Decent inexpensive laptop?

[Jimmy Higgins]

I wanted to get my daughter in using a computer. I figure the best way was a small laptop. I was looking at Chromebooks, but the software seems limited. I want the laptop to be a portal to learning to type, science, and math. So Windows 10 *sigh* seems to be the way to go, though I've seen issues regarding having enough space to update the OS.

Looking online for reviews seems to indicate a lot of fake websites that are veiled advertisements. My daughter is pretty young, so I don't want or need an expensive laptop, but it appeared that most of the ones for $300 or less have shaky reviews. I don't want the thing to fall apart or have the wireless or USB stuff fail after a few months. Don't need power, but want longevity of use. 11" or 11.6" is fine.

Anyone have thoughts?

 

[rousseau]

If you're going windows there aren't really any silver bullets. AFAIK, most of the hardware brands are pretty much indistinguishable, at which point what you're worried about are the specs of the laptop (namely RAM and processing speed).

If you go as cheap as possible it's going to be a shoddy laptop no matter how you slice it. This will be due to the internal components, not the make. So basically you need to decide which specs you're comfortable with and go from there. These days 8GB ram is considered a bare minimum. I assume the processor will be less important, but I couldn't say for sure.

But any make with a similar amount of RAM/processing power will be in a similar ball-park price-wise, so you should find something that meets the bare minimum (probably i5, 8gb RAM).

Also the physical layout of the laptop shouldn't be shit. Have her test it out before you buy.

edit: I would add you might be able to get by on 6gb RAM, but anything less than that along with a sub-i5 processor will likely give you performance issues

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Would Android apps with a Chromebook be able to provide what I want education wise? It seems cheaper Chromebooks have better reviews, presumably less bloat in the OS.

 

[none]

most everything is done via browser anymore.
if you really feel you need to expose her to using a mouse...why?
a nice tablet is the trend nowadays
in a year or so there will be folding screen phones for $1k

 

[Cheerful Charlie]

Lenovo seems to have a decent laptop for cheap. The problem with computers nowadays is that Windows can be a pain in the ass. But not all systems are ready for Linux if you decide to give up on Windows. As I stated in another thread, Dell has decided that we don't need any sort of manual with their complex Windows-centric BIOS system. Looking at what manuals are available (check online) for any sort of system you are contemplating buying is a must.

 

[bilby]

I recently bought a five year old laptop from a second hand store; Wiped the HDD, installed Lubuntu, and now have a very cheap and quite powerful machine that is perfectly good for my purposes - some web browsing, the odd bit of word processing, and a couple of fairly complex spreadsheets. (Libre Office is free and works as well as MS Office for my purposes).

Why bother with Windows and all that hassle? Most of the popular linux distros are no harder to install than Windows these days, particularly on older machines where the BIOS isn't hidden or locked down.

 

[none]

the problem for a linux novice is they see some product offered on a developers site and want it, then download the application and try and install it
then it doesn't install correctly and then begins the nightmare of trying to salvage a broken linux system

 

[rousseau]

Would Android apps with a Chromebook be able to provide what I want education wise? It seems cheaper Chromebooks have better reviews, presumably less bloat in the OS.

I'm unfamiliar with Chromebooks but they might be a good option. My partner is considering getting one but she wants Office to be runnable. I believe that's possible with some of them but yea, the OS will be more limited. Couldn't really tell you how.

I would avoid getting her something without a keyboard, though, for reasons you can likely glean.

 

[steve_bank]

Back in the 90s somebody tried to make a cheep laptop for global education and it failed.

There are only a finite set of general chips. Some chips are available only if you buy a minimum per month.

Speed costs more. More functionality costs more money. Computer is now a TV and video game platform. And if the net bandwidth stats the stats are right a porn platform. Size costs more. It takes less engineering to make a larger board inside a regular enclosure with a generic power supply than a small laptop with a lot of functionality.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

If I mention my daughter is 6, will people be quiet about Linux.

I understand there are tradeoffs with a cheap laptop. I was wondering if anyone was aware of an adequate cheap laptop or Chromebook if Android has good enough education apps for a young child who needs to learn how to type, do math stuffs, and maybe get into minor coding.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

the problem for a linux novice is they see some product offered on a developers site and want it, then download the application and try and install it
then it doesn't install correctly and then begins the nightmare of trying to salvage a broken linux system

Oh goodness, I bricked a computer with Red Hat and a Ubuntu system upgrade fucked up Flash I think.

