[sue.words]

I am looking for a new laptop. It does not need to be particularly portable and so weight and battery life are not major considerations. Smooth speedy performance is important to me, and being able to switch easily between a fair number of open internet tabs and a fair number of open (mainly Word) documents.

I have come to the conclusion that the ideal specs for me are roughly these:

Intel i5 processor
8GB RAM
15+" screen
750GB to 1TB hard disc

Judging by the large number of models I've found with these specs that are within my price range (preferably not more than GBP 600, which is a bit less than USD 1,000), this is a realistic spec to aim for.

PC Advisor rated Acer Aspire V3-571 very highly, (see http://www.pcadvisor...-v3-571-review/ ) but when I looked at customer reviews on the Amazon website (and later on the Acer user forum - http://community.ace...e/m-p/3405#M966 ) I became concerned that a lot of users were having problems even if professional reviewers had found the laptop performed well.

Oh dear, I thought, back to the drawing board.

But as I trawl through huge numbers of websites - best buy recommendations, suppliers' lists of available laptops, articles about this processor and that and other features - I keep finding that whenever I find what looks like a really good machine someone, somewhere, has had a ghastly experience with it.

I am also very confused by what seem to be very slight differences between models: Amazon, for example, shows nine different versions of the Acer Aspire V3-571. Some of the differences I do understand, such as those with RAM and HD, but which of them (if any) will they be relevant to whether a particular machine performs like the one the PC Advisor expert reviewed or like the ones that had their users screaming on the Acer user forum?

I am going round in circles so much that I don't think I'm being very articulate about my problems any more.

All constructive comments would be welcome, whether they specifically relate to the wifi problems with Acer Aspire V3-571 laptops or are suggestions about how I should get myself to a postion where I can make a confident purchase of a laptop of any make.

Very many thanks to anyone who has read all the way through this!

Sue

Edited by sue.words, 19 August 2013 - 05:39 AM.

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How does this grab you Sue?

http://www.pcworld.c...449717-pdt.html

[Wolfeymole]

How does this grab you Sue?

http://www.pcworld.c...449717-pdt.html

[sue.words]

Thank you for responding, Wolfeymole

This laptop does look very interesting. I haven't had much success in getting user feedback (for example at the Amazon website, which is where I first got wind of problems with the Acer Aspire), but PC Checker (http://www.pcchecker...y-m61310sa.html ) gives it a score of 35.79% - which doesn't look wonderful until you see that most vaguely comparable laptops don't get anywhere near that level.

The one thing that I would value your comment on is the processor. I really know and understand nothing about processors, but in trying to get to grips with technical details so as to be an informed buyer have got the impression that you need a jolly good reason not to buy a computer with an Intel processor. And I thought I should be going for an i5 one too. I did Google "AMD Quad-Core A10-5750M APU (2.5 GHz, 4MB cache)" but am not honestly much the wiser. Please can you help me on that issue?

[Wolfeymole]

You have dedicated Intel fans and you have dedicated AMD fans and since AMD have been around since around 1975 they can't be termed as crap.

Consider this comparison that I found at a glance and you will see that the CPU in the laptop in my link is more or less the same as an i5.

http://www.game-deba...i5-2450m-2-5ghz

For what you want to do the machine in my link will be like a greyhound out of trap 1 at a dog meeting.

[sue.words]

Thank you for going to so much trouble in explaining all this, Wolfeymole!

I think there is a very good chance that I shall go with your suggestion and buy the HP ENVY m6-1310sa 15.6" Laptop.

I'm feeling much more positive now.

Best wishes
Sue

[Wolfeymole]

You're more than welcome Sue.