Assalamualaikum..
Nowadays, Laptop/ Notebook can be considered as necessities and a popular gadget among students especially female students in University. For male students, they prefer PC because it is easier to upgrade and for multimedia purposes. But now laptop is getting better in every aspect. Although laptop still does not posses 4-core processor, but with core 2 duo/ amd turion X2 processor, laptop performance is already comparable with desktop PC especially for gamers out there. Even though at the same clock speed, laptop processor produce slightly lower performance due to energy saving and slower front bus speed .
What should I consider when buying a laptop?
When considering to buy a laptop, the criteria that can be taken into account are the things you want to do with your laptop such as for working purposes(Microsoft office, designer, business), mobility , moderate internet user, overrated internet user, multimedia, desktop, gaming, battery life and etc. Then, comes the budget factor and brand type. Users can choose their laptop specifications by identifying their needs of the laptop. Here are some tips.
Processor
For this criteria, we can divide users based on their needs or function of the laptop.
- AMD Mobile Sempron, Intel Mobile Celeron M.
- Intel Mobile Pentium M( Clock speed:1.4GHz- 3.33GHz, Bus speed: 400MHz/533MHz, Cache size: 512KB/1MB)
- Intel Dual Core/Core Duo processor lower than T2390 code.(Clock speed:1.5-1.86GHz, FSB:533MHz, 1MB Cache)
People who considered as entry level should go for this type of processor. You can get the highest of 1.86GHz processor speed(64-bit), 533MHz bus speed and 1MB cache. This specs are sufficient for working purposes, editing documents, basic multimedia application, internet surfing, emails and etc. Of course at this level of laptop, u will only able to get on board chipset graphics shared up to 251Mb usually Intel GMA X3100, but it is enough for basic usage mentioned earlier. The price of your laptop should be between RM1500-RM2300.
- AMD Athlon X2,Intel Core Duo(Clock speed:1.5-2.33GHz, FSB:553/667MHz, 2MB cache)
- Intel Core 2 Duo lower than T5600 code.(Clock speed:1.5-1.8GHz, bus speed:553/667MHz, 2MB cache)
Moderate type of users can choose their processor from above range. You can get as high as 2.33GHz cpu speed(64-bit),667MHz FSB and 2MB Level 2 cache. With this, you are not restricted to open many application at the same time especially multimedia application or internet. By combining it with a moderate on board graphics for example intel media accelerator(GMA) or a 4th/5th class graphic cards(128MB) that gives you 3DMark 05in rating point reaching 2000pts, you can play a middle range games such as Fifa 08 smoothly. You can even play Dota Allstar through net without any problem. Your laptop price range should be RM2000-RM3500.
- AMD Turion 64 X2
- Intel Core 2 Duo>T7100(Clock speed:1.8-2.8GHz, FSB:800/1066MHz,2-6MB cache)
Can be considered as good laptop as you can nearly do almost everything with it. With price range of RM3500-RM5300, you can get the lowest spec of 1.8GHz, 800MHz FSB, 2MB L2 cache. With a Centrino chip you can easily do multiple internet task while using torrentz or watch streaming channels. This range of users also are recommended to have their FSB speed of at least 800MHz. With a combination of at least a 256MB graphic card dedicated and up to 1GB shared, you can enjoy play top rated games such as Call of Duty 4, Unreal Tournament and even play an overrated game such as Crysis(lower setting) on your laptop. With this your 3DMark 05in rating should more than 2500 pts.You should have at least 2GB of Ram in order to cover other application memory speed.
Ram
A Ram of 1GB is enough for Windows Vista, but if you use XP then 512MB will do. The selection of ram is depending on other hardware also, such as if you planning to have a laptop that needs higher 3D requirement(design,games), then you should probably have a 2GB ram at least. Most board now offer upgradeable ram, so you just have to identify your ram type, normally now they used 667MHz so-Dimm.
Graphic card
For a complete 3D requirement and easily play high end games like Medal of Honor:Airbone and Crysis, you can consider to have a dedicated 512MB graphic card on your laptop. With this spec the price could reach RM5000++. But, from what I reckoned, 256MB graphic card is enough for recent games in market,as you can still keep up for 1.5-2 years before you will find hard to cope with the technology, as the graphics getting better and better each year.With 256MB graphics also, it is sufficient for image editing models software(I-Deas, SolidWorks, Catia, AutoCad) or program modeling(C++, Visual Basic, Matlab). This are some Graphic cards that normally used by laptop manufacturer.
