My daughter and I flew to Manchester from the US as she will be going to university there. She has a student room but could not take possession of it immediately. The goal of our trip was to familiarize ourselves with the city and university campus, and do the many things she needed to get settled, such as get cell phone service, open a bank account, purchase bedding and kitchen stuff.
Sam's apartment is not in a high-rent district, but it is conveniently located, about a 10 minute walk to the University of Manchester, about a 20 minute walk downdown to the Picadilly train station, and a 30 minute walk to the downtown Arndale shopping center. It's up 2 flights of stairs in a building with no elevator, which was no problem for us. Furnishings are a bit sparse, but the apartment was clean, the beds were both comfortable, and it was quiet at night. We didn't use the kitchen, but did use the washer/dryer unit several times, which worked fine. The only criticisms - I couldn't get the fridge to be very cold, so milk spoiled after a couple of days. And the mirror in the bathroom is small and doesn't have a vanity light, making it a bit of a challenge to shave (me) or put on make-up (my daughter).
There is a convenience store and a McD's about 5 minutes away. There are also several restaurants on an adjacent street, but we didn't try any of these. You can walk to the 'Curry Mile' in about 15 minutes and choose from dozens of ethnic restaurants.
Overall, this is a plain but economical flat in a decent location. I would stay there again if ever I find myself heading to Manchester .