chipfork 10 #1 Posted October 13, 2020 I would be interested in people's thoughts and advice. I work in IT and have an appreciation of end user computing at an enterprise level but that is a small help when looking at something for personal/small business use. A friend has a Lenovo ideapad: Win10 Pro, 11.6" display, Celeron CPU, 4GB RAM and a 30GB SSD. She's looking for something of a similar size and weight but with "more power/memory". It's mostly used for video conferencing and also recording voice and video sessions consultations. I have had a quick look at mainstream sites and laptop prices seemed to have jumped considerably from a year to two back. Any laptop recommendations, 13/13.3" seems to be a more common ultra-portable entry point and probably offers more choice? Storage is a factor as 30 min to 1 hour audio/video sessions will be saved. Either a decent SSD option or scope to upgrade it myself as I have done with my own laptop. Backup is important so I was going to recommend a Microsoft 365 Personal subscription for 1TB cloud for backup using OneDrive and also to have Microsoft Office. The organisation she works for is eligible for the home use program, so about £40 a year. Audio editing software - She uses Zoom and potentially Teams so can record from there. If any simple editing is required then there is Audacity, or is there something simpler...and free? Video editing software - Again can record from video conferencing but simple editing and sharing has been a challenge. I have helped out, I use handbrake which is a little complex, anything simple and ideally free that is better for novices? Thanks 😉 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
Ghozer 112 #2 Posted October 13, 2020 Most laptops now will do the above required... light video editing, confrences and such... some light audio stuff (audacity etc) MINIMUM i3 9th Gen or newer... or Ryzen 5 3rd Gen or newer.... really... But for the size (around 13") it may cost a bit more, the prices for the smaller/slimmer ones start from around £700 - but I wouldn't bother with that one (another Celeron) - so you're looking close to 1k, which you can get MUCH better for your money if you go slightly larger... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
chipfork 10 #3 Posted October 13, 2020 5 hours ago, Ghozer said: Most laptops now will do the above required... light video editing, confrences and such... some light audio stuff (audacity etc) MINIMUM i3 9th Gen or newer... or Ryzen 5 3rd Gen or newer.... really... But for the size (around 13") it may cost a bit more, the prices for the smaller/slimmer ones start from around £700 - but I wouldn't bother with that one (another Celeron) - so you're looking close to 1k, which you can get MUCH better for your money if you go slightly larger... Thanks Ghozer. I'm liking the look of the Surface Laptop Go, not much else in the 12" category with a reasonable spec for the money. I'm loaning an old HP EliteBook which still has a decent spec to see if they get on with a heavier 14" laptop. Will see how they get on and go from there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
Guest #4 Posted October 13, 2020 You get some very light ultrabooks but you're looking at more money. A budget would help with recommendations. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
chipfork 10 #5 Posted October 14, 2020 11 hours ago, probedb said: You get some very light ultrabooks but you're looking at more money. A budget would help with recommendations. Budget really depends on how well the device fits with the requirements, probably no more than £700. That brings in something like the Surface Laptop Go but then if they get on with a 14" laptop that comes in around £400/£500 then all the better. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
