Laptops or notebook computers can empower any business or company. They can be a platform for a fully equipped workforce, one that is well organized and ready to meet all of today's vast technological challenges. A workforce that's cohesive, well connected and totally prepared for the modern work place.
Laptops are state-of-the-art communication machines. These sophisticated devices are ideal for many business applications such as record keeping, wireless networking, presentations, instant communication... can your company really compete in today's business world without this great techno advantage?
Not completely!
Laptops should be a vital element in your company's overall business strategy. They should be a priority on your company's acquisition list for they just may be the competitive edge your company needs to increase production and beat out the competition.
Purchasing any kind of high tech device can be a real challenge in itself. Laptops are no exceptions. Notebook technology is constantly changing, there's a new generation of notebook technology every two years or so. Keeping abreast of recent advances is not an easy job.
Notebooks are getting smaller, faster and are almost matching the performance level offered by their bigger cousin -- the desktop computer. And for the first time in history, they are outselling their desktop rivals.
Laptops are also becoming better connected, most high quality notebooks come with Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) connections, many have a tri-mode 802.11a/b/g wireless system. Some recent models, like the Sony's New Ultra-Portable VAIO VGN-T350P, are raising the bar, it has the world's first 'Built-in Cellular Modem'. You can use your cell phone to connect to the Internet. This may be a great advantage since finding a 'Hot Spot' in some parts of the world can still be difficult.
One of the main features of a good business laptop is portability. A great business laptop must be very portable. You should be able to carry it around in your briefcase or under your arm with ease. Its weight should not cause you any discomfort even if you have to lug it around all day.
Most lightweight and small laptops can be found in the 'Thin and Light' and 'Ultra-portable' categories of notebooks. Notebooks in those classes are usually well under 5 pounds, around 10 by 14 inches in size and approximately an inch thick. Many are a lot smaller.
But don't let the small size fool you, these laptops are very powerful. They can do almost any business application you can throw at it. However, you must make sure your company's laptop is powerful enough to get the job done. It's usually agreed that you need at least 256MB RAM for Windows XP and Mac OS X. You will only need 128MB for other operating systems in Windows or Mac.
Storage space should not be a problem, most recent models come with 60 to 100 GIG hard drives which should be sufficient space for most companies. If your company deals in heavy graphics or visual work more space can be obtained with an extra external hard drive.
The main function of your laptops should be considered. For instance, if you have workers that require a lot of note-taking (floor managers/inspectors, real estate agents, medical personnel, etc.) a slate or tablet PC would be a more appropriate choice for your company. If your workers or employees do a lot of traveling then you want the lightest and most portable laptop or notebook you can find.
Battery life will also be very important for the traveling business person. Must recent laptops now supply 5 or more hours of power, if you want more you should considered buying an extra battery or two. Also, remember when choosing your laptop battery always pick the battery with the higher numbered cells. More cells will give you longer battery life.
Security is another consideration for your company's laptop. You must be careful to protect sensitive company records or documents -- some notebooks like those in the IBM/Sonoma ThinkPad series include an integrated fingerprint scanner for biometric authentication that uses an Embedded Security Subsystem and Password Manager. This offers extra security.
Along with security, your company will need a laptop that's sturdy and well built, especially if your workers do a lot of business traveling. Many laptops are ruggerized and can take a decent pounding or two. Some even offer some novel sturdiness features such as IBM's Active Protection System which is designed to protect the hard drive from falls and spills for those accident prone notebook users in your company.
Perhaps, the most important tip and buying factor is price. Outfitting your workforce with laptops doesn't come cheap. But you can save money if you practice that old adage: 'It pays to shop around and bargain'! Don't just buy your laptops off the rack -- always speak to the manager. Even when buying laptops online, contact the sales staff and try for a special price or bargain. Since you're buying in bulk or volume, many laptop companies and manufacturers will give you a special unit price. The more units you're ordering, the lower the price.
A little haggling will go a long way in lowering the overall cost of your company's laptop purchase; saving your company money. And if you're the person in charge of this purchase, making such a deal will reflect well on you, so try to go out of your way to get a good deal!
But don't sacrifice quality for a special price, always make sure you're buying laptops that can get the job done. Use the laptop tips above to guide you on the right path. It should make your task just be a little bit easier.
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For a list of the top rated Business Notebooks and Laptops Click Here: Best Business Notebooks & Laptops Copyright © 2005 Titus Hoskins. Notebook Buyer's Guide. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.
Tuesday, 25 December 2007
About Notebooks Graphics Cards
There are two type of graphics chipsets for notebook :
- the Integrated Graphics Processing Units : it's the cheaper one
- the Dedicated GPU whish is powerful but expensive.
Basically, it is well know that integrated cards stand no chance against real graphics chips, but for example Mobility Radeon x1100 (the new x200M) IGP is one of the only integrated chip that can deliver acceptable frame rates with full DirectX 9 support.
Integrated Graphics Processing Units :
Integrated Graphics Processing Units are suffering from the necessity to share memory with the main system, and this result in slower performance all around, second problem is that most integrated GPU lack true support for actual 3D extensions such as Pixel Shader 2, Vertex Shader, and Hardware Transform and Lighting.The positive is that integrated GPU are producing no heat of their own and they are almost using very little power, and this allows to more comfortable use and longer battery life.
What game will run on my integrated GPU ?
there is a lot of questions about what can be played on integrated GPU, particularly the Intel GMA900/950 and the ATI x1100 (the new x200M) honestly, rather than list all of the games that will run, here are the ones that won't :
-Doom 3
-Quake 4
-Prey
-Anything else on the Doom 3 Engine
-Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
-Neverwinter Nights 2
-F.E.A.R.
-Condemned: Criminal Origins
Finally if we look at an S3 Unichrome (or any other AGP integrated part) the list becomes much, much larger - so much so that you should just suppose it won't run, no matter what it is. But many people can attest that a lot of games that are high-requirement (such as ; NFS: Most Wanted, Half-Life 2, and Painkiller) run just fine on an X200M. The Doom 3 engine falters just because ATi's OpenGL support is nonexistent. Otherwise you can not explain why HL2 is running fine at 1280x768 high detail while Doom 3 can not stay above 30 fps no matter what. Doom 3 might well be playable on nVidia's IGP, the Go6150, given nVidia's traditionally great support on OpenGL drivers.
Dedicated GPU :
Only two companies are currently manufacturing dedicated graphics chips : ATi and nVidia.
These card feature more hardware support for advanced DirectX 9 and OpenGL 1.5 functions. Most importantly, they get that name of dedicated graphics cards from the fact that they use exclusively dedicated Video Ram, ensuring smooth and snappy performance. The problem is that dedicated video cards use much more power than integrated chips, resulting in more heat and shorter battery life.
Didier Pradel is the webmaster of laptop support and The linux laptop support where you can find many useful informations, and help for your lovely laptop.
- the Integrated Graphics Processing Units : it's the cheaper one
- the Dedicated GPU whish is powerful but expensive.
Basically, it is well know that integrated cards stand no chance against real graphics chips, but for example Mobility Radeon x1100 (the new x200M) IGP is one of the only integrated chip that can deliver acceptable frame rates with full DirectX 9 support.
Integrated Graphics Processing Units :
Integrated Graphics Processing Units are suffering from the necessity to share memory with the main system, and this result in slower performance all around, second problem is that most integrated GPU lack true support for actual 3D extensions such as Pixel Shader 2, Vertex Shader, and Hardware Transform and Lighting.The positive is that integrated GPU are producing no heat of their own and they are almost using very little power, and this allows to more comfortable use and longer battery life.
