The Price
The price will always be a major factor in buying a laptop and the main brand for very cheap laptops would be Acer. But be very careful! Acer laptops tend to fail on the user quickly and cause expensive hardware problems. It is probably best to avoid Acer as in my experience a expensive good quality laptop compensates the initial cost as there are few problems.
Performance
Performance in laptops is a fickle subject as new technology is changing rapidly, however a good performing laptop will usually be:
- slightly larger than normal (there is less chance of the computer overheating)
- Has well positioned fans - a clear intake as well!!
- Has a large RAM (preferably SDRAM). I cannot comment on what a large RAM would be as technology is always changing and it varies from country to country. However as with most components you only need to look around to compare it to other laptops.
- Has a good processor - don't be fooled by laptops with more than one processor as these are just as effective as a single advanced one
- The size of the hard drive is no longer very important now after significant advances in memory technology
Brand
The brand of laptop is very important as some brands have reliability issues and a lack of support. Also some brands have installed their software into the system making certain laptops slow and unreliable.
Good Brands
- Toshiba
- Asus
- Hewlett Packard
- Various other small brands such as alien ware and Sony's VAIO
Bad Brands
- Acer
- Compaq
- Apple computers!
There are also numerous other brands which take their place somewhere near the middle of the spectrum.
Following these guidelines you should be able to pick a good laptop for your monies worth.
