Buying Guide For Laptops

Size and Form

Most laptops are between 11.6 inch up to 17.3 inch and depending on your priorities and usage, you’ll want to pick the right size which suits your needs. 

If portability and ease of carrying is your top priority, you will want to look into windows laptops, they are usually lighter and smaller than their counterparts. 12.5 inch and 13.3 inch laptops are recommended if portability is your main concern. However, you will have to keep in mind that smaller laptops are usually weaker compared to their larger counterparts.

If you are looking to be editing videos or playing video games with your laptop, you will have to look in to 15.6 inch laptops, unlike the smaller counter parts, these laptops usually come with high-end CPUs and Graphic cards, which are suitable for 4k editing and gaming.

Other than the screen size, there are different forms of laptops out there. The main ones are Ultrabooks, Notebooks,2 in 1, and Gaming laptops.

CPU

The two main CPU manufacturers are Intel and AMD. Intel core processors usually come with more cores and threads which is more suitable for multi-tasking. However, if you are into gaming AMD’s Ryzen processors are also a good choice, since they have a better value for money for gaming.

Intel

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AMD

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Graphics Card

All laptops do come with a graphics card, however, majority of laptops have “integrated graphics” which are bundled into the motherboard with the CPU. Integrated graphics are fine for day to day tasks, watching HD movies, and playing video games casually. However, if you looking to do intense gaming or video editing, you will want to look into laptops with discrete graphics card. Discrete graphics cards are a separate and stronger cards, which, are made by Nvidia and AMD.

Nvidia

GeForce GTX 16 series: Most entry level gaming laptops incorporate this series of Nvidia’s graphic cards. GTX 1650 and GTX 1660 are the most common graphic cards used in budget gaming laptops, however, some laptops have a variant of these cards called “Super” or “Ti (Titanium)”. These variants are enhanced versions of the base cards and are indication of superior performance compared to a non-Super or a non-Ti card.

GeForce RTX 20 series: The RTX 20 series are found in mid to high range gaming laptops. The 20 series cards include RTX 2060, 2070, and 2080, with the RTX 2080 Ti being on par with RTX 3060 and RTX 3070.

GeForce RTX 30 series: The latest generation of Nvidia’s graphic cards, are the ideal choice for running triple A games on 4k and on maximum setting without an issue. Graphic cards in this series include RTX 3060, 3070, 3080, and 3090.

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AMD

Radeon RX 5000 series: The RX 5000 series are a great counterpart to the RTX 20 series for gaming, and they are more budget friendly. Graphic cards in this series include RX 5300, 5500, 5600, and 5700. Similar to Nvidia, AMD has their own enhanced variant of the base card, they are identified by “XT (Extreme)”, which indicates superior performance.

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RAM

RAM stands for Random Access Memory. The more RAM a CPU has access to, the easier its job becomes, which enables a faster computing.   Although higher RAM results in faster processing, due to the increase in cost, it is important for one to know the appropriate requirement for RAM based on usage.

8GB of RAM is sufficient for an average user, however, upgrading to 16GB improves your experience by a great deal. For casual gaming and editing 16GB of RAM is required, but if you are looking to do heavy gaming and editing you should look into 32GB or even 64GB of RAM.

If you are looking to upgrade your RAM later on, you would want to consider if the RAM is soldered or not into the motherboard of the laptop. If the RAM is soldered, you will not be able to upgrade the RAM by yourself.

Shop by RAM

4GB – 8GB – 12GB – 16GB – 24GB – 32GB – 64GB

Storage

An internal storage is where all the programs are installed on the computer. Furthermore, all the data that are saved such as documents, images and videos are all stored on here. Traditionally Laptops had HDD (Hard Disk Drives). However, with the advent of Ultra books and portable laptops, SSD (Solid State Drives) are gaining popularity as they process information much faster.

HDD (Hard Disk Drives): Traditional mechanical hard disk drives are the most common type of storage because they're relatively inexpensive and offer huge capacities. However, they also add significantly to a laptop's weight, thickness, and generate both heat and noise. These can range from 500GB to more than 3TB.

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SSD (Solid-State Drives): Solid-state drives, also known as SSDs are many times faster than hard disk drives, but typically offer far less capacity due to the cost, however, in recent years they are becoming cheaper and more common. SSDs also offer tremendous advantages in physical size, weight, power efficiency, along with negligible heat production and noiseless operation.

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Ports

Ports are a necessity for connecting to TVs, cameras and other devices, therefore, you should also check the ports to make sure they meet your needs before making a purchase.

Thunderbolt: They are a super high bandwidth used for high speed transfer of data between devices.

HDMI: Hi-Definition Media Interface, Connects a projector or display HD media on your flat-screen TV.

USB: Universal Serial Bus

• USB 2.0: Connects external drives, gaming controllers, smartphones, MP3 players and other accessories.
• USB 3.0: Transfers data faster than USB 2.0, but only when used with USB 3.0 devices.
• USB Type-C: Provides blazing speeds and versatile power, featuring connectors with identical ends that plug in upside down or right-side up. Adapters allow for video as well as backward compatibility.
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Lightening: Lightning connector is used to connect Apple mobile devices like iPhones, iPads, and iPods to host computers, external monitors, cameras, USB battery chargers, and other peripherals.

Memory Card Slot: For transferring the media from your camera memory card.