Was Considering a New Laptop
Posted: Fri Feb 02, 2018 1:56 pm
My laptop is failing at the hinge, and I've always hated the 17.3" TN screen, that even looking straight on was darker on the bottom and brighter on the top. And it was always a pain balancing it on my knees trying to get a good viewing angle and for typing. For browsing, I preferred it sitting off to the side on a TV tray and using a mouse. But literally, all I use it for is web browsing and youtube sitting on the couch while watching TV, and I'm watching youtube on TV now more often than not.
So then I thought about those mini computers last night. Wow, those things are cheap. I already have a keyboard, mouse, SSD, and display. This seems like the perfect solution, maybe just getting fancy with a swing away monitor mount so I don't knock it onto the floor. And just having a keyboard on my lap, rather they a big heavy laptop, will be great. There are so many options though, and it's a little overwhelming just looking into them this morning.
So my question is - can you go too low in performance for web browsing and youtube? I mean, will the cheapest mini-ITX motherboard with Atom processor and 4GB ram be good enough? Or should I really go for some i3/i5 and more memory, or maybe AMD? My only other requirement would be wifi and a few USB ports - and I want to use my 2.5" SSD rather than getting an M.2 drive. I also want to use Linux.
Thanks for any tips and suggestions.
So then I thought about those mini computers last night. Wow, those things are cheap. I already have a keyboard, mouse, SSD, and display. This seems like the perfect solution, maybe just getting fancy with a swing away monitor mount so I don't knock it onto the floor. And just having a keyboard on my lap, rather they a big heavy laptop, will be great. There are so many options though, and it's a little overwhelming just looking into them this morning.
So my question is - can you go too low in performance for web browsing and youtube? I mean, will the cheapest mini-ITX motherboard with Atom processor and 4GB ram be good enough? Or should I really go for some i3/i5 and more memory, or maybe AMD? My only other requirement would be wifi and a few USB ports - and I want to use my 2.5" SSD rather than getting an M.2 drive. I also want to use Linux.
Thanks for any tips and suggestions.