Laptop Suggestions for a New Job ($1.5k - $2k)

Ltags on 01/08/2021 - 16:16
Last edited 01/08/2021 - 16:50 by 1 other user

Basically, I'm starting a new role that requires me to provide my own laptop as the organisation will not (coming back in as an external contractor). I work in finance and accounting, with the heavy lifting being mostly MS Excel and a lot of MS teams meetings (presumably using Citrix VDI).

I'm not the best with laptop & PC specs so I'm here to consult the Ozbargain brains trust.

The low down:
Budget is $1500 to $2000
14" to 15.6" screen
16GB RAM
512GB SSD
Light-ish weight (doesn't have to be insanely lightweight)
Backlit keyboard would be ideal, but not essential

I was looking at the below Lenovo for $1598 on Amazon which seems decent (at least to the uninitiated like myself!):
https://www.amazon.com.au/Lenovo-i7-1165G7-1920x1080-Windows…

Appreciate any assistance and guidance in advance!
Cheers

Computing Computer Laptop

Comments

  • mjwills on 01/08/2021 - 17:07

    Do you have an edu email address?

    • tags on 01/08/2021 - 17:30

      Unfortunately not. Potentially someone I know may have one, but I'd have to ask.

  • Switchblade88 on 01/08/2021 - 17:58

    Try and test out the keyboards as much as possible e.g. Officeworks samplers for similar models and families.

    Laptop keyboards and screens are notoriously fickle beasts and vary hugely - and can't be specc'd up unlike CPUs and RAM. Find a good keyboard you like and then spec the other bits to your budget.

  • yahms on 01/08/2021 - 18:54
    +1

    Regarding screen size, consider the aspect ratio as well as the screen size

    a 13.3" 16:10 screen has more vertical height than a 14" 16:9 screen, and even though it trades some width for that height, generally a 16:10 screen feels less cramped

    1920x1080 is 16:9, so for office work especially excel+windows with the office ribbon and the start bar, id suggest you look for 16:10 or for even more square-ness to the shape, 3:2 ratios (surface laptops are 3:2 for example, or just look at the numbers of the resolution - if the screen resolution is 1920x1200, thats 16:10)

    • parker2004au on 01/08/2021 - 20:02

      This.

      After using 16:10 I can't go back.

    • tags on 01/08/2021 - 20:36

      Good advice regarding the aspect ratio, I didn't know that 16:10 was a thing.
      Honestly, for all the excel hard yards, I'll be connected to an external monitor when working from home, or 2 monitors if in the office. But it will definitely make it easier in the few occasions when I'm not connected. I'll have a look into some 16:10 screen laptops!

      • parker2004au on 01/08/2021 - 21:17

        How are you connecting the monitors? What ports are on the monitors or do you use docks?

        • tags on 01/08/2021 - 21:24

          Working from home will simply be a HDMI cable, but at the office, they have docking stations. Dell ones off memory I believe

  • ChipsChicky on 01/08/2021 - 20:10
    +1

    For excel, go for 15.6" to 17" … if you are planning to use external monitor, you can choose smaller for less weight.

    Go for AMD Ryzen 7 4800U or above … forget intel crap.

    16:10 for Excel is great instead of 16:9.

    • tags on 01/08/2021 - 20:39

      I've heard that these days AMD isn't all that bad so I'm definitely open to looking at laptops with AMD processors, just depends on the overall specs and price I guess

      • ChipsChicky on 01/08/2021 - 20:59

        For the same price, you can get AMD with 8cores vs Intel 4cores … huge difference.

  • Indomietable on 01/08/2021 - 22:17
    +2

    You can get Lenovo ThinkPad Mobile Workstation P14s - $1,799.00 delivered if you have access to student account.

    Review here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pd85Fh_zUZY

    Spec :

    AMD Ryzen™ 7 PRO 4750U (8C / 16T, 1.7 / 4.1GHz, 4MB L2 / 8MB L3)
    Windows 10 Pro 64
    14.0" FHD (1920x1080) Low Power WVA 400nits Anti-glare
    32 GB RAM - 16 GB Soldered DDR4-3200 non-ECC + 16 GB SO-DIMM DDR4-3200 non-ECC
    512 GB SSD M.2 2280 PCIe NVMe Opal2
    1 Year Depot Warranty
    65W USB-C AC Adapter
    Integrated AMD Radeon™ Graphics
    720p + IR with ThinkShutter WebCam
    Fingerprint Reader
    Keyboard Backlit, English
    Intel Wireless 6 AX200 (2x2) & Bluetooth® 5.2
    Integrated Mobile Broadband WWAN Upgradable

    32GB RAM is nice to have if you want to load a large data set.
    The Ryzen 7 is better for office/multitasking as it has more cores and also more power-efficient ( smaller die) see.

    If you willing to take the risk and like to tinker to save some money - you can buy lower storage & RAM then upgrade the memory/storage yourself.

    Let me know if you need help with student access as I might be able to hook you up.

    • Shad on 03/08/2021 - 23:06

      Give a link to the site, my friend needs it n he has a kid who go to school, will that help to get discount??

  • cptdandan on 03/08/2021 - 13:13

    go for something with a decent GPU that you could then also use to mine some crypto. $2k should get you something half decent & bring in $3-4 a day worth

  • flash659 on 04/08/2021 - 14:18

    What did you end up going with OP?

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