Important Features To Look Out For When You Buy A Cheap Laptop

If you are in the market for a cheap laptop, I am sure you will be asking yourself that question. As prices for laptops continue to fall every month, Laptops become cheaper yet more powerful and this is really good news for cheap laptop buyers. However if you have not been following computer technology, you can easily be swarmed by too much information. This guide aims to give you an idea what features you should look out for when you buy a cheap laptop that cost less than US$1000. Processor Most laptops have the capability to go wireless these days. Wireless allows you to sit far away from a network point and yet be able to surf the internet. With wireless capability, you can be surfing your favorite sites in the living room without all the ugly looking wires. At this price range, you can expect a laptop with mobile Pentium processor with speed from 1.4 GHz to 1.8 GHz. So aim for at least a 1.4GHz when you shop for a cheap laptop. Graphics Display Graphics display is important because it directly determines how fast a laptop displays information on the screen. Most laptops at this price range come with integrated graphics with memory size ranging from 64Mb to 128 Mb. You should always look for higher memory size so try to buy a cheap laptop with integrated graphics with at least a 128mb ram Hard Disk Most cheap laptops at this price range come with 60GB hard disk. A bigger hard disk means you can store more files in your laptop. Memory This is an important feature to look out for. Modern applications require a lot of memory resources to run. Look for at least 512 MB ram. Fortunately most cheap laptop these days come with at least 512MB. Optical Drive Expect your cheap laptop to have at least a CD-RW drive. CD-RW drive allows you to backup your files by writing onto a CD. As prices fall further, expect cheap laptops to include DVD / CD-RW drive in the near future. With DVD/ CD-RW drive, not only can you backup your files easily, you can even play DVD movies. With this information to prepare you, I hope you are clearer now when you shop for a cheap laptop.

Buying a New Computer? Read This First

Ever had one of those days when you thought that you would spend a lot of time searching around for really good computer bargains?

I have had that experience many times and have found that I used to waste time doing endless and meaningless searches trying to find what I need. But then, I found a solution!

Figuring out what to search for is half the battle won, but how to figure out whether the prices being displayed were bargain prices was another issue. So how did I solve that problem?

Try and identify first what computer system you need to buy. This really can be a struggle if you are not familiar with computers. You can visit the nearest library to you and speak to a librarian to see whether they have issues of the Computer Shopper magazine. Not only Computer Shopper, but PC Novice and PC Magazine as well. I have found these to be quite useful and effective in helping me decide on the type of system I need.

PC Novice is especially useful because it explains in layman's language what I need to know and gives recommendations on the alternatives to look for. Terms such as motherboard and peripherals are usually explained in detail. You should not worry however if you are not familiar with these terms. Just understand that when you go to purchase your computer, you may find an enthusiastic sales rep asking you – “so how much ram do you need in this computer”; “you think you may need an Intel or AMD processor?”; or, “how many gigabytes do you need for your hard drive? --- Huh???

The magazines I have listed above will help you a great deal but don't get lost with all the geek talk. You will be able to find complete systems available that will be sold with software. Some systems will be sold with the box – the CPU portion, and the monitor. Depending on where you are buying your computer from, the monitor may be at an extra cost. Some systems will be sold with a printer and they will try and sell you a host of other things which are not really necessary.

My advice therefore is to first figure out what you want to do with the computer and do some research!

Shopping around is the next best thing you can do to find the best prices. I usually look at three to four different quotations to see which one matches my budget. Most computers today will do what you want to do. You do not need to get the most expensive system especially if you will only be surfing the Internet and checking email occasionally, so don't go overboard thinking that because you saw you neighbor with this expensive system you need to have one too.

Good luck and happy shopping!!


This article brought to you by
Eric Murray
http://www.computerbargainstoday.com

7 Tips For Buying Cheap Laptop

Laptops are gaining in popularity these days. Almost everyone is carrying one now either for work or entertainment. Laptops with the latest technology are introduced to the market everyday and these new laptops come with a huge price tag. However, that does not mean you cannot get a good and cheap laptop. I have put together a guide that may help you out in your hunt for a cheap and good laptop.

Buy cheap laptop with older technology

Rapid advance in technology makes it meaningless to buy the latest technology at a high price. When laptop with wireless capability first came to the market, a unit with this technology can cost up till US$2500. NOw after 2 years, you can get a relatively fast centrino laptop for less than US$1000

Buy used or refurbished laptop
The depreciation of a laptop value is so high, that after one year in the market, a laptop can easily lose half its value. So if you are looking for a cheap laptop, look for one which is close to one year old. Not all used laptop are in bad condition. You will be surprised to find that some used laptops are still in good condition because their owners are power users or gamers.

Buy laptop from power users or gamers
I like to buy electronic gadgets including laptops from hard core power users or gamers. Let me share with you why. Gamers or power users usually require the latest and most powerful technology to run their games or power hungry applications. They often will not settle for second best. They also have the tendency to chase after the latest technology. So after one year, they will be bored of what they have and will look to sell off their laptops so that they can buy a new one. Now if you are looking to buy cheap laptops with up to date technology and you happen to have friends who are gamers, do ask them if they are looking to sell off their laptops. Who knows, maybe you can buy a good and cheap laptop from them.

Scan through gaming forums and local gaming community
if you do not already have friends who like to play computer games, then scanning through gaming forums on the internet is another way to get good and cheap deals for used laptop. Internet makes it easy for you to do this. Go to google.com and start searching for gaming forums. Visit each and everyone and see if they have a Trading Section. You will definitely find many post from gamers looking to sell their gaming laptops.

Scan through local bulletin boards
Do scan through local bulletin boards near you for cheap deals on laptop.Especially if there are software companies around the area. Software companies do offer their used computers or laptops for sale when their software projects end. I personally had gotten a few good deals for my family and friends.

Look for cheap laptop with at least 512mb memory
This is especially important for used laptop. If the processor speed is slow, then having more memory can compensate for the lack in speed. In fact, The size of memory plays a big part in determining how fast a laptop runs an application. Just by increasing the memory size, you can see a huge difference in speed. A cheap laptop with at least 512mb memory can run most non graphic intensive application easily.

Get cheap laptop from reputable manufacturer
This is very important because if you are buying used laptop, then the chances of requiring servicing is higher than a new laptop. So if you buy from a reputable manufacturer, you will save alot of trouble and time if your laptop do require servicing.