Laptop Buying Checklist

Purchasing a laptop is becoming quite difficult day by day, as many newer models with upgraded features are flooding the stores. However, the best method of deciding on the most suitable model of your choice is to consider a laptop buying checklist. This is a good way to compare what you need, what you can get, and in what price. No matter how many models and functionalities are available, you will certainly be able to decide on a suitable model.

Standard Laptop Buying Checklist

Laptop Category
The most important point you need to think about while buying a laptop computer is its form factor. There are many categories of laptops classified according to the size and usability such as desktop replacement laptops, gaming laptops, business notebook computers, ultra-portable laptops, netbooks, budget laptop computers, and student laptops. You need to choose a class that is most appropriate for you, such as for gaming, a gaming model would be suitable, and for portability, ultra-portable or student laptops would be better choices.

Type of Processor and its Speed
The processor determines how fast the computer will carry out its functions. Here again, you need to consider what you are going to use the laptop for. You can choose from various types such as Pentium, Athlon, Core 2 Duo, and many others. Also consider the speed of the processor. You can go in for one with a 1.8 GHz for home use, or can opt for one with 3.2 GHz for hard-core gaming. Note that the more powerful the processor, less will be the battery life of the laptop.

Hard Disk Space
For determining what hard disk space you would require in your laptop, you simply need to find out what all you are going to store in the system. If you are a movie, music, or gaming enthusiast; you can think of using a hard drive of around 320 to 500 GB space. If you just want it for college projects or home use, you can choose a model having 120 to 160 GB hard drive. You can always use an external hard drive if you want to extend the memory capacity.

RAM
Random Access Memory (RAM) is where the presently processed data is temporarily stored. For a general purpose laptop, a RAM of about 1 GB is more than sufficient. However, if you are considering the latest processor and a hard drive with substantial data storage capacity, it is suggested to get a laptop with the RAM capacity of 2 to 4 GB. Those who want to use their laptop for video editing, photography, or gaming use can even consider a RAM of 8 GB for best performance.

Screen Size
The screen size is directly related to the portability and the size of the laptop. Smaller the screen size, smaller will be the laptop size, and vice versa. Those who are into photography or video editing can consider a bigger screen such as of high-definition video 17 to 21 inch. A gamer would also love to play games on a widescreen of a bigger size. The standard screen size for home users is 14 to 16 inch. Just remember that for screen size, you will have to compromise on the portability.

Graphic and Sound Card
A graphics card is a small chip built in that handles all the videos and hi-fi gaming graphics. In most high-end laptops, it comes as a standard feature. To get the best gaming performance, you can use advanced graphic cards such as NVIDIA or ATI. You do have the feature of connecting two or more of such video resolution cards using the SLI configuration. In addition to the graphic card, you can even consider a laptop with an audio card, in case you are a music and gaming enthusiast.

Other Laptop Accessories and Features
There are many more features to be considered in the laptop buying checklist. For professionals who require heavy typing, a separate keyboard can be used as a laptop accessory. For connectivity, you will have to make sure that the laptop has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth functionalities. Other things to pay attention to are inbuilt webcam, AGP slots, VGA output, hard drive and optical bays, card reader, etc. Another significant aspect to think about is the laptop battery capacity. Laptop batteries are generally sorted out according to 4-cell, 6-cell, and so on. For longer battery usage, it is suggested to go in for a laptop which has a battery of highest numbered cells.

I hope after referring to this checklist, you might have narrowed down your choices from the wide range of laptop computer models available in the computer store.