• Which laptop diagonal is better? For home use. How much RAM will be enough

    The oversaturation of the computer market gives rise to an acute choice problem for consumers. Many people find it difficult to decide what to buy: a laptop or a desktop computer? Everything depends on the purpose for which the device is needed.

    • The tablet is suitable for watching videos, photos, surfing the Internet, listening to music and reading books. Not suitable for working with documents and editing graphics.
    • A laptop combines the capabilities of a desktop computer, but at the same time it is more mobile and takes up much less space.
    • A desktop computer is well suited for any task, and it will cost you less than a laptop. The main disadvantage: it is not “mobile” and requires a separate workplace.

    So, for working with graphic editors, video editing and working with “heavy” programs and calculations, a desktop computer is more suitable. It will be much more powerful and at the same time cheaper. If work is enough for you office applications and web surfing, then the laptops have more than enough power. For home and family, mobile work— we would give preference to a laptop. If you need maximum portability and autonomy, and your tasks are not so large-scale, then you need a tablet. In this case, we first recommend that you figure it out.

    When choosing a laptop, a lot of questions arise. Which laptop is best to buy in 2018? How to choose a laptop for your tasks? What types of laptops are there? To make this task easier, site experts tested dozens of models and compiled an updated one. With its help, you can choose a laptop at an affordable price, the criteria and characteristics you need, for example, performance, time battery life, dimensions and weight. You will also be able to compare several laptop models at once according to the parameters that interest you. You will learn about how we tested laptops in.

    Do you need a new laptop?

    Before replacing your old laptop:

    • Remove programs that you have not used for six months or a year or more. If this is not enough and your computer is no more than four years old, add RAM.
    • If you're running out of hard drive space, save music, videos, any data to DVD or transfer to any hard disk, or connect .
    • If you use, go to the control panel, search for “defragmentation” and run disk defragmentation. This will speed up access to files on your hard drive.
    • Check your laptop for viruses; even a standard one may be suitable for this “ windows defender»or timely updated free or paid antivirus, which can be downloaded on the Internet.
    • Clear your hard drive of temporary and extra files, cache, error reports and other “garbage” using utilities like CCleaner or System Ninja.
    • Each laptop has a startup list - a set of services, drivers and programs that automatically start along with the system. Often this list includes programs that you don’t need, but they “eat away” your computer’s performance. We advise you to find this list in the settings and “clean” it.
    • A good solution would be to replace the hard HDD with a faster SSD.

    If all this fails, or your computer is more than three or four years old, it may be time to replace it. Don't forget to delete data from your laptop's hard drive before disposing of it (or remove it and keep it for yourself). additional storage). To keep your new laptop as long as possible, keep the following things in mind:

    • Try not to eat or drink while on the device, and if you do, take immediate action.
    • Do not place the laptop on your lap, blankets, or any soft surfaces, so as not to impede the laptop's cooling system's access to free air, otherwise the device may overheat. Electronics also do not like cold (in fact, condensation that appears when the device is brought from cold to warm), so before turning it on, let it warm up in a warm room for at least 15-20 minutes.
    • Keep your battery charged so it lasts longer. It is not recommended to keep a laptop with a fully charged battery connected to the network for a long time. Remove the battery, unplug it for a while, or set it so that it does not charge more than 80%.
    • Do not shake the laptop excessively so as not to damage the hard drive (in the case of an HDD drive, because the SSD is resistant to vibrations) or motherboard. If you take the device with you, make sure that it is turned off or has gone into deep sleep along with the drive.

    Types of laptops

    Hybrids- These are laptops with a touchscreen that fold into a tablet. They have good time battery life and it is possible to use two different ways input: touch and keyboard.

    Ultrabooks- a term coined by Intel, to refer to lightweight, portable laptops with long battery life. Ultrabooks, as a rule, are equipped with processors with low power consumption and low performance, but they easily solve all everyday tasks - surfing the Internet, watching videos, working with documents.

    Due to their limited size, there are few connectors in their case, so if you need a large amount of peripheral equipment in your work, you should pay attention to a classic business laptop.

    Business laptops- a symbol for productive laptops with good portability. They are characterized by strict design and a spirit of practicality. There are two subspecies. The first are lightweight and mobile laptops for frequent trips and work on the road. The latter are more suitable for stationary work in the office: they have higher productivity.

    Portable workstations- sometimes they are classified as business laptops. Their distinctive feature is high performance, but unlike desktop computers, they are mobile. Thus, workstations are designed so that you don't have to choose between productivity and compactness.

