Laptop Buyer's Guide

[d10b]

laptop buyer's guide
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[!]battery
Li+, lithium-ion. high milliampere (mAh) and high voltage measurements best. best choice.
NiMH, nickel metal-hydride. requires recharge every hour or so
NiCad, probably won't be an option. worst battery. do not buy.

[!]display
active-matrix (TFT), sharper picture. moving images play smoother. most laptops come with this.
passive-matrix (dual-scan), older, cheaper display. images react slowly. if you're buying a laptop for word processing this will be okay.

[!]CPU
power-management features that extend battery life

[!]graphics card
dedicated memory if this is a gaming laptop

[!]PC Cards vs. mini-PCI
PC Cards allow easy upgrades and are swappable
mini-PCI is installed inside the laptop and is almost impossible to remove or upgrade

[!]must have
multiple USB 2.0 ports
minimum 512MB RAM
as much hard-drive capacity as you can afford (hard-drive isn't upgradeable)
built in wireless networking w/newer "g" version (frees up expansion slots/backwards compatible)

[!]things to consider
swappable drive bays, comfortable/spill-resistant keyboard, shock-resistant hard-drive mounts, if your buying online check dead pixel policy and test-drive it in a store first, weight (including accessories), other ports such as memory cards, multimedia, etc., warranties, mouse (fingerpad or nipple by the "g" key) and most importantly postpone your purchase until you understand the terms clearly.

[d10b]

Some other users and I seem to be looking to purchase a laptop soon. I thought this might be helpful. If I left anything out please reply and I'll edit it in.

[Chaos1986]

Thank You Very Much d10b I Decied To Wait Till After Christmas To Buy Myself A Laptop So I Can Make Get More Money To Put Towards The Laptop .

[Gogeta70]

Nice guide. Good job.

[sternbildchen]

Very usefull! 10/10