512MB
Geforce 9600Gt (3D mark 05in- 8800 )
Geforce 9500 G/Gs ( 3D mark 05in- 6000)
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650 (3D mark 05in-7200)
256MB
Geforce 8600 Gs (4400)
ATI Mobility Radeon 3470 (3900)
Geforce 8400 Gt ( 3600)
Geforce 8400 Gs ( 2700)
128MB
Geforce G0 7200/7300 ( 1500)
ATI Mobility Radeon X1300 ( 1000)
Intel GMA 4500MHD (1500)-integrated
GMA X3100 (800)
Note: This rating comparison is based on high end graphic cards-ATI Radeon HD3870 which 3D mark 05in rating 21000 pts.(possibly the greatest graphic card recently,not available for laptop).
Display
Normally you will find 15.4" LCD monitor as a standard display with 1280x800 resolution. For some people, they prefer a larger screen depending on their purpose such as desktop computer, portable DVD player, and etc. In this case, they can choose a higher resolution 17" or 18.4" LCD(1440x900). This large screen tend to be heavier and difficult to move around with. Furthermore, they are sometimes problem like unwanted dot appears on screen thus effect the screen display( you can try at night by turn off all lights and change your display totally dark/black) . So, you have to be more careful when choosing a larger screen by considering other specs like wide screen, HD display and graphic card to enhance the display where you can get up to 1680x1050 resolution for 15" & 17" monitor. For those who prefer a mobile laptop, they can choose 9", 11" or 12.1" LCD.
Hard Drive
Hard drives are straight forward criteria. Nowadays, almost all laptop have DVD player or a DVD/RW Combo. Now people are more exaggerate with a HD DVD-ROM available on laptop that gives more multimedia functions and DVD-super multi double layer. You can also have a Blu-Ray Disc player in your laptop if you are willing to spend more.
Normally 2.5" hard disk is used in laptop. They can be found in 120GB, 160GB, 250GB, 320GB, 500GB capacity. It is suggested for you to have at least a 160GB h.disk as you can find external h.disk in market if you need more space.
You should consider at least a wireless network adapter(802.11 b/g) for Wi-fi connectivity. There's also 802.11 a/b/g and Intel Next-generation Wireless-N(802.11 a/b/g/N) which enhance your wireless network.
Other Criteria
-You can choose a laptop with digital audio(SP/DIF) slot which you can connect to headphone or home theater speakers. This output usually offers DOLBY DIGITAL sound system.
-You can also choose battery life of your laptop. Normally a centrino laptop can give you 2 hours operating time. This criteria always related to laptop brands and display size. For example: At the same spec of processor and graphic card, you can get a Acer Aspire series at higher capacity of hard disk and slightly lower price compared to Sony Vaio which gives more battery life (3-4 hours) and a compact design.
-The warranty offer by laptop brand can also taken into account. For those who use their laptop heavily, a 2-3 years plan can be considered. Toshiba Satellite series always come out with 2 years to 3 years warranty time and this will cost more at the same spec compared to other brand.
-Besides that, you can also decide to choose additional gadget/ hardware in your laptop. You can choose whether to have webcam or not on your laptop as some brand use a low spec webcam. At a low spec Sony Vaio(RM3500++), they don't usually offers webcam and other function(bluetooth, Tv-output, digital output), but they offer good spec of basic operation. Acer offers good gadget although they tend to have only 1 year warranty time and hard to find compatibility hardware/software. With a crystal eye webcam that enhanced performance in low-light environment and built-in mic, so that you don't need to buy additional mic for Voip calls, you might want to consider this brand.
-As for those who are going to design and looking for compact criteria, Sony Vaio always won the design award. People who travel a lot with their laptop, like business man and etc. might consider this brand. You have to look for good antivirus, warranty and insurance(service centre). The Toshiba Protege series can also be considered, as they are very light, small (12") and have 3 years warranty. You can also consider Apple Macbook, Macbook Pro, or the new Macbook Air, but of course if you only willing to pay more and learn more(Max Os X). Macbook starts at RM3400, while the Pro and Air starts at RM6500.
As for conclusion, there are many brands that offers different spec, design, needs for the users. These can be categorized as budget laptop(entry and single purpose use) , family/dekstop laptop(everyone in the family use), multimedia laptop (multi-purpose application), Gaming laptop (High basic spec), compact ( high-end, mobile) and design (high-end, basic).
Here are some manufacturer brands with their type of laptop:
Budget/ Entry/ Family:
Acer Aspire, Fujitsu Siemens Series, HP Pavillion, Dell Inspiron, Toshiba Satellite, Asus, Compaq Presario.
Multimedia/ Gaming:
Acer Aspire, Sony Vaio, Toshiba Satellite, HP Pavillion, Fujitsu Siemens, Asus, Dell Studio.
Compact/ Design:
Acer Aspire, Acer Travelmate, Asus, Sony Vaio, Toshiba Protege, Dell XPS, Toshiba Satellite, Apple MacBook Series.
There are also other laptops producers such as Packard Bell, Medion, Haier, Samsung and etc.
Wassalam.
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