When selecting a laptop for personal use or for work, it pays to bear in mind what it is laptop is going to be used for and where you are going to use it as this will influence the type of laptop that is likely to be most suitable.
Type of laptop
It could be that all that the laptop is required for is access to the internet, sending and receiving emails and processing tasks like simple word documents or basic spreadsheets. If this is the case then you can probably quite happily settle for one of the cheaper and standard type models with lower end specs.
On the other hand the laptop might be required to handle heavy applications like databases and video editing and graphics software. Obviously here you need a faster processor and a lot of memory as well as a decent graphics chip.
You also might want to consider if the laptop is going to be stationary or if you need to carry the laptop around with you on a daily basis. If you are working out on the field so to speak then it would make more sense to go for one of the rugged laptops that can withstand a few bashes and knocks although these are likely to be a bit heavier due to the protective casing.
If you don’t need a rugged laptop but still want it to be transportable then you may want to opt for an ultra light and ultra thin laptop to make carrying it around a bit easier.
A word about Netbooks
Netbooks are the latest in thing. In fact they are the fastest growing segment of the computer industry across the globe and yet they’ve only been around since 2007.
Netbooks are basically ultraportable computers that are used primarily for taking out and about with you and which can provide access to the Net and the ability to perform simple tasks.
The first Netbooks had small keyboards and tiny screens but nowadays you can buy Netbooks with larger screens and even full size keyboards.
If the laptop is only going to be used for content consumption and not content creation then it could be that a Netbook might be most suitable, especially for students and kids.
Also, they are a lot less expensive than the fully fledged notebooks or laptops on the market.
Selecting your laptop
Once you have an idea of the type of laptop you want with the kind of specs you need, all you have to do is select one.
If you have a preference for a certain brand then take a look at what is on offer. If you don’t then look at a selection of different laptops and weigh up the pros and cons of each so you can select the one that has an edge on all the others.
One of the best ways of making a final decision is to read up on the reviews as these can give you a great insight into whether or not a particular laptop is likely to be a good buy or not.
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“used for content consumption and not content creation”, BAH! This is a kind of buzz-phrase i keep reading on this site, but in all honesty, it’s just Bull. Nobody buys a laptop to surf the sports sites and amuse themselves. A laptop is a tool, and people buy it to work on it. To run utilities, to stay connected with regards to their tasks, et cetera.
So, in all honesty, all laptops are used for content creation. The content consumption part of a laptop is a nice and welcome addition, but it is not why people buy laptops.
Now, as far as netbooks go, I read some crap about them not being able to run any serious utility, but I tell you it’s just a peck of lies. The truth is that aside from resource hog operating systems like vista, most utility programs, down to heavy-duty memory hogs like ANSYS 11 (you photoshop people don’t know what a resource hog program really is. Try leaving your jpeg to compute for the night, and then we’ll talk), common math programs like MATLAB 7, photo-editing programs like photoshop et cetera. will run quite well on a 1.6 GHz processor, which is what most netbooks are packing nowadays.
So why are people buying netbooks and not laptops? The answer is pretty clear – people are sick of buying “a smaller desktop”. They want something portable – and in all honestly the ability to switch from socket to socket isn’t worth as much as being able to not carry the heavy adapter. That means a battery life that exceeds 2 hours (when using wireless). There is only one laptop today that packs that much life in it’s batteries, and it’s one of the more expensive ones (macbook pro, btw). Most netbooks come with advertised battery life of 8-12 hours nowadays – which translates to 4-8 when in actual usage.
People want a laptop so that they can work anywhere. If a netbook gives them that better than they higher-spec laptop, they will settle on the lack of raw power and a smaller screen and keyboard. People who believe computers are designed for “media consumption” are simply without understanding of the reasons behind the purchases of computers by consumers.
In conclusion, when you hear an industry buzz-phrase, bear in mind that it might have been concieved by an idiot. Netbooks win over laptops on real merits – the endurance of their batteries. Some laptops have computing powers that exceed the needs of the average user, who needs to create with tools that run sufficiently well on a 1.6 GHz machine. Anything in excess of the user’s needs is simply not a selling point. It has, in truth, a very low value in as much as the customer is concerned, when compared to what really interests the consumer.
People want computers so that they can work with them, not so that they can fool around. They make their purchases based on their percieved needs, and on the percieved advantages of the products they can choose from. They don’t buy things that they think will be useless, and given the choise they will buy machines that better suit their expected needs. The industry belief that netbooks are partially useless is something that probably needs to be re-thought of, because it’s probably bull.