Saturday, February 9, 2008

BUYING LAPTOP

A laptop computer needed to be was smaller and more portable than the desktop version These days the range on offer can be shaped and adapted to fit a number of different uses Configurable product choices of the type instigated by companies like Dell and Sony mean that you can mix and match components to fit your exact needs and get all that you need for a price that you can afford Laptop Processors Central processing unit CPU is sometimes described as the most important chip in the computer It contains the arithmetic and logic unit ALU so the computer can do calculations and the control unit that controls the flow of data between the ALU and memory acer computers,acer laptop,best computer,best laptopsbuy desktop computer,cheap computers,cheap new laptops,cheap notebooks,computer accessories,computer monitor,discount laptops,laptop computers,laptop deals,notebook computers,notebook reviews There is a lot of competition between manufacturers of processors and the speeds they offer but the plain fact is that while it is heavily featured in the marketing literature even the slower processors are fast enough for most uses even though 3 0GHz is offered on many laptops Money saved on processors might more usefully be spent on memory There are two things that really matter with laptop processors The balance struck between processor power and battery consumption and the links to mobile technology that enable you to make the most of the laptops portability For the first simply put processors with the word mobile in their name are going to be the best choice as in Mobile Intel Pentium 4 or Athlon XP Mobile These use less power and run cooler For the second Intels combination of processor chipset and wireless card technologies marketed under the brand name Centrino is hard to beat. Buying a laptop may be a new endeavor for you, or you may be replacing an older model. Either way, there are a few things to consider about your new purchase. Buying a laptop computer can represent a big investment. By assessing your needs, you can make a more calculated choice about what type of laptop to purchase. This can save you money and potential problems.

The first question to ask yourself is if you truly need to be buying a laptop. Laptops tend to lag behind desktops in terms of upgradeability and features. If you handle heavy graphics, do a great deal of video editing, or you are a gamer, a laptop might not be the best choice for you. In addition to having to spend a lot of money to get the system you need, you will also be unable to upgrade that system when the time comes. However, if you are highly mobile, a laptop is a good choice.

The second step is to look at what you require from your laptop computer. Students, for example, probably need Internet access and word processing capability. A laptop for business may need similar features, as well as the ability to handle databasing software. Assess your individual needs with care when buying a laptop. If you travel frequently, or carry a lot of heavy belongings already, you will want to look into buying a laptop which is very lightweight. If you travel less frequently, or have fewer concerns about heavy luggage, a larger laptop with more power and an easier to read large screen is a good choice.

Laptops tend to be more expensive than desktop equivalents. Do not buy a laptop which exceeds your needs. Make sure that the laptop features will meet expectations, without the need for expensive upgrades. Make an honest estimate of what you require, and seek out systems that will match your requirements. Often companies offer packaged deals, making it cheaper to buy a preconfigured laptop. Determine what features you need when buying a laptop. A ready availability of ports, is very useful. Many devices are designed to connect to Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports, so you may want several to connect multiple peripheral devices. If you have devices which use FireWire or other connections, make sure that your laptop will support them. A space for PC cards is also a good idea, as is an internal modem, wireless card, or ethernet port. Make sure that your laptop has headphone jacks so that you can quietly listen to music. In addition, you may want to consider a CD or DVD ROM drive. Software comes on CDs, data can be backed up onto CDs, and you can also listen to music or watch DVDs on your laptop computer.