    Budget laptops- perfect for work or study. They don't have features you don't need, but you won't have to overpay for them. They are very affordable, their performance will allow you to watch movies, listen to music and play simple games.

    What display diagonal do I need?

    The size of a laptop is one of the main selection criteria; it determines how comfortable you will be working with it and moving around.

    11-12 inches- portable laptops that appeared just a few years ago. Typically, they are called upon to perform day-to-day office tasks. Good choice among laptops with such a diagonal, according to our experts, it may become or . A budget option for basic tasks is .

    13 inches— laptops of this size are becoming increasingly popular. This laptop fits into almost any bag, making it easy to carry around. At the same time, you can choose a device that is not so much inferior in power to large laptops, for example, or a “frameless” one, comparable in size to 12-inch models.

    14, 15, 16 inches- mid-size laptops that occupy the majority of the market. They are less portable and tend to be used either only at home or only in the office. In terms of price/quality ratio, budget laptops will be a good choice among laptops of this diagonal.

    17 inches or more- designed to replace a conventional desktop computer and combine its power with the mobility of a laptop. Using the large displays of such laptops is very comfortable. A 17-inch laptop can become your home laptop multimedia center, combining a computer, a music center and a video player. If a large display is important to you, then a powerful gaming or home “multimedia” display might be a good option.

    The ease of working with a laptop depends on the characteristics and coating of the display, which is available in two types - glossy and matte. The first adds brightness and contrast to the image - the picture on such a screen looks very juicy. But there is one problem - the shiny coating reflects everything like a mirror, especially if there is a light source behind you. On a matte finish, you won’t see any reflections, but the picture, compared to gloss, looks more faded.

    Processor selection

    Processor (CPU, CPU - central processing unit, or central processing unit) - the “brain” of any computer; device that performs main job on information processing. Today, two companies make the majority of laptop processors - Intel and AMD. The former are more productive and more widespread on the market, the latter are more affordable, but inferior in performance. However, all modern processors are suitable for performing basic tasks. The only point is that for work we would recommend to save your nerves and, if possible, avoid Atom processors, Celeron and Pentium from Intel and E1, E2 and A4 from AMD.

    If you are buying a laptop for powerful 3D gaming, video editing and productive computing, we would recommend processors from Intel - i3/i5/i7 from families no older Ivy Bridge, Haswell and Broadwell. The latest processors from the Skylake and Kaby Lake families are still expensive and also provide only a small increase in performance.

    How much RAM do you need?

    Random access memory, or random access memory (RAM), is memory that temporarily stores information that the processor needs to operate. Four gigabytes can be called the standard for everyday needs such as watching videos, browsing, office tasks and simple programs. But for something more serious this will not be enough, in which case it is better to aim for at least 8 GB.

    How to choose a video card?

    If you are not going to play demanding games or process videos and photos on a laptop, you can get by with an integrated (built-in) video card. It will use part of the RAM for its needs. A laptop with it is significantly cheaper than models with a discrete (external) video card, which is a separate graphics processor and video memory connected by an independent bus. The most common mistake when choosing a discrete video card is to be guided only by the amount of video memory. In addition to it (preferably from 2 GB, and for demanding games from 4 GB), the type of memory, frequency GPU and memory bus width.

    It is better to focus on the GDDR5 memory type; try to avoid the outdated DDR2/DDR3/DDR4 standard. The memory bandwidth depends on the width of the bus: the larger it is, the more information the bus can transmit per unit of time. The bus width of modern video cards ranges from 64 to 384 bits. Equally important are the clock speed and the number of computational units of the GPU. The same video chips in different video card models can operate at different frequencies, and top video cards have several times more computing units than budget ones.

    Which hard drive is better?

    Hard drive(HDD) is a storage device based on magnetic recording. However, there is an alternative - flash memory (SSD). It has faster read speeds than HDDs and has no moving parts, so it uses less power, is quieter, and is more resistant to damage. Its only disadvantage is its resource capacity; it lasts only a limited number of cycles of writing data to memory cells, so the choice is not so obvious. In addition, HDD is cheaper and, as a rule, it has more memory, and its speed is more than enough to store data.

    In addition to these types, there are hybrid hard drives— they combine a traditional HDD and a small SSD, which is used as second-level cache memory. The hybrid drive analyzes frequently used data located on the HDD and transfers it to the SSD drive to improve read speed when further accessing this data.

    Optical drive

    An optical drive is a device that reads and writes information to CDs, DVDs and Blu-ray discs. Blu-ray drives can read and play Blu-ray, DVD and CD discs, while a DVD drive reads DVDs and CDs, a CD drive only reads CDs. Today, many laptops are equipped with a burner drive (DVD±RW), they can use CD (700 MB) and DVD formats (4.7 GB for single-layer and 8.5 GB for double-layer). Blu-ray discs can store up to 25 GB (single layer) and up to 50 GB (double layer) of information.

