Member Avatar for Violet_82

HI all, quick questiona bout a laptop I would like to buy for my parents, a dell 15, i3 processor, 4gb ram and windows 8.
Now, I have absolutely no experience at all with wondows 8 and I was wondering if anybody can let me know whether it is worth buying the laptop or not, if 4gb ram is enough for windows 8 to run smoothly etc. One more thing, my parents are used to windows vista, whether that's a good thing or not it doesn't matter really, so I wonder how different is window 8 from vista?
Here's the laptop spec where you can get an idea although it has windows 8 and not 7
thanks

Edited by Violet_82 because: amendments
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Quick setup and a few practical tweaks to make Windows 8 less foreign for people used to Vista, plus safety and performance pointers. This follows the thread points from , (UX learning curve), and (real-world responsiveness) and focuses on things that help immediately after first boot.

First-boot checklist (do these before you install extra software)

  • Create a USB recovery drive right away (Recovery Drive → check “Back up system files to the recovery drive”, plug in an empty USB and follow the wizard).
  • Run Windows Update and install any offered platform updates; historically Windows 8 → 8.1 added desktop-friendly options, but note Windows 8/8.1 are out of mainstream support now (see security note below).
  • Grab official drivers from Dell’s support page for the exact model (don’t rely on random driver sites).
  • Make a full system image or at least File History/backup of your user folders before customizing. (support.microsoft.com)

Quick tweaks to make the interface feel familiar

  • Install a Start-menu replacement (Open-Shell is the maintained Classic Shell fork) to give a familiar menu and reduce trips to the Start screen.
  • If you have Windows 8.1, enable the “go to desktop instead of Start” option in Taskbar → Properties → Navigation and turn off corner navigation for fewer accidental charm/hot-corner activations. (github.com)

Keep it fast and safe

  • Disable unnecessary startup apps using Task Manager’s Startup tab; it shows impact and is the safest way to speed boot.
  • Check that the machine meets Windows minimums (Windows 8 minimum RAM is low, but modern multitasking benefits from more memory; upgrade if you plan heavy browsing or photo/video work).
  • Important: Windows 8/8.1 no longer receive security updates—consider moving to a supported OS or keep strict backups, up-to-date antivirus, and offline recovery media. (support.microsoft.com)

Notes: do the recovery-drive and driver steps before big UI changes. If a tweak causes trouble, the recovery USB or a saved system image will save time and grief.

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Member Avatar for Violet_82

I managed to get the model, it's a dell inspiron 5520. I was thinking about the 3520, but the former has a better processor

Member Avatar for ruggb

Windows 8 is different
because of that there is a lot of negative opinions out here.
I have been trying to figure it out for a while now - only playing with it
Actually, it isn't all that bad. There r some good things about it and for some ppl it might work better. It is definitely a touch screen OS being more clumbsy for a mouse.

Since I have been able to put gadgets in W7 format back on the desktop most of my objections r gone. For me, it is not as efficient as W7 but it is tolerable.

I would assume u have a W7 downgrade option but I would wait to see how ur parents feel about it after a few weeks. Make sure they have a "How do I do this" resource handy.

Edited by ruggb because: clarity
Member Avatar for hazzag1995

Im using WIndows 8 pro on my laptop, which has 4GB RAM, and a single core 2.1 GHz CPU, and that isnt high powered, and it runs very smooth, definately worth it. When i first loaded office 2010 on, it was so quick loading word up that i didnt see the splash screen at all, and thats fast! no doubt your i3 CPU is more powerful than mine, so go for it! if you find you do need more memory, you can go to http://www.crucial.com/systemscanner/ and do a system scan which will determine if you can upgrade the amount of RAM you have, it will tell you what you have, and what you can upgrade to. Good luck, and happy new year!

Member Avatar for Violet_82

I have bought the laptop already thanks

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