Need laptop for school

Sheners

Estimable
Jan 28, 2015
1
0
4,510
I need a laptop for school use and some casual gaming. I'm trying not to go over $1500 AUD. Suggestions please.
 
Solution
I'd prioritize low weight, an IPS display and good battery life. Here are 2 (and a half) suggestions:

http://www3.lenovo.com/au/en/deals/current-offers/laptops-for-work-deals/NoteBook-TP-Yoga-460-8G-256-W10H/p/20EMA00BAU

At AUD1,559 I know we've crossed the line, but as you can tell it's a special weekend deal from Lenovo AUS and in my opinion it hits all the right spots. The integrated HD 520 graphics unit card is guaranteed to keep your gaming ambitions at casual-only levels. Lenovo claims 10 hours of battery life - if you can get 7 I'd still say it's a good deal. The 2-in-1 design will make it more practical in classrooms and lecture halls, and the superior viewing angles afforded by the 14" IPS display should make watching movies...
I'd prioritize low weight, an IPS display and good battery life. Here are 2 (and a half) suggestions:

http://www3.lenovo.com/au/en/deals/current-offers/laptops-for-work-deals/NoteBook-TP-Yoga-460-8G-256-W10H/p/20EMA00BAU

At AUD1,559 I know we've crossed the line, but as you can tell it's a special weekend deal from Lenovo AUS and in my opinion it hits all the right spots. The integrated HD 520 graphics unit card is guaranteed to keep your gaming ambitions at casual-only levels. Lenovo claims 10 hours of battery life - if you can get 7 I'd still say it's a good deal. The 2-in-1 design will make it more practical in classrooms and lecture halls, and the superior viewing angles afforded by the 14" IPS display should make watching movies not only worth the while but also possible. Weight is 1.8 kg.

Over at Dell's, you can get this Inspiron 13 5000:
http://www.dell.com/au/p/inspiron-13-5378-2-in-1-laptop/pd?oc=z511262au&model_id=inspiron-13-5378-2-in-1-laptop

At AUD1,499 it stays within budget (just) and weighs in at 1.6kg. It's a slightly smaller frame but it comes with a Kaby Lake i5 CPU and Intel's HD 620, which is a step up from the HD 520 in the Lenovo, but still very much 'casual gaming only'. No data on the battery life, but this is generally speaking not Dell's strongest suit. My guess is 5 to 6 hours. In contrast, Dell usually offers very good panels and they are generally worth the extra money compared to Lenovo's panels.

And finally, let me throw in this joker from Lenovo AUS:
http://www3.lenovo.com/au/en/deals/current-offers/laptops-for-work-deals/NoteBook-TP-E470-8G-256-W10H/p/20H1A022AU

It's another weekend deal at AUD1,029. This is a 14" ThinkPad E470 with a Kaby Lake i7 CPU and a 2GB 940MX graphics card. That should allow for gaming well beyond casual levels. Again, 10 hours of battery life - but with this ThinkPad you might actually get close to that - and weight at 1.9kg. This is a traditional clam-style laptop and it does come with a TN panel. But: because it's a ThinkPad you can replace the mediocre TN panel with an IPS panel later on with little to no effort. Replacement IPS panels for ThinkPads are readily available for around $100 on the Internet. (Bear in mind that it will cut battery life by at least 1 hour.)

Cheers,
GreyCatz.
 
Solution