Choosing a laptop to replace a desktop PC
The fastest laptops with the biggest memories are specialist games machines sold under brand names such as Alienware (now owned by Dell) and Asus's Republic of Gamers. Prices generally run from about £1,000 to £2,500. I suspect you are keen to get something faster than your current desktop, but your casual gaming needs and other applications can easily be met by a much cheaper laptop. In fact, you could even consider something with an old Intel Core 2 Duo. For longevity, it would be better to buy a laptop with one of Intel's latest Core i3, i5 or i7 processors, and this year's versions are codenamed Sandy Bay. However, for your purposes, having the latest chip won't make a huge amount of difference.
Lots of manufacturers make laptops for the desktop replacement market, and the leading brands include Asus, Acer, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba. If possible, visit a high-street retailer, PC superstore or large department store (eg John Lewis) to see if a particular brand appeals. You don't need to understand the technical specifications, but concentrate on laptops that have either a Core i3 or Core i5 processor, 4GB of memory, and Windows 7 Home Premium, preferably the 64-bit version. The things that will make more difference are the screen resolution, the "feel" of the keyboard, and your perception of the quality of construction and finish. It might help if you shop with a friend, but ultimately you have to rely on your own hands and eyes.
If you will be doing a lot of word processing, try to see if you'd prefer a laptop with an "isolated keyboard" (where the keys are like Scrabble tiles) rather than a traditional keyboard.
Mainstream desktop replacement laptops generally have 15.6 or 16 inch widescreens with a resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels, which is somewhat restrictive. Going up to a 17.3 inch screen will usually provide a resolution of 1600 x 900 pixels, which should be comparable with your current 17-inch LCD, though you may lose some height. (If you right-click on your Windows XP desktop, select Properties, then click the Settings tab, it will tell you the resolution. I'd guess this is 1280 x 1024, though it could be as low as 1024 x 768.)
There's not a huge choice of laptops with 17.3-inch screens, but the Samsung R780 is in your price range at about £650 (search for NP-R780-JT04UK). It has a Core i5-480M processor, 4GB of memory, 640GB hard drive and 64-bit Windows 7 Home Premium. Alternatives include the Acer Aspire 7741G, Asus K72JR-TY171V, and HP Pavilion dv6-3125sa. You will have to shop around for the best price, but watch out for "cheaper" models that only have 2GB of memory and probably a smaller hard drive.
Moving down a notch to the Core i3 processor would provide better value for your purposes. For example, you could get an Asus K72F-TY133Vwith a Core i3-370M for about £460, or an HP G72-b20sa with an i3-350M for about £470-£490. The Samsung R730 with an i3-380M (search for NP-R730-JB09UK) is no longer quite such good value at £526, the current Amazon.co.uk price. Even the Core 2 Duo version of the Samsung R730, which goes for about £450, doesn't offer a worthwhile saving over an Asus K72F, though it might win on aesthetic grounds.
At the bottom of the market for laptops with 17.3 inch screens are machines with Pentium- or Celeron-branded processors, which are slower but fast enough for most home users. An example is the Toshiba L670 with a 2.13GHz Pentium P6200, 2GB of memory and 250GB hard drive, which Argos is knocking out for £379.99. However, laptops with far better Core i3 chips and 4GB of memory are better value, and available for a bit less than your budget.
Switching from a desktop to a laptop will save space that you can devote to arts and crafts, but a laptop is not as healthy, ergonomically speaking. Think about using an adjustable laptop riser to lift the screen slightly. You may also prefer to plug in a separate USB mouse rather than using the laptop's touch-pad.
Footnote: A US-based security researcher recently reported finding theStarLogger keystroke logger installed on two Samsung laptops. If that had been true, the web should be awash with similar reports, and it isn't. In fact, the report was completely wrong, and was quickly debunked by Mikko Hypponen at F-Secure: Confirmed: Samsung is not shipping keylogger.
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