    Today's trend in the computer industry is laptops without built-in optical drives, which reduces size and weight, freeing up space for other devices and ports. For many, it is more convenient to use flash drives than blanks. And can you remember the last time you used an optical drive? In addition, you can always purchase an external optical drive that can be transferred from one laptop to another.

    What ports and connectors do I need?

    Connectors and ports play a big role in the ease of use of a laptop.

    The most used port is USB. This is a universal connector to which you can connect almost any device. USB is a popular way to connect a mouse, flash memory, external hard disk or just for charging. Today, all laptops have USB ports version 2.0 or 3.0. The main advantage of 3.0 over version 2.0 is the information transfer speed increased by an order of magnitude. Recently, a small, symmetrical port has been gaining popularity. USB Type-C, which is installed even in budget models. This is a more modern connector, it provides more high voltage, data transfer speed and it is more universal, as it is even used in tablets and phones.

    HDMI is a port for transmitting high-definition video, which VGA connections, which are designed to connect an additional one to a laptop, cannot do.

    Almost all laptops have network port Ethernet (RJ-45) for cable Internet connection. Ultrabooks often lack Ethernet. Also, almost all laptops have built-in Wi-Fi, and some models are equipped with built-in 3G modems.

    Will it be possible to upgrade the laptop?

    Upgrade options for laptops are limited. If the memory is not “soldered” onto the board, then you can easily increase the RAM by replacing the RAM stick. If your laptop has two RAM slots, you can add another stick. It is easy to change a hard drive or purchase an external one. If the video adapter is not integrated into system board, you can select and change the video card, but this will be very problematic.

    Recognition systems

    Manufacturers are releasing more and more laptops with fingerprint scanners as an alternative to entering a password during authorization. Manufacturers such as use facial recognition technologies. The laptop's camera scans your face when you first start it up and every time you log in, checking to see if it matches the original image. Facial recognition is easier to use, but the fingerprint scanner is more reliable.

    What about the touch display?

    Some laptops are borrowed from tablets touch screen(touchscreen). They have original finger-controlled apps and provide multi-touch capabilities that will allow you to rotate or zoom in, scroll, or play video games like some .

    What about cooling systems?

    Each manufacturer designs cooling systems differently for different models and applications. In case of problems with overheating, we can only advise you to periodically clean the ventilation holes and cooler from dust, replace the thermal paste, or purchase a cooling pad. You can install the SpeedFan utility (or any other) and monitor the temperature of the processor, video card, hard drive and fan speed, but each laptop has its own characteristics and needs for heat dissipation.

    Is your laptop getting too hot?

    Some laptop cases tend to heat up to 60 degrees and above (!) under high loads. Such laptops can be inconvenient to use. In Product-test.ru reviews you can see in advance what maximum temperatures popular laptops can heat up to in order to avoid problems with overheating in the future.

    For full-fledged work With office laptops, you need to make sure that you have a comfortable keyboard, close to full-size, with a fairly capacious disk, a large screen, convenience and the availability of the necessary options to solve your professional problems.

    Therefore, regular laptops for work often turn out to be a little heavier, larger and more expensive regular models, but provide sufficiently reliable and powerful capabilities for comfortable and prompt solution their work tasks.

    What should be the size of the hard drive?

    This parameter is extremely important for photographers, designers, video makers and specialists in other fields. When working primarily with office documents You can limit yourself to the symbolic volume of the hard drive - since otherwise it can make the purchase too expensive.

    The laptop hard drive for work can be divided into three categories:

    • 0–160 GB is quite enough for full-fledged work with office documents;
    • 160–500 - a current option if you need to work with graphics and video in a small volume, with documents, for storing games, music or videos;
    • 500–3000 GB is an essential choice for professional work with various photo and video processing tools, allowing you to store a significant amount of music and videos.

    Let's move on to choosing the right RAM

    In practice, RAM is no less important than the size of the hard drive. Because it largely determines the overall performance of the laptop. A very important parameter, among other things, for programming, video processing, and rendering tasks. How faster computer will cope with such tasks, the more features can be solved within a certain period of time. Although, for working with ordinary office documents, a copywriter or journalist can save on RAM.

    Optimal processor frequency

    Another important component for comfortable work is the appropriate processor frequency, which determines the speed of the equipment. The number of operations performed by a laptop per second depends on the frequency, determining the overall speed of operation.

