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Laptop Features You Can Skip If You Are On a Budget

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laptop

Buying a laptop.

There are many kinds of laptop in the market. In fact, we are flooded with laptops with amazing features. You may be bewildered by them, but one of the big factor we need to consider is your budget. If you just need a laptop for everyday tasks, you can pass on these features.

Here is the list of laptop luxuries you can skip:

  • Backlit Keyboard – Most laptops come standard with this kind of lighting. If you are the touch typist type, you do not need lighting to write in your keyboard. If you like games, then this will help you play in the dark. Yes, it is so cool, but not good for your eyesight, and totally unnecessary. Aside from this, you may have to pay extra.
  • Higher than 1080P screen – You can save money by not getting a laptop with a “full HD.” True, that a screen of a 3840 x 2160 (4K) resolution can give you sharp images, but if the display is small like 13 to 15 inches, the sharp resolution will not matter. This is only ideal if you have a bigger computer monitor. Pushing more pixels demands more electricity and will affect battery life on your laptop. You can allocate your battery to more important things.
  • Core i7 CPU – is needed for intensive tasks like transcoding videos or giant spreadsheet formulas. But if you are not doing that kind of job, there is no need to spend more. An Intel Core i5 processor balances price and performance.
  • Discrete Graphics – When all you do is research and browse the web, you can pass on high-end video cards. If you do not do professional-grade video editing, 3D modelling or play the current games, then you do not need this feature.
  • Infrared Camera/RealSense 3D – this feature works with Windows OS, and it is called Hello.  It logs you in your laptop via your facial recognition. It is nice but again, not a necessity.
  • Fingerprint Reader – it allows you to log in via Windows Hello. Putting your finger on a sensor is easier than typing your password. The latter is safer. Besides, Window 10 still needs to have a password.
  • Touch Screen on a Clamshell Laptop – if what you want is 2-in-1 that either flips back or detaches itself to become a tablet, a touch screen is necessary. But, on a standard clamshell laptop, it is not necessary. It also lessen the battery life span by a few hours and this may cost extra. (Read more on: why it is not a good buy.)
  • More than 256GB of Storage –Well, it is good to be able to multitask and launch app faster compared to a mechanical hard drive. However, based on the cost per gigabyte, SDD is more or less, 5 to 10 times more expensive as compared to hard drives. With the different services like the cloud storage, most people do not need more than 256 GB of storage.
  • 16 or more GB of RAM – Most people only need 8 GB unless you are a graphic designer, or a professional video editor. Also, it could be costly to configure your laptop to more than 8 GB.

8 Reasons Why a Touchscreen Laptop is NOT a Good Buy

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touchscreen computer

Touchscreens: Aye or Nay?

As a laptop user who is used to a keyboard, you will wonder why manufacturers are flooding the market with touch screen laptops. If you are a graphic artist, this may be ideal for you so you can have more control of your design. But if you are a plain housewife, a college student or a businessman, you might think twice. So, let us find out the advantages and disadvantages to help you decide.

Here are the advantages:

  • With a touchscreen display, it will be easier to apply any of the image editors available.
  • Designing using graphic apps like CAD will be easier as it gives proper dimensions.
  • If you are addicted to games, a touchscreen laptop will make it easier for you to play games.
  • Microsoft has made their operating systems compatible to non-touch and touch based laptop can increase your productivity.
  • Touch screens makes it faster and easier to interact with your PC compared to using a mouse or track pad and a
  • If you have a pen (stylus) input, you can draw or write on the screen with excellent precision. Windows 7 & 8 can translate anything you write on screen into text. So, if you are not too fast in typing, this is a time saver for you.

This being said, touchscreen laptop will garner your yes in buying one, but there are a lot of disadvantages. Read carefully the list because it might just change your mind.

