Ugh. Should I Get A Laptop?

[JHomes]

So here's the dealio

I travel often for work, and this coming Fall I'm travelling more frequently and usually I bring my phone with me. This works really well, but I mean the battery life on an iPhone 5S is kinda shite, and browsing sites is kind of a pain.

I'm considering getting a laptop. It would be better suited for these trips, and I could use it at home, even though I use a gaming desktop and that bad boy is getting an overhaul in the next few months anyways. So that's part of what's holding me back.

Wouldn't mind being able to play a few games while I'm traveling. Don't expect to be playing GTA V or anything, but even some basic games.

So my questions are (for those who skip to the end)

1) Should I even bother getting a laptop?
2) If I do, which should I grab (my budget is $200 USD)

 

[frogboy]

Not sure what you can get get in the U.S. for that money but here in Australia i would say save your money for something else.

 

[BoraMurdar]

1) Should I even bother getting a laptop?
2) If I do, which should I grab (my budget is $200 USD)

These two questions will give you the answer. It's hard to do the work from the phone, so yes, you will need a laptop. But for 200$ you can barely find any, at least any with good or average battery life.
Some examples
https://www.amazon.com/Acer-Aspire-ES1-411-C507-Display-Celeron/dp/B00TVRGV8I
https://www.amazon.com/Dell-3000-15-6-Inches-Resolution-Bluetooth/dp/B013PK8LGQ/

 

[Omnipotent]

Why not rent one.

 

[SHvFl]

If your budget is $200 don't for god sake. It will be bad, it will annoy you and will not last long before you break it to avoid madness.

 

[Vasudev]

Its better to invest in a couple of power banks to keep iphone fully charged.

 

[ElectricSheep]

Its better to invest in a couple of power banks to keep iphone fully charged.

Cheaper too!!
Also, to extend battery life, could try turning off apps that you don't use to save on power drain

 

[ravi prakash saini]

As BoraMurdar said It's hard to do the work from the phone so get laptop if you want to do the work easily,otherwise where can you find a laptop which remains on 24 hrs without connecting it to power source.If battery back up is concerned you can use your phone like laptop,I mean do the work and shut it down.Moreover you can buy solar charger for your phone.
P.S. if you find the battery back up of your iPhone 5S is kinda shite,ask any android user like me & you will start loving your phone

 

[Vasudev]

P.S. if you find the battery back up of your iPhone 5S is kinda shite,ask any android user like me & you will start loving your phone

Switch to a WP, you'd get a day's of battery life even with every app turning on.

 

[ravi prakash saini]

Switch to a WP, you'd get a day's of battery life even with every app turning on.

I use smart phone but i am not so smart user so my battery easily last for couple of days

 

[Vasudev]

Wp(Lumia/Surface) is a smartphone too, even mine lasts only for 4-5days only whereas my Mom's lasts for a week using whatsapp and skype.

 

[shmu26]

buy a used laptop, it is the only option that fits your budget and will do the job.

 

[Lucent Warrior]

Why not a tablet, for around $200 you can find a new one, and will be extremely portable. Either way, you will not be doing much gaming for $200.

 

[Cats-4_Owners-2]

If you opt to purchase a lap top, get one that you will like, and ultimately be happy living with. Even if you go beyond your budget, a few more viewing inches added to the screen size plus the knowledge that you are pleased with your purchase shall make your choice a more likely enjoyment. BTW, Bora's first share (The Aspire) looks strikingly like the model that I am typing from now, but with more GHz & less RAM. The screen has always been too small (in my opinion) which is why the computer's plugged into our flat screen TV!
Whichever direction you go, I hope you'll get the most bang for your buck; and stay clear of buyer's remorse.

Edit: @JHomes, here's the lap top my wife has ordered Refurbished: DELL Laptop Precision M90 Intel Core 2 Duo 2.16 GHz 2 GB Memory 160 GB HDD 17.1" Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit - Newegg.com ($180 before tax & shipping)
I've read reviews on Amazon, most with 4 & 5 stars (one felt it to be on the heavy side for travel) and it's warranty, afaik, covers parts & labor for one year. I'd tell you more, but it's in transit now. So, I shall have to wait before I can share any impressions.

 

[LASER_oneXM]

in my opinion you should't spend that money on a laptop: you should wait until you save/have more money.
I'm living in europe/germany. Here you have to spend min. 600-700 Euro to get a good, reliable laptop ...anything else is scrap.
You won't be happy with a laptop that costs only $200.

 

[CMLew]

Recently invested a raspberry Pi 3 to be used as portable laptop by using mobile phone/ipad as screen/typepad.
Works like charm.

Cost < $40 some more

 

[Cohen]

As @Lucent Warrior said, get a tablet.
You could get a keyboard for it, which would make it just as easy to type on as a laptop. You would benefit from it being smaller than an average laptop as you often travel for work. You would also have a nice amount of games to play from the play store.

It's not worth getting a laptop for $200; you'd most likely hate it and wouldn't be able to do much on it for the most part.

 

[Logethica]

Perhaps you can get a laptop for free (or nearly free) @JHomes ..
Sadly we live in a World where millions of people throw away their old laptops & PCs because they do not have the knowledge to remedy one that is "slow" or has bloatware hogging their storage space.
All of my machines to date have been free..
I would spread the word to friends/family/colleagues that if they know someone that is going to throw away their old laptop, then you may be interested and would perhaps pay $50 for it.
This way everybody is a winner-
The person in question gets money for something that they were going to throw away..
You are able to contribute to recycling...
and for $200 you may end up with 4 laptops that you can "fix" and install different operating systems on

 

[frogboy]

Perhaps you can get a laptop for free (or nearly free) @JHomes ..
Sadly we live in a World where millions of people throw away their old laptops & PCs because they do not have the knowledge to remedy one that is "slow" or has bloatware hogging their storage space.
All of my machines to date have been free..
I would spread the word to friends/family/colleagues that if they know someone that is going to throw away their old laptop, then you may be interested and would perhaps pay $50 for it.
This way everybody is a winner-
The person in question gets money for something that they were going to throw away..
You are able to contribute to recycling...
and for $200 you may end up with 4 laptops that you can "fix" and install different operating systems on

Wow what a great idea my friend we could all do this, i know i will.

 

[Logethica]

Wow what a great idea my friend we could all do this, i know i will.

Thanks .. we would save a lot of money doing this.