Buyers Guide
| Article Index |
|---|
| Buyers Guide |
| Introduction |
| The Market |
| Components |
| Components - continued |
| All Pages |
You have decided that you want to acquire a laptop. However, the process of procuring a laptop is a veritable jungle for most, and even those with IT knowledge can have trouble understanding the various concepts involved. With the choice of brand, features, size, connectivity etc., the decision is often hard to make.
This guide is not yet 100% complete, but we’re working on it!
A laptop is far more than a piece of hardware in your home or office. Over time, it tends to become part of your daily life in the same way as the cell phone. Many people use a laptop as a way of expressing or accentuating their personality. Although the laptop is designed for the mobile market, many are placed permanently at home or in the office, replacing the stationary PC completely.
In the good old days when choices were scarce and only the stationary PC was available, decisions were easy to make. Today, things are different; new technologies spring up constantly, making it almost impossible to navigate the market. The launch of the laptop in the mid 80’s did not make things easier. When the laptop first saw the light of day, it was big, clumsy, and very expensive. However, it has become more streamlined, more powerful, and cheaper; the price of the before exorbitant product has reached a level where most people can afford to participate. In fact today, more laptops are sold than stationary PCs. The choices of laptops, on the other hand, are almost endless, which makes the decision of just which one to get difficult.
Which one should you pick then?
The easiest thing would be to go to the supermarket, get 4 liters of milk, 2 oranges, 2 pairs of underwear and a cheap laptop! Unfortunately, it’s not that simple if you want to make a good purchase. You have to do some research before you spend your money, unless you want to waste it on a computer you don’t really need. The most important thing to do is to have a clear idea of what you want to do with your brand new laptop. Other things to consider are budget, brand, and perhaps which special features you want.
Do you even need a laptop?
The first step in choosing a new computer is to ask yourself if you even need a laptop. A stationary PC is still superior in price versus power and upgradeability. The possibility of getting large monitors and big beautiful cabinets which enable the extension or upgrade of the components is the stationary PCs forte. Here, the spilling of various liquids into the keyboard in the form of coke, coffee, and cleaning spirits etc. is a less costly affair, as you can simply get a new keyboard cheaply on a PC, whereas you’d have to get a laptop repaired, often an expensive affair.
Another downside to laptops is the price of the components. They are often much more expensive, and if you’re not good with electronics, chances are you’ll have to pay to get something repaired or upgraded eventually. That being said, laptops are unsurpassed when it comes to mobility. They are optimal for students who need them both at home and at classes. The traveling businessman or average user can also enjoy the mobility; they can use the laptop from time to time, and then put it away when they’re done. As mentioned earlier, it’s important to do some research before investing your hard earned money.
This guide is split into two parts. The first identifies and explains a number of user groups. The point of this is to place you within one of these groups, which will help you determine what components and other aspects you should consider when buying a laptop. The second part of the guide explains the different components’ function and their influence on the laptop as a whole. In addition, there’s a short review of the overall choices within each given group of products.
Enjoy!
The market is generally separated into groups. These groups contain a wealth of models that vary greatly in specifications without straying outside their respective groups.
The mainstream laptop is the kind of laptop made for average Joe. Products in this group often come with a 15” or 15.4” screen, weighing 3 to 4 kg. It targets the consumer who wants a cheap laptop that can do the standard things like work with Office, surf on the internet, and so on. The products are often cheap, but not necessarily of low quality.
The multimedia laptop is the next step. This laptop targets people who wish to use it as a multimedia center, and is often improved greatly in terms of sound and comes with specialty software for playing multimedia files like music, movies, games, etc. This type of laptop is hardly lightweight and can put a serious strain on your budget. You also find models in this group that are well suited for gaming. Display size, like in the mainstream group, is between 15” and 15.4”, though most are closer to 15.4”.
The desktop replacement is probably a widely known concept, and this is the group where you find the big guys in terms of specifications and certainly weight. Laptops weighing more than 4-5 kg are common in this group, and these are designed exclusively to replace the stationary computer. This type of product is loaded with the newest and most powerful components, and if you’re looking for a solid gaming laptop, you’ve come to the right place. There are, of course, laptops in this group that pursue the golden paved middle way, but people looking for a gaming laptop are often willing to stretch their budget significantly to obtain 100% pleasure from games. Screen sizes in this group range from 17” and up.


