What Is The Best Laptop

The correct term should be what is the best laptop for the needs of the user, as there is a whole multitude of laptop makes - models with different specifications there really is no best laptop. To find the laptop that’s right for you we first need to ascertain the basics that just about every laptop should have - Wired and wireless networking capabilities - at least 2gb of ram and the hard drive should be a minimum of 80gb as just about every later version of operating systems, applications and games are larger than previous versions requiring more disk space, and today a 40gb hard drive is simply not large enough.

What else needs to be considered? Size / Portability - Processor or CPU - Operating system - Graphics - USB Ports - CD/DVD drive - Screen Size - Aesthetics - Laptop Role - Saving Money.

Size Weight and Portability - The most common screen sizes on laptop are around 13-15 inches, as this is the most common it will mean the lowest prices when comparing smaller or larger laptops with the same specification, which is nice if your out to save some money, if you travel around a lot then lugging around a heavy laptop pc could be more in physio fees than the overall price of the laptop, so lots of travelling makes a smaller type of laptop a real blessing, you have to also think even if the laptop itself is not overly heavy, add the weight of the AC/mains adapter, a case, plus all the other little bits you need to carry, it can make it pretty heavy especially if carried around for long periods.

The same really cannot really be said with 17” laptops, if you are looking for one with a larger screen thats ok, but if you need to travel a lot why not purchase a small laptop and then put the extra cash towards getting an external screen which will be bigger and can also be used at the same time as the laptop screen, in effect giving extra viewing space.

CPU / Processor - The CPU has changed a great deal over the last few years and it now seems companies are bolting on more processor cores to get even more processor power from a single chip. Currently a laptop needs to have a dual core CPU to run the later generation of applications well, and as such dual core processors are the standard at the moment, the two most common are AMD’s Turion 64 x2 and Intel’s Core Duo, they both are very good CPU’s, but I have found AMD to have the edge due to it being a little cheaper, although if you do not mind waiting and have the money there are some ultra fast Quad core laptops coming onto the market any time now.

Vista or XP - If you want a laptop that has Windows XP but you have found you can only purchase it with Windows Vista installed (which is very common) make sure you can actually install XP before your simply wipe away Vista and replace it with XP, a lot of new pc hardware will not have XP drivers written for it, and as such this can create major problems when trying to change over to XP. In this case most people have to waste more time reinstalling Vista again.

Graphics Cards - it is generally not possible to replace or upgrade the video capabilities on a laptop computer, usually whatever video card is installed thats what your laptops stuck with, If you are into gaming or need other high end graphic performance the laptop will need a graphics card with dedicated memory, otherwise graphic performance of your application will suffer if it involves in depth graphics or high end gaming.

USB ports - You can never have enough, the average amount of USB ports on a laptop is 4 this may sound like plenty, but once you plug in peripherals such as a keyboard -printer- mouse - pen drive it wont seem so many, of course you could always purchase an external hub, as they are very cheap, but best option is to buy a laptop with more ports in the first place. Another point worth checking; Every laptop should have USB type 2 ports, but its worth checking this to confirm as USB 1 is around 10 times slower.

DVD and CD drive - A lot of the information given in regards to CD/DVD drives can be a little confusing terms such as Single and Dual layer - CD/RW DVD/Rom. Just about all new laptops now should have a Dual layer DVD writer drive this will do just about everything such as reading and writing to CD’s and DVD’s and reading and playing them too.

Screen size - this was also covered above to a certain degree with the portability section, the larger the screen the heavier it will be, plus the power consumption will be more too, so if you invest in a heavy duty battery it will get even heavier, there are also some lovely screen technologies to choose from including tru brite which gives the screen a shiny effect.

Aesthetics or the Look of the Laptop - which would you prefer, a sluggish laptop that looks nice or a lightning fast machine that resembles a house brick? When you look for a laptop there is a very large range to choose from, if you cannot find what your looking for with one manufacturer or type try another and realistically you should not have to compromise on spec or looks, but if you have to compromise a little compromise on the looks a little but not on the spec.

Laptop role - what will the laptop be used for, general Internet browsing - word documents, pretty much any laptop could do this standing on its head, so the world of laptops is your Oyster. Business applications - large spreadsheets etc, then mid power will be fine, do not need to worry too much about the graphic abilities and a shared memory type should be fine. Gaming or high end graphics require the most powerful processors and graphics cards, be prepared to dig deep if you want to play the latest games with all the extra effects switched on.

Save Money - If you would like good laptop and save some money (who would not) you have a few choices available, how about a second user laptop, you can save a lot of money this way, but you really need to know what to look for or you could end up getting a laptop with problems, or one that is not as advertised, plus unless it is still under warranty you could be taking a very big risk.

Refurbished laptops offer a safer alternative to saving money, you should also get some type of warranty, but this varies between retailers.
Bargain basements offers - many stores very often have deals which can be exceptional value, check online on the stores website for laptop models that are end of line or have been replaced by newer models, there are very good machines to be had this way and you should get a full warranty, but there are always people on the look out for these so be quick and check often, many of these end up making a profit on sites such as e-Bay.

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