Don’t Buy The Wrong Laptop

Getting the correct laptop doesn't have to be a daunting task. We're here to help. At FloridaComputerSolutions we have a great selection and very affordable prices.

We are going to talk about things like processors, buss speeds, hard drive sizes, RAM sizes and Much More but don't get too worried we will help you out.

Hopefully you at least know whether you want a PC based laptop (or notebook) or the Apple Laptop. Or maybe you want an Ipad (I do) or a PC based tablet computer. Certainly this is a big decision and one that you shouldn't take lightly.

You must determine what your application is. If you want a SERIOUS machine with mountains of horsepower for applications and game playing then an iPad is out. But if you want portability, light computing and web browsing with lighter duty games then an iPad may be just the ticket.

You may want to know that an iPad (like an iPod Touch) can not at this time play flash based video which is very common in websites. Many of my own websites do not render properly on an iPad, sorry to say. But the cool factor is still off the charts. I can't deny it and want one myself. But this is about all I am going to say about it because this article is primarily about laptops or notebooks.

Here are some of the things you need to know before buying your next laptop or notebook computer.

Do You Want a Mac or a PC?

• Of course, YOU have to know whether you want a PC based machine with Windows or an Apple product. Only you can know that. But here are a few things that come into play.
  • Apple products tend to be considered to be more robust, however come with a hefty price premium.
  • Apple products tend to have less software available in the industry and some software simply isn't available for Apple products at all.
  • The Apple products tend to have more features out of the box (software), however when you MUST go buy software, again it comes at a premium.

• For portable products like laptops and notebooks one of THE most important factors is BATTERY LIFE! Don't overlook it. I also recommend buying a spare battery at the same time as your laptop. It is quite often impossible to buy a laptop battery locally since the variety of them makes it virtually impossible for retailers to carry them all.

• Processor speed: This is the computer chip that does all the heavy lifting. Faster is better right? Well not so fast (ehem) Mr/Mrs shopper! Speed and battery life are often trade offs unless a new technology or newer computer is compared to an older one. So you have to optimize the trade off between speed and battery life. That is the sad fact. And frankly I have never had my hands on a laptop that could keep up with a smokin desktop at running applications fast. Dats the facts jack. There are a lot of reasons. One is ...

• Buss speed. This is the interface to all the memory and other support chips on your motherboard. Faster is better, but you guessed it... there is a trade off with battery life. But still, faster is better. Just not as efficient.

• RAM Memory: This is the scratch pad where temporary calculations are done and data is brought in from your hard drive.Yup, you knew it was true. Bigger IS better. There is "some" trade off with memory size but mostly it is a trade off with your wallet. I have NEVER regretted buying more RAM. The more RAM you have the less time you spend on the hard drive. Did I forget to mention faster is better?

• Hard drive: This is the permanent storage with a rotating platter inside a box inside your laptop. It is electro-mechanical. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that mechanical things don't move at the speed of light like electricity does. So hard drives, regardless of how fast they are, are still slower than RAM. Still, faster is better. So what makes a hard drive faster? RPM (how fast the drive spins.) Faster is better. The interface can make it faster. The newer drives are SATA (serial ATA). When they created this spec they rev'ed up the interface speed so they are faster. Rarely are laptop hard drives as large as ones found in desktops so think about how much memory you need. Compare it to your desktop if you have one.

• Removable Media Drives:Here we cover a multitude of items.
  • CD ROM / CDR / CDRW - ROM can't burn a CD, CDR can ONCE, CDRW can be used almost like a small hard drive.
  • DVD ROM, DVDR, DVDRW - Same as above only with DVDs. DVDs hold more memory than CDs.
  • Blu-Ray - The newest generation of DVDs and virtually all of these are burners...and expensive. Of course, they hold even more memory than a DVD.
  • Media Cards - SD, SDHC, Memory stick, Memory stick PRO, miniSD, MICRO SD and more are little cards that are used in everything from digital cameras to cell phones to GPS receivers. Most of the so called "readers' which also program handle many types of cards. Just make sure that if you need to program them that your type is supported.
• I/O (Input / Output): With size reduction came less room to place connectors.
  • USB: Current models of laptops and notebooks support USB ports usually at least 2 and maybe up to 4. You want a lot of 'em. Mice work on USB, external hard drives, printers and so, so much more.
  • Internet Access: Comes in the form of Wi-Fi (wireless) or hard connector and usually both these days. You WANT Wi-FI. You DO want to be portable don't you?
  • Blue-Tooth: Ok this means a lot to some people and nothing to others. I don't use it for anything even though my Android phone has it. Because I use WiFi instead. But some wireless keyboards or mice use blue-tooth. Just decide if you need it. A lot of laptops do not have it. Some do. Pay attention if it is important to you.
  • Video connector: If you want to hook up an external monitor you want this.
  • HDMI - Very new generation of video hookups. This will hook to your large Hi-Def TV. YOUCH!
  • Expansion connectors: Very cool if you want to bring home the laptop and hook it up to a specific base station to hook to all your peripherals at the house.
  • Firewire - Mostly used to hook up video cameras.
  • WebCam - If you want to make yourself look stupid in a hurry you need this. I do.
  • Infrared remotes, headphone jacks, microphone inputs and more...
• Size: This is a bigger deal than you might think. Size obviously relates to the screen size but also to the keyboard size. My ham size hands need bigger keyboards not smaller ones. Bigger size also allows room for bigger batteries. AHHHH! There is a way to cheat! If you want all the performance you just make the laptop bigger and put bigger batteries in it and presto. More battery life. In theory. But...you KNEW there had to be a BUT...

• Weight: With bigger size screens (glass) and batteries (uh...HEAVY) comes more weight. It may not seem like it in the store but half the way across the country you may change your mind. You might as well think about that trade off BEFORE you purchase.

OK so there is a list of most of the things that you need to think about before you buy. In the space I have here, there is no way to cover it all in any amount of detail. But at least I may have listed all the things that will make YOU think about them and make a decision as to what is right for your lifestyle and needs.

Best of luck with your decision and hopefully you will find the right laptop, notebook, iPad, MacBook Pro, or Table PC right here at FloridaComputerSolutions.