My daughter called me Friday night in a bit of
a panic. The laptop that we had purchased for her almost 5
years ago has a screen that is turning pink. It
happens. The LCD screen on a laptop is probably the part that
will cause you the most problems, and it usually isn’t covered
under the warranty. The last screen I had to replace cost
over $400 and that laptop was under warranty. As I
was walking through Wal-mart this weekend I saw a laptop, far
superior to the one we bought for her all those years ago, for less
than $400. We truly live in a disposable society!
Several people have recently asked me for help
in purchasing a laptop and I find this very difficult to do.
It all depends on what you are going to use it for, how much you
want to pay, and how are you going to use it.
While I cannot endorse any particular brand or model, I can
offer some advice in what to look for when shopping. Take it for
what it’s worth – remember my daughter’s laptop screen in now
pink!
- Please keep in mind that while Microsoft has
released their newest operating system, Vista, with MS Office 2007,
here at Riverside we are still using Windows XP Professional and
Office 2003. There may be compatibility issues between the 2
operating systems, and any documents created in Office 2007
would have to be ‘saved as’ an earlier version. Office 2003 cannot
open documents saved as Office 2007. Of course most laptops
available now have some form of Vista on it already. Just keep this
in mind if your child is going to use the laptop to do their
homework.
- Keeping the above in mind, the first step is
to figure out your budget. Look for the highest processor speed,
most RAM and largest hard drive within your budget. (See
recommendations later in the article)
- Software costs should also factor into your
budget. MS Word sometimes comes with the laptop. Please note:
Microsoft Works is NOT compatible with the
school’s PCs and documents created with MS Works cannot be opened
on them. Right now you can purchase Office suites directly from
Microsoft at 75% off retail price if your child is a student.
To check out this offer and to order go to the following
link:
http://www.iec-ia.org/vnews/display.v/ART/2007/05/07/463f77c0011db For
a student, your proof could be a student photo ID or a copy of a
report card. The difference between the Office suites is the
software included. To learn about the differences you can go
to the following link: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/suites/FX101635841033.aspx Be
sure to also purchase anti-virus software such as McAfee or
Norton’s. Make sure you update and run this software often.
Also, if your child is in high school or getting ready for college,
you might want to consider purchasing OneNote. This is an
excellent note-taking program.
- It is strongly recommended
that you purchase at least a 3 year warranty from the Manufacturer.
In the event of computer failure, the manufacturer’s technical
staff is your primary resource in solving the problem. Of course if
you buy at Best Buy or Nebraska Furniture Mart they offer their own
extended warranties.
- When purchasing a laptop, please be sure to
check the screen for readability, comfort with the pointing device
(if you don’t like a touchpad, you might want to purchase a USB
mouse), ease of keyboard use and make sure that you are comfortable
carrying the weight of the laptop.
For specific things to look for in a laptop, I
found the following articles to be very useful. The first is
from the University of Pennsylvania. This is their laptop
recommendations for their students. I like this article
because it breaks down the kind of laptops into four groups.
Laptop Computer Purchasing
Guide (University of Pennsylvania):
Recommendations for Second Quarter 2007-2008
Specifications effective October 1,
2007
Recognizing that there are a variety of laptops which meet
different needs, this Information Systems & Computing (ISC)
purchasing guide for 2007-2008 presents four alternative
configurations.
Mid-Weight Laptop
These laptops are generally used as a primary desktop
workstation or ‘desktop-equivalent’, with a need to have
most drives on board. They tend to weigh between four
and one half and six pounds and have medium-sized (14.1-inch to
15.4-inch) screens.
|
Recommended Configurations for Mid-Weight Laptop
Workstations
Specifications effective October
1, 2007
Specifications will be reviewed and updated quarterly as
appropriate (10/1, 1/1, 4/1, 7/1)
|
|
|
Windows
|
Mac OS
|
|
Hardware
|
Processor
|
Core 2 Duo T7500 (2.2
GHz)
|
Core 2 Duo T7500 (2.2
GHz)
|
|
Memory (RAM)
|
2.0 GB
|
2.0 GB
|
|
Hard Disk
|
120 GB/7200 RPM
or 160 GB/5400 RPM
|
120 GB/5400 RPM
|
|
Display &
VRAM
|
14.1-inch SXGA+ or WXGA
128 MB discrete video card
|
15.4-inch widescreen
128 MB discrete video card
|
|
Miscellaneous
|
DVD±R/CD-RW drive
internal Bluetooth
|
DVD±R/CD-RW drive
internal Bluetooth
|
|
Network
Connectivity
|
High-bandwidth
|
internal 10/100BaseT Ethernet
internal 802.11b/g (Wi-Fi)
|
internal 10/100/1000BaseT
Ethernet
internal 802.11b/g (Wi-Fi)
|
|
Low-bandwidth
|
internal V.92 modem
|
optional V.92 modem
|
|
Operating
System
|
Windows XP Service Pack 2
or Windows Vista
|
Mac OS 10.4.x
|
|
Estimated Price
|
$1,700 - $2,250
|
$2,050
|
Full-Size Laptop
These laptops are generally used as a primary desktop
workstation or ‘desktop-equivalent’. These laptops tend to weigh
between six and eight pounds and have larger (15.0-inch to
15.4-inch) screens.