    But you don’t need to be guided only by frequency - it’s also important to decide on the manufacturer and other parameters. A higher frequency will be an important parameter only when choosing laptops from the same series. But in any case, laptops with a clock speed lower than 1.6 GHz are not recommended for work.

    Work with a discrete or integrated video card?

    The quality of video graphics directly depends on the video card used by the laptop. If tasks for working with video and graphics are limited only to watching TV series on the Internet, then any model will be quite sufficient. In this case, there are practically no special requirements for the video card.

    But the situation will be completely different if your usual work involves more specialized tasks in the office or at home.

    Of course, in this case you will have to think about choosing a more modern and productive video card for your work portable equipment.

    It should be noted right away that most laptop models today come with appropriate built-in video cards. By working with this design feature, manufacturers are able to achieve significant savings in energy consumption. The cost of such models is much more affordable, although for solving absolutely all basic work tasks technical parameters often it is not enough - including working with office applications, watching all kinds of videos, graphics, enjoying games, etc.

    Although for standard office work, when using only documents and watching videos from the Internet, this option will be quite sufficient for saving. A logical choice if you want to save extra money - for this you can use models with video cards from Intel, they often come built-in.

    For discrete cards characterized by better performance, but you need to be prepared for a higher price. In this case, it would be reasonable to overpay for the purchase if you work with video, graphics, or for game lovers.

    Battery life - how to determine the appropriate parameter

    If your work involves constantly being on the road, business trips, without the ability to regularly recharge your laptop, you should definitely take care of purchasing models with sufficiently long battery life, having more high-capacity batteries, capable of handling battery life for at least six hours.

    If the work will take place exclusively in the office or at home on the sofa not far from the outlet, you can choose a less durable laptop to save money.

    Varieties of shapes and sizes of laptops for work and home


    What connectors does a laptop need?

    Buying a laptop is usually a responsible and expensive step in the life of every person. Therefore, try to find enough time to think through not only work tasks, but also the devices that you will connect in the future. Do you plan to connect a mouse, external hard drive, keyboard, or several flash drives to your laptop at the same time? For all this you need the appropriate ports.

    If your work requires connecting an additional monitor, you need to provide an appropriate connector for it.

    Additional nuances with the right choice

    When working with office applications, the best option would be a screen of 15 inches or more. Because with smaller screen resolutions, working all day long in a text editor or preparing a presentation will feel like peering through a slit mailbox- a very tedious, annoying and unpleasant process that actually gets boring quickly.

    A laptop is in demand as a portable device, so it must fully comply with this status. Therefore, make sure how comfortable it will be to take it with you. To do this, the weight of the device should not exceed 2–3 kilograms.

    In particular, open and close it several times, making sure that the cable is in normal condition.

    You should definitely try typing some text, making sure that the keyboard is comfortable enough. Try reading something from the monitor - will it be comfortable for your eyes, will they start to get tired. Run some audio file to check the sound quality from the speakers, whether it is suitable for your tasks. You should also check the presence of an optical drive, if you need it in your work, since many modern laptops no longer include it.

    Additional purchases for your laptop

    Among the useful additional purchases along with the laptop itself, one can note the choice of a suitable mouse, case or bag, installation disks with software, wipes for keeping the monitor clean.

    These are the key principles suitable choice are almost completed. Otherwise, you should select a work laptop based on your priorities and professional tasks - including the appropriate case type, design, weight, size, available options, or the selling company's price or service offerings.

    It is impossible to talk about completely universal solutions for all specialists and companies: choosing equipment is a responsible task, so study the characteristics, compare and make the ideal purchase, which will delight you with years of stable and productive service.

    Choosing a laptop for work is a pressing problem for a person who is forced to spend a lot of time at the computer and combine this with constant travel. In order for you to be able to work comfortably, we have created recommendations for selecting such a laptop, which will probably pay for itself again and again.

    What to rely on when choosing?

    What should you pay attention to when choosing a laptop for work? Below are the main technical specifications Things you should pay attention to when choosing a laptop:

    • Hard disk capacity
    • RAM
    • CPU frequency
    • Video card
    • Opening hours
    • Availability of connectors for different purposes

    If you don’t want to go into details, we offer you the optimal assembly of laptops for work:

    What should be the size of the hard drive?


    This parameter is especially important for designers, photographers, music video directors, etc. If you work mainly with office documents, then a large hard drive will only unnecessarily increase the price for something you will never use.

    Hard drive capacity can be divided into three categories:

    • 0-160 - work with documents.
    • 160-500 - working with documents, working with images and videos in a small volume, watching and storing movies and music, computer games.
    • 500-3000 - professional work with sophisticated video and photo tools. Large amount of movie and music storage. Ideal for gamers, designers, architects, video makers, programmers.

