Recommend me a set of laptops

[Jobos]

We were told today that plans are afoot to disband the IT suite and I've been tasked with pricing up 35 laptops. We would need the laptops to be quick and hardwearing and easy for me to replace keyboards etc. I thought something with an i5, minimum 4GB memory, SSD, AC wifi and 15.6" screen should do but don't want to just buy without getting advice first. Budget wise we are looking at £400-500 but that will include office as this school doesn't have an MS OVS agreement.

 

So any recommendations on what's good at the moment?

[synaesthesia]

Would definitely suggest some refurb Dell Latitudes for that money, you'll get a nice high spec that'll last for years, robust as anything and will allow plenty of room for movement on the office licensing for you. Easy to fix & get parts for from nearly any supplier. 15.6" screens would be harder to come by this day and age but they are about; see if you can find the Latitude 5580 for example. Otherwise 14" is the standard sort of size screen you'll pick up short of buying flimsy consumer grade rubbish from Toshiba/Fujitsu/Lenovo

[gumbygaz]

Chromebooks a possible route? No need for office then, great battery, 200-300 per device. 6s Startup time. Or is there software needed that isn't web based?

[bossman]

@Jobos

 

Why not sign your school up for GSuite and use Chromebooks instead....everything for free including their Office suite......

 

Save a pile of money with not having to purchase Microsoft licensing and also half the cost of Microsoft laptops.....excellent models available for £150 - £200...

 

Lifespan of around 10 years with the Chrome OS and you can control the units centrally via an admin console.

 

Just a thought.......

[Ditto]

Big +1 to what @bossman said. It might not be the right solution for the school, but it really ought to be considered against the requirements. Out of interest, what is the motivator for ditching your IT Suite?

[Jobos]

Chromebooks a possible route? No need for office then, great battery, 200-300 per device. 6s Startup time. Or is there software needed that isn't web based?

 

The problem is I know nothing about chromebooks! The price and startup speed sounds good but but feel some software is not going to work. I can't think of the name as not at the school today but we bought new software the other month which I don't think is compatible.

[Jobos]

Would definitely suggest some refurb Dell Latitudes for that money, you'll get a nice high spec that'll last for years, robust as anything and will allow plenty of room for movement on the office licensing for you. Easy to fix & get parts for from nearly any supplier. 15.6" screens would be harder to come by this day and age but they are about; see if you can find the Latitude 5580 for example. Otherwise 14" is the standard sort of size screen you'll pick up short of buying flimsy consumer grade rubbish from Toshiba/Fujitsu/Lenovo

 

I will be taking a look at ICT Direct and see what they can offer.

[ICTDirect_Dave]

I will be taking a look at ICT Direct and see what they can offer.

 

As has been said 15.6" are harder to come by, not so many of them are sold initially so my market is always pretty small.

 

However 14" devices are dead easy.

 

4th Gen Latitude E5440 with i5, 8GB RAM & New 120gb ssd will set you back about £295-£300 per unit

[Jobos]

Big +1 to what @bossman said. It might not be the right solution for the school, but it really ought to be considered against the requirements. Out of interest, what is the motivator for ditching your IT Suite?

 

I'm told it's all down to needing more space and as the suite is only used 2 and half days a week when the IT teacher is in it's a waste of a room. We had 4 new classrooms built last year but we are still short of space. I can't understand it as there are 2 rooms which are only used for booster groups so IT must be low down on the priority list. My other school got rid of their suite 4 years ago and their IT teaching is is very much lower in my opinion.

[Jobos]

As has been said 15.6" are harder to come by, not so many of them are sold initially so my market is always pretty small.

 

However 14" devices are dead easy.

 

4th Gen Latitude E5440 with i5, 8GB RAM & New 120gb ssd will set you back about £295-£300 per unit

 

That sounds good, does it include a new battery

Edited April 27, 2018 by Jobos

[ICTDirect_Dave]

That sounds good, does it include a new battery

It does not I'm afraid. We test our batteries to have a minimum of 65% of their original capacity. any less and it's not sold through ICT direct.

 

If that battery fails in the first three months of use, you'll get a new one as replacement.

 

Alternatively you can buy a new one from us from the off for £30. Personally though I'd see how you do with the existing ones and save some money if they're not needed

[synaesthesia]

All the machines we've had from ICTDirect had batteries that last ages. Might still be an idea to keep a couple of new ones in stock though as you'll be saving on the overall cost anyway Minimises downtime.

[Jobos]

I work at this school 2 days a week so I was there yesterday and was told plans have changed and they can keep the suite virtually as it is by turning the suite into a multi purpose room.

 

What is proposed is to combine the DT room with the suite by moving some of the IT benching and move the DT cooker, sink and work surface into the suite along one wall so the room can be used for cooking lessons as well as IT.

 

I've never heard anything like it

[Ditto]

I guess at least everyone will be able to go online to look up some recipes