# Affordable cheap notebook,laptop



## Bungiex88 (Jan 2, 2016)

Looking for a affordable computer to do a little video editing. Nothing fancy no special effects. Just taking video from whatever I record cut stuff out place titles and maybe post to YouTube and what not. I'm really informed about computers and terminology went to school for it for 3 years. Just haven't looked into or bought anything like it in a very long time. Perferably aMD cpu. I did build a very nice desktop but it's just a incovinance just looking for something I can pull out put videos on it cut them down save them then tuck the laptop away.


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

I've had good luck buying cheap Thinkpads off eBay.


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## HermitJohn (May 10, 2002)

Look at Nevada's posts in this thread: http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/sp...1104-one-computer-two-simultaneous-users.html

Be aware there are different generations of I-7 so...

Stay away from the mini laptops that are now cheapest new. They would not be good for video editing thought they can be very nice for general light duty uses. They are usually low end celeron or atom processor.

If you want AMD processor, look for some used laptop with equivalent AMD. Some of the retired buisiness laptops on ebay are best computer bargains out there. Make sure it will at least boot to bios and screen is in good shape. Most unless reconditioned by third party at then much higher price will have had hard drive removed. So you have to add a hard drive or ssd, then an operating system.


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## farmrbrown (Jun 25, 2012)

You can also try looking local. We have a few places around here that take in older models, "clean" them and even install more memory, etc.
That's what I'm typing on now, a nice Macbook for about $300. My mom's getting her first computer next week, a similar Mac for $250. They retail for a whole lot more............:grin:


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

HermitJohn said:


> If you want AMD processor, look for some used laptop with equivalent AMD.


I used to use AMD processors when Intel was charging too much, but today there's no financial advantage to speak of with AMD processors. I look for computers with Intel processors now.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Maximum economy for laptops right now is with the Core 2 Duo processor laptops. That was the processor marketed before Core i3, i5, & i7 processors were available. They're dual core processors so they'll run 64-bit operating systems & applications, but not quite as fast. If you use a SSD instead of a hard drive the performance is satisfactory.

Look at eBay for model HP 6730b laptops. That's a 15.6" laptop with a Core 2 Duo processor. You can find that model with some pretty nice features (wi-fi, bluetooth, webcam, etc.). You should find good rebuildable units for around $50. You can find 160GB SSDs for around $45. Don't worry if the battery or AC adapter isn't included, since aftermarket items like that are inexpensive (batteries $12, AC adapters $6.50).


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## HermitJohn (May 10, 2002)

Nevada said:


> Don't worry if the battery or AC adapter, since aftermarket items like that are inexpensive (batteries $12, AC adapters $6.50).


 Not sure minimalist laptop meet OP needs, he wants to edit video. It might do the job, but be very slow doing it. Also before bidding on any laptop, CHECK price of battery and adapter. Some are cheap, some are NOT cheap.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

HermitJohn said:


> Not sure minimalist laptop meet OP needs, he wants to edit video. It might do the job, but be very slow doing it. Also before bidding on any laptop, CHECK price of battery and adapter. Some are cheap, some are NOT cheap.


No doubt about it, I'd rather do it on my i7 laptop. But I was doing a little video editing 5 years ago on a Core 2 Duo machine. I survived.


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## Bungiex88 (Jan 2, 2016)

I plan on using a Linux operating system. I left windows and never looked back in 2005. Come to find out computers actually don't crash at all when there not running a junk os. It won't be extravagant video editing just taking 20 minute videos cutting them down getting rid of the content I don't want adding titles an such. It will be all HD video. 720 1080 and probably 4k.


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## paulty_logic (Jan 15, 2014)

Darren said:


> I've had good luck buying cheap Thinkpads off eBay.


Can't recommend this enough. A 6 year old x220 is nice small, mobile and about as bomb-proof as non-milspec laptops get. If you put Mint on it, it's blazing fast. Should only cost a little over a hundred dollars.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

paulty_logic said:


> Can't recommend this enough. A 6 year old x220 is nice small, mobile and about as bomb-proof as non-milspec laptops get. If you put Mint on it, it's blazing fast. Should only cost a little over a hundred dollars.


