You need to educate yourself on what is available. I suggest that you and your son go to the nearest Best Buy and Circuit City and
see what they have. I don't know if Sapulpa has these, but Tulsa surely does. Ask the sales people questions. Usually, there will
be one or two at a special price that will attract your eye, or, possibly, they can tell you about another model that will be coming
on sale soon. Find out what processors these computers have, what video cards, and how much money. Then go home and Google these
to find out more, or go to Newegg.com to find out more. After you educate yourself on your needs, wants, and budget, then you can
make an informed decision. There might have a going-off-to-college special going on now that has the best compromise in features
and price that they could get for college students.
There are trade-offs in laptops that you need to understand:
If you go with a big, beautiful screen with a high-performance graphics card (good for games), then the machine will cost more, be
heavier, run hotter, and have a much shorter battery life between charges. I have one like this, and it gets so hot that I have to
put it on a piece of wood if I want to use it on my lap.
If you go with the latest, faster processor (good for games), then it will cost more, run hot, be heavy and have a shorter battery
life between charges.
If you get a small one with an older, slower processor, it will cost less, run cooler, have a longer battery life (unless the
battery is smaller), and be slow. But, it will be okay for taking notes and typing up papers and lab reports. Also for killing
time with FreeCell.
Are you getting the picture? Speed, graphics, and screen size are opposites of money, heat, and weight. You and your son should
decide how much each factor is important. I have a nice laptop that I can play games on (not the new games that are resource hogs)
and use programs like Starry Night or Turbo Tax, but it was expensive, it is big and heavy, hot, and has a short battery life. If I
had realized when I bought it how hot it would get, I would have gone for something cheaper and smaller...
Dean Kukral
PS: Office Depot, Office Max, and local mom and pop computer stores may be helpful, too. Tiger Direct. I just gave my personal
favorites.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Reggkay" <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, July 29, 2008 11:42 PM
Hi,
I have been away from computers for around 4 years and I know in that
time things have changed greatly. My son is needing a laptop for
college this year and he also wants to be able to play some games on
it. Could someone recommend the specs that I should be looking for when
I'm shopping? Also, does anyone know of any good deals out there on
computers?
Me and my pocket book thank you in advance for your help.
Regina Long
Sapulpa, Oklahoma
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