    For reference: a text of 40 pages fits in 150kb. On a regular laptop (500GB) you can fit around 3 and a half million documents, 40 pages each.

    What kind of RAM should it be?

    RAM is an equally important component. It largely determines how “fast” your laptop will work. This is where all the information that is used by the laptop at the “current moment” is stored.

    Which choose a laptop for working with office documents? Laptop with at least 1400 MHz.

    Integrated or discrete video card?

    The video card is responsible for the quality of graphics. To watch TV series on the Internet, you will need a video card from almost any laptop. If your work involves image or video processing, or you are going to play modern demanding games on your laptop, then you need to choose a more powerful video card.

    Most laptops use "integrated graphics cards" which help save power consumption. Such laptops are cheaper, but their parameters are quite sufficient for all basic purposes: office work, watching movies and various videos, playing games (at medium and low settings). Majority Intel models They have just such video cards. If you want to choose a cheaper laptop for work, we recommend that you pay attention to laptops with built-in graphics cards from Intel.

    Discrete video cards (they are not built into the chipset) have more powerful performance, but they also cost more. IN in this case it makes sense to overpay if you often work with graphic applications or video or you are an avid gamer. Now on the market the best of this series are considered ATI video cards(AMD) Mobility Radeon series and NVIDIA GeForce series.

    If you want to learn more about it, follow the link.


    If the nature of your work involves constant travel or you simply have nowhere to charge your laptop, no matter where you are constantly away from home, then stock up on models with larger batteries that can withstand at least 6 hours of battery life. If you just want to work while lying on the sofa or in a chair on the balcony, where there is an outlet nearby, then you can take a less “hardy” laptop. Recommended time is at least 6 hours.

    What connectors does a laptop need?

    Determine for yourself what will need to be connected to the laptop during work. Mouse, external hard disk, a couple of flash drives - this already requires at least four USB ports. Do you like to use an additional monitor? Check for the correct connector.

    What else is important to check before finally choosing a laptop for work? We recommend that you test the laptop in use immediately upon purchase. Try typing some text and see how comfortable the keyboard is. Read something from the monitor to determine if your eyes are hard on you or if you are getting tired. Listen to the sound through the speakers. Also make sure that you have an optical drive - some models are already available without one.

    Recommended characteristics of the optimal laptop for work

    In our opinion, the most optimal criteria how to choose a laptop for work will become :

    • Hard disk capacity: 160 - 500
    • RAM: 4GB
    • Processor frequency: 2GHz - 3GHz
    • Video card: integrated from Intel
    • Working time: at least 6 hours
    • Availability of connectors for different purposes: 4 usb, Hdmi, monitor connector

    Additional purchases: In addition to a laptop for work, we recommend immediately purchasing the following items: mouse, bag or case, installation disks with software, napkins for the monitor. I hope we helped you figure out how to choose a laptop for work.

    With this article, our portal begins a whole series of useful materials, the purpose of which will be to make it easier to choose any product from the thousands of options offered on the market. Agree, choice specific model using some gadget always takes up a lot of time, which could be spent usefully. In today's material we will talk about choosing the right laptop - for work, for study or for entertainment.

    What do you need a laptop for?

    First you need to decide what you will use the laptop for. There are several options:

    Working with office applications and studying

    Even the cheapest laptop is suitable for these tasks. The only condition that must be met is that such a laptop must be of high quality and durable in order to serve you as long as possible. Pay attention to the manufacturer (it is best to choose laptops from well-known brands) and the ease of use of the device’s keyboard. There are no more delays here - you don’t need a powerful processor (even the weakest, more or less new laptop will be able to play music and movies), or a powerful video card (you’re planning to study and work, right?), or a large hard drive (documents and tutorials) take up very little space).

    Replacement desktop computer, laptop for home

    Such a laptop should fulfill the wishes of all family members at an acceptable level: help parents with work, entertain children and keep grandmother in touch with her friends. Here it is also worth paying attention to the strength of the case (when purchasing, look at how it bends when not pressed too hard). In addition, it is worth buying a laptop with a capacious hard drive (500 gigabytes is the minimum) and a large set of ports (for connecting all possible home devices). The processor, memory and video card should also not be the weakest, but you shouldn’t chase top-end characteristics.

