14" Screen Laptop for regular ms-office usage

anshul

anshul

Journeyman
1) What is your budget? (INR or USD)

20k-35k inr (stretch to 40k?)

2) What size & weight consideration (if any) would you prefer?
  • 14" - 14.9" screen
3) What are the primary tasks you will be performing with this notebook?

Mainly making Powerpoint Presentations

5) Any typical configuration in your mind you're eying for?
Long (or at least 4hr) battery life
<2kg
Minimal latency during regular use (applications like Office and browser must not take too long to fire or operate)
4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
a. Like:
b. Dislike:

6) Anything else you would like to say?
  • Screen resolution ( 768p (HD) / 900p / 1080p (Full HD) ) any
  • Battery back up ( normal (3-4hrs) / extended (5-7hrs) ) Extended preferred.
  • Purchase place ( Online (eg - flipkart, infibeam) / Local / Abroad (do mention the country)
Online or locally in Delhi
Value for money laptop.
 
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whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
The most important factor for minimum latency in a laptop is ssd.Almost all laptops below 70-80k comes with hdd so you have to replace it with ssd.Another thing to note is that unless you have specific models in mind keep away from buying laptops online unless absolutely necessary.Visit Nehru Place & check laptops from Dell,HP,Asus & Lenovo.Pick one that you like & ask to get its hdd replaced by samsung 850Evo 250GB ssd(costs ~6.8k on costtocost shop).Also prefer a laptop that gives extended warranty(aka 2 years instead of 1 year) & also ADP(accidental damage protection,it covers physical damage like screen crack due to falling of laptop which is not covered under usual warranty) for a reasonable additional charge(e.g.I bought 2 years ADP for asus laptop for only Rs.400 in an offer).
 
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anshul

anshul

Journeyman
whitestar_999 said:
The most important factor for minimum latency in a laptop is ssd.Almost all laptops below 70-80k comes with hdd so you have to replace it with ssd.Another thing to note is that unless you have specific models in mind keep away from buying laptops online unless absolutely necessary.Visit Nehru Place & check laptops from Dell,HP,Asus & Lenovo.Pick one that you like & ask to get its hdd replaced by samsung 850Evo 250GB ssd(costs ~6.8k on costtocost shop).Also prefer a laptop that gives extended warranty(aka 2 years instead of 1 year) & also ADP(accidental damage protection,it covers physical damage like screen crack due to falling of laptop which is not covered under usual warranty) for a reasonable additional charge(e.g.I bought 2 years ADP for asus laptop for only Rs.400 in an offer).
Click to expand...
Thanks buddy, that is some good advice!
 
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whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
*www.amazon.in/Lenovo-80X400HCIN-i3...0,p_n_feature_thirteen_browse-bin:12598161031
Check the 3rd/last review.Still I recommend checking it personally in lenovo shop.Do save the page/bookmark link as showroom sales guys may confuse you with similar models with slightly different configurations.Most important things to note are 7th gen processor & 1080p full HD screen,not the usual 720p HD screen found in most laptops in this price range.

Also note that you will need to format & reinstall win 10 to get the best performance as all pre-loaded windows OS comes with junk software preinstalled by laptop manufacturers.You need not worry about activation as once win 10 is activated on any system the licensing info based on system hardware is saved on MS servers so in future if win 10 is reinstalled on that same system it will be automatically activated when connected to net without you need to do anything.For extra safety you can create a MS account & then login with that on your pre-installed win 10 which will link your win 10 activation to your MS account.If by any chance your laptop hardware changes in future(say some mobo replacement/repair out of warranty) then simply login with your MS account on win 10 & your modified hardware system will activate win 10.
 
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anshul

anshul

Journeyman
Hey @whitestar_999 , many thanks for the inputs. I considered your suggestion and hunted for Lenovo shops. While in Nehru place, I also happened to look at the Yoga 510 which has similar specs with added Yoga features and touch at a bit of a stretch price. So, I went for that instead. It additionally had MS Office 2016 along with other things which avoided a separate purchase.
 
