Please help me choose my processor and then evaluate my computer.?

Question

I'm in the process of purchasing a laptop for my wife. She will use it for checking email, internet access, and perhaps school if she decides to go back to get her MBA in the near future.

My choice of processors are all AMD processors:

Athlon TK-53@1.7ghz
Turion TL-56@1.8ghz
Turion TL-60@2.0ghz
Turion TL-64@2.2ghz

First question: Which processor would you suggest I get? The TK-53 would probably suffice, but I want something that is still useable 4 or 5 years from now.

Other features:

Operating System: Windows Vista Premium
Hard Drive: 160 GB
Memory: 2GB Dual Channel DDR2
Display: 17" High Resolution Wide Screen
Video Card: ATI RADEON Xpress1270 HyperMemory
Drive: CD / DVD writer (DVD+/-RW Drive)
Sound: ExpressCard Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio Sound Card

Second question: Is this computer sufficient for some someone who wants to check email, surf the web, and do term papers for class?

Thanks in advance for your help!!

Answer 1

For browsing the Internet and basic task you can't go wrong with any of the above processors. Heck, they are are overkill. For what you want to do you could grab something a few years old off eBay and still be fine.

You don't need something that is state of the art unless you are planning on doing some serious gaming, or some HEAVY video editing. In that case, you shouldn't be looking the the notebook category to start with. They overheat and are underpowered compared to their desktop counterparts.

My advice is to get the cheapest thing you can find that has everything you need. Don't be concerned by processor speed or the amount of RAM. It's all secondary in your case. Also keep in mind, that if you must have state of the art technology - No, matter what you buy today it WILL be obsolete in six months.

Answer 2

any computer made in the last 5 years is probably good enough for that. 'usable in five years' is relative. if you reinstall windows regularly it will be just as useable in 5 years as it is now. if you want to submit to featuritis and get windows vienna the day it comes out then by all means get the most expensive processor. otherwise the first one should be good enough for surfing, email, and typing papers. heck, you might even be able to play doukutsu ( http://www.miraigamer.net/cavestory/ ) which is, btw, the greatest game ever. the problem I see is where it says 'windows vista premium'. there is a good alternative called ubuntu. for doing some things it can be difficult to configure, but if all you want to do is email, surf, typing, it will perform much better than vista. it makes it seem like your system is twice as fast and it's prettier than vista with beryl. hope this doesn't count as spam.

Answer 3

Buy the best. She is your wife. She deserves it.