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Need some help buying used laptop

J

jmatej

Member
I have never owned a laptop before, and I am thinking of picking up a used one. I do most of my work on a desktop and that is not likely to change. I'd like to use the laptop for fairly light duty e.g. GPS navigation in car and boat, DVD for movies on airplane trips, programming etc. and not pay a lot ($400-$1000) I have a couple of questions...
1. Are second hand laptops risky business?-I am not afraid of desktops because replacement parts are easy to come by. What is safer- a new off-brand laptop or a second hand/ refurbished established brand (dell,ibm etc)?
2. For my purposes a longer battery time would be desireable; are the newer models much more energy efficient?
Do larger screens eg 14 inch significantly reduce battery operating time?
3. What is the minimum cpu speed I should consider? Do DVD's play better with a faster chip-would a 300Mhz suffice or do I need something like a 500. PentiumII/III vs Celeron vs AMD
Any suggestions plus links to a hot deal would be greatly appreciated!!!
Thanks
 
"1. Are second hand laptops risky business?-I am not afraid of desktops because replacement parts are easy to come by. What is safer- a new off-brand laptop or a second hand/ refurbished established brand (dell,ibm etc)?"

There's always risk buying a used item - but if you buy one from the manufacturer you will get a warranty.

"2. For my purposes a longer battery time would be desireable; are the newer models much more energy efficient? Do larger screens eg 14 inch significantly reduce battery operating time?"

Yes and no. New models are more efficient and those with larger screens ahve appropriately sized batteries to handle the drain.

"3. What is the minimum cpu speed I should consider? Do DVD's play better with a faster chip-would a 300Mhz suffice or do I need something like a 500. PentiumII/III vs Celeron vs AMD"

DVDs need speed. You'll want at least 450MHz PII/PIII, Celeron, or Athlon. NOT AMD K6-2!

I don't think you'll be able to find a laptop that can play DVDs for under $1000, but you never know...


 
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