IPC Top Note

Advantages: cheap, lightweight
Disadvantages: reliability, support

There are a few Topnote models, i will talk about the most recent one, the Topnote F 1000. Features You take it out of the box and the first thing you notice is the solid feel of it. The spec is as follows: 1GHz Celeron Processor 128MB RAM 10 GB Hard-disk 6xDVD-ROM/24x CD-ROM 13.3" TFT Screen NI-MH Battery Touchpad Mouse Windows XP Home Edition (On Recover CD) WINDVD 2000 Ok, so the spec isnt soo bad, especially for £799, BUT, As ive ...
...more detail about later. The prcessor is about bottom of the range in a laptop now, most being shipped with at least a 1.2GHz, but hey, this is a bottom of the range machine. It has a decent amount of memory, which is pleasing to see,as this seems to be the area that a lot of laptop manufacturers seem to get wrong, normally only supplying 64MB. Next is the DVD drive. This is somewhat a rarity on a machine this price. Not really a great deal to say ... Read review

Advantages: cost; speed
Disadvantages: unreliable manufacturer service very poor

...cost £833. Looking at IPC reviews after the event I realise how useful sites like CIAO are to help consumers. There are several reports of extended warranty repair turn around times. 30 and 60 days are typically quoted - perhaps this depends upon how much stress you go through with the manufacturer. If you're unlucky enough to get a rogue machine then either enjoy the cheaper initial cost or be prepared to battle hard to get your machine back and ...
...that you get with an IPC laptop, namely firewire, USB, a full multimedia experience with microphone; and a fast desktop processor like a Pentium 4 or an Athlon XP. IPC can certainly build a fast machine using desktop CPUs - the AMD Athlon XP being particularly good value. Since laptops share most internal components except notably the motherboard you have a fair chance of getting a bargain so long as the ancillary components (PSU, motherboard quality ... Read review

Advantages: High powered
Disadvantages: Rubbish

...I bought a shiny new IPC WebNote G. Very nice, blue. It cost £1500, but I paid £1350 as it was on offer. Brilliant deal a 3 GHz P4 with 512MB RAM, a 64MB graphics card and a huge 60 GB hard drive to go with it. All went well for the first month or so but then performance slid; Ok you should expect that, but 10 mins to start up? That is a bit much. This is how it carried on until the following September with the performance slipping and frequent trips ...
...ghost just days before the IPC guarantee ran out. I was told the hard drive was scrap, the processor was gone and the graphics card had gone. But that’s all right it was still in guarantee, not according to IPC whose guarantees are not worth the paper they are written on. Luckily the shop I bought the laptop off agreed to pay for the repairs that IPC would make. Two and a half months later I got the laptop back. IPC had replaced the hard drive and ... Read review

Advantages: cheap
Disadvantages: lasted 2 days then took 6 weeks to be repaired

...has been 6 weeks and IPC still haven't retuend it to me. This kind of warranty is useless. This kind of cheapness is expensive. I have now bought a different make. My friend says it is £100 cheaper than a Dell and they (Dell) also are unreliable. I don't know. I have to ue my daughter's computer now for my course work. IPC staff are very rude. They seem to think that because it has been in repair for 5 weeks, that it is not a big deal. They don't ...
...plenty of bad reviews about IPC laptops - actually mine is a newer model Webnote M 2.6 GHz etc. I wish I had become a CIOA member earlier. I have bought another make of laptop now and I have complained to Trading Standards who laughed and said "oh yes IPC...". Thank you, I said but its not funny. There should be a law against this kind of trading - how can they only let you have the laptop for 9 mths in your first year ??? I know for sure it won't ... Read review

Advantages: Spec, Price, Friendly support company
Disadvantages: Lack of brand name

...months ago i purchased my IPC webstar from an ipc dealer not really knowing who ipc were but finding myself attracted by the best specification for my budget. i won’t lie and tell you i had no concerns dealing with unknown electronics brand but i took the advise of my local dealer who spoke very highly of them indeed. i was delighted to find i had made the right choice and my laptop looked and performed better then laptops belonging to my work colleagues ...
...last year that laptop has gone all over the place with me and on the rare occasions my limited it skills have required a bit of propping up, the support guys at teksupportuk.com have been professional and most importantly patient. i did however make one mistake which was to purchase only 128mb rm which wouldn’t run my “business applications”. i contacted ipc’s support provider teksupportuk and organises for an upgrade to 512, within a working week ... Read review