What game will run on my integrated GPU ?
there is a lot of questions about what can be played on integrated GPU, particularly the Intel GMA900/950 and the ATI x1100 (the new x200M) honestly, rather than list all of the games that will run, here are the ones that won't :
-Doom 3
-Quake 4
-Prey
-Anything else on the Doom 3 Engine
-Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
-Neverwinter Nights 2
-F.E.A.R.
-Condemned: Criminal Origins
Finally if we look at an S3 Unichrome (or any other AGP integrated part) the list becomes much, much larger - so much so that you should just suppose it won't run, no matter what it is. But many people can attest that a lot of games that are high-requirement (such as ; NFS: Most Wanted, Half-Life 2, and Painkiller) run just fine on an X200M. The Doom 3 engine falters just because ATi's OpenGL support is nonexistent. Otherwise you can not explain why HL2 is running fine at 1280x768 high detail while Doom 3 can not stay above 30 fps no matter what. Doom 3 might well be playable on nVidia's IGP, the Go6150, given nVidia's traditionally great support on OpenGL drivers.
Dedicated GPU :
Only two companies are currently manufacturing dedicated graphics chips : ATi and nVidia.
These card feature more hardware support for advanced DirectX 9 and OpenGL 1.5 functions. Most importantly, they get that name of dedicated graphics cards from the fact that they use exclusively dedicated Video Ram, ensuring smooth and snappy performance. The problem is that dedicated video cards use much more power than integrated chips, resulting in more heat and shorter battery life.
Didier Pradel is the webmaster of laptop support and The linux laptop support where you can find many useful informations, and help for your lovely laptop.
Solar Power for Notebook and Laptop Computers
This may seem incredible and impossible to do, but many computer technophiles are going "green" when they travel with a laptop in tow these days. If you are familiar with "extreme" or remote computing this may not seem too far fetched. Let's not forget that many professionals enjoy rugged recreational activities, but just can't always leave the office behind.
The idea of solar power for remote computing is finally catching on. It is working for everyone from the cross-country cyclist and weekend camper, to regular working stiffs that have to rough it on the job.
Solar power is not just a possibility, but could be a necessity for those that go remote. Solar panels are used to collect solar energy for direct use or storage in batteries to power up later.
Here is how solar, or photovoltaic energy is realized from the "How Stuff Works" website. If you are not an electrical engineer or scientist of some sort, don't be surprised if this does make light bulbs go off in your head. You can always come back and do further research on the Internet.
"The solar cells that you see on calculators and satellites are photovoltaic cells or modules (modules are simply a group of cells electrically connected and packaged in one frame). Photovoltaics, as the word implies (photo = light, voltaic = electricity), convert sunlight directly into electricity. Once used almost exclusively in space, photovoltaics are used more and more in less exotic ways. They could even power your house. How do these devices work?
Photovoltaic (PV) cells are made of special materials called semiconductors such as silicon, which is currently the most commonly used. Basically, when light strikes the cell, a certain portion of it is absorbed within the semiconductor material. This means that the energy of the absorbed light is transferred to the semiconductor. The energy knocks electrons loose, allowing them to flow freely. PV cells also all have one or more electric fields that act to force electrons freed by light absorption to flow in a certain direction. This flow of electrons is a current, and by placing metal contacts on the top and bottom of the PV cell, we can draw that current off to use externally. For example, the current can power a calculator. This current, together with the cell's voltage (which is a result of its built-in electric field or fields), defines the power (or wattage) that the solar cell can produce."
To continue, we will discuss the smaller hand held devices for cell phones and PDAs, all the way to powerful self-contained and fully remote commercial solar systems. Here are several links that describe the use of solar power for mobile computers and other wireless devices from the Do-It-Yourself perspective.
How-To-Green-Your-Electronics:
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/03/how-to-green-your-electronics.php
DIY Solar System for $180:
http://blogs.experience.com/Patrick/2007/01/portable-solar-power-for-1_.html
How To - Laptop Solar Power:
http://rmowe.home.att.net/photovoltaic.html
It is amazing what is already available and out in the marketplace for solar power options. As energy costs and energy conservation continue to garner interest as mainstream issues, we should see the rapid development of solar integrated design features. Soon it may be a standard feature and part of everyday portable computers.
Let's hope so, because going green is good for everyone, not just an intriguing proposition for rugged notebook users and remote computing,
Hand Held Solar Kits
Solar kits are designed to be self-contained. They combine solar cells, rechargeable batteries, and a wide selection of cables. These won't power a portable laptop yet unless it's a miser on energy, but they will keep you connected with a limitless power supply for your cell phones, Smart phones, PDAs, and smaller devices. As long as the sun is shining, or the batteries are charged up, you will have power.
Many purists will argue anything solar is not really "green", either because it will never be energy positive (will never generate more power than it took to manufacture), or because it has a battery, making it environmentally unfriendly by default.
Arguments aside, at issue for rugged and remote users is a reliable power source, and having some sense of being connected. So, solar charging devices can be considered either as "convenience efficient" or "emergency efficient". Don't take this as a challenge to engineer types that will want to get their slide rules out, just a notation that these solar kits are an honest attempt at the "plus" column for reducing the human carbon footprint. Wider adoption and acceptance of new technology usually results in greater efficiencies.
Two promising examples that have had good reviews are the reasonably affordable products from Solar Style Dot Com, and the pricier Solio Dot Com. Do a search on YouTube and you will find many videos of Solio in action. If it did not work, we would know it by now.
Portable Solar Power Docking Stations
The idea of using solar power in remote situations is nothing new. The question for us is how well, and how fast, a solar power station will power up your notebook or laptop. Other considerations are the size, weight, and portability. You will find many products in this category, but few online reviews that confirm that these products will actually perform as advertised. The best source I have found for honest reviews in this regard is TreeHugger.com.
There are very few winners in the category of a portable solar power docking station to efficiently run a laptop computer. One that does get good reviews on the subject is the "PowerDock System".
Do an online search for PowerDock System, and you will find many retailers and dealers at different price points. So be patient and shop around. Your Mobile Desk Dot Com is the best resource for a complete descriptions of the PowerDock product line. These include from the least expensive to the most expensive: PowerDock Lite, PowerDock Basic. PowerDock Executive, and PowerDock Elite.
Power Dock Systems are relatively expensive, and range in price form a few hundred dollars on up to $450.00. The PowerDock is an attractive product design an weighs in from 5 to 13.5 pounds.
Another potential winner is the Notepower Solar Laptop Charger from Sierra Solar Systems. You will see the Notepower Solar Charger pop up along with the PowerDock in a search engine query for these type of solar products. Plug in the SmartAdapter with extended 10 foot cord included, and start charging or topping off your computer battery as long as sunshine is available.
Once again, this is not a review recommendation, but the Notepower has had favorable comments by TreeHugger.com and other reliable sources, giving no pause to mention it here. The 3 lb. Notepower is not designed with a storage battery, but the 20-30 watts of power will charge and run most laptop computers, according to the specs.
You may not consider the Notepower as a true solar docking station, but it is an attractive portable solar package for a temporary power solution. Originally priced around $250.00.
Commercial and Military Grade Solar Power Systems
Some of the best remote solar power systems are designed to meet military standards. You could even say that anything designed for military use is pretty much guaranteed to perform. These systems will compliment anything in the fully rugged notebook computer category.
