It all started with an email from a reader. “Have you seen these Coda 1.1 laptops being advertised on TikTok and Facebook?” asked Michael Albin. “These are Windows 10 laptops with a Celeron processor and 11in screen. I found them on eBay, brand new for £64 including delivery.”
The gist of Michael’s email was simple: how would such cheap laptops fare when put through the PC Pro tests? He had taken the bait and been suitably impressed. “It isn’t the fastest in the world, but it is a very functional little laptop that runs everything I then tried on it.”
Nor was the Coda 1.1 alone. There were plenty of TikTok videos showing off sub-£100 laptops that appeared to do everyday jobs without any issue. Why pay more?
REAL-WORLD TROUBLES
It turns out that Michael had been fortunate with his timing. He had ordered his mini laptop shortly before Christmas, but by the time I dusted down the PC Pro credit card in early February the price of the Coda 1.1 had jumped to £99 on eBay.
Likewise for all the other similar laptops. Cursing my delay, I paid up for four of these promising-looking mini machines on Amazon and eBay. Browsing the latter soon raised another interesting question: should people buy one of these mini laptops or a better-known brand’s laptop that had been “pre-loved”? I found a likely candidate and pressed Buy.
One of the things that had impressed Michael was just how quickly his laptop had arrived. And I can only agree. Within three days of my transactions, all four new laptops had arrived. The second-hand machine arrived a couple of days later.
Denne historien er fra June 2023-utgaven av PC Pro.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra June 2023-utgaven av PC Pro.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Lenovo ThinkPad E16 Gen 1 (AMD)
By no means the last word in excitement, but the ThinkPad E16 is a good-value choice for business users
Huawei MateBook D16
The best and biggest screen here, plus a powerful Core i9 processor, ensure the MateBook D16 stands out
Acer Aspire Go 14
It's tough to argue with this laptop's value for money or battery life, but speed lovers should look elsewhere
HP Spectre x360 16 (2024)
This sleek 2kg convertible packs everything you need, including a Core Ultra chip and optional Nvidia graphics
Five ways to get cloud computing wrong
Don't let your migration projects go up in smoke. Steve Cassidy runs through the blunders to avoid
Control your computer with your face and head -it's the future!
As if to show nothing is new in the world of technology, eye tracking and gesture control date back decades. But if Apple's on board, maybe their time has finally come, suggests Nicole Kobie
Chip off the old block
Standalone sales of the Z80 CPU have finally been discontinued after 48 years. David Crookes looks back on a chip with a staggering impact
Cloud backup 2024
Whether it's through attack or error, your business data is always at risk. Dave Mitchell explains how cloud services can add extra protection and puts four contenders to the test
Elegoo Saturn 4 Ultra
A brilliant advert for resinbased 3D printing, with a host of features that make it easy to obtain great results
HP All-in-One 27 cr-0014na PC
A speedy and temptingly priced all-in-one PC with a fine 27in display-but note its 1080p resolution