Guide To Selecting A Laptop
- 1. Professional Communications April 2010 Simone Barnett Robert Cummings Henry Debrosse Elaine Mom
- 2. Pros Mobility Compact Size Easy Storage Cons Reduced Capabilities Reduced Audio Difficulty Upgrading
- 3. Hard Drive (HDD) Long-term memory Permanent Storage Unit Larger units can store more (GB) Faster units retrieve and find more quickly (rpm) RAM Short-term memory Information is lost at shutdown unless it is saved. Can increase the number of applications you can run.
- 4. CPUs Brains of your computer The faster the better Single Core Dual Core 2 Cores increase performance Multiple Core Ports Connections to peripheral Devices Serial Parallel Infrared Universal Serial Bus (USB)
- 5. Drives CD-ROM Standard drive for CDs DVD-ROM CD-ROM capabilities and DVD playing Blue Ray Drive Blue Ray DVDs Networking Standard modem (RJ-11) Ethernet (RJ-45) Built-in Antennas Bluetooth
- 6. Weight and Size Most Laptops weigh between 3 and 8 lbs with a typical unit weighing in at 5lbs. Common screen sizes include 12.1, 13.3, and 14.4 inches. Input Devices Touch Pads Square touch sensitive pad below the keypad Pointing Stick Rubber nub protruding between G, H, B keys
- 7. Batteries Lithium-ion Preferred Nickel Metal-Hydride Hourly charging Nickel Cadmium Avoid Display Active matrix Sharper and Smoother Preferred Passive Matrix Older and Cheaper Avoid
- 8. Keyboard Comfort Test different types Spill Resistant In case of accidents Durability Consider shock-resistant hard-drive mounts if you expect bumpy adventures
- 9. Low prices and portability A low cost Netbook small low powered system. A 13-inch thin-and-light laptop Apple’s MacBook Recommendations 1 GB RAM 160+ GB HDD 13-inch or smaller display DVD Burner Wireless & Ethernet
- 10. Rugged and Robust Must offer Security features Intel’s Vpro and TPM chips Lenovo ThinkPad Dell Latitude Recommendations 2GB – 4Gb RAM 160+ GB HDD 12 – 15 inch display Dual layered DVD burner Windows 7 or Vista Professional Wireless & Ethernet
- 11. Powerful and Massive Powerful processors Discrete graphics Fast hard drives Video Editing Software Final Cut MacBook Pro Laptops Recommendations 4GB – 8GB RAM 320+ GB HDD 7200rpm HDD 17+ inch display DVD Burner
- 12. Powerful Duo CPU Intel’s Core 2 Quad and Core i7 CPUs GPU Nvidia GeForce N260 Alienware Systems Recommendations 4GB – 8GB RAM 320+ GB HDD 7200rpm HDD 17+ inch display Discrete Graphics GPU Wireless & Ethernet
- 13. Versatile Often non-mobile with occasional trips Recommendations 2GB – 4Gb RAM 250+ GB HDD 14 – 16 inch display DVD burning optical drive Wireless & Ethernet
- 14. Know what you would like to do on your laptop Know what your laptop will need Think about your budget. Consider shopping online where there is a wide selection. Compare units at such websites as CNET or Pricescan. Have Fun.