Need Help Finding a Good Crappy Laptop

[tockle]

I will not be using it for gaming so keep that in mind. All I will be using it for is surfing the web, skyping, watching videos, all the typical non-gaming things people use computers for. I will be taking it to class with me so preferably something not extremely bulky.

I searched for other topics of people requesting laptop help to see what they were looking at, but it seems like most people here want it for gaming as well so I figured this warranted a new thread =P Price range is around 300/400 max.

Edit: Needs a decent built in webcam.

[hayharut]

in that case you want a notebook *gags a little*

[Deleted]

Would help a little bit if we knew where you were from/your currency, 300/400 would vary greatly in what it could get you between let's say... the UK and the US.

[roahn the warlock]

get an old asus used,.... you can probably find one for 400... but i would save some more and get a half decent one used... just got a refurbashed asus g53 for 800.

[tockle]

USD. Want new. Not too fond of netbooks, would this be a better option though?

[taekvideo]

Here are a couple of good options:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834215126
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834215125

both have good specs for the price

[Deleted]

A netbook would be able to do the things you've outlined, albeit will be a little bit slower than your average netbook.
Taek linked two very good laptops they're both very powerful laptops and would last a number of years, and would be able to run games if you changed your mind.

If you're open minded on netbooks, take a look at these two. Note that they don't have a DVD drive, if you wanted to use discs, you'd have to buy an external drive:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834230054
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834220816

[tockle]

I notice both of those are notebooks, not laptops. What are the difference between the two? They seem the same. In the first reply, when he said sounds like I want a notebook, I thought he means netbook (those tiny things). That's how computer illiterate I am. So pretty much, what is the difference between a laptop and a notebook & which would suit me better?

[Deleted]

I'm actually being quiet serious here but for what you want it for, get the cheapest thing that ticks your boxes. There's 100's of decent laptops with a screen, keyboard, drives and a built in webcam.

[tockle]

^ That's all I'm looking for, but I don't wanna buy some garbage that I'll have to return to get fixed every two weeks.

[wombinator04]

You can get a Dell. I'm not sure If their built strong like they were 4-5 years ago, but they have good support. Just avoid HP's like the plague, their loaded with spyware and bloatware that will slow down your laptop like crazy.

Here's a slim good laptop I found on Newegg. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834152271

[Deleted]

You're actually not computer illiterate at all.
What I've linked you previously are netbooks, not notebooks, I apologise. I'll edit my post to reflect that.

Netbooks are laptops that are less than 12 inches wide, they're super small and pretty convenient, but compensate for this by having slower processors, few cores, and no disc drives.

Here is a WikiAnswers article describing the difference between Laptops, Notebooks and Netbooks, I hope this clears it up for you.
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_th...ook_or_netbook

Anyway, since what you're doing with the machine is going to be that strenuous, you don't really need to worry -too- much about the specs of the machine. The laptops Taek linked were more than powerful enough to last you a few years, but if you want something a little less expensive you're not going to struggle either.

As for netbooks, this all comes down to personal preference. Personally I hate the things because the keyboard is really small. I would only recommend them if you're going to be taking it everywhere with you, or if you need it for lecture notes. They're useful in that respect as due to their lower system specifications, their battery life is really good and you don't generally give up too many essential features.

However, if you're willing to carry something a little bigger around with you, I'd recommend getting a notebook. A notebook is half-way between a netbook and a laptop, with none of the downsides of the netbook.

Try going to a local electronics store and trying out their machines and find something that suits you. Once you've found something you like, you can probably find it online cheaper. Since I'm from the UK I can't recommend any American stores, I only really know of Newegg and I have a limited grasp of that.