Category Archives: Gaming Laptops

Buying a Gaming Notebook

Buying a Gaming Notebook

Buying a gaming notebook is a little different to buying a general purpose one. There are certain things that need to be looked at to ensure you get a notebook that will meet your gaming needs. Be warned gaming laptops can be rather pricy and is not for those that are budget conscious.

The most obvious consideration when buying a gaming notebook would of course be the quality of the video card. General purpose notebooks have minimal graphics processing power and therefore cannot cater to most modern games. The video card will need to have at least 128mb of RAM and have a fairly good processing speed. The video card is the heart of a gaming notebook so the getting a notebook with a good video card is important.

Another consideration would be the amount of system RAM the notebook has. For general purposes such as browsing the internet or word processing 256mb is enough. However for a decent gaming notebook you will need 1gb of RAM or more if possible. Most modern games will use 1gb where some will use even more. A good amount of RAM is essential to play today’s modern games.

Battery power is also essential. With a good video card and a fair amount of system RAM the notebook will need enough power to run all these components. Getting a high quality battery will ensure you won’t be searching for a power-point everywhere you go. If possible it is best to get a notebook accommodates a second battery. Gaming uses a lot of power compared to other mundane tasks so ensuring your notebook has ample power is not to be overlooked.

Buying a gaming laptop can be simple if you watch out for the points mentioned above. Most manufacturers have pre-built gaming configurations. These configurations can end up costing less compared to custom built notebooks but can also be lacking in some aspects.

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How to find cheap laptop computers.

How to find cheap laptop computers.

Ah yes, I want a laptop but I am not going to spend a couple of thousand dollars for one. Well guess what you don’t have to. Laptop prices have come down dramatically over the past year alone and they will continue to do so as technology advances. But the trick here is to find good quality laptops that fit your needs at the cheapest prices available today.

I would say that there probably is a store near you right now that has cheap laptop computers. In fact, many stores already have them. The reason being, like any other new product, laptops were once considered the cream of the crop in the computer world which made them very expensive. However, all that has changed now. Laptops are a dime a dozen! The hand held digital assistants, Bluetooth cell phones and tablet pads are the new rage making laptop computers cheap.

Now, don’t get me wrong, this does not mean that they are cheaply made. Thanks to the wonders of the technological cycle, laptop computers are decreasing in price as their capabilities rise. Of course, there are the latest and greatest monsters out there that are made for gaming or high powered multimedia applications and these babies still cost a pretty penny.

But for the average user, you can find cheap laptop computers that provide all the power you need and then some. Every major manufacturer out there, like Dell, HP, Compaq, Gateway, and IBM have their lower end and intermediate models that come with more than enough speed and usability.

Now here is the key to finding the right cheap computer laptop for you, and that is to figure out exactly what you need it for.

Are you going to use it mainly for surfing the web or word processing? Do you need it to work from home or mainly to save your MP3s and digital pictures?

Ok, so now you have an idea of what you want to use your laptop for. Now lets go out shopping and compare. You can visit any of the top manufacturers websites or visit your local store and find their low end or intermediate models that may suit your needs. The three top components of a computer you want to look for is the hard drive size, memory, and processor speeds and take notes of each model you find on each component and model.

The hard drive, you can consider this the brain of your computer, this is where all your files, applications and folders are stored. If you plan on using your computer for MP3s and digital pictures your hard drive should be large since these files are usually very large. I personally would look at 80gb as minimum.

Next would be the memory, memory can be considered the thought processes of your computer. As a minimum I would look at 512mb but if you plan on using your laptop for gaming of course this should be much larger, in the area of 1 to 2gb. Now memory is used whenever a program or application is running. So the more memory you have the faster your computer can process the program.

And finally your processor, now your processor is just that it processes all the inner workings of how each program runs. The faster the processor is, the faster the program instructions are processed. Again if your looking for a laptop for gaming uses you want your processor with high speeds 2ghz or more. For other uses you can go less.

Other parts of the computer to also consider are the ports involved that can connect your computer to your digital camera or your mp3 player for example. You also want to check that your laptop has wireless and broadband connectivity. Many cheap computer laptops today already come with this but you want to make sure or you will have to pay additional, for example, a wireless card to install in your laptop to have this capability.

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Why You Should Get A Laptop

Why You Should Get A Laptop

So now that you are now are in market for a new computer you are faced with a common dilemma. Should you get a desktop or a laptop? Desktops are fine if you an enthusiastic gamer but laptops are the definite choice for the average consumer. Hence, in this article we will examine the many benefits of owning a laptop.

Mobility
One of the key benefits of owning a laptop is that it is mobile. You longer have to reside behind a computer desk. With a laptop you can take your work outside, on the road, in a plane and practically any place that has a power outlet. Apart from this, the portability aspect of the laptop allows users to be more social than desktop users. Laptops users can mingle with their friends and peers while doing their work done at the local café.

