support article saying to install a cumulative update for Windows 10 1809 but the laptop is on 2004.

    Does anyone have suggestions?

    To close the loop on this, the solution came in two parts. First, HP had her reinstall Windows which resolved the Code 43 problem. I hadn't seen Noggin'sGilgaron's response so we never tried it. The second part is that we were using a cable that did not support DP Alt Mode.

    @BlazeFire How do they like the x360 so far? I was looking at that model for my GF's parents. It would be for light productivity and for some light online board gaming with family. Seems like the AMD innate card would work well for that.

    I'm not the OP, but I just bought an Envy x360 a couple months ago and it is excellent. The Ryzen 4500u is very strong in productivity scenarios, and the integrated graphics are strong enough to play Rainbow Six Siege (admittedly on low settings), CS:GO, and other games at comfortable framerates. The build quality is also excellent, being an all aluminum chassis. Naturally, it comes with some bloatware that you'll want to uninstall, but nothing too terrible.

  • BahamutZEROBahamutZERO Registered User regular
    Tam wrote: »
    Hello
    I’m helping someone who wants to start a vlog-style YouTube channel
    What would be a decent laptop to handle basic video editing?
    Firm price cap of 1100 USD

    Don't have any specific model suggestions off the top of my head, but look for a system with a dedicated graphics card, not integrated graphics. That's the most important difference for video editing work. Hard drive capacity is also important as raw uncompressed video takes up a lot of space. And as much RAM as you can get, video editing can never have enough RAM.

    BahamutZERO.gif
  • CalicaCalica Registered User regular
    I'm looking for an inexpensive laptop for hobby software development: programming microcontrollers (e.g., Arduino), writing apps to talk to wifi-connected lightbulbs, that kind of thing. Gaming not required. Any suggestions? I fell into analysis paralysis just trying to find out what my options are, let alone compare them. My first thought was a Chromebook, but it turns out there's considerable overlap in price between those and cheap Windows machines and I'm not sure which is a better fit/value.

    Just for context, I'm a professional software developer, so I do have some idea of what I'm doing; but I'm pretty sure I don't need a "developer laptop" for the kind of stuff I plan to use it for. My main PC is a homebuilt gaming desktop, and I'd like something portable for tinkering with stuff.

  • MugsleyMugsley DelawareRegistered User regular
    Try something like a Lenovo S340?

  • Donovan PuppyfuckerDonovan Puppyfucker A dagger in the dark is worth a thousand swords in the morningRegistered User regular
    Alright laptop thread, I need your help. A friend is looking for a notebook computer for tertiary education purposes (so no gaming laptops, a discrete GPU is utterly un-necessary), but her budget is quite low (she's hoping not to have to spend more than AUD$1000, she's a single Mum and doesn't earn fat stacks), and she hates the extra-flat keyboard on her old MacBook that her ex bought her about a decade ago.

    Can we get her something quad-core or better with plenty of RAM, from a quality brand so it lasts for more than like 2 years before it shits the bed? I've already explained that with a tight budget she's not getting something super sleek and stylish, and I'm dead against recommending anything Lenovo after all their spyware and bullshit shenanigans a few years back, can anyone point me in the direction of something decent?

    I looked up some "best laptop of 2020" type articles online and the Asus Vivobook is highly regarded, but the 15.6 inch 8GB Ram model is $1500 fucking dollarydoos here, Jesus wept...

  • MugsleyMugsley DelawareRegistered User regular
    @Donovan Puppyfucker check here: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-laptops/

    I recommend Dell, if Lenovo is out of the question, but I don't know how prices convert. My wife is quite happy with her Inspiron 3583. Also if you're willing to do some digging, you can find a few coupons to help with pricing.

    Don't shy away from eBay coupons; you can usually get a code for $$ off for under I think AUS30. Just do the math. The codes will work as long as you stick with high rated sellers.

  • bwaniebwanie Posting into the void Registered User regular
    edited November 2020
    Lenovo's 2020 legion 5 is amazing.

    I needed the 5i (intel i7) for my pioneer dj stuff, but if you can get the ryzen version it's about 250 dollars cheaper. Get the 144khz screen and the rtx 2060 if you can. (it's the only actually good screen they offer imho)

    I don't think there's a better looking and performing budget gaming laptop out there. It runs cool and very silent.

    The keyboard is one of the best you will find as well and it has a numpad.

