bobbyftm

Hi folks the Mrs would like a new 2 in 1 laptop thingy just for playing with (not gaming though) but not being tech savvy I would welcome any recommendations thanks. Budget circa $600

Amazulu

I have the Microsoft Surface Pro. I got the outgoing i5/4GB model for under $900 (plus I got the GST back at TRS). I already had the optional keyboard and pen. Not within your budget but a great little machine that does everything I need. The new Surface Pro Go is about to be released that will be closer to your price point. There are some machines around the $600 mark but they will probably have underpowered Atom processors

bobbyftm

Thanks for that. I looked at surface pro and had I been needing a machine wouldve probably opted for something like that cos I like bells and whistles on things ! Budget can be increased but mostly she wants / needs something with an optional keyboard,near full size if possible (maybe to do some work on I guess ). Forgot to add over in Usa for the next couple of weeks so would there be better options out there do you know ?. ( Having read your posts over the years I know you like comparing items in different countries pricewise and I've not been to Usa for 12 years or so ) hence the reason for asking.
Thanks again

GarryP

As things stand you are hard pressed to find a decent laptop for that price, let alone a convertible. Thanks to apple overpricing, and others thinking they can do similar, things at that end tend to be anaemic at best.

You might find something in the EoL/refurb basis, eg https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/392340 or maybe in the chinese no names. Your issue is that windows needs more horsepower to work properly, and as a tablet it stinks.

Or otherwise I'd look to the chromebooks which are better targeted to that processor level, and should be able to run android apps.

It does depend on what you want to do with it.

Amazulu

I love my Surface - I'm on my 3rd one now. I use it for most things - Office, internet, video. I've even run PDMS 3D modelling software on it (not fantastically, but it ran)

If you are going to the US then get it there (Best Buy, Walmart etc). I reckon the new Surface Go is what you are looking for. Saying that, if you shop around here and get some price-matching going, you might get a good price - and be able to claim the 10% GST back at TRS. I did on our recent trip to Japan

Amazulu

The Surface Go is due to be released this week

Amazulu

$470 for a Chinese 2 in 1:
https://www.gearbest.com/tablet-pcs/...ml?wid=1433363

Gets good reviews but a lot of these Chinese products can be a bit hit and miss

bobbyftm

This is the sort of thing we/she were looking at recently

eBay


https://www.harveynorman.com.au/acer...-1-laptop.html

Many thx so far

GarryP

1.1Ghz Celeron processor with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of SD card for storage and OS.

Trying to run Win10, but only the S version (eg it's crippled).

bobbyftm

What would be minimum processor required .? As I said budget can be upgraded (although she might not want it to be )

Amazulu

​​​​​
I reckon an intel i5 is about right but it depends what you want to do with it - office, internet and a bit of video doesn't need a lot of grunt. Most of these kind of devices have no upgrade options so you are stuck with what you buy

GarryP

The question is more "what am I going to want to do with it"?

Win10 with that spec is going to hurt, fast. However something like a chromebook would be OK. If you were looking to play games, you'd need much more. If you were looking to watch media, then you can get away with a lot less as long as it has hardware decoding. Hell, much of this nowadays is dependent on the cloud and just how fast and voluminous your internet connection is.

How long is a piece of string?

Amazulu

The other option is to get a tablet and a separate Bluetooth keyboard and mouse

Could work out a bit cheaper - and if you are into Apple products, the new ipad looks okay

bobbyftm

Still nothing decided yet ,now looking into netbooks but thanks for directing me away from the inferior items fellas

calman014

LENOVO Yoga..??