Which Spec Lenova Is Best Value?

[kelfoan]

Hi Narrowed my search down to same model but different specs

Lenova H520s (small box) I3 processor, 500GB storage , 4 GB RAM , 6 x 2.0 USB £399.99. PC World

Lenova H520s (small box) I5 processor, 1TB storage, 6GB RAM 6x2.0 USB
£419.99. PC World

Lenova H520 (standard size box) I5 processor, 2TB storage, 4GB RAM, 4 x2.0 USB plus 2 x 3.0 USB. £499.99 John Lewis

I use pc mailnly for simple tasks so although I want to "future proof" my pc I dont want to go over the top and spend money for spec I wont require.

Thanks in advance

[VHG]

I think you mean LENOVO not Lenova.

The first one you list, at £399, the only one I can find on PC World at that price has 6Gb of memory and 1Tb hard drive.

The second one you list, at £419, the only one I can find on PC world at that price has 4Gb of memory and 500Gb hard drive.

So you seem to have mixed up the specs for those two PCs.

[VHG]

Basically Intel make three types of "iCore" CPUs.

They are the i3 (the lowest), then the i5, then the i7 (top of range)

So an i5 CPU is going to be better than an i3 CPU so as a general rule go for an i5 over an i3 (though I have an i3 and it is fine). However over the next few years an i5 will deal better with video and other CPU intensive tasks than an i3.

Also the USB 2.0 spec has been replaced by the USB 3.0 spec (well over a year ago) so if you want to future proof then a desktop with USB 3.0 is better than one with USB 2.0.

Basically USB 3.0 will allow you to transfer data to say an external hard drive faster than USB 2.0.

I notice the two Lenovo from PC World only have USB 2.0 (though that may be a mistake on the PC World web site).

The Lenovo from John Lewis says it has 2 x USB 3.0 though these may be at the back of the case (and harder to get to), with the USB 2.0 at the front.

Be wary of small cases as if you ever want to add a card inside (a new graphics card) or extra hard disk there may not be room in the case.

Overall the PC from John Lewis is the best as it is a full size case, has a large 2Tb hard disk, an i5 CPU, and USB 3.0. But of course is it the most expensive.

However it is probably rather over specification for just "simple tasks" so you could probably get away with a lower spec (and cheaper) PC if you want to save money.

Note you don't get a screen with any of these PCs.

Any reason why you a limiting yourself to Lenovo?

[VHG]

One other thing to consider.

All these PCs ship with Windows 8.

Now Windows 8 was a massive departure from Windows 7 and they did not get everything right in Windows 8.

So in the next week or so they plan to release Windows 8.1, a massive update to Windows 8.

While this is a free download for existing users of Windows 8, there is a risk that once you download it it may not work right on your new PC (because it wont have been tested on Windows 8.1).

So if it was me buying a desktop PC now I would wait till Windows 8.1 comes out, and then buy a PC with Windows 8.1 already on it. Then you know the company who sold it has tested it with Windows 8.1 on it.

You might think that is being over cautious but if you download Windows 8.1 and it goes wrong it may be difficult to go back to Windows 8.

Just hang on for a few weeks and buy a Windows 8.1 computer.

[kelfoan]

VHG many thanks for info. I am looking at Lenovo as this has good reviews . However I am open to suggestions for similar spec and price. I was worried that if I waited for 8.1 to be included on the pc then it would also result in an increase in price of the model.(any excuse for retailer to increase price!)