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A few questions regarding customizing a laptop
Posted on 3/12/16 at 7:11 pm
Posted on 3/12/16 at 7:11 pm
I'm going to customize and buy an HP Pavilion. I'm customizing it right now and trying to pick the optimal options. It will be a casual use laptop not used for gaming.
Processor: Comes with AMD Quad Core A8 7410 processor and R5 graphics chip. Can pay extra to upgrade processor and/or graphics chip.
Memory: Comes with 8gb. Could upgrade to 12 or 16.
Display: Comes with 15.6" HD BrightView WLED (1366x768)
Could upgrade to 1920x1080 Full HD WLED or Full HD WLED IPS
Hard Drive: Comes with 1 TB hard drive. Could upgrade to 1TB hybrid hard drive or 256gb SATA flash solid state drive.
Keyboard: Can upgrade to a backlit keyboard.
I'm thinking about leaving everything standard except upgrading to the solid state drive (+$180) and then getting external hard drive or cloud if I exceed 256 gb. Since I'm not gaming, the memory should be good..any value in upgrading the processor or display for a casual use laptop? And the backlit keyboard for $30..is that worth anything or just a gimmick?
Processor: Comes with AMD Quad Core A8 7410 processor and R5 graphics chip. Can pay extra to upgrade processor and/or graphics chip.
Memory: Comes with 8gb. Could upgrade to 12 or 16.
Display: Comes with 15.6" HD BrightView WLED (1366x768)
Could upgrade to 1920x1080 Full HD WLED or Full HD WLED IPS
Hard Drive: Comes with 1 TB hard drive. Could upgrade to 1TB hybrid hard drive or 256gb SATA flash solid state drive.
Keyboard: Can upgrade to a backlit keyboard.
I'm thinking about leaving everything standard except upgrading to the solid state drive (+$180) and then getting external hard drive or cloud if I exceed 256 gb. Since I'm not gaming, the memory should be good..any value in upgrading the processor or display for a casual use laptop? And the backlit keyboard for $30..is that worth anything or just a gimmick?
This post was edited on 3/12/16 at 7:13 pm
2
Posted on 3/12/16 at 7:20 pm to TheIndulger
They are raping you on that ssd. You can catch one on sale at newegg for less than half that.
ETA: here is what I would do...
buy the laptop standard + the backlit keyboard (those can be really handy).
buy whatever ~250GB ssd is currently on sale from a reputable brand (samsung, sandisk, kingston, crucial, intel, etc)
buy a 2.5" external enclosure similar to this
when you get your laptop in, clone the hard drive to the ssd using free cloning software from miray, install the ssd in the laptop, and install the old hard drive in your enclosure. now you have an SSD upgrade and a external back up drive for around $90.
ETA: here is what I would do...
buy the laptop standard + the backlit keyboard (those can be really handy).
buy whatever ~250GB ssd is currently on sale from a reputable brand (samsung, sandisk, kingston, crucial, intel, etc)
buy a 2.5" external enclosure similar to this
when you get your laptop in, clone the hard drive to the ssd using free cloning software from miray, install the ssd in the laptop, and install the old hard drive in your enclosure. now you have an SSD upgrade and a external back up drive for around $90.
This post was edited on 3/12/16 at 7:35 pm
Posted on 3/12/16 at 7:28 pm to TheIndulger
Leave CPU and RAM alone. Upgrade to the 1080P monitor (IPS, if I were you, but not a priority). And as stated above, buy the SSD separately for a reasonable price somewhere else and clone the hard drive yourself.
Posted on 3/12/16 at 7:30 pm to ILikeLSUToo
I have a backlit keyboard and don't think I ever want to not have one again
Posted on 3/12/16 at 7:36 pm to ILikeLSUToo
quote:
. And as stated above, buy the SSD separately for a reasonable price somewhere else and clone the hard drive yourself.
Is cloning the hard drive an easy process?
Posted on 3/12/16 at 7:36 pm to 756
quote:
I have a backlit keyboard and don't think I ever want to not have one again
I missed that one. Holy shite yes upgrade to a backlit keyboard. I couldn't live without it either.
Posted on 3/12/16 at 7:37 pm to 756
quote:
I have a backlit keyboard and don't think I ever want to not have one again
What makes the backlit keyboard great? I know where most of the keys I use are anyway. I mean it's only 30 bucks but I'd like to have only things I'll use.
Posted on 3/12/16 at 7:39 pm to TheIndulger
quote:
Is cloning the hard drive an easy process?
can you use a phillips head screwdriver? can you read the english language and follow very basic instructions? yep? then you are good to go.
seriously a monkey could do it.
Posted on 3/12/16 at 7:48 pm to TheIndulger
quote:
What makes the backlit keyboard great? I know where most of the keys I use are anyway. I mean it's only 30 bucks but I'd like to have only things I'll use.
Up to you. I'm a night owl, so that's why I prefer backlit.
Cloning is easy. I wrote instructions for it: LINK (the instructions seem long and involved, but really they're just very detailed, line by line, accounting for multiple scenarios).
And when you're done, you'll be able to use your hard drive as an external (you'll need to buy an enclosure for the cloning process anyway. see instructions)
This post was edited on 3/12/16 at 7:49 pm
Posted on 3/12/16 at 9:29 pm to ILikeLSUToo
Awesome! Thanks. I may just buy the basic laptop then upgrade to ssd later. Any idea what a 256 gb ssd would run? Hp would charge $180 if I add it on.
Posted on 3/12/16 at 9:34 pm to TheIndulger
You could get a 256 SSD from Amazon anywhere from 80-90 bucks now. Theres a ton of good deals.
Also check out Newegg.
And if you have a Fry's Electronics near you, look at their weekly deals. They have been absolutely killing it lately.
EDIT: Actually Amazon has some that are even less than 80:
SanDisk 240 GB SSD $64.99 - LINK
Also check out Newegg.
And if you have a Fry's Electronics near you, look at their weekly deals. They have been absolutely killing it lately.
EDIT: Actually Amazon has some that are even less than 80:
SanDisk 240 GB SSD $64.99 - LINK
This post was edited on 3/12/16 at 9:44 pm
Posted on 3/13/16 at 3:04 pm to jcole4lsu
quote:
They are raping you on that ssd. You can catch one on sale at newegg for less than half that.
ETA: here is what I would do...
buy the laptop standard + the backlit keyboard (those can be really handy).
buy whatever ~250GB ssd is currently on sale from a reputable brand (samsung, sandisk, kingston, crucial, intel, etc)
buy a 2.5" external enclosure similar to this
when you get your laptop in, clone the hard drive to the ssd using free cloning software from miray, install the ssd in the laptop, and install the old hard drive in your enclosure. now you have an SSD upgrade and a external back up drive for around $90.
Do you think the SSD is worth having, or would I be fine with the standard 1TB hard drive?
Posted on 3/13/16 at 3:07 pm to TheIndulger
SSD will make the most significant difference in everyday performance. The downside is that you'll never want to go back to traditional hard drives for your OS again.
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