Isn't that a 12" ultraportable model? I'm not sure that's what I'd want for video editing.


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## paulty_logic (Jan 15, 2014)

Nevada said:


> Isn't that a 12" ultraportable model? I'm not sure that's what I'd want for video editing.


Yup, that's the one. Fair enough, probably should go with the something a little larger if you are using just the laptop. I use mine with the thinkpad dock and a 22" monitor.


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## Steve_S (Feb 25, 2015)

IF Power consumption is something on your list, laptops & mini's are the best bang for the buck. My heavy graphics station is an AMD FX 8 Core @ 3.6ghz with 32GB Ran and NVidia 660GTX unfortunately since I went 100% solar off grid, the 600W power Supply is a killer.... BUT IT'S FAST ! and Video HD Gaming doesn't strain it. Don't use it anymore as I switched over to an HP Desktop Mini which only cost $600 with Win7 & 10 licence included & 1TB HDD. Handles HD Video nicely, I edit vids and convert them without issues. I can even play any of my games BUT it's no NVidia GTX performance.

Seriously have a look at the Intel NUC's and similar Mini PC's, their price & performance smoke lappies without the extra cost... Best of all, they come with more features & function, Bluetooth, wifi and much better video / audio the most base PC's & Lappies. I use a 47" LG LED screen for a monitor, so the Mini can be attached onto the back using the VESA bracket.... nicely tucked away & out of sight. OH... CD/DVD/BluRay needs to be external but they are so cheap now, it's no biggy.

FYI: Specs of my Mini 
Uses between 25W to 90W maxed out.

HP EliteDesk 800 G2 DM 35W
Operating System
Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
CPU
Intel Core i7 6700T @ 2.80GHz	47 Â°C
Skylake 14nm Technology
RAM
16.0GB Dual-Channel Unknown @ 1064MHz (15-15-15-36)
Motherboard
HP 8055 (U3E1)
Graphics
47LV4400 ([email protected])
Intel HD Graphics 530 (HP)
Storage
931GB Hitachi HGST HTS721010A9E630 (SATA)	35 Â°C
1862GB Western Digital WD My Passport 0820 USB Device (USB (SATA))	35 Â°C
Optical Drives
No optical disk drives detected
Audio
Intel Display Audio


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Steve_S said:


> IF Power consumption is something on your list, laptops & mini's are the best bang for the buck. My heavy graphics station is an AMD FX 8 Core @ 3.6ghz with 32GB Ran and NVidia 660GTX unfortunately since I went 100% solar off grid, the 600W power Supply is a killer.... BUT IT'S FAST !


No way does he need a gaming graphics adapter for light video clip editing. I got a Lenovo laptop for the kid for Christmas with a NVidia 660 GPU, so I'm familiar with its capabilities.



Steve_S said:


> HP EliteDesk 800 G2 DM 35W


6th generation Core i7 and 16GB memory? Nice, but it's not what I would consider affordable. It's likely to be in the $600 to $800 range ourfitted the way you describe.

By the way, you're obviously were willing to pay for performance, which I have no objection to, but why a hard drive instead of SSD? That's where a lot of performance comes from today.


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## Steve_S (Feb 25, 2015)

That HP cost me $600 CAD with the 1TB drive & Windows Licenses included. It can take an M.2.SSD which is very easy to pop in. The Intel 530HD Video is fairly decent on this HP and handles video / graphics amazingly well ... far better than I had expected actually. The CPU is upgradable in these unlike many others.... that is something missed by shoppers...

If I have anything extreme to do I use my Heavy Workstation but fortunately I am no longer programming & developing Virtual World Software which required intensive graphic capabilities and that is why that machine has the NVidia Graphics.

