So in the last couple of months, my laptop has started going on me and so I've decided to replace it. As last time I went reconditioned for around $400 and only got a few years out of it; this time I'm going for top of the line and brand new (student loan approved today- money in my account Friday next week)

The thing is that trying to choose is doing my head in, as I've just discovered that forget about cost of doing it- you cannot upgrade anything core in a laptop like the CPU.

What I'm looking at are 2 machines:

Lenovo Thinkpad E520 Edge with discrete graphics:

  • Intel Core i7-2640M Processor (2.80GHz, 4MB L3, 1333MHz with Intel HD Graphics 3000)
  • Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium (64 bit)
  • 6 GB PC3-10600 DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz SODIMM Memory (2 DIMM)
  • 500GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm
  • 15.6" HD (1366x768) LED Backlit Display, Anti-Glare, Midnight Black
  • AMD Mobility Radeon 2GB
  • DVD Recordable
  • 6 Cell 2.2Ah Li-Ion Battery
  • ThinkPad 1x1 b/g/n
  • Broadcom Bluetooth 3.0 with antenna
  • 720p HD Camera
  • NO Fingerprint Reader
  • 1 Year Depot/Express Warranty


Dell Inspiron 15R
  • 2nd generation Intel® Core™ i7-2670QM processor 2.20 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 3.10 GHz
  • Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium SP1 64bit (English)
  • 15.6" (39.6cm) HD WLED True-Life (1366x768)
  • 6GB3 DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz
  • 500GB2 SATA hard drive (5400RPM)
  • NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M - 1GB (For QUAD Core CPU)
  • 1Yr Carry-In Service after Remote Diagnosis


What do people reckon is the better way to go?