|
Recommended Configurations for Full-Size Laptop Workstations
Specifications effective October
1, 2007
Specifications will be reviewed and updated quarterly as
appropriate (10/1, 1/1, 4/1, 7/1)
|
|
|
Windows
|
Mac OS
|
|
Hardware
|
Processor
|
Core 2 Duo T7500 (2.2
GHz)
|
Core 2 Duo T7700 (2.4
GHz)
|
|
Memory (RAM)
|
2.0 GB
|
2.0 GB
|
|
Hard Disk
|
100 GB/7200 RPM
or 120 GB/5400 RPM
|
160 GB/5400 RPM
|
|
Display &
VRAM
|
15.0-inch to 15.4-inch SXGA+ or
WSXGA+
256 MB discrete video card
|
15.4-inch widescreen
256 MB discrete video card
|
|
Miscellaneous
|
DVD±R/CD-RW drive
internal Bluetooth
|
DVD±R/CD-RW 'SuperDrive'
internal Bluetooth
|
|
Network
Connectivity
|
High-bandwidth
|
internal 10/100BaseT Ethernet
internal 802.11b/g (Wi-Fi)
|
internal 10/100/1000BaseT
Ethernet
internal 802.11b/g (Wi-Fi)
|
|
Low-bandwidth
|
internal V.92 modem
|
optional V.92 modem
|
|
Operating
System
|
Windows XP Service Pack 2
or Windows Vista
|
Mac OS 10.4.x
|
|
Estimated Price
|
$1,700 - $2,500
|
$2,550
|
Lightweight Laptop
These laptops, sometimes called sub-notebooks, tend to weigh
between two and five pounds and have small (11.1-inch to 13.3-inch)
screens. In performance, they tend to be relatively close the other
laptops, but contain fewer features.
|
Recommended Configurations for Lightweight Laptop
Workstations
Specifications effective
November
1, 2007
Specifications will be reviewed and updated quarterly as
appropriate (10/1, 1/1, 4/1, 7/1)
|
|
|
Windows
|
Mac OS
|
|
Hardware
|
Processor
|
Core 2 Duo ULV U7600 (1.2
GHz)
or Core 2 Duo LV L2500 (1.6 GHz)
or Core 2 Duo T7100 (1.8 GHz)
|
Core 2 Duo T7400 (2.13
GHz)
|
|
Memory (RAM)
|
1.5 GB
|
1.5 GB
|
|
Hard Disk
|
80 GB
|
120 GB
|
|
Display &
VRAM
|
12.1-inch to 13.3-inch XGA or
WXGA
integrated video
|
13.3-inch widescreen
integrated video
|
|
Miscellaneous
|
CD-RW/DVD-ROM combo drive
optional Bluetooth
|
DVD±R/CD-RW 'SuperDrive'
internal Bluetooth
|
|
Network
Connectivity
|
High-bandwidth
|
internal 10/100BaseT Ethernet
internal 802.11b/g (Wi-Fi)
|
internal 10/100BaseT Ethernet
internal 802.11b/g (Wi-Fi)
|
|
Low-bandwidth
|
internal V.92 modem
|
optional V.92 modem
|
|
Operating
System
|
Windows XP Service Pack 2
or Windows Vista
|
Mac OS 10.5.x
|
|
Estimated Price
|
$1,400 - $1,650
|
$1,500 - $1,700
|
Value Laptop
These laptops tend to weigh between five and eight pounds and
have small to medium sized (12-inch to 14.1-inch) screens. In
performance, they tend to lag other laptops and contain fewer
features.
|
Recommended Configurations for Value Laptop Workstations
Specifications effective
November
1, 2007
Specifications will be reviewed and updated quarterly as
appropriate (10/1, 1/1, 4/1, 7/1)
|
|
|
Windows
|
Mac OS
|
|
Hardware
|
Processor
|
Core 2 Duo T7100 (1.8
GHz)
|
Core 2 Duo T7200 (2.0
GHz)
|
|
Memory (RAM)
|
1.5 GB
|
1.5 GB
|
|
Hard Disk
|
80 GB
|
80 GB
|
|
Display &
VRAM
|
12-inch to 14-inch XGA or
WXGA
integrated video
|
13.3-inch widescreen
integrated video
|
|
Miscellaneous
|
CD-RW/DVD-ROM combo
drive
|
CD-RW/DVD-ROM combo drive
internal Bluetooth
|
|
Network
Connectivity
|
High-bandwidth
|
internal 10/100BaseT Ethernet
internal 802.11b/g (Wi-Fi)
|
internal 10/100BaseT Ethernet
internal 802.11b/g (Wi-Fi)
|
|
Low-bandwidth
|
internal V.92 modem
|
optional V.92 modem
|
|
Operating
System
|
Windows XP Service Pack 2
or Windows Vista
|
Mac OS 10.5.x
|
|
Estimated Price
|
$1,100 - $1,200
|
$1,300
|
General Laptop Notes
Estimated prices for these laptops include three-year
service plans from the manufacturers. Note that the three year
warranty is an extra cost for some laptops (including Macintoshes)
and that this cost is reflected in the estimated price. Also, this
time of year many stores are running some very good deals.
Look for them - it will save you money.
The other article is from Geek.com. It includes both
desktop and laptop recommendations. And if you click on View
Details you can get information about that particular component of
the desktop/laptop.
Laptop
Buyer’s Guide
Thinking
of buying a laptop? Make sure you know what you’re getting. Below,
you’ll find our recommendations to keep in mind when buying a PC
laptop and detailed information on each component found both inside
and outside of your laptop.
If you
want to dive right in and configure your own laptop, check out our
Laptop Buying Engine where
you can choose by manufacturer, processor type, screen size, and
more.
Also,
read through our
PC Laptop Buyer FAQ and if
you have comments on our recommendations, bring them to our
Forums.
Last
Updated: September 2007
– Click
on any of the components under main components for more
detailed information