    Ultraportable laptop (ultrabook) for travel and business trips

    Here, the weight of the laptop, its thickness (no more than two centimeters) and battery life are at the forefront. It's also worth considering options with an SSD rather than an HDD (more on that later) - the extra speed on the road won't hurt. Ultraportable laptop cases are often made of metal or carbon fiber - this will a nice bonus. There is no need to pay attention to the video card and extra ports here. Note that in some cases ultrabooks do not have standard port for a network cable, you will have to use Wi-Fi or buy an adapter.

    Powerful laptop for games and multimedia tasks

    Such a laptop must have a large and high-quality screen (both games and work in multimedia programs require this), powerful internals (processor, RAM and video card) and a capacious hard drive. Unfortunately, you have to forget about autonomy and portability: even the best and expensive models gaming laptops (with some exceptions) will be heavy and quite thick, and their battery is unlikely to withstand more than a couple of hours of intensive use of all systems.

    Workstation

    Such laptops are used in work that requires a lot of computing power. They differ from gaming ones in that they usually do not require a good video card (unless one is needed to perform specific work tasks), but they do need all possible ports for connecting peripherals. If you don’t need to work with graphic materials, you can neglect the screen.

    Hybrid 2-in-1

    The recently popular hybrids are often a real minefield. IN present moment It is best to choose an ultrabook and a tablet - two separate devices. If you want to combine them, then there are not many options - pay attention to recent models of this form factor from Lenovo, Microsoft, Asus and Dell.

    Which laptop screen is right for you?

    The size of a laptop's screen is one of the most important factors that influences the user experience. You need to decide on these indicators immediately after determining the tasks that your future laptop will perform:

    10-12 inches

    The lightest and thinnest laptops, weighing no more than 1.2 kg. For many users, their compact keyboards won't suit them, and they simply don't have multimedia applications. But laptops with such screens are best transported and used for short work sessions on the road.

    13-14 inches

    A good balance between portability and convenience. Their keyboards are usually quite large and weigh less than 2 kg - a good option for those who spend a lot of time on the road but prefer to work in greater comfort.

    15-16 inches

    Most popular size. Such laptops can weigh up to 2.5 kg and are already able to accommodate good components that will be sufficient not only for work, but also for entertainment.

    17 inches or more

    Huge laptops, which usually contain the most powerful processors, the most powerful video cards and the most capacious hard drives. An ideal option for a laptop that will not leave your apartment or house.

    Matte or glossy?

    A laptop screen can be either matte or glossy, and choosing one is a matter of personal preference. The best way to look at a laptop with your own eyes is on the store counter. Let's put it this way: glossy displays have brighter and more saturated colors, but at the same time reflections are very noticeable on them (in the worst case - direct sun rays from a window or on the street). Matte screens They make the colors less pronounced, but they are protected from glare by a special coating. Note that the screens Apple MacBook in most cases glossy.

    How to understand the characteristics of a laptop?

    A lot of incomprehensible abbreviations, names of unknown brands and unclear numbers can confuse anyone. In this section we will talk about RAM, CPU and other GPUs.

    Screen resolution

    The more pixels you fit on a display, the sharper the image becomes (but also the more processing power required). It’s not worth considering options with a resolution lower than 1366x768 pixels (it seems they don’t make them anymore anyway), but it’s better to focus on something more impressive. 1600x900, 1920x1080 or higher is already very good. Naturally, in the case of small screens, you will have to settle for a low resolution, and for clearer screens you will usually have to pay a hundred or two more dollars. At Apple MacBook screens have Retina resolutions - for example, 15-inch MacBook Pros have a resolution of 2880x1800 pixels. This is also a very good indicator.

    Processor (CPU)

    The most budget models are now equipped with AMD E processors and Intel Celeron/Pentium. They are not designed for tasks more complex than working with email, editing documents, watching movies or listening to music. The next step is Intel Core i3 and AMD A. These processors should provide acceptable performance in multimedia tasks, but for games and serious work it is better to choose a laptop with Intel Core i5 (preferably the fourth generation, codenamed Haswell; the names of such processors look like “ Core i5-4xxx"). And finally, the most productive and expensive laptop models are equipped with Intel Core i7. You can also find expensive models with AMD processors, but at the moment these solutions are losing performance to Intel processors quite seriously. The latest rating of mobile processors can be found.

    Random access memory (RAM)

    For everyday work with documents and other “light” tasks, 4 gigabytes will be enough. Games and work with large software packages will require at least 8 gigabytes.

    Hard drive (HDD/SSD)

    Buying a laptop with a hard drive of less than 500 GB can be justified in two cases: 1) it is small and portable; 2) it is equipped with an SSD disk. Often these cases are combined. In addition, more expensive models can be equipped with a hybrid disk, most of which is mechanical (HDD), and the smaller part is chip-based (SSD). SSD drives provide very high speed reading and writing data, and also consume less energy, but are much more expensive than mechanical ones.