When buying a laptop, it is important to think about what operating system you would prefer to use. Apples tend to be more expensive, overall, than PCs, but you may want to go that route if you interact frequently with an Apple network or use Apple programs. Especially if you are a student, look into what kind of software you need to succeed in school and which operating system it is designed for. Some schools also have promotional agreements with computer companies which can assist you in getting a good deal. Also look at what kind of software comes preloaded on the system, to see if it will meet your needs or if an additional outlay of cash is required to purchase software.Laptop RAM Random Access Memory RAM is where the computer stores applications that are running and data Most laptops come with a standard 256MB of Random Access Memory Moving up to 512 MB installed RAM is a must if you are intending to use the laptop for digital video or downloading music Even if you are not buying as much RAM as you can afford is one area of expenditure on computers that will always pay you back in the future Check out the RAM capacity to see how much room you have for future upgrades

Computer Monitor

A special feature of our Consul LCD mounting arms is their inter changeable arm lengths their flexibility in reach with extension arms and variable height These mounts adapt to almost all applications involving more than one flatscreen monitor and they attach securely to any flat surface desktop or pole An electric current passed through the liquid causes the crystals to align so that light cannot pass through them Each crystal therefore is like a shutter either allowing light to pass through or blocking the light

LCD screen has no static not even to raise a hair on the back of a hand and the screen and the entire unit is only slightly warm hardly enough for convection currents Compare that to placing your hand over the back ducts on a CRT nearly enough to fry an egg

The main advantage of LCD displays is that they take up less desk space and are lighter When the beam current of a CRT is increased to boost brightness the beam spot size also increases which lowers effective resolution and may yield a soft or fuzzy image

There is no flicker on an LCD display because while a CRT must be refreshed the LCD has a constant source of light over the whole screen Once a pixel is on it stays on until turned off The power required to run an LCD is about onethird of that required for a CRT with the same screen area In addition the amount of heat generated by an LCD monitor is considerably less than a CRT monitor resulting in a lower load on air conditioning

LCD prices have been decreasing in recent years When the total cost of ownership is consideredincluding savings in power consumption and lifespanLCDs are now less expensive than many CRTs

An LCD is essentially emissionfree while a CRT monitor can generate electric magnetic and even Xray emissions due to the highvoltage power supply necessary to drive the CRT An LCD causes no electromagnetic interference

Computer Monitor comes in a range of different prices You can find some forms of cheap computer monitors from as little as Rs 5600 to over Rs 160000 Price ranges for computer monitors general depend on the manufacturers and whether it is a standard monitor flatscreen monitor or LCD monitor There are many quality manufacturers of computer monitors like View sonic NEC Samsung Proview Dell or CTX and many more

How do I know what type of Computer Monitors I need
Most of the time all monitors is compatible with your personal computer or laptop As always check your personal computers manufacturer specifications to be sure that the monitor you are shopping for is right for you

Computer Memory

Memory is commonly confused with Hard Drive Space The type of memory is actually Hard Drive Space which is stored on the computer Hard Disk Drive The Hard drive is actually a physical drive which contains several parts and is generally larger than the amount of memory found in your computer

Memory which is commonly referred to as RAM Random Access Memory is a temporary Volatile storage area utilized by the CPU Before a program can be run the program is loaded into the memory which allows the CPU direct access to the program Memory is a necessity for any computer and it is recommended that you have at least 64MB of memory for your IBM or Macintosh

Computer Memory comes in ranges of different prices You can find many discount from as little as Rs 280 00 to over Rs 160000 Price ranges for computer memory general depend on the manufacturers and the type of computer that you have There are many quality manufacturers of computer memory like Kingston Crucial Technology Compaq Sony NEC and many more

In many cases you can invest by upgrading your computer Tips and Suggestion

Buy an Upgrade Kit Upgrade kits are ideal if you dont want to bother with researching the motherboard that goes well with your CPU speed Price wise also it usually is better to buy a kit than buy the items separately

Its always a good time to add RAM to your computer A memory upgrade is easy to install is relatively inexpensive and can improve the overall performance of your computer And for missioncritical applications using highend servers you might need as much as a 512MB upgrade to achieve maximum uptime and productivity or even a 1GB upgrade depending upon your performance needs

If you are upgrading a laptop in most cases you can only upgrade the memory hard drive and modem The rest you have to live with If you cant live with it then consider replacing it with either a new laptop or a used laptop