Energy Technologies, Inc. in Ohio, USA makes a wide assortment of military standard power equipment for field use. Things like field deployable inverters, converters, UPS, engine-generators, along with solar power stations with the trade name Tactical Solar Products.
The product features for these Tactical Solar Products include various combinations of charge controllers, power storage batteries, AC/DC power adapters, multiple DC outputs, and a large selection of folding solar panels. The specific product line is the Solar Suitcase I, Solar Suitcase II, Solar Suitcase III, Solar Suitcase IV, along with the folding SolarTacticalPanels.
Solar Suitcases I-IV can charge Lead Acid, Li-Ion, NiCad, NiMH & other types of rechargeable batteries. The nearly bullet proof folding solar collection panels are available from a 15 Watt to a hefty 330 Watt output panel set. This is "green power", but you are out of luck if you prefer a color other than the two camouflage patterns available.
You will have to call ETI for costs, as product pricing is not published on the ETI websites.
Computing Solar Power Wrap-up
We have looked at several of the many possibilities for solar power, and going "green" with remote computing. The possibilities are becoming more reliable and starting to make more economic sense. You can try to go solar and Do-It-Yourself, or for the less technically inclined there is a wide range of retail and commercial applications for sale. We have attempted to highlight a few of the proven DIY options, and find some of the readily available products, and systems from various online reviews.
Some of the solar power resource websites you might want to keep an eye on include: Altapower.com, RadioLabs.com, and CTSolar.com. There obviously are many more you will find now and in the future with your favorite search engine.
As computing devices become smaller and more mobile, and with nascent technology soon to push the boundaries of wireless networks, solar power could prove to be a factor in your computing future.
Michael Beck is a blogger, author and digital nomad. He writes The Digital Nomads Blog and The Rugged Notebooks Blog, and contributes to other blogs that deal with the paradigm shift to mobility and wireless technology.
http://digital-nomads.blogspot.com
http://www.ruggednotebooksblog.com
The idea of solar power for remote computing is finally catching on. It is working for everyone from the cross-country cyclist and weekend camper, to regular working stiffs that have to rough it on the job.
Solar power is not just a possibility, but could be a necessity for those that go remote. Solar panels are used to collect solar energy for direct use or storage in batteries to power up later.
Here is how solar, or photovoltaic energy is realized from the "How Stuff Works" website. If you are not an electrical engineer or scientist of some sort, don't be surprised if this does make light bulbs go off in your head. You can always come back and do further research on the Internet.
"The solar cells that you see on calculators and satellites are photovoltaic cells or modules (modules are simply a group of cells electrically connected and packaged in one frame). Photovoltaics, as the word implies (photo = light, voltaic = electricity), convert sunlight directly into electricity. Once used almost exclusively in space, photovoltaics are used more and more in less exotic ways. They could even power your house. How do these devices work?
Photovoltaic (PV) cells are made of special materials called semiconductors such as silicon, which is currently the most commonly used. Basically, when light strikes the cell, a certain portion of it is absorbed within the semiconductor material. This means that the energy of the absorbed light is transferred to the semiconductor. The energy knocks electrons loose, allowing them to flow freely. PV cells also all have one or more electric fields that act to force electrons freed by light absorption to flow in a certain direction. This flow of electrons is a current, and by placing metal contacts on the top and bottom of the PV cell, we can draw that current off to use externally. For example, the current can power a calculator. This current, together with the cell's voltage (which is a result of its built-in electric field or fields), defines the power (or wattage) that the solar cell can produce."
To continue, we will discuss the smaller hand held devices for cell phones and PDAs, all the way to powerful self-contained and fully remote commercial solar systems. Here are several links that describe the use of solar power for mobile computers and other wireless devices from the Do-It-Yourself perspective.
How-To-Green-Your-Electronics:
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/03/how-to-green-your-electronics.php
DIY Solar System for $180:
http://blogs.experience.com/Patrick/2007/01/portable-solar-power-for-1_.html
How To - Laptop Solar Power:
http://rmowe.home.att.net/photovoltaic.html
It is amazing what is already available and out in the marketplace for solar power options. As energy costs and energy conservation continue to garner interest as mainstream issues, we should see the rapid development of solar integrated design features. Soon it may be a standard feature and part of everyday portable computers.
Let's hope so, because going green is good for everyone, not just an intriguing proposition for rugged notebook users and remote computing,
Hand Held Solar Kits
Solar kits are designed to be self-contained. They combine solar cells, rechargeable batteries, and a wide selection of cables. These won't power a portable laptop yet unless it's a miser on energy, but they will keep you connected with a limitless power supply for your cell phones, Smart phones, PDAs, and smaller devices. As long as the sun is shining, or the batteries are charged up, you will have power.
Many purists will argue anything solar is not really "green", either because it will never be energy positive (will never generate more power than it took to manufacture), or because it has a battery, making it environmentally unfriendly by default.
Arguments aside, at issue for rugged and remote users is a reliable power source, and having some sense of being connected. So, solar charging devices can be considered either as "convenience efficient" or "emergency efficient". Don't take this as a challenge to engineer types that will want to get their slide rules out, just a notation that these solar kits are an honest attempt at the "plus" column for reducing the human carbon footprint. Wider adoption and acceptance of new technology usually results in greater efficiencies.
Two promising examples that have had good reviews are the reasonably affordable products from Solar Style Dot Com, and the pricier Solio Dot Com. Do a search on YouTube and you will find many videos of Solio in action. If it did not work, we would know it by now.
Portable Solar Power Docking Stations
The idea of using solar power in remote situations is nothing new. The question for us is how well, and how fast, a solar power station will power up your notebook or laptop. Other considerations are the size, weight, and portability. You will find many products in this category, but few online reviews that confirm that these products will actually perform as advertised. The best source I have found for honest reviews in this regard is TreeHugger.com.
There are very few winners in the category of a portable solar power docking station to efficiently run a laptop computer. One that does get good reviews on the subject is the "PowerDock System".
Do an online search for PowerDock System, and you will find many retailers and dealers at different price points. So be patient and shop around. Your Mobile Desk Dot Com is the best resource for a complete descriptions of the PowerDock product line. These include from the least expensive to the most expensive: PowerDock Lite, PowerDock Basic. PowerDock Executive, and PowerDock Elite.
Power Dock Systems are relatively expensive, and range in price form a few hundred dollars on up to $450.00. The PowerDock is an attractive product design an weighs in from 5 to 13.5 pounds.
Another potential winner is the Notepower Solar Laptop Charger from Sierra Solar Systems. You will see the Notepower Solar Charger pop up along with the PowerDock in a search engine query for these type of solar products. Plug in the SmartAdapter with extended 10 foot cord included, and start charging or topping off your computer battery as long as sunshine is available.
Once again, this is not a review recommendation, but the Notepower has had favorable comments by TreeHugger.com and other reliable sources, giving no pause to mention it here. The 3 lb. Notepower is not designed with a storage battery, but the 20-30 watts of power will charge and run most laptop computers, according to the specs.
You may not consider the Notepower as a true solar docking station, but it is an attractive portable solar package for a temporary power solution. Originally priced around $250.00.
Commercial and Military Grade Solar Power Systems
Some of the best remote solar power systems are designed to meet military standards. You could even say that anything designed for military use is pretty much guaranteed to perform. These systems will compliment anything in the fully rugged notebook computer category.
Energy Technologies, Inc. in Ohio, USA makes a wide assortment of military standard power equipment for field use. Things like field deployable inverters, converters, UPS, engine-generators, along with solar power stations with the trade name Tactical Solar Products.