BTW: There are many NUC's out there on the market including the Mac Mini's which can now be had for $400 + if your not after the absolute latest "hot ticket".


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## Gary in ohio (May 11, 2002)

really going to depend on what you call cheap. Since yiour looking at linux, take a look at the support hardware, Ubuntu, fedora and most of the major vendors have know good laptops that will work with their distros. I like the HP elitebook line. Wide range of products, Docking stations for more ports and monitors. prices are all over the place depending on your needs. I have ubuntu running on a couple of 8540's and love them. f you go with anything new make sure you can disable secure boot.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Gary in ohio said:


> I like the HP elitebook line.


I refurbish quite a few laptops, and the HP Elitebook business laptops are what I like best. The really delightful thing about the Elitebook line is how affordable they are when they come off corporate lease. In fact the laptop I'm using now is an HP Elitebook 8560p. That's got a second generation i7 processor and 8GB memory, and I only paid $90 for it. You really can't beat that.

Business class laptops offer a number of advantages over home laptops.
* Matte finish monitors instead of glossy, so glare is reduced.
* Rugged. Many have metal enclosures.
* Battery options, for extended battery life.
* Usually have docking stations available.
* Improved quality keyboards & touchpads.
* Biometric security, like fingerprint readers (not really useful to home users, but very cool!).
* Legacy ports are common (my laptop has a 9-pin serial port).

The way it works is that corporations lease laptops, normally for 2 years at a time. At the end of the lease period they gather up all the old laptops and distribute new ones. The hard drives are always removed and left with the IT department for security. The old laptops are placed on pallets and auctioned, then find their way to eBay. Most aren't refurbished, so they are sold with no hard drive, no battery, and no AC adapter. They're sold for whatever they will bring. I lay in wait for insanely great deals.

Gary, I haven't seen you posing in a few years. Good to see you back!


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## HermitJohn (May 10, 2002)

It all depends on what you want to use the laptop/pc for. I snagged couple used 11.6 inch 2GB RAM "cloudbooks" or mini laptops or netbooks or whatever you want to call them, late last year cheap on ebay. They both needed work. But their big claim to fame is very light weight and they go nearly 8hr on a charge. 

Would I want one as my primary computer, nope. But they are handy. One has become my dedicated Kindle app computer and nearly perfect for that. Reminds me a lot of an old win95 laptop I had long time ago. It was too slow for win98 and had proprietary video card that didnt work well with linux or BeOS. But it was handy thing for basic stuff. Finally display got so dim as to be painful to try and use so that was that. Wasnt worth replacing the screen.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

HermitJohn said:


> It all depends on what you want to use the laptop/pc for. I snagged couple used 11.6 inch 2GB RAM "cloudbooks" or mini laptops or netbooks or whatever you want to call them, late last year cheap on ebay. They both needed work. But their big claim to fame is very light weight and they go nearly 8hr on a charge.
> 
> Would I want one as my primary computer, nope. But they are handy. One has become my dedicated Kindle app computer and nearly perfect for that. Reminds me a lot of an old win95 laptop I had long time ago. It was too slow for win98 and had proprietary video card that didnt work well with linux or BeOS. But it was handy thing for basic stuff. Finally display got so dim as to be painful to try and use so that was that. Wasnt worth replacing the screen.


That's true, application is important. HP business laptops used to have a "b" designation (like the model 6530b) to denote that it's a business model. They've gone to "p" and "w" designations, to denote laptops intended to be portable (p) and those primarily used as stationary workstations (w) but could be taken on the road occasionally. The big difference isn't in size or weight, but in power consumption. For example, the 8560p laptops have low-power dual core i5 & i7 processors, where the 8560w have higher power quad core processors, since it's assumed that power consumption for "w" users isn't so important.

For myself, I use a 8560p and don't travel much. It totally meets my needs. In truth, it far exceeds my needs.


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## Gary in ohio (May 11, 2002)

Nevada said:


> Gary, I haven't seen you posing in a few years. Good to see you back!


Thanks...


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