A memory upgrade is particularly helpful for users who work with large files have more than one program open at one time or use memoryintensive applications such as games or graphics and video editing software Memory upgrades can dramatically speed up the overall performance of your home or business computer system

Modem

A cable modem is a device that enables you to hook up your personal computer A modem from modulate and demodulate is a device that modulates an analogue carrier signal to encode digital information and also demodulates such a carrier signal to decode the transmitted information Faster modems are used by Internet users every day notably cable modems and ADSL modems In telecommunications radio modems transmit repeating frames of data at very high data rates over microwave radio links Some microwave modems transmit more than a hundred million bits per second Optical modems transmit data over optic fibers Most intercontinental data links now use optic modems transmitting over undersea optical fibers

Computer modem comes in a range of different prices You can find some form of cheap computer modems from as little as Rs 800 to over Rs 80 000 Price ranges for computer modems general depend on the manufacturers and the type of ISP connection that you have There are many quality manufacturers of computer modems like Hayes 3com Xircom Creative Labs and many more Mbps stands for millions of bits per second or megabits per second and is a measure of bandwidth the total information flow over a given time on a telecommunications medium Depending on the medium and the transmission method bandwidth is also sometimes measured in the Kbps thousands of bits or kilobits per second range or the Gbps billions of bits or gigabits per second range
Although the bit is a unit of the binary number system bits in data communications are discrete signal pulses and have historically been counted using the decimal number system A network interface card NIC is a computer circuit board or card that is installed in a computer so that it can be connected to a network Personal computers and workstations on a local area network LAN typically contain a network interface card specifically designed for the LAN transmission technology such as Ethernet or token ring Network interface cards provide a dedicated fulltime connection to a network Most home and portable computers connect to the Internet through asneeded dialup connection The modem provides the connection interface to the Internet service provider

DSL or ADSL modems are rarely internal to the computer but instead are wired to the computers Ethernet port or occasionally its USB port while voice band modems are usually built inside the computer DSL modems are intended for particular protocols and sometimes wont work on another line even from the same company while most voice band modems use international standards and can fall back to find a standard that will work

Router functionality that uses Network Address Translation NAT to share the connection

An 802 11b or 802 11g wireless access point

Voice over IP functionality including Quality of Service priority control for data flows between users

Storage Device

A storage device can be any piece of hardware that can have electronic information written to it or a disk that the drive may contain When storing goods a box or container of some kind may be used For different kinds of digital information data a data storage device may be used For preserving audio a vinyl record now basically obsolete compact audio cassette or CD may be used For preserving video a video tape recorder like the Video Home System or digital media such as a laserdisc or DVD may be used They are many available storage devices available online The major manufacturers together into one easy to use web page Now you can compare prices from all the major manufacturers by searching for each storage device The mass storage device driver can potentially be used with a wide a wide range of USB devices not all of which would normally be considered to be mass storage This is because the driver is really an interface between the USB stack and the SCSI layer Despite this the instructions in this section are oriented around devices like USB floppy drives Zip drives LS120 drives and USB CD ROMs The mass storage interface is an attractive option for many devices such as cameras and media players which are nonetheless capable of more functionality than being simple data repositories By presenting themselves as simple data stores these devices can leverage the high degree of support for the USB massstorage device class in current operating systems USB driver stacks and allow easy read and write access to their internal memories The downside of doing so is that it prevents the device from easily presenting its actual functional behavior across the USB interface too For example the makers of a digital still camera would also like it to implement the USB stillimage device class allowing it to be controlled by image capture software Your drive type and brand from the drop down menu and leave the rest of the fields blank to compare all manufacturers and the lowest prices Price ranges for storage devices are depending on which storage device you are looking for manufacturer total functions and total storage size.

