[Help] Need help buying budget laptop

[NightWolf1396]

Hey guys, I'm in need of assistance in buying a new laptop here in Portugal. I borrowed this form from reddit to help you verify my need.

Thanks in advance.

 

Total budget and country of purchase:
My total budget is of 350€ and my country of purchase is Portugal, although I can also purchase it from some european countries, such as Germany, Spain, UK and France.

 

Do you prefer a 2 in 1 form factor, good battery life or best specifications to your requirements for the money? Pick or include any that apply.
 I don't care for 2 in 1's, good battery life is good, but better specs for the price is even better.

 

How important is weight to you?
 Not important.

 

Which OS do you require? Windows, Linux, Mac.
Linux or Windows, preferentially Windows.

 

Do you have a preferred screen size? If indifferent, put N/A.
Small screen size such as 11-13 inches, max 15.

 

Are you doing any CAD/video editing/photo editing/gaming? List which programs/games you desire to run. If you have no requirements, put N/A.
This laptop is intended for use in programming school and for the occasional Hearthstone game.

 

If you're gaming (leave blank if you put N/A above...), do you have certain games you want to play? At what settings and FPS do you want?
Hearthstone, at decent FPS (min 30, good 60).

 

Any specific requirements such as good keyboard, reliable business grade build quality, touch-screen, finger-print reader, optical drive or good input devices (keyboard/touchpad)?
Not at all, these are irrelevant to the purchase.

 

Leave any finishing thoughts here that you may feel are necessary and beneficial to the discussion.
I'm thinking of buying this Q1 2017, most likely January.

[Crowes]

Could you do everyone a favor and bold your questions, and leave your answers as they are? Regards.

[NightWolf1396]

2 minutes ago, Crowes said:

Could you do everyone a favor and bold your questions, and leave your answers as they are? Regards.

Done, sorry for that.

[MaxBunny]

3 minutes ago, NightWolf1396 said:

This laptop is intended for use in programming school and for the occasional Hearthstone game.

Hearthstone, at decent FPS (min 30, good 60).

Just get a tablet. Hearthstone is a mobile quality game. You can play it on your phone.

 

Tablets come with keyboards too, are about $100, and usually come with a year subscription to Microsoft Office 365. Don't waste your time trying to find a quality spec $300 laptop. You won't find it since they're all crap.

[Crowes]

2 minutes ago, MaxBunny said:

Just get a tablet. Hearthstone is a mobile quality game. You can play it on your phone.

 

Tablets come with keyboards too, are about $100, and usually come with a year subscription to Microsoft Office 365. Don't waste your time trying to find a quality spec $300 laptop. You won't find it since they're all crap.

Somehow I feel programming and tablet don't correlate. I'd say get a decent home laptop from like Newegg or something, reinstall the OS, and that's that. Hearthstone will run on anything, but nobody deserves to play a shitty mobile version or with a touch screen.

[NightWolf1396]

5 minutes ago, MaxBunny said:

Just get a tablet. Hearthstone is a mobile quality game. You can play it on your phone.

 

Tablets come with keyboards too, are about $100, and usually come with a year subscription to Microsoft Office 365. Don't waste your time trying to find a quality spec $300 laptop. You won't find it since they're all crap.

The thing is I also need this for programming school. Hearthstone is really an extra I would enjoy.

[NightWolf1396]

26 minutes ago, Crowes said:

Somehow I feel programming and tablet don't correlate. I'd say get a decent home laptop from like Newegg or something, reinstall the OS, and that's that. Hearthstone will run on anything, but nobody deserves to play a shitty mobile version or with a touch screen.

Also, computer prices in Europe are inflated, especially in Portugal. I was thinking of getting an HP Stream, but for the price it feels crappy..

[Guuhan]

9 minutes ago, NightWolf1396 said:

Also, computer prices in Europe are inflated, especially in Portugal. I was thinking of getting an HP Stream, but for the price it feels crappy..

Because 350 is not a viable price for your needs. Programming requires some CPU power and around that price point. You will likely not survive a faulty while loop.... And the prices in EU are pretty darn high compared to U.S prices. Might look into used and/or refurbished laptops. Maybe you'll have a better shot there.

[Crowes]

7 minutes ago, Guuhan said:

Programming requires some CPU power and around that price point. You will likely not survive a faulty while loop.... 

Bit of a blanket statement. Web programming, no. Anything that requires compiling, correct.

[NightWolf1396]

48 minutes ago, Crowes said:

Bit of a blanket statement. Web programming, no. Anything that requires compiling, correct.

I'm actually programming in C# and will begin SQL and Java this year.

[Crowes]

Just now, NightWolf1396 said:

I'm actually programming in C# and will begin SQL and Java this year.

Yup. You'll need a better PC then, probably a level-entry gaming rig or a low-end workstation. I don;t think your budget will suit one brand new.

[NightWolf1396]

28 minutes ago, Crowes said:

Yup. You'll need a better PC then, probably a level-entry gaming rig or a low-end workstation. I don;t think your budget will suit one brand new.

I'll try and look for used and refurbished ones then. I can't afford more than what I posted.