The business/office laptop is mostly made for the more mobile user. It is not restricted to the busy businessman, but also suited for the student who travels back and forth between home and classes. Because of this, laptops in this category are optimal for many as they are lightweight and small, and thus easy to carry around. This group puts a lot of focus on security through fingerprint readers and other measures to protect personal data. The price of such laptops can be quite high, but they often come with a little extra. Screen sizes in this group range from 13.3” to 14”. There are also Tablets – laptops with a rotatable screen – in this group, which will be discussed in detail later.
Tablets are quite unique products, and often very expensive. The special feature of Tablets is that they have a screen that can rotate 180 degrees, and possibly the ability to be placed flatly on the keyboard so that the user can use a specially designed pen to write on the display. In addition to this, these products often come with built-in components that use very little power, so that their typical low weight is combined with a long battery life.


UltraPortables are the featherweights in the world of laptops. In this group, products weigh close to 1 kg and sometimes – though rarely – less. This category is often extremely hard on the budget, as the models are made on ultra light cabinets of magnesium to keep weight low. This group targets the mobile warrior – such as the business executive – who wants the best of the best. It is possible to find laptops with screens as small as 8”.



The Office Group
You primarily use your laptop for work. You write a lot and use programs like Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. The internet is used in part for communication (writing mails and utilizing chat clients such as Messenger), but also for collecting information and standard surfing. You don’t use your laptop to store music or movies, edit movies and pictures, or play games.
- Display adaptor - (Shared)
- Processor - (Intel Celeron M or AMD Sempron)
- Memory - (1 GB RAM or more)
- Hard drive - (5400 RPM or more)
- Screen size - (12,1” or more)
- Resolution - (1280 x 800 pixels or more)
- Mode of operation - Acceptable keyboard - Acceptable touchpad
- Software - Windows Vista or Windows XP
The Multimedia Group
You use your laptop for work and multimedia. You write and edit pictures and/or video. You use programs such as Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Adobe Photoshop and Pinnacle Studio. All aspects of the internet are used; communication through e-mail and chat clients, but also the download of music and movies. You play minor games like The Sims or Counterstrike. You do not use the game for more demanding games like S.T.A.L.K.E.R. or Crysis.
Hardware:
- Display adapter - (Dedicated chip with dedicated RAM)
- Processor - (Intel Core 2 Duo or AMD Turion X2)
- Memory - (2 GB RAM or more)
- Hard drive - (120 GB or more)
- Cabinet - HDMI-outlet (for connection to flat screen)
- Screen size - (14,1” or larger)
- Resolution - (1280 x 800 pixels or more)
- Mode of operation - Acceptable keyboard - Acceptable touchpad
- Software - Windows Vista (Home Premium or better) or Windows XP
The Business Group
Hardware:
- Processor - (Intel Core Solo/ Core 2 Duo)
- Memory - (1 GB RAM or more)
- Hard drive - (5400 RPM or more)
- Cabinet – Docking outlet§ high quality (no flex)
- Low noise level
- Screen size - (14,1” or smaller)
- Resolution - (1280 x 800 / 1024 x 768 pixels or more)
- Mode of operation – High-quality keyboard - Good touchpad and/or trackpoint
- Software - Windows Vista Business or Windows XP Professional
The Gaming Group
Hardware:
- Display adapter - (Geforce 8600GT / Radeon HD2600XT or better)
- Processor - (Intel Core 2 Duo 1.8 GHz or more)
- Memory - (2 GB RAM or more)
- Hard drive - (7200 RPM or more)
- Cabinet - Good ventilation (big CPU and GPU create a lot of heat, which means that the fan has to run quite often = a lot of noise)
- Screen size - (15,4” or bigger)
- Resolution - (1440 x 900 pixels or more)
- Mode of operation – Comfortable keyboard (”Gamer placement” of Ctrl and Fn keys = Ctrl at the end)
- Software - Windows Vista (Home Premium or better)