    Video card (GPU)

    This point is important only for those who are going to play games on a laptop - for the rest, any chip built into a modern laptop will do. Players should better pay attention to productive options from AMD and Nvidia - Radeon R9 and GeForce GTX 9xxM. It is also necessary to take into account that such discrete video cards require much more battery power. The latest rating of mobile video cards can be found.

    Ports

    Pay attention to the number of USB ports and their standard (you should buy a laptop with USB 2.0 only as a last resort, look for options with USB 3.0), the presence of an HDMI or VGA output for connecting to a TV or external monitor, as well as the presence of specific ports to connect the peripherals you need in your work.

    Optical drive

    In most cases you won't need it - digital future and high speed access to the network allows you not to use outdated optical disks and, if necessary, use USB flash drives. We advise you to save as much money as possible on this component - you will not need to burn DVDs, much less Blu-ray (unless, of course, you do this for work).

    Battery

    Be sure to pay attention to the battery life of the device indicated by the manufacturer. At a minimum it should be 6 or 7 hours. The most best models(either ultra-portable or heavy and large) can provide up to 10 or even 20 hours of operation. At the same time, manufacturers often lie and overestimate their operating time estimates - it is better to turn to independent tests.

    operating system

    In fact, it is not the operating system that you have to choose - everything is much simpler. Do you need a MacBook? This short guide will help you understand this issue.

    A completely universal operating system that will allow you to perform any task (work with documents, games, watch movies, etc.), but requires more care than OS X. If the laptop will be used by someone who has never used Windows before, it is better pay attention to the next option.

    OS X works great with all Apple devices and is suitable for all beginners. In addition, it is a favorite work environment for designers, musicians and other creative people. Unfortunately, it also has its many disadvantages: this OS is not intended for gamers, and only Apple produces laptops with it, which allows it to keep their prices at a fairly high level.

    Linux laptops are suitable for those who use Linux for work. Everyone else is advised to consider the previous two options. However, laptops with Linux (and sometimes with DOS) are often cheaper than their Windows counterparts due to free license OS.

    Chrome OS

    Laptops running this operating system are popular in the United States, but outside this country they are almost never seen in stores. Good option for those whose work with a laptop occurs entirely in an Internet browser, but in Belarus it is almost useless to buy a Chromebook - for the same money you can buy a full-fledged laptop with Windows.

    Additionally

    There are still many details left in the matter of buying a laptop, which we will draw your attention to in this section.

    Firstly, check Wi-Fi standard, which supports the laptop's wireless chip. All laptops worth buying can handle 802.11 a/b/g/n networks, and many newer and more advanced ones can handle 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac. In addition, if you are going to use Wi-Fi Direct, make sure that this technology is supported.

    Secondly, pay attention to whether the laptop battery is removable. In many cases, it becomes unusable within a couple of years, and replacement will be much easier if the laptop does not have to be taken to service.

    Thirdly, check for an SD card reader. It may be needed to work with photos and videos from external devices.

    Fourth, make sure you have a good webcam above the screen (however, it is almost always there). The camera must have at least an HD sensor (1280x720 pixels) - this will be useful for video calls via Skype.

    Purchasing process

    Have you chosen a model and are ready to call the store? Don't rush, we recommend remembering two simple rules.

    Test your laptop before purchasing. Launch a few programs, go online, try using its keyboard and trackpad a little. We also recommend checking the screen and case for cracks and scratches (even the smallest ones) to make sure that the laptop came to you directly from the factory and not from the previous owner.

    Check the warranty. Laptops are very complex electronic devices, and many of their parts often become unusable. A long warranty period from a reliable service center will help avoid headaches in the future.

    Conclusion

    We hope that this article helped you understand the difficult task of choosing your future laptop. Next week we'll help you choose a tablet!

    Instructions

    Laptop and intended for work, can be desktop (they are often called office), executive, professional and ultraportable. The office laptop has a full-size keyboard, a built-in optical drive, big screen and a capacious hard drive. Professional devices are systems designed for demanding applications.

    Laptop and those belonging to the executive class - leading models of the business segment. They combine the optimal balance functionality and image. Ultraportable laptops are compact, lightweight, and for a long time work from battery.

    When choosing a laptop for work pay attention to the processor. Important parameters of this component: clock speed, number of cores, model, power consumption and degree of processor heating.

    Pay attention to the hard drive. The hard drive can be HDD or SSD. The latter drive is less common, although it has significant advantages: high reliability, low power consumption, performance, etc.

