Having never owned one, I don't know much hands on stuff about laptops so I was wondering if any of you had any tips or pointers on what to look for or what are useless items on one?
I have a laptop. Basically I say if it runs the net and can play CDs, it's fine.
Mine cost $500 all up, but that was without a battery which works; so I just have it plugged in all the time, and for me that works.
I would suggest a working battery, heh.
Perhaps even a DVD drive and at least some type of floppy drive - mine has an external which plugs in when I need to use it, thats probably the best way.
Basically get whatever you're comfortable with, but know that a laptop will never be equal to a computer, in any aspect. (except newer laptops which are pretty dang good, but costly)
Well, I got my lappy in February, and I don't know what I'd do without it. *hugs lappy* I love you lappy!
Anyhow, I ordered mine through Gateway. They were running a special on one of the models they were discontinuing, and thus I got a great deal. Only about $500.
It only came with a cd rom drive, which can easily be switched out with a dvd/cd-rw rom drive. Laptops don't come with A (floppy) drives, but as Vance pointed out you can buy a removable drive, however, if you only need the drive to save a few files, might I suggest a jump drive? They're very portable, and have just as much storage space as a floppy disk.
Once you do get your laptop, I also suggest you invest in an external hard drive. I have a Smartdisk Firefly hooked up to mine now. The Firefly has 20 gigs of memory space, making it possible to store all of your larger files...i.e. photos and music.
If you also plan on not having your laptop plugged in all the time, you might also want to invest in an extra battery (they're expensive). Most laptops that come with a battery, like mine, are only capable of about two hours worth of power, making it extremely limited.
Well, there you go. Those are all of my suggestions. I do hope that I was able to help you out a little bit.
And remember; once you do get your lappy... love it, and it shall love you back. :D *hugs lappy again*
Hrm... my advice is just don't reach for much with it. It's MUCH cheaper to get a computer than a laptop, so if you're getting a laptop, just get one for what you need. If you want to play your high tech games, get a PC.
It depends what you want to do with it and how much you want to spend. Laptops up here start at around CAN$1200, with all your basics: CD-ROM, CD-Burner, 15" screen, 256MB RAM, 40GB harddrive, etc. Lots in this price range have DVD-ROM and/or 512MB RAM.
Moving up you get assured DVD-ROM, faster processors, more RAM, and most noticably, bigger harddrives. The most I've ever seen in a laptop is 100GB, most are 40-80GB.
The other thing to consider is portability. Bigger is nice for working with it, but they can be a pain to lug around. The compact models are nice, but generally sacrafice power and are more expensive. Personally, I like the compact ones... I have a desktop for doing work at home. *shrug*
Also along those lines is chip type. If you're on the go, chances are you'll want something with good battery life. Centrino-processor models have vastly superior battery performance, but are more expensive. Keep in mind: a Centrino chip is faster than a Pentium whatever, so a 1.5GH Centrino is on par (roughly) with a 2+GH processor of another variety.
Oh, built in networking cards are nice. Pretty much standard these days...
Also keep in mind: "they" say that laptops are the one thing you should always buy extended warranty for. So add $200-300 onto any price you see for that. Plus a case, a mouse (perhaps), etc.
is having a mouse better for a laptop then using the little pad in the center?
To be honest, my sole reason for getting the laptop is 1. I finally can and 2. I need it so I can get back to my writing. The computer here is in the bedroom and when someone is sleeping I can't write, nor can I do so when someone is standing behind me. I figure a laptop solves that because I can get up and go where no one is and it's also portable for research.
So... lots of power not a big need, but reliability very important. Unless I'm really desperate, there won't be any game playing on it and next to no internet use. Other than getting updates for virus scanners and critical updates, I'll probably never have it online. I've already decided to invest in the DVD/RW because being able to make backups of my writing is essential and I have the extra battery already into the budget.
A mouse is always nice to have... what does one cost now? $20 or so? Couldn't hurt, you might not like the centre pad. I happen to find plugging a mouse in and finding a decent surface to run it on a pain in the ass, but that's just me.