Linux has its uses, but it is kind of like cold fusion.

 

[none]

the problem for a linux novice is they see some product offered on a developers site and want it, then download the application and try and install it
then it doesn't install correctly and then begins the nightmare of trying to salvage a broken linux system

Oh goodness, I bricked a computer with Red Hat and a Ubuntu system upgrade fucked up Flash I think.

Linux has its uses, but it is kind of like cold fusion.

I am curious if you are stressing a keyboard/mouse experience ?
times have changed learning an archaic skill such as keyboard mouse is useful but in 10 years?
is it mostly for nostalgia ??

 

[none]

I saw punch cards fed into an early model computer but by then keyboard on a teletype was developed

 

[rousseau]

If I mention my daughter is 6, will people be quiet about Linux.

I understand there are tradeoffs with a cheap laptop. I was wondering if anyone was aware of an adequate cheap laptop or Chromebook if Android has good enough education apps for a young child who needs to learn how to type, do math stuffs, and maybe get into minor coding.

It depends on what you mean by adequate. Any cheap laptop is going to have performance issues. If you're ok with the machine being a little laggy, find a local computer shop, sort by price, and look up percentage of 5 star ratings of a few machines on Amazon. They're all going to be sub-par review wise, but they'll be cheap.

If you're not ok with a laggy laptop, sort by machines with the specs I mentioned above. Can't really give you a specific answer because there's no silver bullet, and it depends on what you're looking for. If you want what I'd call an adequate computer cheap isn't an option.

Based on what you mentioned above, though, Win 10 is probably the best option, although slightly over-powered, education wise. Don't think you're going to do much coding or heavy duty stuff on a Chromebook. Windows or similar is also likely what your daughter will use if she's ever an office worker, so might as well get her acclimatized to it.

If it were me I'd dish out the money and get her a good laptop.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

I want something that can run education programs... and won't have components break.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

the problem for a linux novice is they see some product offered on a developers site and want it, then download the application and try and install it
then it doesn't install correctly and then begins the nightmare of trying to salvage a broken linux system

Oh goodness, I bricked a computer with Red Hat and a Ubuntu system upgrade fucked up Flash I think.

Linux has its uses, but it is kind of like cold fusion.

I am curious if you are stressing a keyboard/mouse experience ?
times have changed learning an archaic skill such as keyboard mouse is useful but in 10 years?
is it mostly for nostalgia ??

What in the fuck are you talking about? In 10 years, she can adapt... but until then, not a bad idea getting her to use technology that actually exists.

 

[J842P]

I saw punch cards fed into an early model computer but by then keyboard on a teletype was developed

Keyboards and mice aren't going anywhere any time soon. Touchscreens are for the *product* to use.

 

[bilby]

I want something that can run education programs... and won't have components break.

Linux is perfectly able to do that. It breaks less often than Windows, unless you fuck with it a lot - most linux users do that, because most of them are computer geeks who like to tinker, and that's given the entire OS an undeserved reputation for being tricky and only for geeks.

By all means, indoctrinate your six year old to be an unthinking Microsoft drone, but don't imagine that you are helping her by imposing your fears onto her - kids are comfortable with what they encounter, and don't come with all these preconceived ideas that things are too hard just because they are unfamiliar - when you are six, most everything is unfamiliar.

So no, I won't shut up about Linux on the very dubious grounds that six-year-olds with the ability to handle Windows 10 should somehow be automatically incapable of handling the much more intuitive Ubuntu or Mint.

Adults have no reason to fear Linux. Children have no fear of it - until taught that phobia by adults.

 

[barbos]

6 year old does not need decent (hardware wise) computer. Any modern laptop is able to play youtube and run any educational programs.
But it has to to be able to survive abuse.

 

[Cheerful Charlie]

I want something that can run education programs... and won't have components break.

Google "Linux for children". There are several distros around for children. If she is 6, she won't need a full distro meant to do serious heavy duty work in an office setting. I know nothing about Chrome Books and children. A quick google shows me that CBs can be set up with parental controls, but I don't know if here are anything other then that to make CBs useful for young children.