This is the observations that i made when I was serching for my laptop.Probably some of them I got after buying my Lap top !!!
There are variety of brands are there which make a lot of options and confusions to the buyer.!So before buying if could have made some idea it will make u strong to select the brand.
Choosing the perfect laptop involves balancing what is most important to the purchaser, such as weight, size, processing power, memory, battery life, screen size, and other features.
Weight and SizeWill your laptop fit in your carrying bag? Will it fit on your desk? Will it fit on your airplane's folding tray table? The weight and size of a laptop should be one of the most important consideration points. Both play a key role in a laptop's portability, price, and performance.
The ultraportable laptops that are the size of a hardcover novel and weigh 2.5lbs are obviously the most portable, but they generally have small keyboards, small displays, fewer features, and slower performance. Full-featured desktop replacement laptops can reach the size of two reams of paper stacked side by side and weigh over 10lbs - regular portability is not a selling feature. However, they'll have full multimedia features, the fastest processors, full size keyboards, big hard drives, and large screens.
For executives on the go or other buyers that regularly carry their laptop, 2-4lbs laptops are recommended. For people that need a very portable laptop with a balance of screen size and performance, 4-6lb laptops are recommended. For students or other buyers that need portability, but highly value price and computing performance, 6-7lb laptops are definitely adequate. For power users that need the highest performance, or budget users that do not need much portability, 8lb+ laptops will suffice.
In terms of size, laptops are generally measured by their thickness. Ultraportable laptops can be less than 0.5" thick while desktop replacement laptops can surpass 2". Also, the larger the built-in LCD screen, the larger the overall laptop footprint.
Processor (CPU)
Entry level - Intel Celeron Dual-Core E1200 1.6 GHzRecommended - Intel Centrino Core 2 DuoTop of the line - Intel Core 2 Duo Extreme QX9300 2.53GHz with 4 cores
The processor serves as the brain of your computer and is the most critical part of the computer system. Processor power has doubled every 18 months to handle intensive computing demands like multimedia, intense data calculations, and gaming.
Processors in laptops cannot be upgraded, so initially choosing the best processor for your budget and needs is critical.
AMD and Intel are the two largest processor manufacturers for laptops. Each has an entire line of processors that focus on various laptop attributes such as processing performance, battery life, wireless networking capabilities, and price.
Memory (RAM)
Entry-Level - 1GBRecommended - 2GBTop of the line - 4GB
Most people agree that you can never have enough physical memory (RAM) in a computer! The laptop uses this memory to store currently-running applications and program data. Having more memory will increase your multitasking capabilities and keep the operating system running smoothly. By multi-tasking we mean you will be able to have more programs running at once while not slowing down your computer. An example would be having your email open while surfing the web and listening to mp3s.
Your operating system choice will have a major impact on the amount of ram required. For Windows XP and Max OS X, 512MB is minimum recommended memory amount. 2GB is ideal. For Windows Vista, 1GB will provide adequate performance, while 2-4GB will provide much improved performance.
With a little bit of technical know-how, RAM can easily be upgraded at the time of purchase or further down the road to keep your computer current. Upgrading RAM is usually the first option (and one of the few) for upgrading laptop performance. Note that most laptops have two total memory slots, so a laptop with 1GB of ram may have two 512MB memory modules instead of one 1GB module (it's cheaper for the manufacturer). In this situation, upgrading memory requires the user to remove one or both of the older modules and replacing them with a higher-capacity module.
Hard Drive
Entry-level - 20GB 4800RPMRecommended - 160GB 5400RPMTop of the line - 640GB 7200RPM (2x320GB) or 128GB solid-state drive
The hard drive is where all of your files are stored and 160GB will be sufficient for most purposes. Typically, the operating system, photos, music files, and videos occupy the majority of space on a hard drive.
In addition to the hard drive size, hard drive spin speed is also an important consideration for overall laptop performance. Entry-level drives spin at 4,200 RPM. Most laptop hard drives spin at 5,400 RPM and the fastest ones spin at 7,200 RPM. The faster the hard drive speed, the higher the performance (and slightly less battery life). This performance will be most evident when performing work that is disk-intensive, such as multimedia editing.
Solid-state hard drives are starting to enter the marketplace as an alternative to traditional disc-based hard drives. They are much faster, make no noise, extend battery life, and have high mechanical reliability (no moving parts). Their #1 downside is price - sometimes as much as 15 times more costly per gigabyte compared to conventional hard drives! Their capacity is also limited compared to conventional hard drives - 128GB compared to 640GB.
Display
Recommended - 14.1 inch Widescreen LCD with a default resolution of 1450x1050Top of the line - 17 inch Widescreen LCD with a default resolution of 1900x1200
Larger screens are easier on the eyes and offer a larger computing workspace. Writing email on a 9" screen is comfortable, while editing pictures in Photoshop on a 9" screen is not. With laptops, screen size and portability are a careful balance. 9" to 13" screens are best suited for highly portable and lightweight laptops. 14" and 15" screens offer a good balance between portability and readability. 17" and larger screens severely limit the portability of a laptop, but offer the most viewing space. Larger screens also require more battery power.
Widescreen LCDs have risen in popularly over standard LCDs. Widescreen displays offer more usable viewing real estate, as well as uncut widescreen DVD playback.
