Whoohoo my first post.

Nice guide, but some new considerations should take more precedence since Vista's launch.

First, I wouldn't rank RAM as being one of the major considerations when purchasing a laptop, mostly for the reason pointed out. It is really the easiest upgrade you can do yourself with very little know-how. As such, the bigger consideration shouldn't be "how much" RAM the system comes with, but how many available slots does the system have. For example, if I purchase a budget system with 1 gig of memory, I would be more interested to know whether the physical memory scheme is 1 gig stick or two 512 sticks. If it is a single stick or RAM, then I have one slot available for an upgrade at a later date. If both slots are occupied, then I know I would need to reduce my system memory by half in order to free a slot for a larger capacity stick. The difference being that I would have to pay twice as much to upgrade if both slots are occupied and I would have a stick of memory I'm not using. If I purchase a system with only 512mb, them I'm next to assured to have one open slot. A current price check though puts Corsair Value Select 1 GB DDR2 ram at aproximately $40, and $20 for a 512mb stick. That's a tank of gas, so the improtance in analyzing RAM as a practical issue is relatively low in the face of other static issues. Given that Vista is now the default OS for the lion's share of laptops, and 1.5 gigs of memory appears to be the sweet spot, taking into account exactly what you can do is probably more imporant than how much it comes with out of the box.

Second, I really think the CPU issue is vastly underscored here. With the release of the Core 2 Duo line, it's now really the dividing factor of whether you are purchasing a "budget" laptop or a desktop system replacement. For me personally, the biggest factor has been whether to invest the cash (at least $900) for a core 2 duo system which in all likelihood will still perform rather decent two years down the road, as opposed to going budget for a lighter CPU that's going to show it's age a lot sooner.

Third, size and screen are really superficial issues in my opinion. Consumer Reports uses ergonomics as one of it's big quality factors when rating laptops. I think that's idiotic. For anyone who's ever had their office laptop switched out and had to work on a system they are unaccustomed to knows that you eventually adapt, and usually pretty quickly. The same goes for adding 6 lbs as opposed to 4 lbs to your daily routine. The difference of 2 lbs is nominal at best. It's the difference of whether you pack your lunch or go out to lunch; it's not as big a deal as people make it. Screen size should be limited to asking yourself whether you are comfortable looking at the screen or not. It shouldn't take more than a few seconds to decide. Further consideration is just a mental game IMO.

Fourth and finally is storage. HDD capacity, optical drives, card readers, and USB ports pretty much all fall under this category. Don't undervalue the importance of having a satisfactory internal hard drive. First off, it's going to be the one place that all your data is going to be guaranteed to be before, or if, you back it up. Considering upgrading your hard drive would in most cases necessitate the purchase of an additional Operating System license, you're talking a significant chunk of change in order increase your HD capacity. I'm sure most people are throwing up a red flag here as external USB HDD back ups are all the rage now, and that's all well and good until you accidentally forget it at home or the office and you find yourself needing something you've saved there. Same goes for thumbdrives, back up discs, and most other forms of backup devices. Rely first on the HDD, and spend your money there first, then move on to DVD back ups, media cards, or what ever your preference may be.

Man, I need to buy a computer.

hi guys~im a newbie who totally dunoe wad shud i get for my laptop~ i mean i wanna get a laptop for gaming~ any guide?

For gaming, pay attention to which video card is in the laptop first and foremost.

thanks, this guide is great for newbie laptop buyers like myself really helps you know what to look for

This is one of the good post especially for the middle class people. When I got my first laptop I just saw the cost and nothing else. But one should think on more broad things when buying laptops.

hi,guys i want to buy new notebook for my work and i need some advice from some specialist just like u,anyway i need notebook have Os:Windows 7 and Cpu:Core i7 and i want to buy between sony ,dell ,Ibm if anyone know good model notebook please tell me,oh i need all this for work with autocad all of thing i need is improve speed of rendering.if anyone know anything to help me plz tell me i need to know.thanks a lot all of u

Well, Windows 7 isn't released until October and the first mobile Core i7 processors should be coming out around that time as well with the rest being released in January, so I'd advise you to wait until then to start seriously looking.