The product features for these Tactical Solar Products include various combinations of charge controllers, power storage batteries, AC/DC power adapters, multiple DC outputs, and a large selection of folding solar panels. The specific product line is the Solar Suitcase I, Solar Suitcase II, Solar Suitcase III, Solar Suitcase IV, along with the folding SolarTacticalPanels.
Solar Suitcases I-IV can charge Lead Acid, Li-Ion, NiCad, NiMH & other types of rechargeable batteries. The nearly bullet proof folding solar collection panels are available from a 15 Watt to a hefty 330 Watt output panel set. This is "green power", but you are out of luck if you prefer a color other than the two camouflage patterns available.
You will have to call ETI for costs, as product pricing is not published on the ETI websites.
Computing Solar Power Wrap-up
We have looked at several of the many possibilities for solar power, and going "green" with remote computing. The possibilities are becoming more reliable and starting to make more economic sense. You can try to go solar and Do-It-Yourself, or for the less technically inclined there is a wide range of retail and commercial applications for sale. We have attempted to highlight a few of the proven DIY options, and find some of the readily available products, and systems from various online reviews.
Some of the solar power resource websites you might want to keep an eye on include: Altapower.com, RadioLabs.com, and CTSolar.com. There obviously are many more you will find now and in the future with your favorite search engine.
As computing devices become smaller and more mobile, and with nascent technology soon to push the boundaries of wireless networks, solar power could prove to be a factor in your computing future.
Michael Beck is a blogger, author and digital nomad. He writes The Digital Nomads Blog and The Rugged Notebooks Blog, and contributes to other blogs that deal with the paradigm shift to mobility and wireless technology.
http://digital-nomads.blogspot.com
http://www.ruggednotebooksblog.com
Saturday, 22 December 2007
This is What Distinguishes MAC Notebooks From The Rest
Notebooks are light computers, which are comfortable to carry, and they have a flat screen and the keyboard is attached to it. Notebooks are operated on battery. They have LCD (liquid crystal display) display an they have a flat screen. Notebooks are used by people engaged in all the fields.
The Notebooks have good battery backup, which makes them very handy and convenient. They are not more than 2kg of weight, which makes them very portable. They are light in weight, which makes them easy to carry. They are much more stylish so they mostly garb the attention of people especially young minds.
Mac notebooks are manufactured by a renounced company called "Apple". These notebooks are rated among the top most notebooks sold today in the world. These notebooks are very useful to business world. These notebooks are fully loaded with variety of irresistible features. These notebooks are sleek and very stylish; because of its amazing features, it grabs the attention of people from all the fields.
Mac notebooks are embedded with the following features:- * Intel Core Duo2 processor is used
* Mac notebooks can have upto 4GB of RAM
* It has an embedded 3D graphic card and can it provides excellent support to 2D and 3D graphic softwares.
* They have upto 250GB of hard disk.
* They have a excellent battery back up.
* The resolutions provided by them are very good and they have 15-17 inches screen.
* There is also a provision of connectivity (Bluetooth, infrared)
* It has an excellent DVD burner (8*double layer burning)
* It has an embedded card reader facility.
* It has a illuminated keyboard, which makes it very convenient for the use for typing.
* There is also a provision of three USB outlets.
* It has a MagSafe power adapter.
* It comes with a scrolling trackpad, which provides with maximum flexibility in operating.
* It is very much light in weight, it weights nearly 6.8 pounds so it becomes very portable for the user.
* With its wireless technology, the user can create their own wireless network.
* It is wi-fi enabled so that the user can enjoy internet anywhere.
* It is very slim it is just one inch thin so it becomes the center of attraction if compared with the other notebooks.
* There are many accessories available in the market for Mac notebooks so it makes it very convenient for the users.
* It comes with a worldwide guarantee/warrantee.
The Notebooks have good battery backup, which makes them very handy and convenient. They are not more than 2kg of weight, which makes them very portable. They are light in weight, which makes them easy to carry. They are much more stylish so they mostly garb the attention of people especially young minds.
Mac notebooks are manufactured by a renounced company called "Apple". These notebooks are rated among the top most notebooks sold today in the world. These notebooks are very useful to business world. These notebooks are fully loaded with variety of irresistible features. These notebooks are sleek and very stylish; because of its amazing features, it grabs the attention of people from all the fields.
Mac notebooks are embedded with the following features:- * Intel Core Duo2 processor is used
* Mac notebooks can have upto 4GB of RAM
* It has an embedded 3D graphic card and can it provides excellent support to 2D and 3D graphic softwares.
* They have upto 250GB of hard disk.
* They have a excellent battery back up.
* The resolutions provided by them are very good and they have 15-17 inches screen.
* There is also a provision of connectivity (Bluetooth, infrared)
* It has an excellent DVD burner (8*double layer burning)
* It has an embedded card reader facility.
* It has a illuminated keyboard, which makes it very convenient for the use for typing.
* There is also a provision of three USB outlets.
* It has a MagSafe power adapter.
* It comes with a scrolling trackpad, which provides with maximum flexibility in operating.
* It is very much light in weight, it weights nearly 6.8 pounds so it becomes very portable for the user.
* With its wireless technology, the user can create their own wireless network.
* It is wi-fi enabled so that the user can enjoy internet anywhere.
* It is very slim it is just one inch thin so it becomes the center of attraction if compared with the other notebooks.
* There are many accessories available in the market for Mac notebooks so it makes it very convenient for the users.
* It comes with a worldwide guarantee/warrantee.
How To Choose The Best Student Laptop?
How To Choose the Best Student Laptop?
Merchants are singing those three magic words again, 'Back to School' and the fallout is everywhere!
Just as you're getting your deep dark pre-cancerous tan going -- you hear those words -- and it spells the end of summer. Once again we are bombarded with advertising, featuring the latest in 'teen ware' 'school ware' and 'metal detector ware'. Kidding!
Is it just me or does it seem this year there is a lot more 'Back to School' advertising for notebooks and laptops? They seem to be everywhere... on TV, radio, and online.
Laptop ads are everywhere. Why is this?
Well, notebooks have come down in price, they have become more affordable, even for the modest student. Laptops have also come down in size, making them ideal for that school napsack, or dormroom. They have also become tougher and sturdier... better equipped to meet the hard/wear/tear that students give it.
With notebook technology changing every two years or so; notebooks can now handle most tasks students throw their way. These advanced notebooks can do the job. They also present a much stronger entertainment value to students, they can handle better graphics and gaming, but most students try to keep parents in the dark about this factor as they plead for a new laptop for college or school. All this pleading is further fueling the demand for laptops.
Then there is a little thing called the Internet. Throw in a wireless connection and the student laptop is coming into its own. Big Time!
The Internet has become a second teacher/parent/counselor to most students. God help us all! But it has also become a priceless source of the collective knowledge on this planet; frightening but true. The Internet is an invaluable source of knowledge for any high school/college student.
Not having ready access to all this knowledge and information will put any student at a disadvantage with his peers. It's a very competitive world, in high school, in college and in the future job market; every student should have an even playing field.
That's where the little notebook computer enters stage right!
Laptops or notebooks have quickly become a school necessity. When? How? Why?...
It's the perfect learning tool for students:
* very portable, you can carry them anywhere, class, cafe, dorm, home...
* very convenient, you can take notes in class, type up assignments, print assignments, communicate home, access the Internet...
