Buying a computer - what do you think of?

Question

Processor Speed: 1.5 GHz Memory (RAM): 512 MB
One of my kids is going to be going to college in the fall and I thought this would be a great gift - a laptop computer. This is the kid that helped me buy the computer for the house. I cant very well ask her if I want to surprise her so can you all help me out please? Thanks

Answer 1

Hi there


I don't really dig laptops. If your son owns a car a PC would definetelly do...

Specifications:
Motherboard socket 754 or 939 (AMD 64-bit)
RAM 1GB-2GB
hard disk space (120GB +)
DVD (one of those blue ray technologies)

atleast the above is not dead technology and it is absolutely worth every cent atleast for the next coming 2 years.

It can run the latest version of windows vista (from microsoft) and the latest versions of Linux if you're like me and appreciate good things.

I think laptops are not really ideal for student... they are very excellent for grown-up and business people.

I just started working recently and I still have to complete the last couple of subjects and none of my friends think laptops are ideal.

I have a laptop but I barely even use it, i know it is possible for example if you do not have a car and have to use public transport from the university to your home during holidays and so forth


anyway the choice is absolutely yours.... just my suggestions:


good luck

Answer 2

That sounds like a capable machine. Is she using it for school work? If you can find a laptop with a faster processor, even better. Also, try to get your hands on a "future proof" machine. Something that can be easily upgraded, now that Vista is on the market. One more thing: is the 512MB RAM the maximum, or the starting point? Just plan out what your daughter wants to do. Burn media (CD, DVD), download files, store documents etc. Harddrive size, processor speed, and memory are what you are comparing. Usually the more the better.

Answer 3

hi,

if the kids into computers she probably likes her power. so i'd look for something with a bit more pep then that.

check out the specs on this bad boy
http://www.ciao.co.uk/Toshiba_Satellite_P100_188__6504392

seeing as your in the states, it would be a lot cheaper over there too.

toshiba would be a good brand to go with and the satellite is a good model, doesnt nessisarilly have to be as big as that one though

heres what i'd look for

at least 15" screen
at least a dual core processor (running at least 1. 5GHz)
at least 80GB hard drive
at Leat 1GB of ram.
cd / dvd burner
windows XP (dont get vista just yet)


other then that just look for things like lots of USB and perhaps firewire ports. built in wireless will be handy as will bluetooth and infared. maybe even a multi card reader (maybe now im going overboard LOL)

but deffo all the things at the top i said there.

oh, and if she's going to college she might be travelling a lot with it, so get her a nice travel bag for it :)

Answer 4

512 RAM is OK, but if you're buying a new one, why are you going for 1.5GHz Processor (AMD is better than Intel ; ). Go for 2+ GHz processor.
This is the best gift you can give to your kids. Wish them all the best for the life coming forward.


; )

Answer 5

For typical college work that will work fine. If she is going to be using programs like AutoCAD then that system maybe too slow for smooth operation. My laptop is a 1.6 GHz with 512MB RAM and it works fine for IT troubleshooting, network testing, college work, listening to music and watching movies.

Answer 6

Thats really very good that you need to surprise your Kid....
But if you really need to do that ,then go with a Personal Computer rather than Laptop.........
The Configuration is good ,you can get a good deal frm Market....