Computers Buying Guide

Net Books

Where would we be without portable computing? Back in the 1990’s probably… Net books are fairly new players on the portable computer stage with the first models in stores around 5 years ago. Since then they have been placed in direct competition to their more expensive laptop rivals, and more recently with mobile products such as the iPad.

If you’re not a hardened computer geek it can be very confusing entering an electricals’ store in the hunt for a portable computer. Laptops and net books can appear so similar it’s hard to decide which product is the most suitable for your needs. In many ways, the newest net books are almost identical in everyday functionality to laptops. However, there are some intrinsic differences that you should bear in mind.

The most obvious distinction of a net book is its physical size. A mid-range model such as the Samsung N150 Black has a 10” screen and weighs less than 3 pounds. Compared to a full-sized laptop, this is much more convenient for carrying around in a bag or a briefcase. For those of us who like to work on the move, a net book sits more comfortably on a train table with room spare for the essential coffee.

Small size, however, also has its downfalls. A smaller device means a smaller keyboard, and this can take a lot of getting used to, especially if you are a big-handed male! Small size also means less functionality. Although mid-range models typically boast a 1Gb RAM and a hard-drive in excess of 150Gb, their actual processing power is limited. In practical terms this means that software runs slower, to the point where process-hungry programmes such as Adobe Dreamweaver can virtually grind to a standstill. Internet surfing is usually a safe-bet but for those more work-orientated the slow net book response can become frustrating.

Netbooks are particularly good as educational tools and provide an excellent launch pad for school student portable computing. Whilst professional applications are often too full of bloatware to run smoothly, regular software such as Microsoft Office works fine at student level. Students can benefit from their intrinsic portability as they work on assignments at home, at friends’ houses, in school and in the library.

In spite of the net book’s major advantage in terms of portability, a survey conducted in September 2009 showed that 60% of net books purchased in the USA never left the household. Whilst initially puzzling, this is a good indication of sufficient computing performance required by most household users. In effect, most households will use their computers for internet functions such as emailing and surfing, alongside standard home office functions such as word processing and using spreadsheets, things at which a net book excels at a domestic level.

A new niche has been exploited by Disney with its net book range directly targeting younger users. Vibrant colors and a keyboard designed for children’s fingers have made this product a great success, essentially creating a marketing benefit from the net book’s limitations.

Best Laptop

Become more profitable by taking your digital life with you. Whether for business or leisure, laptops permit you to carry your info with you, all in a light and compact design. Laptops are conveyable, they're trendy, and let's face it: the other sex will think you more advanced when you are suavely drumming out your latest blog entry at the cafe.

OK, that is potentially not always true, but they're fun to have for both play and work. For work, traveling executives will find a laptop's wi-fi can offer them the same conveniences as being in the office through virtual personal networks. You can take anything you want with you, having remote accesses to your files in the office as long as you have got an Web connection.

It's all there with you, even though it irritates your better half when you bring work home.

The Best Laptop Computers - What to have a look for:

For checking e-mails, browsing the web, or typing up that short story, you can get away with less power, weight, and display size in your computer laptop. Beware nonetheless as a few of these are little due to the lack of a CD-RW, DVDR or other hardware. Also, due to having less hardware to power, battery lifespan is seriously increased in these light-weight movables.

Best Laptop Size: the intention of a laptop is to be transportable without having to sacrifice power. If you want something with an optical drive ( CD-RW, DVDR, and so on. ), a bit more power and monitor size, but still need a light weight machine, consider an ultra conveyable laptop, but recall, the littler the package the bigger the price ticket.

Best Laptop Battery life-span: nobody likes being tethered to a wall, that is the full reason for getting the laptop. Look for a system that will hold a charge for three hours or more. There's nothing worse than trying to find an outlet in the middle of a project.

Best Laptop Display size: Sometimes the bigger the laptop's screen size the bigger the full system. Remember, if you want a screen that rivals your desktop at home prepare to build those biceps. But there are ultra slim PCs with nineteen inch screens, but they're mighty dear and though your PC will be lighter, so will your wallet. So whether you want a slim ultra cartable, or a desktop replacement, we'll help you to find the right laptop for your requirements.

"So what is the best laptop to buy?" Here we list the top 5 laptops for October 2010.

Apple MacBook Pro 2010 ( Core i7 2.66GHz, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD, 15-inch ) : Apple's 15-inch MacBook Pro keeps the same feel and look, but offers major internal changes, including a discretionary Intel Core i7 CPU, making it a really heavy movable power-house.

Toshiba Portege R705-P25: Toshiba's Portege R series has always impressed, and the new 13-inch Portege R705 is close to an ideal balance of design, price, and performance.