Productivity
It is also now a proven fact that laptops helps to increase productivity, companies and educational institutions are catching on to this fact and are either requiring or issuing laptops to their employees and students. It is shown that only 1 out of 7 of laptop users felt that their laptop added to their stress while the majority believing that their laptop made them more productive.

More Compact
Compared to desktops, laptops are smaller in size and therefore occupy less space. This is an advantage in areas with little free room like a small office or a student’s dorm room. Given its small size, laptops are also easier to maintain, you don’t have to worry about air vents being blocked by dusk balls, and laptops are also more cost effective as they use less electricity than desktops.

Performance
Apart from gaming laptops are similar in performance, if not better, than desktops. Modern laptops can run now programs that previously had only been associated with bulky desktops. Also unlike desktop users, laptop users are more likely to use their laptop as tool rather than a entertain system and tend to install programs that they need. Laptops users are generally more security aware, and are less likely to be infected by spyware and malware.

In conclusion, if you like bulky, noise babbling, power sucking, and heat generating machines get a desktop else stick with a laptop.

Best Buy for Laptop: How to Buy a Laptop Computer

Best Buy for Laptop: How to Buy a Laptop Computer

There is a wide range of laptop models available on the market today and buying the right machine can turn into a confusing mission.

There are laptop computers intended for home users, multimedia, business and gaming. You can spend from 0 to ,000.

The very first step you need to do is to determine your needs.

If you spend a lot of time traveling, your best option is a light laptop with a long battery life.

If you are an average home user, you can easily select a low-range laptop that will cost you about 0.

If you use the Internet a lot or store photographs and videos, you choice should be a mid-range laptop that will cost you from ,000 to ,500.

But if plan to purchase a gaming laptop, be ready to pay at least ,000.

Look at the following categories:

– Processor is the most important thing to take into consideration. Intel Pentium M, Mobile AMD Athlon 64 and AMD Turion 64 Mobile are high-powered processors. Intel’s Celeron M and AMD’s Duron and Sempron are processors found in low-end laptops.

Avoid desktop processors in laptops because they need a lot of power and will quickly exhaust your battery.

– Screen sizes range from 12 to 19 inches. A laptop computer with smaller screen is great option if you do not plan to use laptop too much. A larger screen is perfect for extensive use.

– Your new laptop should have at least 1 gigabyte of memory. Also, your machine should come with a dedicated video card with 128 megabytes of memory.

– Choose a faster hard drive with at least 60GB of space. This is sufficient for the majority of users. Gamers should get at least 100 GB hard drive.

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Which Laptop Is Right For You?

Which Laptop Is Right For You?

Laptops have often been thought of as simply a small, portable computer that can be taken anywhere you go (within reason!). There are actually four different types of laptops varieties currently available however, and it is important to know the differences between them, as prices, features and performance can vary greatly between these laptop genres:

Ultra light Laptops – Known as sub notbooks or ultra-portables, these laptops usually weigh no more than 4 pounds, and people who travel frequently usually love these types of laptops. Because these laptops weigh very little, they are easy to lug around in a backpack or laptop briefcase…but they are also very small. Typing on Ultra light Laptops, especially if you have large hands, is downright difficult and uncomfortable…make sure you bring along an external keyboard that you can hook up to your ultra light once you arrive at your destination. Ultra light laptops usually lack a CD Rom drive as well, so make sure you have the proper attachments before leaving home. Battery life on Ultra light laptops is usually excellent however!

Notebooks – This type of laptop usually weighs between 4-6 pounds, with screen sizes from 12-15″. As the laptop grows in size, battery life usually goes down as there are usually more devices and a larger screen to power. The Notebook is considered a ‘regular’ laptop, and usually has a large opening on the side where you can plug-in different devices like a CD-Rom drive, floppy drive, or wireless PCMCIA cards.

Standards – These laptops are the most commonly purchased types of laptops…they offer a full range of built-in features, including wireless connectivity, CD/DVD drives, network interfaces, multiple USB 2.0 ports, nice sized screens (usually 15″) and a keyboard that is easy to type on. You won’t need to pack along a lot of extra attachments for the standard laptops which is nice. Also, the best deals, discounts and prices can usually be found on standard laptops from all of the major laptop manufacturers.

Extra Large/Gaming – These bests are best suited as a ‘desktop replacement’. They are usually much faster, louder and have 17″ screens in most cases. The battery life is only about 1-2 hours as these laptops really burn through the power. Their faster processor speeds, larger screens, larger keyboards and heavier size makes them perfect ‘home / gaming machines’. Expect extra large laptops to weigh in excess of 8 pounds. These specialty laptops are also some of the priciest, and will almost always have all options built-in…no need to pack around an external keyboard or CD-ROM drive with these laptops…just make sure you bring a couple extra batteries though!

Make sure you purchase the laptop that will work for your needs, whatever they may be…buying a laptop that is too heavy if you are a frequent traveler will leave you exhausted from hauling it around. Buying an Ultra light laptop if you are a gamer will leave you disappointed. Make sure you evaluate your needs before purchasing your next laptop, and you’ll be smiling instead of grimacing in frustration!