In addition to the LCD display size, consider the default resolution and how that matches with your usage needs. High resolutions squeeze more into the screen, but may make text and images too small for some to easily read. A typical 13" widescreen resolution is 1,280x800 while typical 14" widescreen resolution is 1,450x1,050. Bigger screens, like a 17" widescreen can clearly display 1,920x1200.
An increasingly popular option is to use the laptop's smaller built-in display when traveling and using a larger external LCD monitor at home or the office. Users will purchase a 19" or larger monitor for home/office use and plug the external monitor directly into the laptop. Most laptops will even allow users to use the built-in and external monitors at the same time to create a larger computing workspace.
Networking
Having Ethernet or WiFi networking is very important - think about how useful your computer is without Internet access. The days of using a modem and telephone line for internet access are over. Schools, offices, libraries, cafes, and even entire cities offer high speed Internet access and networking, usually wireless through WiFi.
Almost all new laptops have wireless antennas built-in to access 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, and other networking standards. Without built-in networking, you'll need to purchase and use a USB-powered WiFi adapter.
For power users that may not always have access to a WiFi network, wireless access through a cellular provider like Sprint, Verizon, or AT&T can be the answer. With internet access through a cell provider, you can have high-speed internet Internet anywhere you have a cellular connection. Mobile Broadband Adapters are sometimes built-in to the laptop, but more often require a separate USB adapter, PC Card, or USB connection to a data-equipped cell phone to connect with the cellular provider's data network. Data plans can be pricy and connections are not as fast as usual high-speed internet, but offer high convenience for those that need it.
Internal Drive
Most laptops have some type of built-in internal drive. A DVD burner is the most popular and useful internal drive in laptops today. They are used for installing software, watching DVD movies, and creating DVD and CDs for sharing and storage. Nearly all laptops, even budget systems, include at least a CD-RW/DVD drive, which allows for reading/writing CDs and reading DVDs. To save on weight and size, smaller laptops typically use an external drive that connects to the laptop with a USB cable.
DVD drives come in different read and write speeds and are measured by notations like "2x" or "8x." The higher the number, the faster the drive can read and write disks. A "1x" drive will usually take 2 hours to burn a 2 hour DVD. A "4x" drive will take 30 minutes to do the same job since it writes four times faster.
Lastly, drives can also come with re-writing capabilities for CDs and DVDs. Typical CDs and DVDs can only be written once and are permanent. Re-writable capability allows a user to add and delete files to the disk. This is useful when using DVD's to back up certain files since a disk can be re-used to hold the latest files.
Battery Life
Battery life is an important consideration if you need the ability to work away from a power outlet for long periods of time. It's also important if you do not want the extra weight involved in carrying a power adapter. As a trade-off, batteries are one of the largest and heaviest components in a laptop.
Laptops use a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and today, batteries generally offer 2-6 hours of continuous use. Three hours is about average.
Battery capacity usually comes in a three-cell, six-cell, or nine-cell configuration. Larger capacity batteries will offer longer battery life and usually weigh more than smaller capacity batteries.
Battery life is highly dependent on how the laptop is used while on batteries. Dimming the display, turning off wireless networking when unused, slowing the processor speed, limiting multimedia use, and setting the computer to "sleep" mode when not used will measurably extend battery life (sometimes 2x longer compared to running at full power).
To offer even longer battery life, some laptops will accept a higher-capacity battery that is used in place of the regular battery. Some will also accept a second battery in place of the removable CD/DVD drive.
Portable Storage
A USB flash drive or external hard drive will help transport and protect important files. Flash drives are best suited for transporting documents between computers or backing up a few documents. Flash drive capacity range from 32 MB to 16 GB and are the size of a pinky finger. External hard drives have a greater capacity than flash drives and offer larger capacities, ranging from 40 GB to over 1 TB. They can be as small as a two decks of cards to as large as a hardback novel. An external hard drive will allow you to store more files and can also act as a backup to your computer's primary hard drive.
Software
Laptops rarely come with all the software one needs for work, play, or security. Here are a few essentials that we recommend:
Office Software Suite - An email program, word processor, and spreadsheet software will probably be the most used programs, but they are rarely come pre-installed with the laptop. Microsoft's Office Suite is the most widely used productivity software package in the world and comes in a PC and Mac version. Other options include WordPerfect Office and StarOffice.
Antivirus Software - To protect your laptop from outside threats from the Internet that can erase data and slow down your laptop, we highly recommend installing Antivirus software. Popular brands include Norton, McAfee, Kaspersky, Computer Associates, and Iolo.
Additional Considerations
This buying guide covers the most important considerations for purchasing a new laptop. Here is a list of additional and potentially important considerations depending on your needs:
>Number and location of USB ports for attaching peripherals
>Easily accessible multimedia buttons (play, pause, volume, etc)
>Fingerprint reader for security
>2-prong versus 3-prong power adapter since some outlets only accept 2-prong plugs
>Matte LCD screen versus reflective LCD screen
>Exterior color - white, black, silver, pink, blue, etc!
>Manufacturer warranty coverage and length
>Quality of manufacturer's technical support
Laptops are extremely popular options for executives, students, and anyone else looking for a portable computing solution. As the laptop market has grown to almost overtake desktop computers, manufacturers have launched dozens of laptops that vary in processing performance, size, and price. The goal of this guide is to educate purchasers on the important decision points for purchasing the best laptop for their needs.
Also recommands do a through study before you go for flashing your cards .You can take down serch in the net by heigligting your needs among the available brands of the time.....
Happy serching and all teh best for your buy!!!!
