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Hi everyone! I've come here first to ask for advice because everyone here is always so helpful!
I need a new computer and I'm going to spring for a laptop. I'm clueless about all of the specs like ram, speed, processor, etc.
Bottom line, what numbers and specs do I need to look for? I want a reasonably-priced laptop that runs fast, and will allow me to do some light photo editing and surf the web, etc.
I just purchased an HP with 4GB ram and 500GB of memory. I'm hoping that it will allow me to do everything I want to do with MDS. I purchased it on special (and there are a lot of them right now) from Costco.com. It was $649 + shipping. I ordered it on the 7th and it will be here on Thurs. HTH
I bought my HP laptop from Costco for about $700 last year with the renter's insurance reimbursement I got after my house was burglarized and my Dell desktop was stolen. I run the full Adobe suite of programs as well as MDS without difficulty, so the base requirements for those programs are probably a good benchmark to use when evaluating the specs on a particular machine.
When buying a new computer, you should go for as much RAM (active processing memory) as you can afford, as that will determine your ability to work in multiple programs at the same time as well as whether or not you spend a lot of time sitting and waiting for programs to launch, documents to save (especially those with pictures embedded), or large PDFs to open from your hard drive. I think 2GB is the absolute base level on bargain machines these days. You should also get the biggest hard drive you can, since stuff like iTunes downloads can take up space quickly.
My computer is about a year and a half old (which is a full generation in terms of computer hardware!) and has a 1.83GHz processor, 2 GB of RAM, and a 250 GB hard drive. When my budget permits I'd like to get an external hard drive for backup purposes and to store my iTunes library since those NPR podcasts start to take up a lot of space after a while! ;)
__________________ Rachel Proud SU! demo and Sci-Fi Geek!
My Stampin' Up! blog "I'm a time traveler -- I point and laugh at archaeologists." 10th Doctor, "Silence in the Library"
Thanks for the input! I shopped around and found a laptop for $520 but of course, I had to buy new office software because Windows 7 doesn't support my older version of office. I also had to buy anti virus. The software added a lot of $ on top of the cost of the laptop, but I'm good to go now.
I also have an external hard drive to as a back up for my pics and other stuff.
Regarding the external hard drive - this Seagate FreeAgent is 500GB for less than $100 - it's about 3" wide x 5.5" long and about 1/2" deep. So super small. I got the docking station and carry case for $15, also at Amazon.
Please use the home page link to Amazon to make it a Moddy Christmas. ;)
I use a Western Digital My Passport - http://www.amazon.com/Western-Digita...1160572&sr=8-2.
It's great - I back up twice a month, takes about an hour after the first go, and it fits in my purse, in a case. OK, I have a big purse, but it's pretty compact. And it's meant that sometimes when I've been visiting and people want to see photos, they are all there and, with the backup software I use, totally accessible.
I'd say mine is close in size to the one Lori is recommending. Sure beats the 4 DVDs and several hours it was taking me for a backup before I got it.
If you buy online seriously consider a MAC. It has a much more secure enviornment and isn't subject to nearly the viruses or hacking that windows based computers are.
However, you will pay more.
__________________ Dear Paperlicious is my blog...with a series on how I'm learning to improve my cardmaking by studying others.
I have a windows computer, well let's say I have 5 windows computers, two desktops, a netbook, and 2 laptops in my house right now and not one of them has had a virus or a worm. Windows is safer than Apple commercials will lead you to believe. People download viruses and worms are virtually not seen anymore if you do the windows updates regularly and keep your firewall on. I have a HP Pavilion DV7 and love it. Love the bluray player so much that we got one for an early Christmas present.
I have a windows computer, well let's say I have 5 windows computers, two desktops, a netbook, and 2 laptops in my house right now and not one of them has had a virus or a worm. Windows is safer than Apple commercials will lead you to believe. People download viruses and worms are virtually not seen anymore if you do the windows updates regularly and keep your firewall on. I have a HP Pavilion DV7 and love it. Love the bluray player so much that we got one for an early Christmas present.
I totally agree. We have a PC desktop and 3 laptops and ALL have been just fine. We use Avast(free) for anti-virus and I LOVE Windows 7. We just loaded it on one of my laptops that had Vista and it's AMAZING. I love my laptop again!
Dell has some great deals on laptops. Personally, if you're going to use it and don't NEED to move the computer, go for a desktop. It's cheaper and you'll get more life out of it. Laptops are usually only good for about 3 years.
