Right - my dad (age 65+) has decided that he needs to see what this internet lark is all about and is looking for a laptop.

He has little if any computer experience, so nothing too complicated required.

Requirements are:

Processor - anything out there is probably 100 times faster than he will need!

Memory - 512 will be more than enough

Hard Drive - 60 GB is plenty

Wireless enabled - he will buy a wireless router separately.

I know an older second hand model would probably do, but he's decided he wants to buy new (shiny box, warranty, manuals, basic but legitimate software etc). He will also want to buy from a recognised brand or high street store which will give him some extra confidence.

I've seen the basic Dell model (Inspiron 1501) here which will more than do the job I think for £349

Any thoughts, or other recommendations.

Can't see much need to spend over £400/450, but cheaper if possible would be better

There are some good £399 deals around, we bought on for my son for xmas from Woolworths, but comet & PC world have some half decent basic ones around.

Lenovo do a PC Pro recommended laptop.

The Lenovo 3000, N100 TY06UUK.

Price is £565 inc VAT from www.misco.co.uk and you will most likely find cheaper deals elsewhere.

Spec is:

- 1.66 Core Duo T2300E, 512 MB RAM, 80GB HDDm DVD Writer, Intem GMA950 graphics, 15.4" 1280x800 screen, 802.11abg wireless, XP pro, 1 year return to base wattenty.

Weighs in at 2.7KG

My parents have decided to have a go as well :eek: pensioners and technology dont go hand in hand:rofl: Its took them a year to learn how to text on a mobile.

I bought them the Dell 1501

Andy...

Check out Itcsales.co.uk for decent deals on second hand and cancelled order laptops.

just be sure to take into account the VAT and o/s (altho i can sort that part )

I got swmbo a good spec inspiron 6400 for less than

I'm retired now but my job was hardware repairs for a large organisation. We found warranty repairs on Dell an absolute nightmare. "Death by a thousand helpdesk questions" we called it. They will leave no stone unturned in trying to prove machine is not faulty and its all your fault. My staff were very experienced and could instantly tell Dell what was wrong and what needed replacing. NO chance,- here come the 1000 questions !

There were occasions where we would carry out the repair at out own expense - it was cheaper than engineers wasting 3 hours on the phone.

True to say Dell are cheap and fashionable at the moment but if you buy one pray nothing goes wrong.

I have to acknowledge you only get what you pay for - but I used to get angry at the false warranty promises made by certain companies.

My favourites were IBM and Toshiba both good machines and honourable companies but indeed more expensive!

Lenovo now make the thinkpads, and yes i totally agree about Dell, we have been known to buy new Hard Disks and DIY the repair even though we had next business day gold response warrenty as you know it can be fixed inside a day then.

I'll stck up for Dell here , and on the two occasions I've needed to get something repaired they have been more than happy to accept my word and the engineer turned up the next day with the spares.

By contrast most other manufacturers will still ask you all the questions , try and get you to re-install windows , and then insist you send the laptop off to them at your own expense and get it back a week or two later.

There's a couple of nice Dell's here

Dell Inspiron 1501 Special Offers, Cheapest Deals and E-Value Codes | dmXdimension

The £349 one is good enough but I'd spend the bit extra and get a £388 one for the better processor and bigger screen

My parents have decided to have a go as well :eek: pensioners and technology dont go hand in hand:rofl: Its took them a year to learn how to text on a mobile.

I bought them the Dell 1501