Please check specs for laptop for general use

[seamcn]

Hi everyone,

My first post (if you discount when I posted this same spec in the wrong forum)!

I bought a gaming desktop PC from PCS last year and now I'm looking to purchase a laptop for myself and my girlfriend to use. I've drafted up some specs - any advice would be much appreciated!

What we will use it for:

- Watching live sport
- Watching videos/movies on the internet
- Browsing the internet
- Basic Microsoft Office programmes (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) but nothing intense
- Connecting to a Virtual Desktop for work via the internet
- Personal Zoom/Skype calls

Other considerations:

- We just want it to be fast and snappy using Windows and internet browsers
- We don't need to watch videos or sport in very high quality, 1080p is plenty
- No video games will be played on this laptop
- We don't need much storage space as we have other places to store files, we just need the smallest SSD that will efficiently run the OS and everything else
- The laptop will almost exclusively be connected to an external drive via HDMI so we're not bothered about the screen quality
- Small, thin and light would be ideal
- My budget is ~£600

What do you think of the below?

Chassis & Display
Initia Series: 14" Matte Full HD 60 Hz 45% NTSC LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Quad Core Processor i5-10210U (1.6GHz, 4.2GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
8GB Corsair 2666MHz SODIMM DDR4 (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
INTEL® HD GRAPHICS (CPU Dependant) - 1.7GB Max DDR4 Video RAM - DirectX® 12
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3200MB/W)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated Micro-SD Memory Card Reader
AC Adaptor
1 x 45W AC Adaptor
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre Cloverleaf UK Power Cable
Battery
Initia Series Integrated 36WH Lithium Ion Battery
Sound Card
2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 (2.4 Gbps) + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
1 x USB 3.2 PORT (Type C) + 1 x USB 3.2 PORT + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Keyboard Language
ULTRANOTE SERIES UK KEYBOARD
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Google Chrome™
Keyboard & Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 1MP HD WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Chassis
Clevo NL41CU2 FHD (i5-10210U, FHD, 60Hz N4, Blank KB)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 5 to 7 working days
Price: £611.00 including VAT and Delivery

 

[Bhuna50]

If you wanted to save a little bit on the build, I would suggest the PCS SSD at about £60 cheaper I think.

(Deleted the rest of my post as typing too slow and @Nursemorph was there first again....it is him this time isnt it - hold on wheres my glasses).

 

[seamcn]

Great advice, thank you both! I already have a Norton antivirus subscription for multiple devices which I can add to it, so removing the Bullguard sounds sensible.

Dead pixel - as you say £19 is not a lot for peace of mind, only reason I didn't initially consider it was that I won't look at the screen itself often. But might still be worth it for the occasions we do.

RAM - I think the 2 x 4GB is a great idea and I doubt we will ever upgrade this laptop. The downside is that is only an option 2133MHz. So the question is, is it better to have 1 x 8GB 2666MHz or 2 x 4GB 2133MHz?

SSD - We want the quickest possible SSD so I chose the Samsung one - how noticeable will the drop to the PCS SSD be?