Need a cheap laptop? Good luck!

[Jack D]

On 8/21/2020 at 7:38 PM, GeoffH said:

If you can't do it in a web browser then you can't do it on a Chromebook.

Fortunately, everything needed to learn remotely works on the Chromebook's OS (Google Chrome).

One of these days, I'll buy myself a Mac and give my P O S Windows 10 laptop to my daughter. I'm waiting because I've read that the MacBooks will soon be getting a complete overhaul of their Hardware & Software. True or false? I don't really know but I'm a true Kuripot at heart.

[GeoffH]

1 hour ago, Jack D said:

I'm waiting because I've read that the MacBooks will soon be getting a complete overhaul of their Hardware & Software. True or false? 

 

It is definite  that Apple are changing to ARM processers in at least some laptops, that was scheduled to start next year and that will require a rewriting of the OS in a similar way that their shift from the G series processers to Intel needed.  No one knows how many ARM based machines will be released but the smart money is on some ARM machines and some Intel machines with a hybrid operating system (like when there were both 32 bit and 64 bit Apple machines there was a 32 bit OS and a 64 bit OS).

I wouldn't count on ARM being mainstream at the next release though... maybe the year after this release?

And this years relase could be late due to Covid.

 

 

[hk blues]

4 hours ago, Jack D said:

Fortunately, everything needed to learn remotely works on the Chromebook's OS (Google Chrome).

One of these days, I'll buy myself a Mac and give my P O S Windows 10 laptop to my daughter. I'm waiting because I've read that the MacBooks will soon be getting a complete overhaul of their Hardware & Software. True or false? I don't really know but I'm a true Kuripot at heart.

I could  have got a Chromebook for just under 11,000 but I haven't any experience of using one and was concerned that it wouldn't do everything I needed.

[GeoffH]

1 hour ago, hk blues said:

I could  have got a Chromebook for just under 11,000 but I haven't any experience of using one and was concerned that it wouldn't do everything I needed.

Yes that's the problem isn't it.  And without using one for a while no one really knows.

There is Google Docs which offers word processing and spread sheets but in the free version it's somewhat limited compared to Microsoft Office, there is a paid business version which has more functions (but if you're paying for it then you might as well buy a more expensive computer I think).

There are online Accounting programs for small business like Quick Books online and MYOB online but they are also somewhat restricted and don't offer all the functionality of the server/desktop versions.

There isn't a good extension for torrenting (that I've found anyway) and things like CAD are imited to web sites that do online house design mostly (but someone doing CAD is likely a power user anyway).

 

Ask youself how much of what you do is done in your web browser and how much is done in other programs, then you have to check to see if there is a web site that can do what you do in the program you use (or at least enough of it that you can get by).

There are more web sites and less compromise in using Chrome Books than there used to be but they are still limited in what they can be used for IMO.

*edit* I’m not trying to put people off buying one, if I needed a computer and I my budget was 10000 to 15000 then I’d be tempted because very low end laptops are often horribly slow to use.

 

 

 

Edited August 28, 2020 by GeoffH

[earthdome]

On 8/27/2020 at 11:55 PM, GeoffH said:

Yes that's the problem isn't it.  And without using one for a while no one really knows.

There is Google Docs which offers word processing and spread sheets but in the free version it's somewhat limited compared to Microsoft Office, there is a paid business version which has more functions (but if you're paying for it then you might as well buy a more expensive computer I think).

There are online Accounting programs for small business like Quick Books online and MYOB online but they are also somewhat restricted and don't offer all the functionality of the server/desktop versions.

There isn't a good extension for torrenting (that I've found anyway) and things like CAD are imited to web sites that do online house design mostly (but someone doing CAD is likely a power user anyway).

 

Ask youself how much of what you do is done in your web browser and how much is done in other programs, then you have to check to see if there is a web site that can do what you do in the program you use (or at least enough of it that you can get by).

There are more web sites and less compromise in using Chrome Books than there used to be but they are still limited in what they can be used for IMO.

*edit* I’m not trying to put people off buying one, if I needed a computer and I my budget was 10000 to 15000 then I’d be tempted because very low end laptops are often horribly slow to use.

 

 

 

The big drawback for a chrome device is that you must be connected to the internet to get any real use from it. That can be a problem in the Philippines where there are still areas with no or very limited access to the internet. For example, my wife wanted to buy and send chrome books for her family because they are inexpensive but that wouldn't work for them because not only can't they get internet at their home in the mountains, they can't even get a cell phone signal good enough for voice or text let alone data.

[Shady]

If there's one item best to buy internationally and import into the Philippines, it's laptops.  Here they are always terribly overpriced, with a terrible and terribly dated selection. And not without reasons;  most locals don't buy laptops, they buy cellphones. And if they need a computer, there are endless shops who can build one cheaply.

Just make sure that whichever brand you import either has an international warranty or allows you to transfer owner address to get service.

 

 

 

[hk blues]

3 minutes ago, Shady said:

If there's one item best to buy internationally and import into the Philippines, it's laptops.  Here they are always terribly overpriced, with a terrible and terribly dated selection. And not without reasons;  most locals don't buy laptops, they buy cellphones. And if they need a computer, there are endless shops who can build one cheaply.

Just make sure that whichever brand you import either has an international warranty or allows you to transfer owner address to get service.

 

 

 

I don't really agree at all - the pricing here is no more than in other countries and the range is just the same, at least for the type I have been looking for. I bought 2 in the last month here - pretty much exactly the same price as on US websites. As for locals not buying laptops - really not correct as anyone who has tried to buy one here will confirm!

[Shady]

4 hours ago, hk blues said:

I don't really agree at all - the pricing here is no more than in other countries and the range is just the same, at least for the type I have been looking for. I bought 2 in the last month here - pretty much exactly the same price as on US websites. As for locals not buying laptops - really not correct as anyone who has tried to buy one here will confirm!

You already agreed

4 hours ago, hk blues said:

Every single store the same story - only the higher end models available

And your Lenovo is China-made, I should have mentioned I wasn't talking about laptops from China, but higher end laptops from Dell, Apple, Samsung, etc They still don't have the top model units that have been available in the US for months, and when they do, add on about 20% or more if you want to buy here.

 

 

[GeoffH]

8 hours ago, Shady said:

You already agreed

And your Lenovo is China-made, I should have mentioned I wasn't talking about laptops from China, but higher end laptops from Dell, Apple, Samsung, etc They still don't have the top model units that have been available in the US for months, and when they do, add on about 20% or more if you want to buy here.

 

Yes but US prices are low by world standards, prices in the Philippines for Dell and Apple aren't much different to they are in Australia or in New Zealand.

And warranty (as long as you buy from an authorized dealer/distributor based in the Philippines) is fine in my experience.

One thing I have noticed is that release dates are a bit later but that's something that's true outside the US of most countries as well.

Apple and Dell release in the US first, then in major overseas markets and later in smaller overseas markets, it's common to wait in Australia several months after the US release date before product is available (albeit not quite as long as in the Philippines).

[Shady]

1 hour ago, GeoffH said:

Yes but US prices are low by world standards, prices in the Philippines for Dell and Apple aren't much different to they are in Australia or in New Zealand. Apple and Dell release in the US first, then in major overseas markets and later in smaller overseas markets, it's common to wait in Australia several months after the US release date before product is available (albeit not quite as long as in the Philippines).

Makes sense, my advice applies if you buy from the US. One other thing, most US makers like Dell.com won't ship directly to the Philippines, so you'd need to order with a US address, and then have it shipped into the Philippines. I've done this three times, even with the international shipping price I still saved a lot, and you get much better configuration options on the US websites.