Barebones Laptop? (europe)

Not exactly about building a PC, but hear me out: I need a decent Laptop on a slim budget. The most feasible way to get a decent machine at that price point would be a barebones kit (chassis, CPU and mobo, screen and keyboard) so I can just add some cheap ram and a small SSD, at least that's the idea here. I've noticed that getting a laptop with no OS or with DOS on it shaves quite a bit off the price, the problem is that they're mostly terrible, extremely low-end models.The same would go for an HDD, I don't need some random 2.5'' HDD since I'll be buying an SSD anyway.

So, is there a good store in europe (EU preferred) that either sells custom laptops or just barebone kits? This really seems like the way to go for my particular case.

 

If that's not possible, can someone recommend me a laptop in the 400-ish (500 max) € price range with these kinds of specs:

screen: at least 1600x900, TN is fine, IPS or VA would obviously be preferred

CPU and GPU: either an i3 or an i5 CPU, doesn't have to be ULV either. Decent iGPU would be nice (HD 4400 or 4600). If someone can convince me that an APU would be a better choice all-around then I'd be interested as well. NO dedicated GPU, I simply don't need it on this machine.

HDD: just whatever, I'll be swapping it out anyway

Keyboard: I'll be typing on this thing quite a lot, so I really need a good keyboard, full num-pad is a plus

Size and weight: 15.6'' would be ideal, 17'' is just too big. I don't really care about the weight but it needs to fit comfortably in my backpack.

Connectivity: nothing special, just your standard VGA, HDMI, a few USB ports and ethernet + decent wireless and bluetooth

Build quality: It really should be tough, I'll carry this thing around on construction sites and whatnot. I know that I won't get a super dust- and waterproof system at this pricepoint but I want something that can take a bit of beating (hence the SSD upgrade). I don't care whether it's made out of metal or plastic as long as it's tough.

RAM: 4GB expandable to 8GB seems sensible

Battery life: I don't expect miracles, but a few hours would be nice.

Upgradability: Yes, it's a laptop, but I want to be able to open it up and add RAM and my SSD without too much hassle. Maintenance and swapping parts should be easy.

 

I obviously thought of the Lenovo Thinkpads when I was looking around for a laptop with these specs, but it seems that they either come with a WXGA screen or with a bunch of useless features (and Windows) as soon as you step up to the FHD models. So, yeah. This has been really frustrating so far, if someone can point me in the right direction that would be great.

http://www.deviltech.de/deviltech.php/sid/6c0c11c3d49b26e69c25d9e8d60089db/

Give them a call and see what are the possibilities.

I actually thought about a used thinkpad, I've been looking around Ebay for the last 2 days or so. A T520 or T420 (or even a W520) would be pretty sweet. I try to avoid buying used whenever possible, but that seems to be my best choice right now.

Also, barebone laptops were a thing just a few years ago, apparently MSI made them and you could add a CPU, ram and an HDD and you were good to go.

I sent them a mail, would be pretty cool. Thanks for the tip.

If you want , you can get second hand from here :

http://www.ldlc.be/informatique/c3063/p1e48t3o0a1+fv0-4265+fd-1.html

For 600 you can get a gtx 850m and a nice laptop http://www.ldlc.be/fiche/PB00169993.html

Just DON'T LOOK AT THE PRICES AS STATED , they do sales every so often on the second hand section , haloween was 20% off and xmass last wednesday was 25% off , summer they do - 50% ( but it's progressive , so usually all the good stuff is gone ) 

 

Either that or ebay or even new , just look for one with Dos as you said , if you where to get new , I would factor in the price of the ssd as you said you would include one anyways .

 

Good luck 

Oh, french.... This'll be a pain to navigate, but I'll manage.

Hmm, most of the stuff I see is either the low end ideapads or a bunch of multimedia laptops. I really need a good keyboard for this thing and I need it to be tough. As nice as an 850m is for the price I have absolutely no use for it. This'll be a pure work machine, and if I want to play a game it'll be some 2D or indie game anyway. Also that WXGA screen, eww.

I'll check Amazon and Mindfactory again for new ones, but it seems like they simply don't make lower end Laptops with 1600x900 screens anymore. If I can get a used T520 from ebay for 300-ish € and then add an SSD it should hopefully work out.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MSI-Computer-Corp-937-16GC29-029-Barebone-15-6-in-Laptop-/191320682942

I think this has what your looking for.

specs:

  1. Display
• 15.6" LED-backlit LCD, Full HD (1920 x 1080),16:9, Anti-Glare
• Brightness controlled by keyboard hot keys
  1. Express Card Slot 
n/a
  1. Card Reader 
2-in-1 Card Reader (SD/MMC)
  1. Hard Disk Drive 
2.5" SATA HDD drive bay + M-SATA x 2
  1. Optical Drive 
SuperMulti DVDRW drive included
  1. LAN/Modem 
Gigabyte LAN
  1. Wireless LAN
Realtek 802.11 b/g/n + Bluetooth 4.0
  1. Bluetooth
Yes
  1. Turbo RAM Support
None
  1. Built-in CMOS Camera 
3.0 Mega Pixels 
  1. TPM
None
  1. Security Feature 
None
  1. I/O Ports
  1. Audio
  1. Short-Cut Keys 
Power/Webcam /Windows
  1. Battery
Li-ion 6 cells included
  1. AC Adapter 
120W, 19V/ 6.32 DC, 100~240V AC, 50~60Hz universal
  1. Dimensions
15.09" x 9.83" x 1.46"
  1. Weight
Approx 5.28 lbs (w/o battery and power adapte

That is WAY too expensive, the whole point of this was to save money.

I second the second hard thinkpad suggestion, if you can find one really think of going for that. I got one, its works great, really sturdy too.

Yeah, I've been looking around on ebay for the last few days. But it seems like I'd have to settle with a T500 If I don't want to spend more than 300-ish €. I'm still hoping for a good deal on some newer models so I can at least get an i-series CPU with hyperthreading. Oh well...

You might need to compromise a little, but keep in mind, ram, hdd/ssd, bluetooth, wifi can all be replaced easily over time.

I got an old t400 with no hdd for a good price and put a new hdd in it :)

I'll add an SSD anyway, the only thing that's got me worried is the core 2 duo CPU and the weak graphics. Apparently that should be fine for my needs but it just doesn't feel right to spend 300+€ on a machine with a 6 year old CPU.

Thank you for your help so far, but I've just got a T500 (with a 1680x1050 screen), QWERTZ keyboard and 4GB of RAM for 200€ including shipping. I also ordered an 850 evo for my main PC so I can use my current SSD in the laptop. I really hope that this'll work out for me.

You could just get an x86 chrome book and replace chromeos with a Linux distro of your choice.