* very tough, many newer notebooks are designed to withstand a good pounding and keep on computing, ruggerized for sturdy use...
* very powerful, notebooks or laptops are catching up to their desktop cousins in computing speed, hard drive storage and performance...
* very affordable, prices have dropped and are falling even further, laptops are now outselling desktop PCs so this price will drop even further, there's a whole slew of used and refurbished laptops hitting the market...
If you're a parent, student, or guardian; here are some of the factors you should consider when buying the best student laptop or notebook:
* size, it must be small, lightweight and very portable, fit comfortably under the arm or in that backpack
* sturdy, it must be tough, sturdy, ruggerized, and able to take more than one hard knock because students are students
* connections, wireless connections should be offered, the Internet is such a valuable tool in itself - a student should be able to access it anywhere. Most notebooks have these connections but check -- a printer port, a 56Kbps-modem, a VGA port for an external monitor, and should have at least one USB port for external keyboard/mouse, digital cameras, drives, and MP3 players
* technical specs, it should have enough RAM, storage space (hard drive) and computing speed to do any job the student can throw at it
* battery life, make sure your student notebook has a reasonable battery life, 5 hours or more
* price, it should be reasonably priced, refurbished laptops may be an option for those on a strict budget
However, some words of wisdom, students or parents shouldn't skimp too much -- if you're spending 10's of thousands on an education, you should also provide for the best possible equipment in the form of a sturdy, lightweight high performance laptop. Besides, a high quality laptop will last for years... just imagine your son or daughter writing their resumes on it after they have finished college... keep this image in your mind as you go about buying that perfect student laptop.
Merchants are singing those three magic words again, 'Back to School' and the fallout is everywhere!
Just as you're getting your deep dark pre-cancerous tan going -- you hear those words -- and it spells the end of summer. Once again we are bombarded with advertising, featuring the latest in 'teen ware' 'school ware' and 'metal detector ware'. Kidding!
Is it just me or does it seem this year there is a lot more 'Back to School' advertising for notebooks and laptops? They seem to be everywhere... on TV, radio, and online.
Laptop ads are everywhere. Why is this?
Well, notebooks have come down in price, they have become more affordable, even for the modest student. Laptops have also come down in size, making them ideal for that school napsack, or dormroom. They have also become tougher and sturdier... better equipped to meet the hard/wear/tear that students give it.
With notebook technology changing every two years or so; notebooks can now handle most tasks students throw their way. These advanced notebooks can do the job. They also present a much stronger entertainment value to students, they can handle better graphics and gaming, but most students try to keep parents in the dark about this factor as they plead for a new laptop for college or school. All this pleading is further fueling the demand for laptops.
Then there is a little thing called the Internet. Throw in a wireless connection and the student laptop is coming into its own. Big Time!
The Internet has become a second teacher/parent/counselor to most students. God help us all! But it has also become a priceless source of the collective knowledge on this planet; frightening but true. The Internet is an invaluable source of knowledge for any high school/college student.
Not having ready access to all this knowledge and information will put any student at a disadvantage with his peers. It's a very competitive world, in high school, in college and in the future job market; every student should have an even playing field.
That's where the little notebook computer enters stage right!
Laptops or notebooks have quickly become a school necessity. When? How? Why?...
It's the perfect learning tool for students:
* very portable, you can carry them anywhere, class, cafe, dorm, home...
* very convenient, you can take notes in class, type up assignments, print assignments, communicate home, access the Internet...
* very tough, many newer notebooks are designed to withstand a good pounding and keep on computing, ruggerized for sturdy use...
* very powerful, notebooks or laptops are catching up to their desktop cousins in computing speed, hard drive storage and performance...
* very affordable, prices have dropped and are falling even further, laptops are now outselling desktop PCs so this price will drop even further, there's a whole slew of used and refurbished laptops hitting the market...
If you're a parent, student, or guardian; here are some of the factors you should consider when buying the best student laptop or notebook:
* size, it must be small, lightweight and very portable, fit comfortably under the arm or in that backpack
* sturdy, it must be tough, sturdy, ruggerized, and able to take more than one hard knock because students are students
* connections, wireless connections should be offered, the Internet is such a valuable tool in itself - a student should be able to access it anywhere. Most notebooks have these connections but check -- a printer port, a 56Kbps-modem, a VGA port for an external monitor, and should have at least one USB port for external keyboard/mouse, digital cameras, drives, and MP3 players
* technical specs, it should have enough RAM, storage space (hard drive) and computing speed to do any job the student can throw at it
* battery life, make sure your student notebook has a reasonable battery life, 5 hours or more
* price, it should be reasonably priced, refurbished laptops may be an option for those on a strict budget
However, some words of wisdom, students or parents shouldn't skimp too much -- if you're spending 10's of thousands on an education, you should also provide for the best possible equipment in the form of a sturdy, lightweight high performance laptop. Besides, a high quality laptop will last for years... just imagine your son or daughter writing their resumes on it after they have finished college... keep this image in your mind as you go about buying that perfect student laptop.
What You Need to Look When searching for the Best Notebooks
Because of advent of technology, laptops or notebooks have come in the range of middle-class people's budget. We will see top 3 notebooks of the year 2006 here. 1. Apple MacBook (Black) 2. Dell XPS M1210 3. HP Pavilion dv6000t 1. Apple MacBook (prize $1,499): It stands on its own because of Mac OS X. This versatile and elegant operating system isn't vulnerable to viruses and other malware as in the case of Windows, and makes multimedia intuitive because of its iLife '06 suite and Front Row interface. The perfect bang-for-your-buck machine to deliver all of these goodies is the black version of the Apple MacBook. It doesn't have the graphics muscle of the MacBook Pro. This 5.2 pound, 1.1 inch thick system with a 2 GHz Intel Core Duo processor gives large multitasking power and an 80GB hard drive and slot-loading SuperDrive store a ton of files and movies. 2. Dell XPS M1210: This 4.8-pound and 12.1 inch screen body is impressive and includes a metallic finish on the inside, backlit multimedia controls on the front, and a shiny black cover with a round Dell logo. The full-sized keyboard makes your typing easy and faster with the wrists and fingers. The M1210 scored 286 on MobileMark 2005 tests while lasting for 4.5 hours on battery power. The notebook has 2 GHz Core 2 Duo processor. When combined with Nvidia's GeForce Go 7400 graphics with 256MB video memory, you can enjoy a Windows Vista experience and the ability to play the latest games. The key feature is the broadband option. When using the EV-DO card that connects to Wireless EV-DO network, you can surf the Web at high speed.
3. HP Pavilion dv6000t: It features for durable coating and impressive finish. With the Pavilion dv6000t, you will get a webcam and microphone for video chatting on the 15.4 inch widescreen. Other features are a dual-layer DVD burner, 1GB RAM, and 80GB hard drive. They have provided the QuickPlay feature which plays movies music and photos with the push of button without booting Windows, whether those files are stored on hard drive, disc, USB drive or on a memory card in the 5-in-1 reader. The 2.16 GHz Core 2 Duo processor scored 279 on MobileMark 2005 test. The full-sized keyboard gives you an excellent feel and they have also provided touch-sensitive multimedia buttons above the Function keys.
