Laptop buying Guide 2024 (What factors to consider when Buying a new Laptop)

Looking to buy a new laptop but can’t decide which one to buy? There are a number of big manufacturers such as Dell, Lenovo, HP, and Acer is selling a wide variety of sizes, features, and prices, which makes it difficult to decide which laptop is best for you. Here Our laptop buying guide help to choose a Processor, RAM, Internal memory, Graphics card, and battery for a good performance laptop. But if you are in hurry, here is our recommendation Choose a display size between 12.5 to 14, an intel core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, a 1920 x 1080 screen, a Minimum 5 to 8 hours of battery life and prefer SSD Storage instead of a hard drive.

What are the specifications of a good Laptop?

Now let’s discuss the factors you must check, Depending on your computing needs, there are several factors to consider before deciding which laptop is best suited for you. Basically, a Laptops performance is based on 5 main pillars

Processor + RAM + Internal memory + Battery + Graphics card = Performance

Laptop buying guide
Photo credit Unsplash

Which brand is best for Laptop?

This is the first question that comes to your mind when buying a laptop, which brand is best for a laptop? This is basically because, even after identifying a laptop with all the right features, it all ends with what you’re heart is comfortable with. You might have love for a certain brand or might just want to try out something new. So the brand choice is entirely up to you. But recommend you need to choose a brand that has spent quite some time in the market. This is so essential because in the future, you might need to make replacements to some of your hardware components, stuff like the keyboard, screen and other components.

Which processor is best for Laptop?

The processor or the Central Processing Unit is the brain of that desktop or laptop. It does exactly the same as the human brain. It does all the logical and arithmetic operations. Processors are classified according to how powerful they are. This means if you have a more powerful processor, the more tasks that the computer can process at a single time. The processor consists of the clock speed which particularly tells how many tasks can be run at a time.

There has been an advancement in the processors over time all the way from the Pentium processors to the most current i9. As you can tell, i9 is the most powerful processor, but again not everyone needs an i9.

Also read: Compare Intel core i3 vs i5 vs i7 processors Which One Best?

Selecting the right processor would depend on the kind of applications you wish to run. If you’re the kind of person who plays a lot of games, do a lot of video editing, or a programmer who will always be running powerful IDEs like Android Studio, then advise you to have at least a 10th-generation i5 processor. It’s exactly what you need to render those graphics, games, or powerful IDEs. Here’s a quick reference guide to help you select the right processor

Which processor is best for Laptop

Is 4GB RAM enough for my Laptop?

RAM (Random access memory) is measured in terms of Gigabytes (GB) which temporarily stores data as it is being processed by the processor. And the amount of RAM decides how smooth and lag-free an experience you get on your laptop.

A person who performs a lot of heavy tasks like gaming, programming, and video editing needs a lot of this. We recommend at least 8GB. but if you can get more, the better. With RAM, you can upgrade even after buying your laptop as most of computers these days contain more than one space for RAM chips. So you can upgrade to more RAM by utilizing the extra ports. However, if you’re a regular user who does surfing, and document editing then 4GB of memory is just enough for you.

Also read: Difference between static RAM and dynamic RAM, Which is preferred?

Which one is best DDR4 or DDR3?

We recommend buying a laptop with DDR 4 RAM as it is faster, has an efficient power consumption that improves battery life and features prove your laptop. Where DDR3 RAM is cheaper but older slower & consumes more power

How much RAM enough for my Laptop

How much storage do I need on my laptop?

Selecting the right amount of storage capacity for your laptop depends on storage space requirements and the speed of storage. As you can guess, the more storage you have, the more files you can store on your Laptop. However, unlike in the past when there were only HDD storage devices, there’s is a new kind of storage called the SSD. So there’s to be a choice between the two. SSD is the newest and obviously, it has more advantages over HDD including faster rates of reading data. But the advantages come with a cost, SDD is somewhat more expensive than HDD.

If you don’t mind the amount then SSD is the best but if you mind the amount then HDD should be just fine. The capacity I recommend is at least 500 GB for all groups of people. You can decide to change to a bigger size in the future as your requirements expand.

Read this before Choosing the right storage for your laptop, the Difference between HDD and SSD.

