cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/41746502
I recently bought a Dell Latitude 7430 with an i7-1265u, 10 cores, 1.8Ghz, 16gb of (I think) DDR4 RAM, and a 256GB SSD for 250$. I still have time to return the machine. I was wondering whether I got a good deal here or not.
My purpose is mostly for general school stuff. Spreadsheets, docs, Zoom meetings, and the like. I might be getting into the world of CS, but I’m not at a point yet where I would need much power.
Still, the 256GB of storage worry me. And unfortunately it can’t be upgraded. Still, if I’m not doing much besides all of the basic tasks expected of a work laptop, do I really need more?
Should I consider returning it and try to get another deal? Keep it? Or something else altogether?
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That computer will do everything you listed, and be able to run most coding environments if you choose to do that as well. And 250 bucks is a great price, I’d say.
I am probably not the right person to answer, but to me it seems decent.
Hell, under current conditions, half the price is in that RAM.Anyway, for the use case, definitely seems fine.
Now, for me the minimum requirements for such use case, if Windows isn’t required, are simply a 64 bit CPU, 4GB of RAM, and an SSD. SSD makes a really huge difference.
It’s now been maybe 2 years that it died, but I’ve been doing fine with a Core 2 Duo T7500, 4GB of RAM, Nvidia GeForce 8600M GT and random 128GB SSD powered laptop. It only struggled when I tried to use it for YouTube… and when I tried Gentoo on it. The compilation took 3 days just for me to realize I screwed up something in the config and had no network.Perfectly fine, if your worried about the storage get a bigger one and reinstall what ever OS you want on it before you get comfortable (queue linux enthusiests here).
16gb of ram is the functional minimum for windows 11 and I would not push for an upgrade at the current time. Just be aware of your memory useage, Windows 11, Chrome and Office 365 services are memory hogs.
For the CS stuff, dont worry, your machine needs to run a terminal. You WILL be connecting to more powerful machines to do the heavy lifting. Leasing AWS time or using machines on your schools network is likely how all that will go.
Furthermore, its a Dell, so you can throw the service tag into their support site and get the exact parts list and specs (if the bottom is scratched off, its in the BIOS too).
If you need tech support, just let us know (nerds are always here to help).
Honestly, for what they’re using it for I’d say just get an external hard drive. Move completed assignments to the external as needed, that way they’re not risking grades if you can’t find it for a night or two. Unless they get some storage-heavy applications later, that should work fine.
Just a note on this the ram isn’t upgradeable (soldered on), just so OP is aware. Its ‘fine’ for most tasks, but not upgradable.
Boooo, companies need to fuckin stop that…
That sounds like a perfectly capable school machine (especially for $250). According to the service manual for that model, it looks like the storage can be upgraded (assuming that you can get your hands on an SSD). There’s no mention of replacing the RAM, so I’d almost bet on that being soldered, but realistically 16gb should be plenty for the use cases you mentioned.
