Is this laptop enough for just email and basic web browsing?

[Navid]

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/...5F799&logon=&langid=EN

I am in Canada now and need to get this done by the end of the week!.
Please don't give me pointers to better deals in the States.
Also, keep in mind that the price is in Canadian Dollars.

But, will this cause any problems for very basic use?

Are there any serious problems with anything in this model?

Thanks!

 

[MarcVenice]

Yes it should be fine, but not in Vista. 512MB DDR2 simply does NOT cut it in Vista, 1gb is the bare minimum. For XP it could be fine, but a big performance increase will be seen by going to 1024mb.

 

[Navid]

I want Vista on it.
Would it be slow for just email and web browsing?

 

[Modelworks]

Your fine with vista and 512mb if your not going to be doing any 3d intensive stuff like gaming.

If your just going to do email, office, web sites, 512MB in vista is fine.

 

[MarcVenice]

Well it will work, but it will be rather slow. With some tough luck, you hit 500mb memory usage even when doing basic stuff. I suggest doing 1 thing at a time

 

[nerp]

It will work, but you want at LEAST 1GB for reasonable performance. I have a budget laptop running Vista. It came with 512MB and the machine was pretty darned slow. Upgrading it to 1GB made a tremedous difference. Upping it to 2GB made the machine perform awesomely.

 

[JustaGeek]

I have a Compaq laptop with 2.0GHz Sempron and the older X200 chipset with 128MB shared VRAM, but I replaced the 512MB with 2GB RAM.

I am running Vista Home Premium with all the features, including Aero, functioning properly.

I would recommend the HP or HP Compaq brand over Acer, though.

 

[Navid]

I checked it in the store and it did feel sluggish.

Asked the guy for an upgrade to 1GB. He says this comes with 2 256MB modules. So, he says I have to buy a 1GB module. Then, he tells me they only have 1GB modules for their shop. So, I have to pay a total of $160 for the 1GB module and installation.

Considering that it was going to cost me $160 to upgrade to 1G of RAM, I started looking at a laptop, which came with 1GB of RAM and was only $100 more expensive.

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/...5F799&logon=&langid=EN

Do you see anything really bad in this one.

Please tell me.

Thanks!

 

[MarcVenice]

Thats looks okay ish. My dads 4 year old dell, 1.8ghz p4 I think, still is plenty fast for easy stuff like web browsing, checking email and such. So this laptop should be fine too. Don't expect anything from it graphics wise though. With it's integrated graphics gaming is pretty much a no no

 

[nerp]

I'd recommend buying memory from a reputable online retailer instead of through any dealer. You can save a lot of money. Make sure you get two chips to get the machine running in dual channel mode. You can get 1GB DDR2 sodimms from newegg for $40.

 

[Navid]

Originally posted by: nerp
I'd recommend buying memory from a reputable online retailer instead of through any dealer. You can save a lot of money. Make sure you get two chips to get the machine running in dual channel mode. You can get 1GB DDR2 sodimms from newegg for $40.

I am in Canada right now and do not have time for ordering anything online. I will be gone before the order ships!

 

[oynaz]

The second one seems OK. The first one will not be pleasant to work on with Vista.
Unfortunately, I have very bad experience with Acers. I recommend a cheap HP instead, Of course, they are more expensive, but the screens are not prone to falling off, the power supply does not cause fires, and the HDD does not spontaneously commit suicide. Expect one or more of these three to happen to an Acer.

 

[Navid]

I spent $100 more ($600) and got this one instead.
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfr...roduct=3379120&lang=en

It comes with a larger screen and Vista Premium.

Please tell me if you see anything wrong with it.

 

[JustaGeek]

Excellent choice. You won't be disappointed.

Visit their support site and see how "rich" it is - drivers, Software Updates, BIOS', repair manuals, you name it.

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfr...roduct=3379120&lang=en

Enjoy!