We’ve now reached the point where we review the different components in a laptop. This section will be changed and updated as the market evolves.
Processor
The processor is the brain of your computer. If we compare the computer with a person working by a desk, the processor’s speed is the speed with which the person can write. As such, the processor determines how fast individual tasks can be completed.
The processor’s abbreviation is CPU (Central Processing Unit), and there are currently two relevant producers: AMD and Intel. Both produce high- and low-end CPUs. The more expensive CPUs are typically dual-core, i.e. they have 2 cores. Because of that, they are effective at doing more things simultaneously (in other words, they’re good at multitasking) and thus run more programs at the same time.
Intel is currently producing the strongest series of CPUs called Intel Core 2 Duo. This series contains a dual-core CPU with a high performance per MHz. The gist of this is that a 2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU is faster than other 2 GHz CPUs. In addition to the high performance, the Intel Core 2 Duo CPUs are relatively cool, as they don’t use a lot of power. The only downside to this processor is the price, but it’s preferable to other CPUs if within budget.
We recommend this type of CPU for the business, gaming, and multimedia groups. The latter can make do with an AMD Turion 64 X2 processor though, which has a comparable performance per MHz. It does use more power and therefore creates more heat, but is cheaper and can take some pressure off your budget.
There are 3 interesting series when it comes to single-core CPUs. The best is the Intel Core Solo series, which is pretty much a single-core edition of the Intel Core 2 Duo series. Intel also produces a cheaper series called Celeron M. This particular series has slightly lower performance per MHz and therefore creates more heat. AMD’s counterpart to this is the AMD Sempron. The performance of this series is worse though, and the processor cannot be recommended for anything but office use, and that is only if your budget is already stretched. The Intel Celeron M series is likewise only for office use, while the Intel Core Solo series can be used in the business group due to its lower power usage which makes it evolve less heat.
1 = Højeste | Intel Core 2 Duo | AMD Turion 64 X2 | Intel Core Solo | Intel Celeron M | AMD Sempron |
Ydelse | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
Strømforbrug | 2 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 4 |
Memory
The memory is the machine’s short-term storage. If we compare the computer with a person working by a desk, memory is the size of the desk. The size of the desk therefore determines how many things can be on it while keeping everything in order. In much the same way, memory determines how many applications can run at the same time without slowing down the computer. The abbreviation for memory is RAM (Random Access Memory), and there is currently a myriad of brands. The specific brand of the RAM blocks rarely matters, as quality is almost always as it should be. However, one has to be aware that both the amount and the speed of RAM affect system performance.
Today, standard RAM in laptops is DDRII. This kind of RAM comes at 3 different speeds: 533 MHz (PC4200), 667 MHz (PC5300) and 800 MHz (PC6400). MHz determines how fast the RAM can move data in and out. Most computers come with 667 MHz RAM, as the price of this is almost identical to that of 533 MHz RAM. 800 MHz RAM on the other hand is much more expensive, but boosts system performance by only a few %. As such, they are not worth it unless economic resources are unlimited. The amount of RAM makes a huge difference though, and you shouldn’t be afraid to spend money here. If you want to buy a new computer today, the absolute minimum is 1 GB (1024 MB) RAM. It’s often worth it to get 2 GB (2048 MB) RAM though, as it only adds a couple hundred DKKR per GB. RAM hardly uses any power, so it’s pretty much a “the more the better” kind of situation. RAM has no influence on battery life at all.
Hard drive
The hard drive is the warehouse of the computer. If we compare the computer with a person working by a desk, the hard drive corresponds to the size and number of drawers in the desk. The hard drive therefore determines the number of files (music, movies, etc.) you can store. The hard drive is abbreviated as HDD (Hard Disc Drive), and there are quite a lot of brands. Many have a personal preference, but no brand distinguishes itself in terms of quality. However, some offer longer warranties, although they rarely inform you.
Like RAM, the hard drive in a laptop comes at 3 different speeds. Speed is measured in RPM (Rotations Per Minute), and comes at 4200 RPM, 5400 RPM, and 7200 RPM. 4200 RPM HDD is rarely found, while the most common are 5400 RPM drives. The speed of the hard drive determines how quickly the computer boots, how fast different programs start up, and how fast games load. Note that the faster a HDD is, the more power it uses (though this is not much). A faster HDD will thus result in a slightly lower battery life.
The need for a high capacity hard drive differs on an individual basis. Less than 80 GB (80 x 10003 bytes) is not recommended, but hard to find these days anyway. You will only really need a larger HDD if you use the computer to store music or movies or large amounts of pictures. One thing you have to keep in mind when it comes to HDD capacity is that producers count 1 GB as 10003 bytes while Windows counts 1 GB as 10243 bytes. As such, a 100 GB HDD will have a real capacity of (100 x 10003)/(10243) = 93.13 GB.
The Display Adapter
The display adapter stands out from the other components in the machine. Unlike with the other components, the display adapter is hard to compare to a person working at a desk. This is because it uses its own little system.
The display adapter is abbreviated as GFX and is, broadly speaking, made of two parts. One is a chip – GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), the other a given amount of RAM. There are many different classes of display adapters, but the two main groups are onboard and dedicated.
An onboard GFX is built into the chipset (a chip that has another primary function than processing graphics), and has the advantage of being cheap and consuming little power. The RAM needed is simply borrowed from system RAM. Performance is shoddy when it comes to processing 3D graphics, but the average user will do just fine with an onboard GFX. A dedicated display adapter has an independent GPU along with an independent amount of RAM. The amount of RAM is very important in relation to gaming, but hardly so for office use. Onboard GFXs that come with office laptops borrow system memory, which is RAM that you usually use for running different programs and Windows. Therefore, a display adapter should not borrow too much RAM, though this is not really needed anyway (you can usually set how much RAM can be borrowed in BIOS) as 32 or 64 MB are enough for most.
However, with gaming and Workstation laptops, GFX RAM and the speed of the GFX chip make a huge difference. The more RAM, the better! This is because the display adapter’s RAM stores textures in games and so on, and as such a display adapter with a lot of RAM won’t need to extract new textures from the hard drive and system memory as often, which results in a more seamless gaming experience, and generally a much better performance in Workstation programs. The most stunning (3D-wise) games have a tendency to use a lot of RAM on both the display adapter and the system memory. Today, a display adapter with 256MB RAM and 1 GB system memory is absolute minimum if you want a decent gaming laptop that can run the newest games at medium settings. Multiply that by two and you get a display adapter with a 512MB GPU and 2 GB RAM, the biggest on the market and optimal if you want a really good gaming experience.
It’s becoming more and more popular to make a combination of dedicated and shared RAM. The producer can then state a high number of RAM which many mistakenly believe will result in great performance, but ends up in disappointment. This “technology” is called Turbo Cache and Hypermemory at nVidia and ATI (AMD) respectively.