Sony VAIO EA24FM/W: Cushty , feature-laden, and with an attention-grabbing design. The Sony Vaio EA24FM / W and its mixture of Blu-ray and Intel Wireless Display make it a reasonable multi media winner.

Samsung Q430-11: An impressively designed surprise, the Samsung Q430-11 is a feature-rich, fast laptop PC that looks dearer than it is.

Dell Inspiron M101z: Dell's latest take on the Mini line is a dual-core AMD-powered 11-inch system that leaves Netbooks in the dust vis both power and price.

Tablet computer

A tablet computer is a hand held computer that has a touch screen, which uses a stylus (a computer pen) to navigate instead of a traditional mouse and keyboard. The device is a cross between a personal digital assistant and a notebook or laptop computer. The data and information is inputted through using the stylus to write on a screen or simply tapping on the screen with the stylus. Tablet computers offer increased functionality and can be used in places where laptops are just too big or impractical. The name tablet refers to the flat-panel screen which is highly portable. The computer can connect to the internet wherever a wireless connection is available and most tablet computers have docking stations so they can be used with a keyboard, mouse, monitor or other devices if required. One unusual feature of some models of tablet computers is the ability to twist and turn the viewing panel so it can be easily converted.

The main extra features found on tablet computers include palm recognition, which means that the touch pad recognizes when a palm or other type of contact has been made with the screen instead of the stylus pen. Tablet computers will also have capacitive contact technology that senses when a finger has touched the screen and it does not require any significant pressure to recognize this. Additional capabilities are included as extra features that will recognize finger touches known as multi-touch capability.

The advantages of a tablet computer over a traditional desktop computer are that you do not have to use a mouse and keyboard so it can be used more easily, such as with only one hand or when lying down. Tablet computers are also much lighter in weight. The touchpad on a tablet computer means that it is a lot easier to navigate around the computer without having to use a mouse, especially when manipulating images. When you use image editing programs and digital painting the images are much better and far more realistic when using a touchpad rather than a mouse. Also the stylus tends to be more natural to use for clicking on objects and icons.

One of the biggest disadvantages with a tablet computer is the increased costs, which can be significantly higher than the normal desktop computers, although this should naturally decrease with time as technology means they can be made more cost effectively. The speed with which the user is able to input data and information can be significantly reduced from that found in a normal computer where you can type quickly on a keyboard. A big risk with the tablet computers is the potential for damage to the hinges and the screen and this is particularly so because of the transportable nature of these types of computer and that they tend to get a lot more handling. A tablet computer doesn’t have any space for resting your wrists while you are working on the touchpad.

Tablet PC

Tablet PCs are highly portable personal computers that have a touch-sensitive screen you are able to use as the primary input device. ‘Tablet PC’ was a term coined by Microsoft back in 2001 when such PCs were simply a concept. Today tablet PCs include any personal computers that are ‘tablet sized’, regardless of the operating system in use.

No tablet PCs come equipped with keyboards, and all have wireless adapters for use with the internet and local network connections. Software applications tend to include office suites, various popular web browsers and games, in addition to many other software.

A huge number of well known and less well known manufacturers now make tablet PCs, including HP, Lenovo, Apple, Asus, Advent, Elonex, Archos and Novatech. Models such as the HP Pavilion, Samsung Galaxy and Asus Eee have been particularly well received. New models are always just around the corner though. Currently, 12 inches is the standard size for a tablet PC. This size has been found to be optimal for the power, weight and size considerations associated with great portability.

When buying a tablet PC you should carefully consider the media format. For instance, iPads don’t play non-iTunes audio or video files. Android and Windows tablets appear to be the most flexible, applications almost always exist to help you out if media files don’t appear to work first time.

Try to buy a tablet that has an SD card slot. This is a godsend for when you need extra memory above the built-in memory, which is often limited. Do check to see the maximum memory your tablet can support, an extra 32GB may be too much in some cases.

Wi-fi is standard, as mentioned before, but check to see if there is a SIM card slot present. SIM cards allow you to experience a truly mobile data connection when within the range of a 3G network. Novatech and Apple both cater for SIM cards in some of their often pricier models.

Regards software, iPads run almost all the App Store programs, yet only roughly 40,000 have graphics good enough to really make the best use of the big screen. Users of Android have 100,000 apps (although not on the more restricted Archos), and few have been modified for the big screen.

Touchscreen-wise, all but the Elonex use capacitive touchscreens, which react to the gentlest of taps by a user. The alternative resistive screens involve much harder pressing to get things done.

USB Ports allow photos, copies of songs from a library of music, amongst many other file types to be loaded onto a tablet. Only the iPad complicates this issue, demanding you load things via iTunes. All other tablets appear to be able to load data directly from USB cards, and you can also plug in web cams, keyboards and many other appliances. Ideally there should be at least 1 USB port preset on your tablet PC.