What to look for While buying a Laptop ?

Introduction:

Before buying a laptop, one should know what features makes a good laptop and what exactly to look for before making the choice.

A brand does matter but even if the brand is not much heard of, you can evaluate the features provided and check customer reviews to make your decision.

Laptop Features:

Now am going to outline the important features to look for in a Laptop :

• Monitor: Everyone loves a nice soothing monitor. Always go for a LCD monitor, and if it's TFT LCD, it's much better.
• RAM Memory: More the RAM more the concurrent process you can run on your laptop without a lag time. Make sure you are getting atleast 2 GB RAM, the more the better.
• Hard Disk: We all require more space, but with the web evolving rapidly over the era, physical storage is getting transformed to cloud storage. So, if the hard disk is 80 GB or more, it's a good buy.
• Processor: The heart of your laptop is the processor, don't look for anything lower than Intel core 2 duo processor with atleast 2 GHz speed. Intel core 2 duo is tested, stable and you can always peacefully select it over the other processors available. If you get a pentium i3, i4 or i5 processor for a cheaper price close to the core 2 duo then certainly go for it.
• Operating System: Everyone craves to have windows 7 (I too :) ), but windows XP is the most famous and stable OS Microsoft ever built. So don't hesitate to have a windows XP pro or home edition. You won't ever regret it. I would say 90 % of certified laptops available in market today have windows 7, which makes your choice easier.
• Sound: Most of the laptop follow the stereo sound mechanism, some provide advanced audio configuration with in built software. But if you feel that the laptop doesn't show the best sound features, there are millions of mini speakers for laptops available in market that will do the trick.
• DVD/CD RW: Most of the laptops have DVD RW combination but some might have DVD Reader and a CD Writer. Which I say is still a good buy if you don't need to write too much of data.
• Input/Output: All other standard output, inputs: USB, WI-FI, vga out for monitor extension, express card reader etc. are provided with 90 % of laptops available today,so not much to worry about here.
• Preloaded office suites and softwares: Do you really need those ? Try open source softwares for your needs. They might not be a catch 5 years back, but truly open source has evolved as the next-gen utility for users. eg. substitute MS office with Open office. More info on open office can be found here: http://www.openoffice.org/why/
• Security: Do you need to be worried about getting antivirus loaded while buying a laptop ? The answer is no, you can get Maccafe for cheap at any online website or your internet provider should have free antivirus service for you, that you can install easily and use effectively. So don't worry about it.

Where to buy? :

So now, as we know what we want, we need to know where to get it, right ?

You would think, with the above configuration the Laptop might come with a hefty price. Yeah that would be true in most cases, but there are options that you should seriously consider: Certified Refurbished or off lease (used for 1, 2 or 3 years) laptops. These laptops are re-imaged by certified dealers and are priced low, thus always a good buy for people looking for Quality performance oriented Laptops, under $300.

So should you buy these ? Yes, but before buying from any site, check for user reviews. Few of the sites that you can trust upon are listed below:

Sears Certified Laptops

http://www.sears.com/computers-laptops-all-laptops&0-400/s-1231482454?keywordSearch=false&previousSort=ORIGINAL_SORT_ORDER&viewItems=25&filter=Price&lastSelectedFilter=Price

Tampa-Laptops (One of the best in certified off lease and Refurbished laptops)

http://www.tampa-laptops.com/

Other than the above two, I won't venture into any other sites for Refurbished and off lease laptops.

If you want to buy a new Laptop, which I personally don't feel great about, as you get the same performance and usage satisfaction to that of a certified one, then check Amazon and deals2buy for hot deals. Every month there will be atleast one good deal that will make you happy.

For users who wait for thanksgiving deals, it's not worth it, as I never saw a perfect combo with low price coming up for sale, and if any it would be just 1 or 2 pieces per store, which will fly away in no time.

For most buyers it's deal once a year during thanksgiving. But for laptop buyers it can be deals throughout the year, if you evaluate your usage and needs smartly.

New Laptop deal:

From deals2buy

$380: http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&kc=&oc=FNDAB35&dgc=CJ&cid=47997&lid=4279734&acd=11200003-1260291-d2b.Z8JU4MQDULWKFYXBJZK6K63HWW

At Checkout Apply $189 Off Coupon Code: ?QHPGL$DF6G42C [Exp. 11/10/2012]

Few of my certified picks that have good configuration and are priced well, are listed below $220 : Tampa-Laptops

Dell Latitude D630 2.0GHz/2GB/80GB/DVD+CDRW/Win7

$269 : @ Sears.com : Dell Latitude E6400 Notebook with Armor Shield, Intel Core2Duo 2.2GHz, 2GB, 80GB, DVD/CDRW, 14.1''W, WIFI, Win7HP, Refurbished ENERGY STAR®

Conclusion:

I have made sincere attempt to make you aware of important laptop features and how to decide whether the laptop you are buying is worth the price or not. Hope you would enjoy reading the hub and make use of it, next time you buy a laptop.

Ask me any question, if you have, and I will answer them right away !!

Thanks !