There are currently 3 brands of display adapters worth mentioning: Intel, nVidia, and ATI (AMD). Intel exclusively produces onboard display adapters while nVidia and ATI (AMD) produce both.
The Display
The quality of laptop display has become quite high. The size of the display, the resolution, and vertical and horizontal angles of view are aspects that many place a great amount of importance on. Vertical and horizontal angles of view refer to when you look at the display from above or from the side. On many of the discount models, it’s hard to see what happens on the display when you’re viewing it at even low angles. On the more quality focused laptops, view is good regardless of angle. It should be mentioned, though, that most notebooks these days have satisfactory and quality displays. One reason for this is TFT (Thin Film Transistor), meaning that the display contains liquid crystals. TFT ensures a light, strong, and sharp picture that is pleasant to look at. Displays come in different sizes and resolutions, size usually being 10.4” to 19”. Displays also come in different Aspect Ratios, which is the relationship between width and height of the picture. Displays come in two broad groups – widescreen (e.g. 16:10) and non-widescreen (e.g. 4:3) – with smaller subgroups. Besides aspect ratio, it’s also important to look into what kind of resolution the display is able to show. The higher the resolution (number of points on a display), the more can be shown on it at any given point. The most common resolutions on laptops are:
Non-widescreen – The abbreviation – The resolution – Aspect Ratio

XGA / 1024x768 / 4:3SXGA / 1280x1024 / 5:4SXGA+ / 1400x1050 / 4:3 UXGA / 1600x1200 / 4:3


Widescreen – The Abbreviation – The Resolution - Aspect Ratio

WXGA / 1280x768 / 5:3WXGA / 1280x800 / 8:5 and 16:10WXGA+ / 1440x900 / 8:5 and 16:10WSXGA+ / 1680x1050 / 8:5 and 16:10
We hope that we have enlightened you with this manual. If you still have doubts, please use our forum where you will always find competent help.
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in Hardware & Accessories by nyk001, 08-05-10 12:46