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whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
Yoga series is better than Lenovo's usual ideapad series bit also a bit costlier.Good to know you were able to stretch your budget.So did you enquire about ssd upgrade &/or linked MS account to win 10/MS Office 2016(I have a doubt whether it is a permanent version like win 10 or some extended 1 year validity version).
 
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anshul

anshul

Journeyman
Yes, I did. They said that they won't do it citing warranty reasons and suggested that I hold up for an year and then get it changed (additional expense). MS Office is a lifetime version linked to MS Account (Windows is also linked and I think that too has a lifetime activation). I haven't been able to format the Laptop for now but have extracted the product keys for the time when I reinstall from a fresh copy rather than using the bloated recovery.
 
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whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
I see,I thought Lenovo is more flexible regarding hdd upgrade.I searched a bit & got the answer here:
Solved: Yoga 510-14ISK & SSD - Lenovo Community
you could certainly replace it with a SATA 2.5 inch SSD (in fact some models of Yoga came configured that way), but to do so would involve removing the back cover, battery and speakers (at least to some degree) to access and remove/replace the drive.That said, replacing the Hard drive is not considered a Customer replaceable Unit/part (CRU) by Lenovo, so by opening it yourself you could risk voiding your warranty...If there is an authorized Lenovo retailer/shop near you, they might also be able to swap out the drive and image it with your current Windows installation.
Click to expand...
I guess because of their "slim design" the hdd can not be upgraded simply by removing the back cover(which is the case in many regular design laptop).May be you can try your luck at lenovo authorized service centre if you feel the need for ssd before 1 year but you will have to pay some fee(usually around 500-800).Btw why didn't you get some extended warranty option,I believe lenovo always has some such offer going on.

For reinstalling an already activated win 10 you don't need a key.Activation info is linked to hardware & is saved on MS servers so if you reinstall win 10 on that same hardware then win 10 will automatically activate after connecting to net.MS account is for situations when hardware is changed.e.g.if after 1 year warranty your laptop mobo is repaired resulting in a slight change in hardware then win 10 will be deactivated which you can reactivate by logging in with your MS account that you linked to activated win 10.My guess is that MS Office version you got also behave in similar manner.
 
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anshul

anshul

Journeyman
whitestar_999 said:
I see,I thought Lenovo is more flexible regarding hdd upgrade.I searched a bit & got the answer here:
Solved: Yoga 510-14ISK & SSD - Lenovo Community

I guess because of their "slim design" the hdd can not be upgraded simply by removing the back cover(which is the case in many regular design laptop).May be you can try your luck at lenovo authorized service centre if you feel the need for ssd before 1 year but you will have to pay some fee(usually around 500-800).Btw why didn't you get some extended warranty option,I believe lenovo always has some such offer going on.

For reinstalling an already activated win 10 you don't need a key.Activation info is linked to hardware & is saved on MS servers so if you reinstall win 10 on that same hardware then win 10 will automatically activate after connecting to net.MS account is for situations when hardware is changed.e.g.if after 1 year warranty your laptop mobo is repaired resulting in a slight change in hardware then win 10 will be deactivated which you can reactivate by logging in with your MS account that you linked to activated win 10.My guess is that MS Office version you got also behave in similar manner.
Click to expand...

Yes, I understand the activation part. I read it on a Lenovo help page itself that the Key information is burned in the BIOS area and fresh (Pen Drive/DVD based) installations would not be able to read off that information. So, the way (2 ways, one using powershell and other a VB script) to pull the key out of the Windows registry for safe keeping was suggested there only.

As for the SSD upgrade part, I tried a few Lenovo authorised shops and asked each one if they did SSD upgrades, everyone declined, so I went along with their story.

Extended warranty would only have stretched me beyond what I already did in terms of budget. :p
 
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whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
Ok!That key info part used to be the way until win 8.1,since the launch of win 10 MS changed this but seems like Lenovo has yet to update/add this info.

If budget is over then its fine,I just thought it would be quite cheap(e.g.my friend got extended warranty offer for only Rs.400 from asus).
 
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