    Edit there are sick discounts at lenovo (there usually are lol) right now, i got mine for 1185 instead of 1399 euro. The ryzen is about 1100 base i think (maybe more if the 2060 version is available.


    bwanie on
    Yh6tI4T.jpg
  • bwaniebwanie Posting into the void Registered User regular
    Lol spyware. Google knows everything about me anyway.

    Yh6tI4T.jpg
  • Gabriel_PittGabriel_Pitt (effective against Russian warships) Registered User regular
    Okay, so you guys all helped me out build my new PC this summer and now I need to replace my old laptop too, because a 2012 ASUS with 4 GB of memory is really struggling in the modern world.

    I'm not trying to build a gaming pc or anything rigorous, I just want to know what the contemporary baseline is these days (ah hell no, not 4 GB RAM being obvious). Especially with the on-going and imminent Black Friday sales, has anything come to people's attention 15" or slightly smaller, keyboard with numpad, able to handle Windows 10, Firefox, and streaming stuff without choking on it's own RAM (I use this mostly for writing, number crunching, and other stuff that's generally not to hard; don't need an optical drive, just USB ports and an SSD).

    Just being 8 years out of the game, I'm hoping somebody in the know can point me in some good directions.

  • bwaniebwanie Posting into the void Registered User regular
    edited November 2020
    If you want portability (< 1.8 kg) and long off-grid battery power i'd suggest something else. But if not, you really can't go wrong with the legion series. The spec i mentioned will be good for a long time.

    bwanie on
    Yh6tI4T.jpg
  • SeñorAmorSeñorAmor !!! Registered User regular
    Is this the right thread for Chromebook recommendations?

    I'm looking at getting new Chromebooks for my kids (8 and 10) for Christmas, and am looking for some suggestions.

    I'd like 14" screens at minimum, preferably touch screen. I'm not too picky on RAM or storage as typically 4GB and 32GB respectively is sufficient. Higher is always better.

    I'm hoping to spend less than $400 per Chromebook, but can be persuaded to go a little higher if the additional cost is worth it.

    Chromebook cannot be white (these are kiddos). :smile:

    Thoughts?

    Thanks in advance.

  • Ear3nd1lEar3nd1l Eärendil the Mariner, father of Elrond Registered User regular
    Who makes good laptops these days? Is it still Dell and Lenovo? How are Asus laptops?

  • V1mV1m Registered User regular
    Ear3nd1l wrote: »
    Who makes good laptops these days? Is it still Dell and Lenovo? How are Asus laptops?

    https://laptopmedia.com/laptop-specs/asus-zenbook-13-um325-2/

    Is covetousness still a sin?

  • Ear3nd1lEar3nd1l Eärendil the Mariner, father of Elrond Registered User regular
    V1m wrote: »
    Ear3nd1l wrote: »
    Who makes good laptops these days? Is it still Dell and Lenovo? How are Asus laptops?

    https://laptopmedia.com/laptop-specs/asus-zenbook-13-um325-2/

    Is covetousness still a sin?

    Only if you wish someone else to not have it. :)

  • MugsleyMugsley DelawareRegistered User regular
    From another thread:

    Dell
    Lenovo
    Asus
    Razer
    Acer (I hate their value line but their Predator line has been received well)
    Gigabyte (only the Aorus line and I'm not personally keen on them)

    I personally hate HP laptops so I say stay away at all costs.

  • AdventAdvent Registered User regular
    V1m wrote: »
    Ear3nd1l wrote: »
    Who makes good laptops these days? Is it still Dell and Lenovo? How are Asus laptops?

    https://laptopmedia.com/laptop-specs/asus-zenbook-13-um325-2/

    Is covetousness still a sin?

    Their Flow X13 has a 3080 dangling off it. Kind of coveting that one, myself... O.o

  • Ear3nd1lEar3nd1l Eärendil the Mariner, father of Elrond Registered User regular
    Advent wrote: »
    V1m wrote: »
    Ear3nd1l wrote: »
    Who makes good laptops these days? Is it still Dell and Lenovo? How are Asus laptops?

    https://laptopmedia.com/laptop-specs/asus-zenbook-13-um325-2/

    Is covetousness still a sin?

    Their Flow X13 has a 3080 dangling off it. Kind of coveting that one, myself... O.o

    https://store.asus.com/us/item/202101AM120000009/ROG-Flow-X13-Ultra-Slim-2-in-1-Gaming-Laptop-Bundle:-ROG-XG-Mobile+RTX-3080-included

    $2,799.99

    😲😲😲😲😲😲😲😲

  • BlackDragon480BlackDragon480 Bluster Kerfuffle Master of Windy ImportRegistered User regular
    Ear3nd1l wrote: »
    Advent wrote: »
    V1m wrote: »
    Ear3nd1l wrote: »
    Who makes good laptops these days? Is it still Dell and Lenovo? How are Asus laptops?

    https://laptopmedia.com/laptop-specs/asus-zenbook-13-um325-2/

    Is covetousness still a sin?

