A laptop for $600-$700

[dluby]

Hi,

I am living in Ireland but a friend of mine is coming home from the States in two weeks and he has been 'volunteered' to bring home a laptop for me    I am looking to buy a laptop with the following specifications:

Intel i5 (gen 3) processor, 15.6" screen, 6GB+ RAM, 500+GB hard-drive and preferably a separate graphics card but would settle for an Intel HD Graphics 4000 and within the price range of $600-$700.

Would you have any recommendations of what and where to buy?  For those of you who have tried Windows 8 is it worth going for or to stick with good old Windows 7?

Do you know if Dell laptops bought in USA can be fixed under warranty here?

Many thanks

Damian

[40hz]

I would definitely stick with Windows 7 for the time being unless you're buying a touch enabled machine specifically intended to run Windows 8. MSoft still has work to do making Win 8 more comfortable for its non-touch users.

re: Dell Warranty

AFAIK, Dell machines purchased in the US or Canada come with the North American limited warranty. So the terms and conditions are only those that would be binding in the US or Canada. I don't know if the warranty would remain valid for a machine purchased for immediate transport and permanent residence outside the US/Canada. Your best bet would be to call and ask them.

Note: US warranties are not particularly strong warranties. You may have more rights and coverage with a non-US warranty since you folks seem to have stronger consumer protection laws than we have.