Laptop - Slim, Good Screen, Good Sound - Recommendations? (Budget $2K)

alfawex on 26/02/2020 - 20:16
Last edited 27/02/2020 - 09:41 by 1 other user

Hey. On the lookout for a new laptop. Primary requirements are portability and a good screen and sound for watching movies. Primarily browsing and video watching. I work in IT so do occasionally experiment with additional applications that can be more resource heavy but not the priority. At least a 256GB SSD needed. Any particular recommendations? Budget upto $2k

Had a look in JB and was drawn towards the Yoga C940 (maybe out of budget), Surface Laptop 3, the new Samsung one and Macbooks (never had a Mac but not against making the move). They had the XPS 13 also but the models they had ran at around $3k which is above what i'd like to spend.

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  rxjb on 26/02/2020 - 20:45

  +4

  secondhand macbook pro - anything with a retina screen from late 2012 on. can be had from $400 - $1000 depending on model.

  • 

    crentist on 27/02/2020 - 05:04

    +2

    yep, definitely this. the 2012-2016 pros are the good ones and will hold up really well. i had a bunch of used ones (kept upgrading them) and never had any issue with build quality, to the point that i became confident enough with them that i bought a really badly dented up one to take with me overseas for a few months, for a software course. because my flight was in a week and it was cheap and i expected no trouble.

    also the 12 inch macbooks can be had under $1k now, which are very awesome machines. super portable, nice screen, they even sound much better than the pros. not as great for doing a lot of work on, but ive done plenty and the only thing that bugged me was the smaller screen.
    and its literally light enough that ive often double checked my bags to make sure i didnt forget to pack it

    • 

      Agret on 27/02/2020 - 10:07

      Doesn't the 2015 model have that keyboard notorious for suddenly no longer working properly due to small dust particles which is an expensive fix outside of apple care?

      • 

        crentist on 27/02/2020 - 13:41

        +1

        I think that was 2016. Also the tiny MacBooks have the same one.
        I haven’t had much issue. Couple times I’ve blown them out with a can of compressed air and it was back to normal.

        It’s not quite as bad as is made out, but I would be very careful when looking at one. That’s why I said the earlier models tbh

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  iforgotmysocks on 26/02/2020 - 21:16

  +1

  Dell XPS 13 has a number of models under $2000. Plus 4.9% cashback.

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  witsa on 26/02/2020 - 21:20

  +1

  If you wait for the right sale, you can get an Inspiron with similar specs to Xps for under 2k easy.

  I bought this one recently (haven't arrived) https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/518845

  Apparently the 7000 series is like pretty premium these days

  • 

    alfawex on 26/02/2020 - 21:30

    Good option. The linked is bigger than i'd be looking for but will try get a look at the 13 inch version

    • 

      witsa on 26/02/2020 - 21:35

      Another option is picking a refurbished model.

      https://www.dell.com/en-au/outlet/SystemsStockRoomDetails?~c…

      From what I've read, they're about the same quality as a new one.

      However there only slightly cheaper than a new one when they go on sale.

      Basically dell just has rolling sales all year round which could be up to 45% off.

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  bumblebeetuna on 26/02/2020 - 23:04

  +1

  Looking for something similar myself. Had narrowed in on the Yoga C940 also as upgrade to older S1 yoga, but not real keen on the price. YSK, Lenovo just announced new ThinkPad lines. X13 (yoga or not) might fit the bill. Shipping in Q2 this year apparently.