[tiwil]

Hi guys,

So I need your help. Currently I'm searching for a new laptop that will suit my work and hobbies. I'm searching for a laptop that's light but not too light since if it's too light it will cost me much more. Another aspect I want to find is minimum 8GB RAM and Intel i5 or AMD equivalent and at least 256GB SSD, so in future my laptop will still suit next generation application that may need higher specs, even just the lowest settings.

Oh ya, my hobby is flightsimming and using app such as Prepar3D or X-Plane 11 and it's the best flight sim until now, there is MSFS 2020 but no idea when will MSFS 2020 will be released to public. While my work just some coding, I wanted to build a Android application with Android Studio that may need high specs too.

After such consideration, I found 2 laptop that I interested the most:
1. Acer Swift 3 SF314-41, it only has 4GB RAM but I'm thinking to add a 8GB RAM.
2. Lenovo Ideapad S340 Ryzen 5 with IPS, the newest one, old version of S340 Ryzen 5 using TN panel instead.

My budget is around 550 USD, and still confused which one should I buy. So, what do you think guys? Which one should I buy? Or do you have any suggestion?

Thank youuu

[deanhills]

I like Lenovo @tiwil.  Always good value.  I had a different but similar laptop two years ago.  What I particularly liked about it was how easy it was to start it.  It has a focus of user-friendly right from the moment when you open the laptop.

But for me the laptops of laptops is Lenovo Thinkpad X Series - and they are of course unaffordable.  If I were looking for a new laptop, I would consider second hand and go for a ThinkPad X Series.  They usually last forever, are very robust.  I purchased an old model three years ago - dated 2010 - Lenovo Thinkpad X201, and it is still running very well.  I wouldn't use it for Games however, like it's OK for Games, but the screen doesn't have vivid colors and is very small - 13 inches - and the sound is not that great - like for games.  But for everything else, and particularly for business it's a great laptop to have.

[Melvin]

@tiwil i got Asus asus x555ldb 8g of ram, intel 5th generation, nvidia graphics card 820m and i am so satisfied with it this is my second pc the first one is desktop pc from 2004. But this asus laptop helped me a lot and still support the new generation apps so i highly recommend you Asus products. Asus now leading the market with it products because of the high performance of their pc and good affordable price. I dont recommended second hand pc's you may find hidden issues. So always buy new, i would spend 700 or 800 dollars rather than 500 dollars on a second hand pc.

[ikk157]

I would highly recommend the HP laptop 15t (https://store.hp.com/us/en/pdp/hp-laptop...der+Budget)

It’s exactly within the specs and price range that you’ve specified (it seems to he under discount now so if you choose to go buy it, I’d recommend that you hurry up as I don’t know how long the discount will last).

It seems to be of great value considering the specs, and the discount bringing it down to $550 is not to be missed!

Edit: I just noticed that it now comes with 12GB RAM in the base model for the same $550 price, absolutely neat!

[tiwil]

@deanhills,
Thanks for your suggestion Dean. But I don't think I'm going to buy a second hand laptop since it's not mine since the first time, so I don't know how ex-user actually use it. I don't feel too well to use second product.

@Melvin,
Actually, if I have the money, I will buy around that number too :p. My current laptop is old already, bought it at 2012 with not so decent spec that time, only Intel i3-2350M 2.3GHz, 2GB RAM, and 320GB HDD. It's not enough for me right now, and thinking to hold with this for a year or two might not be so good. I'm going to attend university this year and I might need higher spec laptop than my current.

@ikk157,
Never seen and interested with HP before, but that laptop that you suggest is sooo good. Unfortunately, it's not available in Indonesia . If it's available, I might already buy that and will not move to other, hahaha. Should I import that laptop instead? :p

[rudra]

if you can somehow afford, then you must look at the latest generation amd mobile processors. they are just absolutely beautiful and powerful and efficient.

i can't believe my own eyes how they are doing relative to Intel's. it will be a great investment. even if you end up spending a lot.

Banff for buck factor is huge for them.

i just do hope they launch cheaper ones with no discreet gpu.

[ikk157]

@deanhills,
Thanks for your suggestion Dean. But I don't think I'm going to buy a second hand laptop since it's not mine since the first time, so I don't know how ex-user actually use it. I don't feel too well to use second product.

@Melvin,
Actually, if I have the money, I will buy around that number too :p. My current laptop is old already, bought it at 2012 with not so decent spec that time, only Intel i3-2350M 2.3GHz, 2GB RAM, and 320GB HDD. It's not enough for me right now, and thinking to hold with this for a year or two might not be so good. I'm going to attend university this year and I might need higher spec laptop than my current.

@ikk157,
Never seen and interested with HP before, but that laptop that you suggest is sooo good. Unfortunately, it's not available in Indonesia . If it's available, I might already buy that and will not move to other, hahaha. Should I import that laptop instead? :p

Yes, yes, yes and YES!!! You should absolutely import it into your country! That laptop is a beast! I’d even buy it for myself if i had the chance! Don’t miss the opportunity!

You can always use a shipping courier to get it into your country... shouldn’t be hard... just takes a tiny bit of research!

[deanhills]

Yes, yes, yes and YES!!! You should absolutely import it into your country! That laptop is a beast! I’d even buy it for myself if i had the chance! Don’t miss the opportunity!

You can always use a shipping courier to get it into your country... shouldn’t be hard... just takes a tiny bit of research!

@ikk157 Do you think it's a good idea however from a support point of view to import a laptop? What kind of technical support would one be able to get if something should go wrong with the laptop? I always think one should stick with the laptops that are available and maintained in the country. Maybe check first whether HP supports the laptop inside Indonesia.

@tiwil there is second hand and second hand - I lucked out in a big way as the person selling the laptop was desperate to sell - I also did my research. But OK, if you're not comfortable with second-hand, obviously it is not the right way to go for you.

[ikk157]

@ikk157 Do you think it's a good idea however from a support point of view to import a laptop?  What kind of technical support would one be able to get if something should go wrong with the laptop?  I always think one should stick with the laptops that are available and maintained in the country.  Maybe check first whether HP supports the laptop inside Indonesia.

@tiwil  there is second hand and second hand - I lucked out in a big way as the person selling the laptop was desperate to sell - I also did my research.  But OK, if you're not comfortable with second-hand, obviously it is not the right way to go for you.

Let’s be honest, the support from locally purchased windows systems isn’t all that good anyway. They’ll still charge you for anything and everything that you need to get done (unless it’s a different case for you in South Africa).

So the local “support” you’re referring to is nothing different from bringing in a 20 year old pc and asking for something to get fixed.

And hence, importing it won’t be as risky as you might think it is. Worst case scenario is you’ll just need to use a power plug adapter, since the power bricks tend to support the entire voltage range available worldwide. You can even get a new power cable that is compatible with your country which you can plug into most laptop charging bricks.

[tiwil]

@deanhills,
You're correct. If you import a laptop, you will not get any warranty on your region, you need to bring that laptop to the region where you buy it. But from my usage, my current laptop, which already 8 years old, have never been to service center.

@ikk157,
That laptop is actually very good as I said before, but ya, the only problem it's not available at my region. Do you have another suggestion? I still don't find any that attract me other than Swift 3 and Ideapad S340 actually. I really need an expert suggestion which benefit me the most with usage I post in OP :p