Laptop Choice?

Both decent laptops, I would take the T480s.

seems overpriced. 8th gen is pretty old now, I'd think you could get something a year or so old for that price rather than 5-6yrs old

They'll be fine but probably double the price they should be if you shop around.

I've got an X280 with pretty much the same spec as that T490 (12" screen vs 14") and it is fine when I use it for everyday stuff, think I paid about £160 for that.

I've also used newandusedlaptops4u on ebay with no problems.

Personally I'd also get a Firestick or Google TV stick to connect to the projector rather than a laptop but that's just because I'm a bit lazy.

£200 for an 8th gen T480 with 16GB Ram here for instance
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/325547972345

Thanks all, good advice, I've sent on the ebay link @aggi has shared.

Is the L490 equivalent any good? just need it for the kids to do school work/lessons on? seem one for cheap - refurbished

I just got a thinkpad from furbify via blackmarket. Very happy with it.

heading travelling for 6 weeks in the new year, wondering whether a laptop or tablet would be a better option? will be connecting to wifi, mainly using for emails and films.

Depends how much you value compactness and how many emails you'll be writing. Personally I hate typing on a tablet and would only use it if I really had to for long stuff.

Saying that, my Samsung Tab A9+ is reasonably usable for more than just consupmtion with an external keyboard. You can use it windowed so you can have a couple of things visible at once. I've used it with one of these super slimline keyboards https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B014LECNK0 and a phone app where you get a keyboard on your phone and type on there. Means half the tablet screen isn't taken up by an onscreen keyboard.

It's a much lighter option than a laptop and probably what I'd go for.

But if I were looking for something with a keyboard I'd probably go for a little (11") Chromebook.

Regardless I'd get something with a microSD slot so you can load it up with films, etc

Me and my OH used 7" tablets. Perfect ime. Small, light, big enough screen. Don't underestimate weight as you may not always have a good spot to put it down and they are much better to hold than a 10".

Personally I found a smart phone better for the email side of things sometimes due to the keyboard.

If you're going to be doing proper work ymmv, but if not for 6wks I definitely wouldn't be carting around a massive tablet or laptop. Idk if 7" still exist, so it might have to be 8", but the point stands.

For storage I used an OTG + USB stick as I had a Nexus with no expansion. Worked well. Again though 6wks, how many series will you watch?

I remember having a 7" tablet but that's pretty much phone size now. Think my S24+ is something like 6.7" display. Would agree that I prefer writing on a phone to a tablet though

Neither. Just take a phone.

I've always used a 4G tablet with bluetooth keyboard for everything other than sat at my desk or phonecalls. . Wanted to upgrade, bought a Surface Pro, it's sat in a drawer, basically unused.

Thanks all! Plenty to chew over here.

True!

At the time my phone was a iPhone 4's.

I think the surface go is the sweet spot for those, 10" tablet with a reasonable keyboard and decent windows experience.

The bigger Surfaces didn't really seem to offer much over a laptop.

My 5 yo android tablet is struggling with Zwift (had to delete a lot to install as it can only go on internal storage).

My work laptop is locked down.

This presents a use case for for zwift, using with komoot/squadrats plugin for route plotting and any other random plugins etc I cant get on my work laptop. This would also allow the tablet to revert to a few more years of child focused usage. For such a self-indulgent use case I would ideally only spend £2-400.

Would a chromebook do this fine (particularly surprise by how hefty in terms of resources zwift seems) or would a cheap/refurbed laptop be a better bet. It can/will be plugged in so happy to prioritise screen size over battery.

unless you're opposed to Apple, I'd just get an iPad for Zwift. You should be able to get a 2nd hand iPad Pro for £400 with an M1 chip in it

something like https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/135312661675 or https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/335645431355 ? I hadn't considered ipad not ideologically opposed to apple, though all devices and current app purchases android, also aware the di2 programme windows only, which was a tick in the laptop pros. Are they particularly better for zwift than an android tablet of similar spec.

Do use an ipad for for route planning (with a bluetooth mouse?). My limited understanding was that some plugins/implementations of browsers other than safari a bit oddly done on apple.

You can get an i5 4th gen hp desktop for peanuts, stick a gtx970 / 980 in it and have changed left from your 200 quid

This has sold, but this is one that is recommended on the Zwift Masters Facebook group. It has a standard PSU (i think) or the motherboard has standard connectors, and it was only £25.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/256685389262

Here is something that the admin in that group posted about a week ago:

Base system £37 or less (accepting offers) https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/256682374746
SSD £11 https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08LKMQ9T4
Graphics card £50 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/335632746950
PSU £43 https://www.amazon.co.uk/MSI-A550BN-Power-Supply-Unit/dp/B09GW4S27Q/

Total £141 max, plus peripherals and wifi etc. Might need a kettle lead if they don't send one.

I would also need a screen, I think some portability useful enough that I will go for a tablet/laptop. Turbo set up in conservatory through the winter and elsewhere tbc, only moved a couple of weeks ago, in summer.

Apple TV from ebay and a cheap/free TV from FBM will be <£100.

@soul is the apple tv X Zwift SME.

Cheap monitor plus Apple TV 4K is my set up.
Way better than a tablet

Not going to help me plot routes though with the squadrats plugin, also not super portable. My dad uses apple TV for zwift and finds the apple TV app super unresponsive. I think I will go for a refurbed laptop as suspect this gives the most flexibility.

Apparently Zwift will struggle on a Chromebook/not supported? This would be the best option for me too but am now looking for a cheap laptop option as my 2015 MacBook is really struggling when racing