Looking for a new computer while getting your money’s worth can be a very overwhelming task. Big box retailers can add to the confusion while trying to understand why one computer is twice the price as a similar machine right next to it. Asking the on hand “expert” behind the name tag to explain the difference is often responded with: “uhhh.. it’s better”.
We hear about these bad experiences a little too often – and while purchasing a new system from us will ensure that you get the best system at the best price – shopping around in today’s economy is never a bad idea. In order to help you with this task, we present you with our first buyer’s guide to help you understand and purchase a machine that won’t break down on day 366 or become sluggish in no time.
- Do not get a processor lower than an Intel i3. Stay away from Celeron, Core 2 duo, etc as they are older and slower technologies (no matter what the sales rep tells you). Look for i3, i5 or even an i7 processor.
- Do not get a computer with less than 3GB of RAM. For the simple reason of lowering costs, some manufacturers are selling computers with as little as 2GB of RAM. While this happens to be the minimum requirement for Windows 7, your computer will seem sluggish in no time.
- Don’t be fooled by large hard drives. Hard drives are a cheap upgrade. In most cases, a 320GB hard drive is more than enough for the average user. You could easily store over 50,000 songs or pictures using an 8MP camera.
- Watch out for the low end computers. (Home entry level grade). While their stats may look deceivingly good, they are built with low end parts and encasing. While at first this won’t seem to be a big deal, with time, little things will start to go such as the hinges on your laptop’s screen getting loose, causing your screen to “flop” around.