Need a new laptop (UK)

[Yungmcdonald]

I've been working with a half broken second hand laptop with good spec for a few years and am looking for a new one which hopefully isn't too expensive (ideally under £600).

I have a series x, so don't do a lot of PC gaming - I use my laptop for some online games like halo MCC, and some games which aren't available on console yet. I don't play many hard to run games on PC.

I make music using Ableton, and I stream movies and TV shows.

An SSD would be nice - I have one of them in my work laptop and it makes a world of difference.

In terms of screen resolution, I'm not too bothered, although I'd like a screen that looks quite bright and sharp for browsing and working, and a decent enough keyboard for writing. I play games connected to my TV, so as long as the processor and GPU can output 4k or 1440p onto an external screen I'm happy.

Is my rough budget reasonable for what I'm looking for? Any recommendations?

And is now a good time to be buying? Is the chip shortage inflating laptop prices?

Thanks for any and all help!

 

[Lutfij]

Welcome to the forums, newcomer!

I make music using Ableton
When you've stated using Ableton, the only thing that got me looking at were Apple's MacBook's.

4k or 1440p onto an external screen I'm happy
You won't get that on a £600 laptop. In fact you should be looking at a £1200~£1500 budget.

some games which aren't available on console yet
You're better off stating the titles you're interested in since the dev's for each game will code their game(s) to demand resources differently from any given system.

Is the chip shortage inflating laptop prices?
Yes prices are somewhat inflated apart from limited stocks due to the pandemic. Preferred site for purchase?