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How to Buy a Laptop
Buying a new laptop
is a big investment; and just how big of an investment
you want to make is entirely up to you.
Have you priced a laptop computer lately?
Buying a new laptop is a big investment; and just how
big of an investment you want to make is entirely up
to you. Look in your Sunday newspaper flyers to see
countless models on sale each week. Initially selections
were made by looking at the specifications and the general
appearance. However that’s not the sole criteria
any longer. Everyday more and more people are now stepping
inside the mobile world. With so many models of laptops
now available, how can you be sure about the choice
you make? Below are several factors you should consider:
CPU (Central Processing Unit), Video Card, hard disk,
noise, battery life and RAM (Random Access Memory).
CPU is the main component which determines
the performance of your computer and also the heating
and the battery life. There is a trade-off between the
CPU performance and the battery-life and power consumption
(heating). If you want a laptop which would replace
a desktop and if you are not planning to travel with
it a lot then there are several different offers with
desktop CPUs integrated in the laptop main board (such
as a P4).
If you are fond of mobility and are
going to use your new laptop for your business purposes
or school, then you should consider buying a laptop
with more suitable CPUs. AMD Athlon can be a solution:
Athlon processors are designed for users who are looking
for economical solutions, both purchase and usage. Older
models of Athlon are no where near Intel Pentium products
from the point of performance, and yet new models like
2800+ are potent enough to compete with P4 2.8 GHz.
There is one more model of CPU that
many of the customers prefer: Centrino. Centrino is
the new attempt of Intel to balance the tradeoff between
the performance and mobility issues. With the 2 MB second
level cash, the Pentium CPU is modified for the laptop
which eases the burden of the CPU and implicitly pulls
down the levels of heating and power consumption.
RAM and the graphic card are also two
important factors for the quality of the laptop. There
are two kinds of RAM on the market: SD RAM and DD RAM.
In any case, there is no tradeoff, no comparison: DD
RAM is better, and yet, you still have to be careful
about the clock specification of the RAM. If you buy
a RAM with 333 MHz clock speed, you will see the performance
improvement it supplies to the whole system. Another
thing to consider is that some computers have 512 MB
RAM with two slots (256 x 2) which is not very good
for the new laptop you are going to buy. Overall, if
you want a good laptop, you should consider one equipped
with a 333 MHz, 512 MB, DD RAM.
There are various video cards on the
market today. The first thing you should check is the
“ON-Board” specification in the video card.
These cards are integrated into the main board and generally
use your main RAM as for the video memory. If you are
going to use your laptop for general purposes, not for
gaming or 3-D design which would require 3D hardware
acceleration, these laptops with onboard video card
are for you. However, if you are a professional Counter
Strike player, you would be disappointed with the screen
delays and freezes.
The last technical detail is the hard
disk. While buying a hard disk there is a detail which
is much more important then the capacity: RPM. Rotation
Per Minute determines how fast the data transfer rate
is to the CPU to be processed so this specification
also plays a huge role while dealing with multimedia
stuff.
So if you’re in the market for
a new laptop computer, one suggestion is to consider
buying a Centrino laptop with an onboard video card
with a big RAM if you are planning to use it for school
or business purposes and also randomly for movies and
music. Nevertheless, Pentium computers with AGP or PCI
Express video off-board video cards would give you the
performance of a desktop if you don’t mind the
weight, noise and the heating of the laptop.
With so many decisions to make, take
your time; do your homework and invest wisely.
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