How to buy a computer quick tips for saving money
When buying a computer, the first thing you have to think about it what you want it to do. Now I know this may come as a shock to you, but 90% of the general population only use a computer to browse the internet and write the occasional letter to grandma. So, why are computer companies trying to push dual core, 10 kazilabytes of ram, and dual cupholders on us? They make more money that way, of course!
You don’t need all that stuff. You may have heard about the Eepc, which is a laptop already on the market for under $300. These are great little computers that actually run Windows XP and do everything the other computers do, except walk the dog, and I can do that myself, thank you. This computer has already had an impact as several manufacturers now offer “netbooks” for under $400.
And if you really want to save money, hold onto that old workhorse just a bit longer. There is a company in India that is set to produce a $25 LAPTOP to help their huge uneducated population. It is doubtful that computer will be imported to the U.S., but it should put some pressure on the big guys to lower their prices. In fact, reports have it that there will be a new computer by the end of the year for approximately $100 for the rest of the world. It will be basic, but basic is what most people need. It pays to hold off for one of these obviously.
But beware, look out for scams that tie you into a contract. AT&T has recently been offering a computer for $100 if you sign up for one of their data plans. Bad news there. You have to sign up for a 2 YEAR contract at their ridiculous data plan rate plan of $60 a month, AND there is a 5 gigabyte cap on usage on top of that! If you go over, your bill could be thousands of dollars as several people have recently found out.
Please, don’t get tied into a contract with this rip off. T-Mobile offers the best deal for mobile internet. If you have a data enabled phone, which most are believe it or not, you can get UNLIMITED internet on the phone, AND tethered to a laptop for $24.99 a month with a cell phone plan. Can’t beat that with a big stick.
If you are looking for speed, and not comfort, there are only two things you need to know. Intel will advertise their dual thingamajig processors that run so fast, the hounds couldn’t catch em’. But guess what? There are two other areas that are overlooked that can speed up your computer even more and cost a lot less. Besides, without the other two, all the processor speed in the world is useless.
Buy the most RAM you can. This memory has come down so much in price, you can now get 2 or more gigabytes for what 256k used to cost. This memory allows your computer to run much faster because the data is accessible instantly, without the computer having to “search” all day, to make it simple. If you run multiple applications, or heavy use in general, your computer may run out of RAM memory and slow considerably, or even crash. RAM is like the Dam holding back the river, you always want to wall to be high enough.
The other piece of hardware that is ALWAYS overlooked is the bus. This little gem transfers data between the components inside the computer. So you see, even if you have the fastest processor on planet earth, if the data can’t be transferred from one component to another in a timely fashion, it is useless.
The bus is the most mysterious and overlooked part of the system. Kind of like Dan Quayle was as Vice President. The problem is, there is no Intel or Microsoft to lead the charge, and no company I know advertises them. Worse yet, every computer manufacturer will use the cheapest bus possible because they know no one is looking, which means they are sloooooooooow. The only real solution unfortunately, is to have your computer custom built or upgraded, and this isn’t a job for Best Buy tech. But, if you really want speed, don’t overlook the bus.
Finally, I know a lot of people hate this, but Vista is a faster system than XP. I personally don’t use it, but even people that hate the fact that it is more complicated and cumbersome agree it is faster. The reason is that Vista supports 64 bit processing, which in laymen terms is INCREDIBLY faster at reading data than 32 bit processing. Again, if you’re not looking for speed, don’t worry, but if you have to have the latest and greatest, Vista may be for you. And, there will be a newer version soon that is promised to be better. We will see.