Here are the disadvantages:

  • Touchscreen display can consume your battery power compared to the normal display as the touch digitizer is always on whether you are using it or not.
  • It has additional mechanisms and sensors which adds 0.2 to 0.4 more pounds and thickness. This will affect its ergonomics and portability which defeats the purpose of being handy.
  • Touchscreen laptops affects the brightness and the viewing angles. It also shows reflections as it uses glossy material.
  • The touch screens links and buttons are small that clicking them can be difficult especially when you are filling out forms and shopping.
  • You will surely have more smears on your screen and getting out the microfiber cloth could be bothersome to most people.
  • Since a touchscreen laptops are priced higher than the normal ones, it can affect your budget. It surely is NOT cheap and affordable.
  • Try holding your arm for two minutes and surely your hand will fall off. What about using your touchscreen for hours? You will really feel your hands and arms getting tired. A good touchpad is more helpful than a touchscreen. It offers helpful movements like two finger rotation and more and three-finger swipe. A touchpad can navigate Windows 10’s desktop as easy as with a touch screen.
  • Research shows that touchscreen eventually will give us shoulders and back problems due to a lot of reaching out.

In conclusion, the touch screen functionality does not meet any necessary needs. Spending so much on an elegant laptop is totally fine, but putting your health on the line is too high a price to pay.

 

 

How to Pick the Best Portable PC?

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computer devicesThere are lot of portable devices out there. It has become a trend worldwide. People are gradually giving their desktop computers up. There are endless of choices presented, and buying one device that fits your needs is tougher than you think. You have to choose between an all-purpose laptop, netbook, ultrabook, and a hybrid. Choosing the right device can be so confusing. This guide will help to decide on what device you should get.

  • Hybrid (or convertibles, 2-in1 PC, laplet.) If you are after mobility, go for a fusion between a PC and a tablet. Know that these hybrids are mostly “tablet-first” meaning they are basically tablets with optional keyboards. They are usually detachable like the Microsoft Surface series and the ASUS Transformer Book series. These additional accessories – keyboard, pen, tablet cover – are not free with your purchase. They may have limited apps depending on their respective app stores, and limited storages options.
  • Chromebook. If you want an operating system that is NOT Windows, you might want to give Chromebooks a chance. This devices runs Google’s ChromeOS. Like the Microsoft Surface Pros, they are dependent on the web apps available at its app store. They are not compatible with third party applications and you can only rely on the Chrome Web Store for applications. It does not support expandable memory and storage. You cannot find a Chromebook with a storage more than 32 GB. Instead, you will have a free cloud storage of 100GB. The only good side with these web-centric Chromebooks is that they are cheap. Notable examples are HP Chromebook, Samsung Chromebook 3, and Acer Chromebook 11. Both brands have them under $200.
  • Netbook. These are small, highly portable, lightweight computer. It is a perfect choice for people on the go and on a tight budget. Most of the manufacturers discontinued netbooks because of the new ultrabooks, but you can still see online deals. Netbooks might not be as powerful as an ultrabook, but they can handle daily computing tasks, and perform the majority of the functions of a laptop. Another good feature is that they have a long battery life, and definitely better than most laptops. They can last over 5 hours on daily use.
  • Ultrabook. If you are looking for fast, and sleek computers, this is it. Ultrabook is a high-end, elegant, and ultraportable notebooks. The most notable example is Macbook Air. In recent years, various PC manufacturers released their own line. If you are a Windows fan, you can choose from ASUS Zenbook, HP Envy, Toshiba Protégé, and other popular brands. Like netbooks, they are lightweight, and they can last long in terms of battery life. Ultrabooks are powerful and can handle Full HD videos, and some heavy games. On the downside, they may have limited ports due to the slimmer design and they are really expensive.
  • Laptop. If you need a more flexible computer, you better spend your money on a standard laptop. If you need to plug in different USB devices, SD card reader, HDMI port, and you need a CD/DVD drive, look no further. Others might be portable and great for travelling, but this is your all-around computing machine. You can check out laptops from the Acer Aspire E, and Toshiba Tecra C series.

 

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