Choosing the right storage for your laptop

Do I need a graphics card on my laptop?

If you are a gaming user you must consider this, video card memory is mostly referred to as the GPU. Gaming requires a lot of video memory if you’re to enjoy it. Opt for at least 4 GB of video memory, if you’re to enjoy smooth loading and playing. The screen resolution should at least be 1920 x 1080 for the clearest experience. Also If you are using photo and video editing software like Photoshop, design software like AutoCAD, and of course most modern games require a dedicated graphics card to function smoothly

If you’re not into gaming at all, then a minimum of 1GB of video memory should work for. There won’t be much load on the graphics card. The screen resolution should as well be at least 1920 x 1080. You also need clear text and images in the screen.

Pro tip: Just like RAM the more the GBs in your graphics card the smoother your games will run even in full HD or 4K resolution

Which laptop screen size should I buy?

The next thing you want to look at is the laptop screen size, If you are looking for gaming purposes, the screen size matters and you need a bigger screen. But for some tasks, there’s completely no need for a very large screen especially if you’re going to be moving around here and there with your laptop.

So for students who will always carry a laptop to class, and businessmen who will always carry a laptop regularly to work, make sure to get a portable laptop, in other words, a small-sized computer. For portability get a laptop with at most 14 inches of screen size.  This will save you the energy to be used while carrying that laptop bag. But as you plan to buy a portable laptop, it shouldn’t be too small, long hours on the computer of a small will often cause eye strain, therefore, you should mind keeping your eyes healthy too.

  • 11 to 12 inches: The thinnest and lightest systems around have 11- to 12-inch screens and typically weigh 2.5 to 3.5 pounds,
  • 13 to 14 inches: Provides the best balance of portability and usability, particularly if you get a laptop that weighs under 4 pounds.
  • 15 inches: The most popular size, 15-inch laptops usually weigh 4.5 to 6.5 pounds. Consider this size if you want a larger screen and you’re not planning to carry your notebook around often.
  • 17 to 18 inches: If your laptop stays on your desk all day every day, a 17- or 18-inch system could provide you with the kind of processing power you need to play high-end games or do workstation-level productivity.

Choose the right battery for your laptop

This is another crucial factor to consider while buying a laptop. A strong battery should be key when buying a new laptop. You will occasionally be away from power sources especially if you’re to be moving with the laptop. This applies to students, and business people who carry laptops every day from home to work. A battery that can last for at least 4 hours is great as you can finish work without worrying about the power supply.

Operating system and Price

So having looked at everything you need on your laptop, it’s time to look at the operating system that you can work with. The most distinct operating systems that you’re going to choose from are Windows OS and MAC OS.

Don’t mind about Linux at this as you can choose to install it at any time and on any kind of laptop. MAC OS is manufactured by Apple and only runs on Apple machines, so if you’re that person with Apple everything, MAC is for you. The rest of the computers can run all operating systems apart from the MAC Operating System. Something to note is the price, Apple laptops are a bit more expensive than the rest.

Warranty

A warranty is a written document from the manufacturer or seller to a buyer to guarantee laptop repair or replacement for a specified period of time. Most of the genuine sellers provide this service and I recommend buying a laptop that has at least a 1year warranty. In this case, you won’t be stressed in case of any hardware failure.

You should, however, be very careful while handling a laptop that has a warranty, a very small mistake like opening the laptop cover can void the warranty and make it useless therefore make sure you read and understand the terms and conditions for the warranty.

Some other things:

Ports are usually not very important when choosing a laptop but it’s helpful if you get the connection you need right on the system rather than carry a slew of dongles. Most of the laptops have USB 3.0 ports and HDMI out for video. However, an increasing number of laptops use USB Type-C or Thunderbolt 3 ports that are USB Type-C compatible. Getting Type-C is a definite plus because you can use it to connect to universal chargers and docks.

Also, consider networking: Although all laptops have built-in wireless networking (if you have a fancy 802.11ac router, check your laptop’s wireless chip supports AC, so you get the best transfer speeds), not all have an Ethernet plug.

Did these tips help to decide which laptop is best for you? Let us know in the comments below. Also read:

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