Budget 31-40k Laptop for basic home usage

[animishticomb]

Already have a high-end PC, office laptop etc for our normal needs...there was an additional chromebook acer 15 inch that we have been using for 5-6 years primarily for below usage by my wife(great bang for buck, bought for 20-30k) which is not serving needs anymore....

Usage: Zoom, Chrome (multiple tabs), Microsoft office for home spreadsheets etc, Webcam for chatting/yoga etc classes
Preferences: Lag free usage for few years with a good build, no preference on amd or intel etc.
Budget: Not really a constraint but given the usage was hoping below 40k.

Any other details required, please let me know? It is not an urgent purchase so I am hoping to create a list of 3 preferred laptops that I can then monitor for next month and pull the trigger depending on offers etc

Side tech question: My pc is 12700 cpu + other high end specs...and I am sure it can handle multiple parallel os/server instances.is it possible to use my pc through the laptop to create a server instance etc. through wifi on windows?

 

[altair21]

get any laptop you want in your budget, increase the ram, slap on a ssd and it'll be a killer productivity laptop. you can explore your options and post here for any additional questions.

Side tech question: My pc is 12700 cpu + other high end specs...and I am sure it can handle multiple parallel os/server instances.is it possible to use my pc through the laptop to create a server instance etc. through wifi on windows?

so like a command line thing for hosting apps or like 2 or more monitors connected to the same CPU, each running independently of each other? both is possible

 

[Heisen]

Get the M1 Macbook Air
If you want lag free experience, great webcam & mic's, insane battery life.

 

[animishticomb]

Get the M1 Macbook Air
If you want lag free experience, great webcam & mic's, insane battery life.

why spend 2x? I am sure a 12th gen i5+ can easily handle these things

Dont care about battery life

get any laptop you want in your budget, increase the ram, slap on a ssd and it'll be a killer productivity laptop. you can explore your options and post here for any additional questions

Thanks...min processor requirements for amd or intel for my use case?

o like a command line thing for hosting apps or like 2 or more monitors connected to the same CPU, each running independently of each other? both is possible

Yes two separate monitors though I was thinking of using the chromebook as 'monitor' wirelessly

 

[Heisen]

why spend 2x? I am sure a 12th gen i5+ can easily handle these things

Dont care about battery life

It's not just about the processor, whether it can handle it or not, even an i3 can handle that requirement, but by spending 40k what you will get is
- crappy display
- crappy speakers
- crappy webcam
- crappy microphones
- crappy plasticky build
- crappy hinges
- laggy OS

The 40k laptop will definitely run for 6+ years but you have to live with those aspects.

By spending extra 29k and getting M1 you will have none of those, as you said budget is not really a constraint, so with that in mind doesn't make sense to get 40k laptop IMO.

Also M1 will hold it's value much better than the 40k or even 80k windows laptop after 6 years, selling it after you are done will be a piece of cake.

 

[animishticomb]

It's not just about the processor, whether it can handle it or not, even an i3 can handle that requirement, but by spending 40k what you will get is
- crappy display
- crappy speakers
- crappy webcam
- crappy microphones
- crappy plasticky build
- crappy hinges
- laggy OS

The 40k laptop will definitely run for 6+ years but you have to live with those aspects.

By spending extra 29k and getting M1 you will have none of those, as you said budget is not really a constraint, so with that in mind doesn't make sense to get 40k laptop IMO.

Also M1 will hold it's value much better than the 40k or even 80k windows laptop after 6 years, selling it after you are done will be a piece of cake.

Thanks Yes i did think about those aspects too... Thing is my wife also is averse to trying out a new OS and apple device so preference still is windows laptop in that budget... Can consider m1 as last option if no other good options come up from forum members


...
For now installed xubuntu minimal on the chrome book... Seems to be running fine... Saved 40k for now

 

[altair21]

Thanks Yes i did think about those aspects too... Thing is my wife also is averse to trying out a new OS and apple device so preference still is windows laptop in that budget... Can consider m1 as last option if no other good options come up from forum members

as long as you are fine with its drawbacks. m1 will be your best bet but keep in mind, Apple will probably stop pushing updates to m1 after a couple years, thats their typical update cycle.

Thanks...min processor requirements for amd or intel for my use case?

None, you dont have much choice in the 40k budget anyways, but honestly if you have been fine with a chromebook, you'll be fine with whatever you get and it'll probably be an upgrade too

Yes two separate monitors though I was thinking of using the chromebook as 'monitor' wirelessly

Not sure about using chromebook as a monitor wirelessly (there will definitely be some lag), but the two monitor approach will work just fine, just make sure you have atleast 32 gigs of ram for smooth running (you can definitely make do with less)

 

[animishticomb]

Not sure about using chromebook as a monitor wirelessly (there will definitely be some lag), but the two monitor approach will work just fine, just make sure you have atleast 32 gigs of ram for smooth running (you can definitely make do with less)

Yes monitors I have 2 spare from office lying around but my wife is averse to using them...just wants a laptop type setup on sofa
yes pc has 64 gigs ram

 

[altair21]

Yes monitors I have 2 spare from office lying around but my wife is averse to using them...just wants a laptop type setup on sofa
yes pc has 64 gigs ram

The get her a proper laptop tbh, the wireless monitor setup would definitely have noticeable lag and that really degrades the experience. if usecase is just for streaming something and light editing,q then an Android/Apple tablet would be better.

you can run a server instance on your computer with your media files which she can stream on the tablet, and she'll also be able to edit documents/browser etc on the tablet with ease

either ways you need either a laptop or a tablet (I would recommend tablet, if couch browsing is the usecase)

 

[animishticomb]

The get her a proper laptop tbh, the wireless monitor setup wouldn't definitely have noticeable lag and that really degrades the experience. if usecase is just for streaming something and light editing,q then an Android/Apple tablet would be better.

you can run a server instance on your computer with your media files which she can stream on the tablet, and she'll also be able to edit documents/browser etc on the tablet with ease

either ways you need either a laptop or a tablet (I would recommend tablet, if couch browsing is the usecase)

Thanks tablet already have xiaomi pad 6 too and streaming etc is pretty much taken care of between tv tab etc... This is mostly for spreadsheet research googling etc around day to day stuff

Will see how chrome book holds up with minimal xubuntu otherwise will get another laptop