    RAM – important component laptop. For work with a graphic editor, complex programs and videos, choose a laptop with a RAM capacity of at least two gigabytes.

    Pay attention to the matrix parameters. The resolution of the matrix determines how much high quality there will be a video being watched. Remember: the matrix can be glossy or matte (a glossy matrix guarantees high image brightness).

    Another component is the video card. It is this element that largely determines the cost of the laptop (it cannot be upgraded). Also pay attention to the power of the video card chip.

    Most laptops have a plastic body, although there are also models that have a metal body. The laptop case can be any color you like.

    Please note

    Buy a laptop only in a specialized store!

    Useful advice

    Additional options that are paid attention to when choosing a laptop for work: manufacturer, screen resolution, device dimensions, communications and other characteristics.

    Sources:

    • How to choose a laptop for work in 2019

    If you buy a laptop mainly for working with word processors and the Internet, there is no point in overpaying for expensive components. Applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint do not require a powerful graphics card or high frequency processor. It's better to focus on the screen characteristics, comfortable keyboard, battery life. The build quality of the laptop, its size and weight are important.

    Instructions

    If you plan to take your laptop with you often, choose a screen diagonal of no more than 15 inches. Pay attention to the monitor resolution. Do not choose a model with very high resolution- the font will be too small and long work with the texts your eyes will start to get tired. And increasing the font in the settings will negate all the advantages of such a monitor. The optimal choice would be a screen resolution of 1280 x 1024 or 1280 x 800.

    The surface of the screen of a working laptop should be matte. Despite all the manufacturers' assurances, glossy finish reflects like a mirror, and the increased brightness and increased contrast of the image are not noticeable when working with text documents. These monitors are more suitable for watching movies and videos.

    A laptop keyboard is different from the full-size keyboard used on desktop computers. Therefore, be sure to check whether the placement of the keys is comfortable for you and test them by pressing them. The keyboard should not flex too much under finger pressure. Keep in mind that on a light background it is easier to read than the reverse version. This is especially important when working in a dimly lit area.

    The speed of a laptop depends on the processor. To work comfortably with new versions of office applications, the processor frequency should be 1.8-2.5 GHz. Pay attention to the amount of random access memory (RAM). It must be at least 1 GB. But the best option would be 2-4 GB. Consult the seller about the possibility of installation additional modules.

    For wireless communication, the laptop must be equipped with a Wi-Fi module. If you need to access the Internet in places where there are no Wi-Fi networks, then choose a laptop equipped with a built-in 3G module. An additional advantage may be the presence of 4G/LTE; data transfer speeds in 4G networks are comparable to the speed of wired Internet.

    To work with text, you do not need to purchase models with a discrete graphics card. A built-in video adapter with up to 2 GB of memory is sufficient. You don't need a large hard drive to store documents. The optimal option is 320-500 GB. Pay attention to the number of USB ports. It is advisable that the laptop have at least four connectors for connecting peripheral devices.

    If you plan to carry your laptop with you every day, pay attention to the build quality of the case and weight. An important parameter There will also be battery life. It is optimal if the laptop can work autonomously for 3-4 hours. Using these parameters, you can choose an inexpensive model, the purchase of which will cost between $500-600.

    Please note

    When purchasing a laptop, check that the warranty card is filled out correctly and find out the location of the nearest service center.

    Useful advice

    Today, the laptop has become as integral a human companion as cell phone. Interestingly, the traditional use of a laptop for work and study is increasingly fading into the background. To modern man It is also important that his laptop can qualitatively fill his leisure time and become a real portal to the world of games and entertainment.

    Instructions

    Pay attention to the central one and its characteristics such as performance, power consumption and heat dissipation. Experts recommend abandoning “desktop” devices (with the exception of processors) AMD Athlon 64, which have acceptable performance for use in a mobile device) and turn your attention to Pentium processors M. It's surprising that even two-year-old processors based on the Banias core have quite acceptable performance. A new version– Dothan core, double cache size, clock speeds up to 2 GHz (and the higher the frequency, the better) - not much inferior to the desktop Pentium 4.

    Next, you should proceed to selecting a video card. This is a particularly significant element for laptops designed for gaming. Interesting products are produced by the Canadian company ATI. Among mobile solutions We can note the Mobility Radeon 9600, which is the minimum for . Mobility Radeon 9700 and 9800 have proven themselves a little better - they are more productive. Finally, the ideal option is Mobility Radeon X700 and X800. You can also refer to the options proposed by nVIDIA: GeForce FX 5700 Go – a reasonable minimum; GeForce Go 6800 Ultra is the choice of the most advanced gamers.

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