Laptop Buying Guide - Essential Tips

The purchase of a laptop deserves a minimum preparation . The first question to ask yourself before buying is: "what is the purpose?", "What will I do with my computer? "

Indeed, there is a multitude of references of laptops, each corresponding to particular uses. Take an example: the size of the screen. This size, expressed in inches is between 10 and 18.4 ". Only on this criterion, you can already sort between the different references. Indeed, which says small size, says congestion and reduced weight, and therefore computer perfect to take with you! And conversely, who says big size, said heavy product and therefore rather destined to stay at home.

Performance and equipment can vary greatly from model to model. Screen size, storage space, processor, graphics card, connectors ... The parameters to be taken into account at the time of purchase are numerous.

Summary

1. The processor
2. SSD and / or hard drive
3. The graphic circuit
4. The ram
5. The good connection
6. Comfort: the finger and the eye
7. Preinstalled software
8. Ultraportable, portable, transportable

Choosing the best laptop is first and foremost the one that best suits your needs. For office use (word processing, spreadsheet, internet browsing ...), any PC does the trick. You can find from 300 or 400 €. If you plan multimedia use (storage of photos, creation of documents with graphics, reading of videos, etc.), check that it has a slightly more powerful processor and sufficient connectivity.

The presence of an SSD is also a real asset (read below). In this case, expect around 500 or 600 €. Finally, for demanding users wnho want to use their computer to play video games, retouch photos or video editing, a high-performance graphics card with dedicated memory and a high capacity disk (at least 1 TB) are essential. In this case, you have to be ready to spend more than 800 €.

The processor

It is the heart of the system that coordinates the work of the different components. The more you ask the computer, the more powerful it must be. With an Intel i3 or i5, you will make the right choice. The processors of its competitor AMD are cheaper, but current models are less efficient and more energy hungry.

SSD and / or hard drive

If the hard drive has not disappeared, today is the SSD that has the wind in its sails. It must be said that this storage system based on flash technology has serious advantages. Less cumbersome and less fragile than a hard disk, it offers a significant time saving thanks to its high data rates and reduced data access time.

Whether to copy files, launch applications, open documents or start the computer, everything goes much faster. SSD, however, has some flaws. The first is its limited storage capacity. Consumer models rarely exceed 256 GB. The ideal is that it is associated with a hard drive of greater capacity. You will enjoy both the speed of the SSD and the storage capacity of the hard drive. The other weak point of the SSD,

The graphic circuit

It depends on the speed of display. Every laptop has an integrated GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) built into its processor.

The choice of the graphics card is especially important for those who have a great use of the image (video editing, video games, etc.). In this case, opt for a graphics card with a dedicated memory and not shared.