I can vouch for the fact that laptops have a shorter life. I was using one for my online business and I used it all the time (I would have it turned on 14 hours a day) and ended up having hard drive crashes (had to replace the hard drives) frequently (too frequent for my liking). I now use a desktop for my business but I have a laptop for traveling and fun. Consider getting a cool pad and/or fan for your laptop, to keep the processors cool. The cool pad raises the laptop off your desk or lap and allows air to circulate underneath plus it has a fan that either cools from underneath or pulls the hot air out of the computer (depending on which way the fan blades turn).
You can get the cool pads from Best Buy and probably Amazon and you can get a small external fan that clips into the vent on the side or back of your computer from a site called xoxide.com http://www.xoxide.com/evercool-nbfa1-notebook-fan.html
I don't know about laptops having a shorter life span. My sister is using a laptop I gave her that is around five years old. My son has one that was my old one that is four years old. Both are still going strong. Any hard drive can crash. Frankly, I've had more trouble with hard drives on desktops in my years of computer ownership. We got our first computer way back in 1989.
Call me a computer snob, but after 3 years I would definitely want to replace mine anyway. The technology would be ancient and I feel the need for speed!!!
I'm sure that laptops have a better chance at having a long life if you don't live on them like I did. I crashed two hard drives in my old laptop and then crashed the one in a brand new laptop I bought, but I think that was a defective one. They let me take it back and I got my money back and bought another laptop and finally decided that I was way too hard on laptops so I bought the desk top. Haven't had a crash since. Laptops do get pretty hot, so that's why I recommended the cool pad and fan.
Okay, I'm wanting a laptop, but I'll have to save for a few months. If I'm just using it in my craft room a few hours a day, will I need a cooling fan?? I've never had one before, so I'm totally clueless. Thanks for the timely thread and any help you can give me!
I'm sure that laptops have a better chance at having a long life if you don't live on them like I did. I crashed two hard drives in my old laptop and then crashed the one in a brand new laptop I bought, but I think that was a defective one. They let me take it back and I got my money back and bought another laptop and finally decided that I was way too hard on laptops so I bought the desk top. Haven't had a crash since. Laptops do get pretty hot, so that's why I recommended the cool pad and fan.
I'm an author. I live on my laptop and play games when I get a free moment. I also use a laptop at work, engineering, and we need to be able to bring our computers to meetings. The only hard drive I've had crash is due to a virus my mother downloaded when she was visiting and using the laptop I gave my son. Actually, the hard drive didn't crash, windows software did. I have two large laptops, 15.4 inch and a 17 inch and a netbook. Now I did have a hard drive crash on a brand new netbook, but that was an Acer. I do love my ASUS netbook and my HP Pavilion laptops. I'm on my laptops so much that I wear out the keyboards. I just had to replace the keyboard to my ASUS netbook because the letters were wearing off the keyboard.
I love my Dell inspiron. I run everything on it. I keep my digital kits on a USB drive so that if it crashes I don't loose them and to keep it running faster. I run both adobe and my SU software on it w/ no problems as well as Sure cuts a lot.
Terri, it sounds like you put your laptops through the paces too. You're lucky to not have had a crash......or should I say I was very unlucky. Maybe my situation was out of the ordinary. I had an HP Pavillion too, worn the letters off the keys. My husband is using it now with a new hard drive and hasn't had any problems. I bought a Toshiba and love it and no crashes, although I don't use it as heavily as I did.
I do stand by the fact that laptops do heat up more than desktops due to the lack of air flow and the tiny vents by which to vent the air. For someone who uses their laptop a couple of hours a day maybe you wouldn't need a fan but you won't know until you have a problem. All I wanted to do was caution people because I experienced so many crashes but obviously my situation was out of the ordinary.
Bottom line...if you are clueless (original poster) the cheapest basic laptop will do everything you need and a million things you don't need.
The only thing I would be sure it has is wireless networking built in, this is a pain to remedy later. Otherwise for what you are using it for, the $399 Best-Buy special is going to work wonderfully. My brother is an IT tech and he is amazed at how many people spring for what they think is a *better* computer when they are paying for options they will never use. Unless you are big into photography (RAW images) or videos, your hard-drive is never going to be an issue. And as far as computer-life, take care of it, and generally they last longer than you want them to.
Hope this helps!
__________________ Cher No longer stamping...on to bigger things.
Need laptop advice