3. HP Pavilion dv6000t: It features for durable coating and impressive finish. With the Pavilion dv6000t, you will get a webcam and microphone for video chatting on the 15.4 inch widescreen. Other features are a dual-layer DVD burner, 1GB RAM, and 80GB hard drive. They have provided the QuickPlay feature which plays movies music and photos with the push of button without booting Windows, whether those files are stored on hard drive, disc, USB drive or on a memory card in the 5-in-1 reader. The 2.16 GHz Core 2 Duo processor scored 279 on MobileMark 2005 test. The full-sized keyboard gives you an excellent feel and they have also provided touch-sensitive multimedia buttons above the Function keys.
Friday, 21 December 2007
Notebook PCs
Notebook shopping can be rewarding provided you are literate about the various features that various manufacturers offer. Popularity of notebook has soared more because of its portability without any compromise on performance. Since buying a notebook can be once in few years affair you need to be clear about its use.
Following is a condensed notebook buying guide dealing with just the main factors you need to keep in mind before purchasing one.
Buy by features-the core components
The need of the hour today is to carry work and information and instant access to internet to present information for sales and clinch business deals. So obviously the size and weight of the notebook you carry around matters a lot. Notebooks are categorized both on basis of weight and on basis of screen size.
Size
The four basic sizes are:
1.Tablet PCs have all the normal functions. There is the added advantage of being able to physically write and manipulate applications with a specially designed input device- the Pen. The two types are the slate and the convertible. Example: Lenovo ThinkPad X41 2526, Lenovo ThinkPad X41 (S5519073) PC Notebook.
2.Ultra portable notebooks are extremely light with small keyboards and screen. There is however no compromise on emailing and web surfing capabilities and can connect to cellular broad band wireless providers. The CD/DVD drives are removed to save space. Lenovo ThinkPad X60 Ultraportable
3.Thin and light notebooks weigh five to seven pounds. The swappable media bays make it possible to switch between CD/DVD and spare battery. You will have to recharge often else carry the power adapters too. Lenovo ThinkPad X60s (X60s_Standard_Ultralight)_BT...) PC Notebook
4.Desktop replacements are powerful notebooks, only that you won't be able to carry it around much. Available with powerful processors, adequate memory, plenty of drive space and wireless connectivity. The negative factor associated being comparatively lesser battery life due to power draining screens and the powerful components.
Weight
This feature is crucial since the notebook is intended to be carried around. A frequent flier would prefer lighter systems with some compromise on its functionality. While a home user wouldn't mind slightly heavier systems.
The travel weight specified must include the weight of power adapters and media bays but most manufacturers mention just the weight of the system and its batteries. Check out the models in the following three ranges:
0.6 to 4 lb. Most ultra portables come in this range.
4.1 to 5.7 lb. Thin and light models with reasonably good battery life.
5.8 to 10.1 lb. Desktop replacements weigh around 7 lbs.
Display size
Notebook displays come in thin film transistor Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) models, perfectly flat and just half an inch thick, as they are easily portable. Specifications state TFT Active Matrix Display or LCD Display. If you are a frequent traveler, a good combination of small size and less weight will be easier for you to carry around. In case you wish to view movies bigger displays will well serve the purpose. Check out the three commonly available sizes.
8.9 to 11.1 inches- most of them have smart designs and good battery life, but reduced video quality limits its uses
12 to 14 inches- good for watching movies and for gaming
14.1 to 17 inches- for gorgeous display and powerful performance, so, ideal for business presentations
Display resolution
Displays have another criterion which needs scrutiny before purchase. It is the display resolution- higher the resolution cleaner and crisper will be the image. Resolution is number of pixels across the width and height of screen. 1024 x 768 means 1024 pixels across the height and 768 pixels across the width. Pixels mean the individual dots that make up the picture.
In specifications the standard screen and widescreen is specified with abbreviations as XGA, SXGA, WXGA, WSXGA or WUXGA. The widescreen are fast becoming the rage because the reading space increases more with slight increase in size.
1024 x 768 Small displays 12.1 in. usually have this resolution XGA (1024 x 768), WXGA resolutions (1280 x 800). Larger screens too come with so low resolutions and they are cheap and ideal for budget computers.
1400 x 1050 Many large displays 12.1 and 15 inches come with this resolution like SXGA+ (1400 by 1050) and give very good picture quality.
1920 x 1200 Models with such resolution WUXGA (1920 x 1200) is ideal for making movies as there is more detail in the image and more work space on the display. However a negative factor associated with such high resolution is that the fonts tend to be smaller, difficult to read especially for people with poor eyesight. This factor is corrected by changing the font size in operating system but the correction can have unintended effects on other programs.
Display screens
The screen is of two types Glossy and Matte. Glossy screens have the advantage of reduced screen door effect i.e. reduced black spaces between pixels, thus improving the contrast and brightness of the image. The disadvantage is the reflective ness causing eye strain. Matte screens don't have this feature and are a lot cheaper than glossy ones. The brightness of LCD screen can be adjusted and a lower setting can help conserve power. The brightness is adjusted by adjusting the intensity of the back light inside the panel that illuminates the screen.
Processors
This is the most important feature of notebook. There are types of processors and subtypes of processors. Sub-types being ultra low voltage, low voltage, and normal chips of say Pentium M or Intel Core Solo. Low voltage processors give good battery life. So depending on the ultimate application you intend to use the specifications will vary. Since notebooks cannot be easily upgraded (any upgrade of CPU would require dismantling the system to the core and replacement of motherboard, RAM, and may be add another heat sink.) it will be worth the money if you spend enough for fast processors to satisfy your current and future requirements. No single processor can fit all needs and functions, it may be ideal for single function but not for all tasks.
Processor brands
Two of the leading companies manufacturing processors used in notebooks are AMD and Intel. The processor market is entirely in the grip of these two companies. The clock speed of single core versions of the processors produced has touched the upper limit. These single core processors develop heating problems when multiple functions are carried out. Both Intel and AMD have developed the dual core technology in its processors that has increased the multitasking capabilities of notebook PCs.
Intel uses the SpeedStep technology which senses and reduces frequency and power consumption if power is drawn from battery and increases the same if power is drawn from external source. AMD features PowerNow for the same purpose.
AMD
Intel
Knowledge of the processor type will be handy to install the correct packages. Some processor types in notebooks are:
AMD processors
Intel processors are Celeron M
Pentium 4
Core Duo
Core 2 Duo
Processor speed is another factor to be considered. The one you would use for just surfing and as a letter box would be cheaper and slower, while heavy duty multitasking, running multimedia applications require faster processor and cost more.
1 to 1.5 GHz- A do everything notebook processor like creating and sharing documents, net browsing, send and receive mails, write or receive text messages, make phone calls etc.
1.6 to 2.1 GHz the double core processors with this speed give good performance and long battery life.
2.2 to 3.3 GHz The dual core CPUs are the fastest. Programs run faster with such fast processors, they cost more too. Recording videos, playing extremely high definition videos, touching up digital photos, video editing all require fast processors. These fast processors consume more power especially when used in portables.
Memory
The memory requirements depend on OS and the applications you plan to put in use. RAM is used to process the program information. More is always better for faster loading, printing and down loading of your files. Buy the ones that have easy to access memory slots as you would very soon want to upgrade this feature. There are two ranges of RAM available.
128 to 256 MB- this space can manage your daily mails and normal applications
512 MB to 2048MB for improved performance
A memory specification like 512 MB (DDR2 SDRAM) indicates; the space is 512 MB, DDR2 (double data rate 2 synchronous dynamic random access memory) is the memory type, latest widely used one. DDR2 is the new version of DDR. Speeds are assigned by the memory type and clock rating and another method by bandwidth.