    Their Flow X13 has a 3080 dangling off it. Kind of coveting that one, myself... O.o

    https://store.asus.com/us/item/202101AM120000009/ROG-Flow-X13-Ultra-Slim-2-in-1-Gaming-Laptop-Bundle:-ROG-XG-Mobile+RTX-3080-included

    $2,799.99

    😲😲😲😲😲😲😲😲

    And that's with a discount.

    Also more expensive than all but one vehicle I've ever personally owned.

    No matter where you go...there you are.
    ~ Buckaroo Banzai
  • Ear3nd1lEar3nd1l Eärendil the Mariner, father of Elrond Registered User regular
    That's more than I have spent on all of my computers in the last ten years combined.

  • BlackDragon480BlackDragon480 Bluster Kerfuffle Master of Windy ImportRegistered User regular
    Ear3nd1l wrote: »
    That's more than I have spent on all of my computers in the last ten years combined.

    In ye olde 2000's I kitted out a $3200 compute focused rendering rig with SLI'd Nvidia Quadro. But it was for work, not play, and my job paid for it :biggrin:

    No matter where you go...there you are.
    ~ Buckaroo Banzai
  • breton-brawlerbreton-brawler Registered User regular
    So, my MSI dominator from 5 ish years ago finally broke down with a motherboard failure. It was super bad timing, but I was able to get a acer Nitro 5 (1660ti) laptop and am fairly impressed. The main issue is the CPU does get a bit hot and the fans don't seem to ramp up fast enough. Currently trying out the nitrosense application for power and fan management.

    Cut to this morning, my games were getting constant spikes and drops in frame rate, but temps were good, gpu and cpu weren't overloaded. After a reboot, and by changing a setting so the battery won't charge past 80% (an option in acer care to extend battery health) the games are really silky smooth and the heat levels, and fan levels are much better.

    anybody else have this happen? does it even make sense?
    the only thing I can think of is that it was power throttling, because it was trying to charge the battery all the time.

  • BrodyBrody The Watch The First ShoreRegistered User regular
    If I'm looking for a laptop that can be used for gaming but doesn't look like a spaceship, would people have suggestions?

    I doubt I'm going to playing anything too crazy, maybe MHW, but I have a desktop for more strenuous tasks. Mostly just looking for something my wife can use for stuff that can't be done on a phone/a way for me to chill and play PoE or w/e in the living room.

    Thinking somewhere between 1,000~1,200 USD.

    "I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."

    The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson

    Steam: Korvalain
  • V1mV1m Registered User regular
    edited March 2021
    My dad asked me to find him a laptop. He wants something totally different to what I'm pining for so I'm kind of out of the loop

    He's specified the following parameters to me:

    A good big screen; his eyesight isn't the greatest on account of oldness - he doesn't need 4k, 1080p is fine
    A webcam
    He has to use a mouse, so the touchpad quality is irrelevant. Likewise touchscreen is useless, and is probably an active disadvantage.
    Good wifi, because he also wants to be able to stream TV to it when his receiver dish gets discombobulated, which happens a fair bit on account of him living right by the North Sea.
    Sufficient GPU to do the above streaming without strain.
    [He mentioned some other stuff that's irrelevant because it's easily within the capability of anything made in the last decade]

    Parameters I am adding:

    SSD only, no spinning rust, for reasons of noise and reliability.
    It doesn't have to be a super thin&light one, it's going to sit on a table and never leave his house
    It needs to be as reliable as possible. I know that's difficult to guarantee these days, but he needs something simple to use that will keep working for years.
    He can afford to get a good one; he has a great pension and rarely spends half his income in a year.
    It needs to have as good a keyboard as possible.
    Apart from enough USB to connect a mouse and maybe a keyboard, connectivity is probably neither here nor there.
    Ideally it should be plausible to get it serviced - he runs a coal stove to heat his house, and there will always be mineral dust in the environment. If I tell him he needs to get it looked at every year or two, he'll do it.

    To me it feels like he should have a good quality business laptop but I don't really know what I'm talking about in that league. Who make good reliable ones?

    EDIT: I looked at Thinkpads, but £1700 for a 4c/8t CPU with 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD and a 15" screen is simply disrespectful.

    V1m on
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