general work laptop advice

[javthrower]

My brother needs a new laptop, his dell is on its last legs, so of course i said he needs to buy from PCS. So basically he needs something for general work such as microsoft office, internet surfing and general stuff like that, no real gaming use. However he does need something thats going to last a good many years (he's a student and cant afford a new laptop every other year) and he wants something thats going to be fairly fast as well, so i put together a spec for him that i think will do a decent job for a good few years anyways but was wondering if any of you guys had any advice, thanks in advance.

Chassis & Display
Enigma III 540: 15.6" Matte HD LED Widescreen (1366x768)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5 Dual Core Mobile Processor i5-2450M (2.50GHz) 3MB (Is this necessary or will the i3 be okay? only thought of the i5 because it has the turbo boost, which i dont think the i3 has)
Memory (RAM)
4GB SAMSUNG 1333MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 2GB)
Graphics Card
nVIDIA® GeForce® GT 540M - 2GB DDR3 Video RAM - DirectX® 11
Memory - Hard Disk
500GB WD SCORPIO BLACK WD5000BPKT, SATA 3 Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (7200 rpm)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x SATA DVD±R/RW/Dual Layer (+ 24x CD-RW)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 3 in 1 Memory Card Reader (SD, MMC, MS)
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Bluetooth & Wireless
ENIGMA GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS 802.11N + BLUETOOTH 3.0
USB Options
1 x USB 3.0 PORT + 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS AS STANDARD
Battery
Enigma III Series 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (5,100/5,200 mAh)
Power Lead & Adaptor
1 x UK Power Lead & 120W AC Adaptor
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
FREE Microsoft® Office Starter 2010 (Limited functionality Word & Excel)
Anti-Virus
BULLGUARD INTERNET SECURITY - FREE 90 DAY TRIAL
Keyboard Language
INTEGRATED UK KEYBOARD
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 1.3 MEGAPIXEL WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)

£585

 

[Music Guy123]

Well, what screen size would he like? Also, what is his budget? Finally, he won't be doing any gaming then?

 

[javthrower]

the screen size is perfect for him he said, and he likes the aesthetics of the chassis as well, so all is good there. He wont be doing any gaming at all, he's not a gamer but he will be watching alot of films (travelling to and from home) and youtube videos so he wants good quality for the next few years! £585 is basically maxing out his budget, he doesnt really want to spend that much more!

 

[Music Guy123]

Ok, well, I think your spec is perfect. My only suggestion would be to get 1 stick of 4GB Ram rather than 2 2GB sticks. That way, you can add another later. Next upgrade would probably be the screen but that is a bit expensive I think. The problem is, your friend probably doesn't need a 540 gpu, he would be fine with integrated, 520 maximum but there isn't a chassis that supports that that PCS sell. So, I'd say your spec is perfect if you just change the RAM or even better, get 8GB straight off.

 

[javthrower]

okay thanks, we wont be ordering it untill Easter, when hes home from uni, so hopefully i might be able to get a few pics up and a review of one of the slighter lower end laptops for anyone that might be interested when it does come!