Drives
Drives provide the storage for the computer programs. Again this choice depends on how much data you wish to store. Some laptop models come with swappable drives which increases the flexibility.
Drives have three specifications: size, type of interface and speed. Notebook hard drives come in two sizes; 1.8 inch and 2.5 inch. The 1.8 inch ones are mostly in ultra portables, while the 2.5 inch size Hard Drives are used commonly in other notebooks. IDE and Serial ATA are the two types of connectors between hard drives and computer and of the two it is IDE which is more commonly used. Speed at which the hard drive spins also determines the performance. Most notebook hard drive spins at 5400 rpm speed. A higher spin rate of 7200 rpm gives better performance but uses more power.
Following is categorization based on storage space.
1 to 31GB-Mostly incorporated in low cost budget notebooks.
40 to 80GB- Home users using notebooks for photos and videos, in addition to normal surfing can opt for 80 GB hard drives.
100 to 256GB- Most multimedia notebooks have dual hard drives of 200 to 320 GB. For gaming uses 100 GB should suffice.
Battery life
The battery life definitely depends on the chores or tasks that are carried out; some of them being the applications like MS Office, Norton AntiVirus programs, Netscape. Huge amount of power is consumed for displaying images on the screen. The rest of the system like the core-logic, chip set and memory too draws power. Notebooks designed to handle large power consumption weigh more as they come with large batteries and thermal heat sinks.
If you are traveling too frequently go for batteries that have longer run time or purchase two of them and use both of them equally. Prefer the notebooks equipped with lithium-ion rechargeable batteries. Check with dealer for battery settings and battery backup so that it lasts long. Normally batteries can last 700 charging cycles.
Check the following three categories of battery run time:
1.5 to 3 hrs-great for viewing movies, video chats and photos at home, viable for budget desktop replacement. 3.1 to 4.3 hrs 4.4 to 12 hrs
Notebooks categorized
Business Notebooks
These systems have high flexibility, more durability and security features. Business laptops use stronger materials and lighter cases, more mobility features like lightweights and wireless options. There are plenty of hardware features and software to choose from to configure to your business requirements.
Budget Notebooks
These are available for less than $1000USD with a lot of compromise on speed, storage and convenience. So depending on what you wish to use it for, decide what tradeoffs are acceptable to you. A 100GB hard drive, fifteen inch screen, a DVD/CD combo drive which can be upgraded and connection ports should come within a reasonable budget. Check the following brands in the price range of 162.3 to 912.5 $:
IBM
HP Compaq
Dell
Gaming Notebooks
These use fastest processors with powerful video cards, ideal for gaming, has good graphics and faster speeds. The gaming version can be for 3D games, wide-screen HDTV, and video editing studio and for dynamic presentations. While purchasing one consider the graphics, RAM and processors with highest speed. Lenovo ThinkPad T60p (200783U) PC Notebook, Toshiba Satellite A65-S126
Student Notebooks
Must haves are good portability, performance, battery life, light weight. A thin and light or ultra portable should fit the bill. It may be used for office applications and gaming purpose. Lenovo ThinkPad X60s
Home use Notebooks
Weight may not be major criteria. You may be using this for after trips video editing, storing pictures, and may be exchange information. You may wish for a large screen and 512MB memory, in a mid-range budget. Consider the following recommendations:
Brand Lenovo
Brand Toshiba
Multimedia Notebooks
These are an all in one item. Serves as television, digital video recorder, mobile DVD player, MP3 juke box, digital photo album. Battery life of three hours so can be taken on vacation but definitely not for frequent travelers. Some models can boot to non-Windows environment to play audio CDs even when the system is off. It will require high speed processors and cost more too.
Buy by Budget
Everything ultimately depends on how much you intend to shell out from your pocket. Following are the three price ranges which will help you select the desired model with desired features.
162.3 to 912.5 $
937.8 to 1258 $
1269 to 3561.3 $
Notebook Vendors
With stiff competition to capture the notebook market, manufacturers have come out with eye catching models, with ultimate performance but on the higher side of the budget.
Nevertheless there is one to suit every budget and every need. Check out the following brands: Dell, HP, IBM, Lenovo
Following is a condensed notebook buying guide dealing with just the main factors you need to keep in mind before purchasing one.
Buy by features-the core components
The need of the hour today is to carry work and information and instant access to internet to present information for sales and clinch business deals. So obviously the size and weight of the notebook you carry around matters a lot. Notebooks are categorized both on basis of weight and on basis of screen size.
Size
The four basic sizes are:
1.Tablet PCs have all the normal functions. There is the added advantage of being able to physically write and manipulate applications with a specially designed input device- the Pen. The two types are the slate and the convertible. Example: Lenovo ThinkPad X41 2526, Lenovo ThinkPad X41 (S5519073) PC Notebook.
2.Ultra portable notebooks are extremely light with small keyboards and screen. There is however no compromise on emailing and web surfing capabilities and can connect to cellular broad band wireless providers. The CD/DVD drives are removed to save space. Lenovo ThinkPad X60 Ultraportable
3.Thin and light notebooks weigh five to seven pounds. The swappable media bays make it possible to switch between CD/DVD and spare battery. You will have to recharge often else carry the power adapters too. Lenovo ThinkPad X60s (X60s_Standard_Ultralight)_BT...) PC Notebook
4.Desktop replacements are powerful notebooks, only that you won't be able to carry it around much. Available with powerful processors, adequate memory, plenty of drive space and wireless connectivity. The negative factor associated being comparatively lesser battery life due to power draining screens and the powerful components.
Weight
This feature is crucial since the notebook is intended to be carried around. A frequent flier would prefer lighter systems with some compromise on its functionality. While a home user wouldn't mind slightly heavier systems.
The travel weight specified must include the weight of power adapters and media bays but most manufacturers mention just the weight of the system and its batteries. Check out the models in the following three ranges:
0.6 to 4 lb. Most ultra portables come in this range.
4.1 to 5.7 lb. Thin and light models with reasonably good battery life.
5.8 to 10.1 lb. Desktop replacements weigh around 7 lbs.
Display size
Notebook displays come in thin film transistor Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) models, perfectly flat and just half an inch thick, as they are easily portable. Specifications state TFT Active Matrix Display or LCD Display. If you are a frequent traveler, a good combination of small size and less weight will be easier for you to carry around. In case you wish to view movies bigger displays will well serve the purpose. Check out the three commonly available sizes.
8.9 to 11.1 inches- most of them have smart designs and good battery life, but reduced video quality limits its uses
12 to 14 inches- good for watching movies and for gaming
14.1 to 17 inches- for gorgeous display and powerful performance, so, ideal for business presentations
Display resolution
Displays have another criterion which needs scrutiny before purchase. It is the display resolution- higher the resolution cleaner and crisper will be the image. Resolution is number of pixels across the width and height of screen. 1024 x 768 means 1024 pixels across the height and 768 pixels across the width. Pixels mean the individual dots that make up the picture.
In specifications the standard screen and widescreen is specified with abbreviations as XGA, SXGA, WXGA, WSXGA or WUXGA. The widescreen are fast becoming the rage because the reading space increases more with slight increase in size.
1024 x 768 Small displays 12.1 in. usually have this resolution XGA (1024 x 768), WXGA resolutions (1280 x 800). Larger screens too come with so low resolutions and they are cheap and ideal for budget computers.
1400 x 1050 Many large displays 12.1 and 15 inches come with this resolution like SXGA+ (1400 by 1050) and give very good picture quality.