Laptop Hard drives

The computer uses the hard drive to store programs and files The storage capacity of a basic 20GB hard drive is more than enough for most users However if you want to work with databases or digital photos and video files then moving to a bigger hard drive say 40 or 60GB may be worthwhile Some laptops are equipped with 120GB hard drives

Optical drives

CDRW is better because not only can you read CDs you can also write and record data to them Depending on the CD format you can record once R or multiple times RW Best if you want to copy music from your CDs into your notebook DVDROM can read DVD discs as well as CDs Best if you want to watch DVD movies on your laptop and install software from DVD or CD

Laptop Screen sizes The liquid crystal display LCD screens used in laptops come in a range of sizes from 12 to 17 measured diagonally Smaller screens mean lighter and more portable laptops but a 15 screen is common If you are going to be working on the machine a lot then a bigger screen with a decent resolution say 1024 768 will be better for you in the long run Higher resolutions mean you can fit more in on the screen but you may find it harder to read TFT thin film transistor screens are designed to perform better in bright light or sunlight and can produce clearer images Batteries Most laptops use are Lithium Ion batteries Battery life varies between laptops but somewhere between 2 and 5 hours depending upon the number of things that you are asking the laptop to perform would be about average Laptop battery recharging times will also vary around 75 minutes is common so buying a spare battery is well worth considering . Touch sensitive mouse pads This replaces the mouse on most laptops Some users find that initially this can be difficult to operate It is well worth testing out before you buy if you can. USB ports Many laptops come with more than one USB port which makes connecting to peripherals a lot simpler Newer models are also available with a Fire wire connection to transfer digital information from camcorders or MP3 players .Wireless LAN card You will need one of these if your laptop does not have builtin mobile technology It should fit into the PC Card slot of your laptop Printers Mobile or not at some time you are going to want to print The choices to make are between inkjet laser and allinones Antivirus software Vital if you are going to make any connection to the internet and you value your data and security Many laptops are sold with trial versions of products from major suppliers like McAfee or Symantec preinstalled Floppy disk drive Still around still working and floppy disk drives are still the cheapest storage solution for data around Investing in an external floppy disk drive means you can safely backup very small amounts of data from your laptop and still make use those old floppies you have hanging around Memory sticks Memory Sticks are an easy way to transfer small amounts data from your laptop to a desktop They should not be treated as a means of permanent storage

Laptop Accessories

Weve got plenty of ways to upgrade your existing computer so you can stretch your dollar further without having to buy an entirely new system If you need more memory for instance you can buy an addon memory card If you want better sound quality you can buy an advanced sound card from a manufacturer like Creative Labs If you want to link your desktop and laptop you can use something known as a docking station With the right accessories its easy to create a computer platform that meets your needs Our discount prices and easytonavigate website make ordering easy Whether you need simple accessories like mouse pads or an entire tape backup system we have the discount computer accessories youre looking for Price ranges for computer accessories vary depending on which computer accessory you are looking for manufacturer total functions and speed Laptop Cases From the conservative student to the freewheeling executive Belkin carries laptop cases with everyone in mind This includes the Broadway Trolley the perfect traveling partner Computer Security Our line of Security Kits is the strongest and most durable theft deterrent security system yet to safeguard valuable computer electronic equipment

Workspace Management No one wants a messy workspace but sometimes you just cant help yourself With our Workspace Management accessories you will be on your way to a clean and efficient workstation

Mice and Keyboards Belkin offers one of the broadest selections of input devices keyboards mice and trackballs from the basics for the budgetconscious all the way to the cutting edge in optical technology advanced ergonomics power management Internet and multimedia hot keys and beyond Whatever your individual computing input needs may be Belkin has the answer – at the most competitive affordable prices in the industry Mouse Pads Wrist Rests Whether youre looking for a sturdy natural rubber backing a costeffective neoprene backing or something from our WaveRest line we have the solution that fits your needs the best

CD Labeler Accessories Create your own CD labels and jewel case inserts whether youre a skilled designer or a computer novice

Tool Kits Forget about that bulky toolbox Belkin has the perfect tool kit for you from our basic 11piece tool kit to the extravagant 65piece tool kit Everything you need to perform maintenance on your computer