1920 x 1200 Models with such resolution WUXGA (1920 x 1200) is ideal for making movies as there is more detail in the image and more work space on the display. However a negative factor associated with such high resolution is that the fonts tend to be smaller, difficult to read especially for people with poor eyesight. This factor is corrected by changing the font size in operating system but the correction can have unintended effects on other programs.
Display screens
The screen is of two types Glossy and Matte. Glossy screens have the advantage of reduced screen door effect i.e. reduced black spaces between pixels, thus improving the contrast and brightness of the image. The disadvantage is the reflective ness causing eye strain. Matte screens don't have this feature and are a lot cheaper than glossy ones. The brightness of LCD screen can be adjusted and a lower setting can help conserve power. The brightness is adjusted by adjusting the intensity of the back light inside the panel that illuminates the screen.
Processors
This is the most important feature of notebook. There are types of processors and subtypes of processors. Sub-types being ultra low voltage, low voltage, and normal chips of say Pentium M or Intel Core Solo. Low voltage processors give good battery life. So depending on the ultimate application you intend to use the specifications will vary. Since notebooks cannot be easily upgraded (any upgrade of CPU would require dismantling the system to the core and replacement of motherboard, RAM, and may be add another heat sink.) it will be worth the money if you spend enough for fast processors to satisfy your current and future requirements. No single processor can fit all needs and functions, it may be ideal for single function but not for all tasks.
Processor brands
Two of the leading companies manufacturing processors used in notebooks are AMD and Intel. The processor market is entirely in the grip of these two companies. The clock speed of single core versions of the processors produced has touched the upper limit. These single core processors develop heating problems when multiple functions are carried out. Both Intel and AMD have developed the dual core technology in its processors that has increased the multitasking capabilities of notebook PCs.
Intel uses the SpeedStep technology which senses and reduces frequency and power consumption if power is drawn from battery and increases the same if power is drawn from external source. AMD features PowerNow for the same purpose.
AMD
Intel
Knowledge of the processor type will be handy to install the correct packages. Some processor types in notebooks are:
AMD processors
Intel processors are Celeron M
Pentium 4
Core Duo
Core 2 Duo
Processor speed is another factor to be considered. The one you would use for just surfing and as a letter box would be cheaper and slower, while heavy duty multitasking, running multimedia applications require faster processor and cost more.
1 to 1.5 GHz- A do everything notebook processor like creating and sharing documents, net browsing, send and receive mails, write or receive text messages, make phone calls etc.
1.6 to 2.1 GHz the double core processors with this speed give good performance and long battery life.
2.2 to 3.3 GHz The dual core CPUs are the fastest. Programs run faster with such fast processors, they cost more too. Recording videos, playing extremely high definition videos, touching up digital photos, video editing all require fast processors. These fast processors consume more power especially when used in portables.
Memory
The memory requirements depend on OS and the applications you plan to put in use. RAM is used to process the program information. More is always better for faster loading, printing and down loading of your files. Buy the ones that have easy to access memory slots as you would very soon want to upgrade this feature. There are two ranges of RAM available.
128 to 256 MB- this space can manage your daily mails and normal applications
512 MB to 2048MB for improved performance
A memory specification like 512 MB (DDR2 SDRAM) indicates; the space is 512 MB, DDR2 (double data rate 2 synchronous dynamic random access memory) is the memory type, latest widely used one. DDR2 is the new version of DDR. Speeds are assigned by the memory type and clock rating and another method by bandwidth.
Drives
Drives provide the storage for the computer programs. Again this choice depends on how much data you wish to store. Some laptop models come with swappable drives which increases the flexibility.
Drives have three specifications: size, type of interface and speed. Notebook hard drives come in two sizes; 1.8 inch and 2.5 inch. The 1.8 inch ones are mostly in ultra portables, while the 2.5 inch size Hard Drives are used commonly in other notebooks. IDE and Serial ATA are the two types of connectors between hard drives and computer and of the two it is IDE which is more commonly used. Speed at which the hard drive spins also determines the performance. Most notebook hard drive spins at 5400 rpm speed. A higher spin rate of 7200 rpm gives better performance but uses more power.
Following is categorization based on storage space.
1 to 31GB-Mostly incorporated in low cost budget notebooks.
40 to 80GB- Home users using notebooks for photos and videos, in addition to normal surfing can opt for 80 GB hard drives.
100 to 256GB- Most multimedia notebooks have dual hard drives of 200 to 320 GB. For gaming uses 100 GB should suffice.
Battery life
The battery life definitely depends on the chores or tasks that are carried out; some of them being the applications like MS Office, Norton AntiVirus programs, Netscape. Huge amount of power is consumed for displaying images on the screen. The rest of the system like the core-logic, chip set and memory too draws power. Notebooks designed to handle large power consumption weigh more as they come with large batteries and thermal heat sinks.
If you are traveling too frequently go for batteries that have longer run time or purchase two of them and use both of them equally. Prefer the notebooks equipped with lithium-ion rechargeable batteries. Check with dealer for battery settings and battery backup so that it lasts long. Normally batteries can last 700 charging cycles.
Check the following three categories of battery run time:
1.5 to 3 hrs-great for viewing movies, video chats and photos at home, viable for budget desktop replacement. 3.1 to 4.3 hrs 4.4 to 12 hrs
Notebooks categorized
Business Notebooks
These systems have high flexibility, more durability and security features. Business laptops use stronger materials and lighter cases, more mobility features like lightweights and wireless options. There are plenty of hardware features and software to choose from to configure to your business requirements.
Budget Notebooks
These are available for less than $1000USD with a lot of compromise on speed, storage and convenience. So depending on what you wish to use it for, decide what tradeoffs are acceptable to you. A 100GB hard drive, fifteen inch screen, a DVD/CD combo drive which can be upgraded and connection ports should come within a reasonable budget. Check the following brands in the price range of 162.3 to 912.5 $:
IBM
HP Compaq
Dell
Gaming Notebooks
These use fastest processors with powerful video cards, ideal for gaming, has good graphics and faster speeds. The gaming version can be for 3D games, wide-screen HDTV, and video editing studio and for dynamic presentations. While purchasing one consider the graphics, RAM and processors with highest speed. Lenovo ThinkPad T60p (200783U) PC Notebook, Toshiba Satellite A65-S126
Student Notebooks
Must haves are good portability, performance, battery life, light weight. A thin and light or ultra portable should fit the bill. It may be used for office applications and gaming purpose. Lenovo ThinkPad X60s
Home use Notebooks
Weight may not be major criteria. You may be using this for after trips video editing, storing pictures, and may be exchange information. You may wish for a large screen and 512MB memory, in a mid-range budget. Consider the following recommendations:
Brand Lenovo
Brand Toshiba
Multimedia Notebooks
These are an all in one item. Serves as television, digital video recorder, mobile DVD player, MP3 juke box, digital photo album. Battery life of three hours so can be taken on vacation but definitely not for frequent travelers. Some models can boot to non-Windows environment to play audio CDs even when the system is off. It will require high speed processors and cost more too.
Buy by Budget
Everything ultimately depends on how much you intend to shell out from your pocket. Following are the three price ranges which will help you select the desired model with desired features.
162.3 to 912.5 $
937.8 to 1258 $
1269 to 3561.3 $
Notebook Vendors
With stiff competition to capture the notebook market, manufacturers have come out with eye catching models, with ultimate performance but on the higher side of the budget.
Nevertheless there is one to suit every budget and every need. Check out the following brands: Dell, HP, IBM, Lenovo
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